[Inquisitive]

MadProfessor – noted your post after replying NTarrant. Business class in BA is not good for a couple as the seat face each other and romantic moves in the flight will be difficult. Go is First class and book the middle side-by-side seats.

[NTarrant]

MadProffessor you have clearly done your home work and clearly you are edging towards BA which you would be right to choose. There is a difference between First and Club but on an overnight flight I do question the value as you are not getting the full value of the service and food.

However if they only want a few hundred pounds to upgrade to First it is worth it even for a night flight.

Inquisitive’s advice is incorrect and flawed, if you wanted to take a cruise to Cape Town you would have to wait for one of the world cruises from Southampton in January 2011.

Sorry just seen your last post Inquisative and would agree with that. Good for gazing into eyes though

[Hess963]

Hi everyone !!

As you have found out already–I am a full flat seat fan ! So with your choices given above–it could only be BA Club World or EY Bus.Class.

Which one to choose–well, I am bias here. As a BA Gold holder and if the price is almost the same for both—definitely BA. And you have a direct flight to CPT. Only when you really have better savings with EY–I would choose it.

Regarding service: well, I flew both in the pasts. I have not experienced the new enhance C cabins of EY yet. But the existing C class seat, entertainment system and food service was good. Actually BA and EY are for me –both par here.

Regarding lounges: BA’s T5 lounges are great and the EY new lounges in AUH are great too—but I personally see BA’s Terraces lounges infront of EY’s lounges in AUH.

Check-in experience: here EY is better–why ? You still have the exclusive C class check in area and felt more exclusiveBA in T5 is rather more simple, although it has a separate check in area.

So which one to choose: I can recommend both airlines having good and solid C class products–it is up to you.

[VintageKrug]

BA’s http://www.newclubworld.com is a great product and when transferring at LHR T5 you would have a seamless experience; much better than having to change terminals or endure another airline’s mediocre departure lounges.

You could consider outbound in First – giving you all the fun of the exclusive Concorde Room (waiter service at table dining, vintage wine and champagne, pre-bookable Cabanas for a totally private experience) – and also enjoy an Elemis Spa massage treatment and shower before you embark on the longhaul sector. The Spa treatment should help relax your fiancee, and ease concerns about DVT. Alcohol also thins the blood and lessens the chance of DVT recurring 😉

You can see a BA First Cabana/Concorde Room Trip Report here:

http://tinyurl.com/yd2sod4

On the way back, if you plan to sleep, save your money and fly BA 747 Upper Deck in Club World. Superb. Ask for an infinity bath at the Arrivals lounge when you return.

It is easy to mix classes on a BA Ticket.

Don’t forget you don’t have to fly straight through LHR to take advantage of the cheaper European fare; take a stopover of up to one month and the discount often still applies (though you would incur Gordon Brown’s extra APD tax if you stay in London more than 24 hrs).

So take your fiancee to Amsterdam for a weekend of…culture and a few weeks later begin your trip to South Africa; you can break the journey again in London and continue to AMS once again a few months later for another weekend break, perhaps once the Rikjsmuseum re-opens.

If a paid trip, that flight would give you both enough Tier Points to be just 20 short of the 400 required to reach BAEC EuroSilver; which when reached would guarantee you Galleries lounge access on all oneworld flights for a whole year, and a 25% mileage bonus. Perfect for your honeymoon!

[BABenji]

NTarrant,

Apologies for the delay in response…I have been out having 3 hours of my life and £20 stolen by James Cameron.

You hit the nail on the head…I’ve nothing to add to your earlier comments. I depart/arrive at Heathrow 50+ times per year which, following the 20% claim above, would mean 10 bus rides to/from the gate…which simply isn’t the case (for me anyway).

MadProfessor

As far as the ticket pricing is concerned…starting your journey in Europe can lead to some significant savings. I’m booked on ZRH-LHR-SYD on Friday which was considerably cheaper than LHR-SYD…by about £1250.

I also echo VK’s comments about being on the upper deck with BA…the window seats are great with the extra stowage and space around the seat. The cabin is quieter and I’ve generally found the service to be better as well.

[Jan]

Emirates would cut out yr need to go through LHR, not reliable at the best of times, plagued by delays from AMS.

Emirates start from Schipol, their’s is a great Business or First suite.
Etihad also have a brand new 1st Class cabin, dedicated First & Business Terminal, & new aircraft compared to BA. Their food & service is far superior,
Depends when you plan to go if B A Resolve their pending Strike problems again?

Here in NL’s It’s clearly a pain to go via LHR, & BA with a £3.1Bn pension deficit, & still set to lose £600.M this year!

Go for the Airlines who will be reliable No industrial unrest or unhappiness in their Co, new Aircraft, established finances.
You won’t fly anywhere if you have connection or strike action, too risky.
KLM course direct no problems, and they are excellent in Business.

[VintageKrug]

What twaddle.

As the OP is resident in London, he would need to fly outbound from there whatever route is chosen.

Despite the negative hype, LHR is an easy to use airport, and this is especially the case if flying through T5, British Airways’ dedicated terminal.

http://www.terminal5.ba.com/en/

BA lets you take a stopover between flights so no need to race through en route to CPT and at any rate guarantees the connection if booked on the same PNR.

Rather than that sweeping, unsupported statement above about AMS being “plagued with delays” just check the route statistics and you will see that to be tosh.

At T5, I have NEVER queued to check in. My last five flights, there has been a maximum of THREE people ahead of me at security, most recent flight there was no queue at all, my longest queue ever was ten minutes on a Bank Holiday Friday and that was prior to Fast Track being introduced.

Unlike the poster above, I actually use BA every week, sometimes more than that, so I know what I am talking about.

If you fly First, turn right directly into the Concorde Room; waiter service, Cabana, Elemis Spa treatment for you both, some great artwork to pass the time.

No faff with a connection half way through your longhaul flight.

On your return, extensive Arrivals Lounge, showers and infinity baths, full English brekky, mags and newspapers, net access, Elemis Spa treatment, (and Concorde Dining Room if you return also in F).

BA made a modest operating profit of £25m last quarter, and has nearly £4bn in reserve facilities, average fleet age is just 11 years and falling, Emirates made a similar £28m profit in the same period, and its fleet average is 6 years old.

As if anyone ever chose an airline based on how profitable they were *rolls eyes*.

I am sure MadProfessor will go with the airline which best suits his needs; to find bargains you may find the ITA Tool useful, especially if planning to “Open Jaw” the European sectors which would give you most of the cost of two Weekend breaks in different European cities included in your ticket:

http://matrix.itasoftware.com/cvg/dispatch

[hac12394]

My Mum is a BA purser- she has, throughout the last year only been on a coaching stand 4 times out of around 60-65 trips- you do the maths!!!

Club very nice, the second meal service is a let down so if you can go FIRST

[MarkCymru]

The positive comments on T5 are from people starting in London: security has got a little (but not a lot) better. For transit passengers, there is no fast-track for business / first passengers and the process can be slow. The BAA staff are often lazy and unpleasant. BA frequently decides not to board business class passengers separately and — when it does — fails to police the queues. The club world seat is good and I like the onboard staff but I’d take Qatar every time (you will have a bus transfer but it will be a priority-passenger bus straight from the foot of the steps to the business terminal or direct to the steps of your connecting flight). The lie-flat beds in business on Qarar are pretty comfortable; the full flat in first are great. The service is flawless. I’ve heard great things about Etihad but earlier correspondents are right: you never know what Emirates will actually offer as a seat on the day.

[VintageKrug]

I don’t always start in London.

There is now a Fast Track for transiting Business customers.

ALL BA flights offer Fast Track boarding from T5, and on my eight exLHR T5 flights this year all priority boardings have been properly policed.

BAA staff are often, though not always, both lazy and unpleasant.

Avoid lie-flat wedgie beds at all costs, they are horrid.

http://www.newclubworld.com is fully flat.

[PaulJennings]

After you’ve travelled 6 or 7 hours on Emirates or Qatar, to quote from that great film Oceans 11, ‘lest we forget, you’re still in the middle of the f***ing desert’. If there’s little difference in price, I would suggest the direct flight. Changing just adds another layer of nuisance uness there’s an obvious cost / time / route benefit.

[RBrown9]

Based upon my experience I would suggest that you try South African Airways. They do not offer First Class but certainly have an excellent business class offering and the advantage of a direct flight.

If you can get a good price, Emirates is certainly worth considering. But not for Business Class (as others have mentioned, it varies by flight but has not attracted rave reviews from users!), you would have to fly First. Depending on the connections, First Class on the A380 to Dubai, a nice break and a chance to stretch you legs, freshen up, dine and shop at Dubai international airport might be attractive. I think the onward flight to Cape Town also has their latest First Class product (private suite). You also might get a free stop in Dubai as part of the deal including a night or two in an excellent hotel, limo transfers etc – and free transfers are included in the UK.

Qatar Airways is always good (and the private terminal for First and Business Class pax is nice, quiet and compact). However, I think their flights to Cape Town all go via Johannesburg and do not feature First Class. And on their A330/340, aircraft, their business class features the (inadequate in my view) angled lie flat seating.

[SimpleDXB]

RBrown is on the money with his post above ^^^.

I also concur with his comment re Qatar Airways’ inadequate angled lie flat seating which made for a very miserable recent LHR-DOH-DXB trip. And I have to say that I was unimpressed by their Premium terminal at Doha airport (Doha airport is a dump BTW). I still cannot understand how QR retains its 5 star Skytrax status.

The only thing I would add is avoid Emirates at all costs. They are a dreadful airline, and I do whatever I can to avoid travelling with them (and I live in DXB). And anybody who would willing choose to transit through DXB airport needs their head checking. I even travel Air France over Emirates, and that is saying something! If you want to travel via the Middle East, then use Etihad.

[MadProfessor]

I think I’m leaning towards BA but I’ll do some more research on what you actually get. I’m concerned that the new CW layout may mean that we’re not sat next to each other. Then again my missus may like that idea!

For the same money I can fly BA, Qatar, KLM, AirFrance or Emirates. It’s almost double the cost to fly Virgin or South African Airways.

Thanks for all of the comments.

[PaulJennings]

Have a look at the seating plans to see whether seats are next to or facing each other (which you might prefer). As has been discussed on this forum and elsewhere BA will charge you £60 per person per sector to pre-reserve seats in club world.

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