This is a Trip Report from the Upper Class cabin
Ground Staff
Food & Drink
Entertainment
Seat
Cabin Crew
We had a fabulous 10 nights in Vegas so by the time it came to leave I was pretty tired.
We had phoned hotel reception at the Cosmopolitan and asked for a late check out. I was not hopeful as it was a busy Saturday (Valentine's day!) but they were fine, didn't quibble and gave us an extra 90 minutes without any surcharge. We also had the special ($25.15) 3 course lunch at Milos in the Cosmopolitan before we left. I had fresh sea bass as the main and it was delicious, too much food to even think about having the inclusive dessert. So after a lazy morning and a good lunch we headed for the airport and dropped the car off before checking in.
I had rung to see if I could get my partner upgraded from PE to be with me in UC but they said not but advised me to try at the airport. I did this as I knew there was availability (3 seats still!) but again they said that on the fare he was on it was not possible, they did not even provide a quote, just said it was not possible. But they did advise that the seat next to him in PE was empty so he would have a bit more space. So I was slightly annoyed when we boarded that after the doors had shut they filled the three seats up in UC with people from elsewhere in the aircraft, and my partner said they did the same in PE, i.e. passengers from economy were brought forward to fill the PE seats including the one next to him. He said she told him she was Virgin ground staff somewhere.
I can only assume that Virgin are making so much money that it is not worth offering upgrades to paying passengers at a price, but rather they upgrade people travelling on staff tickets for free. Not such a great business model but fabulous for staff ticket holders.
Anyway to the flight, obviously the shared lounge in Vegas is not a patch on the Virgin lounge in Gatwick but the people working there are very pleasant and helpful and there is a nice range of 'help yourself' snacks and drinks, and a bar serving alcohol. And it was right opposite gate E2 where our flight was leaving from.
We boarded and I said goodbye to my partner at the door, he turned right and I turned left. There was a dedicated boarding thing for UC and PE (can't remember what the walkway things are called!!).
I had chosen my seat 8A well in advance and settled in, the crew were quick to offer sleep suits and a glass of champagne, but I settled for buck's fizz. It was very definitely a different crew to the VS43 flight out. It was easy to spot the person in charge of the crew and she made sure everything ran smoothly. The UC steward was very pleasant and helpful and kept me in mugs of tea all flight. During the take off, one of the cupboards behind the bar sprang open and we could all hear bottles / glasses shattering. Even though we were already heading fast down the runway one of the staff passengers who had been seated in the last row of UC bravely sprang up and shut the cupboard stopping any more breakages!
Dinner was served fairly quickly. I had the sweetcorn soup which was delicious and the beef wellington which was not so good. Having had the beef on the way out I should have known it would be overcooked, but the other options were two spicy main courses (lemongrass prawns or tandoori chicken) or butternut canneloni which sounded a bit rich. I like to eat fairly bland food on long flights. I has also had a good lunch so after a couple of bites left the main course.
The manager in charge of the crew was helping out in UC and was very concerned that I did not eat my dinner and quickly offered alternatives. The fact that (a) she noticed and (b) took time to think of alternatives was all to the good, and so different from the earlier flight. I just asked for some cheese and biscuits which I ate a little later, as well as a small glass of port. The cheese and port was brought round on a trolley so you could spot which cheeses were available.
After dinner the lights were quickly dimmed and most people settled down for the night. I am not a great sleeper so I wandered back to see my partner, which is when I found that the seat next to him was not vacant. We said our good nights, he had not been that impressed by his dinner in PE, but I cannot remember what he said he had. I asked for a mug of tea on my way back to my seat and it arrived quickly. I watched a couple of films, there is a good choice but I had already seen quite a few at the cinema, so cannot remember what I actually ended up watching.
I did manage a couple of hours sleep, the cabin was quiet and dark and there was no turbulence during the whole flight. Before we went to sleep the crew asked us what we wanted for breakfast - we were given a card to complete, and I had asked for tea and a danish pastry. It arrived warm and fresh. The tea was not as hot or strong as the mugs of tea I had been drinking through the night, but it was fine.
We landed a few minutes ahead of time, however we were kept waiting at the terminal for a spot to open up. There was only one exit and that was between PE and economy so we had to wait for PE passengers to exit first, but it meant that my partner and I could leave together.
All in all another excellent flight with Virgin. And very different from my flight out!
can't wait to check out the city ourselves later this year.