First Class

Time keeps on slippin' into the future. It's been a while since I posted anything. But in the meanwhile we have actually been doing things. In celebration of fifty years of married life, J and I decided to do something a bit out of character and go somewhere more or less appropriate to the occasion. After considering several options, we settled on Hawaii, somewhere we both always wanted to go but had never been. Once that decision was made we chose Waikiki as the most obvious place, given our preferences for low key entertainment. We both enjoy staying near the beach and prefer a room with an ocean front view and a private balcony (or lanai as they call them in Hawaii). So we booked ourselves into the Sheraton Waikiki (right next to the iconic Royal Hawaiian), which turned out to be perfect for us. We had access to a beautiful beach, the Sheraton's famous adults only "endless pool" and Edge Bar, the vast array of shopping on and just off of Kalakaua Avenue and the covered mall of the Royal Hawaiian Center, and many choices of restaurants and cuisines. We rented a car and drove around the island of Oahu a bit, and of course visited the Pearl Harbor Memorial sites, but the majority of our time was spent near our hotel enjoying the sun (and rain) and beautiful Pacific Ocean.

There is no question that Hawaii is great, although extremely expensive, especially around Waikiki beach, but for those of us living in the middle of the mainland, or worse yet on the east coast, the real barrier to Hawaiian fun in the sun is the air travel it necessarily entails. And this has only gotten worse in our age of post-9/11 super security and slower, more economical, air travel. We have only flown a few times since 9/11, and every experience has seemed worse than the last. Air travel is now very much what bus travel was like when we were younger. Airlines and bus lines both do their best to make you comfortable, but there is no way to disguise the basic experience of being herded around, processed, and delivered to one's destination surrounded by masses of other people similarly discomforted by the regimen of long distance travel. So to mitigate this as much as possible, we decided to pay extra and go first class.

In days gone by when I traveled frequently I used to accumulate frequent flyer awards from various airlines. And from time to time I had a sufficient number of miles or points to upgrade our fare from coach to first class. Even in those pre-paranoia days, the difference was notable, so much so that J proclaimed she was never going back to coach. Well, we did fly coach a few more times, when air travel was a necessity and funds were limited. But this time around, with a long flight (two flights actually, each way) looming, I figured we should just pay the extra and make it as easy on ourselves as we could. So I bought two round-trip first class tickets on Delta. And I can now report that it does make a noticeable and substantial difference. First, and most obvious, the seats are much bigger and more comfortable. You are not crammed into narrow seats with no leg room and shoulder to shoulder with other similarly uncomfortable passengers. And beyond that, first class is expensive, but all you pay for are the tickets, there are no additional fees. You can check two large bags each (up to 70 pounds on most flights) at no additional charge. Moreover, your bags are given priority handling status and are first off at your destination. And they feed you actual meals on just about every flight, sometimes very good meals indeed, with drinks, appetizers, and wine included.

First class has other perks as well. If you don't happen to use the online check-in, you can walk right up to an agent at the airport. Generally, there is no line at the first class counter. And when you go through security, Delta has a SkyPriority line just for first class passengers, which leads directly to the TSA Precheck security line, where you do not have to open you bags or remove your shoes or belts or jacket. You put your bags on the conveyer belt and walk through the magnetic screener and you're done. Once you arrive at the gate, you do have to wait for boarding, but when that commences, you are first on the plane. When you reach your assigned seat there is plenty of room in the overhead compartment above your seat. And when you are seated, the flight attendant comes quickly to greet you by name and offer you a choice of beverages soon followed by a variety of snacks as you settle in to wait for takeoff. The perks tend to vary a bit, depending on the length of the flight and the size of the aircraft, but the experience is not a difficult one to endure.

Of course, not all first class flights are alike. Of the four we experienced on this trip, two were excellent and two were just very good. The differences are mostly accounted for by the quality of service you get from the first class flight attendants and by the quality of the other passengers traveling with you in first class. Some people take up a lot of space when they travel, both physically and in other ways. Even in first class one is still likely to encounter the sorts of people who are oblivious to those around them and create a disturbance with their requests for special treatment or those urgent cell phone conversations they feel compelled to engage in just prior to take off or after landing. One has to remember that not all first class travelers are traveling for leisure; some are very busy and apparently must conduct their business at high volume. Some also overindulge on the free drinks, but they generally doze off quickly before waking to request another drink or lurching down the aisle to the restroom.

Speaking of restrooms, I wish I could report that these also are superior in first class, but alas, that was not the case. They were just the standard tiny, uncomfortable little closets we have all come to expect when flying. In fact, if Delta could offer first class restrooms, I would feel obligated to award their first class experience an excellent rating. But still, all in all, I would give them, without hesitation, a very good. Is it worth the extra expense? I think it is. I could wish it were even better, but it is still enough better than traveling coach that I would choose it again just for the comfort and convenience, and that is, alas, something for which one must now be willing to pay extra. Otherwise, it's back to the bus.