Discover Delta’s revamped Premium Select Class on the A350-900

Delta’s Premium Select class now has perks like a bubbles and bites service, more comfortable bedding, and roomier seats.

On longer-haul trips, I always feel like Goldilocks searching for the right in-flight experience. The luxury of first class, with its lie-flat seats, is typically a bit out of my price range, and economy, while more affordable, can leave me feeling rumpled and groggy upon arrival. For my recent flight from Atlanta to Rome, I hoped that Premium Select, Delta’s intermediate cabin class that just got a host of new upgrades, would feel just right.

I’m not alone in the quest: upgraded seats are trending with travelers and airlines are taking note. “As we come out of the pandemic, we’re seeing that customers have more appetite for premium experiences and differentiated products. Customers are willing to invest in experiences, and many are looking to make milestone trips or long-awaited vacations even more special,” says Mauricio Parise, Delta’s vice president of brand experience.

Premium Select’s new perks, which were added in September and include benefits like more comfortable seats and premium amenity kits, were designed to add that special something to the in-flight experience at a more reasonable price point, according to Parise.

I couldn’t wait to see for myself if the experience lived up to the hype—and it did. Here’s why it’s worth upgrading to Delta’s revamped Premium Select class on your next flight.

Premium Select had its own separate cabin—and it was noticeably more upscale
In Atlanta, I boarded Delta’s Airbus A350-900 plane and immediately noticed the cabin’s improvements over economy class. The seats were arranged in a 2-4-2 configuration, giving each passenger more room compared to the 3-3-3 seating in Delta’s main and Comfort+ cabins. The leather-clad, memory foam Premium Select seats have 19 inches of width, 38 inches of legroom pitch, and seven inches of recline (as compared with the regular economy seats that are 18 inches wide, with 31 inches of pitch, and four inches of recline).

Though Premium Select passengers on international flights are entitled to two free checked bags (versus one free in the main cabin), I opted to test my packing skills and travel only with a carry-on suitcase and backpack after hearing about the challenges with lost luggage plaguing Europe. The spacious overhead bin offered more than enough room, although I needed to step on my seat to heft the suitcase in (at 5-foot-4 I wished there was some sort of built-in step).

Once I settled in for the 10-hour flight, I was impressed with the thoughtful additions that made the experience feel special. Each seat was pre-set with a wrapped memory foam pillow and a plush, 60 x 40-inch blanket, which I later discovered was made from recycled plastic bottles. I plugged my phone into the USB port and tucked it into the small, phone-sized cubby in the armrest while we waited for takeoff.

Shortly after we were in the air, flight attendants came around to distribute printed menus with two entrée options, as well as a wrapped Grown Alchemist oshibori towel. They followed up a few minutes later with the new “bubbles and bites” service, offering a choice of Mionetto sparkling wine or sparkling water (both served in standard-issue plastic cups), paired with a packet of salty-sweet BobbySue’s Everything Goes Nuts—almonds studded with sesame and poppy seeds, onions and garlic. It’s a small, but meaningful touchpoint of service.

The in-flight dining experience had a business-class setup
Meal service came next, and the setup built anticipation for the experience, which started with a pressed white cloth laid over the tray table, which could be adjusted back or forward to accommodate a passenger’s needs. The airline’s commitment to minimizing waste was on display, with metal flatware and bagasse containers (made of sustainable sugarcane plant fiber) for each dish served on a reusable, slate-colored tray. The meal’s appetizer was a “superfood salad” of butternut squash, spiced pumpkin seeds, farro, apples, and dried cranberries. The vegetarian entrée of wild mushroom tortelloni with spinach and black truffle garlic cream was hearty but pleasantly light. The menu said we’d be served ice cream, but instead the meal ended with a petite lemon white chocolate blondie brownie. While the dishes were flavorful and satisfying, the only difference over regular economy was the table-setting: the menu was identical to what was served in all other cabins besides Delta One.

A robust selection of drinks was available, including a few ethically sourced hot teas from Thrive Farmers, sodas, beer, and wine. I opted to get in the spirit of my Roman holiday with a canned Negroni cocktail from Atlanta-based Tip Top Proper, which came served in a real glass over ice, though subsequent drinks were served in plastic cups.

While I waited for dinner service, I explored the more than 1,000 hours of movies, TV shows, and podcasts available through Delta Studio on the seatback screen. The cabin’s new noise-canceling headphones were wrapped with a paper band instead of plastic, printed with a note explaining that the absence of plastic helps keep 33,000 pounds of plastics out of landfills each year.

I also loved the new addition of amenity kits from the Mexico-based artisan collective Someone Somewhere. It came with an eye mask woven in the same material as the kit itself (pink, in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month), a bamboo toothbrush, a small tube of mint toothpaste from The Humble Co., and Grown Alchemist vanilla-watermelon lip balm and vanilla-orange hand cream. The sustainably sourced kits each come with the artisan’s name, so I scanned the QR code inside the flap to learn more about Michoacán-based Enrique. There was even an inspiring short film to watch, detailing the hundreds of artisans employed to make the kits.

The seats were comfortable enough to actually get good sleep
After the meal was cleared, I reclined my seat and discovered one of my favorite features: the adjustable leg rest that made the seat feel a bit like a recliner, complete with a small footrest for extra support. Even though I can almost never get any meaningful sleep in the air, I had to try. Premium Select has two of its own lavatories, so I took my amenity kit to brush my teeth and found the restroom big enough to avoid inducing claustrophobia. There were no extra perks inside (like the scented lotion often found in upper-class cabins), but on the three times I visited during the flight, it was clean and tidy.

Back at my seat, I got comfortable under the blanket, adjusted the headrest’s “wings” to support my head and hugged the ample 12 x 16-inch memory foam pillow as the crew dimmed the lights. I usually never get any decent in-flight sleep (including in business or first class), but I was surprised to doze off for several hours. I didn’t even stir when the crew came around to offer baskets of snacks (I asked later, out of curiosity, and discovered that options included Miss Vickie’s chips, bananas, Ghirardelli caramel milk chocolate squares, almonds, and 88 Acres Dark Chocolate Sea Salt bars).

Later, the crew came around to offer a snack-style breakfast of a fruit cup and a warmed English muffin with egg and Swiss cheese, served with bamboo cutlery wrapped in a paper cloth designed to cover the tray. I asked if they happened to have espresso (a girl can dream) and, while the flight attendant said no, they only had regular coffee in Premium Select, another overheard and brought me a steaming cup from the Delta One galley, complete with a tiny square of Tony’s Chocolonely chocolate on the saucer. It was just the pick-me-up I needed to perk up before landing.

Those unexpected acts of kindness and the extra opportunities to interact with the flight attendants made the experience feel upgraded—and that’s by design. The new Premium Select service was created with significant input from cabin crews. “More touch points of service is something that the flight attendants wanted,” Shari Jackon, a Delta purser, told me. “We’ve missed being able to give customers that ‘wow’ experience.” When I disembarked the plane in Rome, I left feeling like the flight attendants had certainly accomplished that mission. cnTraveler.com