Co-Branding Gone Berserk: EVA Air and Hello Kitty


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February 14th 2015
Published: February 19th 2015
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Amelia Earhart Hello Kitty?
I recently traveled to Singapore for my mother's 80th birthday. While looking for mileage award flights back from Singapore to Honolulu, one intriguing option popped up: Singapore to Taipei and then to Guam on EVA Air, and then connect in Guam onto a United flight to Honolulu. I knew at booking that EVA Air had a co-branding arrangement with Hello Kitty, so I hoped that at least one of the flights would be on a Hello Kitty jet. I was disappointed that the Singapore-Taipei flight was not Hello Kitty themed, but we did get a Hello Kitty Chinese New Year greeting on the video screen:



On arrival in Taipei, I discovered that one gate in the C-pier was decked out in the finest Hello Kitty kitsch - phone booths, play area, world clock, and others. On boarding my Taipei-Guam flight (an A330-200), I was delighted to find that it was a Hello Kitty jet. Pity it was a nighttime flight and I could not take any pictures of the exterior. But, there was ample Hello Kitty stuff on the interior - cabin mural, coasters, pillows, menus, safety cards, even meals. Cuteness overload.

When all was done, one
Taipei-Guam FlightTaipei-Guam FlightTaipei-Guam Flight

Hello Kitty mural at the front of the cabin.
question stuck in my mind: Where/what is EVA Air's brand? It got lost in all the Hello Kitty silliness. The only place where Hello Kitty was (sensibly) not in evidence was the Business Class Lounge at Taipei Airport.


Travel Tip: Avoid transiting in Guam. I had to clear a long immigration line and then customs in Guam, clear TSA before being allowed back into the boarding area, go through immigration pre-clearance before boarding the flight to Honolulu (Guam has slightly different visa requirements from the 50 states) and then clear customs on arrival in Honolulu. Too many steps for a simple change of planes.


Additional photos below
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Hello Kitty Telephone.
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More Telephones
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Taipei-Guam Flight

Hello Kitty pillow
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Taipei-Guam Flight

Appetizer: Pate and shrimp. The yellow item leaning on the pate is a piece of cheese shaped like Hello Kitty. Note also the Hello Kitty napkin ring.
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Taipei-Guam Flight

Main: Halibut, rice and vegetables. The carrot on top of the rice is Hello Kitty shaped. Even the toothpick (right of the cutlery) comes in Hello Kitty wrapping.
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Taipei-Guam Flight

Hello Kitty coaster.


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