Review: Aeromexico Business Class (737-800 & 737 MAX 8)

I’ve always wanted to visit Mexico City for their incredible transportation infrastructure and I found a bit of free time during the early summer. At the same time, my Air France KLM Flying Blue Silver Elite status was almost up for renewal, and I was close to achieving Gold Elite status, so I decided to book a short status run to level up to the next tier. 

What follows is my review of Aeromexico business class onboard both the 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 to and from Mexico City.

Booking Aeromexico Business Class

I booked Aeromexico business class through Delta Air Lines, paying $1,041 Canadian Dollars and I received 78 Experience Points (XP) towards my status after the trip. This was enough to upgrade my Silver status to Gold, with the extra XP rolled over towards next year’s renewal. Although non-stop options were available from my home airport (Vancouver), having a stop-over in Seattle was cheaper and it earned me 30 XP more than I would have earned if I booked a direct flight.

In the Delta App, all the information regarding my flight and seat was correct and usable for boarding on both Delta and Aeromexico. Interestingly, when I checked in the Aeromexico app, it showed that the return itinerary back to Vancouver was in Classic Flex economy to Seattle and Main Cabin to Vancouver. which was incorrect. Everything was booked in Aeromexico’s Clase Premier or Delta’s First Class so I double-checked at the counters in the airport.

Ground Experience

In Seattle, I was connecting on a late flight from Vancouver so I wasn’t able to visit the Delta Sky Club which I had access to from my ticket. American Express Platinum cardholders have access to the Delta Sky Club with a valid SkyTeam flight as well as the American Express Centurion Lounge Seattle. 

During boarding, biometric identification was used, where a camera identifies who you are without having to scan your boarding pass and verify your passport.

In Mexico City, Aeromexico flights departed from Terminal 2, which had a separate check-in section for all Priority passengers, including those with SkyTeam Elite status.

Salón Premier Aeroméxico Lounge

Aeroméxico departs from Terminal 2 at Mexico City International Airport where business class  ‘Premier’ passengers receive access to the Salon Premier lounges. There is a domestic and an international lounge, though I was able to enter both with my boarding pass. 

Passengers with a credit card affiliated Priority Pass membership will also have access to the Salón Premier lounges. There are a variety of other lounge operators on the lounge level including an American Express Centurion Lounge, though all seemed to be quite busy.

Both lounges had similar food and drink options, but the domestic lounge was very crowded and did not have much seating. The international lounge on the other hand was more spacious and much quieter.

There was limited hot food in both locations though there was a variety of drinks and small snacks. Both lounges had a bar with staff serving coffee and alcoholic beverages.

Cabin Arrangement

The cabin arrangement on both the 737-800 and the 737 MAX 8 were in a similar layout; 2-2 with 16 seats in the Clase Premier Business section.

I chose seat 2A for the southbound flight and 2F for the northbound flight. For the flight to Mexico City, I was lucky enough to have an empty seat despite a full economy cabin. On the return flight, many Economy passengers were upgraded 

Seat

The seat products on the two aircraft types were slightly different from each other, each with some advantages and drawbacks.

Boeing 737-800

The Business Class option onboard the 737-800 looks very similar to what you would expect in a North American narrowbody business class cabin.

One thing that stood out was that these had leg support, which was great for my red-eye flight. Obviously, it can’t compare to a lie-flat bed, but it made the journey more comfortable compared to having a retractable footrest, which was what the MAX had.

Other than the seat pocket in front, there were not a lot of additional storage areas for smaller items. There is also a power outlet on the outside of the middle armrest.

Boeing 737 MAX 8

Onboard the MAX, a newer seat with lots of storage can be found. The seat functioned very similarly to what you would find in Air Canada’s 737 MAX 8 Business Class.

Legroom was about the same, though you had the flip-down footrest instead of leg support on the 737-800.

There was also a seatback entertainment console available at each seat.

There was lots of storage space, including inside the middle armrests and a small cubby above the emergency lifevests. With the flip-up top, access to the armrest storage and entertainment remote is much easier than having to deal with stuck items inside. You can find a power outlet inside this storage space as well.

The tray table was stored in the armrest on the window side of the sea. It had multiple functions, including a makeshift tablet or phone stand.

Amenity Kit

A pillow and a blanket were provided for the flight to Mexico City, but on the flight back, only aisle passengers received a blanket with no pillows for anyone, which I found odd.

Bathroom

The lavatories onboard were about the size you might expect on most 737 variants. They were both well-kept and clean. There was some more space compared to an economy bathroom so there was room to move around on both.

Dining

Before pushing back on both flights, a flight attendant came by with pre-departure drinks, between a choice of water or orange juice. No menus were provided.

Dinner

The flight to Mexico City had a dinner service where you could choose from one option if you did not request a special meal. We were served salad, chicken ravioli, and a chocolate tart for dessert.

Breakfast

Flying back north, a meal service for breakfast was offered with a choice of pancakes or a quiche. This was served with a fruit bowl consisting of papaya, pineapple, and blueberries as well as a Greek yogurt.

Both meals were flavourful and great for ending or starting your day.

Snacks & Drinks

Going south, the flight attendants didn’t go through the cabin to disturb sleeping passengers. On the northbound flight, a mix of Mexican snacks, including chips and nuts, as well as drinks were offered from time to time by the cabin attendants.

Entertainment

Entertainment Console

The in-flight entertainment system onboard both aircraft was the same, though the MAX had more options for content. Both also have Bluetooth support so you don’t have to use the earbuds or headphones provided. 

On the 737-800, earbuds were offered to business class passengers whereas headphones with an audio splitter were given out on the MAX in case you didn’t want to use Bluetooth.

The selection for Movies and TV was quite diverse, though the headphones provided didn’t help as the sound quality was worse than the earbuds given out on the 737-800.

WiFi

There was WiFi on both aircraft, but each had a different service provider, affecting the quality and price.

Onboard the 737-800, the options were Free Messaging on Wi-Fi based apps such as WhatsApp, iMessage, and Messenger with paid options starting from $190 Mexican Pesos ($14.5 Canadian Dollars) for an hour or a whopping $535 Mexican Pesos ($41 Canadian Dollars) for the whole flight. 

Unfortunately, for me, I was not able to log in during various stages of the flight.

In contrast, the WiFi onboard the MAX had a much more reasonable price for paid internet options. I purchased the internet pass for the entire flight and the internet speed was faster than what I expected.

Conclusion

Aeromexico’s 737 Business Class product, Clase Premier, offers a nice way to travel across the Americas through Mexico. The seats on their Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 may be functionally different in some ways but still offer comfort and accessibility for passengers. 

The 737-800’s leg support helps turn the seat into a better recliner which was great for my red-eye going south whereas the 737 MAX 8 had quite a few smaller storage spaces for smaller items. Overall, Clase Premier is decent for medium-haul flights and I would consider flying Aeromexico if I go south of the United States again.