December 1, 2025
TAP Business Class Review
Traci
I recently flew home from a fun girls’ trip to Portugal on TAP, which was a new airline for me. Normally on a daytime flight back to the US from Europe, I’d be happy to fly in economy and save my points, but for this trip the business-class award flight was so reasonably priced that it was impossible to resist booking. Plus, if I’m only using points for myself and not my whole family, the points difference is hardly anything, right? So here’s my TAP business class review, and you can judge whether it was a good redemption!
Flight Information
Flight: TAP Flight 243 from Lisbon to Chicago O’Hare
Aircraft: Airbus A330-900
Flight duration: 8h57m (actual time according to Flighty)
Business-class cabin layout: 1-2-1
How We Booked This Flight
Jess and I each booked our flights 11 months ahead of time when we found availability from Lisbon to Chicago O’Hare for 60K Aeroplan miles + $152.90 CAD (about $108 USD) in taxes and fees per person.
We were traveling with two other friends, and though Aeroplan showed nine available seats in business class, our friends weren’t able to book any of them. There seems to be a weird quirk to some TAP bookings through partners where once one or two award reservations are made, the remaining available award seats disappear from the inventory. Once Jess and I had each booked an award seat, the other seven seats Aeroplan had showed availability for beforehand were suddenly gone. So if you’re booking for a group, it may make sense to book all at once rather than try to make separate reservations. (But don’t feel too sorry for our friends—they were able to book Singapore business class back to the US!)
Airport Perks
Our business-class award tickets gave us access to the Fast Track security lanes and the TAP Atlântico business-class lounge in the non-Schengen part of the Lisbon airport.
No lies detected: Fast Track security was indeed fast!
The lounge was fine, but not exceptional. The things I appreciated: clean restrooms, wifi, good coffee machines, sparkling water and juices, and an adequate breakfast spread. There was also a self-service selection of alcohol and guidelines on how to make your own cocktails, which I did not explore because it was early enough in the day that I hadn’t even had my coffee yet.
Airport port.
Some of the breakfast offerings.
The lounge even had fruit pouches for little kids.
Onto the Plane!
We boarded from a remote stand, and our shuttle bus onto the tarmac was allocated to passengers traveling in the business-class cabin. When we got to the plane, we went up the forward set of stairs.
Seats
Seat selection was free when we booked. (Not all airlines allow free seat selection, even with business-class bookings, so I appreciate the ones who do.)
The TAP plane we were flying was an A330-900, and on that plane, the odd-numbered seats are closer to the window than the aisle, so Jess and I both picked odd-numbered seats: 3A and 5A. (I always check aerolopa before booking for the most accurate seat diagrams.)
Your girl loves a window seat.
The two seats in the middle section both have direct-aisle access, and there’s a divider between them that can be added if you’re not flying with a travel partner and want more privacy.
Cute amenity kit, with its contents laid out—earplugs, a toothbrush, socks, an eye mask, and lotion that smelled lovely, like vanilla.
The seats were comfortable and roomy enough for me to actually sleep a little on the plane, even during the daytime flight. (And that’s no small feat for me.) And the pillow and blanket were nice and substantial.
Food & Service
The food on our flight was pretty good—definitely better than I expected, and it made for a pleasant surprise. I’d rank TAP’s business-class food lower than Air France or Turkish, but higher than Lufthansa.
Pre-meal nuts and drink service.
I chose ravioli for my meal, and it came with gazpacho, salad, and bread and butter.
The main meal was good—I liked the ravioli a lot, and I skipped the fish-gazpacho side—but the dessert was great. Dark chocolate ice cream?! Yes, please!
There was cheese and fruit, too, but did I mention the dark chocolate ice cream? 😍
And then to top it off, the flight attendants brought around a box full of chocolates for us all to choose from. (You guessed it: more dark chocolate for me.)
Every flight should have a post-meal chocolate selection!
I spent most of the flight reading and following our flight’s progress on the map, and I even got a little nap in, too. Then as we got closer to landing, there was a snack service that was pretty substantial (and delicious).
Pre-landing snack service.
There were also snacks available in the galley during the flight (e.g., chips and cookies).
The flight attendants were all friendly and helpful, and when I asked one of the flight attendants what it was I was eating, she explained that the cubes on top of the pasta were tuna and the dessert tartlet was made from coconut, almond, eggs, and “lots and lots of sugar,” and then asked if I wanted another tartlet. Any time the flight attendants offer me extra dessert, I’m going to be happy.
Bottom Line
My TAP business-class experience was totally enjoyable and a great value for points. Comfortable seats, good service, and good food made the flight fly by. I’d be happy to fly business class with them again, and am eyeing their SFO-to-Lisbon route to get even more time in their lie-flat seat, but this time on an overnight flight from the West Coast.
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