XXX

We are flying Virgin Premium Economy from the East Coast US to London in May and are wondering how the seats, leg room, services, etc. compare with the usual Business Class (United, Delta, etc.) we usually take for overseas travel. Any insights here?<BR>Thank you very much.

Vic

It's a separate section ahead of regular economy. The legroom is a reasonably comfortable 34 to 35 inch pitch. That compares with their incredibly tight 31 inch pitch in regular economy. The food and service is the same as regular economy.<BR><BR>It's the pits compared with Business Class. AA with 34 inch pitch throughout economy is a much better deal. I try to get my clients on AA unless they are frequent travelers on UA. UA has the most generous pitch of 34 to 35 inches in the front part of economy reserved for the annointed. The back is a very tight 31 inches for the unwashed.

frankie delongfellow

get a grip

Gregory

Hi<BR>As its name implies Virgin's Premium Economy service is in between standard economy and business and is marketed as such ( not business class. )<BR>You get the standard economy meal service but with champagne on boarding, wider seats , about 37-38 seat pitch with a larger recline and lumbar support with headrests nad footrests.<BR>On the 747-400 there are only 20 Premium Economy(PE) Seats and iti s located on the Upper Deck in a 2-2 formation so it feels like a small jet rather than a Jumbo.Service tends to be more attentive as there are more crew per passengers in PE than economy. There is also additional storage space in a locker by the side of the window seat which is handy.The overhead locker is a bit smaller than on the main deck but the cabin crew can put the other bag in a cupboard. You get your own seat back tv with nintendo games and up to 21 channels.<BR>If the flight is overbooked you may have a chance of being op-upgraded to Upper class as they move economy passengers to PE and PE passengers to upper class.<BR>You will also have a separate check in, priority disembarcation and prioity baggage reclaim.<BR><BR>If you are used to travelling business class then it will be a step down but if you think of it as economy with more legroom and better service then hopefuly you will not be disapointed ( Virgin's economy service tends to be better than most US airlines economy service according to a lot of people)<BR><BR>Have a great flight.

Vic

If you read the above carefully, you get a little more legroom compared with AA and a lot more legroome compared with most other airlines. It's hard to quantify the difference in cost. Whatever it is, you must decide whether a the significant difference in legroom is worth the money.<BR><BR>It's true that European airlines have better service. The flight attendents spent less time in the galley gossiping. How much is an extra glass of water worth, that's up to you.

XXX

Gregory is right. Premium Economy is a very comfortable Economy service. While definitly not Business Class, there is ample legroom, a decent arm rest between seats, a foot rest and better than usual service. For example, last time I flew it there was a bowel of fresh fruit left out to munch on overnight. I've never seen that in Economy!! Also, not to be discounted, Premium offers Priority Check-in, Priority Baggage Handling and Fast Track service in the UK. BA's World Traveler Plus doesn't even offer that. If you want a NICE flight but don't want to spring for a 6000- Business Class ticket, although pricey, it is a great Alternative.

Julie

As previous posters have so thoroughly pointed out, Premium Economy on Virgin isn't really considered Business Class. I'll be flying PE on Virgin in May as well and it was best described to me as "enhanced" economy with some perks (see above for what everyone else has already outlined).

Rae in UK

We have now started to use PE regularly - primarily for the extra leg room (believe me, BA & Virgin should be MADE to increase the legroom in economy) but for me the separate check in and priority baggage claim is worth it alone! I also love being able to get up and wander around without getting in anyone's way.<BR><BR>The service is fine, nothing really special, but the space in the separate cabin makes all the difference to comfort - especially on an overnight flight back to the UK (first time I've ever been able to sleep on an aircraft!)<BR><BR>I guess if you are prepared to pay Business class, you should - I assume you want the luxury and pampering? But if all you want is more space and check-in priority, Virgin's PE service is fine (costs about &pound;1,300 each for flights from the UK to Boston/NY compared with between &pound;280 and &pound;450 for economy/coach)<BR><BR>Hope you have a fantastic trip to London.<BR><BR>Regards Rae<BR><BR>