Amenity Kit Review: Asiana Airlines Business Class (November 2011)

I flew with Asiana Airlines this past November in First Class to Seoul (its amenity kit review here) and Business Class on the return. Below is my review of the Business Class offering for this installment of Amenity Kit Reviews. For a better description of each category, and the 7-point scale for scoring, please review my introduction post here.

a small bag with a small toiletries and a small bookBag/Container: The gray zipper bag is sturdy canvas-like vinyl and lined with soft-padded nylon. Two small elastic pockets are available on each side of the interior along with a tag denoting LSG Sky Chefs supplied the bag. The Asiana logo graces one edge of the well-manufactured kit and while not luxurious in any sense, it meets the acceptable range in this category. A finger handle might have been nice on the opposing side of the logo.  Score: 4

Skin Care: Asiana partnered with L’Occitane for their Business Class amenities and this kit includes lip balm, hand cream and skin milk. Both the lip balm and hand cream are infused with shea butter and each are effective, though I find the hand cream to be a bit too greasy for my taste. Its scent, though, is light and pleasant and includes jasmine and ylang-ylang. The Orange Soft Skin Milk, on the other hand, applies smoothly and instantly absorbs without leaving a greasy feel. I was expecting a true orange/citrus scent, but it actually smells more like a feminine perfume. Additional items including lotion and facial spritz were available in the lavs, so this category gets a slight nudge up. Score: 5

Oral Care: A very, very mini tube of Colegate toothpaste is found in the kit and maybe it’s my “man†hands, but as soon as I take the cap off, it goes flying off onto the floor (or worse). Not a big deal, though, as it really is meant to be a single-use tube. Asiana does stock additional toothbrush/paste sets in their Business Class lavs. The kit’s toothbrush is a notch up from the norm. When the brush portion is inserted into the case, it’s full-sized and also has notches where your thumb is normally positioned when brushing to prevent slippage. This category gets a very slight bump up due to the extra supplies in the lavatory, but I’d still like to see mouthwash or mints standard in premium classes. Score: 5

Comfort Items: Earplugs and eyeshades are included inside the kit with slippers already awaiting you in your seatback pocket when you sit down. The earplugs are soft and the usual style found with most amenity kits. While definitely not nearly as soft as the First Class offering, the Business Class eyeshades are sufficient and also feature an adjustable Velcro strap. I’ll take slippers over socks any day as an amenity, and while my size 11.5 feet extend a bit further out back from the edge, they’re still a nicer option. Combs are also available in the lavatories. Score: 5

Intangibles: Both the kit and slippers are at your seat awaiting you and I couldn’t help but immediately be disappointed when picking up the bag as compared to the First Class offering. Still, though, this kit provides a slightly above adequate impression and the separate slippers seal the deal. Score: 5

Total score & comments:

a yellow and blue rectangular sign with black textEssentially, this amenity kit contained just about everything that I’d expect from a Business Class offering. There was nothing exceptional about it, but it did meet and slightly exceed average when compared to others. The branding was subtle and I was even happy to see it on the slippers.

 

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