United Polaris Business Class Review A First Hand Account
The new United Polaris business class is a major upgrade from the old United Business
class, which was discontinued in 2018. The refreshed cabin features updated finishes
and amenities that make it feel more like premium economy than budget-friendly
business. Cabin lighting is warmer, wall colors are neutral, and accents are more like
home than a hospital. The primary colors are blues and teals, with splashes of red –
think of the ocean. Each seat has an extendable desk, foot rest and storage galore.
There's even a small bedside table with an integrated lamp (a first for any airline). But
after spending hours in the cabin on our recent Polaris flight review between
Washington Dulles and Singapore, we discovered there’s still room for improvement in
these three areas: Noise levels, privacy and storage. Let’s take a closer look…
Noise in United Polaris Business Class
United Polaris business class is a very loud cabin – louder than premium economy
across the aisle, and louder than premium economy in the next cabin over. It’s also
louder than business class at other airlines. One obvious culprit is the crew moving
carts down the aisle in front of your seat. This is a more regular occurrence than it is in
other business classes, and can last a few minutes at a time. The noise is also due to
being near the galley, which runs from one end of the cabin to the other. While you can’t
control the noise level in your surrounding cabin, you can control how much noise you
make yourself. You can lower your voice, especially when engaged in important phone
calls or sensitive conversations. You can wear headphones or noise cancelling
earphones if you want to watch a movie. If you want to sleep, make sure to wear a pair
of earplugs. They’re a cheap but effective tool to help you tune out the noise.
Lack of Privacy in United Polaris Business Class
Privacy is an important but often overlooked part of flying in business class. It’s not just
about having a lie-flat seat. It’s also about being able to have a private conversation or
be able to close your eyes to rest without feeling like you’re imposing on someone else.
Given the layout of the Polaris cabin, privacy is not a strong suit. You can’t really close
the privacy divider between your seat and the one next to you, because the seats are
side-by-side. This means you can’t really have a private conversation with the person
next to you.
No Storage in United Polaris Business Class
United Polaris business class does have a generous amount of storage space, but it’s
not where you might expect it. Most of the storage is found on the seat in front of you.
You can access it by pressing a button. But there are a couple of drawbacks. One is
that it’s not very private. The button is right in front of your face, so anyone can see
what you put inside. And the other issue is that it’s general storage space. There’s no
way to store valuables like your phone or passport. There’s also no way to store items
at your feet or under your seat. Some airlines, like Cathay Pacific and Qatar Airways,
have cubbies where you can store your items.
Summary
Overall, United Polaris business class is a major upgrade from the old United Business
class, which was discontinued in 2018. The refreshed cabin features updated finishes
and amenities that make it feel more like premium economy than budget-friendly
business. But there are still a few areas for improvement. If you want to experience the
new Polaris business class, you can earn up to 100,000 United miles (that’s enough for
2 roundtrip tickets in Polaris) by signing up for the MileagePlus Explorer card. You can
also earn miles with the Chase Sapphire Preferred card or the Chase Ink Business
