LHR-IAD BA CW A380 / 777 Last minute hop to see Stevie Wonder!
Nov 13, 2014, 7:11 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 870
LHR-IAD BA CW A380 / 777 Last minute hop to see Stevie Wonder!
So I thought I would share my weekend with you all. As a life long Stevie Wonder fan (I'm 30 so not as long as some) I recently discovered he was performing a unique series of arena concerts in 10 US cities. Not a greatest hits-a-thon but a full album play of one of his most acclaimed works.
Obviously disappointed that he wouldn't be coming to London I decided that I would go to him and got onto BA.com to look at flights and destinations that matched my plans. Looking at the schedule, it seemed his concert at Madison Square Garden in NYC or Verizon Centre in Washington DC suited best so I decided to go for IAD so I could try both the new A380 route in J and also check out the new IAD Galleries Lounge.
Here is my trip in photos and words:
Arrived at First check in at around 8am on the 8th November for my 11.15am departure to IAD. Whilst travelling in CW and not First, I looked at the queues at CW check-in and decided to use my gold status as a way to get through quicker. It was a good premium experience. I was greeted by a lovely lady to escorted me to a free desk. The experience was pleasant and quick
T5 was quiet which was a marked change for the previous week when queues for fast track were miles long. This morning it was quiet with only 5 people in the queue for fast track south.
I made my way to Galleries F Lounge for some breakfast.
Obviously a champagne breakfast. I tried a few things off the menu. The buffet breakfast was hot a fresh. The hash browns are a highlight. The lounge was quite busy this morning but manageable. Champagne was readily available. One thing I did note was how hard it was to get an order taken. It was almost like they didn't want to be asked and weren't overly receptive to a request. It's not always like this. Sometimes they are cheery and welcoming. Sometimes not. It's not very consistent.
Boarding commenced around one hour before the flight which surprised me. I know the A380 can be a hassle to load but the flight was a quiet one with only 9 seats taken in Club World upper deck. I visited the Starbucks in Satellite 3 and took advantage of the BA £15 gesture for all premium customers in place of a lounge facility. Very generous as the B lounge is a mere 4-5 minutes away with the main lounges another 5 minutes back. I was able to purchase a beer and nice festive mug. Note that only one piece of merchandise can be redeemed per boarding card and the rest is to be used for refreshments and food. This starbucks offers a bar service with beers wines and sometimes small bottles of Moet. A good offering.
I boarded and was greeted by name. Unfortunately this was a mixed bag CW flight with a few missing touches marring the experience. You tend to notice these things the more you travel and even more so when paying 2 week out full price for a J seat (yes contrary to some, people do buy a J ticket). It was good in places and average in others.
Here was the chariot. XLED. Around 1.5 years old but very fresh still. Cabin was pretty immaculate which is becoming less usual for BA and my weekly experience with them.
The superjumbo is not the prettiest plane in the sky but it cannot be denied it is well put together. Very quiet and very slick.
I took my seat, 56J/K on the very quiet UD.
The UD has nice side lockers in addition to overhead bins. The overhead side bins are small and so the middle bins are the ones to go for. The side bins hold a handbag and / or small laptop. Handy.
I was given an amenity kit. It is pathetic compared to other J offerings and they have recently removed the Elemis Marine cream which I really liked. Constant enhancements of the J product is a shame as soon there will be next to nothing inside the already poor string bag. A opening offering of water, champagne or orange juice was offered in real glassware and newspapers were offered.
The seat was comfortable. It is the first seat in the second UD cabin. I didn't notice too much galley noise and there were no missing windows. No direct aisle access at the window but certainly a very good seat. It was comfortable and nothing broken. Let's hope BA keep the plane in this condition for years to come. Some of the 772s with club seats are not in great order. Same with the 744s with bits hanging off and taped back together. This was great. The 380 is quiet. So quiet and soon I was in the sky.
Service began 20 minutes after take off with lunch orders taken. No greeting at all on this flight by the CSD to gold card holders and when lunch orders were taken, there was no name used as I believe should be the case. It was a strict case of Sir / Madam on this flight as I heard with females on board.
The lunch menu:
In the meantime I had a Kir Royale with some nuts. The nuts are nice but should be warm and in a proper bowl like with other J products. Small point but not very premium. Yes they do this in first but BA J is not cheap and this cheapens the product.
I tried both starters and both were delicious. I had the beef for main course and as usual it was massively well done and overcooked but yet still tasted nice. The vegetables were crunch and fresh and the potatoes were good too. It was a great meal all in all. Well done BA.
I had the cake for dessert with a cold cream and it was wonderful.
Tea was served and drinks topped up twice before lunch. Veronica, the CC looking after me was superb in that regard. Constantly topped up the drinks and service was good. Her French colleague however who had team leader on her badge and whom I think was French and assisted with serving meals was completely mute and I found rude. She just handed the lunch over and didn't open her mouth either when offering it or when thanked for it. Just completely mute. Not great.
Things quietened down for a while when the curtains closed and the crew had lunch. The A380 lights dimmed and I relaxed and enjoyed the Thales entertainment system. Unfortunately there was no map to view on this flight. Veronica stated the reason being that the captain accidently typed IAH into his computer and not IAD and could not change it in flight. True enough the stats were showing IAH until landing with the map showing as unavailable.
Around 90 minutes before landing, afternoon tea arrived. Afternoon tea on BA is a debating point for many here. Tea was served and the pre packed sandwiches arrived on a plate. Soon after a scone basket arrived. It was a pleasant meal but underwhelming. The sandwiches were fresh but it just feels like an economy meal served on a plate.
Just a reminder that the cups are club approved...
Soon I was arriving in Washington DC. Flight time of 7 hours and 40 minutes.
I cleared customs quickly as it was empty and I was soon in a Uber en route to my hotel for a couple of nights - the Hilton Garden Inn. Hotel was fine by usual Hilton standard and was brilliantly placed 5 minutes from the white house and 10 from the concert venue.
Washington was beautiful. Weather was 20c last week at the start of November. I had a look around. Some pictures.
It wasn't too long until 30000 people took their seats at a sold out venue and the man himself came on.
Yes, that is Stevie Wonder...
3 hours later the show was over and I was leaving the venue with the masses:
Next day I had a lazy day before making my way to IAD to sample the new lounge. BA recently opened this lounge after extensive redevelopment and it is beautiful. It is long and thin with both a self serve bar beside club world pre dining as well as a serviced bar area.
Here are some pictures:
New and improved!
Small pleasant work area with new computers
Seating area with plugs and USB ports at each table
Toilets were immaculate. However there were no shower facilities as water was leaking from the shower rooms to the duty free shop below and there was no update as to when they would reopen.
I was really disappointed in the club pre dining especially as I had read in the lounge thread on the BA part of the forum about the good food on offer. There was none tonight. I couldn't take any pictures as staff were hovering and I looked unimpressed by the selection. On offer was a taco that the chef prepared which was OK but aside from that there was just some fish and rice and a overly rich Oreo chocolate dessert. Cheese was available. I just found the food selection to be bland and uninspired. I felt the same in Toronto and to a lesser extent Newark when trying sleeper service pre dining or supper as they call it. Its just not good enough considering the CW lite package they serve on sleeper services. No price reduction yet a massive service reduction in my opinion. Its also self serve to distinguish it from first table service but is CW a self serve dinner normally? No. So its a shame there is no real service involved.
I boarded the 772 (VIID) at around 9.40pm and we took off on time at 22.20pm. Decent load with CW looking almost full. Service was minimal with no greeting from CSD again for GCH. There was a limited menu that I wanted to eat from as I was still hungry from the poor lounge offering.
I had the pasta which was really dry and horrible. The dessert was lovely though.
The pasta was just lacking in sauce. It was really dry. I had a G&T with it which was brought straight from the galley. There was no trolley service on this flight which was nice.
Breakfast menu was as shown. I really don't like the BA sleeper breakfast. Smoothie is always lovely but the fruit in a plastic box is cheap and the bacon roll, whilst tasty just is an economy offering. Not premium at all.
I enjoyed the Thales IFE on the 772 which is much better than the Rockwell Collins units on the 744 and some of the YMM reg 772s.
All in all it was a good trip with BA. The outbound was a highlight with most things right and food and service good. The sleeper service for me is to be avoided. I appreciate the aim is to sleep but I just enjoy the full service and feel cheated when I don't get it. Matter of opinion of course.
The arrivals lounge was good as always. Nice fresh breakfast. Unfortunately both when departing and arriving, the Elemis facility had no available appointments for treatments within 4 hours of me asking. Really not very good, that. I don't fancy staying in the arrivals lounge for 4 hours for a 10 minute facial or arriving 4 hours early at departures for the same. That needs fixed.
Obviously disappointed that he wouldn't be coming to London I decided that I would go to him and got onto BA.com to look at flights and destinations that matched my plans. Looking at the schedule, it seemed his concert at Madison Square Garden in NYC or Verizon Centre in Washington DC suited best so I decided to go for IAD so I could try both the new A380 route in J and also check out the new IAD Galleries Lounge.
Here is my trip in photos and words:
Arrived at First check in at around 8am on the 8th November for my 11.15am departure to IAD. Whilst travelling in CW and not First, I looked at the queues at CW check-in and decided to use my gold status as a way to get through quicker. It was a good premium experience. I was greeted by a lovely lady to escorted me to a free desk. The experience was pleasant and quick
T5 was quiet which was a marked change for the previous week when queues for fast track were miles long. This morning it was quiet with only 5 people in the queue for fast track south.
I made my way to Galleries F Lounge for some breakfast.
Obviously a champagne breakfast. I tried a few things off the menu. The buffet breakfast was hot a fresh. The hash browns are a highlight. The lounge was quite busy this morning but manageable. Champagne was readily available. One thing I did note was how hard it was to get an order taken. It was almost like they didn't want to be asked and weren't overly receptive to a request. It's not always like this. Sometimes they are cheery and welcoming. Sometimes not. It's not very consistent.
Boarding commenced around one hour before the flight which surprised me. I know the A380 can be a hassle to load but the flight was a quiet one with only 9 seats taken in Club World upper deck. I visited the Starbucks in Satellite 3 and took advantage of the BA £15 gesture for all premium customers in place of a lounge facility. Very generous as the B lounge is a mere 4-5 minutes away with the main lounges another 5 minutes back. I was able to purchase a beer and nice festive mug. Note that only one piece of merchandise can be redeemed per boarding card and the rest is to be used for refreshments and food. This starbucks offers a bar service with beers wines and sometimes small bottles of Moet. A good offering.
I boarded and was greeted by name. Unfortunately this was a mixed bag CW flight with a few missing touches marring the experience. You tend to notice these things the more you travel and even more so when paying 2 week out full price for a J seat (yes contrary to some, people do buy a J ticket). It was good in places and average in others.
Here was the chariot. XLED. Around 1.5 years old but very fresh still. Cabin was pretty immaculate which is becoming less usual for BA and my weekly experience with them.
The superjumbo is not the prettiest plane in the sky but it cannot be denied it is well put together. Very quiet and very slick.
I took my seat, 56J/K on the very quiet UD.
The UD has nice side lockers in addition to overhead bins. The overhead side bins are small and so the middle bins are the ones to go for. The side bins hold a handbag and / or small laptop. Handy.
I was given an amenity kit. It is pathetic compared to other J offerings and they have recently removed the Elemis Marine cream which I really liked. Constant enhancements of the J product is a shame as soon there will be next to nothing inside the already poor string bag. A opening offering of water, champagne or orange juice was offered in real glassware and newspapers were offered.
The seat was comfortable. It is the first seat in the second UD cabin. I didn't notice too much galley noise and there were no missing windows. No direct aisle access at the window but certainly a very good seat. It was comfortable and nothing broken. Let's hope BA keep the plane in this condition for years to come. Some of the 772s with club seats are not in great order. Same with the 744s with bits hanging off and taped back together. This was great. The 380 is quiet. So quiet and soon I was in the sky.
Service began 20 minutes after take off with lunch orders taken. No greeting at all on this flight by the CSD to gold card holders and when lunch orders were taken, there was no name used as I believe should be the case. It was a strict case of Sir / Madam on this flight as I heard with females on board.
The lunch menu:
In the meantime I had a Kir Royale with some nuts. The nuts are nice but should be warm and in a proper bowl like with other J products. Small point but not very premium. Yes they do this in first but BA J is not cheap and this cheapens the product.
I tried both starters and both were delicious. I had the beef for main course and as usual it was massively well done and overcooked but yet still tasted nice. The vegetables were crunch and fresh and the potatoes were good too. It was a great meal all in all. Well done BA.
I had the cake for dessert with a cold cream and it was wonderful.
Tea was served and drinks topped up twice before lunch. Veronica, the CC looking after me was superb in that regard. Constantly topped up the drinks and service was good. Her French colleague however who had team leader on her badge and whom I think was French and assisted with serving meals was completely mute and I found rude. She just handed the lunch over and didn't open her mouth either when offering it or when thanked for it. Just completely mute. Not great.
Things quietened down for a while when the curtains closed and the crew had lunch. The A380 lights dimmed and I relaxed and enjoyed the Thales entertainment system. Unfortunately there was no map to view on this flight. Veronica stated the reason being that the captain accidently typed IAH into his computer and not IAD and could not change it in flight. True enough the stats were showing IAH until landing with the map showing as unavailable.
Around 90 minutes before landing, afternoon tea arrived. Afternoon tea on BA is a debating point for many here. Tea was served and the pre packed sandwiches arrived on a plate. Soon after a scone basket arrived. It was a pleasant meal but underwhelming. The sandwiches were fresh but it just feels like an economy meal served on a plate.
Just a reminder that the cups are club approved...
Soon I was arriving in Washington DC. Flight time of 7 hours and 40 minutes.
I cleared customs quickly as it was empty and I was soon in a Uber en route to my hotel for a couple of nights - the Hilton Garden Inn. Hotel was fine by usual Hilton standard and was brilliantly placed 5 minutes from the white house and 10 from the concert venue.
Washington was beautiful. Weather was 20c last week at the start of November. I had a look around. Some pictures.
It wasn't too long until 30000 people took their seats at a sold out venue and the man himself came on.
Yes, that is Stevie Wonder...
3 hours later the show was over and I was leaving the venue with the masses:
Next day I had a lazy day before making my way to IAD to sample the new lounge. BA recently opened this lounge after extensive redevelopment and it is beautiful. It is long and thin with both a self serve bar beside club world pre dining as well as a serviced bar area.
Here are some pictures:
New and improved!
Small pleasant work area with new computers
Seating area with plugs and USB ports at each table
Toilets were immaculate. However there were no shower facilities as water was leaking from the shower rooms to the duty free shop below and there was no update as to when they would reopen.
I was really disappointed in the club pre dining especially as I had read in the lounge thread on the BA part of the forum about the good food on offer. There was none tonight. I couldn't take any pictures as staff were hovering and I looked unimpressed by the selection. On offer was a taco that the chef prepared which was OK but aside from that there was just some fish and rice and a overly rich Oreo chocolate dessert. Cheese was available. I just found the food selection to be bland and uninspired. I felt the same in Toronto and to a lesser extent Newark when trying sleeper service pre dining or supper as they call it. Its just not good enough considering the CW lite package they serve on sleeper services. No price reduction yet a massive service reduction in my opinion. Its also self serve to distinguish it from first table service but is CW a self serve dinner normally? No. So its a shame there is no real service involved.
I boarded the 772 (VIID) at around 9.40pm and we took off on time at 22.20pm. Decent load with CW looking almost full. Service was minimal with no greeting from CSD again for GCH. There was a limited menu that I wanted to eat from as I was still hungry from the poor lounge offering.
I had the pasta which was really dry and horrible. The dessert was lovely though.
The pasta was just lacking in sauce. It was really dry. I had a G&T with it which was brought straight from the galley. There was no trolley service on this flight which was nice.
Breakfast menu was as shown. I really don't like the BA sleeper breakfast. Smoothie is always lovely but the fruit in a plastic box is cheap and the bacon roll, whilst tasty just is an economy offering. Not premium at all.
I enjoyed the Thales IFE on the 772 which is much better than the Rockwell Collins units on the 744 and some of the YMM reg 772s.
All in all it was a good trip with BA. The outbound was a highlight with most things right and food and service good. The sleeper service for me is to be avoided. I appreciate the aim is to sleep but I just enjoy the full service and feel cheated when I don't get it. Matter of opinion of course.
The arrivals lounge was good as always. Nice fresh breakfast. Unfortunately both when departing and arriving, the Elemis facility had no available appointments for treatments within 4 hours of me asking. Really not very good, that. I don't fancy staying in the arrivals lounge for 4 hours for a 10 minute facial or arriving 4 hours early at departures for the same. That needs fixed.
Nov 13, 2014, 1:02 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 870
Nov 14, 2014, 6:51 am
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 870
Nov 14, 2014, 9:06 am
#12
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Aberdeen
Programs: BA Gold, Hilton Diamond, Accor Gold
Posts: 751
Great report, thanks for sharing.
I'm looking at a DUB/LAX trip at the moment and am in two minds whether to go for Club in the A380 or AA's Business Class in their new 777's. Really tempted to try the AA new seat to be honest - a bit bored with Club.
I'm looking at a DUB/LAX trip at the moment and am in two minds whether to go for Club in the A380 or AA's Business Class in their new 777's. Really tempted to try the AA new seat to be honest - a bit bored with Club.
Nov 14, 2014, 10:57 am
#14
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 870
I do agree though on the wanting to try American J on the 773. Looks great.
Nov 14, 2014, 10:59 am
#15
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 870
The afternoon tea on BA COULD be a great second service if they just put a little more effort into it.