That advert was back in the day when Virgin Atlantic was still cool. When my husband and I first started travelling to the USA, we always chose to fly Virgin and it was exciting. You got amazing goody bags on board, little cards to tell you what was on the menu, the crew had gorgeous uniforms and it was just all so exciting.
We continued to use them but saw standards slipping. We couldn't travel for a few years but I flew with Virgin again earlier this year and am now able to afford Upper Class - I couldn't wait! It was something we'd dreamed of and always said one day.... But it was just so disappointing. The separate check in and security were great and the clubhouse is amazing but they've taken away the spa area and given it over to Pelaton - who the fuck wants to do a work out before you get on a flight?? A little massage or hair blow dry, pedicure or manicure would have been lovely before getting on a flight. They used to offer treatments on flights as well but that's also stopped. And they've taken away the bar.
The individual space in UC was ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, it's a lot better than economy but it's certainly not what it used to look like in the brochures. I travelled Business Class on BA last year and it was way better than Virgin.
The crew no longer seem as glamorous as they used to be and I know that in this day and age, they shouldn't need to be and don't need to be but it was all part of the glamour of travelling on Virgin.
I've got another UC flight with Virgin booked for next month, it was booked before I flew with them in April and was still excited about flying UC but next year I'll be looking at BA again. I will use Virgin again in the future but only to use up my points.