BA First Lounge & Concorde Room at Terminal 5
December 22, 2008
Everywhere Magazine
October 7, 2008
Now, sadly, on a sabbatical, Everywhere magazine recently published my Virgin vs BA post from a while back. You can read it on their website here.
Everywhere is published by 80/20 Media, a crowdsourced publishing business. The idea is simple: you create the magazine. Sourced from hundreds of world travellers, but edited professionally by the 80/20 crew, Everywhere harnesses the truly independent viewpoint, an unbiased and unique perspective, through the eyes of the traveller themselves. It’s a little rough around the edges, as you’d expect, but that only adds to the magazine’s charm.
I’m sad that Everywhere may not return, but I think this model can work, it’s especially compelling when you think of the dire state of some of the in flight magazines. BA’s Highlife, is the one exception I can think of, but most are dull, doing little to inspire, convert or sell the reader on whatever their agenda. I’d love to see Virgin try the 80/20 model for an in flight mag. Currently their best publication, iFly, is limited to Gold Card members, and is sent in the post, rather than being available on board. It’s time someone did something remarkable with their in flight mag, as far as I’m concerned the only way is up.
Airline Lounges : In Pictures
Virgin Clubhouse : SFO
American Airlines Flagship Lounge : JFK
Cathay Pacific Lounge : LHR
Cathay Pacific Wing Lounge : HKG
Thai Royal First Lounge : BKK
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse : JNB
British Airways First Lounge : LHR
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse : LHR
Virgin vs BA: The Smackdown.
March 21, 2008
Since Virgin Atlantic’s launch in 1984 there has been a (not so) silent war between Britain’s (and previously the World’s) Favourite airline, and Richard Brandson’s young upstart. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the Business Class cabin, where both airlines fight for lucrative business travellers: who provide the much needed seat margins, lacking in the knock-down economy cabins.
What’s interesting is how both airlines have approached the needs of the customer, both opting for radically different design and service solutions – which can be seen clearly in the lounge, cabin layout, seat design, food and service. I’ve recently flown both (using my regular pay coach, fly business principle) and have some thoughts on how they differ that I thought I’d share.
Lounge
BA’s lacklustre Business Class lounges at Heathrow is set to be radically transformed by their move to T5 soon, for now though it’s a typical, busy euro-style lounge. If you’re smart you’ll track down the one Terraces Lounge that does a hot buffet, sure beats the cold-sandwich treatment.
Virgin’s Heathrow Clubhouse is a 25,000ft private member’s club, which you can access in less than 10 minutes with Virgin’s new Upper Class Wing, including private check-in and security. I’ve already blogged it previously. For my money, the best Business Class lounge there is.
Verdict: Virgin Wins (until we see what BA deliver withT5)
Cabin
BA’s new Club World cabin features both forward and rear-facing seats, each of which have aisle access. Lots of things have been upgraded here, since the last refresh of Club World, but what’s most apparent is the high level of privacy afforded to window seats. BA recently introduced a snack bar, called the Club Kitchen, located in the galley, where you can help yourself to drinks and snacks during the flight, a nice touch but something of an afterthought it seems.
Virgin’s cabin is laid out in their patented herringbone formation, with seats angled at 45°. The low-slung, curved partitions make for what feels like a roomy, open cabin – adding to the sense of space it seems Virgin were engineering with the Upper Class product. Virgin pioneered mood lighting, which many have now replicated, that makes relaxing or navigating the cabin in low-light, a much more pleasurable experience. The best feature, however, is he Bar – now standard on all VS flights. Essentially an open galley, designed for up to 8 passengers to congregate, drink and chat, the bar is an excellent innovation, well suited for folks who like to socialise on a long flight. If you’re feeling super-rockstar about the whole thing, ask if you can have dinner at the bar, it’s a gas.
Verdict: Virgin Wins, hands down.
Seat
BA have obviously spent some time re-engineering their flat-bed seat, since they introduced the first, some years ago. The result is an excellent, private (the window seat only), experience, that suffers only from it’s lack of length (only 6’3”). Unlike Virgin, the seat reclines back fully into the bed position, making it easy to go from reclining and watching a movie to being fully flat and snoozing away, my personal favourite combo.
Virgin’s seat is as ingenious as it is long – a fabulous 6’7″ on the Upper Deck. When it’s time for bed the flight attendant will come and turn down your bed, flipping over the seat, to reveal a soft mattress on the underside of the seat. Soft pillows and a down duvet follow, making for the best Business Class sleep I’ve ever had. Beware though, widths and lengths vary between upper and lower decks on the 747 and again on the A340, so check Seat Guru for details before you travel.
Verdict: If you’re tall Virgin Wins, if you’re looking for privacy go for a window seat on BA
Food
BA really comes into its own with the food. Excellent muli-course menus and delicious wines combine to make for an excellent all-round dining experience. Top marks.
Virgin’s food is simply terrible. The above meal was the single exception to the rule, but every other meal I’ve eaten in Upper Class has been below par. Poorly conceived menus and stingy portions are the norm, which is remarkable for an airline that gets so much else right.
Verdict: No contest, BA’s food wins by a country mile.
Service
This is a tricky one, as both airlines tend to focus on very different priorities.
Virgin carry the member’s club theme on from the Clubhouse, opting for younger (typically female) cabin crew. This is great if you’re off on holiday, as the style is more chatty and indulgent – ‘another glass of Scotch Mr Moross?’ But lacks in genuine, attentive service: requests are often forgotten and the overall attitude is more blasé.
BA have opted for super-professional, older crew. Always attentive and happy to entertain most requests, they’re extremely competent and considerably more experienced than their VS counterparts. But overall the BA crew miss the trick of making the experience special in any way.
Verdict: A draw.
British Airways First Class Experience
January 26, 2008
Routing
On The Ground
Check In
BA has a dedicated First check in area at Heathrow Terminal 1, which shares a private security channel with Club World passengers. Check in was quick and smooth, taking less than 5 minutes. Clearing security only took another 5, so I was in the lounge in 15 minutes all in, which is pretty impressive.
Lounge
The First lounge at Terminal 1 is the better of the two that BA operate at Heathrow (the other is at T4) but it’s still far behind even some of the newer Business Class lounges available, such as the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse. The spaces aren’t particularly inspiring, apart from the Champagen Bar (pictured), and there was a general lack of space: almost every seat was taken when I arrived. All this is set to change, however, with BA’s move to Termial 5 in March 2008 and the introduction of their new Galleries FIRST product.
In The Air
Cabin
BA cramms 14 seats into it’s First Class section, which is situated at the front of the plane (just wondering as I write if anyone has designed a First section on the upper deck?). The configuration is 1 and 1, with 2 rows of 1-2-1, the middle two of which are better suited to travelling companions.
Seat
I nabbed 2K, which is supposed to be the best in the house, offering relatively the most privacy for a solo traveller. The BA First product has been around for a few years now, and despite a few nice touches it’s beginning to lag behind some of its competitors, particularly on Asian routes. The seat is comfortable enough, but nowhere near as private as other First products, or even BA’s new Club World, which includes window seats that are extremely private, being almost completely enclosed.
The seat converts into a fully flat bed, and during ‘turn down’ a thin mattress is added to make things a little more comfortable. However, for someone who’s 6’5”, it’s simply not long enough: the faux-Walnut enclosure tapering into an uncomfortably narrow foot space. At least in Club World exit rows and other configurations afford additional legroom from the standard 6’3″ up to an additional foot in length.
Amenities
The super-comfortable sleep suit and Anya Hindmarch washbag, filled with Keihls products do add a touch of glamour, which is mirrored in the beautiful menu design and paraphernailia.
Food
The in-flight meal is an area in which BA genuinely excels beyond its domestic and Transatlantic competition, easily surpassing Virgin, United and American’s offerings, from the Business Class cabin forwards. As good as it was, this was my second First Class meal, which, to my surprise featured nearly the identical menu to my first, on the same route, 6 months before.
I was served a selection of canapes, and a glass of Johnny Walker Blue Label, followed by a delicious Goat’s cheese tart and then Roasted Lamb – which was washed down with a glass of ’99 Puillac. I followed up with Cheese and Port. All were excellent.
In Flight Entertainment
If I had felt a sense of deja-vu with the food this was compounded by the IFE. Despite having recently upgraded their systems BA’s IFE rarely works and when it does it simply screens a limited range of old movies (already out on DVD) which I’ve already seen or terrible new ones that no one would watch. No matter how luxurious the surroundings, no matter how comfortable the seat, or how delicious the food – on a 12 hour flight 6 or 7 will be sleep, the rest of the time we want entertaining! BA need to address this.
Service
BA tend to employ older, more experienced crew for their forward cabins (also a more balanced male/female mix), when compared to Virgin. The result is great, if a little snooty, service.
However, for the money, the First experience just doesn’t feel quite special enough. In comparison, in Cathay Pacific’s new First Class there are only 9 seats, vs BA’s 14, and the feeling of personal attention is simply remarkable: you’re treated like a celebrity, not just a regular traveller.
Summary
Miles ahead of the US carriers, but some way behind Asian frontronners like Cathay and Singapore Airlines. The First cabin need refreshing, fewer seats and more privacy. And the crew need to make passengers feel like it’s Christmas every time they fly.
Business Class For Less, Much Less
December 9, 2007
The only thing more pleasurable than flying Business Class is paying Economy and flying Business Class. Here’s a neat little trick to get you from A to B (via C) in Business Class for nearly half the price.
Let’s say you live in London and you want to travel from London to Hong Kong, an Economy fare is around $1,200, Premium would be around $2,000 and Business, $5,000. However, if you think outside the box, more specifically, outside the country, you can save a small fortune. Instead of typing in your departure city airport (LHR), try somewhere reasonably close, say Milan (MXP or LIN).
Here’s the quote on Expedia on BA from Heathrow to Honk Kong International. £2,611.50, over $5,200.
However, if you depart from Milan, connecting on the very same BA flight from London, on the same day, it will cost you more than $2,000 dollars less.
The down-side is that you have 2 extra short-haul stops per long-haul leg, but, if you want Business on the long haul, this is the cheapest way to do it.
