Oman Air 737-900 Business Class Review – Manama to Muscat

My Oman airline experience continues through the Middle East with this Oman Air 737-900 business class review. Although it was a short hop between Manama and Muscat, I got a good sense of the service and hospitality Oman Air is known for.

Here’s my take on the Oman Air 737-900 business class offering between Manama and Muscat.

Details

Check-in

After a great day exploring Bahrain, I was dropped off at the airport with plenty of time to explore the lounge. The only problem was the check-in counter did not open until three hours prior to departure. You think I would have learned my lesson after my disastrous Istanbul transfer (more on that to come), but no.

I did, after the app crashed at every step, manage to check in online and get an electronic boarding pass. With that, I made my way to the dedicated business class customs and security area only to be told that they only accept paper tickets. 🤦

On the positive, the Bahrain airport is beautiful with a great business class checkin area that has comfortable seats. There’s also a tiny archaeological museum worth exploring.

The Pearl Lounge

Once the check-in counter opened and I had a ticket in hand, the agent went to get my Pearl business class lounge voucher. It took her 10-minutes to fetch it which was odd. Nevertheless, I was happy to head airside.

Initially, I thought I would have access to Gulf Airline’s flagship Falcon lounge however this was not the case. As outlined in my Pearl Lounge review, I expected a similar experience to other contracted lounges like Plaza Premium and IGA. Not the case…at all.

As such, I ended up staying in the Perl Lounge where they had excellent food and a barista on hand for coffee service. You can check out my full review here.

Oman Air 737–900 Business Class Seats

Fully caffeinated for my 3:30 AM departure (whoops), I made my way to the gate and onto the plane. Once on board, I saw dated-looking seats and realized this was not a 737 Max as originaly booked. I had yet to fly in a Max and was looking forward to it…which seems odd to say. This will have to wait for my very last flight on this trip between Calgary and Vancouver.

The business class seats on Oman Air’s 737–900 are in a 2-2 configuration with only four rows. They are wide and comfortable with plenty of legroom. No complaints here for such a short hop.

On the right side of the seat are analogue adjustment controls. On the left is a power plug and USB charging port. Above your shoulder, you will find a reading light.

Oman Air 737–900 Business Class Service and Amenities

Service on board the Oman Air 737–900 was very good. It kicked off with a choice of fresh squeezed orange juice or lemon and mint juice. Shortly after boarding a choice of hot or cold towel was offered.

One interesting note is, while boarding, the attendant handed masks to those that did not have one. Even though he asked all to please wear it, one in 10 obliged. I feel bad that flight attendants have to police this but this wasn’t enforced at all on this flight. One individual even went as far as saying that in Bahrain, Covid is over.

Oman Air 737–900 Business Class In-flight Entertainment

There are no in-flight entertainment systems on the Oman Air 737–900 business class seats, nor is there an app to stream. There is a screen at the front of the cabin displaying the flight map. This, oddly, stayed on fully lit even when the cabin lights were turned off for the early AM flight.

Oman Air 737–900 Business Class Food and Drink

Besides being four in the morning, I wasn’t hungry at all as I took advantage of the food at the Pearl lounge. Still, I was curious what the food would be like so when I asked if I would like a snack I chose the lobster salad. It was beautifully presented and came with a nice fruit salad.

This was by no means a snack and was very substantial. The lobster was good although processed pollock. The real winner was whatever this egg quiche dish is. 😋

Final Thoughts

Even though I didn’t sleep on the flight, I arrived in Muscat relaxed and ready to check out my 78th country. Overall, the service and food were excellent however, given the choice, I think I would fly Gulf Air for their unique Persian Gulf service. For a full rundown on what that means, see here.

That said, my next flight is with Oman Air in first class and will likely change my mind!

What say you?
Thoughts on this Oman Air 737–900 Business Class Review?
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For more luxury travel reviews from business class and beyond see HERE.