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#920720 by Maximus
02 May 2016, 14:03
Ground Staff
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So at long last the time had arrived for us to fly to Miami and experience Virgin's Upper Class for the first time. I had tried last year, bagging G's for Tokyo, but after Virgin withdrew the route we were switched to ANA (no problem, they were absolutely superb).

We travelled down to London by car as usual, dropping pets off en route. As it was a late arrival and early start the next day, we decided to stay at the Premier Inn on Bath Road. Much as I love the Sofitel at T5, if we are doing nothing more than sleeping it seems an unnecessary expense and it is not as convenient for T3. I have to say the PI's Stay, Park and Fly package at £111 for 2 weeks parking included (with Purple Parking’s Meet & Greet) is excellent value (the actual parking bill was £175, which we of course did not have to pay as it was included in our £111 package). Also the car park at the PI is ideal for watching aircraft landing!

We dropped the car off in Terminal 3 the next morning at 8 am and made our way into T3 Departures, two floors below. We of course did not use DTCI, but may try it later this year. Check in was straightforward. We had some difficulty locating the Wing entrance at first, the check-in desks appear to have moved location since we last flew with Virgin, but were soon at the security area, which was busy with 10 passengers in line, but once through we made our way to the Clubhouse.

I booked a scalp massage and then had an English breakfast, followed by moving seats and a breakfast roll, followed by moving seats again after my scalp massage. I was peckish again by then so ordered some chicken wings and fries and rounded this off with coffee and cookies. Oh and obviously several cocktails, the Lady T (Earl Grey tea infused vodka with cucumber) being my favourite.

The Clubhouse was busy and seating availability was limited on our arrival. We shared a large table with a lady in the restaurant area as there were none free, but my mid-day it was half-empty. Our flight was delayed due to a technical issue and a new aircraft was arranged. We left LHR 2 hours late but no big deal; we had a great time in the Clubhouse!

Our aircraft was Miss Behavin':

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Miss Behavin'
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My last long haul flight last December was in BA First and it is tempting to make direct comparisons between that flight and this even though Virgin UC is technically a business class product. We had an outstanding crew on this flight, especially the cabin crew member who looked after our area and the FSM, who led from the front. I am not one to usually write to companies with praise (nor complaint) but have done so on this occasion.

I have discussed the menu on another thread so will not repeat it here but I attach a few pictures:

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Caesar salad
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Roast chicken
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As I can only add 3 photos per post, I shall add a few more in a post below.

So, overall I loved my first UC flight. I especially liked the Clubhouse of course (I have visited before and this time it was busier, too busy first thing, but still one of the best lounges going). Also the excellent on board service, the cabin crew were outstandingly good. They were fun but professional. I felt they actually cared we were enjoying the flight. The food: although meal presentation in BA First was better, the choices more extensive and there is flexibility to eat when you want is nice, I really liked Virgin's food, it was certainly tastier and less "fussy" than BA First which suits me. The chicken dish was the best meal I have eaten on a flight- really delicious.

I did not convert the seat to a bed on this daytime flight but found the seat comfy. I did at times feel a bit "penned in" and there is no doubt BA First offers far better privacy but this seat is superior to BA Club certainly.

The inflight entertainmenet was limited but there were several films I wanted to see and indeed did see- just. The screen contrast and brightness was very poor and this let it down.

All in all a great flight and I am looking forward to flying with Virgin again in September.
#920721 by Maximus
02 May 2016, 14:15
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Brioche & butter pudding
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Cheese & biscuits & port
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Afternoon tea
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#920722 by Maximus
02 May 2016, 14:17
And of course Miami was fab (once you escape the airport!).

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South Beach, Miami
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#920723 by marshy11
02 May 2016, 14:25
Thanks for posting. I have issues adding more than 3 photos too, not sure what I'm doing wrong but nice to know I'm not the only one! We've never stayed put in one seat in the CH, I can't seem to find somewhere that is both comfy and visible enough for the staff.

Good to hear you enjoyed the experience. The chicken looks delicious but the cheese a little on the sparse side.
#920726 by pjh
02 May 2016, 15:23
Maximus wrote:All in all a great flight and I am looking forward to flying with Virgin again in September.


So "job done" from VS point of view...

I think in the shrinking VS route network Florida may have to be next on the list for a G based trip.

marshy11 wrote:Thanks for posting. I have issues adding more than 3 photos too, not sure what I'm doing wrong but nice to know I'm not the only one!


The way round it is to put the photos on a hosting site such as Flickr and then post a link back to that site in the TR. The picture below uses the link {img}https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1500/26246634771_a638bdbc16.jpg{/img} (with the curly brackets replaced by square brackets}.

Image

It's a bit more fiddly than uploading the image straight into the TR but gets around the limited number of photos issue.
#920728 by buns
02 May 2016, 15:39
Maximus

Thanks for a super TR.

Whilst a busy Clubhouse now seems one of the "hardships" resulting from the tie in with Delta, at least you managed to have enough time to fully enjoy all there was on offer :D

Great to see you had a good crew - led by the FSM - and this makes up for any deficiencies the A340 has in terms of IFE and the lack of charging points!!

Enjoy Florida

buns
#920729 by Maximus
02 May 2016, 16:06
marshy11 wrote:The chicken looks delicious but the cheese a little on the sparse side.

Well that may be because most of it had been consumed before I remembered I needed to take a photo ;-)

buns wrote:Enjoy Florida

Sadly I have been back for over a week now, but I certainly did enjoy my first trip to Florida.
Last edited by Maximus on 02 May 2016, 19:14, edited 1 time in total.
#920735 by horburyflyer
02 May 2016, 18:51
Many thanks for a great TR. Really pleased you had a great time in the Clubhouse which really is one of the shrinking unique selling points of VS. Let's hope after the refresh early next year we are still all saying that.

It sounds like you had a great crew which is always good to hear. The Roast Chicken I found a tad salty but presented well I must say when I enjoyed it a couple of weeks ago.

It's sad to see the changes to the afternoon tea service which I found was a great difference maker for VS. I've lost count at how many passengers (usually US) who have taken photos of the little stands and themselves enjoying the service. It does feel (and look like) that things have taken a step backwards in that regard but I guess the CC just don't have time to complete the service like they did before and time (and money) needed to be saved.

Thanks again for sharing your experience and pleased you had a great time in Florida.

Jon
#920744 by Bretty
02 May 2016, 22:04
Maximus, thanks for your TR, your first experience of UC, and I'm glad it was a good one and that the crew were on form. I do love the Virgin Crew, generally they are personable and chatty, professional and genuinely interested in pax and in giving them a good experience.
#920832 by hiljil
04 May 2016, 19:52
Thank you for the TR. So pleased you enjoyed the flight and I agree that the seat ,without the jumping over anyone's feet, is superior to BA Club World. As is the food in my opinion ( but I have to disagree about the food in First Class ...... Well based on one flight !)

Always good to be happy with business class for the sake of the pocket !!
#941687 by tomthumb
17 Feb 2018, 17:44
Many thanks for the great TR and agree the way to add more pictures is to use a hosting service
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