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Member since:03.12.2000
Reviews:148
Members who trust:130
This was our first flight with Virgin back on the 03 August from Bridgetown in Barbados back to Gatwick. I had wanted to travel with Virgin before, but have always had problems with getting seats at the cheaper fares, as I am always inflexible with dates of travel. Now that I have flown with them I can see why this airline is so popular and why I have problems booking with them!.
We hadn’t booked with Virgin, but due to a problem with BWIA aircraft that day we were booked back with Virgin. Therefore I have had to look at their web site to give you an idea of prices.
London to Bridgetown will be over £2800 return or £2200 single plus airport taxes for Upper class. Upper class is Virgins name for Business class and the prices compare well with British Airways as they charge over £2900 return or £2452 one way for the same routing. I have seen BWIA fares from £1020 business including tax. But in this case you get what you pay for! PLEASE BELIEVE ME
Gatwick to Antigua to Barbados to Las Vegas to Miami to Orlando to St Lucia
Heathrow to Boston to Cape Town to Delhi to Johannesburg to Hong Kong to Lagos to Los Angeles to New York to San Francisco to Shanghai to Tokyo to Washington
They also codeshare with to Kuala Lumpur with Malaysian airlines and Singapore with Singapore Airlines. Codesharing means that Virgin sells seats on some ones else plane and the flight is also given a Virgin flight number. Virgin owns a small part of these airlines and this is why this happens on these routes.
Check In +++++++
Virgins have dedicated check in for Upper class customers, which means a shorter check in time than normal. Check in itself was quick with the member of Virgin staff answering all my questions quickly and politely about the new service we were booked on. Check in is where you build the first impression of an airlines…Virgin definitely got the thumbs up from me
Aircraft +++++++
Virgin have a fleet of modern Boeing 747-400 and Airbus A340 aircraft. The aircraft themselves still fly the British Flag. While BA want to ditch our lovely flag and are painting the tail fins of aircraft with stupid patterns. Its upsets me to see the World favourite airline is not proud of their birthplace and is trying to dump its nationality.
The aircraft we flew on was a 747-400 series named English Rose. I always check if possible to see the name of a plane while I am boarding…Sad eh!. The modern interior of this plane was spotless and the whole journey was comfortable and pleasant.
The safety video was the best I have ever watched. It had what it takes to keep your children’s attention in its funny cartoon manner, but still got the serious points across. I was a little upset to find the stewardess not ready to show you where the emergency exits were. Since I had been in a scary situation some 48 hours earlier on a different airline I was annoyed that the staff treated this so funny.
Service +++++
This is where Virgin wins hands down over BA. I flew Business class to Florida last year for my honeymoon with them and was impressed by the seats and aircraft, but the cabin crew were rude and snappy. The Virgin staff were completely different and couldnot have been more pleasant without going over the top with false smiles. They were down to earth people who followed a set informal routine.
When we boarded we were giving a drink of our choice and were also advised about the menu. Basically you can order what you want, whenever you want it. Drinks were also freely available thought the 9-hour flight so basically it’s an all-inclusive journey. Wicked!. The meals you order are always freshly prepared, so were better than any other airline I have travelled with. Bacon sandwiches were a massive hit with me and therefore gives Virgin 5 stars out of 5 on ciaos review before I have even finished.
One of the nice things about Upper class its attention to detail. We were asked if we wanted to be woken for breakfast and this was correctly carried out. Not even food gets in the way of my sleep!
Entertainment ++++++++++
The seats provided much entertainment…pressing the buttons up and down amused me no end! The video system was also excellent with about 8 channels of continually repeating films. All were late releases and there was a mixture of films for everyone. They also had music channels and on some aircraft have video game system. The only draw back was because the seats were so comfortable I did not have much time to test the equipment as soon as I off to the land of nod!
The End
Conclusion ++++++++
I cannot say enough to recommend Virgin. They are an excellent first class airline to fly on and I look forward to travelling again with them soon. Well that’s if my Missus will fly again anyway.
Thank you Virgin
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I've recently flown with Virgin and couldn't fault then either. Thanks for your op. SARAH
WarpFactor9 21.10.2002 12:34
Good old, (well not that old) Richard Branson.
He certainly seems to have his airlines in order.
I'm glad he's still flying the flag also..lol
Great op. Thanks Chris :-)
hepialid 14.10.2002 23:20
Good opinion, never flown with Virgin or BA for that matter, but everyone I know who has, votes for Virgin everytime. Andy.
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Advantages: British. Quality. An established name and company. Disadvantages: They can't fly you everywhere you want. They can only fly from a few airports.
Advantages: None. Just a standard airline service. Disadvantages: Lose your valuables. Unfriendly, unhelpful staff. Arrogant and dismissive customer service.
Aug 12th, 2002
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