Virgin Atlantic: A Nightmare on VS18 As my last posting refers to, I was on the VS18 on Virgin Atlantic from Newark (NYC) to London Heathrow on Thursday 15 February that was due to take off at 08.20 AM. After delays due to a “navigation computer” error we took off late but after 40 minutes we were told there was smoke and they dumped fuel and we landed at JFK as that was the closest airport. Now, I have NO problems with airlines being safety driv…
Virgin Atlantic Upper Class Review This is a review of Virgin Upper Class, and includes the Virgin Wing Drive-in Check In and Virgin Upper Class Lounge at London Heathrow. Virgin Upper Class Cabin on 747 It has been a while since I last reviewed Virgin Upper Class, and as I have flown the service again to New York, thought it was time to take some new photos and write a fresh and new review. This is it. Airlines are struggling. This is especially…
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse Heathrow, originally uploaded by garybembridge. I got an email from Rachel that said: “I saw your photos and write up on the Virgin Clubhouse at Heathrow after Googling! It looks fab. We are going to NYC next month and I’m wondering whether it’s worth treating ourselves before we fly – Virgin are asking £60 each for access. We fly from Terminal 3, is that where it is? And is everything (food, drink, massage, haircut(!) e…
Got this email from “Richard Branson” about the review that Virgin Atlantic is doing about the future on the in-flight therapists on their Upper Class service. Although it is a review, I guess we can assume they are going. I always thought it was a slightly strange idea, and never in all the times I have flown Virgin ever used them. Though I know some people think they are a great idea. But it did seem like one extra crew and space being used tha…
…after 40 years of service, and Cunard could still offer the flagship Transatlantic Crossing that makes Cunard so distinctive and unique. The resources of Carnival has meant that Cunard has been able to invest in marketing and expanding. No doubt the merging and leveraging of back office facilities and purchasing will have driven down costs for Cunard.The Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth being launched in 2007 and 2010 respectively. Cunard Queen…
…is built to be an Ocean Liner to do many sea day journeys due to the Transatlantic Crossing schedule, the ship holds dramatically less passengers than cruise liners of similar size. There are many large pubic areas, lounges, theatres and other spaces that you just do not have on regular cruise ships. Even though the ship is now 10 years old, it is still grand, classic and appealing. In port it is still the ship that everyone turns to look at and…
…h the Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mary 2. Most of these have been winter crossings and not the more popular summer crossings. The seas and winds are usually much rougher and harsh than in the summer, which is why the main season is in the warm months. I made this short film to show what it is like to be at sea in Force 10 winds and seas classified as “very rough”. The ship, as it is designed as an ocean liner to cope with the North Atlantic, han…
…train service have taken a large share of the consumer and trade business crossing the channel. However, there is still a large Ferry Crossing business that runs between Dover in the UK and Calais in France. These 2 cities are on either sides of the narrow crossing point better known as the Dover Straits. Some of the Ferry Operators and the faster Catamaran Services did not survive the competition that Eurostar brought, while services like the Ho…
…I have posted the 45th in my Tips For Travellers (Global Travel Destination Podcast), this one is about a Transatlantic Crossing on Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 from New York to Southampton. To listen to the podcast you can either “right click” this link and save the MP3 file to your computer and then listen to it, or if you use iTunes you could subscribe to the podcast series (which is free) by clicking here…
…This is a video we made of us on the QM2 crossing in April. More about what we did than the ship…..
…slight shudder as we passed over the line. After lunch was the traditional Crossing the Equator Ceremony The Crossing the Line Ceremony is a long-standing naval tradition among the Royal Navy, British Merchant Navy, Dutch Merchant Navy, US Navy, US Coast Guard, US Marine Corps, Royal Australian and Russian Navy to commemorate the first time a sailor crosses the Equator. The exact origins are disputed but have been embraced by many cruise lines lik…
