A nice spot to sit and enjoy your complimentary warm soda and bag of chips.

Notes: The Amtrak Club Acela Lounge at New York Penn Station is dark, a bit worn and offers little in the way of snacks or refreshment. What it does have is reasonably comfortable chairs and wi-fi. With just that You’re upwards of 90-something percent better off than being stuck waiting around the hoards of commuters shuffling between Amtrak, Subways and regional rail in the main areas of the station. Well, except for the food part.

The lounge does provide a cup of coffee and (maybe) a wrapped danish. It’s enough to get you started before digging in to get some work or pre-ride tweeting done.

Wi-Fi: Yes/Complimentary.

Service: Service is good if you’re ready to go. Maybe it was the slightly less than business-casual attire, but the front desk didn’t seem to believe that I was traveling in first class. While fishing for my ticket, I was grilled with questions like “Are you SURE You’re in Acela First and not Business?!”. Things got much friendlier when I found the ticket.

Convenience to gate: All tracks are just outside the lounge.

How I got in/Strategies: Access is available to Amtrak Select Plus Guest Rewards members, active United Club members or passengers with same-day business class air ticket aboard United. Amtrak passengers with same-day Acela First or sleeping car tickets are also admitted. One day passes are also available at any Acela Lounge.

Rating: 2 hops (of 5)

The Seat: This version of Delta Airlines Business Elite is one that’s stirred up tons of discussion since it’s  introduction as the airlines first with flat-bed seating. The reviews have been mixed and I can understand why. The angling of the seats is a little awkward in my opinion. 14A in particular is one that you’ll have to recline a bit to enjoy the benefits of being next to the window. You’ll also be facing in a direction that forces you to stare right at other seats…Again, awkward. Legroom isn’t as generous as other versions of Delta’s business class but by no means constricting (for most). If you’re one of our tallest modhop friends, you may find the curvature of the seat compartment a little frustrating. When the seat is fully reclined in the lie-flat seat position, even I (at 5’8″) found the curvature of the seat at the bottom to be bothersome.  One thing I really liked about the window seats in row 14 is that they’re separated from the aisle by a coat closet, giving the seat a more private feel and a little extra table space to spread out. The same is true for window seats in row 7.

Service: In most cases you would be flying this aircraft overseas so you’ll enjoy the benefits of an expanded menu, full duvet/pillow and amenity kit. This was a domestic flight with service that was adequate but nothing extraordinary.

Notes: This seat has the benefit of being far from galleys or lavatories so traffic is very low. If the bulkhead is free of crying babies, (or crying adults)  it should be a quiet flight.

Summary: The privacy of this seat is great. The extra table space provided in these window seats comes in handy and the seat is quite comfortable in the seated position. The benefits of a true lie-flat seat are enormous if you’re trying to sleep but the smaller area for your feet gives it a tighter feel. Certainly not much of a problem if you’re an average height, but I can see it being a little uncomfortable for the tallest of us. A good seat, but research other carriers to see if there’s a better choice on your route. Trans-Pacific options like Cathay Pacific and Qantas are worth looking into. On trans-Atlantic flights, try Virgin Atlantic…Just a few suggestions (there are plenty more).

Rating: 3 hops (of 5).

Strategy: Look for these larger planes when connecting via the airlines hubs if you’d like to fly them on US domestic routes. In this case, we connected in Detroit en-route to Los Angeles. This is done to position the aircraft for overseas routes or continue on to international destinations (and you’re more likely to find a 767 than a 777).  These larger business class sections create more upgrade opportunities for elites and can mean purchasable upgrades for anyone else at the gate.

How I got it: Delta Medallion Status

The Seat: 36A aboard this Delta 747  is rated as a premium seat on most seat-map sites like seatguru.com. Being a skeptic, I was anxious to see how much space I would find between the seat and the exit row slide…You see, I’ve been burned before. In fact, the video seat reviews that we regularly obsess over were inspired by the time I found myself stuck in 19F on this Delta 757.   I was happy to find that  this seat was NOT close enough to the exit slide to be a nuisance, although it might be of slightly lesser value to someone much over 6′.  There’s a small gap between the exit slide and row 35 so if you can do so without bothering the person in 35B, You’ll have all the advantages of an aisle seat as well as a window seat. Speaking of the window, You’ll have to turn your head just slightly further to see outside but not difficult. Movies aren’t easy to view from this seat. There’s a projection screen on the bulkhead wall to your right that you can see at an angle, but it’s difficult to sit in that position for any amount of time. Until Delta makes improvements to the in-flight entertainment we recommend bringing your own entertainment.

Service: Meals were served and help was provided in a friendly and timely manner. Nothing more or less than I could have hoped for.

Notes: At the time of this post Delta has begun re-fitting these aircraft with new slimline seats that will provide slightly more legroom in economy the new design. The new seats will be upholstered in Delta’s signature blue leather and fitted with personal TV/Entertainment systems with movies, games, maps and audio. Until the installation is complete you’ll experience the older Northwest Airlines era cloth seats with limited audio and shared movies overhead.

Summary: It appears that row 35 in seats B,C,H & J are superior seats with added legroom and easy aisle access and might be a better first choice. That said, 36A is a very good economy seat and the room around it gives it sort of an exclusive feel (and by that we’re not implying it’s anything like being in Business Class). It should also be noted that this and it’s opposite, 36K are the only seats in this row with extra legroom so if you’re traveling with (and sitting next to) a companion, one of you will be in a normal economy seat.

Rating: 4  hops (of 5).

Strategy: Delta Medallion (elite) members have first access to these seats but they can be requested at the gate. If you’re not a medallion level member try getting to the gate early and requesting something in row 35 (Seats B, C, H or J only) , then 36A and/or K if those aren’t available. SkyTeam Elite members and elite members of other specific airlines (such as Alaska Airlines) also have first crack at these premium seats.

How I got it: Delta Medallion Status.

The Seat: At first glance, this seat appears to offer a lot. The clam-shell design creates the illusion that it might be good for sleeping and the center console says “look at all this room for your arms”. The truth is that the seat DOES recline almost to a horizontal position…and “almost” is the the problem if plan to sleep. While you’ll be very comfortable getting some work done or watching a movie on your 10 inch personal TV screen, You’ll also find that at full extension the *176 degree recline leaves you angled slightly forward.  I woke up several times finding myself the victim of gravity at 38,000 feet with my knees bent and my whole body inching it’s way toward the floor. In the video review I say “less than generous” in regards to the width of the seat but while larger passengers may find the width a little restricting, *20.25 inches is comparable to many legacy US carriers in this class. (*seatguru.com)

Service: The Hawaiian touches were nice. A pre-flight mai-tai and “Aloha” printed on the menu were a nice reminder that we’re on our way to.. or coming back from this unique U.S. destination. Otherwise it was standard premium service for a U.S. airline. Flight attendants were cordial, prompt and helpful. Meals were tasty, well-presented and timed perfectly within the flight.

Notes:The proximity of these seats to the lavatory could be a concern but wasn’t a problem on this flight.

Summary: With true lie-flat seats slowly becoming the norm, these are no longer “great” business class seats. The awkward angle is terrible for sleeping and doesn’t bode well for the honeymooner/retirement hi-rise bunch trying to rest up for a week in paradise. That said, Delta continues to try and streamline it’s business class product (although it seems the A330′s aren’t at the top of the list). Service was average to slightly above with nice Hawaiian touch.

Rating: 3 hops (of 5).

Bonus: A330-300 Seat 1A (bulkhead)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Strategy: Delta Vacations offers mileage upgrades on certain fares within their flight/hotel packages. If you’re just looking for airfare (without hotel), you can still call Delta (we recommend doing this first) to ask about mileage upgrades.

How we got it: Called Delta Vacations before making reservation online to make sure that I was booking the minimum fare to be able to upgrade with miles. Once it was sorted out, I  used 30,000 miles for the entire round trip. This is the standard number of miles needed to upgrade round trip on select discounted fares from the continental US to Hawaii on Delta (15k each way).  So the number of miles used “from select fares” should be the same if you book through Delta or Delta Vacations. Again, just be sure you’re booking the right fare by calling first.

The Seat:Compared with seats offered aboard legacy competitors like those in Delta’s new Business Elite and United’s P.S. business class products, American’s Flagship transcon in business class falls short by a few inches in regards to legroom and seat width, but unless you’re nearing 7 foot tall my guess is that you’ll hardly notice. Seat review websites like seatguru mention that this is one of very few rows in business that is correctly aligned with the window, so cloud-gazers will have to lean forward if seated in a different row. Seat controls are, shall we say: “old school”, using manual levers and lacking the multiple and sometimes confusing seat controls of more modern seats. Winged headrests make it easy to nap and recline is sufficient for short term snoozing. Duvets and full pillows are provided as well.

Service:Service from the flight attendants and gate agents was standard. Everyone was attentive and helpful but nothing extraordinary when considering this is business class.

Summary:While I would have preferred an updated seat with a few more recline and lumbar options, I was pleased overall. Decent food selection, inflight wi-fi and abundant entertainment options helped to make the flight very pleasant. With as little as I had to do to get the upgrade, I was impressed.

Rating:3.5 hops (of 5).

Strategy: American Airlines offers 1 class upgrades (where available) to all members of their “AAdvantage” program in exchange for miles. In this case, I used just 15,000 miles and a $50 co-pay for a confirmed one-way upgrade from discount economy fare to business class. (*Update: As of December 2009, American has raised the co-pay to $75).

How I got it:AA Advantage mileage upgrade requested online.

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