Review from the perspective of a leisure traveller in their 20s. Flown in September 2017. Enjoy!
PART ONE
VA223
Melbourne (MEL) to Adelaide (ADL)
STD/ATD 12:05/12:32
STA/ATA 12:50/13:05
1hr 3m
Boeing 737-800 (VH-VUR)
Booking and check-in
In August I find myself needing to dash across in the next month to Melbourne for a work function while also heading to Sydney later that week for a short break. And right on cue, I received notification from SQ of expiring KrisFlyer points (that trip report you can find also on A.net). Fortunately SQ allows KrisFlyer points to be transferred to VA Velocity, who then allow family transfers, so I soon am sitting on nearly 60,000 VA Velocity points in addition to my own personal stash. Time to find award seats!
From my personal experience, VA has a good availability of J award seats on domestic routes, more than QF. They were easy to grab even with only a few days to a couple of weeks’ notice. I had no difficulty booking J award seats for my preferred dates. Unfortunately VA’s website and app are disappointing. The main VA website is separate from its Velocity Frequent Flyer arm, and despite transferring points through Velocity (which is an instantly updated transfer on the Velocity site) it took some troubleshooting and a few hours later for them to appear on the VA booking website. Furthermore, the mobile VA app has a tile design which looks good from a cursory glance but is not user friendly. There are multiple layers, the tiles are scattered around the app without much order, nor is it optimised for iPhone 6 or later. That’s poor form in 2017. QF’s app is much quicker and user friendly.
Airport and lounge
I usually take the SkyBus (and pocket some additional Velocity points in return) when transiting from Melbourne’s CBD to Tullamarine (MEL). VA’s domestic operations are out of T3, which has six priority check-in counters, so within a minute I had my bags checked through to ADL.
The check-in agent directed me to the VA lounge which is before security screening.
Using the self-serve scanner, I registered myself with my boarding pass and proceeded to take a look around the lounge before settling down. The design of this lounge is very open, curvy and light; lots of large tiles, cool ceiling design, ambient LED lighting, opaque glass and woods. There is a wavy design motif that is carried through from the walls to the seats and the bar. Nice work here VA.
A highlight was having a perfect view out to the VA departure gates from the lounge, which also meant I was able to spot both of QF’s special livery 737s and their new ‘Silver Roo’ livery A330.
Food was fine although I did not eat much. Staff are in abundance which means used cutlery and crockery is collected quickly. It was a very clean lounge. There are a number of different seating areas including work desks. Of note was the availability of beer and wine from the bar from 11am, unlike Qantas Club who (if I recall correctly) don’t start drinks service until 12pm. Wine is self-serve (as it is in Qantas Club).
This lounge offers Premium Exit. It is a private screening line for VA lounge guests only, accessible from the lounge, that exits straight to the departure gates. It was quick and efficient, and I’d imagine useful during peak hour here at MEL as T3 isn’t too spacious.
Boarding and pre-flight
The priority lanes were not enforced for this flight but I was still one of the first to board. 6 out of 8 J seats had water bottles placed on the arm rests: I let out a sigh of relief assuming that, with only one water bottle by my seat (I had 1A), I had nobody next to me! This is in lieu of a pre-flight drinks service.
VA’s 737 J hard product is a black leather armchair with a width of 19.5” and a seat pitch of 38”. The width is narrower than the same seat on QF’s 737 but there is greater pitch. The Virgin logo is embossed on the backrest, which is manually adjustable. There is not a great deal of recline, and unlike on QF, there is no footrest. The tray tables fold out of the individual armrests while a drinks tray slides out of the centre shared armrest.
There is much debate as to whether row 1 or row 2 is the better seat on this aircraft. For this flight I found that there was enough legroom despite having the bulkhead in front of me (I’m 6 feet tall). I’ll be back in 2A on my second flight so I’ll reach a final verdict then.
Disappointingly there were no power points or USB sockets to recharge devices with. In-flight entertainment is via Wi-Fi streaming to passengers’ electronic devices through the Virgin entertainment app.
Our CSM greeted us and took lunch orders prior to takeoff. The choice was a red duck curry or a curried cauliflower soup with chicken. Both were served with a cheese plate (Angus Vale cheddar) with quince paste and crisp bread, a warm bread roll with butter, and a small carrot cake. I opted for the curry and noted that while 5 of the 6 J passengers went for the same curry, all first preferences were met, so no disappointment with having to take second preference. Drinks choices were also taken, offering water, juice, soft drinks, beer and wine (Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon).
The pre-flight announcements were automated; automated announcements don’t do much for me, I find them too impersonal and while acceptable on LCCs, not befitting of a full service carrier. However, I was glad to hear the captain come on once the doors were closed and introduce himself, running through our flight path, the weather ahead and flying time. It’s a small touch that I appreciate, but I find it’s hit-and-miss on QF and VA as it is often done away with completely.
Flight
A swift taxi over to runway 34 saw us wheels up at 12:32pm, nearly 30 minutes late, leaving MEL behind us. A couple of left turns and we were tracking towards ADL climbing up to 38,000 feet.
Lunch was briskly served. As opposed to QF who serve from the trolley in both J and Y, VA serve from the galley on a tray to the table, which I suppose has a more “premium” feel although I’d assume this is only done because the cabin is too small to justify a trolley.
The duck itself was okay, it was not the most tender meat I’d ever eaten but it was still enjoyable. The sauce has a bit of bite but I like the chilli. It could have done with a few more vegetables. I love cheese, and while the carrot cake dessert is small, the whole lunchtime meal for a flight of this duration is a good portion.
VA’s crockery and wine glasses feel high quality, and unlike other airlines such as Club Europe in BA where wine is served out of plastic mini-wine bottles, VA serves the wine out of the full glass bottle into wine glasses like QF. The purser was quite busy as the trays had to be packed away in a hurry before landing but still came through and offered more wine before descent.
A scenic route took us along Encounter Bay before a series of right hand turns put us on track for an over-water arrival on ADL’s 05.
Overall a quick but comfortable flight, I’ll save my final conclusion on the VA 737 J experience for after my second flight which starts right now…
PART TWO
VA437
Adelaide (ADL) to Sydney (SYD)
STD/ATD 18:25/18:46
STA/ATA 20:45/20:41
1h 25m
Boeing 737-800 (VH-VOS)
Airport and lounge
The VA lounge in Adelaide is much smaller than Melbourne’s. As such at peak time it felt rather cramped and loud. There is a main lounge area with a small bar and food buffet, overlooking the construction site at the front of ADL. Tucked away near the exit is a quieter and more private seating area, so I parked myself there for about 40 minutes.
In addition to the menu (see above) was pumpkin risotto, a selection of fruit, and toasted sandwiches. I settled for cheese and grapes, washed down with a couple of glasses of Pinot Grigio. The staff were polite and table cleaning was prompt despite it being peak guest time. In summary: the VA ADL lounge is basic and has nothing on the Qantas Club that is up the hallway which offers a better range of food, is better designed and is significantly larger, in addition to offering business meeting facilities.
Boarding and pre-flight
Due to windy conditions in SYD there was a slight delay but once boarding was announced, I headed from the lounge directly to the priority lane at the gate. Pleasingly, it was enforced and I was on-board in 90 seconds from leaving the lounge.
In contrast to my earlier flight, individual pre-flight drinks were offered, although it is only still/sparkling water or orange juice. No pre-flight bubbly tonight. The load in J was 4/8 and I was seated in 2A.
I’ve really started to appreciate the VA J cabin. With only 8 seats and a fixed bulkhead behind row 2, it is more intimate and private than QF’s offering, which has a small panel attached to the ceiling between J and Y but otherwise lets anyone sitting in row 4 (first row of Y) peer straight through.
Now, onto the seat - immediately the difference between 1A and 2A is noticeable. There is much more legroom in 2A as you can slide your legs under row 1, as opposed to hitting the bulkhead in 1A. 2A is more private as there is nobody behind you who can peer through the seats. Furthermore, you can keep your handbags in the gap between 1A and 1C at all stages of the flight rather than having to stow them for takeoff and landing. Of course there is some novelty in having '1A' on the boarding pass but I’d definitely pick row 2 over row 1 when next I’m at the front end of VA’s 737.
Flight
Pushing back at 18:39, a short taxi to runway 23 saw us wheels up by 18:45. Quickly shooting out into the night sky from ADL, the seatbelt sign was off within 5 minutes and our purser proceeded to take meal orders.
I was asked if I would be dining this evening: certainly! There was a choice between a tomato and rocket salad with goat’s cheese and black olives, or a coconut chicken curry with pumpkin served with steamed rice. VA sure love curries..
I opted for the latter and within ten minutes I was being served. The purser made up an entree bowl from the salad to accompany the curry. Warm bread from a basket was offered (white or wholegrain). The salad: fresh with a generous amount of goat’s cheese. The chicken was a definite step up from the duck I had on MEL-ADL. The meat was just more tender and the whole meal more flavoursome. The cheese plate consisted of the same Angus Vale vintage cheddar offered on that first flight, it goes really well with the quince paste and crisp bread.
The dessert was seriously tasty; sometimes I find pre-made chocolate desserts to have little taste and lack in “chocolate-ness”, but this was not the case for Luke Mangan's designed menu. As a foodie I rate my airline meals as if they were served to me in a restaurant, and while VA J options are relatively basic compared to long haul J, they are tasty, fresh and filling. Thumbs up from me.
After dinner I was offered more wine and ordered a gin and tonic. VA uses Beefeater gin which is nothing special but altogether a nice digestif.
It was a smooth flight, taking us past Orange in New South Wales before an all-too-soon descent into SYD commenced. Speedy flying time of only 1 hour and 25 minutes! I could have gone for another couple of hours..
So what about the staff on-board VA? They are professional and polite, but with the exception of the J purser on this ADL-SYD flight, they are rather impersonal. In comparison, I find QF (even Y PAX) receive personal greetings by name from the CSM. On my way back to ADL with QF the CSM proceeded to ask me how my stay was in Sydney and have a quick chat about my visit. VA, however, give no personal greeting at the gate, on-board or even at the lounge; just a bit odd given from my experience it is common practice with QF.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Both my flights with VA were excellent. My preconceptions would be of a less polished service than QF’s, but the VA service didn’t noticeable lack polish, lack of name-greeting aside. The soft and hard product is very much comparable to QF’s, and when you consider VA J is regularly 25-40% cheaper than an equivalent QF fare, I’d be hard pressed to fork over my own cash to go with QF J domestically. There is also less of a differential to step up from a VA Y award to J award fare (sometimes only an extra few thousand points), whereas QF J award fares are usually double that of Y awards.
There are some drawbacks to the VA product as I have outlined; not all 737s are equipped with in-seat power, which is quite lacking in 2017. The lounge in ADL is poor. But an intimate J cabin, with a reasonably refined service, leaves me walking away as a happy customer who would happily fly with VA again.
I hope you have enjoyed this review, please feel free to ask any questions and see below for a quick review of Qantas Club in SYD.
Qantas Club in SYD
I was looking to review QF’s 737 J product on my way back to ADL from SYD but unfortunately my upgrade request did not go through, however, here is a quick review with a few photos from the Qantas Club in SYD. This is QF’s domestic lounge that QF FF Gold or higher members, or those electing to sign up to Qantas Club through an annual fee, have access to.
In SYD, Qantas Club is above the domestic QF departure gates. It overlooks the aircraft at the gates and the QF hangars, and on the adjacent side, overlooks the runway and international terminal. It is a big lounge. There is plenty of lounge and dining seating, work desks and a kids lounge. There is even a news agency. Near the bar and buffet there appears to be a newer area of the lounge with a more modern layout. materials and colours more in line with QF’s lounges in BNE and ADL, whereas the other half of the lounge is an older style with a more dated design. A bit of a mismatch.
The raspberry chocolate brownies were delicious and I was impressed by the availability of fresh fruit.
Of note was the mess in the lounge; there were marks on the tiles from spilt food that was not properly cleaned, and several tables had not been cleaned (used cutlery, coffee cups). The staff here seem slower than VA in MEL and ADL.
There is not much to split the VA lounge in MEL and Qantas Club in SYD; they’re both a good place to spend an hour or so before your flight. There is a better selection of food at Qantas Club but I’d say VA in MEL has the slight edge: a cooler and fresher design that is uniform throughout the lounge, cleaner bathrooms and lounge areas, and better quiet spaces. Verdict: it’s 2017 and QF can spend some of that boasted record profit on freshening up its Qantas Club in Sydney given the hefty membership costs (via Qantas Club) or Gold and higher frequent flyers' annual spend.
Another extra, for those who are trainspotters like me, QF just stamps 'PRIORITY' onto the bag tags at SYD, whereas VA still attach a nice looking priority tag that sticks out in addition to the bag tag.
OTHER REVIEWS
Here are links to a few of my other A.net reviews
SQ Adelaide to London via Singapore in Economy (333/77W) (photos correctly display in second post)
SQ Rome to Adelaide via Singapore in Economy (772/333)
BA CityFlyer Milan to London in Business (E190)