adam1uk

Background

Southdowns and I tend to use our BA Miles for our winter skiing holiday each year. This trip was booked the best part of a year ago: Club World to Denver, costing 100,000 miles with an Amex 2-for-1 voucher, plus taxes and charges. We’d decided on Vail as our resort, and booked our accommodation several months later.

The day before the flight

I’d been working night shifts, so arrived home at about 9.30am. We could check in online from 12.35, so logged in right on time. We’d been checking the seating plan for weeks, and had been watching the Club World cabins slowly fill up. Not wanting to pay £60 each for the privilege of booking a seat, we just had to take our chance on the day. There were no window pairs available, and even pairs across the aisle were gone. So we rather reluctantly selected a middle pair, 4EF, which at mean it’s easy to get out – no-one to climb over.

Having checked which aircraft had operated this flight over the past few months, I’d been surprised at how frequently a four-class 777 was used. Whether this is because Club is oversold and they need the seats, or whether it’s random, I don’t know. We were just relieved that we’d have one of the three-class aircraft, as many of the four-class ones don’t have Avod.

After lunch, we headed off to Novotel at Heathrow, booked as we didn’t want to chance the M25 on a Monday morning. The room was basic but OK, but the big surprise was the food. We ate in the hotel restaurant, and the food was surprisingly good (and a voucher from A-Club points meant it didn’t cost us much either).

The day of the flight

Breakfast in the Novotel was included in the rate, and was also surprisingly good. We left the hotel at around 9am, and drove the short distance to the Business Parking for T5. A bus came along within a few minutes, and we got on board. As the bus made its way along the car park, we saw a BA 777 land. Sadly, we knew that the previous day’s Denver flight was operated by G-YMMD – and that was the plane we’d just seen land!

The bus dropped us off at Terminal 5. It was nearer the north end of the terminal than the south, so as queues were short at the bag drops nearby we used them rather than walking right down to the Club check-ins. Priority tags were carefully put on our two suitcases and our two ski boot bags. We then used the north security, where the fast track was much quicker than the other lines.

Once through security, we made our way to the North Galleries lounge, mostly because I hadn’t been there before. It was very busy, but we found a couple of seats near the windows, and Southdowns went to the showers reception to see if they could phone the spa at the south lounges, to book a treatment. They could, did, and he booked a massage for 11am.

I decided I didn’t like the north lounge as much as the south one, so we decided to go down to the other end of the terminal, and into the Galleries Club. We found seats next to the windows, where we could watch the planes taking off. Among them were several 747s with New First, easily spotted because of the window blanks.





Southdowns went off for his massage, and I had a walk round the lounge. From the other end, there’s a great view down over security and much of the terminal building.





Eventually, our gate came up on the departure board, and it was the dreaded A10 bussing gate. We waited until it changed to boarding, and made our way down to the gate. There was a priority line, but it means very little when you end up on the same bus as everyone else. The bus was quite full by the time we were ready to leave, but then there was another delay as a member of ground staff came on to ask whether the occupant of seat 31K was on board. A man waved and got off. We set off, turned round, then stopped so the staff member could get back on board to ask again for Mr 31K. A chorus of people told him the person in question had already got off the bus – to which he said that had been the wrong person. It was a long drive round to the nearly-finished T5C, where our plane was waiting. I was pleased to see it was G-YMMU, one of the newest 777-200s.

Members of the cabin crew were waiting at the top of the stairs, the women wearing hats, the outward confirmation of a Mixed Fleet crew. We took our seats, and there’s certainly plenty of space in the centre pair. However, I still wasn’t convinced about facing backwards, and really prefer being on the aisle. Still, a glass of champagne made things seem better. Once the doors were closed, it was clear that there were plenty of spare seats, including 4D, so I moved into that seat, and Southdowns moved into 4E. Quite a few other people moved around the cabin too.

Not long into the flight, the menus were handed out, and the drinks run began. The menu was one I was familiar with, having seen it posted on FlyerTalk. Orders were taken by the CSM, Laura (who appeared to be the youngest member of the crew):

British Airways Classics :-: Many of our best dishes are greatly loved and have become firm favourites with you. We are delighted to offer some of these for your enjoyment today. Our ingredients are locally sourced wherever possible.

Lunch

Starters
* :-: Scottish Salmon gravlax with capers
or
Leek quiche with sharp vinaigrette (V)

Salad
* Fresh seasonal salad served with vinaigrette

Main
:-: Wiltshire ham and leek pie with braised pork

Halibut with red wine sauce and boulangere potatoes

Dill and beetroot risotto with roasted golden beetroot (V)

* Chilled main course salad of smoked paprika and garlic chicken with roast butternut squash

Dessert
Creme caramel with soaked sultanas

Cropwell Bishop Stilton and St Paulin cheese served with biscuits

A selection of fruit

Chocolates (sic)

* ''Well Being in the Air'' selection - please refer to High Life for details.

Afternoon Tea

Snacks

An individual selection of sandwiches featuring coronation chicken and egg with watercress

Sweets

:-: Plain or fruit scones served warm with clotted cream and strawberry preserves

Drinks

Tea, ground coffee or decaffinated coffee

Selection of herbal teas includes green tea with jasmine, peppermint, blackcurrant and camomile with honey

And the wine list: (Bold indicates what was available)

Champagne:
Lanson Black Label Brut NV
Ayala Brut Majeur NV

White:
Chablis 2008, Domaine Jean-Marc Brocard, Burgundy, France
or
Esporao Reserva 2008, Alentejo, Portugal

Old Well House Grenache Blanc/Chenin Blanc 2009, Western Cape, South Africa
or
Mount Riley Sauvignon Blanc 2009, Marlborough, New Zealand

Red:
Chateau Pey de Pont 2004, Medoc, Bordeaux, France
or
Crozes-Hermitage 2008, Domaine Philippe & Vincent Jaboulet, Rhone, France

Villa San-Juliette Merlot 2007, Paso Robles, California, USA
or
Chono Reserva Syrah 2008, Elqui Valley, Chile

Both the champagnes were available, it appeared just to depend on which member of crew served you. I started with the Lanson, but later asked to try the Ayala. I preferred the Lanson. With lunch, I enjoyed the Mount Riley Sauvignon Blanc.

For lunch, I started with the salmon, while Southdowns had the quiche. Both were quite good.





We both had the pie for the main course. It’s had some mixed reviews here on FlyerTalk, but we liked it. The braised pork with it was particularly tender.



For dessert, Southdowns had the crème caramel, and I had the cheese. The stilton was particularly good.

While eating, I watched Made in Dagenham on the Avod. The main thing I noticed about the Avod was that the moving map has been updated. There’s a great sequence showing a 3D-style plane, but lots of the information, like ground speed, wind speed, and estimated time of arrival, is no longer shown.



After lunch, I had a bit of sleep. It didn’t seem that long before afternoon tea was being served. The sandwiches weren’t up to much, but the cream tea always goes down well.

Before long, we were coming in to land at Denver, where it was snowing quite heavily. Once on the ground, there was an incredibly long taxi of at least fifteen minutes. Finally at the stand, I was chatting to one of the crew waiting at door 2 for the airbridge. He’d previously flown with ExCel until they went bust, and then EasyJet for a year before joining the Mixed Fleet. It was the third time in January he’d been to Denver. In the event, we exited through door 1, and made the long walk to immigration. The queues were short, and we were quickly through, although Southdowns had a bit of a delay as the officer’s computer decided to shut down, and he was sent to another queue.

The luggage took ages to start arriving, and of course the first bags out were not the priority baggage. In fact, my ski boots were the next-to-last item onto the belt. It makes you wonder why they bother with priority tags at all, if so little notice is taken of them.

Over all, though, it was a thoroughly enjoyable flight. The crew were excellent – friendly and attentive without being over the top, and the food was pretty good.

adam1uk

Here are some photos of the skiing:

Vail:





Beaver Creek:

adam1uk

The day before the flight

We'd been checking the seat map fairly regularly for weeks, and the flight home had always seemed fairly busy with no window seats available. We'd resigned ourselves to having a middle pair, with the chance that (as on the outbound) we'd be able to move once on the plane. However, a check first thing in the morning on the day before the flight showed that 10A had opened up, giving a window pair. We just had to hope that no-one took the seats in the next few hours.

We had a fantastic final day of skiing, and were back in our apartment waiting for online check in to open at 1720. 10AB were still available, so we selected those seats -- they're in the first row of the small rear CW cabin.

The day of the flight

Checking online first thing in the morning, we discovered that the outbound flight was delayed by about an hour. Once it had taken off, we used flight24.com to find out which aircraft we'd have: it was G-YMME.

We checked out and left Vail fairly early, and headed for the Flatiron Crossing Mall outside Denver, for shopping and lunch. Then it was off to the airport. We filled the hire car with fuel at the chaotic petrol station at the airport, dropped off the car, and got on the bus to the terminal.

The bus dropped us off, and we went up to the departures level and found the BA check in desks. Check in was excellent: efficient, friendly, chatty without being over familiar, and with plenty of useful information imparted. In short, far better than the service you get at LHR.

We made our way to security. There's a premium passengers line on the far side, bypassing a long queue. But it turned out not to have its own American official, so you had to kind of push into the queue, which wasn't ideal. The man behind the desk seemed to be a bit of a character. He asked me if I'd done any skiing while in Colorado, and then where. When I said Vail, he replied, "Next time, Steamboat". Security itself was fairly uneventful. You have to take off your shoes, and some people were people asked to go through the full body scanner.

Next stop was the lounge -- a new joint effort between BA and AA. It's approached through large wooden doors, then there's a corridor with a model of a BA aircraft with one of the old tail designs. There were two American ladies on the desk, who were joined by a man in BA uniform. They checked us in and gave us cards for wireless internet access, and explained about getting free food and drink using our boarding cards.

I had mixed views about the lounge. It seems quite small, and got quite busy. It's long and thin, although there are several different areas, including a bar at the far end.



The only views are down into the atrium of the terminal building. There's a big scupture, and you can almost see the BA gate two floors down. On the lowest floor, you can see the train to the other terminals.



As the inbound flight had been late, our flight was going to be late too. The BA chap in the lounge said he'd call the flight when it was boarding, which wouldn't be until about 1745. We wandered down the the gate slightly before that, and boarding started within a couple of minutes. They called families first, then fast track for CW and status passengers. One man, who was neither, was sent back. They were using two airbridges, the front door marked Club World, and door 2 for the rest. We took our seats and were soon sipping champagne.

Many of the rest of the passengers gave the impression of never having been on a plane before. Many were peering at the row numbers, and one man, looking for a row in the 30s, asked me what row I was in. Did he really think economy was going to look like that? Virtually the last people on the plane were a young couple sitting in row 28. As they passed through our little CW cabin, they noticed a pair of empty centre seats, and talked about how nice it would be if they could sit there instead. The man went and asked a member of the crew if it would be OK if they took those seats instead of their own. He told them it wouldn't be OK, and directed them to the rear.

We finally took off the best part of an hour late, although the captain said we'd make up lots of time as the tail winds would be particularly strong.

Once in the air, the service seemed to take quite a while to get going, perhaps because we were in the rear CW cabin. The wine list was the same as on the way out. But the only champagne was the Ayala. For whites, they had the Mount Riley Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand (which we'd had on the way out, and was very nice), but the alternative was the Portuguese Esporao Reserva.

The menus were given out, and a member of cabin crew came to take orders.



Southdowns asked for the lentils to start, but was told there weren't any left. I always wonder in this case why they don't start by telling you there's only one option left, rather than waiting until you've chosen the one they haven't got. Southdowns explained that he doesn't eat fish, so wouldn't have a starter, and the FA said he'd see what he could do. Miraculously, when the starters arrived, Southdowns was presented with the lentils. Goodness knows where they got it from.

I had the langoustine, which was OK but nothing special.



For the main course, we both had the beef, which was fairly good.



Dessert was the pumpkin cheesecake, which was quite unusual, but very tasty. And proper American.



I watched Morning Glory on the Avod over dinner, then (having chagined into PJs), settled down to get some sleep. The service had taken quite a long time, and as the flight was expected to be quite short, there wasn't a great deal of time left for sleeping.

In the middle of the night, we ran into some significant turbulence. The seat belt signs were turned on, and then even the crew were told to take their seats. Later, the captain explained that we'd been in a very fast jet stream, but leaving it had proved very bumpy.

At about 1.5 hours to go, all the lights were turned on, and breakfast was on the way.



This was probably the worst breakfast service I've ever had in CW. I fly CW only once, possibly twice a year, yet I'm already bored by the breakfast offering. This time, however, there was no sign of the fruit juice, the smoothie, or the yoghurt (although trays of yoghurts were later spotted in the galley). I wasn't even offered the bread basked. A plate of fruit and a cup of very strong stewed tea and that was it. Later, the bacon rolls came round, but they didn't look very appetising, so we declined.

Once we'd landed, the captain explained that we'd be going to a part of T5 which wasn't open yet, so we'd have to get on busses. Within seconds of arriving at the gate, members of the cabin crew rushed to block the aisles, so WT and WT+ passengers couldn't get through. It took a while for the steps to be brought to door 2, but at least the busses were already waiting. Once the door was open, I was the second person off the aircraft. The first bus left fairly promptly, and drove round to T5A.

I've got one of the new biometric passports, so used the new system where you put the photo page into a machine, and it checks your face against the photo. It meant that I was through in no time. Southdowns was using the normal method (Iris seems to have been mothballed), so took a bit longer. I went down to baggage reclaim, and immediately saw two of our bags, which I got off the belt. Then I saw the other two round the other side, so I dashed round and got them too. Maybe priority baggage does work after all (or maybe DEN knows how to load proprity bags).

We went through customs and up to the arrivals lounge for a shower.



Then we had a cup fo tea and a muffin in the lounge, before getting the bus to the car park.



All in all, it was a fairly pleasant flight, although probably not as good as the way out. For some reason the small rear CW cabin felt a bit cut off, almost like an after thought. And while dinner was OK, breakfast really wasn't up to scratch, with no effort at all to provide half the things on the menu.

A great holiday, though, and we'll certainly be going back to Vail in the future.

cmte_valle

I really liked your TR, I just felt it was a little expensive to charge 100k miles for a Europe-NA ticket on biz though

N830MH

Wow! What a fabulous TR! I'm glad you are so enjoyable the trip to DEN. You shouldn't take off the shoes when you go through at TSA checkpoint next time. You are required to take off the shoes before walk through the metal detector. If you not required to take off the shoes. You will not able to flying. You have followed the specific rules at TSA checkpoints.

eightblack

Great TR - and as a fellow skier, can relate to the great conditions in Colorado. We had our honeymoon at Breckenridge...

You need to explain something to me though? What is it with you English and this obsession with bacon rolls? And how hard is it to stuff up?

A very well written trip report. The pictures of Vail are spectacular...