Virgin Atlantic Y & J- LHR-MIA-LHR, Miami, Orlando & 2015 Chevy Tahoe
Aug 10, 2015, 4:27 am
#46
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
Should have blurred that out. Careless mistake 
. Anyhow wasn't my trip report to India a giveaway? 
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...l#post23438444
. Anyhow wasn't my trip report to India a giveaway? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...l#post23438444
Aug 10, 2015, 5:21 am
#47
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
Club America Lounge MIA
Three signs that your airport lounge isn't going to be that good:
1) It is a hut by the side of the airport
2) Everything is pinned to the tables and floor for fear of theft
3) They sell basic food outside the lounge that would normally be given.
This lounge met two out of three on my criteria.
I Walked into the lounge at 19:25 exactly 1hr and 35 minutes before we had to leave for our gate.
It starts of looking basic:
Then it gets better:
Even better:
Then you get hit with this:
The first thing that greats you when you enter is the fact that they are selling a small bag of Lays Crisps for $4... a bottle of water for $2.50 and a basic cheese sandwich for $3.50.
My mother looked at me expecting something like the Clubhouse at LHR or something as simple as the Galleries Lounge. The look of hope in her eyes was evident.
*As we enter the lounge the hope is picked up and slammed on the floor and it withdraws without a struggle like an opponent of Ronda Roussey *
The lounge was pretty basic. It did the job I suppose.
There were five airlines using the lounge today and when we arrived there wasn't a single spare seat. People had begun using the conference room as a seating area.
Hand luggage...
It emptied out at exactly 20:30 when all the Brazil flights departed along with the flights back to Spain and mainland Europe. This lounge was also the BA lounge.
The lavatory was nothing like the No1 lounge that we experienced at LHR:
I got bored at this point and decided to see if there was any food outlets downstairs. There were three. Pizza Hut Express with an hour wait time (Hardly express then!), a bar (which only served food if you were over 21) and a sandwich place which had been emptied out entirely throughout the day.
So basically I was really relying on getting an acceptable meal on the plane.
We decided at 20:50 that there was no point hanging around and to head towards the gate.
After 15 minutes of standing in lines we were finally on board our B747-400 for the night.
As I saw the HSBC sign I smirked thinking about the poor trader who was found guilty as part of the Libor Scandal earlier that day.
And soon I was sat at my seat:
With an orange juice:
Apologies for this segment being so weak. It was mainly because of how terrible the lounge was that I couldn't find something up to write about. Hopefully the flight home is a better experience.
Aug 10, 2015, 5:53 am
#48
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: SIN / MIA
Programs: VA Platinum, AZ Platinum, Shangri-La Jade, HHonors Gold
Posts: 37
No, you don't. It's not a carpool lane btw. It used to be an HOV lane (which is a sort of carpool lane) but it got converted to an Express lane, aka the E-95 or whatever they call it. You basically pay extra to use the lanes. Judging by your route you should've been able to take the express lanes from the Golden Glades interchange which is were you went from the Turnpike into 95 South but you probably missed it. Alternatively you can enter it via a tall bridge but that's if you are on 95 South prior to the Golden Glades.
Great TR! Makes me miss FL a lot!
Btw, what is a LO 787 doing in MIA!?
Great TR! Makes me miss FL a lot!
Btw, what is a LO 787 doing in MIA!?
Last edited by Singapore_Airlines; Aug 10, 2015 at 5:58 am
Aug 10, 2015, 6:44 am
#49
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
No, you don't. It's not a carpool lane btw. It used to be an HOV lane (which is a sort of carpool lane) but it got converted to an Express lane, aka the E-95 or whatever they call it. You basically pay extra to use the lanes. Judging by your route you should've been able to take the express lanes from the Golden Glades interchange which is were you went from the Turnpike into 95 South but you probably missed it. Alternatively you can enter it via a tall bridge but that's if you are on 95 South prior to the Golden Glades.
Great TR! Makes me miss FL a lot!
Btw, what is a LO 787 doing in MIA!?
Great TR! Makes me miss FL a lot!
Btw, what is a LO 787 doing in MIA!?
I could have sworn the sign said 'carpool lane.' Anyhow what you said makes more sense. But a cop pulled up in the express lane and the normal lane was running quicker so I was rather chuffed. I just followed what Onstar told me to do, with minimal questions asked. I was last in Florida in 2011 and it has changed so much! Some areas for the better but some for the worse.
Thank you for reading
Kind Regards LL
Aug 10, 2015, 8:56 pm
#51
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: SIN / MIA
Programs: VA Platinum, AZ Platinum, Shangri-La Jade, HHonors Gold
Posts: 37
I'll start with the LO 787 question. Basically they leased the plane to Air Europa for the summer for the Madrid to Miami route. That is it
I could have sworn the sign said 'carpool lane.' Anyhow what you said makes more sense. But a cop pulled up in the express lane and the normal lane was running quicker so I was rather chuffed. I just followed what Onstar told me to do, with minimal questions asked. I was last in Florida in 2011 and it has changed so much! Some areas for the better but some for the worse.
Thank you for reading
Kind Regards LL
Look closer next time, in SoFla we do not have carpool lanes, but we do have HOV and HOV2+ lanes.
Indeed Florida has changed a lot. Miami itself has a changed a lot (for the better!).
Aug 11, 2015, 8:12 am
#52
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
VS006 MIA-LHR Seat 21A Lower Deck
Sch. Departure:21:50
Actual Departure:22:25
Flight time:08:25
Aircraft type: B747-400
Aircraft Reg:G-VROC
Sch Arrival:11:40
Actual Arrival:11:20
Load: 98%- 370/387 Pax, 15 Cabin Crew, 2 Air Crew
Our aircraft for the return journey was G-VROC, the same aircraft that took us out to Miami 17 days ago.
Our seat for the flight home was Seat 21D on the lower deck. The purpose for choosing this seat was so that I could experience the full sound of the 747 one more time before VS retires these from their LHR fleet (I have no plans to fly out of LGW anytime soon :roll eyes: )
I got my laptop, my gopro and my headphones out of my rucksack and sat down for take-off.
My orange juice was served and underneath the orange juice you can see a bottle of water which was placed on my seat:
I am one of those people that like to read where things came from. For example this water bottle came to us from Tennessee (the birthplace of Miley Cyrus or as my generation call her: Hannah Montana
)
A inactive PTV screen:
This menu card along with this amenity kit was left on my seat
Hello us:
Whilst the rest of the passengers in Y+ and Y took their seat, we were given newspapers:
Amenity Kit:
Nothing of any brand significance other than the Mentos and the Colgate:
Pushback as previously mentioned was at 22:25
Ground clearing the aircraft:
Love this shot!:
Back from the gate:
Arriving on the active:
The Miami skyline as we sat there waiting for the throttle to be applied:
As our pilots applied throttle to 75% and then up to 100% G-VROC sailed East out of Miami
It looks so peaceful
It was at this point I fired up VERA:
Recognise this, team?
Raring out towards the seaboard:
And we were back in action:
Making the most of the ottoman:
Seat Controls:
The reading light:
Our stewardess for the evening was a lady called Heather. She distributed our Oshiburis :
At this point I went into the lavatory to change into my sleeper suit for the realisation that Eddie Bauer's chinos weren't designed for sleep and had gotten uncomfortable.
The hand cream and soap in the lavatory:
I went back to my seat to back up my GoPro:
The cabin:
There are 40 Upper Class seats on this aircraft of which 30 are on the lower deck.
Soon after Heather popped by and asked if we wanted anything to drink. I requested the Virgin Margarita:
Excuse the suntan. It was the golf
Served with... Vegetable Crisps?!?! ...!
They didn't taste that bad but I don't want healthy, I'd rather have the real thing!
Having vegetable crisps is like buying a high-spec Porsche Macan instead of the Cayenne. It makes no sense!! (Well it kinda does but i'm enraged so lets let this slide )
The drink was rather nice. It tasted quite sour but was really sugary to the point where I had to drink it in bits because it was too strong.
Still a really good drink though.
Heading Out:
Swivel PTV:
It had been 1hr 10 minutes since I placed my order for dinner and I was starving.
Soon the table was set for dinner:
Still waiting:
As I sat there waiting for dinner I couldn't help but contemplate how hungry I was....
Actual Departure:22:25
Flight time:08:25
Aircraft type: B747-400
Aircraft Reg:G-VROC
Sch Arrival:11:40
Actual Arrival:11:20
Load: 98%- 370/387 Pax, 15 Cabin Crew, 2 Air Crew
Our aircraft for the return journey was G-VROC, the same aircraft that took us out to Miami 17 days ago.
Our seat for the flight home was Seat 21D on the lower deck. The purpose for choosing this seat was so that I could experience the full sound of the 747 one more time before VS retires these from their LHR fleet (I have no plans to fly out of LGW anytime soon :roll eyes: )
I got my laptop, my gopro and my headphones out of my rucksack and sat down for take-off.
My orange juice was served and underneath the orange juice you can see a bottle of water which was placed on my seat:
I am one of those people that like to read where things came from. For example this water bottle came to us from Tennessee (the birthplace of Miley Cyrus or as my generation call her: Hannah Montana
) A inactive PTV screen:
This menu card along with this amenity kit was left on my seat
Hello us:
Whilst the rest of the passengers in Y+ and Y took their seat, we were given newspapers:
Amenity Kit:
Nothing of any brand significance other than the Mentos and the Colgate:
Pushback as previously mentioned was at 22:25
Ground clearing the aircraft:
Love this shot!:
Back from the gate:
Arriving on the active:
The Miami skyline as we sat there waiting for the throttle to be applied:
As our pilots applied throttle to 75% and then up to 100% G-VROC sailed East out of Miami
It looks so peaceful
It was at this point I fired up VERA:
Recognise this, team?
Raring out towards the seaboard:
And we were back in action:
Making the most of the ottoman:
Seat Controls:
The reading light:
Our stewardess for the evening was a lady called Heather. She distributed our Oshiburis :
At this point I went into the lavatory to change into my sleeper suit for the realisation that Eddie Bauer's chinos weren't designed for sleep and had gotten uncomfortable.
The hand cream and soap in the lavatory:
I went back to my seat to back up my GoPro:
The cabin:
There are 40 Upper Class seats on this aircraft of which 30 are on the lower deck.
Soon after Heather popped by and asked if we wanted anything to drink. I requested the Virgin Margarita:
Excuse the suntan. It was the golf
Served with... Vegetable Crisps?!?! ...!
They didn't taste that bad but I don't want healthy, I'd rather have the real thing!
Having vegetable crisps is like buying a high-spec Porsche Macan instead of the Cayenne. It makes no sense!! (Well it kinda does but i'm enraged so lets let this slide
)The drink was rather nice. It tasted quite sour but was really sugary to the point where I had to drink it in bits because it was too strong.
Still a really good drink though.
Heading Out:
Swivel PTV:
It had been 1hr 10 minutes since I placed my order for dinner and I was starving.
Soon the table was set for dinner:
Still waiting:
As I sat there waiting for dinner I couldn't help but contemplate how hungry I was....
Aug 12, 2015, 12:05 pm
#53
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
VS006 MIA-LHR Seat 21A Lower Deck (II)
*It is AS Level results day in the UK tomorrow and i'm slightly preoccupied. Apologies for the late arrival of the second-half*
20 Minutes after Heather arrived once again to lay out some butter and the salt and pepper shakers:
Eventually another 10 minutes later Heather arrived once again with the bread basket, which was actually just bread in a sac:
To be clear I wasn't expecting much as Virgin Atlantic haven't had the best culinary record.
For starters I ordered the Coriander and Ginger Soup:
I found the soup okay but my mother found that it tasted like baby food that she would feed my sister and I when we were kids... lets give it a 7/10.
At this point it was exactly 1hr:55 minutes after gear-up and I just wanted sleep. I with a certain amount of difficult slipped out of the set up and asked Heather if I could do something every so cheeky and have desert and skip the main course.
Heather: Mr Litt I can expedite your meal so that you can get it in the next five minutes.
Louis: Excellent. Thank you very much Heather.
Eventually my main course arrived and surprise surprise it was a curry:
The look on my mothers face was brilliant
There was absolutely no need to have cancelled those Asian Veg meals.
I placed an order after take-off for the Paneer Makni... didn't I have this on the way out?!
Anyhow it tasted pretty nice! I avoided the paneer and ate the 'daal (lentils)' that came with it. Rating 8/10
Soon after desert arrived, 'Apple Tarte Tartin':
It wasn't as described. There was no caramel, the apple was more sour than that Virgin Margharita I had earlier and there was no pastry!
Also the ice-cream was liquid... jeez.
I was tempted to send it back as defective but the liquidated ice-cream was something that I hadn't had in months.
Rating:3/10
Soon after Heather made my bed:
I napped for a couple of hours and then I was abruptly awoken by my mother:
Mother: Louis do you hear that?!
Louis: Hear what?
Mother:Stop talking and listen!
Louis: *Silence*
*Someone in the cabin was snoring so loudly that I thought we were on take-off again
*
For the first time this trip, waking me up was justified. I gave my mother my Bose headphones and popped over to the bar.
There was not a single person there and no food out. Feeling peckish I approached the cabin crew and asked if there was any food. They looked at me like I had decided they would be having a pay-cut for the next year, but they obliged.
Sunrise:
At this point Heather popped by and asked me to close my shades. She did as a consolation offer to bring me a coffee:
Film GoPro Film:
After finishing the coffee, I went to the lavatory again.
Closer look at the Handwash:
See I have one qualm with the toilets in the 747 and the 777's.
Look at the handles on the tap:
There is no way to hold down the tap when you put soap on your hands and so the soap on your hands gets on the tap and then you end up with germs back on your hands. It also isn't brilliant when your average size hands keep touching the inside of the basin.
Back to Cabin darkness:
Heather approached me and asked if I wouldn't mind coming to the galley quickly to confirm my order as I was still awake. I asked for a
Potato Rosti with some Baked Beans, a Croissant and Jam, some pancakes and maple syrup topped off with some orange juice:
The Potato Rosti with Beans:
Croissant and Jam in the background:
The Rosti to Beans ratio wasn't brilliant
At this point Dad had decided to make his own bed:
After that I moved on to my Pancakes and Maple Syrup:
Don't want to go home
Done:
The light makes the hair on my arm seem sparkly:
I hate this GoPro so much!
Landfall:
Heather gave me my breakfast first because I was the only one awake and so with 1hr:45 minutes out, whilst everyone ate breakfast I lounged around:
Ireland:
Back to England:
Getting down to the gritty:
At which point the Captain came on the mic. to inform us that we would be holding for 35 minutes or so and as such we would not be as early as expected ^^
Surrey:
Here we go:
G-VROC touched down on 027L:
I need to do F on that again
The seat after landing:
Within 15 minutes after landing we were on our way:
Bye G-VROC:
We stood at baggage waiting for the 7 suitcases for around another 25 minutes:
One and Two:
And we were back:
Waiting for our ride:
And I made the 20 minute journey home with the golf clubs on my lap
It felt good to be back in the XC90:
I arrived home sad to be back but ready for my next trip to Geneva and anxious to collect my AS Level results.
Stay tuned for my final segment: The LSAT.
20 Minutes after Heather arrived once again to lay out some butter and the salt and pepper shakers:
Eventually another 10 minutes later Heather arrived once again with the bread basket, which was actually just bread in a sac:
To be clear I wasn't expecting much as Virgin Atlantic haven't had the best culinary record.
For starters I ordered the Coriander and Ginger Soup:
I found the soup okay but my mother found that it tasted like baby food that she would feed my sister and I when we were kids... lets give it a 7/10.
At this point it was exactly 1hr:55 minutes after gear-up and I just wanted sleep. I with a certain amount of difficult slipped out of the set up and asked Heather if I could do something every so cheeky and have desert and skip the main course.
Heather: Mr Litt I can expedite your meal so that you can get it in the next five minutes.
Louis: Excellent. Thank you very much Heather.
Eventually my main course arrived and surprise surprise it was a curry:
The look on my mothers face was brilliant
There was absolutely no need to have cancelled those Asian Veg meals.I placed an order after take-off for the Paneer Makni... didn't I have this on the way out?!
Anyhow it tasted pretty nice! I avoided the paneer and ate the 'daal (lentils)' that came with it. Rating 8/10
Soon after desert arrived, 'Apple Tarte Tartin':
It wasn't as described. There was no caramel, the apple was more sour than that Virgin Margharita I had earlier and there was no pastry!
Also the ice-cream was liquid... jeez.
I was tempted to send it back as defective but the liquidated ice-cream was something that I hadn't had in months.
Rating:3/10
Soon after Heather made my bed:
I napped for a couple of hours and then I was abruptly awoken by my mother:
Mother: Louis do you hear that?!
Louis: Hear what?
Mother:Stop talking and listen!
Louis: *Silence*
*Someone in the cabin was snoring so loudly that I thought we were on take-off again
*For the first time this trip, waking me up was justified. I gave my mother my Bose headphones and popped over to the bar.
There was not a single person there and no food out. Feeling peckish I approached the cabin crew and asked if there was any food. They looked at me like I had decided they would be having a pay-cut for the next year, but they obliged.
Sunrise:
At this point Heather popped by and asked me to close my shades. She did as a consolation offer to bring me a coffee:
Film GoPro Film:
After finishing the coffee, I went to the lavatory again.
Closer look at the Handwash:
See I have one qualm with the toilets in the 747 and the 777's.
Look at the handles on the tap:
There is no way to hold down the tap when you put soap on your hands and so the soap on your hands gets on the tap and then you end up with germs back on your hands. It also isn't brilliant when your average size hands keep touching the inside of the basin.
Back to Cabin darkness:
Heather approached me and asked if I wouldn't mind coming to the galley quickly to confirm my order as I was still awake. I asked for a
Potato Rosti with some Baked Beans, a Croissant and Jam, some pancakes and maple syrup topped off with some orange juice:
The Potato Rosti with Beans:
Croissant and Jam in the background:
The Rosti to Beans ratio wasn't brilliant
At this point Dad had decided to make his own bed:
After that I moved on to my Pancakes and Maple Syrup:
Don't want to go home
Done:
The light makes the hair on my arm seem sparkly:
I hate this GoPro so much!
Landfall:
Heather gave me my breakfast first because I was the only one awake and so with 1hr:45 minutes out, whilst everyone ate breakfast I lounged around:
Ireland:
Back to England:
Getting down to the gritty:
At which point the Captain came on the mic. to inform us that we would be holding for 35 minutes or so and as such we would not be as early as expected ^^
Surrey:
Here we go:
G-VROC touched down on 027L:
I need to do F on that again
The seat after landing:
Within 15 minutes after landing we were on our way:
Bye G-VROC:
We stood at baggage waiting for the 7 suitcases for around another 25 minutes:
One and Two:
And we were back:
Waiting for our ride:
And I made the 20 minute journey home with the golf clubs on my lap
It felt good to be back in the XC90:
I arrived home sad to be back but ready for my next trip to Geneva and anxious to collect my AS Level results.
Stay tuned for my final segment: The LSAT.
Aug 15, 2015, 9:10 am
#55
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
Aug 15, 2015, 9:11 am
#56
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
Aug 16, 2015, 4:46 pm
#58
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: T' North West
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 655
My VS Gold status was due to a BA Gold status match last year. Unfortunately I haven't been able to fit any VS flights into my plans and it is going to expire soon without me even trying out the club lounge for the first time
Such a shame. I did travel VS Upper a few years ago in the nose of a 747 and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Aug 18, 2015, 6:31 am
#60
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: Amex Centurion, B.A. Silver, Virgin Atlantic Gold, C.X. Diamond
Posts: 205
The LSAT:
The Long, Short and Tall
Virgin Atlantic Economy 747 Cabin:
Would I fly on it again?: No. I would avoid it primarily because for Entertainment purposes the PTV's are useless and the windows are so scratched that it is impossible to take pictures. There is also no charging sockets but you can live without that. This aircraft as has been mentioned is due to be removed in the next month, so it doesn't matter too much. (Thank you ANSTAR for your correction!)
What route does it fly on out of LHR?: LHR-MIA, LHR-BOS, LHR-JFK, LHR-SFO
If I fly on it where should I sit?: Upper Deck. Better experience in every way. Just avoid the last row in front of the toilet and the exit row (has no PTV).
Stars (out of five): 3/5
Miami Airport:
I didn't like Miami. Security was fine but immigration was a pain. Baggage handling is poor and the lounges and departures area isn't brilliant.
It lacks heavily.
Stars (out of five): 2/5
Alamo Car Rental:
I booked with Alamo because I had absolutely no other option. Avis (our usual) was booked out and it was safe to say that I shan't be doing this again in a hurry. People book them because they are 'cheaper' than the competition. This cheapness is made aware in the way that they maintain their fleet.
Ladies and Gents spend the extra money and it will take you further.
Stars (out of five): 3/5
Virgin Atlantic Upper Class (747 Lower Deck):
Great Experience and having tried their 787 product in U.C, the UC product is much nicer on that aircraft. On the 747 it is functional and does what it says on the tin. It has however lost the image of being a party airline (my opinion) as this is my fourth VS Upper flight this year and the cabin crew and the service as a whole has become a lot more serious. There are a lot less frills and it is just an observation rather than a complaint.
UC is something that you cannot compare to BA First, but BA Club which is more of a fair experience. For what you get on BA Club and what you get on VS, I would choose VS without thinking twice.
The lounge at MIA needs work though. It is a joke.
Stars (Out of five): 4/5
Flying out of LHR, JFK, LAX, HKG and SFO are much nicer nicer ground experiences.
Virgin Atlantic Economy 747 Cabin:
Would I fly on it again?: No. I would avoid it primarily because for Entertainment purposes the PTV's are useless and the windows are so scratched that it is impossible to take pictures. There is also no charging sockets but you can live without that. This aircraft as has been mentioned is due to be removed in the next month, so it doesn't matter too much. (Thank you ANSTAR for your correction!)
What route does it fly on out of LHR?: LHR-MIA, LHR-BOS, LHR-JFK, LHR-SFO
If I fly on it where should I sit?: Upper Deck. Better experience in every way. Just avoid the last row in front of the toilet and the exit row (has no PTV).
Stars (out of five): 3/5
Miami Airport:
I didn't like Miami. Security was fine but immigration was a pain. Baggage handling is poor and the lounges and departures area isn't brilliant.
It lacks heavily.
Stars (out of five): 2/5
Alamo Car Rental:
I booked with Alamo because I had absolutely no other option. Avis (our usual) was booked out and it was safe to say that I shan't be doing this again in a hurry. People book them because they are 'cheaper' than the competition. This cheapness is made aware in the way that they maintain their fleet.
Ladies and Gents spend the extra money and it will take you further.
Stars (out of five): 3/5
Virgin Atlantic Upper Class (747 Lower Deck):
Great Experience and having tried their 787 product in U.C, the UC product is much nicer on that aircraft. On the 747 it is functional and does what it says on the tin. It has however lost the image of being a party airline (my opinion) as this is my fourth VS Upper flight this year and the cabin crew and the service as a whole has become a lot more serious. There are a lot less frills and it is just an observation rather than a complaint.
UC is something that you cannot compare to BA First, but BA Club which is more of a fair experience. For what you get on BA Club and what you get on VS, I would choose VS without thinking twice.
The lounge at MIA needs work though. It is a joke.
Stars (Out of five): 4/5
Flying out of LHR, JFK, LAX, HKG and SFO are much nicer nicer ground experiences.