Full Review: STARLUX Airlines A350 Business Class (Taipei to Singapore)

After returning to Taiwan for a visit, I decided to splurge on a Business Class ticket to Singapore, choosing between China Airlines, the flag carrier of Taiwan, and STARLUX Airlines, a relatively new full service boutique carrier, and continuing to Australia in Qantas Economy Class.

TL;DR

STARLUX Airlines’ Business Class product is great, with a comfortable, private seat and professional service, but sometimes the experience doesn’t live up to the luxury branding they present themselves with.

The Choice: Legacy vs Ambitious Challenger?

While deciding on which airline I should give my business to on the competitive Taipei to Singapore route, I repeatedly questioned myself if I made a wise choice or not.

China Airlines charged the lowest out of the three, at AU$874 (~US$611 , NT$19789), which is not surprising considering their relatively legacy hard product, and the only SKYTRAX 4-star carrier out of the three. EVA Air, priced at AU$963 (~US$674, NT$21804) while using the older 777-300ER hard product, was the least compelling option for me, when I could pay a little more, at AU$969 (~US$678, NT$21940), and fly STARLUX, enjoying a much superior hard product.

After being stuck within this dilemma for a couple of days, I chose STARLUX, given that I really wanted to find out if the airline justifies the extra price they normally charge in these situations, while wanting to experience the airline’s Business Class hard product for real on a longer, 4 hour flight. (in comparison to the short TPE-HKG flights I tried in the past) I still questioned myself after booking, should I have saved the 95 AUD for a similar product? Does the actual service live up to the premium, boutique branding and aggressive marketing? The only logical way to find out, was to head to the airport and fly.

Checking in at Terminal 2, Taoyuan Airport

STARLUX Airlines utilizes both terminals at Taoyuan Airport, Taiwan, the airline’s main hub. Most short haul flights within Asia utilize Terminal 1, while most long haul routes, and some regional services like the one to Singapore, fly out of Terminal 2. Stepping on a brown carpet, I was welcomed at the Premium Check in, with friendly staff ready to assist travellers.

During the busy morning rush, being able to skip the queue via the Premium Check-in is such a blessing. The gentlemen checking me in was friendly, knowledgeable and helpful, setting a perfect start to this premium journey.

Before the Flight

As a Business Class guest, I get access to the Galactic Lounge operated by STARLUX, which I covered in a seperate post here*. Before that, I walked to the new Terminal 3 gates of the airport, witnessing the new Airsorayama A350-1000, part of a marketing campaign in collaboration with Japanese illustrator, Hajime Sorayama, in attempts to attract upper class customers the boutique carrier aims.

Boarding

Today’s aircraft, B-58503, an A350-900, was parked at gate D9, which was situated approximately 2 minutes away from the Galactic Lounge at Terminal 2.

Boarding was split between groups 1-3 (First, Business, Premium Economy, status holders) and groups 4-6.

Modern and Shiny: Inside STARLUX Airlines A350 Business Class

After getting onboard and being welcomed by the friendly crew, I settled into seat 5K, one of the few seats with a full, unobstructed window. As expected in the year 2026, the cabin is laid out in a 1-2-1 configuration, in the reverse herringbone setup.

STARLUX Airlines benefits from all-new, contemporary cabin fitouts across the entire fleet, and the modern, spaceship vibe can immediately be felt upon stepping on the aircraft. The dark gray themed cabin complemented by shades of warm brown and champagne truly make me feel comfortable. The golden orange mood lighting which reminded of the sunset delivered a sense of belonging.

“The design of the A350 cabin interior is based on design principles of Comfort, Privacy, Security, Ownership, and Belonging, the elements that make passengers feel at home no matter the class they are travelling in. For Color and Material expression we created a theme of Glisten, an evolution of our Pure Tea and Sanctuary themes used in A321 and A330” – STARLUX Airlines

Onboard Amenities

As you settle down, a furry blanket, which unfortunately has quite a lot of static energy especially after use, a soft pillow, as well as slippers are waiting for you. As this is a short day flight, that’s all you’re getting – No bedding or amenity kit.

The Seat

Upon sitting down, it’s hard to not notice the large 24-inch 4K entertainment screen.

Designed by BMW Designworks and based on the Collins Aerospace Elements product, the seat, with accents of gray as a base with champagne lines, immediately gives off the vibes of a “space ship captain’s chair” vibe.

Side Console

The side console, with a wood pattern, allows for a large surface to store things, as well as an adequately sized cabinet housing the noise cancelling headphones, a bottle of water, a wireless charging pad, a USB-A and 60W USB-C port, the universal power plug, as well as the remote.

Although not the fastest or fully using the 60 watt power, it still charged my phone quickly throughout the flight to Singapore. The door of the compartment has a gap, preventing cables from being squashed when closed.

Beside the seat back, there are also 3 buttons to control the seat in case you do not want to engage the seat control touch screen.

Similar to the nightlamp found on China Airlines A350 Business Class, this product also comes with one, in a slightly less dated form.

Under the ledge, there is a box for smaller items, where I stored my passport for the duration of the flight.

Towards the aisle, the armrest can be deployed and retracted into three positions to suit the traveller’s seating posture. Unlike some other products, including most of Cathay Pacific’s reverse herringbone seats, there’s no hidden compartment to store water bottles.

Tray Table

The tray table is incorporated into the seat design, and deploys with the pull of a lever.

It is quite sturdy and large for its kind, and while some dislike the design due to its lack of stability, I’m personally a fan of this design. It allows for the passenger to move in and out with ease during meal service or any time when the tray table is in use.

The Downsides of the Seat

Although I believe STARLUX has successfully delivered the promises they made for the seat:

A refined space that balances sophistication and privacy through a blend of space-silver tones and warm earthy hues, offering passengers the most peaceful and relaxing time in the sky. – STARLUX Airlines

Every product has to have it’s own downsides.

• Stowage is unfortunately impossible in the ottoman: Like many reverse herringbone seats, the ottoman area is more of a footwell rather than a storage space, so all bags, shoes and large items must still go into the overhead compartment for taxi, takeoff and landing.
• Limited storage space: While having the cabinet and a small storage area next to the ottoman, it is still not as sufficient compared to some other products like Japan Airlines A350-1000 or Cathay’s A350 in Business Class.

Other than that, I have basically no complaints of the product. It’s still a very amazing and possibly industry leading product overall, and I am always reminded that it is a blessing to get such a nice seat on a short 4 hour flight, while international flights of similar duration in the Americas, the EU and Australia would likely leave you with recliners.

Welcome Service

Even before takeoff, I found the hospitality from the crew to be more pleasant than previous occasions on the airline in Business Class. Shortly after sitting down they handed out a scented towel, with its smell reminding me of staying at a 5 star hotel, and watermelon juice or peach wine. I opted for the watermelon juice, and it was a refreshing and healthy treat. 

As that one guy holding a camera and constantly photographing seat features (I’m sorry if I disturbed you, JX771 crew), the crew offered to take a photo of me, which I happily agreed. Having offered the same in previous occasions, I believe the gesture, has became part of the SOP, like when flying on Singapore Airlines.

Due to ATC limiting the flow of traffic, the 8am departure was delayed for a while. We waited on the tarmac for about 30 minutes, which kind of meant there was more time for me to enjoy the seat. (but unable to use the recline or door, of course)

Inflight Service

As soon as the aircraft reached cruising altitude, the crew went around the cabin and unlocked everyone’s privacy door. From my perspective, the doors don’t create the privacy, the seat design and cabin layout already do the heavy lifting, and the doors simply close the final gap.

Via an inflight announcement, the crew had to break the bad news to us, that the Wi-Fi was not working on today’s flight. Pretty sad, but it’s a nice reminder for me to focus more on enjoying and indulging into the journey.

Refreshing avocado juices were handed out to passengers, and the tablecloth was placed on everyone’s tray table to start the Breakfast service of the day.

Pre-ordering of meal service

Between 21 days and 24 hours prior to departure, passengers of all cabin classes are invited to select their meal choices, unlocking various main dishes limited to only pre-orders. Although irrelevant, this is something STARLUX’s regional competitor, Cathay Pacific, could take note of, as their online ordering system is quite restrictive, and I believe at least Premium Economy should have the choice of pre-ordering their meal.

From the online pre-ordering portal, there were three choices for the main, consisting an international option, a local option, and the online exclusive BBQ Braised Beef Cheek, in collaboration with locally renowned yakiniku restaurant, HUTONG (胡同)

Not really interested in the items on the international menu, and eager to find out if the collaboration was worth all the hype on social media, I opted for the HUTONG Barbeque Braised Beef Cheek.

By the way, can we just take some time to appreciate how beautifully designed the menu cover is? It really is the most premium looking menu I have seen in Business Class.

Meal Service (Breakfast)

Here’s the meal served, in one tray (excluding the “dessert” service afterwards.)

Here’s the HUTONG Barbeque Braised Beef Cheek Rice. The presentation looks pretty nice, with the Chinese name or logo of the restaurant shown on top of the tamagoyaki.

Taste wise

Initially, I didn’t have high expectations and thought these restaurant collaborations are just a gimmick. However, it surprised me.

• The beef, while on the well side, was still tender and juicy, also being packed with beef flavors without overpowering it with saltiness.
• The rice’s texture and stickiness was to my liking, and the chillis were cooked perfectly in my opinion.
• The tamagoyaki was infused with yakiniku sauce.
• As a guy who doesn’t like certain types of vegetables, I’m not a huge fan of the vegetable side dish and salad, but I sampled a few bites and it tasted similar to salads you would find at a true Japanese yakiniku restaurant on land.

To sum, the meal really made my tastebuds go on a trip to a Hutong restaurant. Obviously, this wasn’t at any means a perfect meal, or a full resemblance to a restaurant quality meal.

• I thought that if there were some sauce or dipping sauce for the beef, it could provide a more authentic experience.

After that, I was served a fruit platter, which was a refreshing and healthy treat to sum up the meal, and it came with a not so fruity but smoothly sweet passionfruit tart as dessert.

During this time, the professional crew proactively went around the cabin to accommodate passengers’ requests, and retrieved the meal trays at an appropriate time. 

Another hot towel was provided for passengers to freshen themselves right after the meal.

The Lavatory

There were two lavatories for the Business Class cabin with 24 seats (and sometimes shared with Premium Economy), effectively making it a 1:12 lavatory to passenger ratio, which is not bad.

As there were no passengers travelling in First Class on this flight, the Business Class cohort could use three lavatories in total.

The lavatories were stocked with basic amenities, and is well maintained and cleaned often by the crew.

I’m sure you’re aware of the runway themed toilet paper, which is viral on the internet and mentioned in essentially every review related to the airline. It’s a pretty cool cherry-on-the-top detail, I’ll have to admit.

Relaxing Onboard

Lacking proper sleep before leaving for the airport, it was a good time to take a rest, especially with the privilege of sitting in an individual suite with a lie-flat bed. Wanting to rewatch famous Taiwanese band Mayday’s Online New Years Eve concert, I set the seat to Zero G mode, and despite it’s gimmicky name, I’ve had positive experiences with it before, on a short flight from Hong Kong to Taiwan.

On this longer flight, I found out that closing the door and laying down with my head at an angle where where I can watch the TV without twisting my neck, while lounging in a comfortable posture, feels great. As the alternative rock tunes hit my ear, I fell asleep.

Before descent and the crew secured the cabin, I asked the crew for a cup of hot coffee with milk to freshen and wake up for the landing into Singapore.

My Opinions on STARLUX Airlines and The Verdict

A lot of aviation enthusiasts have heard of the story of how K.W. Chang, the former EVA Air Chairman, started his own empire, STARLUX Airlines, a boutique startup airline from Taiwan, after he got expelled from the family business. Depending on who you ask, STARLUX could be one of the top luxury carriers, or it could also be an overhyped marketing stunt.

I would consider my opinion to be in between rather than the two perspectives stated above. I appreciate the ambitious challenger’s efforts to deliver a high-quality, detail-oriented, and world-class service, and this 4-hour flight has reinforced that view, through different aspects of the experience – a comfortable and private product onboard a fleet of modern aircraft, an enjoyable meal, and surprisingly better service compared to my previous occasions with the carrier. Though, I still think the lounge needs more work done, and the service from the cabin crew could definitely mature with time. Yet, I agree that the airline’s marketing may have set a bar so high, to the point where the actual offering cannot fully live up to it, leaving some disappointed.

Bottom Line

STARLUX Airlines provides a luxurious and high-quality product, and generally a world-class experience on its own, but the high expectations set by aggressive marketing campaigns may sometimes overshadow the airline’s own value, which already isn’t bad on its own.