We Are Now Boarding Rows 66-279! Less legroom, for more cramped seats, on Virgin!
Written: Aug 30 '02 (Updated Jan 10 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: entertainment
Cons: legroom, air conditioning, cramped seats
The Bottom Line: Don't forget the legroom!
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| jetbluefan1's Full Review: Virgin Atlantic |
About three months in advance, I booked my tickets for the airplane, to Cyprus. I did this via Cyprus Tours, which is a company based in Queens, New York. Cyprus Tours does airfare, hotels, cruises, everything. It has been my travel agency for trips to Cyprus, and they always give me the lowest fare. For example, a flight from JFK in New York City, to Larnaca Cyprus via Virgin Atlantic, was only $750 per passenger, round-trip, coach. This meant, that I would take Virgin to and from, London to JFK. Then, from London, I would take Cyprus Airways, to and from Cyprus. I could have flown first class the same route, but that would have cost around $6,000 more, per person. IS VIRGIN ATLANTIC CRAZY?
On previous occasions, I took Olympic, Gulf Air, and KLM. KLM, is the only one that compares to Virgin Atlantic, as Olympic and Gulf Air were horrible.
Cyprus Tours -1-800-221-8899
My Cyprus Review - http://www.epinions.com/content_69482417796
My Cyprus Airways Review -http://www.epinions.com/content_72037011076
My JFK Review -http://www.epinions.com/content_70083382916
My Virgin Atlantic Review -
Ticketing - When arriving at terminal 1, we entered a small ticketing lounge, with a tall ceiling. It was quite clean, and not crowded. In other words, it was not Manhattan. We heard a speaker going on, announcing the last boarding call of an Air France flight to Paris, and an Olympic flight to Athens. Once getting in line at the Virgin ticketing counter, we learned there would be a short wait to get to the agents. Once we made it, to the beginning of the line, and we were next to be ticketed, a Virgin Atlantic agent told us that the carry-on could not be taken on the plane, since it did not have backpack straps. So then, we had to take everything out of that carry-on, and place it in the other two we were carrying. While we were doing this, many passengers went in front of us, to the next available agent.
Finally, after obeying the bogus security rule, we made it to a ticketing agent. She was young, and friendly enough. It took her about five minutes to check us in, put our luggage on the belt, give us our boarding passes, and ask us the questions (have you been with your bag ever since it was packed?......). Since I am a ticketing agent, I have to ask those silly questions too!
Customs - This was done easily. All we had to do, was hand our passports to the security lady, let her see our tickets, put our carry-ons on the belt, walk through the machine, grab our carry-ons, and go to the gate. Yes, that sounds like much to do, but in reality, it only takes 25 seconds.
Gate Area - The gate area was clean, and quiet. There were also large windows in the terminal, which have been placed in, ever since the terminal was renovated. I stood by one of the windows on the other side, next to the Olympic gate, and I saw the CONCORD landing! That was the first time I ever saw a Concord in flight.
I also saw the backtale of Turkish Airlines. Uh-oh. Here is a Cypriot-Greek-American (me), next to many Turkish people. AKA- Worst Enemies VS Worst Enemies. Not just that, but enemies against enemies too! The Turkish Airliner, was right next to the Olympic Airliner, and a rude Olympic employee! Greek VS Turkish=Enemies VS Enemies. Okay, okay, maybe it was just a coincidence. No, I am NOT prejudice against Turkish people.
Boarding - After a short 20 minute delay, we heard the pre-boarding call, which included passengers traveling with small children, children traveling alone, and all passengers with first, or business class tickets. Then, it was us “coach-travelers” turn. We boarded in an orderly fashion, from the back of the plane, to the front. When entering the two-level 747, we were greeted with smiles from American, and English flight attendants, who were dressed in bright red outfits. The women wore high-heels, and the men wore suits (like what you wear to work).
When we got into our red and blue seats (made of cloth), I first noticed the personal television. It was about 6x4, and was attached to the back of the headrest, or the seat in front of us. There were two different buttons attached to the bottom of the screen, that changed the brightness of the screen, when pushing one. Besides adjusting the brightness to the screen, it also made the whole seat in front of you shake.
The Flight- On the television, there were trivia questions. These questions were all linked to the cities that Virgin Atlantic serves into. One was “Where Does Everybody Know Your Name?” The answer is Cheers in Boston. The theme song of the show Cheers is “Don’t You Wanna Go, Where Everybody Knows Your Name”. Also, Cheers took place in Boston, which is one of Virgin’s destinations’.
The trivia questions were only on while you were on the ground, and climbing up in the air, to the final height. Once at the final height, there were many channels to choose from. One channel was of a little airplane, that showed you where you were. On the bottom of the screen, on that channel, it showed the height (by every 500 ft.), the ground speed, and the temperature outside the airplane. The height went all the way up to 40,000 ft, the ground speed to around 600 MPH, and the temperature around -48F.
Other channels included shows, such as S Club 7, Friends, and Seinfeld. There were also movies such as Erin Brockovitch and Stuart Little. These movies started at different times, so you could not tune into them at anytime you want. You had to wait until the time it starts, to watch it. There were also video games, which included Mario, and Tetrus. Also, a little car game, which races against other cars. In this game, you get to pick your car, and track.
You could control your television, with the small white remote on the side of your right armrest. You could change the channel, and volume on one side. The other side was a video game remote, which was just like any other video game remote, except smaller. It had the A, B, and C buttons, that you use as transmission, brakes and gas for the car game, and for jumping, running, and walking in some of the other games.
The legroom was absolutely horrible. My legs were so far into the seat in front of me, that the person in front of me asked me to move my legs. I told her several times, that I could not move them, because of the legroom. There was absolutely no space. The pitch on Virgin Atlantic, in coach, is 28 and a half inches. That means, the legroom amount is about two inches ( ), less than any of these airlines: JetBlue, Usairways, Continental, KLM, Delta, American, United, AirTran, Alaska, Hawaiian, Southwest, TAM, Air France, British Airways, Lufthansa, and much more. That is even lower than the worst airlines. I have never heard of such little amount of legroom, and have never been more uncomfortable, on an airplane. Just remember, that you will hate the legroom on Virgin, even if you are anorexic.
The seats were also quite cramped too. It was 17 inches wide, which is average. Since the legroom was so poor, I tried putting my legs on the seat. It wouldn’t work. I would have to kick the seat in front of me so many times, for just one attempt to put my legs and shoes on the seat. However, to make the flight more comfortable, the flight attendants thought ahead. They passed out pillows and blankets for the short sleep ahead. Also, a small backpack was in the pouch of the seat in front of me. Since everyone was looking inside of their small backpack, I managed to get it past my legs, and look inside mine too. It included Virgin products such as socks, slippers, floss, tissues, eyeshades, a pen, and a pad of paper. This was to make the flight more comfortable, but I was already prepared with all these items except for the eyeshades (which I do not use).
The flight attendants were friendly, and passed out small plastic cups, with a drink and a lot of ice inside. The drink selection was extended to many sodas (including Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, ONE, Coke, Diet Coke), juices, milk, coffee, and tea. The flight attendants also passed out tiny packets of four or five pretzels. These were so delicious, but I could only realize that by the time I was done with all four of them (and they were smaller than my finger nails).
For dinner, we were served a small salad with Ranch dressing, chicken, corn, a bun, and chocolate. The salad had tomatoes, lettuce, and cucumbers in it. The chicken was warn, but had no ketchup. The corn was also warm, but was a small portion. The bun was hard, and came with butter. The food was on a small tray, which also had a plastic fork and knife, with one napkin.
After getting some good sleep (two hours), I woke up, and opened the shade in front of my window. There, I saw a beautiful sunrise, above the beautiful Atlantic Ocean. It was so incredible, and spectacular. There were so many different colors, and not a cloud to distract too! However, I was asked kindly by a flight attendant, to close the shade, to prevent light from coming in. She said this, because many people were still sleeping, and a darker atmosphere is more comfortable for a passenger while they are resting, or sleeping.
After yet another beverage, snack (pretzels), and a few shows, we arrived into Heathrow Airport, in London.
Heathrow - This airport is HUGE! There are four terminals, and they are each so large. Buses take you from each terminal, to the other. However, to get to these busses, you have to walk throughout the very busy, noisy, and crowded building. Then, you have to wait in a line, to get onto the bus, which will take you to another building. When getting into that building, you have to get into another line, to go through customs. Then, you have to get into one more line, to check-in for you connecting flight. Then......you are off to your connecting flights’ gate. It took me a total duration of 35 minutes, to connect to my Cyprus Airways flight.
My Heathrow Airport review is http://www.epinions.com/content_74752036484
My Return, After My Wonderful Vacation In Cyprus-
Ticketing - After running around, from the terminal that Cyprus Airways uses, to the terminal Virgin Atlantic uses, we got in yet another line to do our ticketing for Virgin Atlantic. After a 15 minute wait, we came to an agent, who was friendly, but had no expression on her face. It took her only two or three minutes to give us our tickets, and boarding passes.
Boarding - We entered a crowded boarding area, that was closed off to the passengers on our flight, only. We then boarded, after the pre-boarding calls, and were greeted with smiles, while entering yet another 747.
Flight - After all the safety announcements, we left. The flight went on, as the flight going to London. The meal was the same, and so were the snacks and beverages. Actually, the airplane that we took to London, was the same as the one we took back. Yes, the legroom was just as bad, and the seats were just as cramped. No matter what row you are sitting in, all coach seats are the same on Virgin, unless you have an emergency exit, or are near any doors. In that case, you would actually be able to move your legs. This time, the car game did not work on my television, so I used the one next to me, while my wife was sleeping.
Upon arrival, the air conditioning was acting up. Since our plane was tilting (for arrival), a brown watery substance (that looked like coffee), started dripping from the air conditioning vent. This vent is located right below the overhead storage bins, which you store your carry-ons. It kept on dripping until we fully stopped on the runway. The flight attendants held tissues over the vent for a short amount of time, but could not figure out how to stop the leaking. This coffee-like substance did not stain.
We finally arrived into JFK, wondering if we would ever take Virgin Atlantic again, while getting our baggage (which arrived safely, in one piece both ways). They were good with entertainment, and were average with food. The flight attendants were somewhat professional, and friendly. However, the cramped seats, and the legroom just kills! That is what made my flights so uncomfortable, and that it the main reason, for giving Virgin Atlantic three stars, out of five.
We Are Now Boarding Rows 66-279! Less legroom, for more cramped seats, on Virgin!
Destinations -
London
Manchester
Miami
Orlando
Barbados
Las Vegas
Los Angeles
San Francisco
New York City
Newark
Boston
Cape Town
Johannessburg
New Dehli
Hong Kong
Virgin Blue -
Various destinations, throughout Australia.
Virgin Express -
Various destinations, throughout Europe.
www.virgin.com/atlantic
www.virgin.con/blue
www.virgin.com/express
Virgin Atlantic is proud to be a code-share partner of Continental Airlines.
www.continental.com
My Continental Airlines Review-http://www.epinions.com/content_69480517252
Recommended:
Yes
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