Quiet Luxury: Saudia A320 Business Class To Riyadh Review

Updated on August 8th, 2026 at 01:55 pm

I flew Saudia A320 Business Class for a short trip to Riyadh. I looked at various options from London, including Qatar and Emirates (both with connections at their hubs), but then came across a much cheaper fare from Athens on Saudia. If you want to see what a long 9-hour overnight flight in Saudia’s other business class product looks like, see my 2026 Saudia 787 Business Class to Singapore trip.

Saudia may not be your first choice of airline when booking a trip but I feel quite often it’s dismissed purely by virtue of it being a dry airline. This fact was of little significance to me. Saudia, a SkyTeam carrier, is still a big player in the Middle East with a wide network. I’ve reviewed most other ME airlines here so I was keen to try this one out purely on the novelty aspect itself.

I paid 440 EUR for the Saudia sector, and positioned to Athens on a British Airways flight using Avios, so my total cost for the whole trip came in under 500 GBP.

It is now possible to visit Saudi Arabia as a tourist and the government is actively encouraging it. The country has plenty to offer, but this isn’t a destination guide, it’s about the airline and what you can expect. This routing also meant I got to try a long-haul product on a much shorter, medium-haul flight.

Check-In

I arrived into Athens airport 3 hours ahead of my flight and found myself in a fairly vacant check-in area for Saudia.

Business Class passengers had two dedicated counters with the designated “Sky Priority” service. There was just one other Business Class passenger checking in at the time, with the entire economy section completely empty, which is a bizarre first experience for me.

I normally travel with carry-on, but on this trip I had a checked bag, check-in was quick and effortless regardless.

Lounge in Athens

Athens isn’t a particularly big airport so I wasn’t expecting Saudia to have its own lounge here, and true to form they were using a contract lounge shared with several other carriers, the Goldair Handling lounge.

Goldair Handling provides ground services across Greek airports, and the Athens lounge sits airside in the Non-Schengen departures area, Level 2, Hall A. It’s open to Priority Pass and DragonPass members as well as premium cardholders on schemes like Amex Platinum, alongside Business and First passengers on the airlines it contracts for, and typically runs from the early morning through to around 22:00.

I most likely won’t get a chance to review it in full but you can see more information here should you wish. I should note, Aegean has its own service to Riyadh with its own flagship lounge offering in Athens that’s far more exciting, but then you’re dealing with a Euro-Business type product rather than a full long-haul Business product.

Boarding Saudia Airlines Business Class

Boarding for this flight was very timely and well managed. Premium passengers made up perhaps half the flight load, so it still went fairly smoothly.

The Seat and Cabin

This A320 has 20 lie-flat seats across 5 rows in a 2-2 configuration. Note SeatGuru incorrectly lists this as a recliner seat, it’s fully flat.

The cabin and seats carry the same sandy beige/grey colours as Saudia’s external livery.

Each seat measures 20″ wide with a 63″ pitch, so we’re talking full long-haul seat metrics on what’s essentially a short regional hop. I pre-selected 2L, a window seat on the second row.

At each seat you had a good size pillow with a lighter blue blanket.

There was also a bottle of water and noise-cancelling headphones tucked into a little space just behind your seat and the window.

The wooden console in the middle was a good place to use as a small table, with a small partial divider between the seats. The seat next to me was empty, though.

Within moments of settling in, the crew came around with Arabic coffee and dates.

The IFE screen was nice and crisp, though with a limited range of content.

Right below the screen you have a small storage shelf, useful for books, magazines, or a laptop in flight. What was interesting though is they had First Class designated headphones on my seat.

It made me wonder if the Business Class headphones were actually any different to First Class.

The business cabin was 85% full, with timely boarding and an on-time departure from a clear, sunny Athens.

Saudia Business Class Service and Dining

As soon as we reached cruising altitude out of Athens, the crew sprang into action for the service.

First I was offered a hot towel, always appreciated, then my beverage preference was taken, a choice of several juices and mocktails (reminder that this is a dry airline). I opted for a date smoothie, which I really liked.

There was no paper menu handed out on this flight, the crew took meal choices during the post take-off drinks round instead. Three mains were on offer: a local fish with potatoes, a vegetarian curry, and an Arabic Biryani.

The meal started with some classic Arabic mezze, Saudia style.

I find most airlines overdo the Arabic mezze, so much so that by the time you get to your main you’re not even hungry anymore. Not the case here, the portion sizes were perfect.

Keeping with the local theme, I also went for the Lamb Biryani for my main.

The presentation may not be insta-worthy, but I really enjoyed the Biryani, the lamb nice and tender. It was on the mild side, so it needed a few sprinkles of salt and pepper.

Once I’d finished, the plates were cleared away promptly and the crew asked if I wanted a hot beverage. I went for a decaf cappuccino, so I didn’t interrupt my sleep too much getting into Riyadh.

With all the plates cleared I took a quick moment to test the seat in bed mode and found it comfortable. The seat is well padded even without any toppers, a real treat to have on such a short flight.

Not long after, the cabin was being prepped for landing, even though it felt like we’d been in Saudi airspace for ages, it’s a huge country.

We landed slightly ahead of schedule into the golden hour of Riyadh.

Conclusion

I had a very pleasant flight with Saudia to Riyadh, and on the return, which was on a 777. The seats were comfortable, the service courteous and attentive, and I enjoyed the food. There’s not quite as much catering variety as with other Middle Eastern competitors, but I liked the Biryani enough that I ordered it again on my night flight back to London.

Unless you only fly once in a blue moon and want to celebrate a big occasion with champagne, I think it’s rather sad that many people completely discount Saudia purely on the basis it’s a dry airline. That actually suits me just fine. I loved the signature date smoothie for a change.

There’s a lot happening in Saudi aviation right now. Riyadh Air, the country’s new PIF-backed carrier, launched commercial flights from Riyadh to London Heathrow in June 2026 and has been adding routes at pace since. Saudia, meanwhile, has been in the middle of its own rebrand, and this year took delivery of its first Airbus A321XLR fitted with a proper 1-1 Thompson VantageSOLO business suite, a genuine step up from the A320 product in this review. 

Will be interesting to see how two national carriers manage to carve out their own niches within the region.

If you want to see how Saudia’s other long-haul Business product compares, the Saudia 787 Business Class review is one I’d rate over even British Airways Club Suite.

Faze

Faze, founder of Wander Up Front and Elevate Your Stay, is a London-based travel specialist with a deep passion for aviation. With over 2 million miles flown, he has spent the last 8 years focusing on First and Business class experiences.

Faze provides straightforward, no-frills insights into premium airline products and services, sharing what matters to help travellers make informed choices.

Follow him on his adventures and behind the scene stories on Instagram !

If you want to want to travel in style in more cost affective ways – check out his starter guide to utilizing Miles & Points