Our Experience Flying Premium with Virgin Atlantic Airlines
When we travelled to Walt Disney World last month, we flew in the Premium cabin of the plane and it was quite the experience. I haven't flown in seats any higher than economy before so to go that distance in premium class was something completely out of the ordinary for me.
Seeing as it was so new to me, I thought I'd write a blog post all about our experience so that you can work out whether or not it's worth paying the extra money for a little more leg room and some extra seating space!
Learn more about Virgin's Premium Cabin
Snacks & "prosecco, Ma'am?"
Flying premium, you get to roam the snacks and drinks that they store at the front of the cabin. From crisps to shortbread and Diet Coke to tonic water, you get free reign if you're feeling peckish or if you're feeling thirsty.
This is something that you can only do in premium class or higher when flying with Virgin Atlantic. So this in itself was super cool! I had never been able to just get up and grab food and drinks from the front of the plane before, yet here I was :)
There was a vast array of snacks available, including healthy and not-so-healthy food so you had a wonderful choice. There were even some vegan and vegetarian options as well so everyone was catered for in that sense. The selection of drinks was also brilliant and the crew kept the stash topped up throughout the flight, both there and back.
The snacks and drinks you get in your seat were somewhat different from the ones you could get yourself from the front of the cabin. The drinks, however, or more or less the same so it didn't really deviate in the beverage department, which is ok, other than you were served alcohol if you wanted it, whereas you couldn't just get up and go and get a G&T, haha.
The snacks you got in our seat were generally salted pretzels, that's really all you got with a glass of either orange juice or prosecco when you boarded. But shortly afterwards you were served dinner, with actually ceramic plates and metal cutlery. Your drinks were served in stemless flutes rather than plastic cups - it was like being in a different world in comparison to economy class.
Before dinner comes out, you're given a menu to look at and it can tell you when, roughly, to expect your meals and the selection they have on offer. However, a menu was only given out for the outbound flight to Orlando, not the inbound flight back to Heathrow, which was disappointing.
The crew would come round and ask what you wanted but you couldn't decide because you didn't know what the options were. It needs some improvement in that sense, unfortunately - not good enough considering you're paying the same amount of money on the way back as you did on the way there. It doesn't just stop with the lack of menu, but we'll get onto my other disappointments further down.
Dinner is served!
For my dinner, both on the way out and back in, I had ordered a vegetarian meal as I won't eat meat on an aeroplane. So on the way to Orlando, I had a vegetable curry as a main and the same pudding as everyone else - a white chocolate and raspberry mousse. The starter was a mixture of spiced veg and roasted tomatoes with hummus and green olives. Of course, this is all served with a bread roll and some butter, as always.
Again, you get given a drink to go alongside your meal, from Peach Schnapps to red wine, they give you the option of both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, so there's always something they can offer you to quench your thirst.
On the way back to London, the dinner was something disappointing. The vegetarian meal was ratatouille, which wasn't in the least bit filling. I didn't even know what the starter was and it wasn't very nice anyway and the pudding was also something to be desired. It was so unremarkable I can't even remember what it was.
For those without special meals, they weren't given a menu, so they had no idea what their main would be or what it came with. Tom didn't think much to the dinner, either and we could hear people around us complaining that it wasn't good enough, especially for the price we have paid. It's a real shame because given the amazing experience we had on the way into Orlando, I was really looking forward to an enjoyable flight home and we just didn't get that.
Afternoon tea - yes, I said afternoon tea!
On the way to Orlando, we were given afternoon tea about an hour and a half before landing. It was delicious to say it's served on an aeroplane. The sandwiches were delicious and the bread was soft and fluffy. The scones were warm and came with quality cream and jam.
The cakes were divine - a chocolate and raspberry brownie with a lemon drizzle slice. You were even given either a cup of tea or a glass of prosecco to have alongside it. You really couldn't fault the food at this stage.
Breakfast time
On the way home, we came into the country very early in the morning (yay - jet lag), so with that in mind, we were served breakfast and let me tell you, it was atrocious. You looked around at everyone and almost everyone had left at least one thing on their plate.
Again, there was no menu, so you had no idea what you were eating. My veggie meal looked like some kind on semolina pudding with blueberries on the side but, still to this day, I had no idea if it was semolina or not. I didn't risk it because it looked so unappetising.
The best part of it was the fruit salad which came with mango and melon chunks. The coffee was also something to be desired. It wasn't the best quality and I don't think it was brewed for long enough, either. It's such a shame because that was the lasting impression that I left with which, in a way, has put me off wanting to fly with Virgin again. But we'll see!
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I hope you enjoyed this blog post? Let me know in the comments whether or not you have been swayed to either give Virgin a chance or if you'd rather fly with a different airline. Would you fly premium over economy next time? I'll see you again very soon with a brand new blog post :)
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