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Aug 18, 2023

I paid $6,500 for British Airways' business

I paid $6,500 to fly British Airways in a business-class Club Suite from London to Sydney. I thought my flight was worth the price for 22 hours of privacy, a lie-flat bed, and luxe amenities. I'd

I paid $6,500 to fly British Airways in a business-class Club Suite from London to Sydney.

I thought my flight was worth the price for 22 hours of privacy, a lie-flat bed, and luxe amenities.

I'd gladly pay that much again for such a high level of quality and service.

Last month, I flew from London to Sydney, Australia, and splurged on a business-class ticket in British Airways' new Club Suite.

Last month, I had a family wedding to attend in Australia.

I'd be flying from London to Sydney, and with the wedding taking place just after I was to arrive, I wanted to travel in comfort so I'd feel ready for the festivities. I decided to treat myself to a business-class ticket with British Airways.

I've taken this flight several times since my brother moved to Australia, but usually fly in economy. However, I was intrigued to see that this route was currently one of a few with British Airways' new Club Suites.

British Airways first rolled out its Club Suite in July 2019, with plans to complete the roll-out by 2025 in all Boeing 787-10 aircrafts. British Airways described the Club Suite features as having "direct-aisle access, a suite door for greater privacy, and luxurious flat-bed seats."

I booked a ticket for $6,500 and while it might seem expensive, I thought it was a good price considering I was taking multiple long-haul flights that totaled 22 hours: London to Singapore and Singapore to Sydney, returning the same way, all in a Club Suite. In my experience, an economy ticket for the same return flight typically costs around $1,750.

Here's what it was like.

My flight started with a quick check-in at Heathrow, after which I waited to depart in the British Airways Lounge.

All business-class customers flying British Airways from Heathrow may use a dedicated priority check-in desk and fast-track security lane at the airport.

I arrived three hours before my flight, checked-in quickly, used the fast-track lane, and within a few minutes, I was airside and making my way to the British Airways Lounge.

In the past, I've found the lounge to be very busy in the morning, but since my flight was in the afternoon, it appeared less crowded.

The lounge has a full menu of snacks including sandwiches and hot options such as soup and pasta. There are complimentary hot and cold drinks, sodas, and a full bar, too.

I had a sandwich and took a quick shower in the lounge bathroom before my flight. I thought the lounge shower was comfortable, with Elemis-branded products, and it helped me to feel relaxed before it was time to go to the gate.

I was one of the first people to board the plane and made my way to my Club Suite seat for the 13-hour flight to Singapore.

I was excited to board and find my Club Suite seat, designed by Collins Aerospace.

Right away, I was impressed by the size. The lie-flat bed dimensions are six feet, six inches long and 21 inches wide, which would be plenty big enough for my height of five feet, eight inches.

I thought that the fabric looked and felt high quality with leather trim on the ottoman and arm caps, and a comfortable car seat-style seatbelt. I later learned it was crafted by Hainsworth, a fabric supplier to the royal family.

I also loved that the inside of the suite was lined with felt, and sitting down, I could immediately feel the improvements in comfort and design, and felt I had spent my money wisely.

The suite's sliding door was the feature I was most excited about.

The most obvious change from previous business-class iterations I've experienced on British Airways was the addition of a sliding suite door.

The door was kept open for takeoff, but as soon as we reached cruising altitude, the cabin crew unlocked them from their housing unit, and I could close and open the door at my leisure.

I thought it really made a big difference in dampening the cabin noise levels and adding a sense of privacy. I felt like I was well hidden from the rest of the cabin.

In my opinion, it was a vast improvement from previous business-class seats, which didn't have these doors.

I also found a blanket, pillow, and extra cushion, which I stored away for later use.

The seats were arranged in a herringbone formation in the cabin, all with direct aisle access.

The business-class cabin had a one-two-one seat layout in a herringbone formation angled at 30 degrees, each with aisle access.

I thought this allowed for more space than the airline's former two-two-two layout.

I also greatly appreciated that each seat now had direct-aisle access. I previously sat by a window in British Airways business class and disliked having to step over my neighbor to use the restroom. This time, I sat by the window again, and didn't have to worry about that at all.

The cabin had its own restroom for our exclusive use, as well as a galley and kitchen area from where the cabin crew would serve meals, and where we could go for mid-flight snacks.

The suite came with plenty of storage options.

I always travel with many things to keep me occupied and comfortable on long-haul flights, and appreciated the suite's many storage options to stay organized.

As well as a dedicated overhead bin, my suite had several nooks to put away books, magazines, and my laptop.

Just behind my head in the seat back, away from the aisle, was a small cabinet with a vanity mirror, and in the armrest by the window, I had two more cubby holes.

The first was small but ideal for my wallet, passport, and glasses. The second had USB ports, a headphone jack for the entertainment system, and a universal power plug. This was also where the handheld remote was stored for the seat's entertainment system, as well as the airline's branded over-ear headphones.

I could also put items in the ottoman, which was used as a small, accessible nook while the seat was upright.

A luxe amenity kit was waiting for me.

A sleek, zippered White Company-branded amenity kit was waiting for me on the seat. The leather pouch contained lip balm, pulse point oil, moisturizer, a toothbrush and toothpaste, earplugs, socks, an eye mask, and a ballpoint pen.

When the lights were dimmed later in the flight and I wanted to sleep, the eye mask and ear plugs came in handy.

My suite had a retractable table for working and eating.

The suite came with a retractable table that I used by pressing a button to release it from its catch.

It easily slid out, and I thought it was big enough for my laptop, and at a good height as long as my seat wasn't reclined too far.

The table could be moved back and forth as well, depending on my preference.

When the food service arrived later in the flight, the table comfortably housed the dining trays, and I was also able to adjust the armrest on my left side, which slid up when needed and then down again as required.

Easy-to-use remotes and touchscreens controlled the TV and lighting.

In addition to working, I knew I'd watch a few movies on this flight.

I very much liked the various ways to control the TV screen, either by a remote or directly on the touchscreen of the TV.

I could also adjust my seat by using a smaller, dedicated touchscreen, while another remote controlled all the suite lights.

I was impressed by the vast collection of in-flight entertainment.

With around 22 hours in the air, I knew I'd spend a lot of time using the entertainment system. The video screen was an upgrade on the previous generation's 17.5 inches, and is now an 18.5-inch HD screen.

I thought the video library was comprehensive, with a large array of international movies and TV options, including a healthy selection from the BBC, which, as a Brit living in America, I was very happy to see. After some casual browsing, I easily planned out eight or nine things to watch.

I was also able to keep tabs on the plane's progress to Singapore, and then onto Sydney, with an interactive map.

Wi-Fi was available for purchase, although I didn't use it.

A three-course dinner was served.

A dinner menu was waiting when I boarded, and as the flight attendant came to take drink orders, they took my dinner preference, as well. I stuck to water, although champagne, wines, beers, and cocktails were available.

I thought the menu highlighted British ingredients with starters such as smoked salmon or carrot and ginger soup, and braised lamb, mozzarella pasta, or chicken in black bean sauce for entrees.

Dessert was either a cheese plate, banana chocolate mousse, or fruit.

I had the soup, pasta, and mousse, all served separately on their own crockery with metal silverware. I thought the food was excellent, certainly better than I've sampled on comparable flights in economy, and I ate it all.

I was quite comfortable for the entirety of the first flight leg.

I decided not to sleep on the flight to Singapore, even though it was 13 hours or so in the air. I wanted to sleep from Singapore to Sydney instead, so that I could wake up in Sydney as we touched down there in the early morning.

For the most part, I relaxed in my seat in its various configurations to work, watch TV, and nap for short periods, and thought it was comfortable in every position. When reclined, I could rest my feet in the ottoman, and when I was upright, I had plenty of space to cross my legs or stretch them out.

The sliding door also really helped me to relax by not being exposed to the rest of the cabin. At the same time, I thought it was still easy to get the attention of the cabin crew if I needed, either via the remote control or as they passed by my seat.

We were served a second meal before we approached Singapore.

Around two hours from our first stop, the cabin crew served another meal.

The starter options were smoked chicken or mozzarella and grilled zucchini, with entree choices of chicken pie, tiger prawns, or pesto pasta. Dessert was creme caramel or fruit.

I ordered the chicken and prawns, and thought it was just the right amount of food before we landed.

When the plane stopped in Singapore to refuel, I used the British Airways Lounge again.

After nearly 13 hours in the air, the plane stopped in Singapore for around 90 minutes to refuel and take on some new passengers, while others departed.

I used this time to explore the British Airways lounge at the Singapore airport, which was open to business-class passengers.

It was around a 10-minute walk from the gate, and as soon as I got there, I took the opportunity to shower and change clothes so that I would feel fresh getting back onto the plane.

I thought the shower facilities were comfortable, and the lounge felt very spacious, with room to spread out and relax.

I noticed a buffet with hot and cold food, as well as a full bar, and hot and cold drinks. Still full from my meal on the plane, I just had a glass of juice and relished the opportunity to stretch my legs.

When the lounge made an announcement that the plane was ready to re-board, I made my way back to the gate.

More food was served as we made our way to Sydney.

Back onboard the same plane, and around an hour after taking off from Singapore, the cabin crew took lunch orders.

The options this time were quinoa salad, smoked salmon, beetroot salad, or cauliflower soup for a starter, followed by braised beef, roasted chicken, or stuffed tofu for the main course. Dessert was either a cheese plate, mousse, or fruit.

I had the beet and quinoa salads as I was still feeling a little full and didn't want another big entree before I tried to go to sleep. I had the mousse for dessert, and once again, thought that the quality of the food was very good overall.

After my meal, it was finally time to try the Club Suite for sleeping.

I was feeling very tired by this point, but putting the Club Suite into its flat-bed position was easy.

A simple push of a button fully reclined the seat and elevated the leg rest to make a bridge with the ottoman for a fully-flat bed.

I retrieved my blanket and pillow and within a minute or so, was ready to sleep.

It was a relief to sleep so soundly.

I thought the bed was plenty wide enough to roll over and sleep on either side, and with the door closed and my earplugs in, I wasn't disturbed by any cabin noise.

In fact, I thought the sleeping conditions were about as good as they can possibly get on any plane. I've slept on a number of different business-class lie-flat beds on various airlines, and would rate the Club Suite very highly.

I woke up with just a couple of hours to go before our final destination.

With around two hours to go until we arrived in Sydney, I woke up when the cabin lights slowly came back on. I felt well rested, and after a quick change of clothes and freshening up in the bathroom, was ready for breakfast.

The breakfast consisted of fresh orange juice and coffee, fruit yogurt, pastries and either scrambled eggs and ham, or a cheese and tomato baguette.

I was quite hungry after a long sleep and had the baguette. The meal was as good as ever, and I appreciated that the food quality was maintained so well throughout the entire flight.

We arrived in Sydney right on time.

As we made our initial descent into Sydney, I felt refreshed, well fed, and ready to start my first day in Australia. The sun was rising, and we landed within a couple of minutes of our expected arrival time of 6:10 a.m.

I arrived feeling rested and thought the suite's elevated levels of comfort and privacy made the price well worth it.

I've flown in business class on British Airways on several occasions, and in recent years, I did feel that it was in need of an upgrade. While comfortable, in my opinion, the seats used to feel somewhat dated.

So I was very excited to try the new Club Suites, and thought that the upgrades to the seat, from the evolution of the design to the enhanced entertainment system and, of course, the sliding door were all very welcome improvements.

I appreciated how the suite offered elevated levels of comfort and privacy, and on a 22-hour long-haul flight, which was really two long-haul flights back-to-back, I felt that it was well worth spending the extra money to arrive feeling so well rested.

Overall, the Club Suite was comfortable, memorable, and a product I would recommend to anyone taking a British Airways flight on a route where it is available.

I'm looking forward to seeing, and experiencing, Club Suites on all British Airways flights in the very near future.

Read the original article on Insider