Find cheap EVA Air flights

EVA Air offers three main classes of service: Business, Premium Economy and Economy. However, the airline offers different business class products (Royal Laurel Class and Premium Laurel Class) depending upon the aircraft. Additionally, not all aircraft have Premium Economy cabins.

Cabin class, seats & legroom

Royal Laurel Class

EVA Air’s flagship business class product, Royal Laurel Class, is available on all 777-300ER, 787-9 and 787-10 aircraft. Arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration, all seats feature direct aisle access, though 777- and 787-family feature different seat types. Onboard the 770-300 ER, you’ll sit in a “reverse herringbone” seat, which angles away from the aisle. 787 aircraft, meanwhile, are in a “staggered” configuration, with seats either on or set back from the aisle, depending on your row.

To enhance my Royal Laurel Class experience even further, I always select my seat in advance. I prefer a window seat, though when flying on the 787 I make sure to choose one in an even row, as they are set back from the aisle. I also make sure to pre-order my meal, as this is the only way to be able to enjoy dishes such as the airline’s signature rack of lamb, which is not available to order in-flight.

Note that while these aircraft do serve some intra-Asia routes, in-flight on these routes is reduced compared to what you would experience flying to Europe, North America, Australia or New Zealand.

Premium Laurel Class

Installed exclusively on the Airbus A330 aircraft that fly intra-Asia, Premium Laurel Class is EVA Air’s secondary business class product. These angled-flat seats are in a 2-2-2 configuration, with only half the seats featuring direct aisle access. Although I love looking out the window, I usually select an aisle seat in advance for convenience.

Premium Economy

Not to be confused with Premium Laurel Class, EVA Air’s Premium Economy is similar to the seat you might find on a domestic first-class flight in North America. Arranged in a 2-4-2 configuration on 777-300ER aircraft and 2-3-2 on the 787-9 and 787-10, Premium Economy seats feature a shell design, which allows you to recline up to 121º without disturbing the person seated behind you.

Passengers in EVA Air’s Premium Economy, which notably was the first such product in the world when it launched in 1992, enjoy enhanced food and beverage compared to economy, as well as more personalized service.

If you’re flying on one of EVA Air’s A321 aircraft, be aware that the eight “Business Class” seats on this plane are actually more akin to what you find in Premium Economy on long haul aircraft than they are to the Royal Laurel or Premium Laurel products.

Economy Class

EVA Air’s Economy Class offers 81 cm of pitch, which is more or less the global standard for economy class. Seats are arranged in a 3-4-3 configuration on 777-300ER aircraft, in a 3-3-3 configuration on the 787-9 and 787-10, in a 2-4-2 configuration on A330-300 aircraft and in a 3-3 configuration on the A321. Seats in the last rows of each cabin may not recline fully.

Extra Legroom and Preferred Seats

EVA Air offers two upgraded seats for Economy Class passengers: Preferred and Extra Legroom. Extra legroom seats are located in the front row of each economy class cabin, as well as the emergency exit rows. Preferred Seats allow you to sit closer to the front of the cabin, but don’t offer any extra legroom. I usually just buy Preferred seats (which are cheaper than Extra Legroom seats), since getting off the plane is more important to me than room to stretch out.

Basic and Discount Economy

Although EVA Air sells economy seats in “Basic” and “Discount” fare classes, passengers who purchase these are not considered a separate class of service, as they sometimes are in North America. You won’t board later or have your carry-on bags restricted or scrutinized, for example. Rather, you may have lower mileage earning, or more restrictive conditions for changes and refunds.

Pre-flight experience

Here’s what you need to know about the airport experience when flying with EVA Air.

Baggage policy and fees

Compared to Canadian carriers, EVA Air offers generous baggage allowances. All short- and medium-haul passengers (including those on Basic and Discount Economy Class fares) are entitled to at least one piece of checked luggage weighing 23 kg (about 50 lbs), plus one carry-on bag and one personal item. Except for those who have purchased Basic fares, all passengers on long-haul flights can check two bags free of charge.

If you need to check additional bags or oversized bags, you will need to inquire with check-in staff as to additional fees that may be required. EVA Air does not publish these fees on its website. Keep in mind that if you’re flying in Business class or have elite frequent flyer status either with EVA Air or one of its Star Alliance partners, you may be entitled to additional checked bags free of charge.

Check-in

EVA Air offers two airport check-in options: Premium and Standard. Only passengers seated in Royal Laurel and Premium Laurel business classes, plus elite travellers who hold Diamond status with the airline’s Infinity MileageLands program or Gold status with one of its Star Alliance partners, may use Premium check-in.

When I fly economy on EVA Air, I usually just check in online, as this is quick and also generates a convenient mobile boarding pass. All passengers, including those who’ve checked in online, can use dedicated bag drop lanes at airport check-in counters.

Lounges

EVA Air operates six lounges around the world: Four at its Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE) hub near Taipei, plus one each at southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung International Airport (KHH) and at Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) in Bangkok, Thailand.

The most exclusive lounge at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is The Infinity, accessible only to passengers travelling in Royal Laurel Class, or international business class on Star Alliance carriers. By comparison, you can access The Club simply by being a Star Alliance Gold member (equivalent to Diamond status with EVA Air Infinity MileageLands) travelling on any Star Alliance flight, regardless of class of service. I personally find these lounges to be outdated by global standards, and also disappointing compared to EVA Air’s onboard experience.

The VIP Lounge at Kaohsiung is also quite basic, though this makes sense given how few international flights the airport has. To me, EVA Air’s best lounge is the one in Bangkok, which is stylish, modern and features incredible views of the terminal apron. EVA operates a lounge here as many of its flights to Europe stop in Bangkok due to China overflight restrictions.

Onboard experience

Here’s what you can expect onboard an EVA Air flight.

Wi-Fi & entertainment

Wi-Fi is available on EVA Air’s entire widebody fleet, which includes the Boeing 777-300ER, 787-9, 787-10 and Airbus A330-300. Powered by Panasonic Avionics, the service costs between about CAD$6.50 to 53.90 to use, depending on the speed and duration you select. In my experience, the speed is good for answering emails and doing basic web browsing, though more data-intensive activities (like streaming, or even scrolling social media) can be slower than I’d like.

All aircraft that feature Wi-Fi also have seatback video monitors, though size and resolution varies depending upon the plane. The newer 787-9 and 787-10 aircraft will feature the largest and most high-resolution screens, while those on the 777-300ER are slightly smaller and maybe have slightly reduced image quality. Screens are much smaller and lower resolution on the A330-300. Premium passengers will enjoy larger screens with better image quality.

Compared to Canadian airlines, I find the entertainment selection on EVA Air to be lacking. You’ll only be able to choose from a couple dozen movies at most, as well as individual episodes of TV series, instead of the full seasons many Canadian airlines offer. Understandably, Taiwanese and other Asian programming makes up a significant portion of the movies, TV shows and music available onboard EVA Air.

Amenities

EVA Air’s amenity kits for Royal Laurel Class passengers are legendary among frequent flyers around the globe, due to the airline’s frequent collaborations with luxury brands like Giorgio Armani and Salvatore Ferragamo. Passengers in Premium Laurel and Premium Economy also receive amenity kits with similar products inside (including toothbrushes, facial mist and body lotion), albeit with less opulent packaging.

Cabin crew provide pillows and blankets to all passengers in all classes of service, though Royal Laurel Class passengers enjoy premium bedding, as well as turn-down service.

Loyalty programs, miles & credit cards

Infinity MileageLands is EVA Air’s frequent flyer program. Upon signing up, most passengers earn miles by flying on EVA Air and its Star Alliance partners, though residents of certain countries may be able to use credit cards to earn additional miles.

Infinity MileageLands

All paid travel on EVA Air is eligible to earn Infinity MileageLands miles, though this may be at a reduced rate for Basic and Discount economy fare classes. Passengers flying on Star Alliance carriers such as Air Canada and United may also earn miles if they enter their Infinity MileageLands number at the time of booking. In this case, the operating carrier of your flight determines mileage earnings on EVA Air.

Unlike North American and many European carriers, you earn mileage based on a percentage of miles flown, rather than revenue spent. Percentages range from 25% for Basic Economy Class fares, to 175% for full-fare Royal Laurel Class fares.

You can redeem Infinity MileageLands miles for travel on both EVA Air and its Star Alliance partners. While I personally find the Infinity MileageLands online interface to be clunky, availability on EVA’s own flights is much better than what you find booking with partners like Air Canada and United. Moreover, rates tend to be competitive, with Royal Laurel Class seats between North America and Asia available for as little as 80,000 miles each way.

Credit cards

Although EVA Air offers a wide range of co-branded credit cards, these are generally only available to citizens and residents of Taiwan. As a result, earning miles this way is impractical for most non-Taiwanese travellers.

Two main exceptions to this rule exist. First of all, if you are Australian or reside legally in Australia, you can open an HSBC Star Alliance credit card and transfer miles to Infinity MileageLands. If you’re based in the US and have a Citi credit card that earns ThankYou points, you can also transfer these directly to Infinity MileageLands.