TR: Norwegian, LGW - BOS, 01 OCT 17, Premium Economy
Dec 20, 2017, 9:31 pm
#1
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Join Date: Apr 2008
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TR: Norwegian, LGW - BOS, 01 OCT 17, Premium Economy
LGW - BOS, DY 7147, 01 OCTOBER 2017, Norwegian
So, a trip to my favourite city in America, Boston (although that crown is about to pass to Chicago, which is fabulous) without a weekend stay… Virgin Atlantic was charging £1500 in Y, £2500 in PE and don’t even ask about Upper Class.
Enter Norwegian, the low-cost airline shaking up long-haul travel. As they price per sector, no weekend stay was not an issue, and their prices were decent. They offer a two-class service - Economy and Premium Economy.
Looking at the options, it all fell into place. A decent departure from Gatwick - 4.15pm. Non-stop flights. Operated by a brand new Dreamliner.
Fastrack security*** Lounge access. All for £799 return. I thought that was good value.
That was the reason I decided to try them, what would the experience be like? To save you reading further, it was OK. If you want to know why I say that, read on…
*** A few days before departure I contacted Norwegian, as their website indicated (and continues to indicate) that fast track was only available at selected Scandinavian airports. They actually confirmed this on Twitter too, so, as there was a party of five, I arranged Fastrack security direct at Gatwick at £5 per person.
So it was slightly annoying when the Norwegian staff happily explained that as we were travelling in Premium Economy we would receive Fastrack security for free.
It was more annoying when they told my pal that his passport might not be valid for the USA, despite him having an ESTA. This was totally inaccurate, but what a cloud to put on someone before a flight. Even as we landed in Boston we had this awful sense that one of us might be sent back home. Not nice at all. Of course, we rationalised. When you apply for an ESTA, the expiry date of the passport is provided - and this was approved. The US Immigration website said that the passport should be valid for six months after your US departure date, but that there were exceptions for most EU countries. So again, this put our minds slightly at rest. The fact that Norwegian issued a boarding pass at all also indicated that the passport was valid. So that was the cloud over our outbound flight to Boston. Like Fastrack security info, the information provided by Norwegian was inaccurate.
Overall, the check-in staff were very pleasant, and being handed lounge passes was nice.
Security was fast enough and before long we were at the Number One Lounge. If you have Priority Pass, you are supposedly permitted to use this lounge. However, in recent years, this has been made very difficult, as the staff keep insisting the lounge is full. Indeed, there was a queue of disgruntled looking people waiting outside. We were given immediate entry with our Norwegian pass and found seats easily as the place was fairly empty. Staff again were nice, took some food and drink orders and it was a nice place to wait for the flight.
Our flight was boarding, so we headed to the gate. I can’t actually remember if Priority Boarding was in place…!
Our Dreamliner.
The plane smelt new. Really new, and indeed it was spotless.
The cabin config in PE is 2-3-2. The flight was fully booked.
Premium Economy Seat
Obligatory legroom shot
Headphones provided free.
Inflight entertainment was poor, with no movies loaded. This was a fault, which could not be rectified so there was about two hours of entertainment available for the flight.
Norwegian were also obsessed with people standing by the loos and galleys, stating that it was Federal Law that passengers must not stand there. Indeed, at one point I lost my phone (don’t ask) and thought it might have been in my dinner tray. As I helped one of the stewards look through them I was asked to go back to my seat “because passengers must not stand in the galley”. Anyway… small fish I guess.
Before long, dinner was served. This was probably the weakest part of the experience.
There just wasn’t enough served. I was with four other people and we all agreed that the portions were tiny.
So, a trip to my favourite city in America, Boston (although that crown is about to pass to Chicago, which is fabulous) without a weekend stay… Virgin Atlantic was charging £1500 in Y, £2500 in PE and don’t even ask about Upper Class.
Enter Norwegian, the low-cost airline shaking up long-haul travel. As they price per sector, no weekend stay was not an issue, and their prices were decent. They offer a two-class service - Economy and Premium Economy.
Looking at the options, it all fell into place. A decent departure from Gatwick - 4.15pm. Non-stop flights. Operated by a brand new Dreamliner.
Fastrack security*** Lounge access. All for £799 return. I thought that was good value.
That was the reason I decided to try them, what would the experience be like? To save you reading further, it was OK. If you want to know why I say that, read on…
*** A few days before departure I contacted Norwegian, as their website indicated (and continues to indicate) that fast track was only available at selected Scandinavian airports. They actually confirmed this on Twitter too, so, as there was a party of five, I arranged Fastrack security direct at Gatwick at £5 per person.
So it was slightly annoying when the Norwegian staff happily explained that as we were travelling in Premium Economy we would receive Fastrack security for free.
It was more annoying when they told my pal that his passport might not be valid for the USA, despite him having an ESTA. This was totally inaccurate, but what a cloud to put on someone before a flight. Even as we landed in Boston we had this awful sense that one of us might be sent back home. Not nice at all. Of course, we rationalised. When you apply for an ESTA, the expiry date of the passport is provided - and this was approved. The US Immigration website said that the passport should be valid for six months after your US departure date, but that there were exceptions for most EU countries. So again, this put our minds slightly at rest. The fact that Norwegian issued a boarding pass at all also indicated that the passport was valid. So that was the cloud over our outbound flight to Boston. Like Fastrack security info, the information provided by Norwegian was inaccurate.
Overall, the check-in staff were very pleasant, and being handed lounge passes was nice.
Security was fast enough and before long we were at the Number One Lounge. If you have Priority Pass, you are supposedly permitted to use this lounge. However, in recent years, this has been made very difficult, as the staff keep insisting the lounge is full. Indeed, there was a queue of disgruntled looking people waiting outside. We were given immediate entry with our Norwegian pass and found seats easily as the place was fairly empty. Staff again were nice, took some food and drink orders and it was a nice place to wait for the flight.
Our flight was boarding, so we headed to the gate. I can’t actually remember if Priority Boarding was in place…!
Our Dreamliner.
The plane smelt new. Really new, and indeed it was spotless.
The cabin config in PE is 2-3-2. The flight was fully booked.
Premium Economy Seat
Obligatory legroom shot
Headphones provided free.
Inflight entertainment was poor, with no movies loaded. This was a fault, which could not be rectified so there was about two hours of entertainment available for the flight.
Norwegian were also obsessed with people standing by the loos and galleys, stating that it was Federal Law that passengers must not stand there. Indeed, at one point I lost my phone (don’t ask) and thought it might have been in my dinner tray. As I helped one of the stewards look through them I was asked to go back to my seat “because passengers must not stand in the galley”. Anyway… small fish I guess.
Before long, dinner was served. This was probably the weakest part of the experience.
There just wasn’t enough served. I was with four other people and we all agreed that the portions were tiny.
Last edited by Sealink; Dec 21, 2017 at 9:48 am
