This is a Trip Report from the Upper Class cabin
Ground Staff
Food & Drink
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Destinations were whittled down quite quickly, as (a) we only had a limited time window (b) hot places were out generally out of the question (hotel prices being extortionate) and (c) we're heading for NYC at Easter. A recent enthusiasm on this site for Boston and a memory of the good time we'd had there a few years ago lead my thoughts in that direction; it is also the case that many years ago my mum and dad had visited Boston on their one and only US trip, so it fitted neatly in my mind as being "a signal".
Reasoning that a trip to the dark side wouldn't be so terrible, that with two of us the CW seating would be ok and that a good deal could be had on BA for hotels the plunge was on the verge of being taken when someone here mentioned that they had seen matching fares on VS. And,on investigation, there they were! Taking the BA seat tax into account, financially the BA and VS options were on a par....and so there was, for me, no question which way the chips would fall.
Initially the only issue was that it would have to be Delta metal, but given some of the reports here I thought it would be worth a punt particularly as DTCI, the Clubhouse and Revivals could still figure in the overall experience. Again I was just about to select the "Book" option (metaphorically) when I ran the dates again and the VS site told me 3 seats were available on VS11 at the price. Not quite believing my luck, I ran it as far as the "Book" button to confirm and then dropped out to check with MrsPJH. That turned out to be a possible mistake, as when I tried again and hit the "Book" button the computer said "no" and told me there was no availability. At this point another coincidence came into play, as up popped one of those "would you like to talk to an agent?" questions. "Why not?" I thought, and I got into a discussion where the agent did a bit of poking around and said "there's only 1 seat left at the price", but said from what she could see a couple of seats were in an uncomfirmed state and were possibly down to my previous trial booking attempt and advised my to try again....and bingo! Out on VS11, back on VS12, and a 787-9 on the way out.
Having had a great Christmas with the offspring, they scattered to the Lake District and Edinburgh for New Year, leaving us to contemplate how many layers to pack (many was the answer), to make the DTCI booking and to do OLCI. Booking the DTCI is, it would appear, now not necessary. (I wonder whether someone has been looking at cost of maintaining the provision vs the numbers using it?) and OLCI yielded only SEQ 8 and 9.
And so on the day, the only remaining activities were to repack, to fret that the taxi company had forgotten about us and to worry about traffic on the M25. Repacking was completed just as the taxi arrived spot on time and traffic on the M25 was fine, despite radio warnings about congestion around the M40. A couple of minor panics as I had been given an incorrect number in the car's number plate (soon sorted) and then on the way received 3 phone calls from VS which I missed as I didn't have the ringer switched on. Tried ringing back to no avail, and then we were on the M4 so thought "what will be, will be", though nagging thoughts about cancelled flights and downgrades wouldn't entirely rest. On arrival at the DTCI the agent said that all was on time for the flight and we were confirmed into our seats, so they had no idea what the phone calls may have been about.
Shallow fellow that I am, DTCI always makes me feel that bit special, Greeted by name as you leave the car, with someone in a uniform to whisk your bags away - the only thing that could better it would be someone handing me a pint of Broadside to consume whilst waiting for the passports to be checked. On this day this was enhanced by there being no one else using it or the security channel, so we were through in a jiffy and, refusing to be diverted by retail opportunities, were soon in the Clubhouse.
I'm still astonished they let me in to the Clubhouse, to be honest. It's so far beyond what I ever expected of my travel experiences that I remain vigilant for the tap on the shoulder and the discreet and polite but firm statement "you've been rumbled, on your way....". Perhaps this explains why I tend to pitch in to "Drink now! Eat now!" where MrsPJH likes to string things out a little more..I also tend to want to find a seat and stick to it, whereas MrsPJH would rather wander via the restaurant (though she always wants to end up in the hanging chair).
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A few things we do agree on is the need to book treatments, to people watch (principally, let's face it, to identify those we hope are and are not on the same flight), and in this instance (as it's early afternoon) that a glass or two of champagne is a fitting start to our time before the flight. And so that's how we passed the time. My head polishing was much appreciated (Mrs PJH had been threatening to put beads in early in the week), the burger and tapas were enjoyed by myself and MrsPJH respectively and we had ample time to ponder on why so many people were refusing all offers of food and drinking only water (still, of course) or lychee juice before we moved into the atrium area and having great fun with the hanging chairs.
Being an anxious kind of fellow once we'd gone 10 minutes past the time we were told we would be called I couldn't sit still and so, with MrsPJH rolling her eyes in exasperation, off we set for the gate. On the way there the sound of two pairs of running feet could be heard behind. At a T junction one headed off to the left, away from us, whilst the other sped past us heading for our gate. Then a moment later, as if in a cartoon, we could hear the patter of running feet growing louder and the pair that had headed left now also rushed past and disappeared into the gate for which we were headed.
If, subconsciously, I had been hoping for a queue so we could take the priority I would have been disappointed as just about everyone was boarded. All my anxiety had done was lead us to having to queue (albeit only a little) on the airbridge, though we were bracketed front and read by others from the Clubhouse (including Mr Lychee Juice).Interestingly not all turned left, I guess there were a few on CH access packages or whole families of AU card holders.
As possibly to be expected, once in the cabin it was only the little touches that marked this aircraft from any other thin and pointy tube. Some curiously angled coloured things, a slight step up to the seat and the larger windows were the main differences on first glance, though later on I was impressed by the scale of "the facilities". Had I brought a cat, there was definitely swinging room. I had hoped to try the window darkening, but couldn't see any effect as it was now quite dark outside. Oh, and there was a new amenity kit as others have mentioned. Basically the same content, but in a roll up sleeve; I say "basically" because I have to salute whoever put lip balm in there, as this was a real boon in the cold of Boston. .
Vera was a bit hit and miss. My touchscreen wouldn't work properly, showing no lists of films, TV programmes or music (the reason for the music being missing was revealed on the way back) but the handset worked well instead. I settled down to watch "'71", a frankly terrifying tale of a squaddie lost in Belfast, and rather wished I'd picked something starring Jennifer Aniston instead (errr, just joking there). "Supermensch" is also worth a watch for anyone interested in music or film (or celebrity chefs).
I noticed that the headphones on this flight seemed to have some on / off switch that presumably invoked the noise reduction. Neither setting was strong enough, however, to reduce the noise from the bar where two families (one American, one British) had taken up residence as soon as the seatbelt signs went out. 9A and 10A were just a wee bit too close I think, though MrsPJH did manage to get some sleep after a short period of "seat-belt-signs-on-but-no-turbulence" which did reduce the number at the bar by a little.
Service was the stand out. There were some hiccups, but I put that down to some of the crew still getting into the rhythm of the service on the new aircraft. Otherwise they were proactive and engaging both at seat and at the bar. Also unflappable..."24A's just been sick everywhere....".
I was determined to say that I had at least used the bar for one drink, and so took up one seat when it was spare. This immediately prompted the person who had noisily vacated it and returned to their seat to decide they'd like it back and to come and stand by me. As this was a lady, with her husband and daughter at the bar, as an english gentleman I did the correct thing and offered it up to her. She said thank you, sat in it for two minutes, and then headed, a little unsteadily, back to her seat. Only then did I notice that there was another seat spare that she could have used. I was feeling a wee bit as though I had invaded somebody's private party, though the crew members serving did a good job in trying to encourage a collective conversation. (As an aside, this is where the EK A380 bar wins big, as it's more than just a bar, it's a space to stand or sit, where it would take a good few people to make it crowded). I can, however, be enormously thick skinned when the mood takes me and it did take me, so I accepted a number of refills of the very acceptable Malbec and listened to the conversations swirling around, which had developed into two people competing for the attention of one man, meaning that at any one time someone was effectively talking to themselves in a very loud voice.
Soon, however, the spoilsports on the flight deck were declaring that descent into Boston was underway and so it was back to being belted up and supplied with Love Hearts.
As it turned out we were into Boston half hour early to be met by an empty immigration hall and the new self service entry machines. After scanning the passport and your prints (right or left hand) these produce a receipt with an extremely unflattering image which you then have to hand over to the agent in the booth. "Why so nervous?" he asked, "Have you seen the picture?" I replied...or would have had I had my witty hat on. It was actually because I was looking round for MrsPJH, having been separated by the speed of the process. Bags collected and into taxi sharpish, and half an hour later the first New England beer to hand.
Altogether, a great experience, but for me mostly down to the crew rather than the metal, though the 787-9 is definitely on the better track than the 330 (which we had on the way back, TR to come)
Last edited by pjh on 06 Jan 2015, 09:32, edited 1 time in total.
We can get better, because we're not dead yet
) and as most of the bar seats are on the A side the volume is biased that way. 
