The 2026 Airline Awards: The Best First-Class Cabins, Lounges, In-Flight Dining, and More

Published on October 22, 2026 Delta Whether you fly private or commercial, Gulfstream or Airbus, you probably have an opinion about what makes for a good experience at 30,000 feet: elevated service, efficiency, reliability. Yet what does it take to make an experience truly great? For Robb Report’s first annual Airline Awards, our well-traveled editors consulted RR1 members and RR’s nearly two dozen Travel Masters, five-star specialists who service the world’s most discerning clientele, to determine which airlines are among the elite. We sought out the innovators who continue to tinker on the in-flight experience; the airlines who set, then raise, the bar for service; the cabin crews that remember your name. The methodology isn’t so different from how we compile our Greatest Luxury Hotels on Earth list each year, in pursuit of the global hospitality stars among us.Below you’ll find the airlines that the Robb Report community considered in a class unto themselves, with the best lounges, food and beverage programs, suites, and more. We also rewarded a few entrepreneurs who are rethinking business and leisure travel, and one great airport to rule them all. Best Domestic Airline: Delta Air Lines Image Credit: Delta The Atlanta-based carrier earned this accolade for many reasons: It’s the most on-time among its peer set, the planes are newer, and the service is consistently excellent—even kind. “If a flight is delayed or canceled, they are by far more attentive to customer needs than any other airline,” said RR1 member Vahid Manian. Delta is the only U.S. airline in the global top 10 as ranked by industry watcher Cirium. The pointy end of the plane is where it truly excels, whether on the ground or in the air, where its sliding-door suites are industry benchmarks. Travel Master John Clifford of International Travel Management pointed out its forward-thinking partnership with PS private terminals (another winner on this list). Delta landed this award before announcing its ramped-up, amped-up in-flight experience, rolling out early next year. Think Wagyu beef burgers, Blanton’s bourbon, and more high-touch service, plus playful choices like a Champagne-doused sorbet for dessert and branded tableware that’s daring AV geeks not to slip it into their carry-ons. Best International Airline: Emirates Image Credit: Emirates Emirates was within the top three—and in many cases, the top two—of half a dozen categories, including Best First Class, Suites, and In-Flight Service. “There are companies that, for one reason or another, excel in specific areas, but Emirates strives to excel in everything, and that is remarkable,” said RR1 member Armando Femiano. It is truly an industry leader whose state-of-the-art First Class cabins (“heaven in the sky,” as Travel Master Catherine Heald put it) feel bespoke, from personalized temperature and lighting to virtual window displays to meals-on-demand via voice call. NASA had a hand in designing the seats, made of soft, buttery leather akin to a Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Innovations extend all the way through the plane, like the electric recline in premium economy. And the service is unparalleled, including bathrooms that are cleaned after every use—our own houses aren’t that tidy. Best First Class: Air France Image Credit: Air France Ever since Air France rolled out its new La Première service in 2025, the French flag carrier has stealthily risen to the top of the First Class food chain. The luxury experience begins at the airport, with a dedicated La Première check-in and private security clearance at Paris CDG and LAX, access to Alain Ducasse dining and complimentary Sisley spa facials in the La Première lounge, ground transfers via Porsche Cayenne—and you haven’t even boarded yet. Once on the plane (one of select Boeing 777-300ERs outfitted with new four-suite cabins), each first-class passenger has 37 square feet to themselves. The suite is done in a soothing “gradient of grays,” as Air France calls it, with an armchair and separate chaise longue converting into a 79-inch bed, five windows, and floor-to-ceiling privacy curtains. Put another way: “With nearly five rows of economy space for just one passenger, you truly have room to move around,” says Travel Master Jonathan Adler. “Service and food is customized based on what you’re looking for, with hand holding on the ground unlike anyone else.” Best Suites: Etihad’s The Residence Image Credit: Etihad Two words: The Residence. Need we say more? When Etihad’s suite was introduced on its superjumbo Airbus A380s in 2014, the three-room suite—with a separate living room, a bedroom with double bed, and an ensuite shower—was a game-changer. Though its tech and furnishings aren’t as modern as some of its competitors’ (notably those who rebooted their First Class in the last two years), the Residence warrants a nod here as a peerless product. It now exists as an upgrade on a First Class ticket with room for two passengers, making long-haul travel between Etihad’s Abu Dhabi base and London Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Singapore Changi, Toronto Pearson, or Tokyo Narita a vacation unto itself. Best Business Class: Qatar Airways Image Credit: Qatar Airways Qatar has a business class product that’s so good, the Doha-based airline nearly decided to phase out First Class a few years ago (they changed their mind). Still, the company’s wavering speaks to the strength, and popularity, of its flagship Qsuite Business Class: an enclosed pod with 52-inch walls, a sliding privacy door, and fully lie-flat seats that rival any airline’s first class—and, frankly, some tiny homes and pod hotels. Space is ample, be it the length of the bed (79 inches long, and in some cases, double beds), storage, or the TV screen (21.5 inches); and the amenities are decadent, including meals on demand and a turn-down service with pajamas and slippers by the White Company, Diptyque toiletries, a plush blanket, and multiple pillows (a small but crucial touch). “The Qsuite is really one of its kind and the closest thing to first class at the price of business,” says Adler. Should you have a layover in Doha, the Al Mourjan Business Lounge is elegant and airy, so soothing you may forget your next flight. Best Food and Wine Program: Cathay Pacific Image Credit: Cathay Pacific No longer a “best among the worst” category, airplane food and beverage programs frequently enlist top-tier talent from their home country to create a menu that’s enjoyable rather than a punchline. Cathay Pacific does it with style, having partnered with Hong Kong Michelin-starred restaurants to serve “Hong Kong Flavors”—think smoked duck breast with pickled mustard greens or braised beef brisket—to its Premium Economy and Economy passengers. In First and Business Class, a collaboration with one-Michelin-starred Duddell’s delivers wok-fried prawns, fried rice, and braised chicken with abalone. “The food was incredible,” said RR1 member Michael Noonan, and meals are paired with a thoughtfully curated global wine list. If your palate isn’t feeling frisky, Cathay Pacific also offers a variety of Western and Asian dishes. Best Lounge: Delta Air Lines Image Credit: Delta We told you two years ago that the Delta One lounges were best in class. Ever since the first, almost 40,000-square-foot outpost opened at JFK’s Terminal 4 in June 2024, it challenged rivals to improve their lounge-running game, with a raft of smart touches. Fischer Travel’s Stacy Fischer Rosenthal calls that first site “arguably one of the best airline lounges in the country” while Gary Portuesi of Authentic Explorations prizes it for something so few lounges can claim today: “You never feel like it’s crowded.” Each Delta One lounge is the embodiment of a certain luxe swagger most rivals can’t quite match: the brisk-service French brasserie for a speedy but delicious meal on the ground, a shoeshine station, therapist-helmed spa treatments, and roving bar carts so you’ll never risk going thirsty, on Champagne or iced water. There are now five in the network and four more planned—they can’t open soon enough. Best In-Flight Service: Singapore Airlines Image Credit: Singapore Airlines Another top contender in multiple categories, Singapore Airlines’s in-flight service anticipates the needs of every single passenger, from the front of the plane to the back. The famously elite flight attendants undergo an intense four-month training period before joining the team. As a result, each cabin delivers a consistently high level of care that may include: swooping in to turn on your reading light if your hand starts to rise, saving an extra ice cream for the kids, being knowledgeable about the diverse meal and wine options (a hallmark of Singapore, and its airline, is its food). In an age when traveling anywhere but the front of the plane feels like a test of endurance, the Singapore Airlines crew can help make a 19-hour flight pass quickly. Best Private Jet Share: NetJets Image Credit: Netjets What makes NetJets best in class? Perhaps it’s the fleet scale—the largest of its peers, which makes reliability and access more dependable. Then again, it might be the flexibility of scoring a seat with just a few hours’ notice, the ideal model for time-poor, overscheduled travelers. It could be the impressive exclusive-use terminals it operates, so the on-ground experience is more lavish than at many bare-bones FBOs. As Travel Master Mark Lakin of the Legacy Untold says, it’s likely to be all of them. “The largest fleet, short lead times, diversity of fleet, agility to replace aircraft,” he riffs. More than that, though: take the logistical help from a dedicated international trip-planning team or the versatility of upgrading and downgrading for more or fewer seats, lesser or greater range. If anyone were devising a share firm from scratch, they’d do best to model themselves almost exactly after this OG of the industry. Best Business-Class Amenity: KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Image Credit: KLM Some airlines give you a taste of Bulgari, Diptyque, and Ferragamo in their dopp kits, but KLM stands alone with its entirely unique, covetable Delft Blue miniature houses filled with Dutch gin. A business class perk since the 1950s, there are now 107 of the tiny blue-and-white ceramic collectibles—released on October 7 each year to mark KLM’s anniversary—each one depicting a real Dutch building or landmark. Delft Blue devotees will book an international flight just to get the latest tiny house, and some special or limited edition collectibles fetch hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars online. Many, like the miniature Anne Frank House (#47) or Rembrandt House (#48), are priceless. Best Premium Startup: La Compagnie Image Credit: La Compagnie If everyone is in business class, whose bag comes out first? These are the questions you get to ask when you fly the all-business-class La Compagnie, a French boutique airline that has been democratizing the business class playbook since it launched in 2013. Operating flights between Newark-EWR and Paris-Orly, Nice, Milan, and—starting April 2027—Dusseldorf, La Compagnie offers a small but exquisite service on Airbus A321neos for less than the average cost of a business class ticket. In exchange, everyone is treated like they’re sitting in 1A—all passengers get a fast pass through security, lounge access, and a comfortably cushioned lie-flat seat; since there are only 76 seats on the plane, no one has to fight for overhead bin space. As there isn’t a scarcity of space and resources, everyone onboard is calmer, kinder—civility returns to the sky. The food is French and tasty, the movie options are also French and tasty (plus a healthy mix of global new releases), and the service is patient and friendly. If you’re flying round-trip, you may encounter the same cabin crew each way. It’s like Cheers at 30,000 feet, where everybody knows your name. Best Innovation: PS Private Terminals Image Credit: Jenna Peffley We’ve been talking up PS since it debuted at Los Angeles International (LAX) a decade ago as Private Suite, offering the perks of private air travel to commercial air passengers. The Hollywood jet-set (who weren’t already flying private) loved the separate terminal two miles from the airfield with its secluded suites, attentive staff, and the ability to completely bypass LAX’s chaotic check-in and security. Under the leadership of Amina Belouizdad Porter, who’s been occupying the CEO chair since 2018, PS has expanded to Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Miami, with plans to open its first international outpost in Paris (at CDG) in 2027. The most popular PS amenity? The signature PS burger: “Of course, we offer white-glove everything,” Belouizdad Porter said in a previous interview with Robb Report. “But the burger gets the most rave reviews. It’s become a thing.” Best Airport Renovation: LaGuardia Image Credit: LaGuardia Gateway Partners Look at what $8 billion will get you: an airport worthy of its city and the 32.8 million passengers who transit through it annually. LaGuardia International Airport in Queens, N.Y., has officially completed its eight-year rebuild of Terminals B and C, turning a former laughingstock with leaky ceilings and outdated everything into the best airport in the U.S. (“From worst to best,” acknowledges the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.) Terminal B’s arrivals hall is ready for its moment in a rom-com, its escalators descending from on high into an airy, light–filled wing; meanwhile, some travelers arrive early just to access the 21,000-square-foot Chase Sapphire Lounge on level 4 or the new Capital One Landing serving Spanish tapas from the José Andrés Group. Delta-led Terminal C has its own dazzling 34,000-square-foot Sky Lounge, plus comfortable seating, offshoots of beloved local restaurants like Bubby’s, and large-scale installations and public art curated by the Public Art Fund and the Queens Museum. Airline AwardsBest of The BestFeature Like this article? Get the Robb Report newsletter for similar stories delivered straight to your inbox. sign up