VS900 LHR-NRT 30 SEP 14 (Upper Class)

This is a Trip Report from the Upper Class cabin

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This is my first post and trip report, but I’ve been following the forum for a while now so thought I should attempt to contribute!

After months of planning it was time for my first ever trip to Japan and in the Upper Class cabin I called a few months prior to my flight and managed to bag a miles upgrade from Premium to Upper for a good price.

OLCI was done promptly 24 hours before – only SEQ2 though! My seat request hadn’t been changed (5A) so I was happy, as this often happens to me on other flights. No idea if this was a good choice of seat but thought I’d give it a try and see.

I arrived at Heathrow just before 0930- a little later than planned due to traffic, but no matter. The Upper Class Check-in was empty and I was seen straight away. The agent was friendly enough and advised I could take the lift straight up to security. There was a small queue at security but I was soon through and then it was off to the Clubhouse!

I’ve been to the Clubhouse at Gatwick before as a guest, but not Heathrow so I was excited to see the differences. Since I was travelling with my parents who were in Premium, I purchased an additional pass for £60 to allow them both to come in with me. This worked out well as it saved any arguments! The clubhouse wasn’t as busy as expected so we found a seat in the dining area and promptly ordered breakfast. I had eggs florentine, tea and champagne, which started off the day nicely. No treatments booked as we weren’t too bothered about these, so settled in for a few more glasses of champagne in the other seating areas. We also took a quick trip up to the roof garden, which was interesting but it’s a shame you can’t take drinks up there...

We left before the flight was called and arrived at the gate just in time for boarding. Boarding was efficient and Upper Class was called quickly after those who required assistance/extra time

My first ever time using the separate gangway for Upper Class was a great experience. However, I was slightly disappointed by the lack of attentiveness after boarding It took a while for a drink to be offered, but I managed to have a pre take off glass of champagne. Take off was pretty much on time and a member of the Cabin Crew soon came round to hand out menus. However, it was at this point I started to realise the service by the crew wasn’t going to live up to expectations… There was no welcome by name or introduction to the suite provided It was a busy flight, so I guess they may have been distracted by other passengers, but it wasn’t the start to my Upper Class journey that I’d hoped for.

My first impressions of the seat were good though- it was clean and in good condition. It was very comfortable and I soon figured out how to change the recline and lumbar support.

Drinks and crisps were served after the crew had been released. I liked that they brought the drink to you rather than bringing round a trolley, though the little tray for your drink seemed to be in a very awkward place!

Orders were then taken for lunch and I chose the pear and blue cheese salad and vegetable curry- both were delicious. I was too full for dessert but had the cheese and biccies selection. Overall I thought the food was one of the best parts of the Upper Class experience

After lunch the lights were dimmed as it was a night flight and this is where I started to get into difficulty. The cabin crew seemed to help a few other passengers with their beds then disappeared. I was keen to convert my seat into a bed but had no idea how! After a long wait hoping a member of the crew would walk past, I resorted to using my call button. The cabin crew member was not overly fast getting to my seat and when I asked if she could show me how to make the bed, she was rather abrupt in stating that she would make the bed for me. Once it had been made I settled down for a sleep and have to admit it’s rather comfy!! I’m not great at sleeping on flights though, so I gave up about 3 hours prior to landing and converted the bed back myself.

I was a little surprised that the cabin crew didn’t seem to be checking if anyone needed any drinks during the flight, but I assumed it was because it was a night flight and you could always go to the bar if you needed anything.

About 1 1/2 hours before landing the breakfast service started. I’d filled in my card as suggested, but no one was around to collect it earlier in the flight, so I just waited for someone to come and take my order. The service was very slow and for some reason my neighbours were both served before me, so I was one of the last to get breakfast. It was very nice though and I liked that you could order everything separately. I tried the scrambled egg, croissant and pancakes which were lovely. Due to the late delivery of breakfast though, it seemed very rushed and I only got one cup of tea…

We landed on time though and I felt well rested from the comfortable flight. It’s just a shame the service didn’t live up to expectations though. I decided to give VS another chance for the return flight though and figured it may have been due to the full flight and the fact it was a night flight…

Thanks for reading and I’ll post the return TR soon

Hmmmm this is not good and is surprising as the japanese crew are usually very attentive. Sorry you had such a poor experience, I hope the way back was better!

Thanks for posting , a shame the cc didn't seem to be on the ball .
As we all know they really can make or break a flight sometimes .
Just as well everything else was good I guess !

Thank you for the TR. What a shame the lack of attention from the CC marred the flight experience. How did your parents find the PE experience? I hope you have a better return flight.

I'm pleased to report that my parents had a great experience in PE- I was actually regretting not flying PE as originally planned as their experience sounded a lot better than mine!

Still, it was useful to fly in Upper to compare as I usually fly PE and have always had a good experience with it. In this instance, I think it was just a one off that the Cabin Crew weren't quite as good as usual. Return trip was better and TR will be up soon!

Thanks for a most detailed TR.
Such a shame about the crew. Night flight, full cabin or not it shouldn't make a difference.
I find it difficult to sleep and on previous flights the crew have always been back and forth checking everyone.
Glad to hear the return was better, I'm looking forward to the report.
D

I read both your TRs with great interest as we've made use of Gs on the same route in December. Sad to hear about somewhat inattentive CC; I don't know what would have caused it, but hope it's the exception and not the norm. Happy, though, that your return trip was so much better! I definitely understand what you mean about travelling in UC giving you a good benchmark for comparison with with PE product; I'm rather curious about this myself!

Thanks for the great report, it's much appreciated.

thanks for posting
shame about the CC. I had a great flight out last time in UC, maybe your CC were just having n off day? on our flight it was packed but on boarding we were still greeted by name and CC came to take our clothes for hanging.
i am also gutted that this route has been dropped. i have also always been on packed midweek flights to NRT! :-(

Thanks for the TR, I too am surprised that on this route the CC weren't up to standard. As has previously been said, the Japanese crew are generally very attentive and very efficient, but you didn't mention if your crew were mainly Japanese or mainly English.

I think 2 things really affect the customer / crew experience: leadership from the FSM and a good CSS. As long as you've got a good CSS you get a switched on hard working crew.

On one of my flights on this route (can't remember if outbound or return), we had an FSM whom we hardly saw. He might have been working in one of the other cabins but although he showed his face in UC from time to time, he didn't take part in any of the service and didn't introduce himself to anyone. I saw him sat for a long time in the galley with paperwork. But he seemed to lead well.

However, the CSS was great, switched on and personable and this fed into the team working with her and service was great.

Sorry it wasn't what you'd hoped for, I hope the return was!

Thanks for the comments everyone- glad it's been a useful TR I agree that it was probably just a one off with the cabin crew on this flight, as the return flight was really good!

Thanks for the TR and welcome to v-flyer!

Such a shame that the crew weren't great -they make all the difference on a flight! Going to read your return report now, and hope you had a better experience.