Are flight upgrades worth it to you?

[Dopplerineffect]

If you are not rich earning a modest income with a bit of play money. Not talking about the super rich.

Going away with my friend soon,looking at flights it is 2k more for first class ( I know can usually be 10k) then premium economy is another 400. She wants to go premium.

I have flown both but think its a waste for 10 hours but then when stuck in the cattlle market. I have regretted it. However it is only 10 hours.
Aghhh its a waste isn’t it?

How much is business class? Much better than premium economy and cheaper than first.

I absolutely love flying with an upgrade. Don't bother for Europe but transatlantic or similar I would rather not go than fly economy. I have a hip problem so that's an additional factor for me. It's personal choice though and only you know what your priority is! If I couldn't afford business class I'd holiday within Europe instead.

2K is a bargain for long haul 1st class. The flight in first or business is something to look forward to in itself; I’d buy it every time.

We have looked at BA, Virgin and Thomas Cook. TC doesn’t have a first.

I regret it when I don’t book PE but then as soon as flight is over and I have slept. I could have the 400 to spend.

I don’t know

Premium definitely worth it over economy. First/ Upper is lovely but can be a lot extra- depends on the flight as to whether it’s worth it. We did Virgin Upper coming back from US West Coast and it was bliss, when we did it from Orlando we didn’t feel it was worth it as only a 7 hour flight.

Is it return? 400 pounds for 10 hours or 20?

It depends if the experience of sitting in a seat with a bit more room is worth the extra 40 (or 20) pounds an hour to you? I can think of many more experiences I would rather spend the money on.

I could well afford to travel business or even first for the 2 of us. But i never do.
When you have planned carefully to get flights at the best rate, then an extra £400 pp each way is probably 100% on top of the cost (we did Japan and hong kong for 650 recently.

So i would always take the extra £400 - or £800 for 2 of us and think - we could have a much nicer hotel every night when there.

Most long haul flights are fine, we check in early and get 2 seats together in the seats for 2 at the back. And just watch tons of movies. it would not be £400 better if we had a touch more leg room in premium economy (i am 6 foot).

Admittedly, the 18 hours back from japan was LOOOOOOOOOOONGG but really, more leg room would not have made it any less dreary and the movies were the same.

(and having never gone PE or above, i don't know what i am missing as such so i run the risk that if i do, i can never go back to standard!)

OP that's exactly how I feel. It's often just a few hours sleep catch up needed and it's all forgotten. But I do take a sleeping pill at the right time to ensure I get some sleep. I don't sleep properly anywhere anyway and if I forked out ££££ and couldn't sleep I'd be pretty pissed off!

Last time we flew long haul the quote for first/business was about £1,800 each. No way! Premium economy to me isn't that different to economy so if I upgraded it would have to be business or first.

You can't sleep better in premium, you can in business/upper/first

BA and Virgin premium are nice, but not worth an extra £40

We’ve got a system!
Uk (eg) to anywhere 6/7 hrs but 14hrs = business class.
I have really bad back problems that leave me walking with sticks a few times a year so it’s more than worth it to be comfortable for me.

Not worth it to me. We paid an extra 100 pounds to fly premium economy to Vancouver (so about 10 hours) last year, mainly because we needed extra luggage allowance and it was only about twenty quid more expensive than just buying extra luggage.

The other thing we found is the premium economy is a small cabin so without paying to book seats (which costs even more than booking seats normally because it's premium economy) we couldn't be seated together (only 2 of us). This varies by airline but put me off considering again. We never have had trouble getting two seats together when checking in online when check in opens.

Have flown all classes with Virgin - economy is plain uncomfortable for a long journey and I cannot sleep sitting upright. Premium is a good product - better seat, better food, separate mini cabin, etc. and a good bet for a daytime flight. Upper is definitely my choice for a night flight - I don't like flying much at all, but the extra pampering, good food and the flat bed take my mind off it! I have actually managed to sleep for around 4 hours returning from NYC. Having said that, we usually have enough miles to upgrade to Upper once a year so haven't actually paid the full price.

I find Business Class pretty much as good as First - and often the crew seem much more helpful. That's looking at you BA!!!

I wouldn't waste money upgrading on a short flight, but on a 10 hour flight I certainly would.

I'd go for premium. I once got a free upgrade to business class with Emirates and it was so luxurious. But not worth what you would have had to pay for it.

At those prices I’d go for first..that is a real bargain. And yes you could have that as spending money but you are also buying something instead - the special experience that is going first class!! Definitely worth the extra ££

The problem with premium economy is in the name. It still has the word economy in it

If being in a smaller cabin with a few extras is worth it then upgrade to PE.

However, it is no where near first so I always choose first for long haul as then my holiday starts from the airport lounge which I get to early to get my moneys worth

I can totally understand why others won't pay for upgrades but they make the holiday even better for me.

Worth it to me - I get v anxious/claustrophobic in planes these days, so the extra space and leg room and less crowding in Business makes it much more bearable. Plus the flat bed means I can sleep, and when I’m asleep I’m not worrying.

For less than 6 hours or so I would suck it up in economy and just have an extra glass or two of wine tho!

Interesting mix of opinions here!

I got upgraded to PE on transatlantic virgin flight and honestly couldn't tell the difference. Slightly nicer snacks and headphones. Not worth any extra money.

Having said that I'm short and have neck problems so leg room is never an issue for me and sleeping sat up is always rubbish. If love to fly first class horizontal seats but that's out of my price range!

I am reasonably wealthy but i always sit with the Proletariat . If i had the opportunity, i would go sit with the driver for a while.

The Virgin UC product is business class, not first. Still a very different world to economy.

I've travelled in all classes (including a first cabin on my own, quite bizarre!) and, if paying myself, would go for premium. £20 an hour is nothing (assuming ten hours each way) compared to the overall cost of the holiday. Plus I'm a shortie so the PE seat is big enough for me to put my feet up and get a great sleep.

oh, i do now mostly treat ourselves to a lounge a the airport beforehand (for around £20 each if you shop around) as that does start the holiday off nicely (and it helps with my constant desire to be at the airport VERY EARLY)

Just checked again PE there and back will be an extra £1000 for both e/w.

I could blow that on Moet.

I used to be able to fly first as mt ex MIL worked for AA. So went stand by. My Dd still gets the perks though.

oh, i do now mostly treat ourselves to a lounge a the airport beforehand (for around £20 each if you shop around) as that does start the holiday off nicely (and it helps with my constant desire to be at the airport VERY EARLY)

See I like the buzz of being in the airport with the people and the shops. I get excited. Maybe I am weird.

Economy three hours in is not exciting though.

i doubt premium economy three hours in is exciting either. Same movies. pretty much same meals at same schedule. don't think you get more drinks service, maybe quicker but overall the same amount of drinks/wine?

When we flew to Florida we upgraded to premium and honestly I don't think I'd fly more than 8/9 hours in economy anymore. Seats are much more comfy, we had such good service food/drink was brilliant and kept coming pretty much the whole flight. When my screen wasn't working I was given one of the iPads from first class straight away.
To us it made a vast difference! We flew with virgin