SAS officially launched its brand-new European Business Class on October 1, 2025, replacing the old SAS Plus product. After flying it four times in just a few days, I can confidently say this is a massive upgrade. The new offering brings a true business class experience to intra-European routes, complete with proper porcelain, Charles Heidsieck Champagne, and a dramatically improved level of service. This review focuses on my experience on flight SK1827 from Stockholm to Nice, with insights from three other flights to give you a complete picture.

In This Article

How I Booked This SAS Business Class Flight

This was a return trip from Stockholm to Nice, booked using 30,000 EuroBonus points for the entire journey thanks to the Fly Premium benefit included with the SAS EuroBonus Mastercard (available in Sweden and Norway). This benefit allows Gold and Diamond members to book Business Class for the same points as Economy, which represents incredible value.

  • Program: SAS EuroBonus
  • Points: 30,000
  • Taxes: ~$60 USD

You can search for SAS European Business Class award availability on AwardFares here.

Pro Tip: The Power of Fly Premium

If I had booked this same trip with cash, it would have cost around $500. SAS has taken the opportunity to substantially increase cash prices, positioning its new Business Class as a true premium product rather than the somewhat ambiguous SAS Plus tier. This makes the Fly Premium benefit more valuable than ever.

SAS European Business Class: Stockholm to Nice

Route: Stockholm (ARN) - Nice (NCE)
Flight: SK1827
Airline: SAS (Scandinavian Airlines)
Cabin: European Business Class
Equipment: Airbus A320neo
Aircraft Registration: EI-SIC
Flight Time: 2h 42m
Seat: 2A

Context: Four Flights, One Review

Over the course of a few days, I flew SAS European Business Class on four separate flights:

  • CPH-ARN
  • ARN-NCE (featured flight)
  • NCE-CPH
  • CPH-ARN (again)

This review draws from all four experiences, giving you a well-rounded perspective on what SAS delivers across different route lengths and times of day. The consistency across all flights was impressive, which speaks volumes about SAS’s commitment to this new product.

The Cabin & Seat: Blocked Middle Seats are Back

The new SAS intra-European Business Class cabin features a dedicated cabin at the front of the aircraft, separated from Economy by a curtain and an overhead divider. On the A320neo, the cabin uses a standard 3-3 layout with the middle seat blocked in the Business section, a welcome upgrade providing extra space for personal items.

The blocked middle seat provides extra space in SAS European Business Class.

Extra space is always appreciated

The seats themselves are the same slimline economy seats as before, so in terms of hardware, the only difference is the blocked middle seat.

Important Note on CRJ-900 Aircraft

The blocked middle seat benefit only applies to aircraft with a 3-3 seating configuration like the A320 family. On smaller aircraft such as the CRJ-900, which has a 2-2 layout, there’s no middle seat to block. This makes the CRJ-900 Business Class experience a significant downgrade in comfort compared to the A320, as you’re essentially sitting in a standard economy seat with better service.

Service: A Remarkable Improvement

Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the new European Business Class is the dramatic improvement in service quality. Across all four flights, the crew was incredibly friendly, courteous, and attentive. I’m not sure if SAS has implemented additional training for their cabin crew, but the difference is striking.

The crew seemed genuinely proud to present the new product, ensuring everyone had what they needed and maintaining a warm, professional demeanor throughout. This wasn’t just on the longer ARN-NCE flight; even on the ultra-short CPH-ARN hops (about 1 hour), the service was exemplary.

The Dining Experience: Porcelain, Champagne, and Gnocchi

The dining experience now includes a paper menu, a full three-course meal, and a selection of drinks. Champagne is also back, just as on their long-haul flights. One downgrade, though, is that the chocolate pralines served after the meal are no longer available, nor are the chocolate balls that used to be available for sale in Economy and for free in Plus.

The paper menu in SAS European Business Class.
Charles Heidsieck Champagne is featured on the menu.

Today's menu, a similar paper card was given on each flight except one.

A nice touch is the specially designed coffee mug, not only does it look good but it also fits perfectly in the cupholder. Additionally it has a thermos effect, so it doesn’t get too hot to hold. However on one of my flights the little plug in the bottom was missing which meant the dish washer had filled the gap with water which was pouring out slowly on my table and the thermos effect was not working. Considering it’s been 8 days since European Business Class was launched, I hope this was a manufacturing defect and not a result of wear already.

European Routes (ARN-NCE)

On the Stockholm to Nice flight, the meal service was genuinely impressive. Everything is served on proper porcelain with real silverware, a far cry from the paper cups and disposable cardboard boxes of the past.

Starter: Quinoa and cauliflower salad.
Main course: Gnocchi.
The full three-course meal served on a single tray with real porcelain.

While the gnocchi looks a bit sad it was very tasty!

The meal featured a full three courses served on a tray. The starter was a quinoa and cauliflower salad, the main course was gnocchi, and the dessert was a mango and coconut cake with fresh blueberries. All of them were tasty and well in line with what you would expect from a Business Class meal. The French butter and freshly heated bread were also a nice touch.

Throughout the meal, drinks were served in real glassware—even water came in a proper glass, not a plastic cup. The champagne was proper Charles Heidsieck Brut, the same as on SAS’ long-haul flights.

A specially designed thermos coffee mug.
Real glassware for all beverages, including champagne.

The thermos coffee mug and new juice selection with glassware.

Unfortunately, on the return flight, SAS showed their famous consistent inconsistency. Instead of the three-course meal, they served a two-course meal with a salad and an open sandwich. While everything was good, it was a bit of a small meal and it’s odd to be served nothing more than a cold sandwich for lunch. This was in spite of both flights departing at similar times.

They also didn’t offer a paper menu which they did on all 3 other flights. I do wonder if if this is because the plane did not have Wi-Fi (Which is strange considering it was only 3 years old) and the menu features a QR code to see available drinks and snacks, which wouldn’t work for obvious reasons.

The cold meal served on the return flight from Nice to Copenhagen.

A cold sandwich and empty space where the dessert would have been on a 2.5 hour flight at lunch time. Sad faces all around.

Scandinavian Routes (CPH-ARN, 1 hour)

Even on these incredibly short flights, SAS manages to deliver a proper Business Class experience. Despite having just about 40-45 minutes between reaching cruising altitude and beginning descent, the crew served a meal consisting of a fresh salad, a delicious Danish smørrebrød, and a small dessert, accompanied by the same full beverage selection. If the flight departs around dinner time they even take the time to serve a, cold, 3 course meal. For the final leg of my journey I was served a selection of Danish and Swedish cheese, a salmon and crab tartare, and a chocolate and cherry shortbread. The fresh bread and French butter were also back!

Real glassware for all beverages, including champagne.
French butter for the fresh bread.
The cold three course meal served on the return flight from Copenhagen to Stockholm.

All this served on a 55 minute flight, impressive!

Ground Experience: Lounge & Fast Track in Nice

One of the major additions to the new European Business Class is expanded lounge and fast-track access across European airports. SAS has secured partnerships with numerous lounges, which you can find in our definitive guide to SAS lounges.

At Nice Airport, Business Class passengers have access to both fast-track security and the Infinity Lounge in Terminal 2. While the lounge wasn’t anything extraordinary, it was clean, quiet, and offered a decent selection of buffet-style food and drinks. Most importantly, it’s a significant upgrade from the previous situation where SAS passengers had no lounge access in Nice at all.

The Infinity Lounge at Nice Airport.
Seating area in the Infinity Lounge.
Buffet selection at the lounge in Nice.

The Infinity Lounge in Nice.

The fast-track access, in particular, proved valuable during busy travel periods, allowing me to breeze through security while other passengers faced 30+ minute queues.

On the flights out of SAS’ home bases (Stockholm, Copenhagen, and Oslo), Business Class passengers of course have access to the SAS lounge in the airport. SAS has also recently merged the SAS Gold and SAS Lounge into a single, larger lounge with a unified, premium offering for all eligible guests.

Final Verdict: Is SAS European Business Class Worth It?

To be as clear as possible: if you flew the old SAS Plus and are wondering if this is worth the upgrade, the answer is an emphatic yes. SAS’s new European Business Class is a genuine premium product that finally lives up to the “Business Class” name. The old SAS Plus was always a bit ambiguous, better than economy but not quite business class. This new product eliminates that confusion entirely. The combination of real glassware, improved service, and expanded ground benefits makes this a compelling offering.

While there were some inconsistencies in the meal offerings, the overall experience shows that SAS is serious about elevating their European product to true Business Class standards, and hopefully, these will be ironed out over time. At 30,000 EuroBonus points for a return trip using Fly Premium, it’s exceptional value.

SAS European Business Class: Pros & Cons

  • The Good: Real champagne, porcelain plates, and proper glassware. Significantly improved meal quality and a dedicated cabin with blocked middle seats (on 3-3 aircraft). Dramatically better crew service and expanded lounge/fast-track access.
  • The Bad: Inconsistent meal service on some routes. The experience is significantly less premium on 2-2 configured aircraft (like the CRJ-900) with no blocked middle seat. Cash prices have also increased substantially.

What is clear is that the value of the Fly Premium benefit has increased significantly. I used to avoid SAS in Europe when booking award flights, but now I will probably do the opposite.

SAS Plus vs. SAS European Business Class: Key Differences

If you’ve flown SAS Plus before, the change to SAS European Business Class is immediately noticeable. The old Plus product was essentially an enhanced economy fare with a free snack, middle seats still occupied, and only limited lounge access. The new Business Class, by contrast, is a true premium cabin with a distinct service model and several tangible upgrades.

Feature SAS Plus (Old) SAS European Business Class (New)
Seating Standard 3-3 layout, no blocked seats 3-3 with blocked middle seat (A320), separate cabin
Meal Service Cold snack or light meal in cardboard box Full hot or cold meal on porcelain with real glassware
Drinks Beer and wine Full bar including Champagne (Charles Heidsieck)
Service Level Limited attention, mostly self-service Dedicated crew with proactive table service
Ground Benefits Lounge only for Gold/Diamond Lounge + Fast Track for all Business Class passengers
Booking with Points Priced as Plus Bookable as Business using Fly Premium (same points as Economy)

Overall, SAS European Business Class finally delivers what travelers expect from a premium short-haul product in Europe. It bridges the gap with competitors like KLM, Lufthansa, and Air France, while maintaining the Scandinavian touches that make SAS distinct.

Book SAS Business with Points

Finding SAS Business Class award seats is quick and easy with AwardFares. You can search specifically for SAS European Business Class availability here, filtering by route, date, and cabin class.

With AwardFares, you can also set up alerts to notify you when award space opens up on your preferred routes. Get started today. For access to even more powerful features like unlimited daily searches, alerts, seat maps, and flight schedules, explore our Gold and Diamond membership tiers.

Read More