BA First lounge at JFK is very poor

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Viewing 15 posts - 16 through 30 (of 34 total)

  • Travellator
    Participant

    Swiss

    Maybe the hotel wasnt informative enough to me


    SwissExPat
    Participant

    @travelator

    There were 2 of us and we received a card on arrival which detailed the spa and bfast options.

    At no stage was there any mention of cost except if you wanted a spa treatment or cloths pressing.

    Remember in T5, the arrival lounge has a full breakfast so it would be very inconsistent for the pax arriving in C at LCY to have an inferior product (ie pay for bfast)

    Regards SxP


    dutchyankee
    Participant

    @SwissExPat – 21/08/2013 18:43 GMT

    That is an outstanding fare, and if that comes up again, i would jump at the chance just to try it for the novelty sake. If you hear of such fares again, please let me know. Thanks!


    STORMIN'
    Participant

    Whilst this is supposedly a JFK F Lounge thread, it touches on various other issues, so here’s my two-penny worth.

    First of all, I agree that the JFK F Lounge experience is a big disappointment, to put it politely, but in the current scheme of things with Budget Airways, this should not come as a surprise to anyone. Everywhere you look, there is evidence of cost-cutting. BA continues its descent towards the LoCo guys – viz charging for Premium Cabin seat allocation and the rest.

    I recently flew the LCY / JFK route and if you have to travel BA, then this is the way to go. The big deal is clearing Immigration and Customs at Shannon and whilst this adds time to the overall trip (possibly offset by standing in line at JFK on arrival), the real joy is disembarking from a long-haul flight in the US and being outside within 5 minutes of leaving the aircraft. However, and this is not a criticism but just a suggestion, the service on board at the end of the day is just CW as advertised whilst, with very little additional effort and expense, why can’t BA upgrade the catering to somewhere near a First standard (it wouldn’t take much given the current level of BA First) just to make this particular service a little more special?

    Finally, the value of Gold Tier. I’ve been at this level, year-on-year, since the current system was introduced over 20 years ago. However, like everything else with BA, its value has diminished in recent years. What additional real value does Gold have over Silver nowadays – given that Gold requires 2.5x the effort to reach Silver? I generally do 100+ flights a year, 70+ already this year and am therefore fortunate enough to have life-time top tier Skyteam and Star Alliance Gold to draw a comparison with the offerings of BA Gold. My Gold has just renewed and I have already reached Silver level in terms of points but this will be the last year for me at Gold as I am no longer prepared to spend hours on geriatric and filthy long-haul aircraft just to achieve Gold when there are superior alternatives, often at far more attractive prices.

    There, that’s me done!


    dutchyankee
    Participant

    @STORMIN’ – 22/08/2013 07:11 GMT

    I enjoyed your post. I have yet to try the LCY-JFK service and really want to do so as it seems quite unique. I would agree with you regarding the catering as I would have hoped that such unique flights with only max 32 passengers would have an improved catering offer as from what I have seen, the costs are normally quite high for the LCY flights.

    I agree 100% with you regarding the devaluation of Gold,and while I will requalify next month for another year, I, like you, will no longer make any effort to do so in the future, and have already started to split my spend between BA and Star carriers to try to build status in Star Alliance. I dont see any difference between Silver and Gold on BA, except for access to the First Class lounges.


    StephenLondon
    Participant

    @SxP – the CCR at JFK is not new…it has been there for years and opened to F pax when Concorde ceased to fly. The service and food in the CCR is very good. They are able to cook differently in the JFK kitchens vs T5 as they have a grill, fryer, etc which is not permitted by LHR Inc. Alcohol in the JFK CCR is disappointing. Same fizz and wines served in F Lounge, for example. It may have something to do with tax, but I am not certain about that.

    @Travellator-For the LCY flight, adding up to 64 extra guests per night into the CCR at JFK would overwhelm it…there is not enough space to accommodate everyone, plus F pax, CCR card holders and Prems.


    Travellator
    Participant

    Stephen London

    Yes thought about capacity after my post – wasn’t sure how big the CCR is in JFK.

    I did think on our trip that the pre dining was pretty good however.


    BriefStyle
    Participant

    The CCR is fine for dinner, but the first lounge can be challenging at times


    NNoah16
    Participant

    CCR lounge at JFK is fine and quiet though not enough magazines to take away.
    FIRST lounge is average, nothing special at all.
    I just renewed my BA Gold for a year and have been Gold for the past 20 years but this is it. Not worth it anymore.
    Silver is fine and enough, benefits watered down.
    Soon Bronze would be enough.
    Products either old or not updated, service getting worse, benefits watered down. Farewell BA.


    IanFromHKG
    Participant

    IN a recent post on another thread, (someone masquerading as?) a non-commissioned officer posted a link to BA’s description of first class:

    http://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/travel-classes/first/first

    Looking at it, I was struck by the introductory wording:

    First is your ticket to exceptional comfort and impeccable service in our most elegant surroundings. It’s the finest way to travel:
    …•access to luxurious lounges and spa treatments

    Well, on my only recent trip in First, they signally failed to deliver on that promise. I flew JNB to LHR, and the First lounge in JNB was pisspoor, frankly. Admittedly, they couldn’t do much about the appalling racket from a shop downstairs which was playing heavy-beat music way too loud, but:
    * the lounge dragons were surly and unwelcoming
    * the food selection was awful – and exactly the same as business class
    * the cleanliness of the facility left much to be desired
    * the bathrooms were similarly dilapidated and inadequately cleaned – and which muppet decided it would be a good idea to put the pedal-operated bin (into which you need to put your paper towels) on a shelf?
    * the wine selection was decidedly below par – and largely the same as in business class
    * the selection of newspapers and magazines was very limited – and exactly the same as business class

    In fact, the only discernible difference between the first and business lounges was that (a) the former had two additional spirits/liqueurs plus a very mediocre champagne available and (b) the latter was much bigger


    SergeantMajor
    Participant

    The Concorde Room is the premium lounge for those travelling in First from Heathrow or JFK.

    I like the suggestion that those using the A318 service to London City should have access to it.


    JonathanM8
    Participant

    I like the suggestion that LCY passengers could use the Concorde Room at JFK too, but there may be issues over seating capacity


    rferguson
    Participant

    Why should those on the A318 flight have access to the CCR?

    JFK-LCY is a club World product. Club World booking class. Thus the onboard service is exactly the same as any other CW flight on the route, bar a few tweaks.

    It would be a pretty inconsistent product: CCR access @ JFK pre flight yet no ‘proper’ lounge access at all at LCY pre flight.

    And in times when people travelling First are questioning the reasons to book F over Club I can imagine this kind of thing would make them question it even more. I would be a bit peeved if I was a passenger in F and the lounge was also offered to pax on the JFK-LCY route, crowding it and making service slower and more hectic. If BA did open up CCR to the A318 CLUB passengers we would within days have a thread on here slating BA for downgrading the F product on the ground at JFK as Club LCY pax were now also being given access to the CCR.

    The CCR lounges are the only two ‘true’ F lounges dedicated to F passengers that BA has. I would doubt there would be any F passengers in the F lounge @ LHR or JFK. They should really be rebranded as ‘gold’ or ’emerald’ lounges as this is what they are really there for.

    But as my mother used to say: if you don’t do something properly, don’t do it at all. This most DEFINITELY applies to the JNB lounge. They should go down the same path QF has in SYD (and is apparently considering for their new HKG lounge). A vastly upgraded single facility catering for all premium pax/status level pax. A passenger on a recent flight from SIN to LHR in F told me he walked into the BA F SIN lounge and straight out again and headed to the QF J lounge which was far superior.

    Oh, Travellator btw. I wasn’t trying to hijack the thread in my earlier post. Was just touching on the subject of some posters questioning the value of Gold vs Silver. While most of the BA F lounges are nothing to rave about (as this thread has described) the Gold card still opens the doors to some of the best F lounges in the world (eg Cathays new lounge in HKG or Qantas’ supposed amazing lounge in SYD). So depending on where your travels take you regularly, it could still be a desirable status to hold. While not disagreeing the benefits have been watered down substantially.

    ***these are only my personal opinions and not that of my employer***


    SwissExPat
    Participant

    I agree with largely all RFerguson says… But BA is essentially nodding and winking at the LCY as being an ‘almost F’ product with the F level avios and tier points.

    Also the special (and in point of fact the only) lounge at LCY (gate 24) is a very decent one whose main charm is that it is ONLY available to the Pax on your premium flight and hence you have a feeling of joint venture with your fellow pax, probably something that is almost completely Unavilable nowadays. I guess that one would need to go back to the flying boat days to capture this. Indeed, Mrs exPat really enjoyed this aspect of our journey and was able to chat to a well known high ranked ATP tennis player as a result!

    I’d not suggest full access to CCR for LCY pax at JFK but would suggest that the ‘in no mans land’ so called F lounge at JFK be upgraded and possibly allow LCY pax access.


    FormerlyDoS
    Participant

    I wouldn’t be surprised if the LCY services are pruned or even cut in the next year or two.

    Time will tell.

    Meanwhile, I think R Fergusons views about the potential impact on F of allowing CWLCY pax into the CCR are sensible.

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