Worth a trip just to sit in the upper deck?
 

I have never flown in the upper deck of a 747. I have done the nose already. With a handful of 747s flying domestically this spring, I could conceivably take a short trip to fly the upper deck. It wouldn't be a long flight, and it isn't cheap either. Part of me is saying fo it, just for the experience. But after reading so many reviews, it seems almost all the interest is because it feels like a small cabin with lots of service. Personally i don't get that impressed by service, and I have flown on plenty of small cabin jets. Is there any other reason to do a domestic flight on the upper deck, or should I spend that money somewhere else instead?

If you want to and can afford it go for it. I added an extra leg (ORD-DFW) on a trip this summer for the chance to fly in F on a 777 because I'll probably never be able to do so. Of course with my luck they'll sub a half dozen Canadian Torture Tubes in place of the 777.

US domestic, no, don't bother. Longhaul international business class on a top carrier, yes, do it.

Worth a trip just to sit in te upper deck?
 

I wouldn't pay too much - but a few years back I needed to go to LAX and Delta was repositioning one so I went out of my way to get to DTW so I could fly upper deck. Added maybe $100 -plus some travel hassle. totally worth it.

service ... meh... more a function of carrier and crew than anything. and plenty of other birds with a "mini" cabin configuration.

fly it for the novelty? absolutely, especially now that the 747s seem to be trending down.

i regret being too young to have flown the concorde... on my dime, that is.

This. If you are clicking it off your bucket list, go for it. But if you're looking for some kind of special experience you're going to be disappointed. Business class upstairs is a tad quieter than business class on the main deck but it's a hassle getting in and out with any carry-on luggage.

I'm actually looking for a trip to do this on over the summer. I've flown just about every modern bird, but no 747.

Little different here, I am headed to FRA, flying BA F to ride in the nose. I have been upstairs, wonderful flight from JNB-LHR!

Go for the experience before you lose the chance!

Personally, and having been there more than once, I find it much like being in the same type of seat in a 737. I wouldn't pay $1 more or add a minute to my schedule for it. YMMV, of course.

Depending on the carrier, you'd be hard pressed to find anything resembling any 737 seat on the 747 UD (ex: DL's 1-1 J config upstairs).

I say go for it if you can find a deal, OP. It's not going to completely change your worldview or anything, but it is a neat experience to have if you can. And even better if you find a way to do it in long-haul J. :)

Think of it this way: Five or ten years from now when passenger 747s are even fewer and farther between, would you rather regret missing an experience you can no longer have, or regret spending a bit of money that you just have to earn back/save somewhere else?

My take is if you're curious enough about it to be asking AND you can afford it, you might as well find out for yourself what all the fuss is about. If it's not as special as you thought it would be, well, at least then you know.

I'd say no. The upper desk isn't that special.

Granted, but that is precisely my point: it's the seat that matters, not the cabin. The upper deck of a 747 is, for all practical purposes, a 737. (And a 737 that's harder to get into, because you have to go up that winding staircase. If winding staircases make you feel special, so be it.) If you can get the same seat somewhere else, it will be the same experience. As the post after this says:

The staircase is straight on the 747-400. The windy ones were last seen on the 747-200 which hasn't been in passenger service with major carriers for a long time.

I wouldn't go out of my way or spend much $ to fly it. Ive flown in upper deck scores of times since they came out and maybe I am just jaded. Actually thinking back now to 1982 I was pretty excited when I flew upper deck on NW.

So, I guess for you, go for it.

we recently flew J on Qantas LAX-SYD. Upper deck was mostly full, except for last row next to the galley, so we booked Zone A in the nose (which flew half full). Lots of space in the nose, with that pedestal next to me for storage and nobody in the 2 center seats. In the middle of the night, I walked upstairs to see what the upper deck looked like (I've never flown there), and was surprised to see how small and claustrophobic it felt.