Air France La Première does not advertise itself like other airlines. There is no loud marketing, no celebrity endorsement. It exists quietly at the front of a Boeing 777, six suites per aircraft, and it relies on word of mouth from the kind of passengers who don't tell many people where they're going. I am going to tell you everything.
The Beginning: Paris CDG
La Première passengers don't use the standard Air France check-in. A car is waiting at Heathrow to transport you to the dedicated La Première terminal at CDG on the connecting leg — a private suite within the airport where you can shower, have a full meal, and board via a dedicated airbridge directly to the suite. The whole experience from arrival at CDG to being seated is approximately 45 minutes, none of which involves a queue.
The terminal itself is exceptional. Think: private library, with food prepared to order by a chef, a selection of Grand Cru Champagnes, and art on the walls. There are perhaps twelve other passengers using it. It is absolutely quiet. The contrast with the CDG main terminal — one of the most stressful airports in Europe — is so violent as to feel surreal.
The Suite
The La Première suite is, in purely physical terms, the most spacious first class seat in the sky (alongside Singapore's new A380 Suites). The cabin has only six suites, each fully enclosed with a floor-to-ceiling door. The suite has a separate ottoman that can be positioned as a chair for a companion or used as part of the bed. The bed, made up with Joël Robuchon-designed linens, is 6 feet 7 inches long. I am 6 feet 1 inch. I slept completely flat.
The entertainment system is a 24-inch screen. The minibar is pre-stocked to your preferences (Air France calls ahead to ask — a detail I appreciated). The dressing room has sufficient space to actually change clothes standing up, which no other suite I've reviewed can claim. The whole space feels less like an aircraft seat and more like the world's smallest, most beautifully appointed hotel room.
The Food
The food is where Air France La Première separates itself from every other first class product in the world, and it isn't close. The menu is designed by Alexandre Mazzia, holder of three Michelin stars, and changes quarterly. On my flight: a starter of langoustine tartare with yuzu and caviar, a main of Bresse chicken with morel cream sauce and pomme soufflé, and a dessert of Paris-Brest that was unambiguously the finest thing I have eaten 35,000 feet above sea level.
The wine list is extraordinary — we are talking Meursault Premier Cru, Gevrey-Chambertin, and several bottles that retail at over £200. The sommelier (yes, there is a dedicated sommelier) is knowledgeable and enthusiastic in the way that French people are enthusiastic about wine: informatively, not aggressively. The Gevrey paired with the chicken was one of the wine experiences of my year.
Is It Worth £5,200?
This is not a question with a universal answer. If you have to ask whether you can afford it, you cannot. If price is not the primary constraint, then yes: this is the finest commercial aviation experience currently available on a route departing London, and I say that as someone who has also flown Singapore Suites and Etihad The Residence.
The better question is whether it's worth it relative to alternatives. Singapore's A380 Suites are comparable in product quality and offer better value for mile redemptions. Emirates First is superb and usually cheaper. But La Première has something the others don't quite have — a Frenchness, an aesthetic confidence, a culinary seriousness — that makes it uniquely memorable. Worth £5,200? Probably not for most people. Unforgettable? Absolutely.
