I had an existing paper ticket which I changed at last minute and so had to go to the ticket desk to have it re-validated before I could check in. The girl at ticketing was really really helpful and i had my ticket changed within moments and was straight off to check in!!
Check in was a breeze, no queues at 7am in the morning and security screening through fast track was a breeze too with no one in line ahead of me (maybe getting up at 6am on a Friday morning isnt such a bad thing after all!).
Got to lounge just as it was opening and managed to book myself straight in for a facial which was great - just what i needed to clear away the cobwebs. Then went over to the brasserie and had the eggs benedict and a nice cranberry juice and sat and read the papers until the flight was called.
The flight was full to capacity and boarding was a bit of a nightmare - priority boarding wasnt working again (not sure it ever does work properly anymore) so after queueing for 40 mins I was finally on the Airbus in Seat 8K and ready for our 7 hour flight to JFK. I ordered my champagne and chatted to the inflight beauty therapist about my massage and then slipped into my seat.
The next thing I remember is waking up somewhere over the Atlantic about 30 mins into the flight!!! Lunch orders were being taken and the entertainment system was already in full swing so I picked a movie, kicked back and waited for lunch from the new Italian themed Menu which I have to say was really nice. I was in a bit of a daze all flight to be honest so cant quite remember all the menu items but I had some bruschetta, followed by Italian Minestrone Soup and then a Fish Pie, and then cheese and port.
After the end of the movie and another snooze I was ready for Afternoon Tea which was styled in an Italian theme again (think mozarella and tomato sandwiches and tiramisu cake).
The flight took just over 7 hours, were left on time and arrived ahead of schedule and so it was overall a great experience. The entertainment was good as I still think Virgin has the best selection of tv/movies and cds on demand in the sky.
There was no carlos magazine, no introductions by the Flight Service Manager, and still the horrid amenity envelopes (but at least now the cabin crew come round with the entire selection of extras to choose from and leave whats left on the bar!) but still a great flight.
One thing to note and I know people have dicussed this before and I have had numerous conversations with Flying Club and crew alike about this over the years is the IFBT arrangements - apparently Virgin are now trying to ensure that passengers who have NOT had a treatment in the club house before the flight get seen first, followed by the usual random selection of those that have been treated already in the clubhouse. Furthermore, if you are lucky enough to have had a treatment in the clubhouse and dont get one on board you will no longer get a queue jump card for next time as you used to do - I was in exactly this situation and when I asked why i hadnt got a queue jump card prior to landing for not getting a treatment (and telling the IFBT to wake me up if necessary) this was what she told me.
All in all a good flight and a great start to a fun weekend ;-)
