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#921993 by ScoobySu
28 May 2016, 19:28
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Firstly, apologies for the pre-flight waffle/pre-amble! And secondly, I hope the links to the pictures work - I'm trying PJH's technique!!!

Last year I managed to find my first ever two elusive G’s into LAX and out of SFO. Hubby and I had two fantastic flights and a wonderful time in Vegas and SFO, and so having emptied our respective Flying Club accounts we started collected again ….

Come 29th December instead of working I was idly doing my thrice-daily check for rewards (shh ... don’t tell my boss ;-) ), looking at both SFO and LAX, and up popped two for March. A quick conflab with hubby and although the length of time available wasn’t ideal I made a call to Flying Club and they kindly arranged to hold them until New Year’s Day – this gave us enough time to check leave with work and more importantly for child #1 to get his leave sorted so he could house and dog sit! The next day whilst surfing again instead of working there were G’s available in May for a greater period of time – another quick call and the hold was switched to these! Finally, at 7.00 pm on 1st January, having waited and waited for some Shops Away miles to post which finally appeared mid-January, I ended up transferring some miles to hubby, we made the phone call and the flights were booked!

Then the planning for the road trip began in earnest – I posted the first draft of our itinerary in The Baggage Hall and got some very useful hints and tips – so thank you everybody for your help with these! A spreadsheet was created and various hotels booked and pre-paid to lock in the US$ at the time – all fully cancellable so that we could chop and change – and even better most of them booked through Shops Away when there was a 12 miles to the £1 promotion :-) The hire car was booked through the Adrenaline Collection at Hertz – a V8 Camaro SS Convertible – hubby was getting very sad and actually downloaded a You Tube video of the car in action :-O The disadvantage of a convertible of course is lack of boot space, so new roll on soft sided bags were purchased along with a raft of packing cubes – blue for the mountains, yellow for the coast and pink for Death Valley/Vegas! Hubby and I started playing all three MyVegas games (one advantage of us both working from home is that we could sit and set auto spin all day on the iPhone/iPad :-D ) and we managed to amass enough gold points to get free tickets to “Love”, an Aria buffet, and $10 free play each, and still have over 110k points each left!!! Hotels were cancelled and changed as better deals became available – or in the case of Aria in Vegas re-booked at lower rates three times in total, the duty free was pre-ordered on 31st March to avoid the April price increases, DTCI booked and finally at T-24 OLCI was completed but only managing a lowly sequence 7 and 8 :-(

In the fortnight before we travelled things were very hectic at work – so much so that I was working 14 hour days and over weekends to make sure the April finance reports were completed – not helped by having to hand over my 2015/16 reporting portfolio to a brand new member of staff and taking on a new mega-division ;-( >-( but come mid-day on the 11th I finally managed to get clearance to log off and yippee – holibobs had started! :cool:

Hubby and I travelled to Heathrow in the evening of the 11th, and stayed at the Sheraton Skyline using a “Stay & Park” package. I’ll admit, I wanted to stay at the Radisson, but they were unable to offer a package direct part-using my Club Carlson points as the number of nights parking wanted was not 8 or 15, and using other suppliers the cost was too high. Hubby and I had stayed at the Skyline in 2014 and had liked the rooms then, hence this was our second choice. However this year we didn’t enjoy it. This was principally due to being unable to sleep – hubby had picked up a really nasty cough, but we also found the bed too hard and the room too small – I have a sneaking suspicion that they checked us into a double for single occupancy room. In addition, there was no free Wi-Fi (shock horror!!) unless a SPG member – and this is the one hotel loyalty scheme I don’t seem to be enrolled in :-O

Come Thursday 12th May, I used Uber for the first time – and have to say was very impressed, although I wasn’t able to actually find Virgin DTCI in as the drop off location! There was no actual cost for the short journey to DTCI as I had a £ 10 credit, and one advantage of course is that you get notification of the registration plate so I was able to call the UC line to let them know. Once through the barriers at 7.25 am the check in agent was waiting along with a porter who whisked away the bags. Proper boarding passes issued and off we toddled to the Private Security Line – where there was nobody in front of us :-)

A brisk walk with no stopping through Duty Free and my hubby power walked me past Chanel into the Clubhouse. We went straight to the Bistro and having perused the menu and given hubby my choices off to the Spa I went to book my treatment for 8.30 am. Back to the Bistro where it turns out hubby hadn’t placed my food order as he wasn’t sure what sort of eggs I wanted with my Full English – you would have thought that after 26 years of marriage he would know what I like by now!!! But never mind, the order was taken and food swiftly delivered & devoured – no cloaks of invisibility today! And I managed to resist posting my “Waves from” until 8.22 am!!!

For my treatment I had the Bumble and Bumble re-conditioning treatment as my hair is still very dry and brittle 20 months since I damaged it in Turkey :-( The additional blow dry cost £ 25, but I noticed that some of the fees for additional treatments has increased – from £ 15 and £ 30 to £ 16 and £ 32 respectively. My stylist was N, who had (from memory!) worked in the Clubhouse for 17 years – although had only recently returned to LHR from an extended stint LGW. We had a good chat about travel and family. Hubby declined a treatment today as he was still feeling a bit “meh”.

After my treatment I joined him in the “Viewing Deck” area – I like being able to watch the plane movements. I did of course partake in a Redhead after trying another one of the newer cocktails – I can’t remember what it was called and I can’t find the online menu now!

We relaxed until Priority Boarding was called, but didn’t go straight away, taking our time to finish my pot of tea! We wandered down to Gate 5 and boarded Dream Jeannie – our chariot for the day – through L2. First impressions of the Dreamliner as we entered was how much higher the ceiling is especially over the bar. This made the whole area appear much brighter and airier, although I initially felt that the angled bar cuts into the floor space.

We were greeted by a male CC, P, who immediately said that he’d be looking after us today. I asked for a sleep suit, and the FSM, A, immediately started rummaging for a small for me. She let me know that they only load 10 sleepsuits for the outbound day time flights, so it’s very much luck of the draw as to what sizes there are!

Hubby and I were seated in 3 & 4 A for this flight. I really liked these seats with the exception of the ledge for drinks/glasses being to my left instead of to my right! I was petrified of knocking my glass off every time I moved! Being on the A side we faced the “wall” of the G row so it did feel nice and secluded. The ceiling felt high here again, and of course the Dreamliner has HUGE luggage bins at the sides and centre! Those above 1G to 3G did not open however not that they were needed!

Champagne was offered along with re-fills, and we pushed back slightly ahead of schedule at 10.51 am. However, there was the usual traffic jam on LHR, and it was a while before we started taxiing. I do find it fascinating to watch all the different sizes of planes in the queue – the majority appeared to be BA. We saw an A380 take off and it seemed to just trundle down the runway!

During the taxi the usual announcements were made. There were 221 passengers and 13 crew, with Upper being full, only a couple of spare seats in PE, and the remainder being in EC. The safety video was shown and there was no manual demonstration this time.

Wheels up was at 11.51 am. During take-off the FSM was seated in the front galley with another member of the CC, who from hearing their conversation she was coaching towards FSM exams!

Once the crew were released there was the usual towel run, which coincided with the general seat belt sign being off – so there was the usual rush to use the facilities. The IFE needed a whole plane re-boot fairly quickly. I did find myself getting a little confused with the headphones this time, as they are now standard single jacks. I didn’t notice that the socket was part of the screen now (next to the USB socket) and so was wondering why I wasn’t getting any sound when I tried inserting it into the usual dual socket :-O

After I’d changed into my sleep suit the first drinks run was made and dinner orders taken. I can’t remember if the crew did this last year but this year it was very noticeable that they sat down on the ottoman with each passenger and chatted with them regarding their plans – a nice touch if a new development. For my pre-dinner drink I decided to go with the “Champagne Sherbet” which was served in a coupe glass. Very nice it was too and it slid down very easily!

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The menu, which has been around for a while, was as follows:

Starters
Fresh seasonal asparagus
Caesar salad (v)
Carrot and coriander soup (v)

Mains
Free range roast chicken
Fillet steak
Tomato and mozzarella gnocchi (v)
Smoked trout salad

Pudding
Warm brioche and butter pudding
Passion fruit and coconut slice

Cheese and port
Brie
Applewood wedge
Stilton

I didn’t hear anybody near me being asked to change their choices even though the cabin was full – from recent topics and reviews I was half expecting to be asked seeing as hubby and I are lowly Red and travelling on G’s. After tables were set the FSM and her trainee did the drinks and bread roll service from the trolley – I asked them how they felt about it and they said they prefer it as it stops them having to run to and from the galley for each passenger. I declined wine (trying to follow the grape and grain rule, having forgotten I’d already had champagne and the Champagne Sherbet, as well as a Redhead in the lounge!!) and asked for a vodka and diet coke, which arrived extremely quickly :-D

For dinner I had the asparagus, and hubby the soup as his throat was still sore. The asparagus was crunchy and served with prosciutto ham, salad leaves and dabs of hollandaise and was very nice.

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For mains I had the beef (despite the various warnings from fellow V-Flyers!) and hubby the chicken. I tend to like my steak more on the well done side so although it wasn’t usual fillet steak tender it was very edible – hence no pictures! For desert we both went for the passion fruit slice, very nice indeed.

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Finally I had Brie and Applewood Wedge, whilst hubby just had Stilton.

After dinner hubby converted his suite to bed mode, put his eye mask on and went to sleep for over four hours! I however decided to talk to my neighbours in 1 & 2A – who it turned out where from Newark – less than 20 miles away from our home in rural Leicestershire! We shared our plans and they were also driving the Big Sur and visiting Yosemite, although a few days after us as they were visiting family first in LA. Another drinks run was made and I asked for another V&DC. The FSM-in-waiting delivered this and also handed me two miniatures of vodka. Cue raised eyebrow from me and “You’re not closing the bar are you????” and fast back tracking by him.

I then decided to watch “Sisters” which had a few laugh out loud moments – I did enjoy it and would watch it again. With hindsight I should have reported that my screen kept switching itself off every five minutes or so unless I prodded it – but at the time I didn’t feel it was a problem. At the end of the flight it would appear that there were a few issues around the plane, as the announcement was made to “hand back iPads”.

I also played a few games of Solitaire, before I decided it was time to join the crowd at the bar. At any one time at least two seats were occupied, and there were people standing around using the extra space created by the angled bar, so my first impressions of the bar were wrong! As we crossed Iceland there was a mass exodus to the K side to take pictures – me included!

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I got talking to a travel agent, who was also visiting family in LA, and she was really a great ambassador for VS and the Dreamliner – she couldn’t stop extolling their virtues! I also talked to the FSM and the crew, and shared our road trip details with them, which they seemed to be quite impressed by!

My new travel agent friend and I decided to walk round the plane – I do like to try & stretch my legs and she wanted to show me how good the Dreamliner is! We bumped into the FSM at the huge rear galley, where she was preparing the EC snacks. I will admit I was impressed by both EC and PE cabins, again seeming light and airy.

After our stroll I decided to take a siesta, before the Light Bites menu was offered. I decided to choose the Burger, having not had it before. Bearing in mind it was cooked to order it was really moist and tasty – although I was not overwhelmed by the accompanying crisps and purple coleslaw :mrgreen:

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All this was washed down by a nice cup of tea … Hubby was still sleeping but when he woke up he was offered the menu and chose the cakes from the High Tea – the lemon one looked particularly nice!

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After this I adjourned to the bar where there was a great bonhomie amongst the passengers and crew – everyone was really getting on but at no point did the noise levels get out of hand. Finally the ten minute warning for seatbelts was made so after a quick visit to the facilities to change out of my sleep suit it was back to the suite for final checks. Wheels down were 21.54 BST and were pulled onto stand at 22.09 BST, 13.54 and 14.09 in local time respectively – so twenty minutes ahead of schedule – making up approx. fifty minutes over the whole flight.

PE and EC were held back whilst UC disembarked, with the FSM returning from her EC duties to wish passengers pleasant trips, each passenger having an personal comment from her. I thought that this shows real interest in her passengers, and if she is passing this technique onto her trainee then this bodes well for the future.

It appeared to be a short walk into the border control and customs section in LAX terminal 2 from the gate, but once there we were greeted by a heaving mass! Last year we flew on the VS023, which landed immediately after Air China, and it took two hours to get through immigration. I had been very sadly checking the LAX arrivals over the last two weeks, and had picked up that the Qatar flight from Doha was due in before the VS007. However being half an hour before the VS007 scheduled arrival time I thought that hopefully the queue would have cleared. The early arrival put paid to that unfortunately – with again there being no interpreters available for the agents and arriving Doha passengers. As I have a passport and ESTA that had already been used to enter the USA I could have used the automated machines, but hubby had a new passport and therefore a new ESTA so couldn’t use them. As we were using one Customs declaration it was recommended that we stay together. After an hour however the Officer manning the machines took pity on us and fellow passengers still in the queue, and allowed us to use the machines. Of course hubby’s piece of paper had the big “X” on it, but we were straight through to the Border Official and blow me – he was smiling and making small talk – he even recommended a place to visit at Pismo Beach! You could have knocked me down with a feather!

Due to the delay (which even impacted on the crew line) our bags were of course already off the carousel. We trundled through to Customs where there was a sniffer dog for organic products before heading outside.

I had booked the LAX Holiday Inn Express for our first night, so we went and stood at the hotel shuttle stop. What I hadn’t picked up was that this was a shuttle you had to phone for – so we stood for 40 minutes before we rang them! We then managed to stay awake until 8.00 pm local time before dropping off to sleep, managing to sleep through till 6.00 am local time – result for the first night on a USA trip where we usually wake up at silly o’clock in the morning!

Overall hubby and I thought this was an excellent flight – although he slept for a significant part of it! To him the best part was the suite so he could properly sleep!

In terms of service this was consistently delivered with a smile to the standard V-Flyers expect and all passengers deserve – with the exception of the “miniatures” incident ;-) . I don’t think serving the dinner drinks and bread rolls from the trolley diminishes that aspect of the service, in fact I think you get a bit more interaction with the crew and they definitely preferred it. The food was more than edible, and merging High Tea with the Graze menu will hopefully lead to less wastage (last year the crew were trying to get people to eat from the Graze menu and there were no takers – in the end they stocked the bar with everything but still ended up throwing most of it away!). I did miss my mid-afternoon ice cream though :-(

But – as fellow V-Flyers have often said – it is the crew and particularly the FSM that make or break the experience. On this flight we were lucky to have an FSM who appeared committed to keeping passengers happy, and she led by example throughout the plane. Hopefully she will become the norm and those weak FSM’s identified through recent TRs will become just like her.

Finally – a few more views from 5A!

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Apologies again for the rambling on – hopefully this year I’ll actually get round to finishing off the return TR (last year's is still on my desktop half written!!) and will post that later!
Last edited by ScoobySu on 29 May 2016, 14:14, edited 1 time in total.
#921994 by Katcool
28 May 2016, 20:34
I really enjoyed your trip report. We're on this route in July and it's great to read such a positive review of the flight.

We last travelled to LAX in UC in 2014 and had a fabulous flight so I'm hoping for more of the same.
#921997 by whiterose
28 May 2016, 21:21
Wonderful TR, please don't apologise for 'rambling on', I loved reading it all and feeling I was with you every step of the way. Only downer is that the photos don't appear, or at least not for me, maybe wait to see what others say before you ask PJH what has fallen down the gap between his instruction and your magnum opus?
#922003 by hiljil
29 May 2016, 02:44
Thank you for such a detailed TR. I, too, was unable to see your photos but even without them your description made your flight come alive.

Enjoy your trip.
#922005 by buns
29 May 2016, 06:26
Thanks for such a comprehensive TR - a joy to read on a sunday morning!!

Quoting my wife "It always tastes nicer when its free" :) it shines through in your TR, how pleased you were to grab those elusive G's and you can add my admiration for doing so.

Clearly all that reading of V Flyer has taught you the ropes about how to maximise Clubhouse time and Mrs Buns thanks you for the heads up on the spa charge increases!!

Reading the flight portion of your TR, I really now want to get aboard a Dreamliner and see for myself how good it is - to have a super crew and FSM makes all the difference as you say, so pleased to learn this was VS at its best for you.

Thank you for making me anxious to book another trip once more

buns
#922011 by pjh
29 May 2016, 09:55
I haven't used Dropbox in this way before (I used Flickr) but it looks as if part of the answer is to change the "dl=0" at the end of the link to "raw=1". The text version of the link before the image shows this but with the square brackets replaced by angle brackets to stop the forum code treating it as an image.


<img>https://www.dropbox.com/s/uj75lu3hfrgo85d/IMG_1018%5B1%5D.JPG?raw=1</img>

Image

and

<img>https://www.dropbox.com/s/kiswwwyuvr9sv35/IMG_1023%5B1%5D.JPG?raw=1</img>
Image
#922027 by ScoobySu
29 May 2016, 14:17
pjh - thank you - you are a star!!!!! Give me a spreadsheet and I can make it sing & dance but that's the extent of my IT skills!

All amended and now visible :D
#922028 by pjh
29 May 2016, 14:58
ScoobySu wrote:pjh - thank you - you are a star!!!!! Give me a spreadsheet and I can make it sing & dance but that's the extent of my IT skills!

All amended and now visible :D


Curiously enough I can't see the images in my post now! Some more research may be needed.

Excellent TR by the way. Very envious. :-(
#922087 by Bretty
30 May 2016, 16:39
Well you beat me to it as I haven't even started my TRs yet! But what a detailed TR it is and great pics too. I really enjoyed reading and felt as though I was there with you. It sounds much better than our flight out to SFO, which wasn't bad, but just lacked the sparkle we're used to with VS.

Anyway, great trip and hope to see you soon.
John
#922157 by ScoobySu
31 May 2016, 15:20
Thank you all for your kind comments :blush: on both this and the return flight.

Just to give you a quick update - I used the form on the website on Sunday for both flights to give positive feedback on all the crew, and to mention the screen issue on the outbound. I've just had a reply from Customer Services. As well as thanking me for my comments and saying they will be passed onto all the crew, I've been credited with 8,000 miles :-)
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