British Airways Club World

Lovesholidays · 9 Jun 18, 07:35 PM

Hi there
I’m getting impatient with booking our flights for next April/May to Miami 😉 today I’ve found club world flight for Ł1600pp leaving on the 30th April. We usually fly VA and I thought their UC was good when we flew in March. VA prices aren’t obviously out yet, I wonder if they will come in any nearer to the BA price, but I guess we have to add onto BA booking of seat. Anyway if we do go ahead with BA are the seats in the middle of the four, ideal for the two of us ? Or is it best to book the two’s on the window side?
Or should I wait for any sales? Or VA prices, do you think I could do better 🤔

georgemac · 9 Jun 18, 10:27 PM

Miami is the A380 I think for BA - we have been in CW to LAX. Personally I like upstairs and at the side, but we use reward seats - I personally won't pay for CW (well unless the missus makes me!). Just because I think the money can be used better during the holiday. A 9 hr flight in the back does not bother me too much.
The 2 middle seats face the same way - so if you are in them and want to take diving screen down it's fine, then you will have singles either side of you in the aisle.

A380 is a nice quiet plane to fly in.

Lovesholidays · 10 Jun 18, 06:31 AM

Thanks for your reply. I’m in two minds whether to book. Keep reading reviews on CW and it never seems to come out as good as VA. Might wait to see what the ‘sales’ bring 😉

Dublingirl · 10 Jun 18, 08:16 AM

BA don't always use the A380 on the Miami route, its often a 747. We are flying to Miami on 1st October VA Upper Class and paid about Ł1650pp. We saw similar prices for CW in a BA sale and called Virgin to see what they could do. I prefer Upper Class as I like the seating arrangement and think the whole experience is better. Also, you will get to use the fabulous LHR clubhouse.

Peko · 10 Jun 18, 08:19 AM

Miami on BA is one A380 and one 747 per day in the winter, two 747s daily in the summer (summer schedule means roughly May to October). The 747s are usually the unrefurbished ones though some of them are getting the new IFE in the near future.

As to which is “better” it gets very much down to personal choice. BA has less privacy due to more seats and the layout, though I’m not a massive fan of the VS “herringbone” layout, nor the seat itself, despite it being a little larger than BA’s.

The Virgin Clubhouse in LHR will beat the BA Galleries Club lounge in T3 hands down. Food and inflight service is really personal taste, you will see votes for both.

If you choose BA, the centre pairs offer the most intimate experience as long as you have no issues flying backwards (you can’t tell once in the air), but of course no window. I would go for a window/aisle pair on the way out, and the centre pair on the return, if you’re likely to sleep.The aisle seats are a little exposed on BA.

If it’s an A380, the centre pairs only exist on the lower deck (UD is 2-3-2). For the window / aisle pair, try for upstairs on either aircraft, even though it may be more expensive. You get extra side storage on those window seats. I’d also try for seats at the rear of a cabin section, those seats offer direct aisle access from the window seat, though are popular with regulars so you have to be quick. It’s harder to get the rear seats in the centre pair, because they are almost always blocked as bassinets until a few days before travel.

Also have a look at flights in First on BA, sometimes there are (relative) bargains to be had. No seat selection charges in F, factor that into the price.

It’s possble that BA fares would drop below Ł1600 but not by much IMO. Don’t know about VS in a sale. If VS operates 787s on the route, watch out for equipment changes due to Rolls Royce engine issues.

Edit - It’s also worth considering flights on AA, depending on price. If AA is operating 777-300s on the route, my view is that it’s better than both BA and VS in business class.

Lovesholidays · 10 Jun 18, 01:43 PM

Originally Posted by Peko

Miami on BA is one A380 and one 747 per day in the winter, two 747s daily in the summer (summer schedule means roughly May to October). The 747s are usually the unrefurbished ones though some of them are getting the new IFE in the near future.

As to which is “better” it gets very much down to personal choice. BA has less privacy due to more seats and the layout, though I’m not a massive fan of the VS “herringbone” layout, nor the seat itself, despite it being a little larger than BA’s.

The Virgin Clubhouse in LHR will beat the BA Galleries Club lounge in T3 hands down. Food and inflight service is really personal taste, you will see votes for both.

If you choose BA, the centre pairs offer the most intimate experience as long as you have no issues flying backwards (you can’t tell once in the air), but of course no window. I would go for a window/aisle pair on the way out, and the centre pair on the return, if you’re likely to sleep.The aisle seats are a little exposed on BA.

If it’s an A380, the centre pairs only exist on the lower deck (UD is 2-3-2). For the window / aisle pair, try for upstairs on either aircraft, even though it may be more expensive. You get extra side storage on those window seats. I’d also try for seats at the rear of a cabin section, those seats offer direct aisle access from the window seat, though are popular with regulars so you have to be quick. It’s harder to get the rear seats in the centre pair, because they are almost always blocked as bassinets until a few days before travel.

Also have a look at flights in First on BA, sometimes there are (relative) bargains to be had. No seat selection charges in F, factor that into the price.

It’s possble that BA fares would drop below Ł1600 but not by much IMO. Don’t know about VS in a sale. If VS operates 787s on the route, watch out for equipment changes due to Rolls Royce engine issues.

Edit - It’s also worth considering flights on AA, depending on price. If AA is operating 777-300s on the route, my view is that it’s better than both BA and VS in business class.

For the price we could fly either AA or BA, so you think AA is better 😊

Wembleygal · 10 Jun 18, 01:45 PM

AA Business class is very good - I prefer it to BA, as long as you get a good crew. And if flying out of Heathrow, you get the choice of 4 lounges at T3. The Cathay Pacific is my fav, but you can always go lounge hopping with a Business Class ticket.

Lovesholidays · 10 Jun 18, 02:01 PM

Originally Posted by Wembleygal

AA Business class is very good - I prefer it to BA, as long as you get a good crew. And if flying out of Heathrow, you get the choice of 4 lounges at T3. The Cathay Pacific is my fav, but you can always go lounge hopping with a Business Class ticket.

Omg just watched on YouTube all about AA business flights, looks so good, I like it much better than BA, so I think they are now out the running lol

duchy · 10 Jun 18, 02:16 PM

AA business is much better than BA. Good choice.

Peko · 10 Jun 18, 04:07 PM

Originally Posted by Lovesholidays

For the price we could fly either AA or BA, so you think AA is better 😊

Well, it is slightly aircraft-dependent. If the AA flight is on a 777-300 (would show as 77W on the AA site when searching), then definitely AA. The seats are in what's known as “reverse herringbone” layout, which is pretty popular these days

If it is a 777-200, these have a slightly different configuration, with a forward/backward pair arrangement like BA' but with aisle access to all seats. They aren’t quite as good as the 77Ws in my opinion, but still very comfortable. I’m just not sure how good they are for couples, have only travelled in them solo.

Just a word of warning, be careful about choosing a flight this far out for a particular aircraft variant. Equipment changes are always possible, so a change from a 77W to a 772 could happen.

10 Jun 18, 08:19 AM	#5
	10 Jun 18, 08:19 AM Peko Imagineer
Peko Imagineer Join Date: Sep 16	Miami on BA is one A380 and one 747 per day in the winter, two 747s daily in the summer (summer schedule means roughly May to October). The 747s are usually the unrefurbished ones though some of them are getting the new IFE in the near future. As to which is “better” it gets very much down to personal choice. BA has less privacy due to more seats and the layout, though I’m not a massive fan of the VS “herringbone” layout, nor the seat itself, despite it being a little larger than BA’s. The Virgin Clubhouse in LHR will beat the BA Galleries Club lounge in T3 hands down. Food and inflight service is really personal taste, you will see votes for both. If you choose BA, the centre pairs offer the most intimate experience as long as you have no issues flying backwards (you can’t tell once in the air), but of course no window. I would go for a window/aisle pair on the way out, and the centre pair on the return, if you’re likely to sleep.The aisle seats are a little exposed on BA. If it’s an A380, the centre pairs only exist on the lower deck (UD is 2-3-2). For the window / aisle pair, try for upstairs on either aircraft, even though it may be more expensive. You get extra side storage on those window seats. I’d also try for seats at the rear of a cabin section, those seats offer direct aisle access from the window seat, though are popular with regulars so you have to be quick. It’s harder to get the rear seats in the centre pair, because they are almost always blocked as bassinets until a few days before travel. Also have a look at flights in First on BA, sometimes there are (relative) bargains to be had. No seat selection charges in F, factor that into the price. It’s possble that BA fares would drop below Ł1600 but not by much IMO. Don’t know about VS in a sale. If VS operates 787s on the route, watch out for equipment changes due to Rolls Royce engine issues. Edit - It’s also worth considering flights on AA, depending on price. If AA is operating 777-300s on the route, my view is that it’s better than both BA and VS in business class. Edited at 08:41 AM.

10 Jun 18, 02:16 PM	#9
	10 Jun 18, 02:16 PM duchy Imagineer
duchy Imagineer Join Date: May 04 Location: Kent	AA business is much better than BA. Good choice.