7 airlines around the world offer lie-flat beds in economy — see what makes this seating arrangement so rare

A new trend is popping up in economy class: lie-flat beds.

Air New Zealand

Championing the idea is Air New Zealand, which introduced its revolutionary "Skycouch" in 2011 and has since patented the design.

Source: The Airline Passenger Experience Association, Justia Patents

"Being a relatively small airline from a small country, innovation is at the heart of our business," Air New Zealand CEO Rob Fyfe said about the product in 2010.

Source: Business Traveller

The concept is simple: Imagine three coach seats with legrests that flip up 90 degrees to create one large space. And, it will be reserved for those who book it, meaning no one will share it with a stranger.

Granted, the couch is smaller than you'll find in business class, with the full sleeping area being just 5-foot-1 long and 29 inches wide.

Source: Air New Zealand

But, lying down to sleep on ultra-long-haul flights is much easier than sitting up — and I know from personal experience.

Source: Air New Zealand, I flew on the world's 4th-longest flight in a 'Skycouch' — an economy seat that converts into a bed — and it was a lifesaver on the 16-hour journey

I flew the Skycouch from Auckland, New Zealand, to New York in September on ANZ's Boeing 787 Dreamliner and thought it was a game changer. I'm short at only 5-foot-3, so I felt I had enough room …

Taylor Rains/Insider

… but taller travelers may need to bend their legs. I also wouldn't recommend it for more than two adults — there simply isn't enough space for three people to all lie down.

For safety, ANZ does provide what it calls a "cuddle belt" to strap travelers to the seat.

Taylor Rains/Insider

Since the Skycouch's debut, other airlines have adopted the design for their planes. In 2014, Taiwan's China Airlines introduced the "Family Couch" …

Source: Business Traveller, The World's Best Airline Has Some New Competition From China Airlines

… followed by Azul Brazilian Airlines' "Skysofa" in late 2014 …

Source: Azul Brazilian Airlines

… the Kazakh carrier Air Astana's "Economy Sleeper" in 2015 …

Source: Air Astana

… and the French carrier Air Austral's "Extra Couchette" in 2016.

Source: Air Austral

More recently, Japan's All Nippon Airways unveiled the "Couchii" in 2019 on its Airbus A380, which flies exclusively between Tokyo and Honolulu.

The CEO of Japan's biggest airline says he has no plans to get rid of the world's largest airliner. See inside ANA's A380, which is painted to look like a sea turtle.

The product uses a row of three or four economy seats to create the sofa bed.

ANA

Source: ANA

Vietnam Airlines has also installed a "Sky Sofa" on flights between San Francisco and Ho Chi Minh City, as well as between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and London, Paris, and Frankfurt.

Meanwhile, the German flag carrier Lufthansa allows passengers to book a "Sleeper's Row" for flights of 11 hours or more. These can be booked only at check-in or at the gate.

Source: Lufthansa

While the original Sleeper's Row doesn't have a flip-up legrest, Lufthansa says its future long-haul aircraft will have an improved "Sleeper's Row 2.0" with the needed feature.

Source: Lufthansa

But not all couches have survived. While China Airlines expanded its lie-flat economy product to both its Boeing 777-300ERs and its Airbus A350-900s, it ditched the design in 2018 because of poor demand.

Source: The Airline Passenger Experience Association

The defunct airline Thomas Cook also had a "Sleeper Seat" on its Airbus A330s for single passengers — meaning no duos or couples — but those left the sky after the carrier declared bankruptcy in 2019.

Thomas Cook bankruptcy: How the iconic travel brand went from transporting anti-liquor protesters in the 1800s to collapsing and stranding 600,000 passengers in 2019

For those wanting to fly on one of these lie-flat options, it will come at a cost. Some fees are pretty straightforward, like Vietnam's outlined rate of $400 to $600 a person on top of the airfare …

… and Lufthansa's outlined price of $179 to $249 per person per leg for its original Sleeper's Row option.

Lufthansa just revealed its new first-class suites with closeable doors where passengers can dine at a restaurant-style table on caviar

Other carriers like Air New Zealand and Azul have more varied pricing, which will differ depending on the route and season.

Business class on the same route is about $6,500 one-way, while premium economy is just under $3,200.

Personally, I think an economy sofa is a better alternative to any premium-economy seating out there, which typically comes with a legrest, footrest, and better food but doesn't lie flat.

Given the product's success, ANZ is introducing yet another lie-flat option in economy. Coming in 2024, travelers can book the "Skynest," which is a set of flying bunk beds.

Air New Zealand

For example, the price for ANZ's Skycouch for one, two, or three people on a June 15 flight from New York to Auckland was $605. This is on top of the $1,310 one-way airfare per person.

The cozy sleeping pods will come with linens, a privacy curtain, and USB ports, a company spokesperson told Insider in September.

Taylor Rains/Insider

Correction: March 18, 2024 — Because of an editing error, an earlier version of this story misstated which country the author flew from. The author flew to New York from Auckland, New Zealand, not Australia.