Flying to England

By Joan L. Welch
This item appears on page 14 of the August 2013 issue.

British Airways’ business-class seats on flights between Tampa, Florida, and England’s Gatwick Airport have been reconfigured,* with, basically, every other seat facing forward and the others facing rearward. That’s great for a couple but a bit awkward if you’re facing a stranger. Side privacy screens alleviate this but in flight only. 

The crews on each flight that my husband, Harry, and I took in April and May 2013 were the best we have encountered in a long time.

Also, after decades of international travel, we have adopted a practice that smoothes the problem of jet lag as well as the stress of making it back to the airport in time for the flight home: we bookend our trip with stays at hotels located in the terminal. 

In this case, it was the Sofitel London Gatwick (North Terminal, Gatwick Airport, West Sussex, RH6 0PH, Crawley, U.K.; phone +44 1293 567070 or, in the US, 800/763-4835, fax 1293 555037, ). The cost was £130 (near $198) per night.

Flying into Gatwick at 7:35 a.m., we cleared Customs and collected our bags by about 9, then walked the five minutes to the hotel, where we each had a shower, slept for two to three hours and at about 2 p.m. had lunch. By dinnertime, we were pretty much adjusted to local time. 

Yes, I know there are those who believe in “toughing it out” by jumping into action immediately. Well, we’ve tried many methods of dealing with jet lag, and, at our advanced ages (86 and 75), this works well for us, as we have the luxury of extra time. 

The night before we fly home, staying at the terminal hotel, having a leisurely dinner, getting a good night’s rest and strolling to the gate extends our holiday and helps us arrive back in the US much refreshed. 

JOAN L. WELCH

St. Petersburg, FL

 

In business class on British Airways’ 777s and 747s, seats are 2-4-2. Each seat nearest the windows is forward facing and its neighbor is rearward facing. With the center four seats, the middle pair faces forward and there’s a rear-facing seat on either side. To see seating charts, visit this page on the British Airways website.