Reporting and photography by Dawn Gilbertson

NEW YORK -- The JetBlue agent scanned my boarding pass for Flight 1107 to London and welcomed me to the airline's version of the lie-flat life.

"Enjoy your Mint experience," she said.

I headed for seat 7A, one of 24 business-class suites on the plane. You'd be forgiven if you didn't know JetBlue flies across the pond, let alone with decked-out pods with privacy doors.

It is a tiny player in the lucrative trans-Atlantic market, the busiest international route from the U.S. JetBlue offers just two daily flights from JFK to Heathrow on smaller planes than the widebody jets that rivals use.

British Airways averages 10 daily flights from JFK to Heathrow, while United has seven from Newark to Heathrow, according to aviation-data company Cirium. All those are on widebody jets. JetBlue's business-class fares are often cheaper.

Is smaller better? I was pleasantly surprised by my cheap JetBlue flight in economy from London to New York a year ago and still rave about the food. So I wanted to check out Mint, which I did last week.

The WSJ paid nearly $3,000 for a one-way ticket three weeks before departure, and JetBlue didn't know I was testing the service. Despite a few minor Mint disappointments, this economy-cabin regular is now a Mint fan -- at the right price. (Deals site Thrifty Traveler has flagged off-season Mint deals as low as $1,995 roundtrip from Boston to Europe.)

I'm not alone. J.D. Power ranked JetBlue the top airline in North America for first-class and business-class customer satisfaction in 2025. It dethroned Delta for the title.

No preflight hype

Unlike Delta, which bombards premium travelers with what-to-expect emails ahead of their flight, JetBlue was notably silent about its Mint perks after I booked in mid-February. No preflight meal orders or reminder that the airline has a new lounge at JFK you can get into with a trans-Atlantic ticket in Mint.

Nothing screamed this is going to be so special you'll never fly economy again. And that surprised me given JetBlue's underdog status and general playfulness.

Check-in at JFK's Terminal 5 was underwhelming, too. There are a few tiny Mint check-in counters sort of away from the masses. But the agent checking me in said little beyond, "Where ya going?" I was similarly disappointed with American Airlines' airport welcome in Philadelphia last year after I paid $4,600 to try its newest Flagship Suites to London.

Business-class habitués might not care much but, when you're splurging, it all starts with the welcome in my book.

JetBlue's new lounge

JetBlue passengers flying from New York to London have long been without the airline-lounge access that travelers often get when buying an expensive business-class ticket.

That changed in December when the airline opened BlueHouse, its first airport lounge. It had been in the works for years but was delayed by the pandemic.

I spent an hour there before my 9:30 a.m. flight last week and would sum up the experience this way: perfectly adequate. It's a cozy place to grab complimentary preflight food and drinks and relax away from the gate.

The bartender couldn't keep up with all the Mimosa orders and even mixed a couple of Old Fashioneds at that hour. BlueHouse isn't trying to be a sprawling Delta One or Polaris lounge. But business-class fliers who have been to either one of those, with their fine-dining restaurants, will be disappointed.

The food is all grab and go, to your lounge seat or flight. No buffet. The prepackaged choices were impressive, though, much like the food on JetBlue's flights. I loved the Power Bowl chia-seed pudding with matcha powder and coconut flakes. I snagged a pain au chocolat for the flight.

The main event

Awaiting me in my roomy, angled, aisle seat on an Airbus A321neo: a Tuft & Needle comforter and pillow; noise-canceling headphones; skin-care samples from New York dermatologist Dennis Gross; and a concert-poster-looking menu starring small plates created with New York restaurant Charlie Bird. There were power outlets aplenty and lots of storage.

All are de rigueur in today's business class on U.S. airlines, of course.

My pod was roomy, with solid seat padding and a large TV screen that swiveled. I got comfy and spent much of the trip with the seat reclined. The sturdy tray table was a dream to work on, unlike the flimsy ones in economy on every airline. The free Wi-Fi was excellent.

The service was top notch on the six-and-a-half-hour flight. I asked for an ice cube for my lukewarm California Sauvignon Blanc at one point. The flight attendant who delivered it popped by 30 minutes later to say the bottle was chilled and would I like another? Another flight attendant named Hans mixed a maple Old Fashioned at my seat for the theater of it.

The two light meals were delicious. My favorites: the spinach frittata and maple bacon. The snacks were beyond basic, though. (Goldfish crackers, really?!)

Plenty of you who regularly plunk down thousands for a business-class seat care about just one thing, of course: horizontal sleep.

JetBlue's seats are indeed lie-flat and my feet didn't feel scrunched in the footwell when fully stretched out. But I'm only 5-foot-6. The much taller executive across the way appeared to comfortably sleep and watch movies. A family of four adults on vacation happily snoozed in their pods with eye masks on.

I didn't sleep on the flight because it was daytime and I had to work. I boarded after a good night's sleep and landed in London in time for a late dinner.

That's probably another reason I found this to be a better value than my pricier red-eye American flight to London last year. There was no pressure to enjoy all the perks plus sleep to get my money's worth.

That said, my Mint ticket was 10 times the cost of an economy seat on the same flight. We all got to London at the same time.

Write to Dawn Gilbertson at dawn.gilbertson@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 17, 2026 21:00 ET (01:00 GMT)

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