What I liked
- Decent sized flat bad
- Well made food
- Friendly and attentive crew
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Nice bar area
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I had a nice flight on Virgin Atlantic’s Upper Class. The seat reclines to a fully flat bed, the food was good and the crew were lovely.
Every seat has aisle access too. So no climbing over anyone’s legs!
I flew from London to Mumbai via Upper Class. I used 75,000 Virgin Atlantic Miles to book the return flight. An excellent deal. In this article, I give a bunch ways to create Virgin Atlantic Miles. I also explain how to get discounts on cash fares.
This is an in-depth review. Know exactly what to expect when you fly. I’ve uploaded loads of photos. You can click any photo, to open out the full slideshow.
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I booked Virgin Atlantic Upper Class for 75,000 miles and £700 in surcharges. This is one of the best redemptions with Virgin Atlantic miles, and probably the best way to get from London to Mumbai. It’s something of a sweet spot in the Virgin redemption chart.
The miles are relatively easy to create. Transfer from AMEX, Citi and Chase. Virgin also partners with loads of airlines, including Air France and Delta. You can earn Virgin Points when you fly with a partner.
You can also buy Virgin Points from this page. Virgin often run promotions to buy points. You can buy 1 point for as low as 1.19c. Which would work out at $892 for 75,000 points.
If you want to pay cash for your flight, I recommend to go to this webpage. It has all of Virgin’s current offers. They provide details of all discounts. They also show the lowest price available for each destination.
The Virgin Upper class seat has a herringbone layout. The seat is at an angle, with the passenger facing the aisle. At the end of the seat is a footstool, for you to rest your feat on.
The seat reclines out to a fully flat bed. Essentially, your seat goes flat and joins to the footstool at the end.
Each seat has its own personal entertainment system. When you want to use it, the TV pops out from the side.
Each seat has full aisle access. So no need to climb over anyone’s seat to get to the aisle. That being said, there were only 3 business class passengers on my flight! So this wasn’t going to be an issue for me.
I had a couple of hours of sleep during the flight. The attendant made up the bed next to my seat. She said I could use it at any time, which was nice of her! The bed was firm, which I like. The cabin was also nice and cool.
The Virgin Atlantic Business Class cabin is large, with 30 seats. There were only 3 Upper Class passengers on the day I travelled. If the cabin was full, I imagine it would be pretty tight. Between Premium Economy and Upper Class is the on-board bar and seating area. There’s a high table with a few seats, and some snacks.
With only 3 passengers on the flight, I didn’t use the bar. That would have been weird! I did like the bar area, however. The area felt sociable. I prefer it to the bar on Etihad’s business class, which feels more like an afterthought. Virgin was one of the 1st airlines to have an onboard bar, and it’s still amongst the best.
There was a small TV to the side of the seat. You just pop it out when you want to use it. There were a variety of English options to choose from. In truth, I didn't recognise most of them. I don’t get much time to watch TV these days. I spend my time working on my business or with my family. So I couldn’t tell you if the selection was good or not!
I was impressed with their meal choices. The following options were available
I went for the cod, based on the flight attendant’s recommendation. I probably would have gone for the duck otherwise. I might stop asking for flight crew recommendations, as it’s rude to choose something else after that!
The cod was a rather saucy creation, with mash potato and mushrooms. To be honest, I prefer fish to be pan fried. However, pan-fried fish or steak is generally a 1st class feature! Although the cod wasn't made to my preference, it was edible and flavoursome.
Before landing, we were served afternoon tea. British Airways also offers afternoon tea on their flights. Sadly, Virgin’s wasn’t great. There were two sandwiches, one scone, two mini cakes and coffee. The food had clearly just come out of the fridge, and the ingredients tasted 2 days old!
Virgin have a wide variety of premium drinks available. They offer champagne before take-off. Not all airlines offer this in business class. They have to pay taxes when they serve alcohol on the ground. So kudos to Virgin for this!
Regardless, a glass of champagne in Virgin’s Upper Class is a great way to start any day! They served Ayala Brut, which retails for about $45. I had a glass and I enjoyed it.
I switched to Dewar’s scotch whiskey after that. Which is a pretty strong scotch whisky! I probably drank a glass or two too much.
I don’t drink too much alcohol. However, I always have less self-control on an airplane. I guess I’m not the only one!
The Virgin Atlantic Business Class amenity kit had the following items
I thought the variety was pretty good. The socks were lovely! They’ll happily reside in my sock drawer from now on! You can see a photo of them in the above slideshow. Quick housekeeping note – always wear shoes to an airline bathroom. If you want to find out why, read this article..
I was disappointed with the amenity kit bag, which was a cheap disposable item. There was a nice message on it, saying that it's sourced from recycled materials. However, if the Virgin Group wanted to save the environment, then they wouldn’t run an airline! This is a cost cutting measure, pretending to be green. Not cool!
The Virgin Atlantic Business Class crew were really friendly. Although it’s easier when there's only 3 passengers!
I generally find the crews on BA and Virgin to be pretty good, and this flight was no exception. The attendants were very friendly and quick to offer refills. They were also happy to chat.
I recently stayed at the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. Review here. Service was fantastic there too. It’s the most famous hotel in Los Angeles. The hotel hosts the Golden Globe Film Awards every year. In the article, I explain how I stayed at the hotel for a 64% discount.
I enjoyed my flight with Virgin Atlantic Upper Class. The seat reclines to a fully flat bed. The food was good. The crew were super friendly too. Best of all, I only used 75,000 miles to book the flight. What a steal!
Virgin have a network of highly regarded lounges. I visited the Virgin Clubhouse at New York JFK. Review here. It’s an excellent lounge. There’s restaurant quality food, champagne on tap and a funky vibe.
I flew British Airways Long Haul Business Class. Review here. It was really good. The Club Suite is an excellent business class product. Comes highly recommended.
I recently stayed at the terrific Marriott Beach Resort Marbella - Playa Andaluza. It’s a family focused resort, with apartments and tons of activities. I had a terrific time with my family. The review also details how you can earn 15,000 easy Marriott Bonvoy Points.
One seat that I can definitely recommend is the Etihad Business Class. The Etihad Business Studio is spacious and comfortable. The food was high quality (although calorific!). The Acqua Di Parma amenity kit was super classy too.
Absolutely agree Craig. Horrible dark little cabin - squashed in like anchovies in a tin. Narrow seats with high rigid walls to the point of claustrophobia, zero privacy. Utterly flat tunnel of a bed or sitting upright - no extra pillows. Nasty nasty nasty - oozed cheapness. Tiny little bar. This is no ‘Upper Class’ Am utterly horrified. AVOID!
I recently flew from Manchester to Atlanta & the return trip with Virgin Atlantic in Upper Class. I’ve flown Upper class many times before over many years & this trip was by far the worst I’ve experienced. Seats have become narrower & pretty claustrophobic & virtually no storage space for belongings. On the outward trip the food was fine on the return trip it was awful. There are nowhere near as many “extras” you expect in upper class as there was a few years ago. When I checked in for the return trip in Atlanta I wasn’t offered access to a private lounge. The 1903 lounge in Manchester appeared to me to be very worn & tired, although the staff were brilliant. I will seriously think about paying so much extra for Upper Class with Virgin again. I’ve flown Business with just about all the transatlantic airlines & will certainly check them all out for my next trip.
I flew Virgin Upper Class NY to BOM. The first leg of the flight JFK-LHR was the newer upper class, which was perfectly fine. However, LHR-BOM was the herringbone seating. I got a panic attack just looking at my seat, so narrow, no elbow room, no privacy, seat facing away from the window. It is by far the worst airplane seat I have ever traveled in, in my life. I would never fly Virgin again, until they update all of their business class seats. The flight attendants were extremely nice, attentive, kind, and happy to be doing their jobs, that was the only plus.
I have lived on airplanes albeit a short respite during Covid. I immediately it was over we were back on a plane to LHR and then on to Dubai, British Airways. Since then we have resumed our steady diet of flying at least one monthly, to London, LA, Vegas, New York etc. We fly business or first on every flight. Virgin is the worse business class in the air. They have gone from the top to the bottom since we last flew with them. It is like Ryanair entering the international market and trying to make an offering in a more luxurious and first-class business. Disappointed would be a huge understatement, and along with the departure from elegance and top-shelf drinks came the service staff trained by Easyjet to cajole you into silence and acceptance of their offering less and charging more. We were looking forward to the old Virgin Upper Class and were disappointed to see Jet Blue outshines them.
spent over 16000 dollars on 4 tickets was so excited to tell the family that we will be flying upper class with virgin! I’ve flown with them before and I flown with Emirates in business class we were very excited! then we got into this plane and I’ve never been so disappointed in my life to see these horrible small tiny seats in a herringbone shape. I’m 6 foot one 200 pounds and I mean talk about tight and absolutely no storage. Why are they still running this plane? Why wouldn’t they rip those seats out and convert them to the proper lay down that you’re expected! a massive massive waste of money! we had multiple friends meeting us in a location that flew Delta, British Airways and United and they all had the traditional laydown big area seats and we get stuck with this crap! and we still gotta go back to LA from London and it looks like we’ve got the same plane very very unhappy!! flew Emirates business class and I wish Emirates flew from LA to London with fly with them every single time they know how to supply a proper seat. but I will add the staff were really really good and the food wasn’t that bad. I think the staff must be embarrassed when they end up having to work that plane!
Dear Virgin Atlantic & Soulful Travel Guy (thx for the site to submit comments) - Spent $8800 on 2 seats to begin a ling awaited special European holiday for us and several friends! July 6th, 2024 LAX -> LHR London & onward to Croatia & Italy… Honest comments which I would hope someone at VA will respond…. Pre-Flight: Booked far in advance and it went well, smooth in fact. Nearing departure date: There were multiple changes and itinerary leading to what I recall was at least a two hour difference from when originally booked. Phone Support: Connecting with anybody at Virgin Atlantic was incredibly difficult the several times that I tried to reach you. When I did get through one time, I was unfortunately connected with a woman that was obviously new and every question I asked had to be put on hold while she asked a senior person. Additionally, she was very difficult to understand and although I was patient, I didn’t get the answers I needed. At one point I learned that Delta is a 49% partner of you and then everything seemed to make sense based on prior Delta experiences. It’s incredibly frustrating to not be able to get a hold of somebody by phone for 30 and 45 minutes. When you press the button to call back, you don’t call back or it’s hours upon hours, At which time you might might not be in a position to take a call. Suggestion: An Upper Class phone line in this case might be a benefit you can add. In fact, having people answer her phone rather than going through the labyrinth of phone choices and button pushing of trying to figure out how to get through your phone system would be good for everybody. Check-in at LAX terminal: It was smooth, although a separate entry would be Upper Class. Lounge was nice although it would’ve been better to be using a VA branded product. Onboard Service staff were polite, sweet & helpful… Flight: It was smooth and problem free. Thank you pilots and onboarding with timely departure! Comfort: We Specifically chose Virgin Atlantic because of Prior experiences we had with Virgin America before it was sold. We thought it would be a lot of fun to be on a Virgin Atlantic flight and were very excited For the chance to experience the fun and opulence of the plane. We really and truly did think we were getting much bigger, more comfy & enjoyable lay down seats similar to top airlines. The seats/laydown process on the 787 planes were a JOKE. Thats not a Boeing but a VA choice and it’s based on cost not Upper Class in mind. We don’t pay that sort of $/£/€ for sub-standard procurement design choices like hard boards with a thin mattress and little to no elbow room. The layout, the size and the number of seats in the cabin all need to be adjusted. Larger, more comfy seats and elbow room for the same price we paid should be the minimum standards. Having to adjust TV’s and beds is cumbersome & unnecessary. I fully agree with comments below from another Virgin Atlantic flyer. The type of experience that my friends had on other major Airlines was far different than ours on Virgin Atlantic this time. With so many Itinerary changes along with what seems was a plane change (style and comfort of accommodations from the Airbus to Boeing) should really Translate into a refund or future credit. Super disappointing VA. —————- stuart timms spent over 16000 dollars on 4 tickets was so excited to tell the family that we will be flying upper class with virgin! I’ve flown with them before and I flown with Emirates in business class we were very excited! then we got into this plane and I’ve never been so disappointed in my life to see these horrible small tiny seats in a herringbone shape. I’m 6 foot one 200 pounds and I mean talk about tight and absolutely no storage. Why are they still running this plane? Why wouldn’t they rip those seats out and convert them to the proper lay down that you’re expected! a massive massive waste of money! we had multiple friends meeting us in a location that flew Delta, British Airways and United and they all had the traditional laydown big area seats and we get stuck with this crap! and we still gotta go back to LA from London and it looks like we’ve got the same plane very very unhappy!! flew Emirates business class and I wish Emirates flew from LA to London with fly with them every single time they know how to supply a proper seat. but I will add the staff were really really good and the food wasn’t that bad. I think the staff must be embarrassed when they end up having to work that plane! July 24, 2024
I recently flew VA, from BOM-SFO. Although the service was fine, the upper class layout on the 787 was horrid. It literally breeds claustrophobia. Unless they tear up the current business class config and change it to what they have to offer on the A350, I think I'll give Virgin Atlantic a wide berth. Surprisingly, their premium economy is much more comfortable than their 'Upper' class. Plus you get access to the windows in Premium. Also, their entertainment consoles were kaput. Imagine sitting in a cabin with no access to IFE, having all other passengers peoplewatch you and paying through your nose for 22 hours of extreme discomfort. Lesson learnt btw.
The new herringbone layout is awful. So clear they are trying to cut costs even in Upper Class while charging a premium rate. Very uncomfortable. Was especially annoying as I booked through Delta so as to get Delta One flights but then Virgin was covering my return flight. Delta One going out was perfect. Extremely comfortable and luxurious. I was expecting the old Virgin Upper Class which is comparable, only to find this dreadful layout. They will steadily be losing business as noone wants to pay first classes prices for what is best a premium economy seat. I will contineu to fly Delta but avoid all flights where it partners with Virgin
Absolutely agree with previous comments, the herringbone layout in Upper Class is dreadful. I've flown business with many different airlines and this is the worst. No room, no privacy. Bed difficult to operate and it lies completely flat with no neck support and the provided pillow is inadequate. This is my second time using this configuration and never again. It's like a budget airline doing business. What were you thinking Virgin?
Craig Bowe
Flew Virgin so called Upper Class from Orlando to London nonstop A330. The WORST business class i've ever flown in over 500k miles. Absolutely claustrophobic seats, weird 45 degree angle looking at the faces, legs and feet of those across the aisle and beside you. Zero privacy. Torsioned neck on takeoff and landing with G forces at that weird angle. Terrible food, not even suitable for premium economy. Very limited drink selection. Terrible 2nd tier movie selection. Gate crew in Orlando LIARS who said my seat was inoperative, but gave to a man who seat was inoperable beside his wife, so he moved back and forth to sit upright in his orginal seat when sleeping and in my original seat when sleeping, moved me to center section against galley. The flight crew was very nice and tried hard but they are in impossible situation. I really disliked all aspects of Virgin Atlantic and will never fly on them again, ever! Waste of $6k.