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Airbus A380-800

Is it better to sit in the Upper Deck or the Main Cabin on the Airbus A380-800?

We are looking at the Air France flight from LAX to CDG.

Posted by
10526 posts

There are a couple of seats on the upper deck we prefer. There is a small aisle in front of them, but not large enough that you can't use underwear storage. See Seat Guru.

Posted by
380 posts

It's so much nicer when I can fly commando, taking advantage of that underwear storage!

Lol autocorrect... ;)

Posted by
305 posts

Thanks for the replies.

Underwear storage - a new type of money belt :)

I believe that both decks have exit ramps - you don't have to go downstairs to get on and off the plane - correct?

Posted by
470 posts

Just flew Air France from SFO to CDG. Paid the upgrade for Premier Economy. The upper level is quiet and there is a separate boarding ramp so no flights of stairs to navigate. As far as the seats go it isn't worth it. It was the hardest seat I have ever had- like a park bench for almost 12 hours. The foot extension didn't work and kept flipping back down. It only raise your legs a few inches.
As other reviews mention the Premier seats do not recline. They slide downwards. It is actually fairly uncomfortable on your lower back. The one thing that probably makes that upgrade worth it is the Sky Priority line through passport control at CDG. That saved us at least 45 minutes, maybe more. Just be alert to watching for the bright red signs indicating where to queue.

Posted by
11294 posts

"I believe that both decks have exit ramps"

They did at JFK for my Air France A380. I assume, but don't know for sure, that they would at every airport - otherwise it would take forever to board and deplane.

Posted by
1422 posts

I fly out of San Francisco on the Air France A380-800. I really like their Premium Economy, pod type system, so the person in front of you does not lean into your space or you into the person behind you. It seems to be not as noisy on the upper deck. Last May we flew out in seats 92 A/B. I did notice that seats 93 A/B reclined all the way back & there was no issue with people standing around, since it is near the lavatory. Next year, depending on cost, I will try for the Premium Economy again, if not either seat 93-B or seat 34-D (no seat in front of you) since I will be traveling on my own. My friend sat in 91-K, exit row seat upstairs, nice that no one in front of you but he felt uncomfortable watching movies because of the angle the monitor sits at since it comes from your arm rest. In SFO & CDG, we did have a separate passage way to the upper deck for boarding, so we did not have to go through the lower deck. Both airports had separate lines, based on your seating number for upper & lower. With Premium Economy, I boarded with Business Class.

Posted by
278 posts

We flew British Airways 380 SFO to London last year. We were in the upper deck. It was quiet and other than going up the stairs to take our seats and deplane, never felt like we were sitting atop another deck. It was nice enough, but nothing spectacular.