I had to go to London for a short business trip. In this context, I tried the Virgin Atlantic experience in Upper Class (the name of their Business class) after having already tried their product in Premium economy. Here is a review of this very mixed trip.
Here is the itinerary followed:
| # | Type | Review |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flight | Virgin Atlantic Upper Class, Boston Logan – London Heathrow, Airbus A330-300 |
| 2 | Hotel | Millenium Hotel London Kensington (not reported) |
| 3 | Lounge | Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse, London Heathrow |
| 4 | Flight | Virgin Atlantic Upper Class, Londres Heathrow – Boston Logan, Airbus A330-900NEO |
Check-In and ground experience
I checked in online 24 hours before departure. The configuration of the aircraft was strange or rather dated, with herringbone seats in a 1-1-1 configuration.
I chose to sit on a window seat in the left aisle, which are not facing any other passenger.
I left home about 2.5 hours before departure and arrived a few minutes later at Boston Logan Terminal E.
With no luggage to check, I headed to the priority lane for my light security screening, since I’m eligible for TSA Pre.
Lounge – Delta SkyClub Express, Boston Logan Terminal E
Due to the change in management of Virgin Atlantic lounges in North America, the Virigin Clubhouse was closed in Boston on the day of my flight But Virgin had an agreement with its business partner Delta to use its temporary lounge, the Delta SkyClub Express.
The latter was totally blind, small and its offerings were quite poor. The decor was dated, obviously using old furniture from the Terminal A satellite lounge.
I got some fruit, but as you see there were not even proper glasses to get a drink. Pathetic.
Finally, even though my flight left at 10:50pm, the lounge closed at 10pm, forcing me to wait for boarding at the gate instead of waiting quietly in the lounge.
Boarding
The boarding started a few minutes after I arrived at the gate. It started with Upper Class passengers and I was quickly on board.
Cabin and welcome
The welcome at the gate was quite cold, and I then headed to my seat, 6A.
The configuration was… strange, with the seats positioned at a very steep angle to the plane towards the aisle.
The evening menu, amenity kit and a can of still water were positioned on the seat, along with a comfortable pillow.
A welcome drink was offered and I chose an orange juice.
Overall, I did not like this configuration at all, with almost no privacy: I felt like I was in the dormitory in kindergarten!
Pajamas were distributed, and the hostess convinced me to take a Medium/Large when I really needed a small. I regretted listening to her.
Service and catering
The evening menu was rather tempting.
However, I prioritized sleep and asked for my bed to be made. I was rebuked by the purser who said that other people have more priority and that I had to wait… In fact, she was only interested in the elderly people, like Air France in the 2000s, incredible!
The bedding was comfortable, but I did not sleep well on this flight.
When I woke up, I had a very good breakfast, and I love the silverware used by the airline.
But overall, the crew was totally demotivated.
Arrival and disembarkation
We arrived a little early at London Heathrow terminal 3. The immigration was cleared quickly, and I waited for my driver who was not at the meeting point.
Bottom line
A first subpar experience.
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