First experience of flying Business Class and …

[DuvetDownn]

I just returned from a trip involving flights to LA and I flew there and back business class. It was my first time and it was amazing. My DH has flown Business Class many times with work and said one day we’d try it.
I have a flight next month to Singapore in economy and in a way wished I hadn’t tried it.

The planet will always be ok.

Nor any fast fashion

www.greenmatch.co.uk/blog/2016/08/fast-fashion-the-second-largest-polluter-in-the-world

I'd fully support more tax on new clothes. I get mine mostly from charity shops, and there are things in my wardrobe dating back to the 1990s. The idea of things being in or out of fashion is just a con designed to make people think they have to keep up with what some magazine or instagram influencer is being paid to tell you you 'must' wear. Total waste of time and money. Find clothes that suit you and wear them until they wear out or no longer fit - that's the sensible way to go.

@PlaitBilledDuckyPuss
Preachy or what?! However I have my 80s Gucci bag and Hermes scarfs so I guess I get a gold star!

That's absolutely the way to go - buy things that you love and keep them indefinitely.

As I've said, if people want to disregard the environmental impact of their choices, there's not a lot I or anyone else can do to stop them, but I don't feel they should be rewarded for their choices when other poor choices have been outlawed (plastic usage) or disincentivized (sugar tax, tobacco etc).

Flying BC to LA tomorrow. Flying on the upper deck of a plane* has been on my bucket list for years. Guess where my seat is tomorrow?? 😁😁😁

*I want to sit at the front and pretend I'm driving...

We are fortunate enough to fly business class on all our long haul flights, yes it’s pricey but in the past we’ve taken a positioning flight from the UK to a country outside the EU, eg Finland and then flown a ME airline to our final destination. Works out (or used to) a fair bit cheaper than starting a long haul flight from the UK, which enables us to fly BC. Granted, it will eat into any holiday time, and it takes lots of research and careful planning but the benefits are so worth it.

As a ex-employee of a UK airline it pains me to say this but I think these days just avoiding the UK as the start point for the Long Haul sector, especially ultra Long Haul in a premium cabin ,can produce significant savings...there's not necessarily any need to go outside the EU.

It's the UK APD on Long Haul Flights that is potentially driving fares upwards.

Finland is in the EU. It is even in the € and also in the Schengen Zone.

Ooh, my bad 😁 it was still way cheaper due to the APD as mentioned above to fly there, or to Stockholm for example, than flying straight out of the UK on long haul.

So glad to see this thread! Well, some of it anyway!

we are off to Dubai in April with Emirates business class - a 50th birthday present. Like your husband op my dh has flown before with work (not Emitates) and he knows I'll love it. He also says I'll be spoiled for all other flights!

I cannot wait

I once flew first class on Singapore Airlines (from Mumbai to Singapore), it was over 20 years ago and I still think back on it as the best flight I've ever had. It has totally ruined me for economy class. Although perhaps it's getting older that has ruined me for economy class, I don't fly much and was on the first trip for about six years this year and found it really uncomfortable despite it only being a three hour flight.

DH goes to his home country to visit his Mum every year (except during covid), it's about a 13 hr flight although he generally stops off somewhere both ways which makes to two 8-ish hour flights. I haven't been for over a decade as I will only go if we fly business class, my hips and back just wouldn't be able to tolerate it otherwise.

When DH worked for an airline we used to fly BC and still do on BA, although I'm not convinced their BC is particularly special these days.

Otherwise we fly Premium Economy on Virgin, which is very similar to BA BC, or get upfront seats when flying with Easyjet or premium seats on TUI. Nothing like BC but still feels a bit more exclusive.

To you that are flying business class for the first time soon I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. For me the best thing was having my legs up the whole time. As someone who suffers from both restless legs and swelling this was so beneficial.

Find clothes that suit you and wear them until they wear out or no longer fit - that's the sensible way to go

Oh thank you thank you thank you. How EVER did I manage to manage my shopping and dress myself until you came along?? (the only thing I've bought in the last year is two sweaters and some underpants and socks. But cheers for the patronising little lecture).

I flew business class to Australia for my 50th (had just been made redundant and had big payout). I'm now saving up to do the same trip next year for another big birthday.

Our flight this evening was cancelled and British Airways insist on flying us back via Philadelphia as there are no BC seats on direct flights tomorrow and the system point blank will not allow us to fly a "lesser" class even if we agree its OK.

@WhereDoesThisToiletGo You've been incorrect information. You absolutely can fly a lower class (i.e. be downgraded) if there are seats available. Check online what flights have seats (don't forget to check AA as well as BA) and call BA if you see availability for direct flights that you'd rather take. There's a risk they may refuse to change your flights if you've already agreed to the change via Philly but I'd recommend at least calling to ask.

Does Virgin PE have lie flat beds? BA do in BC. Are they really comparable? Klm are quite good. We used them a few months ago and it was perfectly ok. Flat bed so I was fine on a 13 hour flight from Amsterdam. BA didn’t go direct and they were expensive outbound due to a major political event in one of the countries so virtually no seats available! We couldn’t change dates. However shopping around can provide huge savings.

I flew BC with Virgin as a treat back from New York. Imagine my annoyance when the flight was a record time of 5hrs 45 mins 😂
I’ve now switched to a Virgin credit card to try and get the points to upgrade.
And no, not on any of the flights I’ve been on do Virgin PE have flat beds.

It’s tricky deciding if it’s more enjoyable flying business class on a day or night flight. Going there I loved having the three course lunch served to me a course at a time, being waited on constantly, watching hours of TV, taking a nap, playing with the toiletries they give you. Where as the night flight was over in a jiffy as I slept for over six hours of it.

I’m extremely fortunate to fly business class for leisure pretty much every time I go away.

I’ve flown BA, Cathay, Qatar, Virgin Atlantic, Emirates, Iberia & Lufthansa in a mixture of business and first class cabins. Never had a bad experience in any cabin and always enjoy it. I am flexible with when I can go and I sometimes start outside of the UK to make the fare cheaper/use air miles.

It never gets old flying business. I will never sit in economy again if I can help it. Rather stay local/within Europe if I couldn’t afford to fly in a decent level of comfort.

Use forums like Flyertalk also for tips

Virgin premium is definitely not similar to BA business… I’ve done both and they are very different

Olive oil is high carb?
Some of these upgrades are more than a year of mortgage payments.

Virgin premium economy is the same as BA world traveller plus (actually BA is better)

Virgin Upper Class is the same as BA business. Depends on the layout on both. Most Virgin is better than old BA Club. New BA club is better that Virgin for the seats. I tend to find the food on both poor. More booze on Virgin (you can request what you want on either but they tend to offer more and pour larger glasses on Virgin).

I find AA business to East Coast USA my 1st choice these days.