lostinlondon

Well, here we go. I love living in London, but it isn't without its drawbacks. Last year (first year of uni) I didn't go home for Thanksgiving. Seeing the absence of sun, abundance of work, and missing my family/the holiday, I decided to come home this year, Wednesday-Sunday. My parents agreed (thanks a billion!) to book a very cheap fare <£600 with the outbound in World Traveller and return in World Traveller Plus. I upgrade myself with cash to WTP on the first leg and upgraded the second with Avios. When boarding LHR-IAD I got a beep. Asked "is this the good beep" and got a "yes indeed, sir" and my 22B became 14E. Not a bad price for a return in CW. I apologise for the cruddy/shaky iPhone photos!!

Overall Thoughts

Soft Product: Decent... probably where I was most underwhelmed. I've never found Worldwide crews to be particularly welcoming or genuine and these two were just so. They were friendly and professional, but nothing more. Perhaps it's my age, but I always seem to get more banter and engagement from the Mixed Fleet crews (even back in the days of WT last year). Food-wise was pretty much the same. The LHR-IAD sector was probably worse in terms of food quality, but nothing was offensive (perhaps the fillet was close though). IAD-LHR is an awkward one seeing how short it is, but everything was decently tasty, besides the sunflower seeds (yuck!!). Some elements of the service seemed to be missing on the IAD-LHR sector, but not the end of the world. Breakfast definitely could have been improved. The red wines seemed a bit weak, but the champagne was decent. The amenity kit was fine; decent products, just a cheap-looking actual kit. Blanket and pillow were fine for me but again not exactly stunning by any means. Overall, nothing was bad at all. Everything was solid and decent, just nothing about the soft product was above and beyond by any means. Would prefer a consistent meh versus a totally hit or miss experience though, FWIW.

Hard Product: I know I'm going to get some heated feedback on this, but I quite like the CW seat. It's just plain comfortable. Yes, getting the right seat does make a huge difference. Yes, it is a bit coffin-like. But for my body (quite skinny; 36" chest and 28" waist but with broad shoulders) and my sleeping position (on the side with head elevated) it was fantastic. The divider is a bit awkward for service, but not the end of the world.

Ground Experience: Call me a BA apologist, but I quite like the ground experience. It helped that both airports were quite quiet, but the queues were nonexistent and all of my employee interactions (besides my attempt to get champagne at LHR) were genuinely friendly. The LHR GC, though not perfect and often ridiculed, compares favorably to my experiences at LH/OS/UA/AA business class lounges. BA do not compete with non-European/American carriers on the NA-Europe transatlantic, so I'm not really comparing those two. The lounge at Dulles is fantastic for an outstation, and pre-flight dining was very nice. The Arrivals lounge is again something that sets doing BA on this sector apart and I really enjoyed my time there.

Obviously people can disagree, but I quite enjoyed my experience and would recommend BA to/from Dulles. It gets different when comparing other routes, but this is really all I fly transatlantic nowadays.

Heathrow Express/Check-In

As per usual, I booked a Heathrow Express ticket to get to LHR. Had to be in uni in the morning, so took the tube from Holborn to Paddington via Oxford Circus. Quite an easy journey and the train ride itself was quite pleasant. As you can see, arrival at LHR was absolutely lovely. Walked right up to the check-in desk; same with fast track security.

Just about missed the train for this photo op... whoops.


Much more comfortable than the Piccadilly Line. If you're in West/Northwest London and price isn't a huge factor, I'd highly recommend the HEx.


Empty Club check-in. Quite a change from the normal snaking queue I seem to always find myself in


BA LHR T5 Galleries Lounge South

I'll start this off saying I'm usually a bit of a GC apologist. For a short-haul lounge in Y, it's pretty unbeatable. OneWorld Sapphire travelling in Club World... maybe less so. The drink selection is very good for its class (Grey Goose, Gentleman Jack, etc. and a large variety) and the space is quite nice, besides the hospital-like toilets. That said, the lunch/hot food is just disappointing. It's all quite sloppy and flavourless, and has been the same for months and months on end. Whilst I had a very warm reception upon entering, the same could not be said when I asked for champagne. I got straight up ignored and then an "ask someone else" said to the floor whilst the employee was just about running away from me at top speed... oh well. Haven't been spoken to in such a rude tone for quite some time so was really shocked in the moment. Maybe BA really do need a more "official" system for GC champers? They also had chili rather than cheddar and red onion crisps, which is a bit of a shame.

I'm not going to say troughs of slop, but they are rather trough-like...


Started off pretty empty but a group of maybe a dozen lads on what seemed to be a stag do quickly took over... champers all around! Thought that sort of thing was confined to LGW/STN


The only thing on my plate with any flavour was the beetroot salad. Just say that to yourself. A bit sad, thinking about it. Very tasty salad, though! Just about the only thing they should keep from the lunch spread. Unfortunately neither of the soups looked appetising (tomato and something creole?) so had to stick to the beetroots for my lunch.


Once I was done being ignored and finally got the champers, the obligatory Instagram (I apologise for the filter)


The reds on offer. I admittedly don't know too much about wine, but they've always been drinkable. Sorry I didn't get a shot of the whites, I do tend to avoid white wine in general.


Where the fun really begins (and always seems to end...)


More to come! Thanks in advance for reading/commenting.

Duke787

Nice start looking forward to the rest of this one! I missed Thanksgiving when I was studying abroad in London (before I discovered FT) - it just wasn't the same being in Europe (ended up going to Prague with some friends)

stu1985

Great report so far lostinlondon! Looking forward to reading about your experience in CW!

lostinlondon

Following far too much drink in the lounge, I finally made my way to the B gates. We were showing a 45 minute delay, which was a bit annoying but it didn't make a huge difference. My only worry at this point was whether I'd be in old or new WTP...

The (always) empty corridor to the B and C gates. Maybe took about 5 minutes to walk to B from leaving the lift. Quite relaxing and easy so would recommend if mobility isn't an issue.


At this point I sat for a few minutes before joining the gate lice. Priority boarding was called for F, CW, and Gold/Emerald, so this Sapphire sunk to the side a bit disheartened. Sometimes they do it with Sapphire in the original boarding, sometimes not. Eventually people got pushy behind us so I went forward. It's not like BA really enforce priority boarding anyways... Scanned my BP and I got the beep. Looked at the screen and couldn't deduce anything, but had a good feeling. I asked, "is this the good beep" and got a "yes indeed, sir." Away I went, gone from 22B to 14E. I suppose not the best CW seat but really had no reason to complain and was just so happy to be going home at this point.

BA 293 LHR-IAD CW 14E B772 G-VIIF
Scheduled: 17:00-21:30
Actual: 17:50-21:16

Whilst I'll mainly narrate as I go with photos, I'll give a few first thoughts here. Overall, quite a decent experience. Of course, the price was very good. But, kind of with the GC lounge, had I paid thousands of GBP for the experience, I might have been a bit disappointed. I don't think I was ever addressed by name, my jacket wasn't offered to be hung, but everyone was friendly and professional. Everyone knows the horror stories of the BA CW seat and, as I'm not a huge person, I found it quite comfortable actually (besides awkwardly sneaking out to go to the toilet). In short - miles ahead of WTP, more consistent than airlines like UA/AA/LH/AF, but definitely not as good as the ME3 on a good day.

Was proactively and quite quickly on offered champers. The seat design makes service quite awkward, as one has to pick up and hand just about everything to CC. Not super luxurious, but a product of the design and not a deal breaker.


It had been quite a long day... very serious outside; very happy on the inside. Again, excuse the Instagram.


The Elemis washbags were soon handed out. They were quite okay. Elemis is a decent brand and I've never had a problem with the products. The kit contained socks, an eye mask, a pen, toothbrush/paste, lip balm, moisturizer, wrinkle cream, and perhaps something I'm forgetting. Everything was pretty practical, which was quite a nice change from some other airlines.


The menu was as following; will discuss as I get to each course.








Quickly before departure, hot rags (erm... towels?) were handed out. Not sure how much it'd cost BA to provide a nicer towel than they do in Club Europe on a cheap LGW-AMS flight, but alas.


Very, very ready to head home! I quite like the CW pillow and blanket, neither is too heavy or small. Sitting backwards with absolutely no way to see windows makes taxi/takeoff/landing a bit of a strange sensory experience, but it's impossible to feel the difference in the air.

lostinlondon

And we're off! Show time. Meal orders were taken and even though I was quite far back, I was only asked for one starter/main preference so perhaps they were quite well-stocked. Again, service throughout dinner was professional but not above and beyond in any way - I tend to find WW crews to be like that, but YMMV. My neighbour kept putting the divider back up which did make the service quite awkward, which I cannot fault the crew on. I'll also note at this point that my seatmate had the Kosher meal, which looked a bit dire...

Started with a Kir Royale and the of BA's packaged nuts. The nuts and champers are quite nice but again a. the same as on Club Europe and b. not up to par with other airlines (for the most part). Not a deal breaker and appreciate the nuts as they are (don't enhance them!!), but could see how people could be very unimpressed. I will note dinner service took quite some time, maybe 2.5 or a bit more hours total from takeoff to finish. Wasn't a huge problem but things like the first round of drinks really felt slow.


Another drinks run was made before the starter came. Looks like I perhaps needed to slow down at this point... apologies for the photo.


The starter was served. I ordered the "Barber's cheese mousse with spicy black bean salad and avocado salsa." The mousse was a bit confusing... I ate it all and would say I enjoyed it overall, but there was something strange about the pairings. I also noted that on another poster's mousse there were some crispy pita flakes? I didn't get any, so the texture was a bit meh and BA's unpolished side shone through again. The salad was quite boring but fresh. The cheesy, garlicy bread was delicious and well-heated, and we were proactively offered seconds.

And the closeup...


For my main, I ordered the "Seared fillet of British beef with salt beef buttered cabbage, honey-roasted parsnips, whole-grain mustard, and gherkin jus." Two of the four mains were also on the WTP pre-order menu, and neither of the other two (noodles and salad) seem to be particularly business class-quality. as for the beef itself, it was quite well-done. I didn't ask for it to be taken out and well-done beef seems to be the norm in Britain. It was edible and I could cut it so couldn't complain. All around the main was quite tasty, if not a bit small. It did need a bit more sauce or something, and salt/pepper made a big difference. I switched over to the Spanish red at this point. I wasn't overly impressed, but am not a wine expert. The wine menu seemed a bit weak (was taken aback that there wasn't a French red!) with only two reds and two whites, but not the end of the world.

Okay, maybe I did get a bit of an arm workout in here...


Next was BA's famous course of cheese or pudding. I didn't enquire about having both and figured with the two little chocolates on the tray and the club kitchen, I'd be better off going with the cheese. The cheeses and quince jelly were quite tasty! The packaged crackers were a bit disappointing, but oh well. Would have preferred slightly smaller cheeses with a third option, but if the two are going to remain, the portion is quite nice. I also got a glass of Port at this point. I actually prefer the flavour of a Late Bottle Vintage over a Tawny so no complaints on my end.


Overall thoughts - quite a decent meal. I think the theme of everything that this point is that a little bit of effort could go a long way. Service, food, drinks, amenity kit were all nice, but nothing was standout.

At this point I got a bit of a nap. The bed is quite comfortable for my body, so no complaints at all there. I wish the divider were a bit more opaque, as my neighbour was watching something with many bright flashes. Relaxed well before venturing to the Club Kitchen and to the toilet. Sorry I didn't take any photos, but it seemed to be quite an average selection of sweets, crisps, popcorn, drinks, etc. Thought about pilfering some crunchie bars for my stay in the States, but didn't want to get chastised (à-la reports of tea bag stinginess in the lounge ) The toilets were quite clean both times I went. A bit simple in terms of product and decorations, but they did the job.

Really, really enjoy this popcorn so I was a happy camper. They sell it at Selfridges as well, so quite a decent brand.


I was a bit past the point of sleeping at this point so just laid back and watched some TV/Films. The BA selection is always quite decent (on a refurbed plane) so couldn't complain and didn't get bored. Watching "Very British Problems" is hilarious to me as an American living in Britain. Hilarious and highlights differences I see every day. Soon it was time for the afternoon tea service.

The sandwiches were quite fine (egg and cress, roast beef, and salmon) but goodness that presentation was a bit infuriating. I can certainly open my own packages, but it's sometimes the thought that counts. The mushroom and pesto pastry was served warm and was really quite tasty, but made for a carb-heavy meal. The desserts were okay. I'm not a huge dessert person, but it just seemed like they should have gone simple and had one, larger cake rather than two tiny pieces.



At this point there were about 50 minutes remaining. I tried to get up and go to the toilet but turbulence hit as I was waiting and I was sent back to my seat. I snapped a picture of the cabin and got a Diet Coke delivered, so it was not for nothing.

A view of the cabin. As is known, it's a bit of a dense product. So long as you get one of the aisle seats, or are happy to be in the window, I think it's quite solid. YMMV as I think if I were a bit taller or wider that good sentiment might start to go away...

Said Diet Coke and my ransacked seat shortly before landing.


Very soon after the cabin was prepared for landing. Despite quite a late start, we landed ahead of schedule. Was off the plane quickly and into immigration.

Thanks for the ride!!


Tip for landing at Dulles - when you get on the people mover bus contraption, stay as close to the side you enter from. The vehicle reverses and then goes forward, so that will get you first to immigration. Like at Heathrow, the queues were nonexistent. I walked up to an immigration officer. My bags quickly arrived (even though there was a jam in the carousel) and I was with my family less than 45 minutes after landing. Absolutely fantastic arrival experience.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the flight. There are some things that could warrant (appropriately so) some whinging, but nothing too bad and everything was a solid 6/10 at the very least. So happy to have gotten the op-up from WTP and very much in a good mood to be coming home. Lots to be thankful for, and looking forward to my return on Sunday.

stu1985

Congrats on the upgrade!

The starter and main look horrible though. That cheese mousse looks dry as anything and the steak looks so well done as to be inedible......well, for me.

Well done BA catering!

lostinlondon

Thanks!! I attempted a Thanksgiving last year and you're right - never the same. Hopefully I'll get the chance to come home again next year. I'm sure you know how depressing London gets once the clocks go back...

Thanks for your comments! And yes, was quite a surprise given the seat map for WTP was nearly empty the day before (not that that truly means anything).

The cheese mousse was just confusing, if nothing else. If there were some sort of crunchy item it would have been ten times better. Not bad tasting with the accompaniments. The fillet was beyond where I would ever request it, but was shockingly edible when cut into small pieces. Perhaps it helped that the portion of the beef was so small? Both of these could have been quite easily fixed/improved, which is a bit sad to me.

Tiffywren

Nice TR lostinlondon, and well done on the upgrade

chris1979

nice TR!

always interesting and nice to read someone's new experiences and agree with many of your comments re the towels, agree with Stu re food and I also think the CW blankets are a joke (compared to the AA ones for sure).

not bad to have a flat bed though when you were expected a seat I guess.

hope the remainder of the trip goes well (maybe even with a magic beep on the way back! ^ ).

lostinlondon

Thank you! I don't mind the blankets, as I found the cabin quite warm (although that very well could have been the alcohol's effects).

Haha well I'm confirmed in CW on the way back, so a magic beep would be very, very, very welcome

jmj9905

Thanks for the report. I will be flying the same route, although the earlier flight. I have not flow cw only f so i have hifh hopes.

JMJ9905

lostinlondon

Thanks, hope you enjoyed it! I hope your flight goes well and that your expectations are not too high (sad as that may sound...). Would love to see a TR or some pics to compare the current earlier service to!

lostinlondon

BA IAD Dulles Galleries Lounge and Pre-Flight Dining

Part of why I absolutely love DC...


Quality BA IT!


And after a few short but lovely days at home, it was time to go back. I was to be on the BA 216, the early A380 flight back to Heathrow in Club World. I arrived at the airport quite early thinking security would be a mess, but I was through the whole process in about five minutes... oh well. Proceeded to the BA galleries lounge in the B concourse following a quick stop at Kiehl's. Have been here multiple times before. Being 20 I'm old enough to get let in without question, but drinking has been hit or miss so I didn't even attempt to drink in the lounge this time. Probably needed a few hours off anyways... I've always liked the BA lounge at Dulles. It's beautifully designed, if a bit small. The food offerings in the main bit are a bit lame, but good for an outstation. Have always enjoyed that there is cheese on offer and have never gotten why there isn't at LHR. The Club World pre-flight dining opened at 4 pm and was, I thought, quite nice. I'll let the pictures do most of the talking, but I've always been very happy with the lounge. There are also showers as well as a business centre and bar area, which I did not use - apologies for the lack of pictures! I also still feel a bit awkward photographing everything, so some things are a bit shaky.

Check-in was empty, and service was friendly. BA at IAD always put First priority tags on CW/status bags, which is most definitely not protocol.


On the train to the concourse. The nostalgia-lover in me misses the Dulles 'Moon Buggies' I grew up taking.


Concourse B. Much, much nicer than C/D where United is based.


Entrance to the lounge, which is up one floor.


Long seating area corridor upon entry.


Standard, non pre-flight dining options:








Next is the Club World pre-flight dining buffet. In addition to the buffet, there was a made to order noodle bar with either chicken or shrimp in addition to noodles and vegetables etc.

The mix of salads was quite appealing, although they all seemed a bit dry.


Falafels, turkey with stuffing, and lemon-roasted cod.


Mashed potatoes and mushrooms with onions. Steamed vegetables also made an appearance.


Chocolate-pistachio pudding, banoffee pie, and dill havarti with crackers.


On FT for my first plate... the salads were quite fresh and tasty, but the couscous was a bit dry. The corn/lima bean one with feta (succotash?) was definitely the winner here.


Thanksgiving, Part 2! It was really nice to get another taste of Thanksgiving before flying back to Britain. The Turkey was quite moist and flavourful. The potatoes were very nice as well. The vegetables and mushrooms needed a bit of salt and pepper, but were well-cooked.


Due to the thick windows, pictures are hard to get, but the views from the lounge are quite interesting. Unfortunately many of the most exciting planes at Dulles are on the other side of the concourse, or too far down to be seen.





I'm normally not a huge dessert person, but the banoffee pie was absolutely delicious (if not a bit too sweet). The cheese was a bit boring and would be nice with more accompaniments/variety, but it definitely did its job.



It was finally time to board and I made my way downstairs to the BA gate B42/44. The setup at Dulles is quite well done and there really wasn't any chaos at all in boarding.



Overall, I think the experience at Dulles is very, very good for an outstation. The lounge offerings are very good (better than at LHR in some ways), staff are friendly, and boarding is simple and quick. I'll be posting photos from the flight itself as well as the arrivals lounge, so stay tuned for them. Again, thanks for reading!

TCD

Thanks for posting. Never thought I'd hear an American say something was too sweet! I'm a Brit in NY, and am still recovering from the sweetness of some of the traditional Thanksgiving sides. Our friend's sweet potato casserole was clearly a crumble and only needed some custard to be a perfect pudding.

lostinlondon

BA 216 IAD-LHR CW 53A A380 G-XLEK
Scheduled: 18:25-6:30 +1
Actual: 18:19-6:38 +1


Again, a good but not stellar CW experience. Everything was decent at a bare minimum, but those little things kind of bring the experience down. I find the seat extremely comfortable, but the turbulence was absolutely horrific. Will detail more things as the photos come...

Boarding was speedy and I was first onto the upper deck CW cabin. Cabin crew were friendly and welcoming. I was sat in 53A, which I loved as a seat. No need to step over anyone, three windows, extra cubbies for storage, and wasn't too loud from the galley. Settled down and was offered a drink, but no newspaper.

The long walk to the upper deck...


As I said, I'm a bit timid with picture taking, so some are a bit awkward. The CW cabin - quite smart, but a bit cramped.


My seat, excuse my belongings.


The upper deck A380 storage lockers. A bit of a godsend seeing the small amount of storage otherwise in the seat.


Pre-departure drinks were offered quite early on.


Obligatory (my apologies). Finally free from the archaic drinking laws of my country.


The same amenity kit was handed before take off, then menus, and orders were taken. I suppose I should have said that I preferred the cheese at this point as the pudding came on the initial tray and I was not offered cheese later... oh well.


The champagne/wine menus were the same as the last flight so I won't be posting. The rest of the menu is as follows. The BA216 is a bit of a weird one as it's not a full sleeper service, but it's not the full meal service. I was not a huge fan of the meal. As a whole and will get into details with the photos.









My Kir Royale was quickly delivered after takeoff, no carts for the first drink service ^


Next came the "starter" and the pudding that I didn't want/ask for. "Seasonal mixed greens with red pepper and sunflower seeds" and then "Key Lime pie with mascarpone creme." The salad was not a proper starter... full stop. A bit embarrassing to be honest. I hate sunflower seeds, too, which doesn't help, but goodness... the bread was cheesy and garlicky and just horribly heated. Crunchy on one corner, cold on the other. Pretty sure I've had it in WTP as well. The butter was too cold and it just didn't work on it at all. Really disappointing first course.


For my main, I ordered the "Braised short rib with leek gratin, roasted parsnips, red cabbage, and Madeira jus." I was pleasantly surprised! The short rib was vaguely pink and didn't need a knife to cut! The gratin was a bit dry, but the vegetables and jus were quite enjoyable. Again, small portion, but fine with pre-flight dining. No second pass of breads, which was a bit annoying. Switched to the Spanish red at this point. Was really very cold, which was disappointing, but was kept pretty full.


Pink...ish


I ate the pudding with a glass of port, but like I said, was not presented with the opportunity to order cheese... oh well. The key lime pie was actually quite tasty, not too sweet (really not a dessert person!!). The whole meal was done about 1.15 hours after take off, so really not bad. Went to the toilet and changed shirts and brushed my teeth after the meal.

Very nice, large toilet! Comfortable to change in and didn't have to wait for it either time I went.


Came back and tried to get some shut eye. Was very comfortable in the bed and the temperature was very nice, but the turbulence was horrific. Still managed to get about 3 hours of sleep before waking up and getting a diet coke and crunchie bar - the best way to start the day, right? Club kitchen was the same as last time, sorry I didn't get any photos!!

Breakfast was served 1h15 before landing. Was again not too impressed to be honest.

The fruit was alright, but was offered a muffin from a basically empty bread basket... pretty sure there had been more than two options, but who knows. The greek yoghurt on the menu was nowhere to be found? The smoothie was quite tasty, but again, a bit sweet for my liking.




Was then offered a warm bacon roll. Was tasty (hard not to be), but a bit disappointing that it was the only savoury main available.


Breakfast was fulfilling considering I ate in the arrivals lounge, but not fantastic overall. The flight as a whole was enjoyable, but nothing special. Pretty much same conclusion as the flight to Dulles. The service was fine, too. Friendly, but was not above and beyond by any means. Quite liked the arrivals lounge as I'll discuss in the next post. Thanks again for reading!