Japan is one of the buzziest destinations of the moment, but for many of us, getting there requires a long trek.For our second trip to Japan, my husband and I decided to treat ourselves to business-class upgrades to make the long-haul flight more comfortable. We got a cheaper deal by taking a convoluted route from our home in the south of France: Marseille to London, London to Helsinki, and Helsinki to Tokyo. In the end, each round-trip ticket came to about 2,904 euros, or about $3,366.We spent our 14-hour flights between Helsinki and Tokyo in business class with Japan Airlines (JAL).I'm lucky enough to have flown business class a couple of times before — most recently with Qatar Airways — and I was excited to see how JAL's experience would compare.
We kicked things off with a stop in the Finnair Business Lounge in Helsinki.
Our stopover in Helsinki felt random, but it turned out to be lovely because the business-class lounge we visited there was fantastic.
Rachel Hosie
Access to certain airport lounges is a great perk of flying business class. Since Finnair and JAL are both Oneworld alliance members, we were able to access the Finnair Business Lounge on the non-Schengen side of Helsinki Airport.It was fantastic. The complimentary food was plentiful and delicious, and bartenders were pouring all sorts of drinks, from cocktails to Champagne. The lounge interior was comfortable, stylish, and spacious.On the way back, we got to use JAL's Sakura Lounge at Tokyo Haneda Airport. It was less inspiring, but still a relaxing place to wait.
