Two days before departure, I receive an email from JetBlue informing me about what I can expect on my trip to New York. They confirm my access to the priority lane in Paris CDG and also send a menu of the food options available on the flight.

Getting to the Airport

I exit the Pullman Hotel at Roissypole just after six in the morning, and the air is already think with the smell of kerosene.

Given that it’s still rather early, the Roissyval shuttle to Terminal 2 is still quiet and not very busy.

At CDG2, I head up one floor and then make a right turn to follow the signs for 2D & 2B.

JetBlue departs from Terminal 2B. It’s a short walk of about five minutes, which takes me past the railway station for CDG 2 and a whole row of homeless people balancing precariously on the narrow heaters to keep them warm in the cold December weather.

Check-in

Exactly 24 hours before departure, I receive a further email from JetBlue, asking me to check in and upload my passport information. This includes taking a photo of the front page of my passport. The process works surprisingly well. At the entrance to Terminal 2D there are self-service check-in kiosks. The airlines’s manned counters are located in 2B, hall 1.

The security checkpoint is located in between 2B and 2D. If you’re flying in MINT Class on JetBlue, that gives you access to the priority lane. However, security in Paris is always one big chaotic mess. One of the agents keeps barking at me to grab a “bidon” to put my stuff on the conveyor belt. So several of my fellow passengers bark back at her that there simply are no more crates available…

Security ejects me into the duty free shop. From there I make another right turn to passport control and the B gates on the other side.

Airside

One point of criticism you see very often in trip reviews of JetBlue‘s Mint product, is the lack of airside lounges for premium passengers. For me this is not really an issue. At most airports these days, I tend to not visit the lounges anyway because I usually find the airside views from outside the lounges more interesting. Also, given that the flight already starts boarding at 08:10, it‘s not like I‘m planning to spend an excessive amount of time at the airport.

I grab myself a café au lait and a pain au chocolat from Prêt a Manger and park myself by the window.

Just before seven in the morning, I watch the inbound from JFK slowly pull onto its stand. It’s still dark outside, so sadly I don’t get to take a decent photo.

Boarding

Boarding starts at 08:10 for a 08:55 departure. The first call is for passengers in MINT Class and frequent flyers.

The Cabin

The first impression of the cabin as I step aboard it very good. It looks neat and modern. The window shades are all down, and the mood lighting is set to blue.

The seat itself is very large. It offers a lot of space and privacy.

I think the seat is also very well designed and cleverly planned. There is a lot of storage space that is conveniently located in easy reach. On my left there is a holder for a bottle of water under the armrest.

There are also two hooks for earphones – one on the left, and the other on the right.

There is also a drawer under the video screen that is large enough to store a laptop.

The inflight entertainment screen folds outwards and can easily be reached in the reclined position. You can also pair your private mobile device with the screen and use that as a remote control. There’s also a mobile phone charger near the left armrest.

Free wifi is available throughout the MINT cabin. I’m impressed that it’s already available at boarding, while we’re still on the ground. The seats are in a herringbone configuration, which means that they face inward, toward the aisle. However, it’s not too bad and it’s still possible to look out the window without contorting too badly.

The Crew & Service

The crew are a bit if a mixed bag. There are three of them, given that the aircraft only has 138 seats (24 in MINT and 114 in Economy). The purser is busy readying the flight, so there’s hardly any interaction with him during boarding. Then there’s a friendly young man who is chatty and helpful – up until row seven. I have no idea where he goes off to after that… The third cabin crew is female and also very friendly. Strangely enough though, she appears to be only serving welcome drinks to my side of the plane and completely ignoring the other side. On offer are orange juice and champagne, both of which are served in plastic cups. I think that’s just an American thing…

Amenities

At my seat there is a blanket and pillow by Tuft & Needle that are neatly stored in a cloth cover. That’s also a very American thing that I like very much. It just looks so much neater.

There’s also a pair of earphones.

An amenity kit.

And some very toasty slippers.

And a bottle of still water.

At 08h58 we push back from the gate. The flight time is announced at just under eight hours.

The Meal Service – Brunch

Orders for the two meal services are done through the entertainment system, which is intuitive and easy to navigate.

To start, I order a non-alcoholic drink of sparkling water with ginger, lime, mint, and cucumber. With that, the crew serve warm pain au chocolat.

An hour after departure, the meal tray arrives.

I have the French toast.

The frittata.

And the joghurt with granola.

No doubt, the quality of the food is very good, but the presentation is a bit loveless. It’s also rather unusual to me that no bread rolls are served with the meal and no further drinks either. What I like very much, is that the meal service is efficient but unrushed. As soon as I’m done, the tray is removed, the crew close the door to my seat and wish me a good rest.

Second Service

Throughout the flight, the crew pass through the cabin with small snacks.

I can highly recommend the iced cappuccino.

Then ninety minutes out of JFK, the second service begins. I have the chicory salad with the vegetable soup and the savoury profiteroles. For dessert there is a honey flavoured Balisto.

Arrival

The tray is removed and the crew pass through the cabin with packaged warm towels.

And then the nose dips, and we start our descent into New York.

The weather is dreadful. It‘s not cold, but there‘s a steady and persistent drizzle.

Our flight terminates at JFK‘s Terminal 5, which is home exclusively to JetBlue.

As I disembark, I mange to get at least one decent picture of my aircraft from the outside. All in all, immigration is not too bad.

Conclusion

I take the escalators two floors up until I reach the footbridge that connects the terminal with the AirTrain to Jamaica. That was rather a nice flight with JetBlue, although, if I’m perfectly honest, I think I prefer a widebody over a narrowbody any day of the week. While the seat was comfortable enough, the overall impression of the cabin was that it was rather cramped.