Review: Hawaiian Airlines First Class Leihōkū Suites (787-9)

Hawaiian Airlines is among the few carriers that offer a lie-flat seat to a sought-after sun destination like Hawaii. The Hawaiian flagship 787 aircraft features Leihōkū Suites and brings the spirit of aloha service, premium comfort, and privacy under the stars.

Let’s take a look at my experience on Hawaiian Airlines’ First Class Leihōkū Suites to see what you can expect for your next flight.

Booking Hawaiian Airlines First Class

I was super lucky and found a mistake fare for round-trip tickets flying from Seattle to Honolulu for $631.40 USD in their domestic first-class products. My wife had a friend living in Honolulu at the time and was meaning to visit her. When we learned about the deal, we jumped at the chance, hoping they would honour the price. Mistake fares are never guaranteed!

The only other way to book this seat right now would be with Atmos Rewards, and it’s priced dynamically, so there may or may not be value in redeeming. The first leg of this journey was on their 787, and the return segment was on Hawaiian Airlines’ A330 in the older business class (or domestic first class) product.

Cabin Arrangement

The Hawaiian Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner features a 1-2-1 seating configuration in the first class cabin. The reverse-herringbone seating and privacy doors ensure you have complete privacy, no matter which seat you choose.

For this flight, I selected seat 9J because it offered the best views of the Hawaiian landscape on approach. Sitting at the back of the cabin also gives you an amazing view of the “starry night” headliner ambient light setting.

Seat

When you arrive at the seat, you find your bedding and no other amenities. It was strange not to be given a bottle of water, never mind an amenities kit!

The first class seat is stunning, though, with incredible accent lighting, flashes of blue accent colour, and premium finishes throughout. The seat was comfortable, but the leather felt worn and flat, which was surprising given that these 787s were less than 3 years old in 2025, when we flew them.

There is no storage space aside from a small cabinet with a mirror and your headphones. A wireless charger was available, which was a nice touch.

A small reading light was located next to the cabinet. Below the cabinet is your entertainment remote and power port, conveniently located.

A small place for your drinks/snacks to sit instead of using your tray table was nice. Seat controls shortcuts are located below the right armrest, which are always a favorite of mine.

The entertainment screen is 18.5 inches and high-definition, with an easy-to-use touchscreen or remote control.

The tray table pushes out from under the entertainment console. I loved the different configurations of the table you could have. Lots of space between you and the table during dining mode.

To the left of the entertainer console was the safety information and the Hawaiian magazine. The seat also features a hook for a coat or purse.

There is no place for a bag or a shoe cabinet, but there is plenty of footwell space to store your belongings.

The armrest on the aisle side moves up and down manually, like most reverse-herringbone products. However, it made me miss Qatar Airways’ 787 business class with a motorized armrest.

The door in the suite is definitely a highlight, and even with it open, you still have a lot of privacy. It’s not quite QSuites level, but it’s better than the door in the Delta One Suite and Etihad’s business class suites on the A350, in my opinion.

The only problem with 9J is that it hosts a single window, rather than most seats, which have two, and a few which have three. It’s the classic Dreamliner dimmable shade.

Bed

Even though this was a daytime flight, I enjoyed a nap after breakfast. There was decent room to toss and turn, but the “stepped” ledge for drinks really came in handy here. Reverse herringbone seats are never perfect for sleeping, but this one is perhaps slightly above average.

The bedding was disappointingly just your basic economy-style pillow. The blanket was a larger economy one. They didn’t make the sleep very comfortable or luxurious. There is higher-quality bedding on their international routes, so it was disappointing that they don’t include it on their domestic flights.

Amenity Kit

There was no amenity kit for first class passengers on this flight.

Bathroom

The bathroom is your standard Dreamliner setup, but Hawaiian added some local flair with a few orchids.

Dining

I was optimistic that the dining experience would beat JetBlue Mint, since food in Hawaii is delicious, but that was not the case. 

Upon boarding, first class passengers were offered a choice of sparkling wine, their signature Mai Tai, or water at 7:45 am. I’ve never seen rum (the alcohol in a Mai Tai) offered this early before, but I suppose it’s a leisure route, and why not start your vacation early!

As the meal service began, a flight attendant set up my tray table and placed my tablecloth nicely. I was happy to be served macadamia nuts as we are heading to Hawaii, but they were served very cold.

The food choices on this flight were limited, as it was a morning flight, with only two breakfast options: an omelet or continental. 

I opted for the omelet, which was unfortunately underwhelming. It was served with options from the bread basket, and I chose a croissant.

A lovely touch was the salt and pepper served in cute, small origami Hawaiian shirts. The cutlery is also engraved nicely.

Surprisingly, no hot towel service, but a moistened towel is included when your meal is served.

After the main service was finished, the attendant closed my door. And the Leihoku (meaning lei of stars) ambient lighting setting was engaged.

The service was incredibly friendly and followed the spirit of aloha, making me feel welcome and at home. After meal service, I requested a cappuccino, but they did not have an espresso machine on board. The attendant did not tell me this, but assured me she would try to make me one anyway. I ended up just getting served regular coffee, but I appreciated the effort to make me a cappuccino. 

About 90 minutes before landing, the attendants came through with a quick-service option, and I opted for sparkling water and pretzels. Just before our final approach, they quickly handed out some cookies.

Entertainment

Entertainment Console

The entertainment system on this plane is excellent, with a high-definition 18’ monitor. The touchscreen was easy to use. The safety video was also Hawaiian themed, which is fantastic, and reminded me of the British Airways safety video.

The remote is much more modern than your average system, but my favorite remote is still probably Air France’s.

As with most North American airlines, the entertainment selection was great. Hawaiian music and some local programming were also available. I enjoyed a video about the Honolulu Cookie Company.

The lighting controls and attendant call button were found in the entertainment console’s side menu. A nice touch is a whole host of entertainment options available in Japanese and Korean. The headphones were basic and unbranded, but they got the job done.

WiFi

No in-flight wifi was available on this particular aircraft. However, they will all be fitted with Starlink in the future.

Conclusion

The First Class Hawaiian Airlines experience provided a very comfortable flight with the Leihōkū Suites. The starry sky is beautiful, and the cabin’s finishing and details are gorgeous. I found the service friendly, but the food was quite average.

With only a few options for flying lie-flat to Hawaii, I would take the opportunity to fly Hawaiian Airlines whenever it’s a reasonable price! This is also encouraging for Alaska’s international service, as they’ll be using these 787s for international flights from Seattle to Seoul and Tokyo.