BA777 biz class seats... what is best?
Rainbow Chaser
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BA777 biz class seats... what is best?
A couple of weeks ago I booked my next trip to visit friends in Florida and found a terrific Biz Class fare with British Airways which I booked (as it is been too long since I have flown on vacation I have justified the additional cost to myself!!). As a lowly Blue Exec Club member (have been for about 20 years!!) I booked this online and today decided to investigate what seats I have been allocated.
The a/c is a 777 and outbound appears to be in cradle seat config and I am in 5K (by the window) the return looks different (with folks facing forward and aft) and I am allocated 2G which is forward facing and in the 2-3-2 config is the RH side of the 3 ...
Can anyone advise as to which seats/options are best for outbound and home and what are the drawbacks of the new cot seats (if any)?
Thanks
The a/c is a 777 and outbound appears to be in cradle seat config and I am in 5K (by the window) the return looks different (with folks facing forward and aft) and I am allocated 2G which is forward facing and in the 2-3-2 config is the RH side of the 3 ...
Can anyone advise as to which seats/options are best for outbound and home and what are the drawbacks of the new cot seats (if any)?
Thanks
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Hopefully I won't get thrown for this but doing a search on the British Airways forum at Flyertalk might be a help.
IMHO, much of the Club 777 seats are similar in overall preference. There's no coveted upper deck like on the Jumbo for example.
"Old" Club is in a 2-3-2 so anything apart from the middle, i.e. the window is fine. New Club is 2-4-2 so again a window or aisle would be best.
Some people suggest that a seat as far forward as possible is preferable due to noise from bassinet seats in World Traveller Plus.
Incidentally, some have likened Club on a 777 to a dormitory, due to the large single cabin and impression of a vaulted ceiling!
IMHO, much of the Club 777 seats are similar in overall preference. There's no coveted upper deck like on the Jumbo for example.
"Old" Club is in a 2-3-2 so anything apart from the middle, i.e. the window is fine. New Club is 2-4-2 so again a window or aisle would be best.
Some people suggest that a seat as far forward as possible is preferable due to noise from bassinet seats in World Traveller Plus.
Incidentally, some have likened Club on a 777 to a dormitory, due to the large single cabin and impression of a vaulted ceiling!
Rainbow Chaser
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Bahrain Lad thanks for the quick response - I will check out the other place you mention!! As for my inbound config I have checked and you are right - it IS 2-4-2 .... geesh ..and it looks that when one is sleeping one is face to face with the stranger in the next-door seat grrrrrrrrr OK my seat is deffo on the right, facing forwards, in the middle section of row 2. The only window seat left is a backwards facing one in the last row of Club World .. is it still worth switching to that? I have never flown backwards ... hehehehe could be fun I guess! and at least I could turn to face window when sleeping!
Too mean to buy a long personal title
Yes, definitely switch to the last row of NCW as this is one of the window seats you can easily get out of because you don't have to climb over the aisle pax.
Just to prove that people will construct websites about anything, I think I can safely suggest that you have a look at www.seatexpert.com and www.seatguru.com. (Safely, because they're not "competing" message boards.)
Your configuration may or may not match those shown in those sites. In particular, I'm guessing that you may be flying from Gatwick to either Tampa or Orlando, flying out before 19 November and flying back after that date. If so, the reason for the different configurations you are being shown is that the aircraft usually used on those routes are being changed over to New Club World. However, there will be no first class on those routes and the cabin will be Club, WT+ and normal WT, so the layout will be different from those shown.
Are you flying out between 25 October and 19 November? If so, there is a chance that you will actually get an aircraft with New Club World anyway. The last three Gatwick-based 777s that are being done are due to be completed on 25 October, 19 November and 12 December, I think - so although the period between the first and second dates is being sold as 2 class, the airline will actually have one more dusked 3 class aircraft than the sales plan calls for.
Nevertheless, the comments about the seats in those sites will give you some pointers as to why certain seats are considered good and some are thought bad.
BahrainLad is right about the downside of being near the WT+ bassinet positions - you'll have to weigh that up against the benefit of being able to get out easily. However, your proximity to WT+ does depend on the way the aircraft is laid out, and I haven't yet seen a seat map of a JWY 777 yet so I don't know.
Don't worry about the person in the aisle seat whom you will be facing. There is a privacy fan which blocks your view, so you don't have to stare at that passenger - unless, of course, you both decide that you do want to after all. And the seats are like cubicles, so you are physically separated when sleeping.
The only seats that are not like that are the backward-facing pair in the middle, which have neither physical separation nor a privacy fan. But then, you don't have either in a conventional all-forward facing layout either. And the middle pair are good for couples.
Just to prove that people will construct websites about anything, I think I can safely suggest that you have a look at www.seatexpert.com and www.seatguru.com. (Safely, because they're not "competing" message boards.)
Your configuration may or may not match those shown in those sites. In particular, I'm guessing that you may be flying from Gatwick to either Tampa or Orlando, flying out before 19 November and flying back after that date. If so, the reason for the different configurations you are being shown is that the aircraft usually used on those routes are being changed over to New Club World. However, there will be no first class on those routes and the cabin will be Club, WT+ and normal WT, so the layout will be different from those shown.
Are you flying out between 25 October and 19 November? If so, there is a chance that you will actually get an aircraft with New Club World anyway. The last three Gatwick-based 777s that are being done are due to be completed on 25 October, 19 November and 12 December, I think - so although the period between the first and second dates is being sold as 2 class, the airline will actually have one more dusked 3 class aircraft than the sales plan calls for.
Nevertheless, the comments about the seats in those sites will give you some pointers as to why certain seats are considered good and some are thought bad.
BahrainLad is right about the downside of being near the WT+ bassinet positions - you'll have to weigh that up against the benefit of being able to get out easily. However, your proximity to WT+ does depend on the way the aircraft is laid out, and I haven't yet seen a seat map of a JWY 777 yet so I don't know.
Don't worry about the person in the aisle seat whom you will be facing. There is a privacy fan which blocks your view, so you don't have to stare at that passenger - unless, of course, you both decide that you do want to after all. And the seats are like cubicles, so you are physically separated when sleeping.
The only seats that are not like that are the backward-facing pair in the middle, which have neither physical separation nor a privacy fan. But then, you don't have either in a conventional all-forward facing layout either. And the middle pair are good for couples.
Last edited by Globaliser; 3rd Jul 2004 at 17:30.
Rainbow Chaser
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globaliser thanks for the info. I have just gone to the Exec Club site and changed my seat for the return flight - there only seem to be three rows of NCW showing so I have taken the K seat in the third row. Outbound I am in 5K, again only four rows of CW were showing, starting with row 2!! Anyway, I am actually flying out in the third week of October and returning 2.1/2 weeks later so will revisit the website and check on seats/configs again nearer the time
Last edited by brockenspectre; 3rd Jul 2004 at 21:12.
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Globaliser
Thanks for posting the info on those two web sites. Unfortunately they don't give information on EK and I am travelling Biz Class LGW/MNL at the end of August. Outbound is 777 and 330-200 and the return is 330-200.
Apart from the Emirates web site itself do you know any others which would give similar information on the best seats?
aa
Thanks for posting the info on those two web sites. Unfortunately they don't give information on EK and I am travelling Biz Class LGW/MNL at the end of August. Outbound is 777 and 330-200 and the return is 330-200.
Apart from the Emirates web site itself do you know any others which would give similar information on the best seats?
aa
Rainbow Chaser
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Hi, I have an ancillary question - kind of follows on from the thread about pre-flight dining. When I went to the BA site to check this out I was referred by the Club World section to the "Network Map" yet when I searched the entire BA site (using the BA search facility) for such a map I couldn't find it! so my q is ... how can one check which routes/flights offer the additional perks of Club World as they are rolled out?
Thanks in advance for replies
Thanks in advance for replies
Brockenspectre:
Do you have Macromedia Flash player on your PC? You need it to see the map.
From BA Page http://www.britishairways.com/travel/home/public/en_gb
click on Club World, then, 'skip intro', then 'start my journey'
'Network Map' is at the bottom right, click on the country of interest and a map of destinations in that country will appear.
It isn't comprehensive; I've been trying to find out if flat beds will be available on my Club World trip to Antigua but I can't find out for sure. I know that if I try to book WT+ for the flight I'm travelling on (beds are only available in Club if the aircraft has a WT+ cabin) I'm told this service is not available, but I've been told they already operate beds on that route, sometimes.
Do you have Macromedia Flash player on your PC? You need it to see the map.
From BA Page http://www.britishairways.com/travel/home/public/en_gb
click on Club World, then, 'skip intro', then 'start my journey'
'Network Map' is at the bottom right, click on the country of interest and a map of destinations in that country will appear.
It isn't comprehensive; I've been trying to find out if flat beds will be available on my Club World trip to Antigua but I can't find out for sure. I know that if I try to book WT+ for the flight I'm travelling on (beds are only available in Club if the aircraft has a WT+ cabin) I'm told this service is not available, but I've been told they already operate beds on that route, sometimes.
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Couple of thoughts....
Flat beds are on ANU, (did it a few weeks back), but given that some of the ANU flights go on to UVF (as I did), it may not be all of them.
An insider tip for flat beds.... MAKE SURE you are going backwards. The seat has a minor flaw... it folds flat, parallel to the floor, and as any pilot will confirm, most aircraft cruise nose high. Which means, if you put your bed flat, and you are facing forwards, your feet will be slightly higher than your head, and most people can't go completely to sleep like that.
If you wander through NCW on a long haul in the dead of night. all the "backwards" folks are out cold, snoring for whichever country they hail from. The "forwards" are visibly restless!
TA
An insider tip for flat beds.... MAKE SURE you are going backwards. The seat has a minor flaw... it folds flat, parallel to the floor, and as any pilot will confirm, most aircraft cruise nose high. Which means, if you put your bed flat, and you are facing forwards, your feet will be slightly higher than your head, and most people can't go completely to sleep like that.
If you wander through NCW on a long haul in the dead of night. all the "backwards" folks are out cold, snoring for whichever country they hail from. The "forwards" are visibly restless!
TA
TwinAisle,
Thanks for the info. I've been told that flights that carry on to UVF from ANU are fitted with beds and yes, I'm in a rear facing seat. I always have one, when available, mainly because I like the window seat. The only problem with those seats is getting out of them in-flight.
Thanks for the info. I've been told that flights that carry on to UVF from ANU are fitted with beds and yes, I'm in a rear facing seat. I always have one, when available, mainly because I like the window seat. The only problem with those seats is getting out of them in-flight.
Rainbow Chaser
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Thanks for the info y'all ... I found the Network Map OK but it doesn't say anything about the seating config. I am just going to rely on the "pick your seat" option via the Exec Club website where I have already made the best choices possible from the seats remaining...
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Don't forget Online Check In (OLCI)
As you're a BA Exec Club member you should be able to check in for your flight 24hrs before your flight leaves. As only 30% of seats are up for preallocation, you should be able to snag yourself a better seat through OLCI. If you don't manage to get a better seat, you still have your old preallocation to fall back on.
Non-members of the Exec Club who are registered on the website can use OLCI at T-12hrs.
Non-members of the Exec Club who are registered on the website can use OLCI at T-12hrs.
