Let me know what you think of the review. Do you think BA First Class is worth the upgrade from Business? Comment below, like and share. And don’t forget to subscribe for future reviews.
Untrue - BA F, while not Singapore, is simply not comparable to any carrier’s business class product (I’ve flown them all). I’ve found that because BA uses a reverse herringbone seating plan in F, some think it is like a business class. Totally untrue. The amount of room is entirely different.
A really good, comprehensive and well produced review - thank you! I particularly liked the clear, scrolling menus which saved me having to pause and crane my next to read camera footage. Having not travelled on BA First for several years, it's good to see improvements in their wine offerings and amenity kit. I'm still not a fan of the service - they seem to be caught somewhere between trying to be correct & formal and light-hearted & jokey. Unfortunately it still lags way behind the likes of Singapore and JAL and the overall hard product is still miles away from class leading operators such as Emirates and Qatar.
Thank you 🙏 I agree, the service is very good, but not at the same level as some Middle Eastern carriers. On this route there is that competition, but ‘across the pond’ from London this is perhaps the best you can get.
@@DoorsToAuto That's because nobody who flies to New York in first or business pays the bill, there company does but they get the points. BA can't compete on any SE Asia or Australia routes.
Their company pays for the bill? while we have to work very hard to pay for BC and now First C. We don't even use points because we travel with different airlines. Unfair. Maybe that's one of the reasons why the price is so high. Company pays anyway. Happy travels. @@jon-ie4li
Hi - good review. Love the factual, clear commentary combined with appropriate background music. Tells you everyhting you need to know. Maybe some additional commentary on the customer service angle - noticeable that actually getting onto the plane there's no "exec / 1st class ride" to the plane - unlike Lufthansa / Swiss Air. Look forward to the next one.
Very nice video. Good you showed the long walk plus tram ride from Concorde Lounge to the gate. I have not seen this before. We have to check in 4 hours not 2 or 3 hours to enjoy the lounge. We have to check out from the hotel by 11 anyway. Rather stay at the lounge than in a tight hotel room. Happy and safe travels.
Really enjoy your videos. Clear information. The thing that raises your videos above some others is the shaded text on the bottom of the screen. Some don't shade the text which then sometimes blends into the background and spoils the experience. Many thanks, keep up the good work 👍
I’ve never travelled BA First and with their new Club Suite so good, I think it can be a hard sell. £500 extra can be seen as a reasonable upgrade I suppose on a daytime flight though I wouldn’t personally pay the premium on an overnight flight. Sorry if I missed it but it wasn’t clear to me where you were flying to and the flight length, which adds to the narrative of the debate of whether this is decent value. I enjoy your videos - Keep up the good work!
Great review, you have a new subscriber. The old joke was that BA First was the best business class product in the air. That of course is no longer true. The QSuites on QR are far better. As someone mention previously, if you are on a flight with the Club World Suites I just can not see a reason to pay for first. With that said....At this time I am not flying BA right now, this would be for a number of reasons, but mostly the complete ineptitude of the call centers after a flight got cancelled, Club Europe connection LHR-AMS, they protected me by putting me on a flight that left 30 minutes before I was due to land from the US, that takes some doing lol. And for some reason, despite being in the forth row of CW, by the time they got to me, all that was left was the veterinarian option. Don't ask me how, I had 18 flights booked, cancelled them after 3. I will say great crews, but that's about it.
Thanks for the comment and the subscription 🙏 Sounds like a really bad experience you’ve had. It always seems that when things go wrong with an airline, they always go really wrong.
I've been flying BA First since 2012, most recently 2020 just before the pandemic. It's definitely a lot better than their standard (pre-Club world) Business Class, though the seat really hasn't changed that much in the last ten+ years. Food too can be hit-or-miss. But the main reason to steer totally clear away from BA is their incredible lack of customer service, mostly pre- and post-flight. They simply do not care about you as a passenger or value your loyalty. Thoughtful video though, I'm just not that interested anymore in BA.
You're so right. They'll never get my money again based on ground crew experiences. I once had my bag pilfered during a flight from Dubai to London and they refused to call the police as they didn't want to delay themselves getting home. Outrageous.
Excellent video - good filming and clear commentary. Infinite Luxury? Definitely not. No doubt BA First is a comfortable product but it looks no better than many Business Classes I've been in. Concorde Lounge is excellent, BA FAs always top notch, good that the food has improved significantly. Seat looks comfortable enough. TV screen rather small (I know it seems petty but this is First Class we are talking about!) compared to other airlines. At least BA are now heading in the right direction especially replacing their old, awful business class configs.
Thanks for the review, love the diagrams. We're flying BA First next month LHR to DFW on an A380. I've flown BA First before but only to LHR, the Concorde Room is on my to do list. Last year we were lucky enough to fly ANA first which was amazing. I really think it has so much to do with the crew, I've had the best and the worst on BA so fingers crossed.
I just flew the British Airways A380 First Class DFW-LHR and back from May 21st-June 1st.... You will not be disappointed! I felt anxious also hearing so much about how BA had gone downhill on service...however I must share with you, my experience was nothing short of excellent on this trip... The plane itself was beautifully clean and my first trip on the super jumbo...smooth as can be...it glides...
@iang4338 I hope you enjoy the experience! I flew BA to California in January - in First to SFO on an A380 and back in business from LAX in Club Suites on a B773. The outbound leg matched this trip report - Concorde room great (apart from the bathrooms); onboard service, food and drink were also great. The crew were amazing! A couple of suggestions - if you are travelling with a companion, take advantage of the 'buddy seat' on the A380 - you can dine sitting opposite each other at the same table! That is rare, I think! Also, First is 'dine on demand' and on my trip we decided to eat a couple of hours into the flight, and we missed the 'rush' of the people eating as soon as we got to cruise level. I think we got better service because of this as there were more available cabin crew. And the crew kind of confirmed this by saying that as there were just one or two crew assigned to plating up the food so, if it was busy (and there are 14 F seats on the A380), the food could cool down a bit while in the queue to be plated. The trip back was good as well, but it was an overnight flight leaving in the evening and arriving in the morning, so it wasn't worth any extra for First for me (and it was an Avios redemption ticket, so it wouldn't have been much more cash!), The Club Suite seat wasn't far behind the older First seat, but the food and service were a notch behind First.
Hmm. The pre departure lounge and check in desk were nice, but. Apart from the pjs, which I'd struggle to justify on a six hour flight, that looks pretty similar to Air France business class.
I am looking for my first first class flight having done many business sectors. Is BA worth it? Well, it depends on the cost doesn't it. I wish more youtubers would be upfront about costs, their perspective on the value proposition and so forth. And with less annoying background music. Unless the background music is a Rolls Royce on full thrust of course :)
2:50 I would really appreciate if someone explained the design and state of the toilets in BA lounges because I think camping sites have better facilities. Does this toilet look like something a person sleeping in the Savoy, Dorchester or Lanesborough hotels and spending thousands of pounds on a first class flight deserves?
BA First is 'OK' but compared to most Asian and a few European carriers like Air France and Lufthansa, the BA First product is woefully lacking and I don't think the term 'infinite luxury' can be applied to it. Flying commercial First should be just under that of a private jet. A car to the airport, private check-in and security (which BA sort of does) is a basic requirement. The lounges should be exclusive and have ultra-services. The journey to the aircraft should be private and escorted or driven and certainly not need shuttles or queuing at the gate. At the other end, you should be met and escorted from the a/c. I've never quite understood how BA get away with their service in First on North/South routes although, I accept they are about par with North American airlines.
As you’ve been to Dubai with Emirates and British Airways both in first class, if given the choice, who would you prefer to fly with? I would always choose emirates I like the food,I like the seats, I like the chauffeur driven car, I like the lounge .
Really good review seems as though BA have got a reasonable product now in first class but obviously not as good as Qatar etc, but BA let themselves down with poor bathroom facilities at the first class lounge and why are they still operating 25 year old aircraft particularly in this most competative route
Nice review but you referred to the "Bathroom" in both the lounge and the aircraft, however I could see no bath in either room so surely they were just toilets...
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… I wish people would stop comparing the likes of BA to the oil rich, state owned, government backed airlines with endless pits of money and no need to make a cent back. It’s like comparing a car and a boat… both modes of transport but operate in completely different markets with vastly different challenges and business models.
If l was travelling first class it would be with Singapore, Qatar, Emirates or Etihad. They certainly know about first class. But sorry BA & My own town airline Qantas would not get my business .🇦🇺
Timing flights is always an issue , what is the margin for error for connecting flights ? With that sort of spread , be there 6 hours before my flight :-) $180 / bottle for fizzy stuff , hate for it to go flat :-) 3 cocktails later , need a car to get me to the gate :-) Ok , first on board , I get , have to wait for us plebs at the back :-) My seat is booked . Hot towels are all over the plane , we also get blankets . Food does look fine , hope it is hot with plates to match . Do not give me hot food on a cold plate. Rice did not look that good . Only one dessert ? Would still have had Full English for breakfast . Crunch time at the end , 500 quid more than business ? , compared to economy ? Sure the seats are smaller , is it about the destination or the journey ? Yes , could make 1 /3 flights 1st /bussiness , why ? Can make more in economy :-)
@@johniii8147 disappointing for the price . It’s no wonder more people choose other airlines which offer a much better soft product for a comparable price.
I was wondering that too!! Also, dreadful bathrooms in Concord Lounge, I've had better ensuite facilities in hospital 😂 Long transit where you need to mix with the proletariat (i.e. me). Not on Emirates! Middle Eastern products far superior. Food on board ....... where to start, and I don't mean start eating........chilled Beef Wellington sounds like an oxymoron. Saw a BC JAL (maybe ANA) review recently and the food was spectacular. Airlines need to update with amenity kits. If you're non binary do you get both or neither?! 😊 Thank you for your lovely VLOG, informative content, good table manners and correct pronunciation of French wine. Shame no caviar, however it's mildly irritating seeing other reviewers struggling with it/not liking it etc., when the average person can only dream of ever experiencing FC or BC.
Wow. Shocking. There is absolutely nothing there - except a few pricier wines - that is not inferior to what the likes of SQ, QR, EY, EK have been offering in BUSINESS class for a decade or so. BA really is sinking to the depths of the US airlines. And that TINY screen on-board, and what looks like aged and battered seating area.
Well, as usual not all trips are good. I paid 26k for four seats 1st class to London from Chicago. I did this in June. It is December and I have yet to recieve my refund for a cancelled and degraded coach seat for 13 hours. The custeomer service is sh!t and India is the only people that will talk to you. Email only and asked to be patient for 6 months! Save your money!
Not sure what you mean about a lesser lounge. In the review I explain that First Class passengers can either use the First Class lounge (also open to gold card holders) or the more exclusive Concorde Room (reserved for First Class pssengers).
Alot of fluff for no other reason than to make you feel important and better than everyone else. Its time the climate/ carbon control crazies go after bv the One Percenters and spare the worlds resources.
