The_Bouncer

I just realised I never got around to updating this after my return flight from MIA.

The pics are on my American travel phone, which is back at my mother's house in Staffordshire, so they will have to wait until I visit for Christmas.

The overnighter back from MIA was a similarly enjoyable experience to the outbound. After a couple of beers in the AA lounge, I settled into 2K. The plane had run out of LPGS, so I got into the rosé pre-dinner and switched to red wine for the beef main. This was followed by dessert (and dessert wine of course), a cheese platter and glass of port and several brandies, before the very helpful FA made up my bed and I crawled under the duvet for 5 hours of port and brandy induced oblivion. I was woken for breakfast an hour out of LHR, feeling reasonably well rested.

On landing, I wandered out landside and shivered contentedly in a nicotine soaked haze for about 20 minutes, buzzed over to T5 for my MAN connection and caught a shower in the BA Arrivals Lounge. After another nicotine hit, I meandered back into the Concorde Room for a couple of espresso martinis (I know...but it was 7pm somewhere) and onto MAN.

The connection in CE to MAN was a standard short hop with the addition of a scone and coffee.

All in all, it was a pleasant experience and one of the very few times I have actually got off an overnight flight not feeling like something out of a Hallow'een party that's gone on past it's natural conclusion.

Which brings me back to "is it worth it?"

Well, I said that was one of the few times I had got off not feeling like the undead. The next time was, surprisingly, this Friday after my 11-hour overnighter in Y from ZRH to CPT.

I admit I approached this flight with a little trepidation, after my high-end-booze-fuelled sojourn in F, but it was absolutely fine. I settled into my seat on the end of the full middle row (A340 2-4-2) and after a few cans of can't remember what, but whatever 5CHF gets you on Edelweiss Air, I actually managed to doze off for 4 solid hours!

This is unheard-of for me in Y - I usually sit seething in a zombified nicotine-deprived semi-rage, staring at the flight map and thinking "let me out of this [insert chosen adjective] metal tube and give me back my life".

But on this flight, I was absolutlely fine. I felt none of the usual discomfort at being seated upright, or any of the other annoyances I usually associate with long-haul flying, and arrived at my CPT hotel around 1400 feeling a little tired, but not desperate to crash out and able to go for a short walk after a shower and enjoy an early dinner.

All of this proves, of course, that it's all about attitude. I thought that trying out F would turn me off the idea of long-haul Y forever, but it seems in fact to have had the opposite effect. It has put things in persepective. I was just as happy slobbing out in 40G on WK with my 5-franc cans of beer, as I was sipping port in 2K on BA. Well, maybe not quite as happy 😉, but certainly happy enough.

Overall, I'm very glad I had the F experience and yes, it was definitely worth the one-time outlay, and if I come across a really good premium fare in the future, I probably will go for it once in a while.

But for my regular winter travelling, I'll be found propped up in 40G or similar, with a beer in my hand, an extra couple of grand in my wallet and a smile on my face.

LCY8737

The_Bouncer

Pretty much how I feel about it. Once in a while I might offload some excess Avios on a flight in F (I'm still earning more than I'm burning, thanks to my UK credit card, that I can't change due to not living there any more).

Cap'n Benj

T8191

Really not willing to risk my back doing l/h in Y or W, but kudos to those fit enough to do it!

(T8191 waves from Franschhoek to The Bouncer in CPT)

The_Bouncer

Waves back from Sea Point (Stellenbosch later in the week).

I can understand not wanting to fly in Y if you jave back issues, by the way.

FlyingHighlander

Really good thread. Nice perspective. Flying is the only time I wish I wasnt 6' 3". The thought of >6hrs in Y, particularly overnight gives me anxiety. So i buy WT+ as a happy medium between comfort and keeping my wallet fat. I'd love to be the kind of person who is happy, and physically fits in, a Y seat.

Concerto

What, you came back on Edelweiss (WK)? That must have been a bit of a shock! Actually, I have heard good things about Edelweiss longhaul and most people in Switzerland speak well of the company. Somehow it bypassed me, but you did the outbound in BA First, and the inbound in WK Economy? Sorry, I'll have to go back and check your travel plan.

EDIT - I get it, you're going back to Zurich from Manchester on WK after your 1st Class trip on BA. That's why you're paying 5 francs for a can of beer (hope it was Appenzeller Quöllfrisch, although Chopfab Amber, which is now in the LX lounge at GVA, is much better!)

The_Bouncer

Sorry, that was a bit confusing. I flew MIA-LHR-MAN on BA F, spent some time with family in England, then flew WK Y from BHX to CPT, via a 36-hour stopover in ZRH and a whirlwind visit to my home in Bregenz. I worked it that way because of the special deal on the BA flight returning to MAN.

Actually, the beer was Quöllfrisch, which I quite like, although I prefer the St. Gallen Klostoerbräu.

The_Bouncer

6'3" is a tight squeeze in Y (although I'm sure an exit row could work). I am 6'1" and 15 (-ish) stone, so I just about fit comfortably. I thought once I had sampled F, I would really struggle being back in Y, but it hasn't worked out that way.

FlyingHighlander

It's been a while since I've flown a standard Y seat. Maybe I need to give it another whirl. You are somewhat inspiring me. But then I know of the impending leg pain, particularly if the person in front reclines.
I'm also 15 stone/broad shouldered. Exit row is good for leg room - that or premium economy is as low as I'll go flying international. My other main problem is I simply cant fall asleep in an upright seat (on a plane or not), so I have to factor in being a wreck if red eyeing in a non-lie flat.

The_Bouncer

Well, there is the zombification factor. I have traditionally been a very poor sleeper in Y (in fact a complete non sleeper - a 39-hour run from IAH to JNB with a 7-hour layover in DOH a couple of years ago nearly put me in the ground), but this Thursday's run was different for some reason.

At 15 stone (same as me), you're hardly anywhere near a COS (which I definitely was until about 5 years ago). I would have thought an exit row aisle seat would obviate any pain issues.

I tried out WT+ thanks to an op-up from JFK a few years ago and was not overwhelmed. I would take an exit row aisle in Y over just about any W seat.

The_Bouncer

Exactly. Millions of people fly in Y (and travel in much worse ways than that) every day. Just because I like rump steak doesn't mean I can't enjoy a hamburger.

HIDDY

Seen to having airline status and flying premium cabins does seem to be an FT thing.

I know several people who can easily well afford to fly premium cabins yet they always choose to fly Y when going to Europe and the US.. Right enough, two of them according to my wife have always been tight fisted since she's known them from childhood.

The_Bouncer

Sounds like my dad. I don't think he ever flew anything but Y in his life. I once even had to convince him to upgrade a rental car (for 4 adult males plus luggage) from a Renault Twingo to a Volvo estate, by physically taking the 15EUR upgrade fee out of my pocket and physically offering it to him!