Due to the bus issues and then having to clear customs in Warsaw there was not any time to visit the lounge, eventhough that was something that was on my list to do in Warsaw. We headed right for the gate and found our Boeing 737 Max waiting for us for the flight over to London.
We had originally booked this flight in Economy, but were given the option to bid for an upgrade to Business class. The minimum offer was 110 Euros and for a three hour flight I didnt think that was too bad at all. I know European business class is not that great, but it was worth it for the free middle seat alone for 3 hours. The upgrade cleared before the flight and we were three of the 5 people in business class that day.
Boarding commenced right on time and we boarded with group 1.
A quick shot of the plane before the rain started to come down.
Airline: LOT Polish Airways
Class: Business
Route: Warsaw, Poland to London, England
Aircraft: Boeing 737 MAX 8
I was in row two of a two row business class. Originally on the seat map there were three rows but my seat was changed the day of the flight. Clearly there was not a lot of business class traffic so they converted row 3 back to economy. Still a decent amount of leg room and like most European business class seats the middle seat was left empty during the flight.
These small menus were handed out before we took off. I was not expecting much for the flight but was pleasantly surprised with what LOT was offering today.
It started to pour shortly after we started boarding.
Pushback was right on time and we were on our way for a very long taxi before heading off to London. Managed to catch a quick pic of a Government of Poland aircraft. There were a few of them spread around the airfield.
Shortly after take off the purser came around to set up for lunch. This was the first time my daughter had flown in any kind of business class and she was confused by the whole table cloth.
Drink orders were taken and I went with the sparkling wine they had on offer. Was certainly not the best I have ever had but it also was not the worst.
Lunch was served all on one tray. I chose the beef cheeks and my wife and daughter both got the dumpling options. The food was really good. The beef was very tender, with a great sauce and just all around enjoyable. The dumplings were amazing. Warm bread was also served but I didnt get a picture of that.
A picture of my daughters dumplings. Thankfully she only ate half of it and left the rest for me. The cake was not my thing, but she ate both of them and said she loved it. To each their own!
Eventhough the flight was only 2 hours long due to some favourable winds, I decided there was time for one more drink.
Water and a small chocolate snack were served about 25 minutes before landing.
A nice clear evening coming into London.
This was the first time my daughter had seen an A380. She didnt believe that something so big could actually fly.
Customs went very quickly and by the time we got to baggage our bags were already spinning on the carousel. We had prebooked a rental with AVIS and went to find the shuttle. I forgot how long the drive is to the rental car booths in London. It felt like we were on the bus for 20 minutes. Our car was already pre assigned and due to my status with AVIS we were upgraded to a NISSAN SUV from the original smaller vehicle we had booked. At the time we thought that was a great thing until we were on some of the single lane roads near Swallowcliffe.
Once the formalities at the rental counter were done with adding a second driver we were off to the hotel. For the first two nights we had booked the Hilton in Reading. This was mainly due to cost and location. It was about a twenty minute drive out to the hotel once we got on our way. Took me a bit to remember how to drive standard on the other side, but I quickly got a hold of it. Overall the vehicle was actually really nice to drive.
The Hilton Reading is a very nice hotel. I recently attained Diamond status with Hilton and just about everything is complimentary at this hotel. Parking was free, breakfast, high speed wifi. It really was a nice hotel. I had booked a suite which gave us a Queen size bed in one room and a pull out couch in the other. Both rooms had televisions and their own bathroom. It was perfect for our two nights in town.
Despite it being a pull out it was actually very comfortable. My daughter only had minimal complaints
Nothing on the restaurant menu really interested us and we were here for pubs, so we got back in the car and drove over to Queens Head pub in Reading. The food was great and the beer was delicious. The first of many casked ales of the trip.
A very nice bar area.
We all got the fish and chips. It was a great simple first meal.
At this point it had been a pretty long day and we headed back to the hotel to get some sleep.
Up next. Shopping and touring in London for the day!