NEMMIE

Hi everyone,
We have a special anniversary trip coming up next year and have been saving miles and our Amex 2-4-1 voucher for LHR-LAX.
With the changes this April it means it will cost a further 22500 miles (off peak) to fly First instead of Club. As its a special trip I would like to push the boat out but having never flown First I wonder if the difference is that great to warrant the miles? Looking for your opinions and input.
Thanks.

Castle25

quite simply YES

mikeyfly

Hi NEMMIE if you can manage to find two reward seats in First to LAX then I wouldn't hesitate to book; on a 2-4-1 only 11,000 each to First is outstanding value. If on A380 you'll get CCR access and taster menus board. A lot more comfortable journey and first in the immigration lines on arrival. There's plenty of other reasons to grab these that I'm sure will be listed out. If they're there and available to book then grab now!

MarkedMan

Depends on what you value, I suppose. I do enjoy a nice wine, as much as I can tell, and BA does very well here in F, probably the most noticeable difference in my mind.

I can fit a Club seat nicely, I greatly appreciate the extra space F affords, but it's not critical to my sleep. It's a nice extra to have in my mind, though, so for a pushing the boat out occasion, especially if you can find space on an A380, that's another positive.

The food and ground experience are also better: for all the grousing, CCR is better and on board food has on my last few trips been excellent.

If you've never done it, I do feel it's a price worth paying for a special occasion. Even if you don't like drinking older claret it will be worth it, IMO

NEMMIE

Thanks for the replies. I will be online at T - 355 trying to book. We can also fly to San Diego if needs be. Is there any difference between those two routes in First? I was presuming LAX would be better but perhaps there is no difference. Like I said, I am completely new to the First experience so any and all help is welcome.

mikeyfly

You won't get First at 355 but only Club World. Your opinions include grabbing this and being happy with Club, but also if flexible keeping an eye out for First on San Fran, Las Vegas, Phoenix etc and if you really want to try First pay the small change fee and switch to one of these flights should they come up.

NEMMIE

Ah ok there's my first mistake. So if I go ahead and book Club, which we will be perfectly happy with, but then monitor reward seats daily to see if First come up for our dates? Is there a pattern as to when First seats are released at all?

johnaalex

The main difference is that there is the 380 to LAX whereas SA is a 777. However an F reward seats to the West Coast are hard to find so keep a flexible approach and book what you can.

NEMMIE

Will do. Thank you.

Sixth Freedom

My normal advice is to burn the miles on First provided that those miles would not have been used to cause you to travel in Club instead of a lower cabin on a flight in the future.

Some more detailed analysis:

Check-in and bag drop: no tangible difference

Fast track security: no difference

Lounge: the Concorde Room has a more pleasant ambiance than the Galleries Club but although the Concorde Room's food is different, based on limited experience I am not convinced that it is actually better - if you like wine and champagne the Concorde Room is probably better, but for spirits and soft drinks the two lounge classes are almost identical

Boarding: no difference

Seat: the First seat is much more spacious than the Club seat and I find First a much more pleasant place to spend a flight than Club - the larger table and side space in First allows me to do serious work whereas the more limited space in Club limits work to trivial matters

Sleep: I find that I sleep slightly better in First than Club - a Club seat allows me to operate effectively the next day but a First seat gives me the evening as well

Catering: You will get a good meal in both First and Club, but I really like dine-on-demand in First as it gives me the flexibility to do other things like watch a movie or read a book before having to worry about interruptions due to the service - First has slightly better alcohol with Club and I really enjoy the sweet pudding wine.

malkie

I'd just add that if it is a special trip then the ability to dine face-to-face in F is a fantastic experience. Particularly on the A380 which has a decent sized buddy-seat.

Having completed a number of F redemptions, followed by my few in CW for work you really do notice the difference in personal space.

T8191

So, not a huge difference, other than the seat

However, I think there are many better 'Premium' seats than BA's CW, and have to accept that BA F is better for both storage/shelf space and comfort. But that's a high price tag for a somewhat better seat in a somewhat nicer cabin. Personally, I'm not bothered about BA F, unless I can get it on a 2-4-1 trip

NEMMIE

Thank you for all your helpful answers. I def think that we will go ahead with the upgrade if space becomes available. It's not something I could even consider without using miles and the 2-4-1 voucher so seeing as we have both, and it's a special occasion, I will try and fly First. Now all I need is for BA to release those two award seats. Easy right? Lol. Thanks again.

richi

If you're on an A380, F offers the tasting menu, which I can heartily recommend.

Cap'n Benj

For 2, on such a long flight, you'd be mad not to do it for just 20,000 extra points

IME F is a big step up from Club and on a 10+ flight it's a difference you really benefit from