In this post:
British Airways Club World from £1207
If you are willing to start off outside the UK BA have some good deals on to various destinations. I have mentioned some of these before but they now only have a few days left before the offer ends.
The routes are:
- Brussels – Shanghai £1230
- Brussels – Seoul £1452
- Brussels – Beijing £1452
- Brussels – Dubai £1532
- Luxembourg – Shanghai £1207
- Luxembourg – Seoul £1309
- Luxembourg – Abu Dhabi £1269
- Luxembourg – Dubai £1506
The rules are
- Book by: 17 June 2019
- Travel: n/a
- Minimum stay: a Saturday night
- Maximum stay: 12 months
- Transfers: 5 in each direction – 2 in Europe
- Stopovers: No
- Refundable: No
- Changeable: For a fee
You can book direct with British Airways here or find the cheapest online travel agent price with Skyscanner.
Emirates introduces basic business class fares
Emirates is generally known for being very bling and luxurious (apart from some of those terrible 2-3-2 configurations). So it comes as a huge surprise that Emirates has been one of the first full-service airlines to introduce a basic or unbundled business class fare.
The cheaper fares will have the following restrictions:
- No lounge access, unless you have status with Emirates
- No Emirates chauffeur (not available on redemptions or upgraded tickets at the moment)
- You can’t upgrade to first class using miles
- You can only choose a seat after check-in opens
- Reduced miles earned.
The new fare class is called Special and is only on a small number of routes from Dubai initially. The concern is that now one airline has done it, others may follow….Plus will it just be a way to put fares up by charging a higher price than currently for the other business class fares or will it be a genuine saving?
You can read my review of Emirates business class here.
What do you think about the idea of basic business class fares? Would you buy one? Let us know in the comments below or on social media.
HT: OMAAT
Aer Lingus introduces flatbeds to London
Despite not being the biggest fan of Aer Lingus, I am tempted to try them again when they introduce their new A321LRneo on flights to London. These single-aisle aircraft will also serve the East Coast of the US hence the flatbeds but the strategy is to then be able to offer a flatbed of equal quality to Europe on certain routes to compete with direct flights.
The flights are open for reservations now and will start on 1 November 2019. A lot of ex Dublin fares via London include a choice of Aer Lingus or BA and from now on I would consider Aer Lingus if I had time for the change of terminals at Heathrow (Aer Lingus use T2).
Sadly you can’t book these as Avios redemptions at the moment. They class it as Aer Space which is their short-haul business class. The only way to book this is with cash at the moment but if you can get it included in a fare then why not give it a try? As cash is is quite pricey at around £180. The seats alternate as 2-2 and 1-1 so ideal for all travellers apart from families maybe.
The A321LR will be on the following flights daily:
EI154 DUB 0730 – 0905 LHR
EI155 LHR 0950 – 1120 DUB
The A321LRneos are part of a plan to fly 3 to at least 18 North American destinations, with Dublin as a hub connecting North America with Europe.
6 comments
For me I personally love the whole experience of a Business Class flight, from the quick check-in, fast track, the lounge experience, the seat, the amenities and of course the food.
I suspect that Emirates are starting to fill the pinch and maybe they have to make a few savings to balance their books. Remember they are not cheap compared to other airlines on similar routes. However just like Etihad if they remove those small luxuries from their Business Class experience then they will see their premium cabins leave a lot emptier to their destinations.
My main concern is BA and whether they will join the merry go round. I know if you are an FFP it will not have any effect, but a lot of their Business Class customers only travel once a year, hence lose those and then you could be in serious trouble.
I must admit I love the business class as we travel to Australia every two years with Royal Brunei struggle to find a decent fare at times so this ides would suit me depending on the fare of course but I love the lounges so would have to consider it
Completely agree Michele, I can see BA, Virgin, possibly also Lufthansa and Swiss following this because the management of most airlines are bankrupt when it comes to new ideas. They will adopt this in the name of increasing choices for the passengers. Eventually I expect that there will only be a choice between a basic fare and a fully flexible fare, reducing choices for the travelling public. I, for one, will avoid the basic fares for as long as I can afford it.
The introduction of basic business class fares by Emirates is in my opinion a load of nonsense. Most travellers fly long haul business class for the whole package, i.e. Priority Check In, Fast Track security (when available), Lounge access etc. This Emirates initiative only devalues the whole business class experience. I flew Emirates business class four times in 2018 and I was very disappointed not to receive it’s amenity kit. Apparently I was flying at the wrong time ! I have no interest in Emirates basic business class offering and I hope other airlines see it for what it is, a complete nonsense that devalues the whole business class experience for the traveller.
The unbundling of Business Class across the industry began here, folks.
I should imagine British Airways has been itching to unbundle lounges.
We’re now paying extra for luggage and Premium Economy seats that give us exactly what we used to get for the basic Economy seat price.
Here it comes folks – pay separately for everything (except the seat and the food on-board) in Business Class too folks.
It began here.
Well BA have been unbundling for a long time with seat assignments for a considerable fee. And their business lounges are a disgrace and not much better than sitting downstairs in Pret. And of course never offered chauffeurs.
So I would argue this is nothing new.
Comments are closed.