Airline Preference: It's not about the miles anymore.
 

I've pretty much given up on playing the airline mileage game. I do not travel enough to rack up status. The miles I do have come with various restrictions, including paying a higher fare in economy to upgrade to business. Point: I am travelling to London in Sept/Oct. I am looking for comfort and service. Have you had a decent plane ride? If so, on what airline? There are some very low fares out there, but its also a question of price versus comfort & service. Thank you for taking time to respond.

I enjoyed my British Airways flight to London in November. The seats were pretty comfortable with indv. screens on the back of the seats in front. The seat had way to adjust it (lower back), more than just reclining but I can't explain it exactly. It seemed to me that they were going the extra mile to be nice and providing service. I think they had a bad PR spell for a time and are trying to get back in "good grace" with the public. That is just my spin on it, having flown them a while back and now. They also still give out "free" drinks in coach and give out a goody bag of eyeshades, footies, toothbush etc.

IMHO Delta is the WORST!! I had a very good flight on Continental to Paris recently also.

I always fly Northwest/KLM and rather enjoy the flight but then again I have a nack of falling asleep before the plane takes off and wake up when the wheels touch down again - with of course a few bathroom & food breaks.

We are actually flying to London for 17 days in Wales and Scotland for our honeymoon - and got the tickets with miles through Northwest.

And in my opinion, British Airways is the worst - - for their inexcusable FIVE KILO carry-on limit (yes, eleven pounds).

So, trying to figure out a best (or least worst?) airline is a very subjective undertaking.

Keep an eye peeled at the cheap flights forum of www.eurotrip.com - - where Don, the moderator there, was instrumental in my finding the best business class fare I've ever heard of in my life ($899 roundtrip, all taxes included, EVV-FCO - - and they had six seats for us at that price, in May 2001).

Otherwise - - anytime you make a decision to buy trans-atlantic air travel <i>in</i> <b>coach</b>, just plan on it being a crappy experience - - and you won't be disappointed.

Best wishes,

Rex

I do like British Airways, and don't mind checking most of my luggage. They make me feel like I'm already in Europe as soon as I step on the plane. I have carried their frequent flyer credit card (from Bank One) ever since I can remember, and earn a free flight to London at least once a year. Sometimes I manage to upgrade to Club World with points - now that is a real treat!

My favorite is Virgin. I have only flown their economy class, but have always been happy with the service, attitude and amenities. Last time I was able to &quot;upgrade&quot; to an exit row, (I think it cost around $50). Well worth it! We had about 5 feet of leg room. Anyway, the best part about Virgin IMO is the entertainment system. I CANNOT sleep in economy, so I therefore very much enjoy having a choice of 50+ channels of movies, etc., to start whenever I choose. It makes the time fly by.

United, United, United.

Star Alliance has the most useful network of partner airlines.

I just bought a roundrip to LHR, and the difference between economy &amp; H class (upgradable) was $40/leg. I'll take the upgradable, thanks.

Their 777s are wonderful. Food, total service experience: wonderful.

And, I'm proud to be flying on an American owned &amp; operated airline. Give them a call, I always seem to get better fares talking with a live human (but then you miss out on the 1000miles online booking bonus).
HTH

I like Virgin because I think the entertainment system is the BEST one out there, bar none. Makes the miles in an Economy seat go by much faster.

It's ALWAYS about the miles ! But, if that's not important to you, go Virgin. They have the best all-round service.

British Airways or Virgin, if you you're willing to pay a few hundred extra to fly &quot;World Traveller Plus&quot; or &quot;Premium Economy&quot;, respectively. You get a bigger seat, significantly more legroom (e.g. about 38&quot; between seats instead of 29-30&quot;), a separate cabin (separate check-in for Virgin PE) and sometimes better in-flight entertainment. I find BA's seats more comfortable but Virgin treats its PE passengers better than BA treats its WTP passengers. Same food as economy on both airlines. You can usually upgrade in one direction or both (e.g. upgrade for the night flight to the UK so you get some sleep and fly Economy on return; or decide to squeeze into Economy since you'll only be sleeping and reward yourself on the way home with a little space).

BA have fabulous new uniforms designed by Julien MacDonald - worth flying them just for that. Of course their service is pretty good too. I don't like Richard (even if he doesn't own Virgin entirely) so wouldn't touch anything to do with him.

Re: &quot;And in my opinion, British Airways is the worst - - for their inexcusable FIVE KILO carry-on limit (yes, eleven pounds).&quot;

We plan to fly to Rome on American, which partners with BA. American's web site says their carry-on limit is 40 pounds (it doesn't mention any difference between domestic and international). I hope I'm correct in assuming that AA will trump BA here.

nonnafelice,
If you fly &quot;upgraded&quot; first, the BA and AA 777s are the best to Europe!
Continental Bus/First is highly regarded as well, and often a screaming deal.
M

My...oh, my. Didn't expect so many responses to my inquiry. Thank you - all. Hm...preferences are all over the place. The airfares are about the same, give or take $20. Some thinking to do this weekend.

<i>Airline Preference: It's not about the miles anymore...I am looking for comfort and service.</i>

In my opinion, those points are at direct odds with each other. If you post this sort of question on flyertalk.com, you'll get a bazillion answers that say it's ALL about comfort and service, which is why those people are so nutso about attaining FF status. For example, if you're in American Airlines' elite program (which is not really very hard to attain - see the AA board on flyertalk) - you can purchase upgrade segments that work with any fare, something not available to non-elites; in addition you can upgrade even el cheapo fares for 25K miles - not a bad deal for a transatlantic hop (coach to business - they don't have a &quot;premium coach&quot; product). If you use (wisely, of course) your mileage-earning credit cards, debit cards, look for various bonuses, all that, getting 25K miles is not terribly difficult. BTW, status also gets you first dibs on exit rows, bulkheads, aisle or window seats, all those things that make longhaul coach trips remotely tolerable.

To come back to your question, though, American Airlines still offers its &quot;MRTC&quot; (more room throughout coach) configuration on all its transatlantic flights, and most of its domestic flights too (all planes except the dreaded 757.) BA is fine, and if you can pull off WT+ so much the better. But if it's a choice between steerage flights, go with the legroom. Use seatguru.com in conjunction with a website or timetable that shows you what type of plane is in use on your desired flights.

Where are you flying from? Is there any non-stops from your city to London? If yes, then take the non-stop over anything else.

Then, legroom is important. Since it sounds like you don't have any elite status with any airline, then AA would be a good choice because of MRTC. USAir's A330 also have good legroom in all seats from PHL.

Third is entertainment. Check seatguru.com and find out if the flight you're interested in have individual screens. It differs from carrier to carrier, and from plane type to plane type.

I have had good luck using my miles with American airlines. Try to book far in advance.

A comfortable seat in coach is an oxymoron - it just doesn't exist. If you can't, like most of us, afford a business or first class ticket, my first consideration would be the length of the flight - try to find a direct, non-stop flight. Why prolong the agony.

My favorite airline is British Airways. We've always had great service on their flights and most planes have the indiviual TV monitors. And I've never had a problem with their carry-on restrictions. As long as the bag isn't obviously over-sized or over-weight, they've never said anything.

I too have always had good luck with American. 2 of my 9 trips to Europe have been free, and my next trip to Europe will give me elite status and a free trip to New Zealand. I always get an aisle seat so it makes the long trips more comfortable. I have always flown coach to Europe,I prefer the free trips to upgrades. I have flown first class domestically, IMO not worth giving up miles.

My vote goes to Virgin!!!! Have flown them on all 5 of my trips to the UK and have never had a problem. I fly economy (like most of us) and am very comfortable and like the service!!!