LightUponLight

Hello friends!

I hope y'all are well.

I have never flown business/first class and am wondering if it would be worth upgrading to BusinessFirst from my economy ticket by paying an extra $450 and using 40,000 miles. I'm going from Houston to Newark to Bombay.

I feel guilty about wanting to spend the money but of course I am dying to know if I would be thrilled with the service, meals, etc. What's it like? Are the meals truly gourmet? What can a country girl expect? I'm all kinds of excited at the prospect of having my chunky rear comfortable and some delicious food!

Also, if Indian food is served on the plane, is it authentic? I know my Indian food and can tell the difference between the real thing and grub watered down for non-Indians. OMG I sound so picky but I just don't want to be disappointed!!

Should I make the plunge? Thanks to you fine people in advance!

Best,

Light

spainflyer

LightUponLight

I've been to College Station. And I've been to Bombay. You definitely want CO BF.

If you can afford it, don't feel guilty, that's what its there for.

If you can't afford it, don't feel guilty, you deserve it.

Have a great time!

pbarnette

Is it worth the mileage and the co-pay? Well, for such a long flight I would give a tentative yes. But this is only for the space and seat comfort. To my mind, the food is still airplane food (I know gourmet food, and I have never had it on an airplane) and I just don't value the "service" - sure your drink is refilled faster and the china is nicer, but are you really willing to pay upwards of $1000 in cash and miles for that? But back to the space and seat comfort; this is where it is at for me, particularly for night flights and long flights, for which this trip surely qualifies.

TWA Fan 1

Compared to purchasing BF to BOM which will set you back about $5k per person, the upgrade and the miles are worth it if you can afford it.

The seats are comfortable, plenty of legroom. They're nice and wide, too. The other issue to consider is the paucity of space and comfort in the CO 777 economy section. Do you really want to sit in 31" seat pitch for about 16 hrs? If you have to, you will, obviously. But if you don't have to, what a relief.

Finally, have you looked into the actual availability of the mileage upgrade to BF on this route? Generally, the odds of upgrading to BF are longer than winning the Powerball lottery...

fly co to see the yanks

hey! i am, thanks.

sure. you're welcome. blush.

(the food won't be authentic or good. the seats are nice, particularly versus how bad the seats are in the back. this question is similar to any money for service/good issue. if you can afford it, go for it. if you can't, don't. i'm sorry i can't definitively answer for you.)

channa

Is there an Au Bon Pain in BOM airport? If not, what do you recommend bringing on board?

fly co to see the yanks

that's a good one?

can't really say as i haven't been to bombay. when i travel to europe, there are pretty good rations in the airport. i haven't been to india.....

COFlyerCLE

There is not much at the BOM airport to buy, as I recall. There is a bar and a small restauraunt past security/immigration, as well as a shared lounge if you are flying BF, but that's about all. (I was there in Nov 2005, so they may have upgraded since).

Oh, and absolutely upgrade if you can. Even breaking the flight up (I did CDG-BOM, then BOM-MIL-EWR-CLE) - BF service, food, seats, quality is worth it - whether on CO (or AF or even Alitalia).

senatorgirth

Personally, I would definitely upgrade if seats were available. Your first trip in J is likely to be a memorable one--almost certainly worth the miles and upgrade fee.

The food is NOT gourmet; but it is better-than-average airplane food, at times pretty good, and miles ahead of what is served in Y. Anyone who says the food in BF is "bad" is being a food snob, IMHO. There will no Michelin stars for the CO kitchens, but the fare will be just fine.

Hartmann

For that long of a flight, the bigger seat, extra legroom, and overall space is definitely worth it. ^

I think the food will be better than what you get in coach but it will not be the best thing that ever hit your palette (especially since you're from Texas, nothing tops BBQ and beer)

joebeenyc

Upgrade for sure. Miles wise given the long flight and the amenities it is a great value. It one of (if not the longest) flight in the CO system. Best to be comfortable on a flight like that.

ssullivan

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.0) BlackBerry8100/4.2.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/100)

Definitely go for it! The seats are quite comfortable, and while the food isn't true gourmet, it's not bad at all. I've had several things served in BusinessFirst that were excellent. I wouldn't worry about buying food to bring on board.

fly co to see the yanks

again, that's your opinion. but, you don't know the original poster's (OP): 1) financial situation, 2) size, 3) personal feelings toward improved food/service, etc.

if it was such a no brainer to do it, continental (CO) would raise the price even further. or, if no one was doing it, CO would lower the price.

that is the underpinning of a market economy. the price in miles and money has to be compared to the value of the business first (BF) product by each individual. a blanket statement that everyone should upgrade if it's available is silly.

fly co to see the yanks

i would.

PforPlatinum

Any route, BF upgrade is worth miles and copay, IMO.

And remember, as upgrade is not always available, if you skip this time you may not have another chance later, as this route may become more popular (and BF could be always sold out by then.)

My advice is, go for it.
If you score upgrade, you will feel great.
If not, you won't lose anything.