The end of the vacations is approaching and it is time to return to Sydney before heading back to Europe. And as for the outbound flight, it will be on Virgin Australia which I discovered on this occasion and in Economy class.
As a reminder the air routing of this trip.
And you will find all the articles about this trip in Australia at the bottom of the page.
Booking
As already explained on the outbound flight, I found that no matter the airline, domestic flights in business class were unaffordable in Australia so, considering the duration of the flight, I booked in Economy without any regret. And in this game, Virgin Australia had the best fares even if I found the price of the ticket quite exorbitant (almost 300 euros).
And yet I had booked almost two months before my trip.
Check-in and ground experience
I check-in online the day before my flight. I am offered a bid to upgrade and I make the minimum bid. Again, the average price to have a tiny chance to get a seat in business class is equivalent to the price of a round trip in economy and is not at all justified for a 1h30 flight.
On the other hand, I would spend about 20 euros to upgrade to Economy X with an unchanged service on board but 40% more legroom, dedicated baggage compartments and priority boarding. This is interesting.
By the way I see that I’m in row 14 so there are not, as I thought on the outbound flight, that the only rows of Economy X were in the front behind the business class but that there are also some in the middle of the aircraft, at the level of the emergency exits. Finally, it is logical.
It takes me 30 minutes to reach the airport by Uber from the W Brisbane that I leave with regret.
It is under a great sun that I take the footbridge which leads me from the drop-off area to the terminal and I am almost tempted to stop for a coffee on the terrace.
I go to the self drop off terminals to issue my luggage tag.
I then go to the baggage drop-off and with the priority queue I am quickly taken care of. This procedure surprises me at Virgin Australia: it is supposed to save time and staff with the passenger taking care of his tag and someone supervising that it is put on the belt ( sometimes everything is automatic without any agent).
Here the agent takes time, checks everything, prints a boarding pass, gives the passenger the usual indications. In short, it does everything it should normally do except issue and attach the luggage tag. Strange but very pleasant for the customer.
I then pass the security checks. Very smooth and user-friendly even if there is no fast track for economy X (Virgin Australia business passengers have a check in and obviously a dedicated check out, all in another part of the terminal).
It’s really relaxed, I even see one person walk by with a bottle of water.
My gate is located right in front of the security checkpoint, but since I have time, I will take advantage of the Virgin Atlantic lounge to which I have access thanks to my American Express.
I then head to the gate for a boarding that will start on time.
Boarding
The boarding area is already full and everyone is waiting for the announcement of the beginning of the boarding.
The priority lane is well marked.
The aircraft is waiting for us.
The boarding starts and the priorities are respected.
As I see it practiced more and more often (and especially in Sweden) the passengers who are in the second part of the cabin go down on the tarmac to take the stairs at the back of the aircraft. Faster but I prefer the approach of Lufthansa which sometimes uses two jetways on the front and back doors of its A321 on domestic flights.
At the moment of entering the cabin, an elderly couple in front of me had a lot of trouble putting their (many) things in the luggage compartment (or rather the gentleman didn’t put them in the order the lady would like). They block the aisle for a good minute before I can get to my seat.
The cabin
No surprise, it is the exact copy of the one of the outbound flight that I find on this Boeing 737.
This is my Economy X seat in row 14, on the emergency exit level.
We have dedicated luggage compartments. It doesn’t mean much except that we are sure to put our stuff on top of our seat and not to have to look for space elsewhere if the trunks are full and that if the trunks are full it is the other passengers who will see their luggage put in the hold.
There is room for legs.
On the other hand I would find that the seat lacks a little bit of width (normal) but also that its seat is rather hard and uncomfortable, impression that I did not have on the outbound trip. Perhaps it was this particular seat that had suffered more than the average during its career.
The buy on board menu is in place.
Indeed, Virgin Australia does not offer any other service in economy than a glass of water or a coffee.
Being at the emergency exits the crew briefed us on their handling and asked us if we were comfortable with it. I can’t help but think that given the condition of the elderly person sitting on the aisle, a possible evacuation would be a carnage.
We are ready to go. The cabin is full and I find it quite pretty with tones that give it a modern touch.
The flight and the service
We quickly reach the runway and take off.
I fell asleep quite quickly and due to the lack of service on this flight I have absolutely nothing to share with you except a picture of Moreton Bay and the Coral Sea that we fly over after takeoff.
Arrival and disembarkation
We landed safely and arrived quickly at the gate, not without spotting an Emirates A380 on the way.
At the time of recovering our things in the trunks my neighbor proposes to me to pass in front of him and his accompanying (the elderly person) and to disembark before them because it is difficult for her to stand up alone and they will wait that everyone is out. This makes me wonder why she was left in that seat…
After a long walk in the terminal to the baggage carousels, I notice that our luggage is already there!
It is possible to reach the city by train but I would prefer a cab.
Bottom line
There is not much to expect from such a flight so no reason to be especially satisfied or disappointed.
I just note the friendliness of the staff and the 22 euros spent for the upgrade to Economy X which is really worth it in terms of comfort.
All articles about this trip to Australia
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