This is a Trip Report from the Premium Economy cabin
Ground Staff
Food & Drink
Entertainment
Seat
Cabin Crew
Online check went very smoothly the day before and we managed to secure the seats we had chosen in the bubble.
Set off for the airport at 8.15 and arrived at t2 departures at 8.30. Brilliant drive down with hardly any traffic at all, travelling on bank holiday seems to very quiet.
Arrived at virgin check-in which was deserted and headed straight for UC check in Hubby is Au. Met with security checks and the usual questions asked, i had expected the are you travelling in economy question but it didnt happen.
Although we had checked in online we hadnt printed off any boarding passes, for some reason my computer wont print off the boarding cards. Check in lady was very friendly and helpful, confirmed we still had the same seats and tagged our one bag as PE for priority baggage. It will be interesting to see if the bags come off first as we generally dont have much luck at MCO. Our only problem was getting her to issue fast track passes for security, after assuring her that Au members could have them she relented and issued us with them personally im glad she did as security was a breeze and we were through in 6 mins. We were offered our lounge invite and this time decided to take it as our flight was showing a 2 hour delay (delayed inward bound flight). Generally we just head off to Burger King and wait at the gate, which has never been more than 45 mins before, but i didnt really fancy milling around the airport for 3 hours as no gate had been assigned yet. So we headed off to the escape lounge for some r&r before the flight. We were charged 9GBP each for the girls which we thought was reasonable and definitely value for money. The lounge was fairly quiet and we chose to sit away from as many of the other guests as possible just in case little Jess decided to play up. There were hot and cold drinks available as well as pastries, toast, fruit and plenty of snacks. Im sitting here now typing up the first part of the TR with a nice cup of coffee and all the children sat quietly with breakfast and puzzle books, all in all not a bad start to the holiday.
Our gate was announced as 300, which was a remote stand which meant being bussed to the a/c. We headed to the gate at 12.05 and waited for about 20 mins before the boarding process started. Priority boarding was clearly signed and appeared to work well, we were on the first bus and at the a/c - Jersey girl - a few minutes later.
We boarded quickly and as soon as we had settled down were offered a drink, the menu's, water and amenity pack were already on the seat. The only downside was we were on the ground for alomost an hour and only offered one drink, but as we had water isn't too much of an issue. The captain advised a very short flying time of 8 hours 22 minutes which is the quickest i have heard off.
The seat belt sign remained on for quite a while after take off, we had been advised it may be a little bumpy but it was no worse than i remember before. One gentleman did insist on using the bathroom though even though the CC had advised that the sealt belt sign was on he wouldn't listen however and insisted they were opened [V].
The IFE was swithched on quickly and had a good choice of films, i managed to half watch National Treasure, St. Trinians and I am Legend, i say half watch as Jess is renowed for her inability to remain quiet for more than 5 seconds and therefore insisted on talking most of the way through them.
The drinks service was quick to commence and I asked for a wine, i was given this in a champagne glass and the CC apologised for not having any wine glasses left, i didn't complain too much as it was a full glass [:)]
Not long after drinks were served the children's meals began to arrive and this is where our one problem began. The SCC asked me if I had booked any childrens' meals, to which i replied yes i booked 3 over 7 months ago. Now from overhearing this being asked before i knew there weren't enough meals onboard so spoke to H & L and asked if they wanted anything off the menu, Jess wouldn't have eaten so she was getting a child's meal. Luckily the girls opted for the chicken and pasta option so I went back to the galley and said the older girls were happy to have the chicken and pasta if 1 child's meal could be found for Jessica. The SCC looked so greatful and apologised again that they were unable to offer all 3 children a meal, but promised that he would make sure that they would all get the other goodies that accompanied the childrens meal and good to his word he did, I also got given an extra glass of wine as a thank-you for not making too much fuss [:D]
The menu was:
Starter
Greek Salad - both me and hubby thought this was lovely.
Main Course
BBQ chicken with bacon and cheese, potatoes and mixed peppers - H said it was ok just too much BBQ sauce
Beef in mustard sauce with mashed potato, carrots, broccoli and roasted onion - Hubby said it was the worst meal he'd ever had on any flight.
Quattro formaggi tortellini in bechamal sauce with courgette and tomato concasse - L really enjoyed hers, i found it a little sickly towards the end, but enjoyable none the less.
Dessert
Fru flirty blackcurrant dessert - nice but both hubby and i agreed a little sickly after a couple of mouthfulls.
Jess really enjoyed her kids pasta and said it was yummy yummy in her tummy, it was penne pasta in a tomato sauce with spinach.
Dinner was cleared away quickly and Brandy and Baileys followed not long after that. I have to say i love being in the bubble as all meal services are cleared away very quickly, on our last flight at easter in economy we had to wait about 30 minutes for the trays to be cleared which makes life difficult as there isn't really much room.
The CC placed a tray of orange and water out along with a fruit bowl and both were kept topped up through the entire flight which was nice as we never had to ask for anything [y]
The rest of the flight went just as smoothly with an ice cream run about 4 hours in. The CC were visible throughout the flight walking through the cabin on a regular basis. The FSM was visible as well, but only as he walked to the flightdeck, he never spoke to any of the pax but did smile at us all.
About an hour and 20 minutes before landing we were given sandwiches, the girls got jam and cheese which they all left, they finished off there carrots and grapes instead, they did manage the crisps though. We were offered a choice of cheese and humous or chicken and ham. We both chose the chicken and ham but declined the cookie. The sandwiches were ok but a little small. Tea and coffee were offered in paper cups, now i know some people don't like this but i prefer it as you get a decent cuppa.
The cabin was secured, IFE switched off and seat belt signs turned on 30 minutes before landing. I do wish that the IFE could be left on a little longer as the little ones do get restless. The landing was smooth and we had the long taxi to the gate. Once the seat belt sign went off everyone moved quickly to collect bags and get ready to try and beat the rush to immigration BUT as we were late arriving 2 other planes had beat us in and we were kept on board for 20 minutes as the immigration hall was full and we weren't allowed in [n]
When we were finally allowed off the FSM announced that it was customary that UC passengers and those on the upper deck disembarked first and thanked everyone for waiting patiently. I have to say I was very worried about what we would see when we entered the immigration hall but to my surprise it wasn't that bad. We turned right as this seems to have the shortest lines and within 20 minutes were through to collect our bags. The immigration oficer we had was excellent, he was polite, funny and brilliant with the children which made the whole process a pleasant experience.
Our bag was waiting for us when we arrived at the belts and after a quick train ride we were met by our chauffer who whisked us off to our second home for 2 weeks.
All in all a very good flight, despite the delays in Manchester. I enjoyed the lounge and have to admit it's a wonderful way to start a holiday. We now have 2 weeks before we take our last PE flight of the year back to Man. Our next 3 flights after that are all in UC and i'm more than a little excited about it.
Hope this wasn't too long, if it was let me know and i'll keep it shorter for the return trip, but as i've said before i can talk for England and then some!!!
