Jack's Honest Airline Reviews — China Eastern

We've all been there: You're browsing every search engine for the best value long-haul flights to Asia and Australasia, and no matter where you look, Chinese airlines keep catching your eye. Why wouldn't they? They’re often hundreds cheaper than other carriers…

But the swell of excitement might be tinged with hesitancy, from turning your back on your favourite tried-and-tested airline or uncertainty over the quality you're paying for.

I had been on the lookout for flights to Hong Kong for a while, and when I saw them drop to £275 return with China Eastern, it's safe to say my eye was well and truly caught. Four flights later, I'm ready to give you the deep dive on every nook, cranny, and noodle I could get my hands on.

Prefer to watch your reviews? Navigator Lauren also recently flew with China Eastern, and you can see how it went for her here!

Flight & aircraft details:

1. MU202 – London Gatwick (LGW) to Shanghai Pudong (PVG) on a Boeing B777
2. MU701 – Shanghai Pudong (PVG) to Hong Kong (HKG) on an Airbus A320
3. MU506 – Hong Kong (HKG) to Shanghai Pudong (PVG) on an Airbus A321
4. MU213 – Shanghai Pudong (PVG) to London Gatwick (LGW) on a Boeing B787

Two of my flights had 20-minute delays to takeoff, but we still arrived on time.

A full-size cabin bag and one 23kg checked bag were included in the fare.

My journey included a loooong overnight layover in Shanghai Pudong airport.

General Facilities

As you may have seen in the video, Navigator Lauren was comfortable with the amount of legroom, and my travelling companions felt the same way. However, at about 5ft 11in (ca. 180 cm), I'm a bit taller than the others. Certainly no giant, but I definitely felt cramped at times, having to contort my body a bit like a diver doing a pike off the diving board, although with much less style.

Sadly, because I was unable to get comfortable, sleep mostly eluded me on the outbound journey and amounted to around 4 hours on the return leg, made up of 30-minute bursts. Take this all with a pinch of salt, as I'm not a great sleeper on planes, but I expected more after a taxing return layover.

All the typical things you’d expect are included: functioning entertainment screen, USB port, pillow and blanket.

The blanket could have been a bit larger and thicker, but it did the job.

On the Boeing 787, there were dimmable windows instead of pull-down shutters. It always feels like a luxury not to be blinded as soon as that initial beam of light comes through.

The chair was fine. A fairly comfortable, reclining, fabric seat, with adjustable headrest and sides, so you don't accidentally end up nose-to-nose with a stranger.

No leg rest, amenity kits, complimentary Wi-Fi or hot towels.

We were provided earphones, which I tried but then quickly ditched in favour of my own £10 wired set for much better quality and noise reduction (they're not even noise-cancelling, that's just how poor the China Eastern earphones were).

The bathrooms were functional, as expected, but they could have done with more frequent cleaning, especially the bins. These were often overflowing, so you had to force your hand towel in, touching everyone else’s germ-covered towels in the process.

Food

Filling portion sizes.

A bit repetitive and bland. I’d recommend packing some fun snacks.

I'm a big fan of Chinese cuisine — my trip included devouring all the xiaolongbao that's ever existed in the Greater Bay Area. But I did temper my expectations, as anyone should for plane food.

And I was right to. Ultimately, it was fine, but nothing to write home about (so I'll write to you instead). A typical meal included some version of chicken or pork with noodles or rice and some vegetables. Plus a chocolate bar or shortbread biscuit, a warm bread roll with butter, a yoghurt, and a pasta side salad (the prawn mayo pasta was especially polarising among my travel group).

I did opt for a fish meal once. I’m not sure what state of delirium/drowsiness I was in, as typically my worry of getting food poisoning would trump any desire for a plane version of creamy salmon pasta. Thankfully, there was no subsequent sickness akin to scenes from Airplane!, and the taste wasn’t actually half bad.

But after a few meals, the food did get repetitive and a bit dull.

Except for one dish…

In a veritable sea of chicken noodles and egg fried rice, there was one lifeboat of deliciousness to rescue me: a tender braised beef in a thick, rich sauce. Ask my fellow Navigators at Jack’s, and they will tell you how I talked their ears off about this dish. The slow-cooked beef fell apart delightfully as I ate. The sauce, a gorgeous accompaniment. I swear the steward said it was a balsamic sauce, but I can’t find anything online to confirm this. To be fair, there’s a slight chance I actually was delirious from the lack of sleep and hallucinated it, as my wife and friends didn’t get it. But I do have the picture to remember it by, and trust me, the photo does not do it justice.

PSA for those with a dietary requirement: ensure you specify your food choice when booking. When Navigator Lauren flew, she hoped to be offered a veggie option from the dining cart, but was sadly left having to decide between the meat options. However, a friend I travelled with requested vegetarian food when booking. Not only did he get the veggie meal, but he was served first, before the carts came through with everyone else's meals.

Unfortunately, the vegetarian food wasn't very diverse — rice and boiled vegetables quickly became tiresome, and it seems the menu was also identical to the vegan option, as he was not given a dairy dessert or butter for his bread. However, these were provided when he asked a steward.

Entertainment

Do you love watching Marvel, Transformers, or the Minions movies? If so, you are about to have the best movie marathon of your life! If not, then I hope you're ready to watch the flight path for the next 8+ hours.

Maybe that's a bit of a stretch — there were a few other films in English, but I could probably count them all on two hands.

There were also some films and TV shows in Mandarin, as well as a few simple games too — enough to keep you distracted for 5 minutes until you get bored and decide to watch a film instead. That is, unless you were taught Mahjong by locals in Hong Kong and then got so hooked that you ended up playing it for hours on your return flight…

There are reports of China Eastern censoring films. I didn’t notice this with the ones I watched, but maybe don’t save your most anticipated movies for the flight if you would rather not encounter some dodgy edits.

Cultural Aspects

You may not be aware, but Chinese airlines often have an Aviation Safety Officer onboard for the duration of the flight, donning a uniform and a body camera. This can be a bit jarring the first time you notice them. However, I quickly forgot about it, and if you don’t cause a ruckus, they won’t trouble you.

On one leg of my journey, there was a minor altercation between some passengers — a somewhat heated argument as one passenger tried to sleep, and others behind were talking loudly. Although I could only pick up on mannerisms as the conversation was in Mandarin, my friend (who speaks basic Mandarin) overheard it all and told me that the disagreement was dealt with quickly and handled well by the airline staff and Safety Officer.

Announcements were made (impressively, by one person) in Mandarin, Cantonese, and English. Most of the announcements were clear and understandable, aside from the odd word.

Staff and Service

Staff at check-in and onboard were polite, friendly, and all spoke English. Unfortunately, the staff at Shanghai Pudong were not the most helpful.

Check-in was smooth and quick at all points — my friends even asked for seats at the front of the plane to get maximum legroom, and the staff happily fulfilled their request.

If you fall asleep when the dining carts come through onboard, they leave a sticker on your seat so you aren't disturbed, and when you wake up, they'll serve you food.

Sadly, the drinks cart didn't come down the aisle very often, especially compared to China Southern. A small but noticeable omission.

In the Airport

Both my layovers were in Shanghai Pudong (PVG) airport.

The airport and toilets were clean, and there was a good variety of eateries serving Western and Eastern food. Plus a few moderately priced gift shops to kill time/spend those last yuan.

The Wi-Fi is terrible, and that’s if you can even connect. I did turn on data roaming occasionally, but I would recommend an eSIM if you prefer constant connectivity.

The outbound layover was three and a half hours long, which was enough time to explore the airport, grab a snack, and devise a game plan for utilising the sleep pods we’d discovered for the return leg…

The return layover, however, was rough. 10 hours long and overnight (likely the main reason my flights were so cheap). Granted, I booked the tickets, so I knew what I was walking into. At least, I thought I did.

I was hoping to find a lounge or alternative. Sadly, once we landed in Shanghai, we were told (after a lengthy discussion in broken Mandarin with a not-so-helpful staff member) that we could not stay in the transit zone and had to leave — something we were not made aware of beforehand.

So those sleep pods we’d spotted in transit on our outbound leg? Now unavailable to sleep in. Go figure.

We collected our transit visas, and after our hopes of going through security and waiting in the departure lounge were dashed (it was too early), we waited landside. As did everyone else…

Every sofa, armchair, or bundle of chairs jigsawed together was occupied by a hapless passenger longing for a wink of sleep. My ‘bed’ that night was a rock-hard chair and even harder coffee table, with crossed arms acting as a pillow for my head. Essentially, my sleeping position mimicked a shrimp. And oh boy, did my back pay the price in the morning! In future, I’d definitely consider booking a hotel ahead of time.

All the restaurants and cafés were closed (aside from one shop serving everyone the midnight snack/breakfast of champions — sandwiches and crisps).

Also, the airport was absolutely freezing. If you opt to stay in the airport overnight, pack your thickest thermals.

Overall Rating — 3/5

You get what you pay for, and most of my low expectations were met, especially at the price I paid (and with a checked bag included!). But the overflowing bins, cramped legroom, and nightmarish layover have definitely docked some points.

If I’m saving cash over alternative airlines, I’d definitely fly with China Eastern again. I just wouldn’t be excited about it. Unless I could guarantee some more of that delicious braised beef…

TLDR

Service: Friendly and efficient staff at check-in and onboard. Staff at Shanghai Pudong were not very helpful.

 Facilities: Ticked all the boxes as expected, although not the best quality, and taller folk may struggle with the amount of legroom.

 Food: Repetitive and a bit bland after a couple of meals, aside from a tasty surprise.

 Timing: A couple of flights had delayed departures, but all trips still arrived on time.

 Quality vs Price: Good value if you're saving money over the competitors.

China Southern note:

If you have the option between the two, my personal opinion is that China Southern pips China Eastern to the post with a wider entertainment selection, provision of hot towels, and more regular refreshments. Although, as Navigator Larissa writes, don’t expect much from the food.

For a quick review of China Eastern's business class, see what Traveller Jesslyn has to say: