Originally Posted by
golfingboy
JFK will be on the 772 while CLT on 332/3 and I think the 772 hard product is slightly better, but both should be good for sleeping.
I will be using miles for this trip, so cost will be the same. Time wise almost identical, but slightly longer layover in JFK (4 hours vs 3 hours at CLT) as there is only one PIT-JFK flight. Total travel time is nearly identical as CLT-BCN is an hour longer but shorter layover.
One other positive for CLT is it departs later in the day and gets into BCN a little past 11am while JFK gets in at 7am. I have found east coast to Europe to be a bit rough given the short flight and having to make sure I stay awake all day the first day.
I've been on the US A330's (both -200 and -300) multiple times. Heck, even before the Envoy seats were installed, and on one of the first flights with Envoy seats.
While the seats may not be brand new, they are fine for the short flight to Europe.
Crews can be hit or miss either way. I've had some stellar crews from CLT to Europe, while some not so much.
The lounge at CLT (the small one has always been closed when I've been there, not sure if it has re-opened) is fine. Nothing to write home about, but you can get away, relax, and have some snacks. I'd recommend eating at Bojangles anyway (or there's a good local-ish place in the atrium), if you want real food.
As others have noted, the arrival time would make this a non-issue for me. I've arrived in Europe at 6-7am, gotten to hotels at 9am, and had to wait until 2-3pm for a room. The 11am arrival, with getting to hotel by 1pm makes this much more palatable for me. Go to hotel, probably get in room, shower, then get something to eat, explore a bit.