VS005 LHR-MIA 7 OCT 11 (Upper Class)

[honey lamb]

This is a Trip Report from the Upper Class cabin

Ground Staff

Food & Drink

Entertainment

Seat

Cabin Crew

Finally all those holidays and business trips have paid off!  Two UC reward flights to MIA.

Booked TriStar (directly not through Virgin) to get to the airport and booked a slot to arrive at the Upper Class Wing.  This was all very easy.  Phoned TriStar to book; they gave us the phone number for Virgin; spoke to them and authorised TriStar to sort out all the detail (drive, car, etc.) directly with Virgin.

The drive to the airport was ok; the driver took a route through Knightsbridge, complaining there had been roadworks for months... Perhaps a different route would have made more sense? But just over an hour from Wapping to Heathrow isn't too bad.

Arrived at the UC Wing.  I expected it to be pretty busy now everyone can use the service.  But it wasn't.  Only one or two other pax.  All very efficient. As was security, where there was no queue. And this was at around 9.45am.

Dodged around the yet again rearranged duty free 'corridor' and head straight to the Clubhouse.  As ever, the food, drink and service in the CH was very good; an excellent space to relax ahead of a long flight.  Although I didn't bother to ask about treatments, because on the last four or five visits to the CH there's been no availability for a pre-flight shave.  Figured it was better to stay chilled and not ask, rather than be disappointed.

The plane was due to start boarding at 1100, so at 1045 we headed back out to duty free to pick up a few bits and pieces and then strolled along to the gate.  This was the one disappointed of the LHR experience.  There were no signs at the gate (gate 7) to differentiate priority boarding, so everyone was queuing together.  It took about ten minutes queuing to get to the front, although there was also the frustration of a number of other UC pax trying to  queue jump their fellow UC travellers.

Gate hell over and headed down the air bridge onto the aircraft. Dancing Queen.  This is where the frustration of the gate almost immediately disappeared with a friendly welcome at the aircraft door. The UC cabin was totally full, but this did not stop the crew from being very efficient, courteous and attentive.

I've read several other trip reports which talk about the attitude of the FMS determining how good the overall onboard experience is.  On this flight ****, the FMS, introduced himself to every UC pax, checking everyone had the right US customs forms.  He was back around during the meal with the wines.  And his level of attentive service permeated throughout the UC team.

There was a thirty minute delay before takeoff.  But after takeoff the onboard service quickly kicked in to action.

The lunch menu wasn't particularly great - looking forward to see what the big changes will be next month - but the actual food was good.  I had the pea and basil risotto with king prawn. Followed by the beetroot filled tortelinni (it sounded a bit different).  Finished off with the cheese with a glass of port.

I was a bit disappointed with the selection of films available .  But that probably says more about the films that have been in the cinema in the last six months than it does about Virgin.

Spent quite a bit of time at the bar, where the other pax and the crew were all great fun.  The pilot appeared a little jumpy with the seatbelt sign, so there were a few interludes back in the seat.  I was in 7k, which I think is one of the best seats onboard.

Flight arrived about fifteen minutes late, so we caught up a bit of time in flight.  At MIA the immigration area right next to the gate had been opened.  Well one officer was working when we arrived.  Took a while for his colleagues to start up.  When I finally got to an immigration desk, the officer was pretty rude and off-hand; have they not worked out that this is the first impression people get of the USA?!

The only 'benefit' of the slow immigration process was that bags were already on the belt when we got to the baggage hall.  Straight through customs and on to find a cab.

Overall, I would say that the onboard experience was excellent.  Possibly the best I've experienced in recent years.  But Virgin does need to work on the gate experience at LHR.

A few months ago I had to fly to Australia on business with Qantas and BA. Certainly the Virgin UC service is leagues ahead of BA and better that Qantas.  Not quite as good as the leg I had in BA First, but then again UC is less than half the price!

A jolly decent in flight experience with an attentive CC and a FSM that cared Well done VS!
Shame about the boarding malarkey, though. If that went to plan it would have been a text book experience from start to finish!
As for the US immigration - over the last couple of years I have had a few smiles but generally they are miserable and grumpy

Thanks for the TR!

This was the one disappointed of the LHR experience. There were no signs at the gate (gate 7) to differentiate priority boarding, so everyone was queuing together.

Our preferred gates at LHR are 14 to 22 and this is where most of the VS flights normally fly too..

Gate 7 has a slightly different layout to 14-22 so I imagine thats why the ground staff were unable to implement the boarding process as normally encountered.

We departed from gate 17 on 28th Sept & priority boarding was clearly marked & also 2 doors open to board by, one for UC & one for PE & econ.

Pleased you had a good flight though

Immigration for us was awful awful awful. We waited an hour & a half.

R-P

Thanks for the TR and thumbs up for your VS crew . Like you I cannot remember having any good experiance of a decent immigration officer at any US destination which is a shame really .

Thank you for the TR.

Thanks for the TR.

MIA immigration was always notorious.
I must say that elsewhere in the US my recent experience with immigration has been good. Surprisingly friendly compared often reported experience, particularly good at MCO & EWR.

There has been an internal drive for CBP officers to improve their image and reputation. I generally find that being friendly and sympathetic to them gives a friendly response - sometimes embarrassingly so when delaying lines behind you. Long lines can mean miserable pax., it can not be pleasant continually dealing with miserable people.

There has been an internal drive for CBP officers to improve their image and reputation. I generally find that being friendly and sympathetic to them gives a friendly response - sometimes embarrassingly so when delaying lines behind you. Long lines can mean miserable pax., it can not be pleasant continually dealing with miserable people.

I have always found the officers to be friendly and welcoming but some have been business like and brusque which some people may feel is rude. Admitedly I have never flown to MIA though!

Theor politness has noticably improved since the Visa Vaiver form (I94) have been abolished for a lot of people and the use ESTA and APIS

The pax I noticed getting a hard time are the ones who slap their passports on the desk and who don't even say 'hello'. Of course in the 'good old days' these pax would also have a fault on the form and the officers would send them to the back of the queue