Virgin Atlantic

✅ Trip Verified | Bridgetown to London. After leaving a cruise we had to fly From Barbados on 1st December on a fixed date and it seemed all flights were jammed full and hugely expensive leading us to take our first economy long haul in many years. I am also loyal to BA so Virgin was my second choice of carrier and I had my heckles up which although unfair was the truth. Therefore after weeks of trying everything from bidding for upgrades, (delighted with premium and excited for Upper), trying for award tickets and any other way of upgrading decided that 8 hours 5 minutes in economy was worth the cruise. Check in was quiet and despite a crammed flight and they allowed us to have a couple of bags with a few kilograms overweight (26kg each bag). Incidentally a friend in premium was not so lucky being charged 200 USD for having similar overweight bags. We decided that the best compromise was to pay for emergency exit seats but at the late booking stage they were not together but we secured two albeit at different ends of economy. Boarding was on time but very slow and I feared a very late departure. Staff very welcoming on boarding. I always choose a window seat but only 25H was available (aisle) and I was relived I had not paid for 25K which had a large part of the exit door blocking the legroom. I am sure a seat guru check would have highlighted the issue but I was happy that I hadn’t paid for 25K The huge surprise was the flight was only 6 hours 42 minutes so such a fast flight was very welcome. Indeed, despite a delayed departure we landed 40 minutes early. It was great to fly the 747 after a number of years and the plane was in good condition despite its age. It was one of Virgin's newer 747s but of course it was still an old plane. The seat was tight but not uncomfortable and menus were distributed which was a nice touch. A hot towel and drinks service was served by a young and enthusiastic crew. After a Gin and Tonic and nice pretzels I received my first choice of meal which was small but tasty. The TV was small but adequate and I found the entertainment choices to be good. After dinner tea and hot chocolate came round but I opted to rest and was surprised to get some rest and enjoy the extremely fast flight to London – you could almost feel the speed as the tail winds got us to London in super quick time. Breakfast was fruit a yoghurt and a hot croissant 90 minutes prior to landing and as we. Had only eaten dinner 4 hours earlier it was more than adequate. We arrived at Gatwick before the earlier BA flight at 4.45am and bags arrived so quickly I was able to take an earlier Easyjet flight home. I felt compelled to write a review about the experience. Yes, I was lucky to have a super quick flight and I swerved a bad emergency exit seat by chance. I was ready to leave after 6 hours and wouldn’t relish a longer flight but the experience was positive. Yes I would have still paid for Premium or Upper and will try to next time but, for the price paid I thought it a good value product.

Not Verified | I know it's over a year ago. But felt I had to put pen to paper. We flew to LAX in March 2017. We were supposed to be on the early flight. But, with the jigs and reels missed the flight. Not our fault. Virgin were very helpful and got us on next flight. Bags got lost, Virgin said they would send them on to our hotel. Yeah, right said I in my head! Sure enough next day bags appeared. Premium was worth the extra. I know you have people on moaning that there 7 ft 4" husbands were uncomfortable. My wife and I are small, tons of room. Staff were very helpful and the food was good too. So, stop moaning Virgin Atlantic is a great airline.

✅ Trip Verified | Orlando to Gatwick. Virgin Atlantic offers no more than other cheaper airlines. I also found that they do not allow baggage pooling which is offered by airlines such as Thomas Cook. The seats and tables were dirty. The food was ok and the on board entertainment was very good. The major issue I had was using the check in at Disney Springs which cost us $70 extra but should have saved time and hassle. Unfortunately our bags were mistreated and although I complained at the Virgin desk at Gatwick I was told it was wear and tear. The bags were obviously smashed and had large dents in them. Virgin obviously are happy to provide this poor service and then turn a blind eye.

✅ Trip Verified | Manchester to Orlando. 24 hours before I attempted to check in online and found I could not as I had been randomly selected for a security check at the airport so had to check in there. I had planned to upgrade at check-in and this upset me as I would be put to the back of the queue if I was to wait to upgrade. So I called Virgin reservations and explained the situation Virgin of course not wanting to loose out on money got me though to someone who upgraded us from Economy Classic to Economy Delight for 49 pounds per person. I had already paid 70 to select seats on the upper deck so they agreed to refund the 70 since I was upgrading. All good so far. We got extra legroom seats and were able to use the Premium check in desks and board before everyone else. This was invaluable due to the extra security SSSS checks that were coming my way. Got to the airport check-in was easy and we had purchased fast track security due to hearing about security chaos at Manchester airport. Got to the gate and boarding commenced. My wife took my backpack from me as she was not selected for extra screening. I was pulled aside and she walked straight on. The guy just patted my up and down saying what no bags. Lucky for me since I used to work for an airline we knew that if I didn't have a bag there wasn't much they could do. At the door I was greeted by a flight attendant and directed to my seat. Settled in and take off was on-time. As soon as we were in the air the cabin crew started the drink service and handed out pretzels. A meal menu was handed out the choices were Malvani chicken curry or sausages with tomatoes or a pasta bake. I chose the curry which was pretty terrible. The rest of the flight was uneventful a cheese sandwich was handed out prior to landing as well which was again bad. I have no idea how airlines manage to make the simplest things horrible. The big points on this flight were the cabin crew who were really good to us but seemed to insist everyone sit in their assigned seats even if the one next to someone was free for takeoff. Lucky for us we had the whole row to ourselves. Immigration in Orlando was simple since I am a US and Irish Citizen. Bags came out pretty easy too. All in all a decent flight pity about the food. One thing I will note is the entertainment system is not very responsive which needs to be addressed.

✅ Trip Verified | Johannesburg to London return. From booking my flight, the team in Johannesburg were completely professional and efficient. My requests were treated promptly and with very kind personnel. It had been awhile I flew with virgin Atlantic simply because I rather take direct flights traveling elsewhere but after my last trip I am encouraged to go through London to experience the type of service I had. On board, the air hostesses were extremely helpful. I felt right at home on Virgin.

Not Verified | London to Washington. Service has gone downhill. I have flown Virgin America numerous times in the past but it had been a few years since I had flown Virgin Atlantic. It used to be on par with Virgin America as far as service, cleanliness and flight steward service - a lot has changed in those years! My poor experience began with being told that 'codeshares' no longer were allowed in the lounge area. I am a Delta Premium member and have always had the best service on Delta-which owns 49% of VA at that. Onboard, the in-flight service seemed harried, the food was horrible, there was only wine or orange juice offered. When I asked for a diet coke, it never arrived. Only poor apologies. This was a daytime flight mind you, yet the experience was a major turnoff. I will never fly this horrid carrier again. I often pay good money for business class service and though this was premium economy it was nothing like the ads and was quite awful.

✅ Trip Verified | London to New York JFK. I've travelled this route VS UC many times over the years - and enjoyed it every time - but this was a truly memorable experience. Having the bar onboard takes the cabin atmosphere to a different level, and many potentially-long hours simply drifted away while we had such an enjoyable and engaging chat with the crew, who also maintained impeccable service throughout. The LHR Clubhouse was as fab as ever, and arrival at JFK swift and painless. In fact, the whole thing inspired me to write my first review! A personal and slightly unusual flight experience perhaps, but one which I can't imagine outside of VS UC.

✅ Trip Verified | Shanghai to London. Whilst the onboard team are incredible, the business class offer on the Boeing 787-9 is frugal, uninspiring and downright average. Meals served which is my primary issue - lacked any inspiration - looked and tasted like an economy class meal on porcelain. Everything about the premium offer was underwhelming and frugal. Compared to the Clubhouse experience - huge let down onboard.

✅ Trip Verified | London to Newark. From check-in to boarding to the preflight cocktail, china and glass, and light tea service, everything was wonderful. The staff was engaging and efficient. One recommendation is that the gate 13 out of Heathrow felt like a small regional airport.

✅ Trip Verified | London to New York JFK. Good and not so great. We were originally booked on a Boeing 787-9 in a center and aisle seat in the Premium 2x3x2 configuration. When we checked in we noticed that we had been given seats 18A/C (window and aisle) and it wasn't until we boarded that I noticed there had been a change in aircraft. We were now in a rather old and tired A340-600: no leg rest (although individual foot rests were provided after take off that were very comfortable), clunky video monitor which took some finessing to get to stay up, no USB ports to charge devices and the remote holder was falling out of the side of the seat. Oh well. We were scheduled to leave at 3:45. Upon boarding I laughed as I saw a guy sit down at the Upper Class bar and didn't think anything of it. The plane pushed back on time. Stopped. Then the gate was brought back to the plane in order to eject said person who, in the opinion of the crew, was intoxicated and a danger to the rest of the passengers and crew. The service was excellent: we were offered prosecco or o.j. prior to takeoff which was nice and rarely offered on a US airline. Shortly before takeoff we were given menus showing a dinner service and a pre-landing afternoon "smart" tea. Both were really delicious. Cocktails before dinner and wine (individual bottles) with dinner were great too. The IFE system worked well with a great selection of movies. WiFi was pay per use. The "smart tea" was a nice light snack prior to landing. We had to wait on the tarmac as the airport was re-opened due to thunderstorms that had passed through just before we arrived. We pulled in to the gate 1 hour late, due in no part to Virgin Atlantic. We are definitely planning on flying with Virgin again and highly recommend their Premium Economy product; definitely worth the additional money.