Wednesday, April 4, 2012

So You've Made it to First Class....Now What?

So you've used your miles to upgrade to First Class, you've flown so much that you have reached a status level for your airline of choice....or you've simply decided to splurge and buy that First Class ticket....now what?  If you've never sat in First Class....first of all I highly recommend that you try it and secondly you will most certainly notice some differences in the front of the cabin!

The thing about First Class passengers is that they are most often business people...people who fly a lot, who sit in First Class a lot and who have a ritual in place for when they fly!  It's not at all like the economy section where it's full of families and people lugging lots of carry-ons to avoid the baggage fees that airlines charge for checked bags.  It's much more reserved up in the front!  So how are you supposed to act if it's your first time in the First Class section?

What Are the Benefits to First Class


The First Class experience starts from the time you enter the ticketing area of the airport.  You quickly notice that there are two distinct classes of service and if you are lucky enough to be in the priority category, you will truly have a better experience! You will notice two sets of queues for the airline.  One very long one which makes many bends and turns and ends up at a bank of kiosks where customers take turns checking in for their flights and one much shorter queue which is marked "Priority" which handles the customers in First Class as well as those having "status" in the airline's rewards program which also leads to kiosks but which are seldom full.  I also believe that the lines at the priority kiosks move much quicker because the priority people are usually frequent flyers who are very familiar with the check in process as well as many business flyers who are traveling alone and not with a larger group. From the check-in, you move to the "Priority" security line.  This line, again, is only for First Class passengers and passengers with "status".  While your economy counterparts are standing in long lines with all their carry-on baggage, you will speed through a short line to the TSA attendant who is checking ID's and boarding passes.  While it is very tempting to wave to the others stuck in line as you speed past...it's probably not a good move!  Once you get to the metal detectors/body scanners you will be placed in the same line as the rest of the passengers but you have by-passed a whole lot of people on your way.

The perks of sitting in first class are pretty obvious.  As airlines have cut back on many of their complimentary services for all passengers, the differences between First Class and Economy are even more noticeable.  With a First Class fare you get complimentary beverages that include alcohol and premium drinks.  Economy class receives free non-alcoholic beverages but has to pay for alcohol and premium drinks (energy drinks and the like).  The fees for these are in the $6.00 - $7.00 range per drink. Depending on the time of your flight, First Class also receives a meal...usually a choice of a hot or cold selection served on airline china with real glasses and silverware.  Economy class has to buy a snack or small meal served in a box with plastic silverware....prices ranging from $2.99 for a small snack upwards to approx. $9.00 for a small meal.  First class has it's own lavatory facilities that services the crew and 16 - 24 first class passengers depending on the type of aircraft.  Economy has two lavatories in the rear of the plane for the remaining 100+ passengers who have to stand in line and squash themselves between seats and the rest of the people in line in order to even get there!  Economy passengers pay for their checked bags (around $25.00 for the first bag) unless they have some sort of status.  First class passengers have at least one bag included in their fare and lots of overhead space since there is no reason to try to carry all your luggage onto the plane to avoid charges.  Free entertainment and headsets are perks also.  I fly United most often (was a faithful Continental passenger before the merger) and many of their flights have Direct TV.  The cost of Direct TV for the economy passenger is $5.99 for flights under 2 hours and $7.99 for flights over 2 hours.  First class......FREE!  It's the little things that make it so special!

How to Behave in First Class


Ok...so if you are like me and not a frequent business traveler (I'm just married to one!) sitting in First Class is not a common occurrence and therefore you will not be in tune with all the little things that happen there during your flight.  I travel a lot but most of the time it's back in the economy section! Here are some things to expect so you don't look like a newbie!

Boarding:  You will be allowed to board first.  Most airlines even have a separate "carpet" or line that you must stay on or in in order to board as a first class passenger.  This is really quite funny to me as this line is right next to the regular boarding line and leads to the exact same person who is scanning your boarding pass, but the airlines and frequent first class passengers really take this seriously so try not to giggle as you are in line!  They even make announcements like, "Now boarding first class passengers on the Red carpet."  The line is much shorter and moves very quickly.  Again, I'm not sure if it would be any different a couple of feet to the right in the regular line since you are the first people getting on the plane but hey...it does make you feel special.

Seating:  Since you are the first group boarded on the plane, you have your choice of overhead space for your carry-on baggage and have time to get settled into your seat before the other passengers are boarded. First class, as I'm sure you know, has two seats on each of the aisle per row.  The seats are much wider and "cushier" than the economy seats.  There is lots of leg room...I'm short so I can completely stretch my legs out and hardly have my feet beneath the seat in front of me!  This also means that there is lots of room when the person in front of you decides to recline their seat the entire way and then bounce in it.  This happens to me all the time in economy and I always feel like the person is in my lap!  In first class they can recline and bounce away and it's no problem at all!  Just get into your seat in a speedy fashion and act like you've done this before.  Avoid the smiles and small talk...just be reserved!

Once you are seated, the flight attendants will start a beverage service for first class. You can order whatever you like, coffee, tea, soft drink, premium drink...it's all free so get what you would like.  Since the glasses must be collected before take-off, the flight attendant will put the glass on the armrest between the two seats.  It's large enough for two glasses to easily fit.  This is fine if you know the person sitting next to you.  If you don't it can be a bit awkward as you both are grabbing for glasses at the same time.  Again, most of these people are business travelers and don't really want to be bothered so banging into them while trying to get to your glass....not so good!

Take-Off:  Everything is pretty normal here.  You won't notice a whole lot of differences.  You still have to turn off and stow your portable devices until you reach 10,000 feet.  You still have to buckle up and the flight attendants are strapped in so they aren't running around getting you special things!

Flight:  Ok....now here's where things get different and quite honestly a bit strange at times especially for newbies!  After you get in the air the flight attendants start coming around to take your order for your meal (assuming the flight has a meal).  The first big difference I noticed was that they called me by my name as in "Mrs. Brady, would you like lunch today?  We are offering a cheeseburger as our hot selection and a salad as our cold selection."  Ok....I have never had a flight attendant address me by name, let alone my formal name and quite honestly my first thought was...."How did you know my name?"  Then I realized while I was trying to figure that out, I had totally missed the whole selection thing!  So after having them repeat everything again, I made my choice along with my beverage selection and off they went to the galley.  Next thing that came out totally befuddled me!  The flight attendant came back with a whole tray of rolled hot towels.  The towels were damp and steamed and she was using a pair of tongs to hand them to all the passengers.  Ok....so what's this??  Luckily I had an aisle seat and I was able to lean out in the aisle far enough to see what the other passengers were doing with these towels!  Turns out you can do a variety of things with them.  You can:  a.  wash your face and hands, b. put them over your face and let it sit there for several minutes or c.  wash your tray off with it (if you can locate your tray!).  I chose washing my hands and face with it (after that just the hands as I quickly realized that my make-up was now all over the hot towel and no longer on my face!)  I will say they feel very good.  After this you hold onto your towel and the flight attendant comes back around and collected the hot towels with the tongs and put them back on her tray.

Now they are starting to bring out the food and I realize there's no tray on the seat back in front of me.  Ok....where's the tray??  They have to have trays right?  They can't possibly expect me to hold my tray of food and eat it right?  Again, I sneak a look at the other passengers and lo and behold I am seeing trays miraculously rising out of the arms of the seat!  Pretty cool trick hiding them in the arms I think.  Then I try to get mine out.  I am not mechanical!  I will say that right up front!  This was a process for me the first time (and still is to be honest)!  You have to hold the seat arm open and pull on the strap that holds the tray and yank it up.  Once you get it to the top...don't let go or it will plummet right back into the hole it came out of!  Quickly grab it and unfold it and open it over your lap!  Ta Da!!  Lunch is served!  Lunch comes complete with china, silverware and glassware as stated above.  It usually includes a salad or fruit cup, yogurt, main dish, some sort of dessert, condiments and little salt and pepper shakers (love them...so cute!).  Again, your beverages are totally free so if you would like a glass of wine or cocktail....it's all included.  After your meal, they whisk away the tray and ask if you'd like anything else.

Time to relax and enjoy the big comfy seat and the free in-flight entertainment!  Lavatories are easily accessible and you don't have to wait for the big beverage cart to make it's way down the aisle to get there like in economy!  Now if you are lucky enough to have a longer flight....you will usually get a snack part way through.  My favorite are the fresh baked chocolate chip cookies if they have them.  Not all flights have the cookie option but if they do....grab it....hot, chewy and you can even get milk with it if you want!  What could be better?

Landing:  After a wonder flight, it's time to land.  It's almost a sad time when you are sitting in first class because you know it's coming to an end.  Not much difference here, collecting the trash, making sure your seat belts are on and your seats are in the locked and upright position, and turning off your portable devices.  Upon landing you are the first passengers to deplane so if you have connections to make you are on your way!  Deplaning is done in an orderly fashion...no rushing.,.passengers simply grabbing their carryon baggage and exiting the rows in order.  Not like economy where everyone is trying to get a leg in the aisle to be the first person to stand in the aisle to get their carry-ons.  Carry-ons flying out of the overhead bins being passed and back and forth to their rightful owners nearly missing other passengers heads!  No....this is a totally efficient and simple process in First Class.

In summary......if you can get into First Class....do it!  Once you are there...act like you've been there before....play it cool!  Relax and enjoy your flight!

Coming Next:  A trip to the San Diego/La Jolla area!  What to see and do!


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