leisureflyer1234

Background

I was travelling to BKK for work for a one day meeting on Wednesday. The policy is we have to travel discounted economy. I was leaving on the Monday and returning on Thursday. For this only the full economy fare of £1,900 was available. TG didn’t have a Saturday night stay requirement on their cheapest fare which was only £800. So it looked like I would have to fly TG, which I didn’t want to do.

Fortunately I checked BA holidays and discovered that by booking that way the Saturday night stay is waived in economy and premium economy, but not business. So I booked it that way which meant the fare element was around £800. I topped it up with £400 of my own money to upgrade to WTP at time of booking. I continuously checked for Avios upgrade availability but none was available.

Outbound flight BA9 (Three class 777)

I arrived at T5 early and asked about a paid upgrade at the zone H desks. I was quoted £599 which I accepted. I was then escorted across to another desk – next to the First checkin where my money was taken. There was plenty of seat choice and I opted for 5b a forward facing aisle seat. Fast Track was fast and the lounge in T5 South wasn’t too crowded. I guested in my colleague who was in Economy.

We left from T5b. Boarding was on time with efficient priority boarding, for which there were at least two announcements. Push back was delayed 20 mins due to congestion and it was a further hour before wheels up, meaning we landed over an hour late.

I knew what to expect from the Club World service and I wasn’t disappointed, except that they ran out of the full English breakfast and offered me one from economy instead. Overall the food was good, but when I asked for cheese and desert it was refused. The crew were efficient and friendly and I got 6 hours good sleep. On looking back into WTP there was one empty seat – it was my original seat. There were about 8 empty seats in CW.

Return flight BA10 (Three class 777)

I checked in online and was allocated my chosen WTP seat. At the airport I decided to ask about upgrades out of interest (but had told myself I couldn’t afford one). The response was that the flight was completely oversold and I was given an op up to CW seat 10J. I was given a card to access priority security on the back of which was a map where they marked the location of the lounge. The fast track was completely separate to the normal security (similar to Premium Gatwick security) and I was through in no time. Unfortunately they took away the card with the map. I could not find the lounge. I asked two airport staff for directions but they didn’t know where it was so I went straight to the gate

Boarding and departure were on time and we landed about 20 mins late. It was the same crew as on the outbound and they recognised me from the previous flight. The food was good and I was impressed that they served two full hot meals.

So, I paid £1,800 for a return in CW for which I would have paid £4,500 at the time I booked. I think I got a good deal and enjoyed the flights.

I may go to BKK again for a leisure trip. I will book well in advance, be flexible and stay the Saturday night to get the cheapest (I class) business fare. Will I fly BA? Probably not. I think I will fly Cathay Pacific (despite the connection in HKG which I don’t mind as I enjoy flying). Why? Well I enjoy the little extras they offer that BA doesn’t such as

• Superior seat (A matter of opinion I know but I prefer the privacy, aisle access from every seat and extra storage for things like my glasses when I am asleep which the CW seat doesn’t have)

• Being made to feel special by being addressed by name

• Drinks served from a well laid out trolley with warm nuts in a dish and olives – rather than the BA plastic bag)

• Table cloth on the table (Not just on the tray)

• Cruets instead of paper sachets and a plate for the bread

• Separate cheese and desert services with cheese cut from the trolley (not pre-plated), a separate plate of fresh fruit and biscuits that aren’t presented in a packet

• Hot snacks available to order in flight

• 888 music CDs, compared to 30 on BA not to mention the extra films and TV programmes