VS029 LGW-BGI 21 JUN 14 (Upper Class)
Posted: 25 Jun 2014, 18:09This is a Trip Report from the Upper Class cabin
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anyway, the story goes like this; After such a good trip and recalling the offer of extra Tier Points that i had signed up for (Thanks Sealink
) I had the urge to book an Economy flight and upgrade with miles - after first gaining the necessary authorisation from Mrs buns of course 
- so made a call to Flying Club.There was plenty of availability to Barbados she says, so there I was booking a flight out to Barbados with under a week to go
I know that the wise view is not to use miles for the CDC transfer, but we are fortunate to have lots of miles but not that much opportunity to use them, so included the transfer at 17,500 miles. Unusually for Tristar, 10 minutes before pickup the car had not arrived so a quick call elicited the response he would be with me in a minute or so and sure enough he was.
30 minutes later we were pulling up at the upper level of the Gatwick South Terminal and a few minutes later i was at the Upper Class check in, boarding card in hand and making it hot foot to the Clubhouse. Progress was slower than normal as the Premium Security Channel was extremely busy, but undaunted, I made my way into the Clubhouse to a very warm welcome as they had only seen me a moth before and had thought there may well be a different Buns when they had seen my name. Needless to say, the whereabouts of Mrs buns was asked about and when I explained the other main purpose of my journey was to celebrate Virgin's 30th Birthday, they understood
Had the usual full english breakfast to start, before moving to the snug and catch up on V flyer and E Mails etc. During my stay I shared photos of my previous visit when my godson were surprised to be in Upper - a secret that was kept until they entered the upper cabin. The standing joke was not to forget i was on the flight to Barbados and not to think i was going to Orlando
Went on the first boarding call and made my way to Gate 15 to join "Diamond Girl". The Gate area was already empty and I walked straight on the the Aircraft
Warmly welcomed I was soon in my seat (well it is right next to the door ).The crew on the flight was fantastic and whilst supping my welcome champagne, I toasted them for their 30th Birthday and a rapport was quickly built up.
Take off was a little ahead of schedule and after the usual welcome from FSM and CSS, the service commenced. Hot Towels were handed out as well as menus and my ordered Gentlemen Jack.
Now I will not hide my dislike of the Dream Suite. Although I was in one of the widest suites, there is little room to put drinks, water and other stuff, which does impact on the whole experience. I am pleased to report the crew empathised and told me training on the 787's would be starting in September
Dinner Choices;
Starters
Pea and mint soup (v)
Tomato, mozzarella and olive salad (v)
Crayfish, avocado and tomato tian
Mains
Fillet of beef
Chicken katsu
Grilled tiger prawn salad
Spinach and ricotta ravioli (v)
Pudding
Warm sticky toffee pudding
Lemon tart and vanilla bean ice cream
I went for the soup, beef and toffee pudding and All were brilliant, especially the beef which was remarkably tender
Through the meal, I watched "Monuments Men" which allegedly is based on a true story, but to me was a bit more akin to the stories I used to read in those Commando War Comics as a kid.
The seat 9A is right by the bar and with the aid of noise cancelling headphones, I was able to put aside anything that might have been happening there, although i was able to detect that area was very busy. After watching the film, I briefly joined the gathered masses, before the seatbelt signs came on……
As it was a 330, delivery of afternoon tea was an individual affair, which to my mind is a shame as the tea service is one of those points in the flight that harks back to the golden age of air travel.
Landing was nearly half an hour ahead of schedule and exiting by door L1, I bade farewell to the excellent crew before descending the stairs onto the tarmac. That has to be one of the best bits of travelling to Barbados
Swiftly through Immigration and was the hotel was waiting outside with a sign and had me in a cab in no time.All in all an excellent journey, the limitations of the A330 Upper Class Cabin were more than overcome by a hard working crew who looked after everyone on board (including I must say, a brand new crew member who was on her first trip and were making sure she was picking up all the right tips) and I was glad to be able to recognise Virgin's 30th Birthday in this little way.
Thank you for reading
buns
