Two to three times a year my partner and I travel from West London to the South of France to visit her family. Having made this journey a number of times I look for different ways to make this routine trip as pleasurable and convenient as possible whilst trying to spend as little as possible. With BA's new reward flight saver fares and a mix of much higher prices on Eurostar and only very early morning flights on Easyjet it was time to give BA a try once again flying LHR to LYS after a five year absence. This trip report is about the experience from door to door and how and where to add in those premium elements that make a trip fun without having to spend any or much extra.
Part 1: Getting to the Airport/Station
With an early afternoon flight we had plenty of time to get to the airport. As we were in no real hurry we got the bus to Paddington and then the Heathrow Connect. This is a relatively cheap and pain free journey, though on this particular day our bus driver had other ideas, missing the diversion around Paddington due to the Crossrail works and driving up to Edgware Road instead of just past Paddington station. Good old London buses, no apology, no announcement, lets hope nobody notices... Luckily we were quite early for the 11:33 Heathrow Connect and after walking back to Paddington and buying tickets we caught our train with about two minutes to spare. Whilst not as convenient as the Heathrow Express, tickets are bout half the price and today our carriage was almost completely empty. Not only that but the seats were in a much better condition then the last time we took the Express a year or so ago. A quick change at Heathrow Central and after a short wait we caught the Express for a five minute journey to T5. All in all apart from the mishap with the bus a simple and pain free journey.
Heathrow Connect by
Spymon26, on Flickr
In comparison the Eurostar is definitely the easiest for us to get on. A five minute bus ride and twenty-five minutes by tube and St Pancras awaits. The only downsides here are the navigating the stairs at our local station and the regular threat of weekend engineering works. However, the cost of getting to St Pancras is barely 20% of getting to Heathrow.
On the other hand getting to Gatwick or Stansted is a lot longer with the train prices similar to Heathrow. After experiencing the less than easy Easybus to Stansted which is long, uncomfortable and inflexible and comes with the added danger of not making being able to board the bus you have booked due to people getting on the bus too early or late or having slightly too large a case. With a much longer journey time as well this is an option that I'd rather avoid. At the end of part 1 Eurostar is way out in front, followed by BA with Easyjet a distant third.
Part 2: At the airport
Without a shadow of a doubt our time at Heathrow was one of the best airport experiences I can think of. Thanks to being booked in Club Europe we had access to the Club check in area, fast track security, the lounges and priority boarding and all for only an extra 2000 Avios and about #10 each compared to Euro Traveller. My partner was not aware of some of the extra benefits with the tickets we had and maybe now understands why I spend too much time of FT reading all of the numerous trip reports. Without FT I would never have realised the benefits of my BA AMEX. Today was the day it all made sense when she wondered why I was ignoring the check in instructions on the numerous information boards and making us walk all the way down to the southern end of T5. This walk was well worth it as we were first in a line of one to queue up and check in. Boarding passes issued and security is right behind the check in desks, and yes, again there was a small queue of one couple ahead of us who were bickering their way through security. At the security check there were only a couple of people ahead of us and we were through in double quick time. Then it was off down the escalators and then back up again to Galleries South. Having read on FT that there is normally a bit more space in the southern lounge I thought we'd give this one a try. I had already told my partner about the lounge access and thanks to AMEX Platinum we were used to using the priority pass lounges at Stansted and the Business Lounges on Eurostar. However, based on visiting these she felt that we might still need to stop off at one of the T5 eateries for lunch. Again from reading FT I knew she would be pleasantly surprised as we passed the art installations and the Elemis Spa before a quick scan of the boarding passes and a friendly welcome to the lounge. Upon arrival she soon realised that I was right and we wouldn't need to buy any additional food. “Is all this for free?” She asked me whilst checking out the hot food, salads, soups, coffee etc. “Yes it is, it comes with our ticket.” We had a search around the lounge for somewhere to sit and enjoy the food, which although busy did not feel crowded, eventually we found some tables next to the cinema area and settled in. Whilst I was off choosing my food I made sure to order some champagne from one of the lounge staff as a surprise which brought a huge smile when it was delivered to our table (though my poor glass ended up on the floor before it reached me, but was promptly replaced with a fresh one and an apology). After filling up on food, drink and reading material we suddenly realised an hour had passed and it was time to actually catch our flight. We walked back down the stairs and through the shops all the way over to gate A2 where, after a short delay it was time to board. Priority boarding was available, again there was one maybe two people in front of us, no scrum, no fighting and pushing and certainly no queuing, all very civilised and relaxing as we made our way down the jet bridge to the aircraft.
Champagne at T5 Galleries South by
Spymon26, on Flickr
Lunchtime by
Spymon26, on Flickr
In contrast the airport experience with Easyjet at best is more of a game, at worst even arriving early you feel continually frightened about missing your flight. Last time we were at Stansted there seemed to be only about four check in desks for what felt like many hundreds of people with pretty poor signage to work out which queue was for which group of passengers and whist it may not have been particularly speedy, I think the speedy boarding was moving at a slightly better pace than the rest. We also met with possibly one of the most sour looking check in agents I have ever seen. Maybe she was upset with all these happy people going off on their holidays and thought she would try and bring them down to her level. Our previous experience at Stansted was significantly better with short queues and a friendly agent. On both visits security was quick and painless. It was then off on the train to the satellite terminal or whatever it is they call it at Stansted. We have tried both the lounges, though last time we only had enough time in the Number 1 lounge for coffee and a sandwich which was a shame as they also serve hot food as well... Maybe next time once the CX gold or Avios have run out... In both lounges the service was friendly and perhaps a little more personal but that was to be expected considering that both of these lounges are a fraction the size of Galleries Club South at Heathrow (there were only 4 of us in the Servisair lounge at Stansted, but it doesn't feel very premium). Then it was time to board, again a bit of a mixed bag. Easyjet have speedy boarding which allows you to board early and get your pick of the seats, otherwise it's first come first served, and you do want to be near the front. On a half empty flight it's quite nice to have the freedom of the cabin, but on a busy flight at the back of the queue life is not so good.
Eurostar is a different matter and mostly in a good way. First of all there is no need to arrive anywhere near as early as you need to for a flight. At St Pancras if you don't have lounge access I would strongly recommend to have your food before checking in as there are very limited options once you have passed through security, Waterloo wasn't great but St Pancras somehow manages to be even worse in this respect. Again if you don't have lounge access I would leave it as late as possible as there are limited seating options once through security. Security with Eurostar is always quick and painless. And on to the lounge... Due to the small waiting area the lounge is off to the right just after security. Lots of big comfy chairs with plenty of good balancing space for your food and drinks. There is a reasonable spread of snacks and decent selection of drinks and magazines. The only downside is that the lounge can get busy pretty quickly and going upstairs often means lugging your bags down the stairs. There is no priority boarding on Eurostar and despite the assigned seats you do want to get on the train as early as possible to get the prime luggage space as it can fill up fast.
After experiencing T5 at its best for me there's only one winner! The premium experience offered is by far the most relaxing and enjoyable way to prepare for your journey. Perhaps if I'd been there at a busier time than Saturday afternoon it would have been a different story. If I'm travelling for leisure and I want to soak up the atmosphere I can't think of anything better. I do love St Pancras, it's a great space and an easy check in process but feels a lot more crowded and rushed and comes in a close second to T5. Sorry Easyjet, even if I did pay for speedy boarding and even with the more intimate lounge space you are a distant third.
Part 3: Up in the air
Boarding Pass by
Spymon26, on Flickr
We were greeted at the door for our BP check and told our seats were just round the corner. We quickly settled into 1A and 1C and watched the cabin fill up. No fighting for space or baggage or even a seat, though nobody offered to hang our coats and we did see someone else get their coat hung in the cupboard. Our crew seemed a little unprepared for some reason. The interesting thing about being seated in Row 1 is that you get to hear what the crew are up to. It looked like someone had lost one of the safety briefing demo kits. Anyway, we were soon on our way and up in the air. Shortly after the seat belt signs were turned off we were served afternoon tea. Served may not be the best way to describe it, as our flight attendant just turned up with two trays and said “Afternoon tea?” followed by “Tea of coffee?” For some reason there didn't seem to be any other kind of drinks run at all, soft or otherwise, just another top up of the coffee which was politely declined after the brown coloured hot water we had just consumed. Afternoon Tea consisted of two finger sandwiches, a salad leaf, an olive, a sundried tomato, some rather nice Do & Co chocolates and a scone with jam and cream. None of this was particularly memorable but it helped pass the hour or so that we were in the air. We had to pick up the scones with our hands from the basket, not sure why no tongs were used or why only one was offered when the basket was still looking full when it was returned to the galley, the experience in the air whilst certainly better than economy was not fantastic by any means. From my day job looking after customers all day long the higher you aim the better you tend to do. I think the crew here were happy with a 7 out of 10. If they'd aimed for 10 and not quite pulled it off I think they would have ended up doing much better than the service we received. Trays were cleared and we were soon off the aircraft, it was nice to see the captain thanking people for their business as they departed and it certainly felt that the sentiment was genuine and BA were greatful for our business.
So how does this compare with our other options. Easyjet is difficult to compare directly with BA, although they often use the same Airbus aircraft on these routes all the food and drink is buy on board. Even on economy with BA a snack and drink are included. Seat wise both are similar, though there is noticeable difference in space between the best of BA towards the front of the cabin (CE or ET) and the worst of Easyjet right down the back. The other seats are pretty similar. Both airlines were professional and staff onboard seemed to enjoy themselves. Having pre-assigned seats is a huge advantage of both BA and Eurostar, it is 1000 times less stressful to know when you will be sat. I would say that Eurostar and BA are both similar in standard but thanks to priority boarding and the small size of the cabin BA wins here. Though I haven't had the pleasure of the travelling in the premium section of Eurostar since Leisure Select became Standard Premier I understand that the food and drink selections have been enhanced away to something similar to what BA offer in Club. My main issue with Eurostar is having to change trains in Paris or Lille. Lille is easy enough though in winter it can get very cold indeed in the station and there is no premium lounge to relax in, more than likely it will be a cold bench. Paris also involves a trip on the RER to change from Gare du Nord to Gare to Lyon which is not particularly fun with luggage. My winner here is BA, followed by Eurostar and Easyjet. Were it not for the change of trains on Eurostar it would probably be the winner for me, it certainly beats anything in the sky when travelling straight to Paris. Again, not sure what happened to the drinks on BA, but we were in such a good mood from T5 that it didn't really matter that much but it would have been nice to have been offered a glass of bubbly with our food.
Part 4: The final destination
After a short 10-20 minute wait for baggage (the priority tags only seemed to work for one of our two bags). We walked straight through customs were we were met by my partners family and it was then off to the car park for the 90minute drive home. The only thing of note was having to wait a whole five minutes at passport control at LYS and to wait for the bags. In all we didn't have to wait very long, it just felt like a long time compared to the almost zero wait, zero queues at Heathrow.
Priority Tag by
Spymon26, on Flickr
So how does the competition stack up. Well, Eurostar (actually TGV/SNCF at this point) stack up pretty well, first of all there is no passport control, no waiting for luggage and around 20 minute drive home from the TGV station, this is where the train comes in to its own. Easyjet suffers the same problems as BA here but it is compounded by arriving at T3 at LYS which means no airbridge and a much longer walk to the car park. Easyjet also fly to Grenoble during ski season, the airport here is a further step down from LYS T3 though at least there is less walking to do to get to the car park. The train is the only winner here, as the last leg of the journey on both BA and Easyjet are not particularly fun at all.
Part 5: The half-time champions and a note on costs and timing.
For this section I will rate each of the options based on fun, convenience and price. For me after seeing T5 at its best and enjoying the convenience of the BA premium experience there is only one winner in the fun category. However the Eurostar/TGV is a close second and Easyjet comes in third, though depending on the staff and crowds the gap between the three between could be pretty narrow.
If I was paying full price then BA would lose straight away. The Club Europe tickets we had were being sold for 200GBP per person each way. Tickets for Eurostar were working out at 350GBP return for the both of us, so about 100GBP each for this leg which would have been in Standard premier/1st class. The closest equivalent with Easyjet, even if you paid extra for the lounge and speedy boarding would not have been more than 75GBP per person one way. However, thanks to BA's reward scheme and making use of the reward flight saver we did not pay the full fare and instead paid 62GBP plus 4500 Avios each, which although more than the Easyjet fare we were getting a lot, lot more for our money as occasional flyers. When it comes to price Easyjet almost always wins with BA and Eurostar lagging behind.
Finally the all important convenience category. I know for sure Easyjet is bottom in almost every aspect here, in addition to the report above they also have the worst flight times for our needs involving either a 7:30am departure or 6:30pm arrival, but who wins in the battle of train vs plane? I would say BA is a narrow winner. Even with the extended travel time to and from the airport, the 1hr 40min flight time vs just under 6hrs on the Eurostar allows around an extra hour to hour and a half in bed. For one of us that makes the plane an easy win every time. Overall all the providers offer decent value for money, the main advantage BA has is its reward flight saver and thanks to the ease of collecting Avios I can enjoy a premium travel experience for minimal outlay.
As a side note whilst I have the CX gold from AMEX I'll probably not bother with Club Europe, but once it runs out I'll be looking at reward flight availability on BA before I check anything else. I will follow up this report with my return journey at a later date. Thanks for reading my first trip report on FT, feedback and discussion are always welcome, and maybe I will write a report on my upcoming trip to San Francisco and Las Vegas in April.