Saudia’s SURPRISING Business Class: A Review, A320, Rome to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Hello and welcome to another trip report and you've probably noticed that I'm in my car and not at an airport which is where I usually do my introduction videos

The fact is I've had to re-record both the introduction and closing scenes to this trip report because when I travel back at the end of May I made a complete hash of the opening and closing scenes by referring to the place I was going as Riyadh

I don't know why I did that. Today's trip report, you're flying with Saudi Arabian airlines from Rome to Jeddah

which is a completely different city in Saudi Arabia. Stay tuned to the end and you'll find out how much I paid for this ridiculously, ridiculously cheap flight

Roll the video. And welcome to Rome's Fiumicino Airport, where we left off last time

You might remember I came in on a connecting flight from Milan with Alitalia in economy class

Saudia used Terminal 3 here in Rome. It's a fairly modern building and handles most of the airport's long-range and intercontinental flights

Check-in opened three hours before departure. There was a separate business class line and, after my bags were weighed, I was free to leave

boarding pass in hand, to go airside. The whole process only took a few minutes

one thing i should let you know about flying saudi that a lot of people might overlook

they have a dress code their website says you should dress in line with public taste but

in practice this means no shorts for men and shirts must have at least a short sleeve women

should not bear legs or arms at all and avoid tight or revealing clothing it is a scorching

day in Rome. Definitely a short stay, but I've chosen to wear comfortable jogging trousers

even if they are a bit warm. The departures area of Terminal 3 is almost entirely new. It had to be rebuilt in 2015

after the previous building was gutted by a huge fire. Now, it's a pleasant space with

high-end shops, an airy feel and it's generally an improvement over the previous building

Normally, Saudia would use their alliance partners lounge here, which would be Alitalia

but this lounge is closed and there is a replacement arranged instead

On the mezzanine level, as well as yet more nice shops, is today's lounge, the Plaza Premium Lounge

This lounge was excellent. From good food options, to self-serve ice cream, to spotless shower suites, there was

so much to say about this lounge, I'll review it in depth in a separate video

I don't know about you guys, but a shower is the one facility at an airport that I absolutely die for

What's your favourite airport facility? Let me know in the comments below. Our Airbus A320 aircraft is mostly hidden away

I hate it when you can't get a good shot, but before long, it's time to board through the priority lane

which I can use due to my business class ticket. don't forget you can follow me on other social media too like twitter and instagram i live blog

all my trips and run competitions on instagram it's a good way to get a sneak peek at what sort

of videos you can expect to see on youtube in the months ahead but for now let's board our a320 to

the kingdom of saudi arabia hello good afternoon business class is a significant step up from the European business class you have seen before on my channel Seating is in a 2 plus 2 configuration and all seats are of the reclining armchair type This is my seat today 3L and that will be my home for the 5 hour trip into Jeddah

I really like the subdued colour palette Saudia have used in this cabin. In my opinion, the cabin has a relaxing ambience

There's also little competition for overhead bin space today. As you'd expect, legroom in this mid-haul configuration is outstanding

and it's actually a struggle to touch the seat in front. Our flight is around half full in business class today

and almost completely full in economy. I'm travelling during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan

which means very variable passenger loads for airlines like Saudia. A hot towel service is conducted on the ground

and the towels themselves are thick and substantial. There's also a pre-flight drink offered and I chose a smoothie

I'm not actually sure what was in this smoothie, but it was refreshing and quite different

to most pre-flight drinks I've had before. Newspapers are also handed out

This newspaper, the Arab News, actually runs a story on the new Jeddah airport

It's really a new terminal and was only handling a few domestic flights

We'll be using the old terminal when we land in Jeddah. An Islamic prayer plays during pushback

in aid of a safe journey, but I didn't film this, as some passengers were participating

and it doesn't seem right to film things like that without permission. Anyway, off we go

Thank you

Let's take a look at today's route as we head southeast towards Jeddah

Its 2,087 miles will take us 4 hours and 45 minutes, and we'll cruise at 36,000 feet

for most of the flight. A smart menu is handed out in the climb, and there's a reasonable choice between Western

and Arabic dishes. The drinks section does not include alcohol. Saudia is a dry airline, which means no alcohol is served

Let have a quick look at the seat Here the remote for the personal TV which I show you a bit later There a handy USB powerpoint and also one power socket per seat They worked without a problem

There are overhead screens which display the route map. The tray table is deployed from the armrest. You'll notice in this shot that the seat control buttons are manual switches

The headphones were quite tatty and not from a top brand, but they were OK, I guess

Service from the crew was professional and formal. Both male and female cabin crew were conspicuously well presented, and nothing was too much trouble

On to the meal service. The meal was presented neatly, and everything looked very appetising

The bread roll was warm and soft, the salad was fresh, and the Arabic meze was pleasant if a little oily

The highlight was the pistachio crust lamb chop main. Lamb is a risky meat to order on board aircraft

as the reheating facilities risk drying the meat out but I'm pleased to say this was spot on

Saudia also served a great Arabic coffee on board and after that came dessert

a chocolate and amarena cherry cake which was also excellent. I was very impressed with the food service

and it more than compensated for no alcohol. The business class toilet was kept clean throughout the flight

and there are designer toiletries available. It's soon time to test the recline of my seat

The controls are easy enough to use despite being manual and there's a fold-out footrest

The personal TV lives in the centre armrest and is also released manually

You can access content in English, French or Arabic. There's a moving map, of course, but there's also a wide range of TV and film choices

I do expect these have been censored with some deleted scenes to accommodate Saudi sensibilities

There's also a whole section of Islamic content, ranging from religious lectures to readings of the Koran

But I decide that SpongeBob SquarePants is more my sort of thing

The bedding is decent quality and more than OK for this medium-haul flight

and soon we've hit landfall over North Africa, Egypt to be precise

I've always found barren landscapes to be evocative and wonder at the vastness of the desert

Saudia's magazine showcases the kingdom's vast future plans. The country is opening up to outsiders and tourists

and I expect the national airline to have a big role to play in that. I can't let an in-flight magazine go without having a look at the route map

Saudia operate a lot of flights to the Indian subcontinent and further into Asia

and here's where I'm connecting through to, Jakarta, Indonesia. The amenity kit is well stocked with everything you would expect to find in one

The bag is simple and was designed by German sports car manufacturer Porsche

The best thing about any amenity kit is toothpaste, Clean teeth will always leave you feeling more human once you land

We start our descent over Aswan, Egypt, so I order one more coffee before service stops

In the descent, cherry sweets were handed out and the cabin lights were turned up, but

I really wish somebody had handed out some manners to the person in the row behind me Faisal Naval Base Airfield is just visible as we approach Jeddah from the south and we soon lined up on runway 34R where the local time is 9

Overall, I was very pleased with this flight on Saudiia

I deliberately chose them because they seem to get wildly varying reviews, with some saying

they're the worst airline in existence to others claiming they're among the best

In Britain, good hospitality wouldn't be the first thing to come to mind when discussing

Saudi Arabia. It's always good to try new things, even ones you suspect you might not like, because

sometimes you'll be surprised. Anyway, let me share with you the crazy fare I used

This fare is a regular fare and has been on sale for over nine months. might also just be the best value business class fair I've ever seen

Roam to Jakarta on Saudia, connecting through Jeddah or Riyadh, comes in at £430 one way

But you must book through to Jakarta, because only booking to Jeddah means you pay a lot more money

I have a wealth of knowledge on how to find deals like this, and I'm working on a way of sharing all my tips with you

Watch this space. And that's it for another Trip Report. Thank you so much for coming with me on that particular journey

between Rome and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. Let me know what you think of the video

and let me know what you think of Saudi Arabian Airlines. In the comments section below

make sure you subscribe to see my next video with Saudi Arabian Airlines

It'll be the next video published on this channel. In fact, Jeddah to Jakarta in their 777-300 business class

And I was on my own in business class on that journey. That's going to be a fantastic video

If you subscribe, you'll also get to see the rest of my Around the World Tour and all of the other great things

that I've got planned for the coming year. But until next time, see ya