UC OR PE?

Hi all,

Just looking for a bit of advice really on UC & PE.

I am booking my husband & i from LGW - BGI on 6th dec and looking at either booking UC on outbound and Econ on way (unfortunately cant afford both ways!) or PE both ways.
After talking to VA they advised me that UC is only on main deck and PE class is on the upper deck.

Its our 1st wedding anniversary that day so i want to spoil my husband but not sure what class to go for.Any advice would be great.

Also has anyone stayed at the bouganvillea hotel in Barbados and / or Escape at the gap? again advice really would be appreciated.

Thank you:D

Hi,

Of course UC is special as I am sure everyone will agree...but....

I would go for PE both ways. Only because with PE you get that little bit extra, from dedicated check in, priority boarding and of course the little extra space on board - plus you know you got that both ways.

That is my thoughts tho.

Congratulations on your 1st wedding anniversary. I am sure your hubby, whatever decision you make, will be thrilled!

PE on the upper deck is really nice. But UC is always a massive treat, albeit quite a pricy one. IMHO if you are looking for an all in treat, make sure your flight will be in suites, which LGW-BGI always has been! See here. Little chance of you geting v-port, but as it is your aniversary, I expect watching TV will be pretty low on your priorities - sipping bubbly at the bar and gazing into each other's eyes seems more appropriate

I would go for PE both ways if it was my choice -

Upper, as has been said is a massive treat, you can maybe justify this as a one off for a special day like an anniversary, however, the return trip in Economy would be a massive come down from glory, I would prefer a balanced trip with PE both ways..... [y]

Hope this helps and Congrats!!!!!!!!

I would be inclined to go PE both ways and pre-order a bottle of bubbly and an announcement on the way out, money saved on the UCS
if any could be used for a hot and romantic meal when you get there;)

Hi

Hubby and I went to BGI for our first wedding anniversary 18 months ago, we booked PE both ways but were lucky enough to be upgraded to UC on the way out (not Suite then but still pretty special).
Don't forget to mention its your anniversary on the booking. I am not sure if this is why we were upgraded, whether it was being FC member or just luck !
I would definitley avoiding having to go in EC on either leg of the journey!

We stayed at the Bougainvillea, it was excellent. Depends what you are after. If you want somewhere quieter then its better than those hotels at the Gap. If you want to be able to walk to lots of restaurants then Bougainvillea isn't so good, but taxis are fairly cheap.
However having said all that I think someone on one of the other forums mentioned that there is building work going on at Bougainvillea so its worth checking that before you book.

Also take a look at Tripdadvisor.com for opinions on this hotel and many others.

Anyway, enjoy !
L2H

FWIW I would go out Econ (and try to bag an exit seat if I could) and come back UC and take advantage of the bed for the overnight flight.

Paul

Thank you all for your replies.Well i can stretch my budget to out UC and back PE but not sure whats better? Our anniversary is the day we fly ouy so maybe fly out UC?!.

Is it better to get seats 6A/K in UC? However my husband will take great delight and sit at the bar (Typical Scottish Man!)

Does anyone recommend seats in Pe for a night flight? Is it seats 77 that are good for leg room?

Since i have never travelled in UC can someone ;ike a newbie tell me whats it like?

Thank you all for your help!

Originally posted by motherger
Thank you all for your replies.Well i can stretch my budget to out UC and back PE but not sure whats better? Our anniversary is the day we fly ouy so maybe fly out UC?!.

I would definitely go for UC out, PE back in that case! UC out will be a fantastic, exciting start to your holiday and as it's a day flight you'll get to enjoy all the UC service. Champagne all the way if you want, plus Clubhouse access for breakfast / treatment etc ( which you won't get at BGI )

For the trip back, it's flying East taking off at 6.30 pm and unless you're able to get to sleep at that time personally I don't think it matters if you're in UC or PE.

David.

Blimey, I know its a special day and all, but I would on every occasion take the UC on then overnighter for obvious reasons. You can still make a PE trip special with pre-ordered mini champers and cakes if you wish.

Paul

Some good points made here and having flown to the Carribbean and Florida many times my advice would be as follows:

Fly out in PE - book seats 79a/c upstairs, book the lounge at Gatwick and book Champers to be served at your seats on the flight - on the way out you will be excited, looking forward to yoru holiday and happy to watch the films, use the entertainment system and have fun.

Fly back UCS - it will be a lovely end to your holiday - you wont have to worry about checking in or seat allocation or getting comfy on the plane or sleeping - you will get on, be pampered and best of all have a 6foot bed to lie down in and get some sleep - leaving you nice and relaxed when you get home. - We have been upgrade to UC on the way back from the Carib and let me tell you it is absolutel gorgeous to slide into a big seat with great service for a red eye( overnight) flight!!!

Hi All,

Sod it its all booked now!

Booked UC on 6Dec LGW- BGI (Seats 6a/k)
Booked PE on 13Dec BGI- LGW (Seats 79a/k)

Are these seats good then?

Oh i am so excited and cant wait to see my hubby`s face on our anniversary (6th dec)

I would disagree with Paul and endorse UC going out and PE return.

The reason being that you get Clubhouse/V-Touch on the way out (and there are not available on the return journey)

And if UC is to be a special treat, why sleep through it?

My husband just sleeps through night flights adn i wanted him to take in all in UC with the vip service you get.We have never flown in this class before so it would be nice to be treated like a god!

At the end of the day its whatever you feel comfy with and whatever you want to do - I always think the great thing about us on this site is that we can all share our view2s and opinions and most times there is never a "wrong" view - ultimately we can only put forward how we feel or how we would do things - others asking for advice can agree, disagree or do something completely different.

I am sure you will have a wonderful time out and back and it will be a wonderful suprise for your hubby.

And yes - I think your seat choice is excellent!!

Have fun!!

I think you made the right choice!:D

I'd defnitely go for UC out as you get to appreciate it more. Also, PE isn't that bad for sleeping. Furthermore, I still don't think you'd be able to enjoy it that much on the return as you have that "end-of-holiday" feeling.[:#]

Cheers,
VS045

motherger.
You have got it so right. your seats are perfect. If you are on a budget like most why spend money on a night flight in ucs and sleep through the experience. We travelled to St Lucia in December in the same format as yourselves and what we saved travelling back in PE was our spending money for the trip. Upstairs on the jumbos is brilliant. Very peaceful and definately sleep inducing. My wife insists that unless we win the lottery she would rather be upstairs on the return leg and save the money. Enjoy

Thanks all for your kind comments and i would just like say to Highflyer thanks for being patient with me.I have spent all day reading and commenting on this forum and have now joined and even at this late at night after a few drinks i even worked out how to put the countdown clock into my wee space!

Think you've done the right thing. Have done the journey twice in the past 15 months -once UC both ways and once ec outward/ pe return.The return on any trip for me is allways an anti-climax (and the "Caribbean Executive Lounge" is just plain grim).Much better to enjoy the Clubhouse at LGW. Pe back was fine but I agree the "bubble" is quieter than the pe seating downstairs.Hope you have a great time .Where are you planning to stay?

Hi Dragonlady,

We have booked to stay at "Escape at the Gap" on All Inclusive.We were going to stay at Bouganvillea Beach Resort but the price difference was about £100 and it was only self catering.My husband typical scot knows for sure he will drink at least that!