JetBlue Mint Across the Pond (and a bit of BA)
May 15, 2022, 5:16 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: BOS
Programs: AA PP, DL PM
Posts: 2,086
JetBlue Mint Across the Pond (and a bit of BA)
In February 2020, I disembarked JL 8 in Boston, not knowing that I would not get on another international flight for another two years. COVID was still mostly contained to mainland China, though I overheard the BA ground staff say something about potentially keeping us on the plane.
I’ve been intrigued by JetBlue Mint for a long time and have read a lot of the bloggers’ reviews of it, but several reasons have prevented me from flying it (such as not being willing to pay for business class fares on transcons and living in Colorado). When I found a great fare to London in February, I deliberated for a few days and then decided that since it had been so long, it was time to go to Europe. The UK and the Netherlands had just dropped most of their public mask requirements, so I put together an itinerary where I would fly with JetBlue to London and then nest a BA roundtrip to Amsterdam within it. Not including positioning flights from Denver to Boston on American and from New York on Delta, my final itinerary looked like this:
B6 2017 (E190) – BOS-JFK, departing 6:45 pm, arriving 8:03 pm
B6 007 (A321LR) – JFK-LHR, departing 10:00 pm, arriving 10:05 am (+1)
BA 2760 (A320) – LHR-AMS, departing 11:45 am, arriving 2:15 pm
BA 435 (787-8) – AMS-LHR, departing 2:50 pm, arriving 3:10 pm
B6 44 (A321LR) – LGW-JFK, departing 12:00 pm, arriving 3:49 pm
The fare worked starting in Boston, so I booked positioning flights on AA through Chicago the day before. I was upgraded in advance on both segments, though I was kind of disappointed with the fruit and yoghurt plate they serve on DEN-ORD (888 mi) and the lack of a meal on ORD-BOS (867 mi).
On the day of my transatlantic flight, I woke up to an email that my flight was delayed an hour. At the airport, the line for the JetBlue customer service desk in Boston was probably 30 people deep, so I decided the best course of action was to wait it out at the gate. Our delay lessened a few times to about 30 minutes, then after it was too late to ask to be rebooked on anything else, jumped up to 1:30. It still looked like I was going to make it, so I got on the plane.
Once we got on the taxiway, the pilot came on to announce that we were held for thunderstorms for 10 minutes. I spent the flight tracking our arrival on FlightAware and the JetBlue app – it still looked like there was a good chance of making it. The flight attendant made an announcement asking people to stay seated to allow the London passengers to get to the front of the plane, and amazingly enough, they did. It took a few more minutes to find a jet bridge driver in JFK. The other London passenger and I sprinted from Gate 3 to Gate 22, where we looked out at our plane pushing back.
The gate agents were not particularly friendly, they just said to go to the “Just Ask” desk in the center of the terminal to be rebooked. It took a while, but the customer service agents rebooked me on the same flight on the next day. I booked a room at a hotel that I like (the Hyatt Centric 39th and 5th), got on the AirTrain to Jamaica, took the LIRR to Penn Station, walked to the hotel, checked in at about 11:30, and passed out.
New York in February wasn’t bad. The hotel gave me a 2pm late checkout but said they couldn’t do any later. When I woke up, I walked up and down Fifth Avenue a bit and stopped somewhere for lunch before going back to the hotel to grab my bag and head to the airport. Since I still had a ton of time, I took the A train to Howard Beach. It’s nice being able to use my phone to pay the subway fare, but I still had to buy a MetroCard to pay the usurious $8 AirTrain fare.
I stopped at T5 to check my carry-on, then went over to the TWA hotel and hung out in the sunken lounge for a bit. The bar service in the lounge starts at 4 pm, but before then you can get ice cream and some other food from the vendors. I got some ice cream, sat for a while, and read a book on my iPad. The other time I had been to the TWA hotel, they had models dressed up as pilots who talk to you, but this time it was quiet and mostly empty. I think I liked the empty ambiance more.
The Sunken Lounge in the TWA Hotel
I still had a ton of time to kill before the 10 pm flight, and JetBlue does not provide a lounge for business class passengers. I decided it was worth clearing security at T4 to try the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse, which is now operated by Plaza Premium and accessible with an Amex Platinum. The PreCheck ID checker said “you’re flying JetBlue?” but didn’t give me any other trouble.
The Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse JFK, now operated by Plaza Premium
The menu QR code says “Scan for Champagne” – don’t mind if I do! And it’s real champagne in a credit-card accessible lounge.
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse JFK Champagne
I then ordered the burrata, butternut squash soup, and the quinoa salad (not pictured). I found the burrata and quinoa salad both quite bland, but the soup was pretty good.
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse JFK Food
The lounge was decently crowded, but you could find a seat. When I went to the bar to get another drink and leave a tip, the bartender asked “Is it because the service is slow? Yeah, the service is a bit slow today.” I told him it wasn’t, and to be honest it didn’t seem slower than at a moderately busy restaurant. The bartender also reminded me that tipping wasn’t expected, though I still left a tip. I’d say Plaza Premium has done a quite good job operating the JFK Clubhouse – it doesn’t feel like certain other credit-card-accessible lounges that have mediocre food and drink offerings.
Soon enough, it was time to go back to T5 and back to present day JetBlue to get on a plane to London. I was the last PreCheck passenger of the night in T5 (lucky me!).
JFK Terminal 5 Check-in Lobby
The gate agent called up everyone to check their UK Passenger Locator Forms (no longer required) and mark their boarding pass. Boarding started on-time with Mint, Mosaic, and American Airlines elites (I thought there were no AA elite benefits on JetBlue’s transatlantic flights, but perhaps the boarding announcement is standard).
JetBlue A321LR "Allow Me To Mintroduce Myself" (N4048J) taking me to London
JetBlue's FIDS for B6 007 to London
When I boarded, there was another passenger in my seat. I told a flight attendant, and she went to talk to him. It turned out he was confused about which seat he was in; when he moved the flight attendant straightened up my seat and gave me a thumbs up. When I got settled in, a flight attendant came around with a tray of water, orange juice, or “Champagne”. I took the sparkling, and noted that even on their printed menu, JetBlue calls their sparkling wine offering “Champagne” (spoiler alert: it is not even from France, much less from the Champagne region).
JetBlue Pre-Departure "Champagne"
I really liked that the seat has an iPad stand and a built-in Qi wireless phone charger – I charged my phone on the seat for much of the flight.
JetBlue Mint Seat Tablet Stand (picture actually from my return flight)
The amenity kit was a weird assortment of personal care products that you might find in a care package for someone at Burning Man, wrapped in a paper package. I took the socks and eye mask.
JetBlue Mint Transatlantic Amenity Kit
JetBlue Mint Transatlantic Amenity Kit Contents
JetBlue Mint Transatlantic Amenity Kit Contents
Once we were in the air, the flight attendant came around to show the features of the suite and take drink orders. With the drink, they brought a “tasting” (their noun) of stuffed grape leaves, almonds, and marinated red peppers, all of which were pretty good. I had the Black Maple Old Fashioned, which was okay but not great.
JetBlue Mint "Tasting"
I wish I had taken a picture of the menu – I intended to download it and save it but I neglected to do so. JetBlue’s meal concept is that they have five dishes on offer and you choose three of them. This sounds like a great idea, until you realize that it’s essentially the same chicken/beef/pasta selection as other airlines with two side dishes (though you can have multiple mains if you’re hungry). I generally don’t eat chicken or steak entrees, so I had the pasta, salad, and burrata. The meal was served with a roll and some olive oil. The entrée dishes were all okay but not great; there was a lot of parmesan cheese between the pasta and the salad. My main takeaway was that JetBlue seems to think that “spicy” is a primary flavor, because the dishes didn’t have much flavor besides being spicy.
JetBlue Mint Eastbound Transatlantic Dinner
The dessert options were a cheese plate and gelato. I had the cheese plate, which was pretty good but I found the accompanying crackers and nuts a bit odd.
JetBlue Mint Dessert
With dinner over, it was time to close the door to my suite and get some sleep. I slept quite well (for an airplane) for about 3 hours.
JetBlue Mint Suite Door
Before landing, it was time for breakfast. It was a similar “choose 2 of 3” deal to dinner – I chose the Quiche and fruit (I think…). I’d rate this breakfast quite well, for an airline breakfast.
JetBlue Mint Eastbound Transatlantic Pre-Arrival Breakfast
I did find it interesting that the IFE screen only showed flight connections for JetBlue and AA flights back to the US, as well as BA flights. BA is not a JetBlue partner (yet), though it seems that they can now interline to JetBlue.
JetBlue Flight Connections in London
The flight attendants came around just before landing to say thank you and give out a thank-you note and a lapel pin – “Lie Flat or Bust” is a bit over the top I think.
I’ve been intrigued by JetBlue Mint for a long time and have read a lot of the bloggers’ reviews of it, but several reasons have prevented me from flying it (such as not being willing to pay for business class fares on transcons and living in Colorado). When I found a great fare to London in February, I deliberated for a few days and then decided that since it had been so long, it was time to go to Europe. The UK and the Netherlands had just dropped most of their public mask requirements, so I put together an itinerary where I would fly with JetBlue to London and then nest a BA roundtrip to Amsterdam within it. Not including positioning flights from Denver to Boston on American and from New York on Delta, my final itinerary looked like this:
B6 2017 (E190) – BOS-JFK, departing 6:45 pm, arriving 8:03 pm
B6 007 (A321LR) – JFK-LHR, departing 10:00 pm, arriving 10:05 am (+1)
BA 2760 (A320) – LHR-AMS, departing 11:45 am, arriving 2:15 pm
BA 435 (787-8) – AMS-LHR, departing 2:50 pm, arriving 3:10 pm
B6 44 (A321LR) – LGW-JFK, departing 12:00 pm, arriving 3:49 pm
The fare worked starting in Boston, so I booked positioning flights on AA through Chicago the day before. I was upgraded in advance on both segments, though I was kind of disappointed with the fruit and yoghurt plate they serve on DEN-ORD (888 mi) and the lack of a meal on ORD-BOS (867 mi).
On the day of my transatlantic flight, I woke up to an email that my flight was delayed an hour. At the airport, the line for the JetBlue customer service desk in Boston was probably 30 people deep, so I decided the best course of action was to wait it out at the gate. Our delay lessened a few times to about 30 minutes, then after it was too late to ask to be rebooked on anything else, jumped up to 1:30. It still looked like I was going to make it, so I got on the plane.
Once we got on the taxiway, the pilot came on to announce that we were held for thunderstorms for 10 minutes. I spent the flight tracking our arrival on FlightAware and the JetBlue app – it still looked like there was a good chance of making it. The flight attendant made an announcement asking people to stay seated to allow the London passengers to get to the front of the plane, and amazingly enough, they did. It took a few more minutes to find a jet bridge driver in JFK. The other London passenger and I sprinted from Gate 3 to Gate 22, where we looked out at our plane pushing back.
The gate agents were not particularly friendly, they just said to go to the “Just Ask” desk in the center of the terminal to be rebooked. It took a while, but the customer service agents rebooked me on the same flight on the next day. I booked a room at a hotel that I like (the Hyatt Centric 39th and 5th), got on the AirTrain to Jamaica, took the LIRR to Penn Station, walked to the hotel, checked in at about 11:30, and passed out.
New York in February wasn’t bad. The hotel gave me a 2pm late checkout but said they couldn’t do any later. When I woke up, I walked up and down Fifth Avenue a bit and stopped somewhere for lunch before going back to the hotel to grab my bag and head to the airport. Since I still had a ton of time, I took the A train to Howard Beach. It’s nice being able to use my phone to pay the subway fare, but I still had to buy a MetroCard to pay the usurious $8 AirTrain fare.
I stopped at T5 to check my carry-on, then went over to the TWA hotel and hung out in the sunken lounge for a bit. The bar service in the lounge starts at 4 pm, but before then you can get ice cream and some other food from the vendors. I got some ice cream, sat for a while, and read a book on my iPad. The other time I had been to the TWA hotel, they had models dressed up as pilots who talk to you, but this time it was quiet and mostly empty. I think I liked the empty ambiance more.
The Sunken Lounge in the TWA Hotel
I still had a ton of time to kill before the 10 pm flight, and JetBlue does not provide a lounge for business class passengers. I decided it was worth clearing security at T4 to try the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse, which is now operated by Plaza Premium and accessible with an Amex Platinum. The PreCheck ID checker said “you’re flying JetBlue?” but didn’t give me any other trouble.
The Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse JFK, now operated by Plaza Premium
The menu QR code says “Scan for Champagne” – don’t mind if I do! And it’s real champagne in a credit-card accessible lounge.
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse JFK Champagne
I then ordered the burrata, butternut squash soup, and the quinoa salad (not pictured). I found the burrata and quinoa salad both quite bland, but the soup was pretty good.
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse JFK Food
The lounge was decently crowded, but you could find a seat. When I went to the bar to get another drink and leave a tip, the bartender asked “Is it because the service is slow? Yeah, the service is a bit slow today.” I told him it wasn’t, and to be honest it didn’t seem slower than at a moderately busy restaurant. The bartender also reminded me that tipping wasn’t expected, though I still left a tip. I’d say Plaza Premium has done a quite good job operating the JFK Clubhouse – it doesn’t feel like certain other credit-card-accessible lounges that have mediocre food and drink offerings.
Soon enough, it was time to go back to T5 and back to present day JetBlue to get on a plane to London. I was the last PreCheck passenger of the night in T5 (lucky me!).
JFK Terminal 5 Check-in Lobby
The gate agent called up everyone to check their UK Passenger Locator Forms (no longer required) and mark their boarding pass. Boarding started on-time with Mint, Mosaic, and American Airlines elites (I thought there were no AA elite benefits on JetBlue’s transatlantic flights, but perhaps the boarding announcement is standard).
JetBlue A321LR "Allow Me To Mintroduce Myself" (N4048J) taking me to London
JetBlue's FIDS for B6 007 to London
When I boarded, there was another passenger in my seat. I told a flight attendant, and she went to talk to him. It turned out he was confused about which seat he was in; when he moved the flight attendant straightened up my seat and gave me a thumbs up. When I got settled in, a flight attendant came around with a tray of water, orange juice, or “Champagne”. I took the sparkling, and noted that even on their printed menu, JetBlue calls their sparkling wine offering “Champagne” (spoiler alert: it is not even from France, much less from the Champagne region).
JetBlue Pre-Departure "Champagne"
I really liked that the seat has an iPad stand and a built-in Qi wireless phone charger – I charged my phone on the seat for much of the flight.
JetBlue Mint Seat Tablet Stand (picture actually from my return flight)
The amenity kit was a weird assortment of personal care products that you might find in a care package for someone at Burning Man, wrapped in a paper package. I took the socks and eye mask.
JetBlue Mint Transatlantic Amenity Kit
JetBlue Mint Transatlantic Amenity Kit Contents
JetBlue Mint Transatlantic Amenity Kit Contents
Once we were in the air, the flight attendant came around to show the features of the suite and take drink orders. With the drink, they brought a “tasting” (their noun) of stuffed grape leaves, almonds, and marinated red peppers, all of which were pretty good. I had the Black Maple Old Fashioned, which was okay but not great.
JetBlue Mint "Tasting"
I wish I had taken a picture of the menu – I intended to download it and save it but I neglected to do so. JetBlue’s meal concept is that they have five dishes on offer and you choose three of them. This sounds like a great idea, until you realize that it’s essentially the same chicken/beef/pasta selection as other airlines with two side dishes (though you can have multiple mains if you’re hungry). I generally don’t eat chicken or steak entrees, so I had the pasta, salad, and burrata. The meal was served with a roll and some olive oil. The entrée dishes were all okay but not great; there was a lot of parmesan cheese between the pasta and the salad. My main takeaway was that JetBlue seems to think that “spicy” is a primary flavor, because the dishes didn’t have much flavor besides being spicy.
JetBlue Mint Eastbound Transatlantic Dinner
The dessert options were a cheese plate and gelato. I had the cheese plate, which was pretty good but I found the accompanying crackers and nuts a bit odd.
JetBlue Mint Dessert
With dinner over, it was time to close the door to my suite and get some sleep. I slept quite well (for an airplane) for about 3 hours.
JetBlue Mint Suite Door
Before landing, it was time for breakfast. It was a similar “choose 2 of 3” deal to dinner – I chose the Quiche and fruit (I think…). I’d rate this breakfast quite well, for an airline breakfast.
JetBlue Mint Eastbound Transatlantic Pre-Arrival Breakfast
I did find it interesting that the IFE screen only showed flight connections for JetBlue and AA flights back to the US, as well as BA flights. BA is not a JetBlue partner (yet), though it seems that they can now interline to JetBlue.
JetBlue Flight Connections in London
The flight attendants came around just before landing to say thank you and give out a thank-you note and a lapel pin – “Lie Flat or Bust” is a bit over the top I think.
May 15, 2022, 5:28 pm
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: BOS
Programs: AA PP, DL PM
Posts: 2,086
It was a bit of a long walk to immigration at LHR T2. Luckily it was quite quiet at 10 am. The name page of my passport is creased, so it never works with the UK automatic gates, but I still got through in about 5 minutes. I was going to take the Piccadilly line to my hotel, but the tube drivers were on strike that day, so I ended up taking the TFL Rail and walking about 2.5 miles. Cue the song London Underground by Amateur Transplants (warning: very NSFW language).
I’ve been to London quite a few times, but there is one activity in London that I will write about – I saw a taping of The Last Leg, a UK television program(me), and it was amazing. The tickets are free, but you have to get to Elstree (I took Thameslink) and if you are American, the warmup comic might make fun of you. “Okay, there are three hosts. Altogether, how many legs do you think they have?”
The Last Leg TV Studio
The day after the taping, I headed over to Heathrow to fly BA to Amsterdam. The Piccadilly line was functioning… but BA wasn’t. The line at the First Wing was about 40 people deep.
My Position at the end of the BA First Wing Line
I’d find out later that apparently BA was having a computer issue and could not check any bags. There was a BA staffer yelling every 3 minutes for any American Airlines passengers to come to the front, even though the next AA flight from T5 was scheduled to depart late in the afternoon. After 15 minutes and once I was close to the front of the line, she came out again and yelled for anyone traveling with hand luggage only… at which point I raised my hand and she directed me straight through to First wing security.
I had to take my laptop out of my bag, but I was through security in about 2 minutes. It seemed to me that BA did a good job building a dedicated security channel that empties into the First lounge; if only they could build a computer system that could check baggage. Once I walked down the corridor and into the lounge, it became obvious that BA had not actually thought this through: there were no seats in the First lounge.
The BA First lounge at LHR is quite large. It’s also not the lounge that AA/BA use for passengers traveling in First Class – those passengers get sent to the Concorde Room. The denizens of this lounge consist entirely of BA Gold frequent flyers, oneworld Emeralds (me!), and a few passengers traveling in non-BA/AA oneworld First services. The sad part is that too crowded to actually feel relaxing or to take any good pictures.
BA First Lounge LHR T5 Horse Lamp
After searching for a seat for a while, I managed to grab a table on the terrace when someone else left. I ordered (via QR code) a full English breakfast, which came after about 10 minutes. My verdict is that it’s pretty good for airport lounge food, though as an American I wasn’t too keen on the beans or black pudding. There was also self-pour alcohol (I had a glass of scotch, I can’t remember the provenance) and a buffet with croissants and such. I overheard folks next to me say there was no running water in the lounge, but I'm not sure of the veracity of that.
BA First Lounge LHR T5 Full English Breakfast
After I left the lounge, the rest of T5 was also uncomfortably crowded. I had uploaded my CDC vaccine certificate to BA about 24 hours before my flight (since at the time the Netherlands did have a vaccination requirement), but they did not manage to check it and the website said go to the airport. Despite this, I was able to just show my passport and board.
My A320 flight to Amsterdam in BA economy was pretty unremarkable; the most notable thing was that it was too short to have any buy-on-board service. Each passenger was given a small bottle of water and a granola bar. Had I not had oneworld elite status, I probably would have flown KLM on this route.
Amsterdam is low key and lovely, especially when compared to London. I’ve connected through Schiphol a lot, but it’s going to be much more difficult now knowing about the wonderful city that is a 10 minute train ride outside the airport.
On the return, I once again dutifully filled out my UK Passenger Locator Form and uploaded it to BA. Once again, they didn’t get around to reviewing it and told me to check in at the airport. Oh well, at least there wasn’t much of a line at check-in. The check-in agent told me that the BA lounge is still closed and directed me to the non-Schengen Aspire lounge. I have been there many times, but usually for breakfast after an early arrival in Amsterdam on Delta. It’s nothing to write home about, but it does have quite good views and decent food.
There was a short window when BA had opened up the premium economy seats on its Dreamliner to economy passengers. I had chosen one, but a few days before the flight, been kicked out of it back to regular economy. Oh well, at least the flight was quite empty.
My BA Dreamliner verdict – the seats are tight. We got the same mini bottle of water and strawberry granola bar as on the way out, but then we arrived at a remote stand at Heathrow. It was quite a long wait for the bus, and the pilots told us that only one bus had been assigned to us. The flight attendants asked anyone with connections to come to the front so that they could be on the first trip, which made the wait for the second more excruciating. After a crowded experience at T5 immigration (including my passport not scanning in the E-gates), I was finally back in London for a day before my JetBlue flight home.
I took the train from London to Gatwick Airport – although the Gatwick express was not running, the normal Southern service worked quite well. I was able to tap-in and tap-out with my contactless credit card. JetBlue departs from the North Terminal. Virgin Atlantic pulled out of Gatwick when COVID hit, so their former clubhouse is being operated by Plaza Premium, and is accessible with an Amex Platinum. I appreciated that they kept the Virgin vibe with a red felt pool table. I initially found a seat in a corner and had a croissant and some fruit from the limited buffet, but I then discovered that there is a full menu that is only available sitting at the dining tables. When some people left, I grabbed a table and ordered Eggs Benedict. Given the limited number of dining tables, it is a bit disappointing you cannot order from anywhere in the lounge.
Plaza Premium Lounge Gatwick
Plaza Premium Lounge Gatwick, the entire buffet is to the left of this picture
Plaza Premium Lounge Gatwick Eggs Benedict
The boarding process at Gatwick was slightly different – they check your negative COVID test at the gate, then scan your boarding pass and let you into a holding pen. When it’s time to board, they call groups but they do not scan boarding passes again. Our A321LR was quite obviously at a widebody gate, it honestly looked quite small.
JetBlue A321LR at London Gatwick
Once on the plane, service was similar to on the way out, but a bit more stretched out. The “tasting” consisted of olives, peppers, artichoke hearts, and almonds. I ordered the spicy margarita after that, and quickly decided it was too spicy. Once again: “spicy” is not a primary flavor.
JetBlue Mint Westbound Transatlantic Tasting
JetBlue Mint Margarita
For my main dish, I had a salad, lasagna, and chicken pasty. The chicken was probably the best dish – the lasagna was once again more spicy than flavorful.
JetBlue Mint Westbound Transatlantic Lunch
Dessert was served from a cart and I had the caramel gelato, which was served as a huge, already partially melted scoop with granola. I’d say the cheese plate was the better dessert option. I miss my AA hot fudge sundae…
JetBlue Mint Gelato
The pre-arrival meal was unremarkable; so unremarkable in fact that I forgot to get a picture of it and don’t remember what it was. One thing I found strange is that this crew did not pass out the same thank-you notes and lapel pins that the outbound crew did.
I used Mobile Passport in JFK – you have to ask a line-minder where to go, but I got sent through the diplomatic line. I was back on US soil in about 5 minutes.
I had booked a Delta flight back to Denver with a 4 hour connection. I cleared security at T4, then I went to the Centurion Lounge. I showed both my inbound JetBlue boarding pass and outbound Delta boarding pass and was let in without a problem. I asked at the front desk about a shower, and the woman checking me in happily obliged. I think it is kind of funny that she gave me a tour of the lounge, explaining the spa, buffet, and bar setup as we passed each item. The shower was quite relaxing. I had a drink at the bar on the lower level and examined some of the airplanes at T4. The lounge seemed to be full of people flying to/from spring break destinations, and emptied out a bit as I sat there.
For completeness, I also went to the Delta Sky Club about 90 minutes before my flight. Gosh, it was crowded, but it also had better dinner offerings than the Centurion Lounge – they had a station with someone serving a salmon/pasta dish. I’d say the food was quite good and the drinks were okay, but it was definitely not a comfortable or relaxing place to wait for a plane.
I got home in Colorado at about midnight, and promptly slept for about the next day.
All-in-all, I'd say Mint is an amazing transatlantic hard product, and the fact JetBlue plans to consistently offer roundtrips at a price point of about $2000 is great. I wasn't a huge fan of the food (characterizing it as "more weird than good"), but it was good enough and airline food is not going to please everyone. I do think they need to figure out the lounge situation, but that could be just because I had a 24-hour misconnect in New York with a large carry-on that limited my ability to do things.
I’ve been to London quite a few times, but there is one activity in London that I will write about – I saw a taping of The Last Leg, a UK television program(me), and it was amazing. The tickets are free, but you have to get to Elstree (I took Thameslink) and if you are American, the warmup comic might make fun of you. “Okay, there are three hosts. Altogether, how many legs do you think they have?”
The Last Leg TV Studio
The day after the taping, I headed over to Heathrow to fly BA to Amsterdam. The Piccadilly line was functioning… but BA wasn’t. The line at the First Wing was about 40 people deep.
My Position at the end of the BA First Wing Line
I’d find out later that apparently BA was having a computer issue and could not check any bags. There was a BA staffer yelling every 3 minutes for any American Airlines passengers to come to the front, even though the next AA flight from T5 was scheduled to depart late in the afternoon. After 15 minutes and once I was close to the front of the line, she came out again and yelled for anyone traveling with hand luggage only… at which point I raised my hand and she directed me straight through to First wing security.
I had to take my laptop out of my bag, but I was through security in about 2 minutes. It seemed to me that BA did a good job building a dedicated security channel that empties into the First lounge; if only they could build a computer system that could check baggage. Once I walked down the corridor and into the lounge, it became obvious that BA had not actually thought this through: there were no seats in the First lounge.
The BA First lounge at LHR is quite large. It’s also not the lounge that AA/BA use for passengers traveling in First Class – those passengers get sent to the Concorde Room. The denizens of this lounge consist entirely of BA Gold frequent flyers, oneworld Emeralds (me!), and a few passengers traveling in non-BA/AA oneworld First services. The sad part is that too crowded to actually feel relaxing or to take any good pictures.
BA First Lounge LHR T5 Horse Lamp
After searching for a seat for a while, I managed to grab a table on the terrace when someone else left. I ordered (via QR code) a full English breakfast, which came after about 10 minutes. My verdict is that it’s pretty good for airport lounge food, though as an American I wasn’t too keen on the beans or black pudding. There was also self-pour alcohol (I had a glass of scotch, I can’t remember the provenance) and a buffet with croissants and such. I overheard folks next to me say there was no running water in the lounge, but I'm not sure of the veracity of that.
BA First Lounge LHR T5 Full English Breakfast
After I left the lounge, the rest of T5 was also uncomfortably crowded. I had uploaded my CDC vaccine certificate to BA about 24 hours before my flight (since at the time the Netherlands did have a vaccination requirement), but they did not manage to check it and the website said go to the airport. Despite this, I was able to just show my passport and board.
My A320 flight to Amsterdam in BA economy was pretty unremarkable; the most notable thing was that it was too short to have any buy-on-board service. Each passenger was given a small bottle of water and a granola bar. Had I not had oneworld elite status, I probably would have flown KLM on this route.
Amsterdam is low key and lovely, especially when compared to London. I’ve connected through Schiphol a lot, but it’s going to be much more difficult now knowing about the wonderful city that is a 10 minute train ride outside the airport.
On the return, I once again dutifully filled out my UK Passenger Locator Form and uploaded it to BA. Once again, they didn’t get around to reviewing it and told me to check in at the airport. Oh well, at least there wasn’t much of a line at check-in. The check-in agent told me that the BA lounge is still closed and directed me to the non-Schengen Aspire lounge. I have been there many times, but usually for breakfast after an early arrival in Amsterdam on Delta. It’s nothing to write home about, but it does have quite good views and decent food.
There was a short window when BA had opened up the premium economy seats on its Dreamliner to economy passengers. I had chosen one, but a few days before the flight, been kicked out of it back to regular economy. Oh well, at least the flight was quite empty.
My BA Dreamliner verdict – the seats are tight. We got the same mini bottle of water and strawberry granola bar as on the way out, but then we arrived at a remote stand at Heathrow. It was quite a long wait for the bus, and the pilots told us that only one bus had been assigned to us. The flight attendants asked anyone with connections to come to the front so that they could be on the first trip, which made the wait for the second more excruciating. After a crowded experience at T5 immigration (including my passport not scanning in the E-gates), I was finally back in London for a day before my JetBlue flight home.
I took the train from London to Gatwick Airport – although the Gatwick express was not running, the normal Southern service worked quite well. I was able to tap-in and tap-out with my contactless credit card. JetBlue departs from the North Terminal. Virgin Atlantic pulled out of Gatwick when COVID hit, so their former clubhouse is being operated by Plaza Premium, and is accessible with an Amex Platinum. I appreciated that they kept the Virgin vibe with a red felt pool table. I initially found a seat in a corner and had a croissant and some fruit from the limited buffet, but I then discovered that there is a full menu that is only available sitting at the dining tables. When some people left, I grabbed a table and ordered Eggs Benedict. Given the limited number of dining tables, it is a bit disappointing you cannot order from anywhere in the lounge.
Plaza Premium Lounge Gatwick
Plaza Premium Lounge Gatwick, the entire buffet is to the left of this picture
Plaza Premium Lounge Gatwick Eggs Benedict
The boarding process at Gatwick was slightly different – they check your negative COVID test at the gate, then scan your boarding pass and let you into a holding pen. When it’s time to board, they call groups but they do not scan boarding passes again. Our A321LR was quite obviously at a widebody gate, it honestly looked quite small.
JetBlue A321LR at London Gatwick
Once on the plane, service was similar to on the way out, but a bit more stretched out. The “tasting” consisted of olives, peppers, artichoke hearts, and almonds. I ordered the spicy margarita after that, and quickly decided it was too spicy. Once again: “spicy” is not a primary flavor.
JetBlue Mint Westbound Transatlantic Tasting
JetBlue Mint Margarita
For my main dish, I had a salad, lasagna, and chicken pasty. The chicken was probably the best dish – the lasagna was once again more spicy than flavorful.
JetBlue Mint Westbound Transatlantic Lunch
Dessert was served from a cart and I had the caramel gelato, which was served as a huge, already partially melted scoop with granola. I’d say the cheese plate was the better dessert option. I miss my AA hot fudge sundae…
JetBlue Mint Gelato
The pre-arrival meal was unremarkable; so unremarkable in fact that I forgot to get a picture of it and don’t remember what it was. One thing I found strange is that this crew did not pass out the same thank-you notes and lapel pins that the outbound crew did.
I used Mobile Passport in JFK – you have to ask a line-minder where to go, but I got sent through the diplomatic line. I was back on US soil in about 5 minutes.
I had booked a Delta flight back to Denver with a 4 hour connection. I cleared security at T4, then I went to the Centurion Lounge. I showed both my inbound JetBlue boarding pass and outbound Delta boarding pass and was let in without a problem. I asked at the front desk about a shower, and the woman checking me in happily obliged. I think it is kind of funny that she gave me a tour of the lounge, explaining the spa, buffet, and bar setup as we passed each item. The shower was quite relaxing. I had a drink at the bar on the lower level and examined some of the airplanes at T4. The lounge seemed to be full of people flying to/from spring break destinations, and emptied out a bit as I sat there.
For completeness, I also went to the Delta Sky Club about 90 minutes before my flight. Gosh, it was crowded, but it also had better dinner offerings than the Centurion Lounge – they had a station with someone serving a salmon/pasta dish. I’d say the food was quite good and the drinks were okay, but it was definitely not a comfortable or relaxing place to wait for a plane.
I got home in Colorado at about midnight, and promptly slept for about the next day.
All-in-all, I'd say Mint is an amazing transatlantic hard product, and the fact JetBlue plans to consistently offer roundtrips at a price point of about $2000 is great. I wasn't a huge fan of the food (characterizing it as "more weird than good"), but it was good enough and airline food is not going to please everyone. I do think they need to figure out the lounge situation, but that could be just because I had a 24-hour misconnect in New York with a large carry-on that limited my ability to do things.
May 16, 2022, 5:33 pm
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: BOS
Programs: AA PP, DL PM
Posts: 2,086
I'd say one of the things I like about AA's business class service is the white tablecloths and the food served in separate courses. I've had pretty good luck with AA's food too, but again that may be because I generally don't go for chicken or steak. I've become pretty easy to please in terms of food though.
I'm not sure if it was overhyped or what. It is definitely different, so if you're flying transatlantic J pretty often, you probably enjoy it just for the novelty.
May 16, 2022, 8:17 pm
#6
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: SJC
Programs: BAEC Bronze, AS MVP Gold 75K, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 488
I went to watch the Last Leg being recorded about 6 years ago when we lived in the UK. Back then it was filmed in Central London at the ITV studios. Was a great evening that I had forgotten about until I read your report. Thanks for jogging my memory.
Thanks, also, for the TR on B6 Mint. I am tempted to try it but prices from the West Coast via JFK or BOS to London have been silly money every time I have looked.
Thanks, also, for the TR on B6 Mint. I am tempted to try it but prices from the West Coast via JFK or BOS to London have been silly money every time I have looked.
May 16, 2022, 11:02 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: BOS
Programs: AA PP, DL PM
Posts: 2,086
I went to watch the Last Leg being recorded about 6 years ago when we lived in the UK. Back then it was filmed in Central London at the ITV studios. Was a great evening that I had forgotten about until I read your report. Thanks for jogging my memory.
Thanks, also, for the TR on B6 Mint. I am tempted to try it but prices from the West Coast via JFK or BOS to London have been silly money every time I have looked.
Thanks, also, for the TR on B6 Mint. I am tempted to try it but prices from the West Coast via JFK or BOS to London have been silly money every time I have looked.
JetBlue doesn't really seem to file through fares from non-gateway cities, so a west coast to Europe route prices as a transcon plus a transatlantic flight. It's gonna be an arm and a leg.
I would like to see how JetBlue's Economy service to London is -- I recently flew AA from PHL-ZRH and the Main Cabin food was terrible.
May 16, 2022, 11:24 pm
#8
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,558
"Since I still had a ton of time, I took the A train to Howard Beach. It’s nice being able to use my phone to pay the subway fare, but I still had to buy a MetroCard to pay the usurious $8 AirTrain fare."
Wonderful trip report! Just want to note that, if one has lots of time (and not too much luggage), it is possible to get to JFK from Midtown Manhattan for just $2.75: Queens-bound E or F train to Kew Gardens/Union Turnpike, and then Q10 or Q10 Limited bus to the Lefferts Boulevard AirTrain station, from which you can ride the AirTrain to your JFK terminal for free.
Wonderful trip report! Just want to note that, if one has lots of time (and not too much luggage), it is possible to get to JFK from Midtown Manhattan for just $2.75: Queens-bound E or F train to Kew Gardens/Union Turnpike, and then Q10 or Q10 Limited bus to the Lefferts Boulevard AirTrain station, from which you can ride the AirTrain to your JFK terminal for free.
May 16, 2022, 11:25 pm
#9
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2014
Programs: Top Tier with all 3 alliances
Posts: 11,663
May 17, 2022, 8:47 am
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: BOS
Programs: AA PP, DL PM
Posts: 2,086
Wonderful trip report! Just want to note that, if one has lots of time (and not too much luggage), it is possible to get to JFK from Midtown Manhattan for just $2.75: Queens-bound E or F train to Kew Gardens/Union Turnpike, and then Q10 or Q10 Limited bus to the Lefferts Boulevard AirTrain station, from which you can ride the AirTrain to your JFK terminal for free.
May 17, 2022, 9:19 am
#11
Join Date: May 2005
Location: London, England, United Kingdom
Programs: Marriott (Lifetime Titantium), whatever other programs as benefits make sense.
Posts: 1,920
Thanks for coming to visit London! As much as a local I curse under my breath every tourist stopping to take a photo of something and blocking my way, it's nice to see tourists back in London.
The original series, which was part of the 2012 Channel 4 coverage of the 2012 London Paralympics was filmed and broadcast live to air from Riverside Studios in Hammersmith, which was right beside my flat and I remember bits where I was watching it and then seeing a camera crew doing an outdoor shot rush by my windows. As VFR notes, it has moved from Hammersmith, to the ITV studios, to the Television Centre Studios, and now to Elstree.
They moved from Riverside Studios as the entire site, along with an adjoining property was redeveloped to create multiple flats and a whole new studio space. Do come out to West London and check out our new and improved Riverside Studios. It was the place where the first Doctor Who regeneration was filmed.
I’ve been to London quite a few times, but there is one activity in London that I will write about – I saw a taping of The Last Leg, a UK television program(me), and it was amazing. The tickets are free, but you have to get to Elstree (I took Thameslink) and if you are American, the warmup comic might make fun of you. “Okay, there are three hosts. Altogether, how many legs do you think they have?”
They moved from Riverside Studios as the entire site, along with an adjoining property was redeveloped to create multiple flats and a whole new studio space. Do come out to West London and check out our new and improved Riverside Studios. It was the place where the first Doctor Who regeneration was filmed.
May 17, 2022, 9:25 am
#12
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: BOS
Programs: AA PP, DL PM
Posts: 2,086
I've been to London enough times to give the normal tourist activities a miss. The most fun I've had at a pub was stumbling into a working man's pub.
May 17, 2022, 10:16 am
#13
Join Date: May 2005
Location: London, England, United Kingdom
Programs: Marriott (Lifetime Titantium), whatever other programs as benefits make sense.
Posts: 1,920
May 19, 2022, 12:02 pm
#15
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Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: BOS
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Posts: 2,086