Infinite Luxury? British Airways First Class in 2023

Рет қаралды 50,029

Күн бұрын

Experience British Airways First Class in this review of flight BA109 from London Heathrow to Dubai on 29 June 2023. See the BA First Class ground experience from the private check-in area and security channel to the exclusive Concorde Room. Whet your appetite on the array of food and drinks served at 40,000 feet. And check out whether it is all worth the upgraded price from British Airways Club World, their Business Class product.
#britishairways #DoorsToAuto #businessclass #flightreview #luxurytravel
MUSIC
The First Rain (Instrumental) by As Tall As Pine (Audiio License #: 4382013492)
Yours Sincerely by Hessian (Audiio License #: 6331218352)
CHAPTERS
00:00 Introduction
00:25 Check-in and security
01:13 Concorde Room
03:59 To the gate
05:36 Boarding
06:32 First Class cabin and seat
08:15 Pre-takeoff drinks and amenity kit
09:04 Pushback and safety video
09:37 Taxi and takeoff
10:16 Flight details
10:33 Drinks and snacks
11:05 Entertainment system and Wifi
12:18 Dinner
17:03 Bathroom
17:47 The bed
18:09 Breakfast
19:14 Landing and Conclusion

Пікірлер: 100

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

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.

@keiming2277 2 ай бұрын

I need to check the definition of "Luxury" after watching that

@cruisecrazy7066 Жыл бұрын

GREAT bathroom in lounge. It actually had a Bidet. Very civilized.

@byronradcliffe7232 Жыл бұрын

Excellent video and commentary. Very helpful and informative review.

@Alex-om1be Жыл бұрын

Subscribed

@michaelcollins6973 Жыл бұрын

To me this looks closer to a business class product than first. Over the years I have travelled buisness with Etihad and Singapore both very good.

@Locutus Жыл бұрын

British Airways has the best business class product in the Sky. It's called First class.

@tonyo7324 6 ай бұрын

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.

@thomas-xj1hs Жыл бұрын

It is more like a good Business class service when compared toothers on this very competitive route...

@johniii8147 Жыл бұрын

BA's F class has been a good business class for a long time now. Few of the passengers are paying for F fares, It's most for upgrades/miles etc.

@pacmanc8103 9 ай бұрын

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.

@thomas-xj1hs 9 ай бұрын

I don't understand this reply! BA first is simply not up there...@@pacmanc8103

@brianhall9893 Жыл бұрын

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 👍

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much 🙏

@wizardofthenorth8352 Жыл бұрын

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.

@jbentley75 Жыл бұрын

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.

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

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.

@jon-ie4li Жыл бұрын

@@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.

@tonyo7324 6 ай бұрын

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

@rogerbird380 Жыл бұрын

Can't go wrong with a glass of Saint-Émilion 🍷 Another great, clear review.

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks 🙏 The Saint-Émilion was great

@andrewallen2038 11 ай бұрын

Totally agree with Thomas. Having recently flown Qatar business class this is certainly not worth the extra money!

@gunvaldsandhaland7757 Жыл бұрын

I Havent Experience British Airways First Class Yet.Great Trip Report

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot! 😎

@internationAL21 Жыл бұрын

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!

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks. It was a flight from London to Dubai, which is scheduled to take 7 hours, but in reality took about 6.15.

@gberragan 10 ай бұрын

Low calorie sweetener in his tea after that series of gut busting feasts! I love it.

@DoorsToAuto 10 ай бұрын

Ha! You have to count the calories… sometimes 😉

@MStanleyRoss Жыл бұрын

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.

@lvthud Жыл бұрын

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.

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

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.

@richardstreet7518 Жыл бұрын

25 year old aircraft .... BA have to sort the fleet out !! Excellent vlog

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching!

@manosparavida3551 4 ай бұрын

Who's left the radio on in the background?😆

@Arandomguyontheinterwebs Жыл бұрын

british airlines at heathrow are great

@WxAxNxDxExRxExR Жыл бұрын

World's best business class, indeed... I remember flying First in walnut clad cabin on B747s -- what a difference!

@wizardofthenorth8352 Жыл бұрын

Hi Sherloc - are there any vids on youtube on the walnut cabin? what year are we talking?

@johniii8147 Жыл бұрын

@@wizardofthenorth8352 Just google it. Easy to find find pictures.

@iang4338 Жыл бұрын

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.

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback 🙏 Enjoy your flight next month 😎

@internationalsolartech Жыл бұрын

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...

@internationalsolartech Жыл бұрын

Enjoy your upcoming trip!

@iang4338 Жыл бұрын

@@internationalsolartech Agree re the sometimes mixed reviews. Thanks

@peterhastings703 Жыл бұрын

@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.

@mortongeezerone5673 Жыл бұрын

❤ £500 more than BC! Wow! Great vid thanks

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching!🙏

@willrucker1628 8 ай бұрын

Nice review, but for a first class ticket I am surprised that you are not escorted to the gate from the lounge.

@ukdavepianoman 9 ай бұрын

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.

@82attilatoth 8 ай бұрын

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?

@alankolling5760 Жыл бұрын

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.

@ozbolli Жыл бұрын

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.

@davyhh396 6 ай бұрын

Virgin Atlantic is far better

@Leo_Vasileio 9 ай бұрын

I've never understood BA missing windows in business class

@linesided 8 ай бұрын

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 :)

@mark5426 11 ай бұрын

How much where ticket prices?

@russefrance4869 11 ай бұрын

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.

@andyt9296 Жыл бұрын

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 .

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Emirates hands down. I agree with you that it is an enhanced product compared to BA.

@christianheld9720 Жыл бұрын

How much was the flight though? 500 more than BC is good but BA charge quite a lot for BC already no?

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Out First, return Business was £2.9k compared to about £2.35k for Business in both directions.

@bradowen761 11 ай бұрын

The hard product seems very dated for F. It is my understanding it will undergo a complete overhaul starting next year, along with new Club suites.

@DoorsToAuto 11 ай бұрын

The soft product was very good though.

@r12004rewy Жыл бұрын

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

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks 😎 I agree it doesn’t compete at the level of some Middle Eastern airlines, but if you are not flying east from London it’s a very good option.

@davidpascoe5842 Жыл бұрын

Only 500 extra then first is well worth it

@oldfossil8670 Жыл бұрын

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...

@DoorsToAuto 11 ай бұрын

Fair point! I was being accessible for my US viewers 😉

@agentbananauk 9 ай бұрын

There's no way a soup, roll and butter is 75 cals. That would be the most impressive first thing if it was real

@Michele-ot8bh Жыл бұрын

What happened to the caviar?

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

No caviar on board ☹️

@johniii8147 Жыл бұрын

BA hasn't done caviar in F for many years now.

@Michele-ot8bh Жыл бұрын

@@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.

@stefaniejanejones87 Жыл бұрын

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.

@johniii8147 Жыл бұрын

@@Michele-ot8bh It was more the hard product that doesn't stack up. THe food looked pretty good actually and well presented.

@scottgordon1781 11 ай бұрын

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 :-)

@berkeleyfuller-lewis3442 Күн бұрын

That BA seat is like a slightly super Business Class seat with a too-short "bed" and lousy lie-flat footroom. Unimpressive, not "first class."

@GWJUK Жыл бұрын

Business class are also group 1 fyi

@DoorsToAuto Жыл бұрын

On the return from Dubai, Business Class was definitely Group 2. Group 1 was just First and Gold Card holders.

@GWJUK Жыл бұрын

@@DoorsToAuto yes GP1 for Gold 😉

@kingston4821 10 ай бұрын

*promo sm*

@keving331 11 ай бұрын

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.

@johnmachacek3561 4 ай бұрын

That background music. Had to leave.

@flyerflier8543 11 ай бұрын

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.

@thomas-xj1hs 9 ай бұрын

Why not compare them if you are the customer and want the best experience?

@JoeSmith-hs4lo 10 ай бұрын

It's not my ideal first class more like Business class, I always fly Emirates def a better service in first or business class.

@beverleyferguson8942 Жыл бұрын

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 .🇦🇺

@simonharris7486 11 ай бұрын

Just looks tired and old, this is so outdated. However, good video review, thank you.

@DoorsToAuto 11 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

@harryazhol3587 7 ай бұрын

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!

@berkeleyfuller-lewis3442 Күн бұрын

Typical post-Brexit / "Tory" / "go stuff yourself peon" modern U.K. corporate attitude.

@harryazhol3587 Күн бұрын

@berkeleyfuller-lewis3442 getting worse, that was a year ago. Had a great trip to Ireland and Scotland this year. Delta!

@carolhewett3756 11 ай бұрын

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.

@Djm8520 5 ай бұрын

Absolute BS that First-Class passengers have a lesser lounge. Also, that’s a shite First Class seat!

@DoorsToAuto 5 ай бұрын

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).