Early in 2017 I picked up a good deal on BA “Club Europe” tickets to Nice, for the autumn school half term (my partner, Mr A is a teacher). Flying from Gatwick cost £250 each return, whereas the very same dates from Heathrow cost £750!!  Given that Gatwick’s so much closer to where I live, it was a no-brainer.

Check in at Gatwick was crowd-free and swift, just before 11am.  Security was annoying, as ever: I was in a line to use the super new body scanning machines, but I was confused as to whey I still had to take my shoes and jacket off, and then I still got a personal ‘pat-down’ from a man afterwards!  Are the new machines not that super after all?!  But the staff were considerate towards me, on seeing that I used a walking stick: they asked if I could stand without it before putting the stick through the x-ray machine, and they made sure I had a chair to sit on when taking off and putting back on, my shoes.  There was no such consideration at Nice on the way back!

We made our way to the new BA Executive Lounge.  It’s a good size, though it was quite busy when we got there, but we were able to grab a couple of comfy chairs near the window, before helping ourselves to drinks and snacks.  The whole lounge has floor to ceiling windows looking out over the South Terminal’s parking stands, the apron and the runway.  The positioning is exactly what I look for in a lounge; you can see the excitement of aviation unfolding in front of you.

We each had a decent coffee (cappuccino) and a croissant. They had just taken their cooked breakfast items away (but it smelled great) and were in the process of setting out some light lunch items.  You help yourself to the wide selection of alcoholic drinks at the bar areas, with Champagne “on request”.  I made do with a Bloody Mary and some nuts.

There are lots of semi-segregated areas of the lounge, to make it easy to find the level of seclusion and privacy you prefer, and a TV room. Like most lounges these days, there aren’t any flight announcements to spoil your calm, so you need to keep your eyes on the several TV monitors around, for your flight’s status.

There was a five minute walk to the aircraft gate from the lounge, but as is always the case, even though we left the lounge when the TV said “flight boarding”, when we got to the gate it wasn’t.  But when they started the boarding process they did priority boarding for Business and frequent flyer passengers.  Our plane was a reasonably new Airbus A319, registration G-DBCE. I was in 3A and Mr A in 3C.  On BA this narrow-bodied jet is configured 3-3 in Economy and a ‘pretend’ 2-2 in Business, in that you’re in exactly the same seats as in Economy, but they place a centre table in the middle seat, to give you more sense of space. But, remarkably, there’s no more leg space or ‘pitch’ than there is in Economy.  What you do get in Business (in addition to the lounge access) is catering – free drinks and food.

We boarded the plane 40 minutes after STD (Scheduled Departure Time)and usher back from the stand 61 minutes after STD. Only then, through the pilot’s announcement, were we told that the delay was due to the late arrival of the incoming flight from Venice. Our stand was very close to the runway threshold, yet we had to wait 17 more minutes to take off.

Once airborne the cabin crew first did a round of duty free sales. Are they so desperate for their commission, or is BA management so in need of the sales revenue? After a while we were offered drinks and the flight attendant served me a glass of tomato juice, lots of Worcester sauce (as I requested) and two 50ml miniatures of Ciroc vodka.  BA always do a good Bloody Mary!  I discovered the cocktail on board with BA many years ago, and I still drink it pretty much every flight.  So too, I’m told, do many others. Apparently the umami from the Worcester sauce excites our taste buds.

Next up we were served a snack. From a choice of two dishes I chose the ‘croque monsieur’ which was

actually pretty tasty, but quite limp. The cheesecake dessert was just a pile of sugar and I couldn’t eat it.  A coffee afterwards was horrible, made even worse by the plastic capsule of so-called milk.

We had a smooth landing into a sunny Nice Cote d’Azure Airport (NCE) and taxied to our airbridge connected stand, ‘only’ 40 minutes late.  Once we had disembarked we joined a horribly long queue for immigration. There had been some reports in the media this summer that EU states were taking greater care and time to check immigrants’ passports, in the wake of the European migrant crisis,

without employing more staff.  But in the end the time in line wasn’t too bad, as we managed to jump into a shorter line, and our boarder guard reverted to the status quo ante policy of just waving in EU passport holders.

Once we got our checked bags we queued ten minutes for a taxi to take us to Cap Ferrat, on the other side of Nice.  Our taxi driver was a very pretty, slim, blond haired lady – certainly not the typical Brit taxi driver – and her car was a smart Mercedes Benz. The down side though was our fare was €80.

On the return we were in a spacious and comfortable Mercedes van, which was ‘only’ €70.  Taxis seemed to be very expensive on the riviera, so it could be worth your while checking car rental rates, or seeing if Uber operate down there, if you’re planning a visit.

Check in was very busy, with BA operating three flights to different London airports within half an hour. And the Business class check in queue was ten times as long as Economy’s!  And then we had to face a very long queue for the security check – because BA don’t pay NCE to offer ‘fast track’ to its premium passengers.  Fortunately for me, however, the lady controlling the fast track barrier took sympathy on me, because of my walking stick, and let me go to the shorter line.  The security personnel themselves though were forceful, aggressive and rude, and offered no support at all to passengers with special needs.  With queues everywhere it seemed clear that NCE is operating well beyond its planned capacity.  Once you get to the departures lounge you then have to join another queue to get through the emmigration passport checks for non-Schengen destinations.  I was genuinely feeling dizzy and tired, so this long queue was very daunting for me, and I admit I asked someone if I could jump the line, and they let me!

We made our way straight to the Business Class lounge used by BA and some other airlines. It was

elevated above the main departure hall, and at a distance, one could see through the terminal’s glass roof towards the runway, so not my personal ideal view.  The lounge was only medium sized, with reasonable seating, but nothing too comfortable. The food and beverage offering was mediocre, with little in the way of snacks and a very limited drinks selection, but adequate.  The lounge was very close to our boarding gate, so in no time we were onboard Airbus A320 G-GATP, seats 5A and C.  STD was 14:10, but doors were closed at 14:05, we pushed back at 14:11 and were airborne at 14:27.

The onboard scene and service were pretty much the same as on the outbound sector; once again I was given two miniatures of Ciroc for my Bloody Mary, but this arrived sooner because they didn’t do the duty free sales first.  My ‘lunch’ was a reasonably tasty ‘Ploughman’s Lunch’, let down by damp and limp sliced bread, rather than a crusty roll. Was that NCE catering taking the p*** out of British peasant cuisine??!  A slice of Victoria sponge cake was light and good enough for me.

We landed at Gatwick early, at 14:52, and got through immigration swiftly.

Overall this British Airways Club Europe experience was pleasant and value for money. But it has to be said that their shorthaul Business class product is woefully below the levels set by Asian and Australian airlines. I look forward to comparing it with Air France’s offering next year.