Flying with Swiss International Air Lines in an Airbus A350 and its Premium Economy on the Prague - Zurich route? Sounds like a bug in the booking system.

In fact, it was an accident that may not happen again. After all, Swiss is deploying new Airbus A350s on selected short-haul routes across Europe in 2025 and 2026 as part of crew training - and I didn't notice until after I paid for my ticket.

It was only in retrospect that I realized that the PRG-ZRH segment was operated by the A350. And that I could choose a specific seat for 20 eur - even in Premium Economy.

So I tried it.

A quick overview of the flight

• Route: Zurich ZRH - Prague (PRG)
• Aircraft: Airbus A350-900, registration HB-IFA
• Configuration: 2-3-2 (Premium Economy Y+)
• Flight time: 45 minutes
• Price of the whole ticket SVQ-ZRH-PRG: 160 eur
• My rating for this segment: 9/10

Current prices in Premium Economy - swiss.com

Why I booked this flight in the first place

I originally flew from Seville via Zurich mainly to collect miles for Aegean Airlines' Miles & Bonus (this was one of the very few Lufthansa Group fares that earned me at least 1,000 miles).

Honestly - it wasn't until after the ticket was issued that I noticed the aircraft type.

Widebody on an hourly route between Prague and Zurich is a rarity. And if you're flying A350, you want to pick a seat you won't encounter on regular European flights.

How to find this "hack" too

Swiss will still deploy Airbus A350s on several European routes during the first half of 2026.

The most frequent deployments will be on selected routes from Zurich until around June 2026:

• Prague
• Palma de Mallorca
• Málaga
• Düsseldorf
• Geneva
• Hannover

The type of aircraft will be displayed when you click on a specific flight on swiss.com:

The aircraft type changes from time to time with Swiss, so if you want an A350, it's worth checking your booking a few days before departure.

Upgrade for €20: does Premium Economy for 1 hour make sense?

During online check-in, the option to choose a seat for 20 eur in Premium Economy appeared.

Technically, this was not a service upgrade. Swiss provides economy class equivalent service on European flights. No upgraded menus, no amenity kits, no priorities.

But the hard product was real. And that was worth the price to me. After all, I've never flown true Premium Economy before, and I confess I didn't really understand what such a product was good for until now.

What does it mean in the practice of European flight?

• Wider seat (2-3-2 cabin layout, whereas in regular economy it's 3-3-3)
• Significantly more pitch
• Larger entertainment system screen
• Better padding
• Modern A350 cabin

Not a necessity on an hour-long flight. But as a test of a new product? For 20 eur a very good investment.

What do you get on a long-haul flight?

Once crew training is complete, the Airbus A350s will of course fly exclusively on long-haul routes from Zurich outside Europe.

In addition to a better seat and a more spacious cabin, you will get the following in Premium Economy:

• 2x checked baggage
• Welcome drink
• A better selection of complimentary meals
• A small amenity-kit

Buy your ticket - swiss.com

Premium Economy seat on Airbus A350

Swiss is introducing a separate Premium Economy cabin on the A350 with significantly improved ergonomics compared to economy class.

The seat is firmer, wider and feels more comfortable at first glance.

Not as "better economy", but as a true intermediate between economy and business class.

On a long-haul flight, I could imagine it without hesitation. On the Prague-Zurich route, I rather enjoyed the feeling of space - and the fact that I was sitting in something you practically don't experience on a regular European flight.

The seat has a comfortable mouldable headrest - but you can also find that in economy class.

However, in addition to the extra space in width compared to economy, you also get this in length:

• extendable footrest
• the seat reclines to a greater angle
• reading lamp
• better headphones for the IFE
• more charging options - wireless charging, universal socket, USB-A and USB-C ports
• much wider armrest
• larger and foldable dining table
• a much larger screen

Biggest differences Premium Economy vs. Economy

	Premium Economy	Economy
Legroom	99 cm	78 cm
Folding angle	up to 31°	up to 8°
Seat width	41 cm	46 cm
Monitor	15,6''	13,3''
Charging	Wireless Universal sockets USB-A USB-C	USB-A USB-C

What's worse than economy (or business/first) class?

The view out the window.

The entire Premium Economy cabin is directly above the wing:

Service and crew

As this was technically an economy class flight, with only an extra charge for a better seat, the service and crew work was the same.

So, I can't evaluate this and look forward to trying Premium Economy on a long haul flight some day as well.

What are the prices of Swiss Premium Economy?

Aircraft with the new Swiss Senses product only fly on a few routes so far and prices tend to be higher than on older aircraft types.

As an example, I searched for prices on the Prague-Boston route with a connection in Zurich.

The average prices for a return flight with a purchase 3 months before departure are:

• Economy (without luggage) - 535 eur
• Economy (1x checked baggage) - 695 eur
• Premium Economy (2x checked baggage) - - 2 100 eur
• Business - 4 500 eur
• First - 11 400 eur

Find long haul fares - swiss.com

Is Swiss Premium Economy worth it - my verdict

I have completely changed my mind about Premium Economy after this experience.

The comfort is really noticeably different compared to the classic Economy and I have not yet experienced better service.

So the final verdict for me - is Premium Economy worth it?

✅ Yes, if:

• you are flying a long haul route (8+ hours)
• you want more checked baggage
• you want more space without the business class price
• you find a good upgrade

❌ More likely not if:

• the ticket price is more than 2 times the price of standard economy
• you are smaller and don't need as much space

Practical travel info

Our website also describes from our own experience the best way to get to the airport or how to change between flights at world airports.

But we also visit interesting places with tips on what to see.

You can read my tips from this trip to Spain:

• 👉 Connections at Zurich ZRH airport
• 👉 How I got to Sevilla SVQ airport
• 👉 Prague PRG airport taxi prices
• 👉 What to see in Ronda