United Polaris 767 Review - London to New York (EWR)

Hello and welcome to another video. I'm Paul Lucas and if you've been following this channel for any length of time you'll probably know that I have a very up and down relationship with United Airlines and I don't mean just taking off and landing. They are one of the most inconsistent airlines that I have flown with and today I'm treating myself to their Intercontinental Polaris Business Class. They're running this on a 767-300 from London to Newark. I've heard some great reviews about this product so I'm really excited to get on board. Let's head to Newark and get this journey started. Enjoy the video. My United experience begins at the transfer desk in Heathrow's Terminal 2. If, like me, you arrive on a connecting flight this is where you'll have your documents checked and pick up your boarding pass. Terminal 2, known as the Queen's Terminal, is the newest of Heathrow's terminals. It's my personal favourite and it's also where you'll find all of the Star Alliance carriers. United flies a wide range of aircraft into Heathrow. As well as a Morning 757 to Washington Dulles, the carrier also operates 787s to Denver and Los Angeles, 777s to Houston and San Francisco and Boeing 767s to Chicago and Newark. Our 767-300 is one of United's high premium aircraft. On these there are just 56 basic economy seats, 43 extra legroom economy, 22 premium economy, and the whole front half of the aircraft right down to the wing is occupied by 46 brand new Polaris Business Class seats. London to New York is a super lucrative market. British Airways, for instance, takes in $1 billion a year in revenue on the New York route alone. United's club is at the Beegate Concourse. It's not officially a Polaris lounge, a branding reserved for their very top-tier lounges, but it is by some distance the best United club I've been to. Everything in the lounge, including food and drink, is included and the options for both are pretty good, even though the view right now isn't great with the construction outside. The shower suites here are stunning, spotlessly clean and tastefully decorated. There's also a shirt and trouser pressing service. Stick your garments in this cupboard and a member of staff will press them as you shower. Overall, the United club in Heathrow is a very solid lounge. It can get busy in my experience, but the great service and surroundings and decent food make it a great precursor to your Polaris flight. While I've got you here, a quick message. No, it's not a sponsored message from a company. This is my appeal for your help. My mum, who is 67, is going to be doing a five-kilometre swim-a-thon in aid of two fantastic British charities, Cancer Research UK and Marie Curie Cancer Care. Cancer Research is a world-leading charity putting millions of pounds worth of research into beating cancer. Marie Curie provides support and guidance for those people already affected by this terrible disease. My mum was lucky enough to beat cancer many years ago before I was even born. But unfortunately, a couple of her friends have gone through treatment and everyone I know knows somebody who's been affected by cancer. Around half of us will develop some form of cancer in our lifetime. So I'd love it if you could join me in donating using the JustGiving link in the description box below and giving my mum some encouragement in doing that five-kilometre swim-a-thon at her age. It is a fantastic achievement. Thanks so much. Business class puts you in boarding group one, so you'll be in the first wave of passengers. So here we go off to Newark, my first 767 across the Atlantic. Gonna be a great flight, I'm sure. If you enjoy the channel, make sure to follow me on my other social media and make sure you're subscribed here on YouTube too and have your notifications turned on to be told when I upload something new here. This is surely the best appointed 767 in commercial service. Polaris business class is in an innovative 1-1-1 configuration with staggered angled seating. Even number seats face into the aisle a bit and won't be beside a window. Pick odd numbered ones like mine, 9L, to get a great window view. Be warned though, rows 7 and 11 have a missing window and the furthest back seats are over the wing, obscuring the view of the ground. A menu, amenity kit, cooling pillow and Saks Fifth Avenue bedding were all waiting at my seat. My first impressions were that this cabin was just like the lounge, very tasteful without being over the top. A great start. First things first, Wi-Fi. United has great connectivity and I've always found their Wi-Fi to be reliable. If you're on a plane for seven hours, you may as well get the full flight package for $36.99. For that price, you can do pretty much anything, including streaming video. Now, a seat tour. Firstly, this seat is really private. You can't seat any other passenger from it and the false marble tops to the consoles are really classy. There's USB and universal charging sockets and a good size storage cupboard which is easy to reach from the seat. There's also a coat hook and I was pleased to see the little storage rack below the screen has been retained from the old receipt design. The table is solid and a good size. It's easy to eat off or work on a laptop from. With 46 seats and almost every single one taken, I was suspicious that service might be disappointingly slow. I was quite wrong. The crew were superb and the entire meal service was done within 90 minutes of takeoff without ever seeming rushed. Doing a full service in business class is really hard work, so a gold star to the crew on this flight. United currently only offers advanced selection of your meal choices online if you're leaving from a hub airport, not if, like me, you're flying into one. Nonetheless, I got my first choice of everything on this flight. I know that you're all probably sick of me ordering beef on these flights, so I got the halibut this time. Now, fish is risky on planes as it can become very dry when reheated, but mine was really flavoursome and perfectly cooked. United also offers an ice cream sundae which they make to your order. I've got a bit of every topping except nuts. Perfect. The amenity kits were Star Wars branded. United has some weird brand deal with them. I don't get excited about amenity kits, but this one was well stocked. And in spite of the menu suggesting you had to ask for them, the crew proactively distributed slippers and mattress cushions. United's headphones are pretty basic, but the screen for the entertainment is excellent. 15 inches in diameter, it's in HD and this footage does no justice to it at all. The selection is enormous. I decided to watch Liam Neeson in Michael Collins. The seat controls are pretty intuitive and there's a do not disturb sign you can turn on if you want to get some sleep. Individual air vents mean you'll not be too warm if you want to sleep. United's bedding is superb and the mattress underneath makes for a very comfortable bed. However, these 767 seats are three inches shorter and two inches narrower than their 787 and 777 cousins, though you will probably only notice this if you're on the larger side. I'm really impressed with the new Polaris business class fitted on these planes. Sure, it's new so everything was spotlessly clean and everything works, but even so I think this is my favorite business class seat going between London and New York. There's really only one negative aspect to this review, the weird hamburger wellington served before landing. It's basically a burger and pastry and wasn't great, but never mind, there were chocolates afterwards. In summary, this was a memorable experience in Polaris business class which almost completely lives up to the marketing hype. I paid a total of £1,076 return for my ticket, which includes a return leg to Dublin in economy class from Newark later this year on their new Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner, which of course I'll be reviewing. Please do consider sponsoring my dear old mum with her five kilometer swim. Anything you can give helps and the money will go towards the great causes of helping to cure cancer and helping people already suffering. Thanks again for watching and I'll see you next time.