Anyone fly United coach to London?
 

The cheapest fare I can find from Chicago to London departing 11/22 and returning 11/30 is $480 with United. I wanted to fly American, but they are more expensive. Is coach on United cramped for a 6 hour flight? Any comments overall on experiences?

I haven't flown coach on United to London but have done so to Paris. I may add that this was a non-stop flight originating in San Francisco so it was quite a long journey. Yes, it had the usual cramped seating arrangement. But for only 6 hours compared to my 10 hours, I'd say you'd be able to endure it allright. The price is good enough.

We fly UAL to Europe at least once a year. It's the same old, same old cramped seating as any airline. If you can get on one of their 777 flights, book two seats together on the sides of the plane, preferably in the emergency row. You'll have more room. And, think kindly of us folks who have to fly an additional 4 hours from the west coast. I don't think American is any better deal from the flights we've had with them recently. BA is probably the most restrictive and most uncomfortable of any of the carriers in your options. Good price, BTW.

My daughter is in London now, having flown United from DC. She said the flight was half empty, plenty of room to spread out, the service was excellent, they were on time and happy.

I have to say that I concur with Kam's statement about BA. We flew BA approximately nine years ago and the seating was not spacious at all, but the courtesy of the cabin crew and the food was very good (for coach). They also gave biscuits(crackers) and fruit during tea time. <BR><BR>Flash forward to 2001 and we expected the same service and also expected slightly more legroom. We were very disappointed on both counts. It felt as though they configured the seats to be more narrow than ever. And the food was, as usual for all airlines now, lousy.

Leaving tomorrow for flight SJC to Chicago on UAL. Will go early in the morning to buy croissants from our local French bakery. That plus a cup of lousy UAL coffee should get us through to Chicago. Also, just flew Air Lingus from LA to Shannon. The service and personnel are delightful, the seats are awful. I truly am beginning to fear for the deep vein thrombosis thing. It was an Airbus 300 (I think) and we might have had 16 inches square each and a recline of 10%. The man in front of me fell asleep and when the drinks were served, I couldn't stand a soft drink can upright on my tray because of the back of his seat. I just don't know how much more of this abuse they think we will suffer.

I think Kam and I have the same thinking. Why is it they allow seats to recline to an almost horizontal position while giving next to nothing space in between seats? It is so maddening to have the clod sitting in front recline his/her seat to its fullest. I mean, sure, the seats are allowed to recline but I wish other passengers would have some courtesy and think that there is someone else sitting behind them!! It's bad enough you cannot balance a drink or a meal on your tray but if you need to use the restroom you have to climb over your seatmate(s) to do so. It's a real torture to travel by airplane these days but how else to travel to Europe quickly?

UAL cattle class is pretty grim -- more or less so depending on whether you get a decent crew or not.<BR><BR>My policy on the seat thing is to put mine back too -- that's life -- and if your seat is in my face when I need to get up and I have to push into it I will.

Isn't American supposed to have taken out quite a number of the seats in coach, therefore, making coach travel more comfortable???

Make that "Hasn't" instead of "Isn't."

We flew from San Francisco to London on a United 777 in June 2001 ---- a long flight ---- and back to Chicago on a 7?7 (don't remember). The cramped quarters seemed comparable to the British Airways 747 we had flown on previous trips from Seattle to London. All coach seats are cramped. But we did like the individual seatback screens on the United 777 and the crew was lots of fun, which made the trip more bareable. Actually, we had no complaints about the food or drinks on any of or overseas flights. Very generous. Of course this was pre-9/11. We're going back next summer and are prepared for changes.

United isn't any more cramped than any of the others (can't speak, though, for American long-haul flights). And if you get the 777, you'll have more room than on the smaller planes. I've had good experiences with United, and almost always fly with them now to London.

Hey Jamila -<BR><BR>Hope you went with UAL. I fly with them all the time, the long nonstop SFO &lt;-&gt; LHR. Bulkhead seats in the triple-7s are great, but otherwise, any window seat floats my boat.<BR><BR>Unfortunately they've stopped their special 'seafood' meal (it was the yummiest meal out of SFO!) but the 10 hours seems to go pretty fast with them IMO.<BR>= )

Yes, American has added room between seats. While it is only 2 inches, it makes a world of difference--especially on long flights. Depending on how much more expensive they are and how important the extra room is to you, I would consider AA.

Janet,<BR>You flew BA NINE YEARS AGO-we flew them a couple of months ago and it was the worst airline I have ever flown. Will never fly them again!!!

We flew United to London in March. The coach seats are as uncomfortable as all the rest. On the return trip we were seated in bulkhead seats and it was much more comfortable with more leg room and no reclining seats in your face. The service was good and the food was decent, and much to our surprise the flights were all on time. We didn't have any complaints.

Had a great flight on United from Chicago in October 2001. It was only 6 hours because we had a big tail wind. Also, ask for "economy plus" as you have 5 more inches of leg room.

I flew last september Labor Day weekend. I liked it. Flew from NY-Heathrow, they use new 777's w/ personal TV's in coach. 777 is the most advanced newsest airplane.

Joe, read the second paragraph of Janet's second post.

Thanks for all the help. I bought the ticket from United!