This is a Trip Report from the Premium Economy cabin
Ground Staff
Food & Drink
Entertainment
Seat
Cabin Crew
Here goes
Well believe it or not we we had pulled into Gatwick airport short stay carpark at 1.00pm and by 25 past we were sat drinking a cup of costa all twilight checked in and bags dropped! what a breeze.
So after a restfull night in the hotel we were up and off to the V-room, and what a pleasant suprise it was. Now first of all I have to say it was not that easy to find so after fast tracking through security I had to ask a cleaner and she pointed us in the right direction. The entrance is on the upper level of the shops and when you get to the top of the escalators you follow around to the right keeping the shops on your left the if you keep looking up you will see a sign for it above a doorway which is a corridor leading to a lift, Take the lift up and you are there. We are warmly greeted at the entrance and a brief explanation of what was of what was offered there was given. When we get inside we are surprised to see it is virtually empty there is a family in the children's play area and a couple of people in the adults only section.
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There is a good selection of food and drink on offer including hot bacon or sausage subs both with the option of tomatoes and mushrooms, beans on toast, various cereals, muffins, pastries, cookies and millionaires shortbread. Then there is a coffee maker that does lattes, espresso, cappuccino and hot chocolate too. Then there are cokes, sprites, various juices and innocent smoothies. (There is a bar but you have to pay for that.) There is free internet access with a dozen or so terminals, PS3 games, newspapers and magazines and a great view of the runway.
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We spend a couple of pleasant hours there which seems to pass very quickly and are at the gate by 12.10pm. Boarding begins soon after with upper and pe passengers going first so off we go down the airbridge onto the aircraft and up stairs into the pe cabin where I was in 76A wifey was next to me in 76C by the way i noticed the A/C was spotlessly clean. Pre flight drinks were offered in the form of sparkling wine, bucks fizz, orange juice or water. We were offered seconds and soon after they were clearing away ready for taxi which we did bang on time. The captains pa however informed us that because of strong headwinds todays flight time will be 9hrs and 29mins. So we are soon nose up and heading for the clouds although to me judging by previous flights the climb out seemed unusually shallow and seemed to hang at around 1000 feet for a few minutes but then we were soon climbing again and 30 minutes later we are cruising at 33.000 ft.The cabin crew make another drinks round and then the movies start up. There is a good selection of films but I never can get really into them on a flight so I just leave the flight map on and watch episodes of Family guy and Fawlty towers which I had loaded on to my PSP and listened to some podcasts and a bit of my audio book on my Ipod. Wifey watched My sisters keeper which she said was good but sad. When the meal trolley came around we had a choice of beef stew, chicken and brown rice or some sort of vegetarian option. We all plumped for the beef which came with a nice warm bread roll small salad to start GU chocolate and raspberry pud and cheese and biscuits. There was red and white wine offerings but as I was going to be driving when I get there I opted for a diet coke. I must say it was very tasty and we both finished the lot. The cabin crew were excellent they are cheerful and nothing is too much trouble making 4 or 5 drinks rounds also making us a cup of tea any time we want one. There is orange juice and water and a bowl of fruit left out at the back of the cabin so you can help yourself. We then got served little pots of Haagen daz ice cream and an hour and a half before landing we get a choice of a ham and tomato chutney or cheese and coleslaw sandwich with a chocolate chip cookie and tea or coffee which hits the spot. Before we know it we are on the ground wow the flight really seemed to pass quite quickly I think the fact that we had given up smoking since our last trip to Florida made the whole thing more comfortable and bearable. We are among the first off the A/C and head for immigration Mrs V1 and I are though very quickly and the bags are through just a few minutes later. I know Virgin Atlantic are coming in for a lot of stick on a lot of boards at the moment but with our experience of this flight They are still up there on quality and service. Yes they have made cuts and yes the IFE needs updating but i my opinion a quite a few airlines could still learn a lot from VA. Well done to them.
