Virgin - is it overhyped?
 

Hey. I have heard ALOT about Virgin Atlantic upper class. the massages etc really make virgin seem far better than any other competitors. Can anyone please tell me if virgins upper class has any downfalls? eg poor service, ife etc. from what ive heard, its a near flawless service

thanks for your help

Also, do you know which aircraft have suites? Do any of the London Gatwick aircraft have them fitted yet?

There are forums for each of the airlines you are asking about. Emirates, Air Canada, Virgin...

I've never experienced their J product, but I'm not too fond of their Y product, which is a lot of style, not much substance (small seats :().

Branson? Hype? Naaaaaaaaaaaah!

Nomination for Thread Title of the DAY!

Before I opened it, I thought it belonged in OMNI... :)

Willia

I find the servcie amongst the best - tip: don't ask for a massage but for a pedicure - you'll have a better chance of getting one.

I flew one JFK-LHR-JFK round trip with Virgin in Economy Class and found it to be the most uncomfortable flying experience of my life. Fancy IFE, amenity kits and, at the time, printed menus, cannot make-up for inadequate legroom.

The only positive was that I flew both ways on G-VTOP, which, at the time (Summer 1999), was named "Austin Powered" as part of the promotional efforts for Austin Powers II.

I flew Upper Class rt LAX-LHR. Likes: sitting in the upper deck, which was much quieter than down in the main cabins; the bar for UC pax downstairs; nice pillow/comforter and a near-flat seat; excellent selections on IFE; arrival/departure lounge at LHR. Dislikes: food was nothing special; service was okay, but not really solicitous; IFE broke irreparably LHR-LAX, so 10 hours w/out a single movie sucked (esp for those pax w/kids--there were some real problems down in coach).

The "massage" service is really not what it may seem. The therapist is only allowed to do a certain # of massages per flight, so only the first 2-3 people who request will get it and everyone else will be SOL. Even the other treatments are on a "first come" basis so not every pax will get one. So this is a nice plus, but shouldn't really a selling point.

I'd say it's a good product but probably not the best out there (though it beats all hell outta DL Bus.)

I flew VS once SFO-LHR in Y and find myself somewhere in between with regards to the quality. I just find the meals, IFE, and FAs mediocre at best. In my opinion they are better than most NA & Other European carriers but SQ & CX outshines them in those features. In the future I wouldn't mind flying with Virgin again but they certainly aren't the best.

OK, fess up, who has seen the 5 or 10 minute Virgin "advertisement" masquerading as a free porn movie on hotel pay-per-view . . . I personally know (ahem ahem) it was offered in Starwood properties at the end of 2004.

:rolleyes:

I "accidentally" stumbled upon it recently, and posted about it here on the VS board.

I have not flown VS upperclass in a number of years, but I always enjoyed it when I did. The service and overall attitude of the airline is (or was at the time) superior to many airlines. And although the massage is not the biggest deal, getting one on a flight is better than not! (As others have noted, you are not guaranteed to get one. Although I am certain the therapist does more than two per flight, there is a chance some will not get one if too many people sign up. You can, however, also get one at the VS clubhouse at LHR.)

I also had my best customer service experience ever with VS. Flying LGW-BOS, I had left my passport at The Ritz. The Ritz found the passport in my room and, knowing that VS had picked me up (complimentary limo service when flying upperclass), called VS. VS was able to put the folks from The Ritz in touch with me in the car (they called the driver's mobile), and I asked them to send it to me at LGW with a motorcycle messenger. When I got to LGW, I told a VS agent at the checkin counter what was going on. He gave me a pass to get into the clubhouse to wait for my passport to arrive. When it finally arrived about 15 minutes before departure, he told me that there was no way I would make the flight, so he told me to come back down to the counter so he could reaccommodate me. When I got there, with about 10 minutes to departure, he radioed to the gate to see if there was any chance I could make my flight. They told his they were about to close the door, and he responded that he was going to try to get me on the flight. He came out from behind the counter, grabbed me by the arm, and raced me through the airport, including through the employee line at security, and got me on the plane just as they were closing the door.

Ditto...also the planes are getting a bit of old. Lot's of broken entertainment systems,etc.

It WAS a lot of fun to fly them a while back (lots of folks doing RTW trips). Not so now.

Yes, VS is overhyped and yes, the UC suite experience lives up to all of the hype, in my experience.

I flew recently from JFK-LHR in Y. Most definitely yes. Their cabin crew are all in stepford mode. Better than rude AA mode though. The seats are tiny and the leg room that of a charter plane. Food is very stingy and the wine glasses are the width and height of thimbles. Great IFE but you need it as its too uncomfortable to sleep. ~I couldn't imagine this level of discomfort on a Sydney-London flight. VERY overhyped!