Virgin Upper Class.
I couldn’t believe my luck. We hadn’t planned on going over to our villa this year as a holiday, so, because my wife works at a school and she can’t take advantage of cheaper air fares, I went for just a week in March. Because it was just an ad hoc trip, I booked economy, usually preferring to travel premium. They only bumped me up to Upper Class, both ways, there and back. Fully reclining seats, privacy panels and served individually, with proper knives and forks, on proper plates with the kind of service that you would expect in a restaurant.
But let’s start at the beginning, arriving at the airport and the wait in the lounge, drinks, sandwiches and a comfortable area in which to wait for your flight to be called, when your flight is called, if required, someone will carry your carry on to the flight. And you board first.
Champagne, real, not fizzy wine, bucks fizz or any drink of your choice when you get on the plane with several stewards and stewardesses pampering to your needs, the flight takes off but the pampering continues. A drink from the bar and then the meal is served, soup or another starter, choice of main course and choice of sweet all served on a good sized table that folds out of the privacy screen, on a cotton table cloth with a place mat, and with your choice from three wines. By now I’m like a dog with two tales.
The flight continues with a good choice of film, entertainment or radio, and a sky map and eventually we land at Orlando International Airport where, of course, we get off first which means we are in the immigration hall first and to the car hire desks first, within 20 minutes of landing, I was driving along the highway 417 to the villa.
The week passed quickly with all the jobs that needed doing but I managed to get in a couple of my favourite restaurants, Bahama Breeze and The Olive garden, unfortunately, I didn’t make it to Manney’s this time.
All to soon, it’s time to come back. I must say that the first class lounge at Orlando is far nicer and more comfortable than the one at Manchester, however, again, loaded first, Champagne, evening meal and then bed. What a pleasure it was to be able to lie flat, in, I suppose they are pyjamas that they give you, and get some good sleep during the flight home and when they do wake you up for a proper English breakfast just before landing, you feel refreshed and not like a dogs dinner when you have no room to stretch out in economy or premium.
It will make it very hard to fly anything other than Upper or First Class again.
I couldn’t believe my luck. We hadn’t planned on going over to our villa this year as a holiday, so, because my wife works at a school and she can’t take advantage of cheaper air fares, I went for just a week in March. Because it was just an ad hoc trip, I booked economy, usually preferring to travel premium. They only bumped me up to Upper Class, both ways, there and back. Fully reclining seats, privacy panels and served individually, with proper knives and forks, on proper plates with the kind of service that you would expect in a restaurant.
But let’s start at the beginning, arriving at the airport and the wait in the lounge, drinks, sandwiches and a comfortable area in which to wait for your flight to be called, when your flight is called, if required, someone will carry your carry on to the flight. And you board first.
Champagne, real, not fizzy wine, bucks fizz or any drink of your choice when you get on the plane with several stewards and stewardesses pampering to your needs, the flight takes off but the pampering continues. A drink from the bar and then the meal is served, soup or another starter, choice of main course and choice of sweet all served on a good sized table that folds out of the privacy screen, on a cotton table cloth with a place mat, and with your choice from three wines. By now I’m like a dog with two tales.
The flight continues with a good choice of film, entertainment or radio, and a sky map and eventually we land at Orlando International Airport where, of course, we get off first which means we are in the immigration hall first and to the car hire desks first, within 20 minutes of landing, I was driving along the highway 417 to the villa.
The week passed quickly with all the jobs that needed doing but I managed to get in a couple of my favourite restaurants, Bahama Breeze and The Olive garden, unfortunately, I didn’t make it to Manney’s this time.
All to soon, it’s time to come back. I must say that the first class lounge at Orlando is far nicer and more comfortable than the one at Manchester, however, again, loaded first, Champagne, evening meal and then bed. What a pleasure it was to be able to lie flat, in, I suppose they are pyjamas that they give you, and get some good sleep during the flight home and when they do wake you up for a proper English breakfast just before landing, you feel refreshed and not like a dogs dinner when you have no room to stretch out in economy or premium.
It will make it very hard to fly anything other than Upper or First Class again.