First Time VS Flyer..PE
 

Hello all,

So the hubby and I are flying from Heathrow to Chi (Midway) with a layover in DTW over the holidays. I will be using Virgin for the first time ever and just curious as to what to expect. I am usually a BA flyer however chose VS, due to the PE seating by seat guru info being more roomier for cheaper the price than I would have gotten with BA PE.

Any insight or advice for some first time Virgin flyers would be great.

Thanks.

Welcome to the Flyertalk VS page.

I am sorry, but I am not sure what you are asking for - PE is exactly what is says on the tin - it is a Premium ECONOMY product.
All the 'perks' over regular economy are explained on the VS site - http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/gb/en...m-economy.html

What type of 'insight or advice' are you looking for?

Nick

I guess more of experience. If anyone has flown both and has a comparable experience to the service and quality over BA's.

Many BA flyers have said (see numerous BA vs VS threads on the BA board) that the VS product is better than the BA WT+ product.

I would agree with that overall, VS is better, esp with the "soft" product (the people, food etc)

WT+ (BA's premium economy) in their new A380 is very nice though, and certainly comparable at least.

Dozens and dozens of TATL sectors under my belt in PE products of both airlines.

VS wins:

More/better food
Pre-dep bubbles
Crew also inconsistent, but a better bet for a good one than BA

BA wins:

More new/refurnished cabins
Much better bulkhead seat availability for elites
Better quality IFE in most aircraft
Fewer annoying IFE boxes under seats blocking legroom

Some of the above is highly aircraft (or even seat)-specific, so research if some things are particularly important to you.

VS PE experience is better than BA's; the seats are distinctly more comfortable, wider and better padded. Separate check-in, priority boarding and additional free bags add to the overall package, and the service levels tend to be better than BA's.

VS uses the relatively new A330-300 on DTW-LHR, while the Upper Class cabin has issues, the PE cabin is very good and the IFE works well.

The VS a/c usually docks in the middle of the main McNamara Terminal and is easy for transfers.

I'm on that same LHR-DTW flight in January. Traveling alone, and PE is empty on both of my legs (IAD-LHR and LHR-DTW). Are there differences between the A330s?

Other questions:
- Is there an entertainment box under some of the seats? The BA 777 I flew a couple of years had one which really messed up the legroom.
- Is the flight likely to fill up on a weekday? I'm trying to decide if I want the inside or outside aisle. I am not a fan of bulkheads. With a 2-3-2 and traveling solo I'm inclined to get the inside aisle (I'm a comped DL Plat so I can get seat assignments in advance) and hope that the middle seat stays empty.

No, they are all the same in PE


Your DL status makes no difference in seat assignments. You can select a seat as soon as you book. There are no charges for PE.

Just flew Virgin PE for the first time, and I was really impressed. I flew LHR-SFO on the 787, and had the bulkhead. Legroom was ample, and the entire cabin was pretty empty. We were given footrests, and with the recline of the seats and width, it felt like I was almost in a lazy boy.

The service was also really good, better than any UA first or business class service, and perhaps LH's business class too (just comparing FAs level of service on airlines I've flown J with). Drink refills were constant, FAs consistently walked through the cabin asking if anyone needed anything, hot towels were provided before meals, there were snacks throughout the flight, and the toilets were constantly refreshed.

Food was good, but I'm not sure who decided to serve chorizo chicken on a 10 hr flight...

All in all, I was really quite impressed, especially considering the price tag ($1000 roundtrip). I would purposely connect to LHR from CDG (where I'm based) just to fly this product.

I'm a BA Gold flyer, with a new job at a company headquartered in Atlanta. Thinking of defecting (or at least divide) loyalty from BA (will make Silver again, then decide whether it's worth going for retaining Gold).

I'd aim to fly Premium Economy or discounted business (ex-EU etc.). This is compelling given Virgin's more competitive pricing at the moment, and the fast track to Gold matching service.

I've read though about various inconsistencies in the Virgin service - food, drinks, all the extras.

I'm also curious about lounge access. What do Virgin Silver's get? Do they get anything stateside?

You get no lounge access as VS silver.

You do get a 30% cabin miles bonus and can choose your seat at 14 days out if you are in economy. That's it. Silver is basically worthless :(

Silver isn't really much to write home about.

Full benefits are listed here: http://www.virginatlantic.com/gb/en/...-benefits.html

This is a little unclear - it's 30% bonus miles, which includes the base miles and the cabin/fare class bonus as well. So for example - LHR-ATL is 4,218 base miles. Add 100% bonus for Discounted UC, 8,436. Add 30% silver bonus, 10,966 each way. It's a nice uplift.

To be honest, unless you are flying with enough frequency to attain Gold on both VS and BA, I would stick with one or the other and just go for Gold on VS or BA. Losing Gold on BA to attain Silver on two different airlines isn't going to offer the same kind of benefits in my eyes.

That being said, for flights in and out of ATL you will have the advantage of crediting the daily flight from VS as well as the 2-3 daily flights from Delta to your Flying Club account, compared to the single service on BA. So Flying Club may give you the edge here in terms of frequency of services.

In terms of benefits (assuming you can't be Gold on both) I think the best combo is to get Gold on VS and Silver on BA. Both doable if you just reasonably split your flying between the two. Silver on VS is almost worthless (gold gets you lounge access in the UK - nice), and silver on BA gets you lounge access everywhere including on AA in the USA if that matters.

The big benefit to having BA miles in general is the easy availability of Avios award trips in Europe - nice if you ever use them!

I am thinking of booking a VS flight in PE but notice the bulkheads are blocked.

When does VS release them and are they available for non-elites?