After a bumpy start at the gate this flight MH 851 with Malaysia Airlines gets off to a pleasantly relaxed start with a quiet take-off on this Boeing 737 MAX 8. The procedures are calm, the cabin looks tidy and comfortable, and everything feels well thought out and unagitated. This is exactly how a travel feeling is created, where you don’t just arrive, but enjoy the whole journey – slowly and relaxed. Take a closer look at this flight with us.
Review #104
| Departure – planned (actual) | 12.11.2025 12:20 (12:42) |
| Arrival – planned (actual) | 12.11.2025 15:25 (15:35) |
| Flight time – planned (actual) | 3:05 (2:52) |
| Delay | 22 minutes on departure 10 minutes on arrival |
| Aircraft type (aircraft call-sign) | Boeing 737 – MAX 8 (9M – MVL) |
| Travel class | Business |
| Seats | 3 F |
Content
Arrival
Getting to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) is uncomplicated and well organized. The easiest way to get to the airport is by taxi or grab. Depending on the starting point in the city, you should allow around 45 to 60 minutes for this.
A very reliable alternative is the KLIA Ekspres. The non-stop train connects the main trains station KL Sentral directly to the airport and takes around 30 minutes. The trains run regularly and are particularly practical if you want to avoid traffic jams or want to plan your travel time precisely.
We started our journey to the airport at Alila Bangsar. The hotel is located directly at the Bangsar metro station and therefore only one stop away from the KLIA Ekspres departure station KL Sentral. Our flight left at midday and this way of transport somehow felt too vague for us. That’s why we opted for a cab, which took us directly to Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 1 (KLIA T1).
Departure airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport is one of the largest and most modern airports in Southeast Asia. It is located around 45 kilometers south of the city centre and is clearly structured and well signposted. The airport consists of two terminals: KLIA for most international airlines and KLIA2, which is mainly used by low-cost carriers. Both terminals are connected by a shuttle train.
The good organization is particularly pleasant: routes are clear and procedures are usually efficient. Overall, KLIA is a relaxed departure or arrival point for any trip through Malaysia.
The departure here in Kuala Lumpur was something new for us, as we have been at this airport already several times before, but only ever for transiting between connecting flights.
Check-in
Business Class check-in is located in the departure hall Zone D of Terminal 1. The national malaysian airline Malaysia Airlines naturally has its main hub here in Kuala Lumpur and therefore shows a particularly high presence. The special feature here is that Business Class guests, regardless of whether they are traveling on international or domestic routes, can check-in in their own separate area.
Once we arrived there, the process was efficient, friendly and smooth. There was virtually nothing going on, so we were able to check in straight away. While one employee took care of issuing the boarding passes, as these were not available via the app for unknown reasons, a second employee took care of attaching the baggage tags and checking in the suitcases. The entire process actually took less than three minutes. The directly connected passport control is only about 100 meters away and so the Business Class check-in experience with Malaysia Airlines is really great! Some other airlines can certainly take a leaf out of their book.
Lounge
As a Business Class guest, you are of course entitled to use the airline’s own Lounge. In this case, the Golden Lounge Reginal. Of course, the airline also has a lounge for domestic flights, but interestingly, a differentialisation is also made between Reginal and International. The long-haul flights usually depart from the satellite terminal and so the Golden Lounge International can also be found there. Interesting distinction, don’t you think?
As already mentioned, all Business Class guests have access to this Lounge, as well as of course status members of Oneworld partner airlines.
The Lounge itself is rather classic – quite nice, but nothing really special. The view of the apron and the satellite building with the many aircraft movements was really great and ideal for planespotting and aviation enthusiasts!
Incidentally, our gate was not yet signposted at the time we entered the Lounge so we had to check every now and then to see if we already knew which gate we were about to board at and how far it was to walk to.
The dining options in the Lounge were limited to breakfast variations due to the time of day in the morning, which were neither particularly high quality nor exceptional. Overall, the offer fulfilled its purpose, but didn’t blow us away either. Well, simply Buffet breakfast – other airlines can do better though.
Security check
The security check at Kuala Lumpur Airport takes place directly at the gate, which is somehow always suboptimal. There was initially a confusing traffic jam in front of Gate H4 until the security staff appeared. I would like to remind you that the assigned gates are only announced shortly before boarding anyway. So how can they even still be late for that? Quite curious, isn’t it?
After the checkpoint opened, we had to show our boarding passes again and the right half of the boarding pass was torn off manually. At the actual security check, the liquids and all electronic devices had to be removed from the bags and placed individually in separate tubs – which didn’t really make the process any faster…. An escalator then led to a separate waiting area at the actual gate. Overall, the system seemed really unnecessarily complicated to us.
Boarding
After a short wait, boarding started straight away. Curiously, Business Class passengers were called as Group 1 and were therefore allowed to board first. Meaning that neither families with small children nor passengers requiring special assistance upon boarding had the opportunity to board earlier without a hectic rush.
Welcome on board
After a friendly welcome at the cabin door, we went to our seats, where a blanket and pillow were already waiting for us. Apple juice was immediately offered as a welcome drink, with orange juice available as an alternative – champagne or sparkling wine were not on offer. However, we were handed a hot towel shortly afterwards.
Start & Routing
After all remaining passengers had boarded, the flight took off with a delay of around 20 minutes. Malaysia Airlines flight MH 851 from Kuala Lumpur to Denpasar had a planned flight time of around three hours, which was ultimately reduced to 2 hours and 50 minutes. Take-off on the infamous Boeing 737 MAX 8 was exceptionally quiet, and the background noise remained very pleasant throughout the flight.
We took off in a north-westerly direction and after a 180 degree turn flew more or less straight across the Java Sea, past Java before landing in Bali after a right turn and an additional holding loop (Denpasar airport is usually extremely busy and most aircrafts take at least one loop before landing, if not more!).
Source: flightradar24.com
Cabin & seat
This Malaysia Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 is equipped with a total of 12 Business Class seats in a 2 – 2 configuration and the cabin is complemented by 162 Economy Class seats in a 3 – 3 arrangement. There are also rows with additional legroom at the two emergency exits.
Source: aeroLOPA.com
The entire cabin made a clean and well-kept impression on us, and the manageable size of Business Class ensured a quiet atmosphere. With only 12 seats, the extra space is clearly noticeable. The luggage compartments in the cabin ceiling are installed in the same way in both classes and naturally make the entire cabin look rather small, but of course offer plenty of space to stow things away, especially in Business Class.
On virtually all European airlines, Business Class on short and medium-haul single-aisle aircraft consists of the same seats as in Economy Class, with the exception of a free middle seat. With Malaysian Airlines, however, this is completely different.
The seats in the Business Class cabin can be reclined quite far and comfortably, offer a wide armrest on both sides and, of course, a much greater distance between the individual seats and therefore a generous amount of legroom. Even at a height of 1.90 meters, there was enough space.
In the cabin ceiling, each seat also has its own light and air outlet – which is not always common and a great feature. In addition to a jacket hook in the back of the seat in front, a small tray for placing your drinks on can be extended from the center armrest as well as the table and there is also a power socket near the floor in the center console. A cell phone holder is part of the magazine pocket, so that you can more comfortably place your electronic devices and watch series / movies or similar.
In the front row, there is even more legroom – although to me this is debatable. Sure, there are no other seats in front of you and nobody can recline their seat, but I can’t put my feet under the front seat either. Fabi thinks the front row is great, I personally prefer to be able to stretch my legs out even further. The seating comfort is otherwise no different from the other Business Class seats.
Entertainment
There is no permanently installed screen in the seats, but instead you have free Wi-Fi at your disposal, which you can use to stream content on your own smartphone or tablet. This is of course a clear disadvantage for passengers without their own device, but on the other hand: who doesn’t own a smartphone these days?
Amenities
There was no classic amenity kit, as on long-haul flights. The only things on offer were the aforementioned blanket and pillow.
Food, drink & snacks
Of course, lunch was also offered on this midday flight. Immediately after the seatbelt signs were switched off and we had reached cruising altitude, a small menu was handed out listing all food and drinks options available.
We made our choice straight away and were served drinks and nuts during the first round of service. Duck with cold pasta salad was served as a starter and there were three options for the main course: Vietnamese chicken with rice and pak choi, prawns with rice and mixed vegetables, as well as kabuli channa biryani.
We had the chicken dish, which looked okay, but was all the tastier for it. A vanilla panna cotta was also served for dessert. All dishes were presented on a single tray with butter and a selection of bread. Drinks were refilled every now and then, but once the trays had been cleared, service ended. So nothing else was proactively offered – not even drinks – which I personally thought was a shame.
Washrooms
For the 12 Business Class guests, there was a separate toilet in the front cabin area right next to the cockpit door, however it being a standard washroom with no special features. There were also no additional care products such as lotion or perfume. Anyway, there was a baby changing facility for small children.
Service
The crew on this Malaysia Airlines flight MH 851 were friendly, attentive and professional throughout. The service was pleasant and reliable – we felt we were in good hands the whole time.
Arrival
After the early landing, we arrived at the gate rather quickly and were also connected to the boarding bridge fairly quick. So we were able to disembark through the front door quickly.
Destination airport
Denpasar International Airport (DPS) is the only airport on the Indonesian island of Bali and, in line with the great popularity of this vacation destination, is mostly extremely busy. This was again evident on our arrival with the excessively long time it took us to get through passport control and collect our suitcases.
Costs
For this Malaysia Airlines flight MH 851 from Kuala Lumpur to Denpasar, Bali in November 2025 we paid 958 MYR per person, which was about 200 Euros at the time of booking in August 2025. We booked this flight directly via the airline homepage Malaisiaairlines.com.
Conclusion
For a price equivalent to around 200 euros, Malaysia Airlines offers a very solid Business Class product on this route. The seats are comfortable, the service is friendly and the food on offer is fine. The only thing that could have been better would have been a screen with proper onboard entertainment. Overall, however, this product is far superior to European medium-haul Business Class offerings.
Points
We award this flight with Malaysia Airlines a well-deserved 9 out of 10 possible points.
Only one point is deducted for the unfortunately non-existent monitors and the resulting lack of an onboard entertainment program.
Booking with EVRYWHRE
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YouTube Review
If you would like to find out more about this flight, you can of course also take a look at our YouTube review. Have fun watching!
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