French Bee Lie-Flat (Premium Add-On) from Paris Orly to San Francisco

Air Caraibes is one of the most mysterious airlines for North America.  They can be spotted regularly in places like San Francisco (SFO), Newark (EWR), or Miami (MIA), but you can’t book a ticket on that airline from those cities.  

Air Caraibes operates for French Bee in the busy summer season when there is not much demand between Europe and the Caribbean.  Both airlines are owned by Groupe Dubreuil, which allows the group flexibility scheduling aircraft and crew. 

For trans-Atlantic travelers seeking a premium experience on a budget, this is relevant, because Air Caraibes aircraft (but not French Bee aircraft) have lie-flat seats offering a business class-like experience at a premium economy price!  

How to Get It?

Upgraded seating on French Bee aircraft consist only of premium economy, which is just additional legroom of their normal seats arranged in a 2-3-2 configuration. 

However, when flights are operated by Air Caraibes, they additionally have fully lie-flat seats, arranged in a 2-2-2 configuration.  This is not advertised on the French Bee website until you get to seat selection and it’s one of their best kept secrets!  

Premium Seats (both Lie-Flat and regular Premium) between doors 1 and 2

You can read all about these seats on the Air Caraibes website (note - lounge and other perks described on that page are not for French Bee flights).

The only way to see if a flight has lie-flat is in the seat selection screen.  To see the seat map, unfortunately, you have to make a mock booking all the way to seat section. 

Each lie-flat seat costs an additional $400 over the premium fare.  Grand total on my one-way flight from Paris Orly (ORY) to SFO came to less than $1800. Knowing what I know now, that is an excellent value!  

Check-in and Boarding at Orly

We first checked ourselves in at the self-service kiosk. There was a separate (and short) Premium line to the counter with agent assistance.  The agent printed out boarding passes and got our bags tagged. “Fast Track” airport security check was included, but confusingly, it was labeled as “No 1 Lane” at security and passport check. 

Lounge was not included in the fare.  It was available as a steep $75 add-on, which I skipped. 

Boarding was from bus gates F15 and F16 to remote parking.  Announcement was not clear and was confusing which gate/lane to queue up to for a particular seat zone.  

Once the packed bus arrived at the aircraft, we had to wait another 10 minutes or so for fueling to be completed.  Meanwhile, four buses stacked up behind us.

On Board - Amenities 

Being a low cost carrier, I really didn’t expect much (or any) amenities.  French Bee’s website says meals were included, but nothing else regarding amenities. 

I was pleasantly surprised!

Pillow and blanket were on the seat. Flight attendant later passed welcome drinks with choice of champagne, water, or juice.  

Flight attendants later passed out bottles of water and an amenity kit consisting of eye shade, ear plugs, dental kit, and headsets (seat-back screens do not have bluetooth capability).

And hot towels!

Wifi was available for purchase. I did not use wifi, so I cannot speak to its speed or reliability.  

Lie-Flat Seats

On board the Air Cariabes A350-900, the first three rows are lie-flat.   

J and K seats

A and B seats

Center E and F seats

Storage, seat light and controls, remote control, headphone jack, AC and USB-A outlets

Lie-flat seats are arranged in a 2-2-2 configuration. The seat pair are in an unusual high-low setup while flat.  The window seat is set about one foot above the aisle seat (you can see this in the footwell level difference).  This creates an elevation privacy separation at leg level so that your feet are not exactly next to your neighbor when flat. In addition, the aisle seat’s lower position allows easy step-over to and from the window seat. 

Different bed elevations

In-Flight Entertainment System

Large 17-inch (43 cm) monitor with touchscreen remote control.  The remote was laggy, bordering on unusable.  I ended up doing the long reach to the monitor. 

Meals 

About one hour after takeoff, lunch was served.  Beverage cart was combined with the meal cart.  There was a vast free selection of beverages including alcohol, served in a small cup. 

Choice was a vegetarian pumpkin pasta or chicken in some sort of sauce. A menu was available on the screen. 

Courses were high-end and very French:  cheese plate with two types of cheese, foie gras and jam, the bagette roll was warmed up and fresh.  Though I was not particularly impressed with the chicken-potato-carrot dish. 

Chicken with three-peppercorn sauce

Fancy French appetizers and dessert

Beverage cart later returned offering coffee, tea, and refills.  

Both flight attendants working my section (including the purser) were friendly, professional, and spoke perfect English.

Mid-Flight Snack

Served 4.5 hours before arrival (and there was not a pre-arrival meal).  By this point, it was dinner time back in France and I was hungry!

Paprika chicken bun, strawberry Greek yogurt, with a small cookie.

The bun was warmed, which was nice.  Flight attendant warned the chicken is a bit spicy.  I didn’t think it was, but appreciated the warning. 

I asked if there were any other snacks.  Only one thing - crackers that was served during lunch.

No amenities or upgraded toiletries in the lavatory.

Minor Annoyances

There were reminders that I was in premium economy and not business class.  But that is OK, because I just had to remind myself how little I paid!

• No lounge.
• Drink was served in a small cup, almost like a shot glass, good for two or three sips.
• Beverage and meal were served together in a single pass (as opposed to separate courses).
• Tiny pillow and a small/thin blanket that does not cover from shoulders down to my feet. 
• No snack bar.  Though flight attendants were more than happy giving me another bag (or two) of crackers and bottle of water. 
• Flight attendants did not actively come out for drink or water service. However, I noticed drinks were open and available in the galley so can always get more. 
• No pre-arrival meal.

Conclusion (It’s All Good!)

French Bee lie-flat premium is an excellent value, which I highly recommend!  All meals and drinks (albeit both on the “small” side) plus amenities are included!  

And did I mention, lie-flat seat?  

A normal business class fare would have cost around twice of what I paid.  While the seats are arranged in pairs (not great for solo travellers), if you are traveling as a couple, it’s a no brainer upgrade!

Welcome home!