Who on earth pays for 1st class flight tickets

[Gregoravitch]

Just got home from a lovely holiday from the US.

We splurged out for Premium Economy tickets and it was bliss, as you enter the aircraft we had to walk through first class and my word it was so bloody extravagant and packed, their didn't seem to be an empty seat.

Out of curiousity I had a look at the prices for the very same flight journey that we took for a first class ticket and the cheapest I could find was around 3 grand and the most expensive was 7 grand

3 bloody grand, if I could afford it I probably would but it seems horribly expensive. A return ticket would be 6 grand and that's more then our entire holiday for 4 for a fortnight cost.

Who are all these people paying these prices?

I'm also very envious, those first class seats looked very comfy

I used to get free upgrades quite often, when I was pretty & groomed - it was well worth making what should be a ridiculous amount of effort for a flight, given the potential to be treated like a valuable human being when I'd only paid to be treated like luggage.

In Economy on a long-haul flight once, I made friends with the woman sitting next to me. Turned out she was the girlfriend of a recognisable billionaire, who always booked himself in First and her in cattle. He sent us down some champagne, but still!!! When I suggested he invite her to join him, they both acted like I was suggesting they parachute out or something

DH works long haul overseas so we have oodles of airmiles and we use them to upgrade when we can. I'm with MrsTerryPrachett, if I could turn left on every fecking plane I ever set foot on for the rest of my life, but say, I'd have to drive a jalopy, I wouldn't care a jot! It feels delicious

Good luck, Anyfuckers. Hope you get your upgrade! Did you know your username's almost identical to that of a long-standing poster?

^

Ava- does there have to be? Everyone else is staying why they have or would flown first class.
Why is my contribution to the thread unwelcome?

I would if we had the money. We've booked a first class trip with miles for a holiday next year. I was only going to book business, but as it turned out there were only first class seats available with miles for the dates we want to travel.

I used to work for a v v wealthy family who always flew first class, with kids and nanny in FC too. But on a two-class flight I've seen mum and dad up the front, with kids, nanny and granny in the back! I did wonder what poor granny thought of this arrangement.

I was pretty unimpressed on one flight when DH (frequent traveller) was upgraded due to overbooking, and DS and I were left in cattle. To add insult to injury, they seated a bloke next to me who had been drinking heavily on his previous 12 hour flight, and wanted to chat. When I put my headphones on to watch a movie (universal traveller language for 'don't talk to me') he started asking me about the film!

I have a friend who is pocket sized, she used to date a gazillionaire who would buy her FC tickets to meet him in various jet setty spots post wheeling and dealing, and she would always exchange it at the desk and pocket the difference I swear I don't think I'd have the restraint to be so canny!

Yes Gralic. I have tried changing it but when I do it says 'you do not own this name' for whatever I put so a bit stuck!

I'm not sure I agree with the pp who said it was sad when one turns left and the rest of the family turn right - you've no idea of the situation.

Eg for work, anything over 7 hours on a business trip has to be booked business as a minimum. If a family was to join whichever parent was on that flight (as friends of mine have recently - the dad had a 3 day conference in LA), the cost for business for the other three was astronomical.

The dads conference started 2 hours after landing off a 16 hour flight. Should he have travelled exonomy? Or should the whole family not have gone because they couldn't travel business with him?

I've gone straight to the office for a day's work after overnight flights in both economy and flatbed business. It's shit after both flights, but at least that couple of hours kip you get isn't all scrunched up if you're in economy (and the lounge on arrival for a quick shower)

95% of the time I travel at least business. Have never paid full price though. There's ways and means if you use the same airline often and get to know their policies and procedures - like putting in offers for upgrades a few days before etc

Sorry, * Garlic

Sorry to introduce a negative note, but I'm on holiday in the US and upgraded to premium economy for the 10 hour BA flight. The seat had a broken lumbar section and headrest which meant sitting at an odd angle and spending the first few days with back pain, the TV/entertainment thing didn't work, the meal heaters were faulty so most folks' meals were only tepid and the aircraft looked so old it may well have flown in WWII

I don't know what treats they reserved for Club and First Class, but I won't make the same mistake again

puzzledandpissedoff definitely complain when you get home- tweet if you dont get an adequate response. You typically get some sort of compensation for such a catalogue of errors even if only a tonne of airmiles.

First class is typically rich and famous, expats with travel allowances (although I hope SD wont mind me commenting that most travel allowances only cover BC rather than FC) and upgrades from business class because business class is overbooked, or random corporate deals- i once flew to Brazil from London first class because there was a deal that made it cheaper than BC). Few corporates will pay for FC as standard for business travel. I work for a global financial firm- about 10 people in the whole company of 2500+ are allowed to fly FC and even then only on flights of 10+ hours. Belts have been tightened a lot since 2008.

I know quite a lot of people who fly self-funded business class long haul as standard (not many on short haul though). They are typically fairly senior investment bankers, hedge fund managers etc- so people with very very good salaries but who arent in the market for a private plane.

I always fly business to the UK for work - either because I need to be able to function the moment I land (both there and when I come back to NZ) or because I can upgrade my premium economy tickets to business with airmiles and recognition upgrades. I fly quite a bit to conferences, meetings and study days within NZ /Australia (part of the job, plus most of the closest conferences are in Australia) so I rack up a fair few air miles and I'm Koru Gold purely because of how much I fly.

I don't think I'm better than everyone else. We all get to our destination at the same time - the difference for me is I can't sleep sitting up whereas I can lying down in business. The food is better in business but perfectly edible in economy, the TV seatback stuff is identical, the service is just as good wherever you are in the plane. If it were just the extra perks of business, I'd buy myself a bottle of bubbles to drink on boarding / throughout the flight, take some decent food in my hand luggage and use my Koru lounge membership - and save a significant chunk of my travel allowance :)

DH also suggests I fly business and he and the boys fly economy every time we go back to the UK for a family holiday. Because I am the sole breadwinner and am returning to work 24-48h after we've landed, whereas he is the SAHP and can take longer to get over jetlag and the trip. I have never yet taken him up on it (although I may next year, we're flying back for 4-5 weeks and I will need to be able to land on Monday afternoon and be back at work Tuesday morning).

Dh and I once had enough airmiles for 3 business class seats so concocted a plan that one of us would be in economy and the other would be in business but had to have the kids. Didnt work as both of us voted to be alone in economy

KeyserSophie I've already complained from over here in the US - and BA have said there's nothing they can do

I'm just hoping it' a slightly newer aircraft on the way back

I do about once or twice a year but only bother if it's LH. DH travels First/Club for business so we have oodles of air miles. We get vouchers, use the air miles and go for an upgrade if one's available.

We're too tight to pay though. If someone said 'I'll pay you £3K to miss an night's sleep' I so would.

Once flew to Thailand in economy - terribly narrow seats so every time I shuffled I changed the tv channel. On the way back I slapped some cash on the check-in desk and asked if there were seats left in business - there were and for little more than £10 extra an hour each we got to fly back home in considerably more comfort. It almost came undone when we got to the lounge because we'd only been given one token and when the dragon at the door asked to see my ticket she almost refused me entry because it was non-refundable and non-exchangeable. I got in.
Also flew to another longer haul destination having paid for economy plus (or whatever it's called) on BA whilst our friends opted for economy. I joked that they were going to be the poor buggers in the last row next to the toilets with seats that don't recline and a broken tv. When we got to the gate, the lady was very apologetic and said she'd moved us. Oh no! Not into economy?! Nope, upstairs in business. Fully flat beds, champagne, 750ml bottles of wine, hot food, metal cutlery, Molton Brown goody bag, more toilets per head..... Oh, and our friends? They were in there last row of economy....and had a broken tv. No one mentioned it after we landed.

I've always brought first class to tickets, we are lucky to be able to afford it so why not

Dh will only do first especially on transatlantic. He pays and I think sometimes has points to go towards cost.

I think business if you can is worth every penny on long haul to be able to sleep, but I really do resent the cost of first. I don't annoy myself by asking exactly how much he paid as it just ruins the experience for me. We've just taken my parents away on first to see my brother and family accross the pond so it's hard to have a go at dh when he's been so generous.

But to me it's not an issue of how much money one earns- if something's a waste of money then it's a waste of money.

the difference for me is I can't sleep sitting up

I have a friend who is offered the choice when he flies long haul, business class or cash.

From what I have seen on short haul flights on 737s the seats don't look any more comfortable than in economy. I just think you get better food.

And by the way , the food is shit on first too, definitely not half decent restaurant level.

Oooh I flew first class back from America once. I was with my parents and I think they must have used some airmiles to cover the cost of upgrading (we'd already booked normal tickets).

It was bliss the first class lounge in the airport had free cocktails, a free restaurant, lovely huge shower rooms equipped with everything. It's the one time I didn't want to leave the airport!

I will treasure the memory, as I doubt I will ever be doing it again! The only downside was I didn't see anyone rich and famous that I knew (damn!), although I think the lovely lady opposite me was something to do with the US government (sort of knew her face, but not her name iyswim).

If I had the money I'd definitely pay for it.

We had First class seats to Barbados for our honeymoon, however we didn't pay for them as such but redeemed all of our BA points, years and years worth. It was an amazing, once in a life time treat.