By the start of the next decade, Virgin Atlantic will no longer have any aircraft with onboard bars, ending a decades-long feature that has been popular with customers. Is this a sad development, or is Virgin Atlantic just getting better at math?
Continue reading: End Of An Era: Virgin Atlantic Bidding Farewell To Iconic Inflight Bar
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
The bars aren't amazing, and have not been marketed in years. Most times, there's no one even sitting there or using them.
No one is choosing to fly or not fly VS at this point because of a bar. It was nice but getting back to brass tacks is ok here. Still plenty of mood lighting and nice staff and a reliable JFK-LHR schedule.
All my flights on virgin I’ve thought I’d use the bar. But usually sleep or get drinks at my seat
they are noisy for people that don't want to join in. there aren't that many people that travel in groups in business class anyway.
Branson is an idea man but he is smart enough to surround himself w/ people that understand business. Bringing Delta in as an investor and then JV partner was an admission that the original VS model wasn't sustainable.
btw, DL recorded strong profits and outlook in its 2nd quarter earnings release and a big part of its year over year improvement was a significant increase in the value of its equity investments.
The 787 business class has long held back Virgin Atlantic, this is a very necessary step in terms of modernizing its fleet.
Customers don't want to book herringbone. I don't care about a bar when I sleep 80% of the flight to LHR
Mixed feelings on this one. I’ve certainly had nice moments at the bar, stretching my legs, etc but I’ve also had multiple flights where the bar is dominated by one annoyingly loud couple (which is especially problematic if seated towards the back).
Alas, better seats significantly outweighs the lack of a bar.
Upper Class provided a "see and be seen" proposition. These changes will make Virgin like every other airline, operating under the assumption that passengers want privacy. I'm not saying one basis is better-or-worse than the other, but at least Virgin offered the alternative option.
Maybe the Retreat Suites will be better than BA First, I mean the bar isn't that high afterall!
Realistically, other than Emirates and Qatar, nobody does the bar properly. Within a decade, once the majority of a380s are retired, the bars will most likely disappear as well.
Entirely correct. This is especially a hazard on the JFK-LHR route. All anybody wants to do on that flight is sleep, but if you get stuck with one fool at the bar, you can kiss those hours goodbye. Have a cocktail in the lounge like an adult and go to bed!
I was disappointed in the loft when I last flew Virgin from London. The bar seemed like a great idea from a more social time, and I wish it were retained.
I think the issue here is that until these new seats or whatever are introduced, the reasons to choose Virgin metal have declined. It's just another business class seat/airline at this point. Delta, British Airways, United, etc are all good options.
If we follow global beverage trends, then that bar will be swapped for a coffee station.
In the 70's, American had a piano/organ in first.
IIRC, PSA Airlines utilized a lower-deck bar and lounge on their L-1011s.
Add the Virgin Atlantic bar to the list of lost airline amenities.
I don't think Virgin metal itself has been the appeal, the 787s make that exact case.
Virgin service is overall the best amongst those, they have the best outstation lounge options, the best business class lounge at LHR, their food offerings and FAs are of the highest quality for US to LHR, and they even offer PJs on overnight flights.
The main thing that made them not appealing was the 787 Upper Class, which they are now fixing. Once retrofits are done Virgin should be the best point to point airline for LHR imo.
Virgin is my long haul airline of choice. Love their service, lounges esp. LHR lounge etc. - it's such a pleasant airline to fly. Biggest issue is their horrible herringbone Upper Class seats. Second biggest issue is extreme fuel surcharges. I usually sit in Upper class right next to the bar and it's noisy at times. Nothing lost by losing the bar. Glad they are replacing the Upper Class seats.
Sorry to disagree but the F&B is inconsistent and on the scale more bad than good. The only decent Clubhouse at the moment is LHR others like IAD and JFK are in need of a refurbishment ( glad JFK is pipped for a refresh) another gripe is Virgins ideology in not offering beef either on the ground or in the air. Iam a virgin fan on certain routes for sure so any improvements on the J offering is most welcome.
When I worked for JetBlue I went for training at their Orlando office, and on the wall they had a framed quote from Sir Richard about Virgin America: “It’s got to be twice as good as JetBlue and ten times better than anything anyone else has flying now” (drawing on a 16 year old memory, apologies if the wording is off). Branson is a dreamer, and I highly respect him, but dreams don’t always translate to profit. There’s a reason Virgin America is gone and JetBlue is still around. Don’t get me wrong, I loved VX (paid passenger, not non-rev), but we are all guilty of our eyes being bigger than our stomachs at some point in our lives. I do regret not getting to fly VS at some point in my past life, as well as missing out on the bar, but life happens. Though I’m dying to know, did anyone ever get a proper Vesper at the inflight bar like Daniel Craig in QoS?
The thing is that you get access to the Virgin Clubhouse at LHR on Delta metal. Obviously Delta One Lounge at JFK is better than the Virgin JFK clubhouse. You can debate about service, food, etc, but the differences between the two aren't that great IMO.
British Airways lounges at JFK are fine options (I have never been to the BA lounges at LHR so can't comment). I am sure United is as well.
Bummer! I did a Virgin flight one time with the bar. It was overnight, from London, and my daughter got sick on the flight. It was just so nice to relax there, decompress, and schmooze with others
United does have lounges (or flights!) at JFK. They do have a Polaris lounge at Newark though. They also apparently have a nice United Club (but not Polaris) at LHR.
Emd of an era indeed. But only an era for that airline, since the bars on their planes weren’t exactly a game changer.
The better the seat/suite, why bother using the bar? I used to fly them weekly JFK-LHR and occasionally on connecting routes. I can’t even count on one hand the number of times I visited the bar…even though it was a cool concept.
Richard makes his fortune by licensing the Virgin name to other companies. Even Virgin Atlantic licenses the name from him. Not many people understand his business structure.
The bar had to go as is it from a different but happier era, now men at a bar talking to strangers are seen as toxic and predatory by the woke culture and young people glued to screens and radical feminist theory. I miss the innocence of the old days.
I am old enough to joyfully remember the Continental Airlines PUB on the DC-10 between L2- & R2 doors. A real lounge and bar and open to both cabins. FA's knew who was in F Class and served them accordingly. It was really fun and the galley separations kept F Class and bulkhead Coach seating quiet. Never really card for the VS lounges.
That must have been awesome!
Going back further, the Boeing Statocruiser or the 747 upper deck lounges would have been fun.
Just to be clear. Are you blaming liberals, women or young people for this change?
Flew business from Heathrow to Tampa, and was not impressed with the bar. Like the concept, but this was not a bar. This was a place where they had snacks and liquor. The overall experience was great- my first time flying this airline, but the bar added zero to the experience. The Virgin lounge at Heathrow, however- top notch.
i wish I could have flown on the "Pub" DC-10s. What a great airline!
I did manage - as a child - to fly on a UA 747 LAX-HNL when the upper deck was a First Class Lounge. There was even a lounge in the rear for Y Class.
I have never forgotten that experience.
It ruined me for life!
Exactly as I suspected. They will maximize the space on the planes to produce revenue. This said I do not think having more premium seating is good. That will mean more people in the premium classes making it less of a premium experience.
Richard Branson said we'd be getting gym and casinos.
The era hasn't even arrived.
The jury's still out on the sustainability of their current business model. There's literally no other way airline in the world that's anywhere near the same level of risk exposure to a long-haul market in one single foreign country, and it's tricky to sell cheap premium class tickets in the low season when you have to pay a retty penny to your interline partners (I am not talking about JVs here but about the fact that Virgin sell tickets with short haul connections coded BA, IB, TP, A3 etc).
Of course you have to bring politics and blame a societal issue on more than half the country (those of us that live in reality=woke) on an airline platform. You guys seethe with political hatred! Cool off HANK! You guys won already!
As a “seasoned” airline employee, it is a shame that no-one remembers the Originator of airline “Pubs in the sky”, Continental Airlines, especially on its Micronesian routes! So, so much fun and such an original concept. Many do not realize that Continental bought out/took over United Airlines but decided to keep the United name. Frank Lorenzo of Continental Airlines was a true visionary!
Kinda sad. I spent a few hours acting in the capacity of bartender on a flight from LHR to SFO last year (yes, even though they said I wasn't technically allowed to make and serve drinks...) but it was a great time and made the flight memorable for all.