thestallion123

We are a family of 4 (including 1 infant in own seat and 1 child) flying one way from LHR-BOS. Both mileage tickets have about the same amount of taxes and the only advantage of booking VA with miles right now would be transferring Amex MR to VA for a redemption with fewer miles. I have flow BA cw before with the kids and the middle seats are a huge advantage with kids to keep them contained in that section. Does anyone have experience traveling VA Upper Class with young kids? Other advantages/disadvantages?

davrossuk

I can't answer your question but have you considered flying to BOS with Aer Lingus from Dublin? DUB to BOS in business class only costs 25k avios one way and the taxes are likely to be well under Ł100.

Obviously you would have to get flights to Dublin but it could save you a lot of miles and cash.

Chris9642

I don't have children so couldn't advise in that respect but I would say that on virgin it's almost impossible for a person seated to talk or see a neighbour due to layout. Each seat is almost like a private capsule so you wouldn't be able to see your youngsters during take off and landing unless they are opposite you and then only their feet.

Whilst I prefer BA overall there are many things about virgin upper class that I prefer - Clubhouse access - onboard bar (A330/A340's only as the 747 bar is tiny) to name a few!

shorthauldad

Sounds ideal!

thestallion123

I did think about it but flying with kids is not fun ...let alone a connection.

thestallion123

Virgin will be flying the 787-9 by to Boston by then and I really wanted to try but I had the same concern that the seat layout may not be feasible with the little one.

KenJohn

On BA CW, the four seats in the middle is good since there will be two seats together in the middle with no divider in the middle. One adult can fly seated next to the infant during take off an landing and keep an eye on the elder child through the divider. You can easily keep in conversation with the aisle seat at all times. You can play musical chairs throughout the flight and the kids can make use of the floor space in front of the two middle seats if needed.

On VS Upper Class, as others have point out, the seats separators cannot be lowered. You will not be able to converse with the seat next to you and you cannot see the person next to you. To keep an eye on your child/infant, you have to seat them in a seat across the aisle during takeoff and landing. Clearly there will be problems can you cannot really talk to them and definitely not reach out to them if required. Any contact with the children during the flight will involved standing in the aisle blocking aisle access for crew and other passengers.

Alwaysfly

BA every time. VS Upper Class is hopeless with children for the reasons stated by others.

crazy8534

Agree with above, the main disadvantage of BA CW layout (risk of ending up in a middle seat) is the biggest advantage when flying 'avec les enfants'. If you choose the middle in the rear of the cabin (the one with the bassinet) then you don't have to climb over feet to get out. Although you do have to be something of a contortionist to exit with the bassinet in place. VS UC is a decent layout for a single traveller (but give me 64K any day) or for couples in the early stages of a divorce.

NTA

Virgin Upper Class is a great service, and far better for the average solo traveller as all seats have direct aisle access (no-one is tripping over you in the night) and a lot of seats have you facing a wall which gives tremendous privacy.

This privacy is no good for a family (at least those who like each other or need supervision) and the higher density seating on BA is much better, especially for a foursome as you can book the middle double bed club world seats (for the kids) and have the parents on the outside of them. Whilst the food on VS is a step above BA's, in this situation it's all about the seat - go BA!

If you're keen to make up your own mind, check out these video reviews:Virgin Upper Class Reviewed vs British Airways Club World Double Beds Reviewed.

fripperies

I sometimes fly to N. America with a grandchild aged 8 and despite having a huge stash of VS miles to get rid of I have ruled it out as an option for at least another 5 years. Upper Class is nice enough for adults but I can't see how it could work with children. Teenagers yes, they'd love to be out of parental control. But with a child who needs supervision I think you'd find the contortions really inconvenient.

sstolp

The last time I flew VS Upper, there was a family of 5 (2 parents, 2 kids and a grandparent), and all travelling in the same length of seats (so 2D, 3D, 4D, etc). It did not seem like the most efficient way of travelling with kids. Everytime a child needed something, one of the adults had to get up to see what it was as they couldn't chat directly.

If you do use VS, I would suggest making sure you book seats "facing" each other (as much as they are able to face each other), such as 2A and 2D, 3A & 3D, with parent facing child.

Personally I would go with BA though. Getting the middle 2 seats for the kids gives them much more room so they can keep each other occupied and you can occupy the D & G seats, so you can speak to them easily through the dividers. I would however recommend going for the seats in the back row of CW though, so that the kids can get out of their seats without you having to lift them over someone else's legs.

avneeshj

BA CW is the way to go for flights with children. The 4 seats together in the center at the very end of the cabin is perfect and I can vouch for it having traveled with our 2 kids on a few occasions.

thestallion123

Just booked BA - thanks everyone!!

bafan

This thread makes me think I should start flying Upper Class, so that I can get more privacy and avoid kids....