Search Results for: norwegian Oakland London

Oakland-London on Norwegian: Low fares, low frills

May 16, 2016

Economy cabin has a clean look and decent seat pitch on Norwegian Air

Norwegian 787 economy class cabin has a clean look and decent seat pitch, configured 3-3-3. (Photo: Nancy Branka)

Not only was it Norwegian Air Shuttle’s first flight from Oakland International to London Gatwick, it was also the first scheduled flight ever from Oakland to London.

When invited to participate in a media “simulation” of the Norwegian inaugural flight on May 11—which meant I would go onboard a couple of hours before the flight to experience the product, then deplane—I was curious. Norwegian’s fares to Europe are strikingly low, I’d never flown the young airline, plus it has been the subject of some regulatory controversy. I signed on for the evening.

(This post was written by TravelSkills contributor Nancy Branka)

A notable element of this route is what it’s not: SFO to London-Heathrow (LHR). The Norwegian flight instead links those airports’ smaller single-runway neighbors: Oakland and London-Gatwick (LGW). OAK has always been a favorite of mine because, unlike SFO, weather rarely affects on-time arrivals and departures. Its small size also makes it quick to navigate, and now it’s getting a $100 million facelift in Terminal 1, plus a $35 million international hall.

Gatwick (LGW) is also up-and-coming as Heathrow reaches capacity limits. LGW is 28 miles south of central London but still convenient–the easy 30-minute, approximately $30 Gatwick Express will whisk you from the airport to Victoria Station in the heart of the city.

Another thing that Norwegian Air is not: A business class airline. On its 787 Dreamliner, it only offers seats in economy class (259) and premium economy class (32). No pricey-but-cozy lie-flight seats here. But… all premium economy seats offer in-seat power outlets if you want to stay up and work across the pond. Norwegian refers to its premium economy seats as simply, “Premium.” (Norwegian also flies nonstop to Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen from Oakland.)

Premium seats are roomy and serviceable.

Premium economy class seats are roomy and serviceable, configured 2-3-2 (Photo: Nancy Branka)

Take a look at how Seatguru describes seating on Norwegian Air’s 787 Dreamliner.

But limited recline is disappointing for those expecting lie-flat.

But limited recline for premium economy seats might be disappointing for those longing to lie-flat. (Photo: Nancy Branka)

Really, the OAK-LGW fares are hard to beat, in peak-season July starting at $1,130 round trip in economy and $1,700 in premium economy. (Compared to premium economy fares on BA or Virgin SFO-LHR which run around $2,250 roundtrip.) Ben Kaufman, Norwegian’s communications manager, told me the carrier will not reduce fares for a summer sale because they are already booking at 90% loads. However, he suggested premium economy fares would be reduced later in the year on all flights, with this route being one of the early beneficiaries.

Once I boarded the 787-800, it was fun to explore before sitting in the premium cabin for dinner. Remember, for Norwegian, premium does not mean business class but compares to premium economy on other carriers. Seats do not fully recline. Norwegian’s SVP sales, Lars Sande, explained that lie-flat seats are three times as costly, and it was more important to customers to keep the fares low. Economy cabin seat pitch is an acceptable 31-32 inches; premium economy is 46 inches.

Dinner–grilled shrimp, bok choy, baby corn, basmati rice, coleslaw and a brownie–was tasty but short on presentation.

My meal sounded beautiful on paper (for example, Grilled Jumbo Shrimp with a mildly spicy and flavorful Thai Green Curry Sauce), but I had trouble getting past the cardboard box in which it was served, this being premium class and all. The shrimp was OK, but I wrestled with removing the layers of foil that covered it—which added to the self-serve feeling, again not feeling the premium. At least premium economy fares do include complimentary meals (dinner and breakfast) and alcohol, while economy fares do not.

Nordic hero Henrik Ibsen graces a bulkhead wall. (Photo: Nancy Branka)

Something I particularly liked was the plane’s aesthetic—grey leather seats accented with the company’s signature red. I was especially enamored with framed, poster-sized black-and-white photos of Nordic heroes hung on bulkhead walls. Similarly, the airline’s tail fins feature black and white portraits of these icons.

At some airports, but regrettably not Oakland, Norwegian offers premium economy passengers access to special airport lounges. Oakland-bound passengers can enjoy a lounge at London-Gatwick, for example. Plus, premium economy passengers get access to speedy Fast Track lines at customs and immigration when arriving at LGW.

If you generally fly business class and want to arrive in London well rested and feeling a little special, this is probably not your airline. But if you just want to get to London as inexpensively as you can and don’t mind sacrificing some things to achieve that, Norwegian Air may be your ticket.

Have you flown Norwegian Air? What did you think? Please leave your comments below.

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Is Norwegian Air growing too fast?

December 16, 2017

Norwegian Air will use 787-9s on four new U.S. routes next year. (Image: Norwegian)

Fast-growing, low-cost European carrier Norwegian just announced four more new U.S. routes coming in 2018, leading some to wonder if the ambitious airline is growing too fast for its own good.

The company’s latest plans include new service from Los Angeles to Milan Malpensa starting June 16; and from LAX to Madrid beginning July 15. It will operate four flights a week on both routes. From New York JFK, Norwegian will operate new service to Amsterdam starting May 7, with four weekly flights; and to Madrid July 18, with three flights a week. All the new routes will be served with 787-9s.

No-frills fare, high fee fares from LAX will start at $229 one-way, while New York fares will begin at $199 to Amsterdam and $229 to Madrid. Premium cabin fares start at $729 and $739 from LAX to Madrid and Milan respectively, and at $619/$649 to Amsterdam and Madrid from JFK.

These four routes are just a part of new Norwegian service already announced for 2018. Other new routes and starting dates include Oakland to Rome (February 6); Newark to Paris (February 28); Chicago to London (March 25); Austin to London (March 27); Denver to Paris (April 9); Oakland to Paris (April 10), and Boston to Paris (May 2);

Norwegian’s current and upcoming U.S. routes. (Image: Norwegian)

All that is on top of 25 U.S. routes that the carrier inaugurated in 2017. And look for more new service in the months ahead: Norwegian said it has just acquired another 28 weekly takeoff and landing slots at London Gatwick, available starting next summer. “Planning work is now underway to allocate the newly acquired slots, and will be announced at a later stage,” the company said.

This explosive growth is leading some investors in the company to worry that the airline might be overextending itself, considering its financial performance. A recent analysis in the Financial Times noted that Norwegian’s fleet is adding 32 aircraft in 2017, for a total of 145; and will keep growing to 193 planes by the end of 2019. The report said Norwegian had a second-quarter operating loss of $104 million, while its unit costs rose by 6 percent in the third quarter. The company’s share price has plunged 40 percent this year, the report said, while its European competitors’ stock has been rising sharply.

One analyst quoted in the article said Norwegian has new aircraft coming online so fast that it can’t absorb them all, so it has started leasing some to other companies and selling older ones. It also quoted a senior banker in Norway as saying that Norwegian is “in trouble. They are over-extended and it’s clear that they have to do something.”

Have you flown Norwegian…or benefitted from its impact on transatlantic fares this year? Please discuss.

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Routes: United, Norwegian, Thomas Cook, Alitalia, BA, Level, Air France, Scoot

July 27, 2017

United will fly a 787 between Denver and London next summer. (Image: United)

In international route developments, Denver is getting new transatlantic service from United and Norwegian; Thomas Cook Airlines will add another a U.S. gateway; Alitalia plans to extend its Los Angeles service; British Airways changes aircraft on some U.S. routes; BA’s Level affiliate is adding more aircraft; Air France will fly to the Caribbean from the U.S. (and gets a new U.S. investor); and Singapore’s Scoot is coming to Hawaii.

United Airlines flew from its Denver hub to London Heathrow from 2008 to 2010 and then stopped. But now it plans to revive that route in 2018 on a seasonal basis. United will use a 787-8 for the daily flights, which will operate from March 24 through October 26, 2018. The eastbound service will depart Denver at 5:35 p.m. The 787-8 will offer 36 flat-bed seats in business class, 70 in Economy Plus and 113 in regular economy. British Airways currently has the only DEN-LHR non-stops.

A few weeks ago, United said that its summer seasonal Newark-Rome service is now going to operate year-round, a decision it made after Norwegian announced plans to start flying the same route beginning November 9. So maybe United’s Denver-London plans have something to do with Norwegian’s new Denver-London Gatwick service, which begins with two flights a week September 16, increasing to three a week in late October. (And we still wonder why United has not jumped at the chance to offer SFO-Italy nonstops…)

Norwegian will offer low-cost flights from Denver to Paris in 2018. (Image: Jim Glab)

And that’s not the only news for Denver: Norwegian also just announced it will start flying between Denver and Paris CDG next spring. The low-cost carrier said it will initiate service on the new route April 9, with fares starting at $229 one-way in economy and $815 in its premium cabin. The 787-9 service will initially operate two days a week (Mondays and Fridays) year-round. (Does this mean United will add DEN-CDG service too?)

The U.K.’s Thomas Cook Airlines, a leisure-oriented carrier that has been growing its U.S.-U.K. network, plans to add another U.S. route next year. On May 27, it will start flying twice a week between Seattle and Manchester, using an A330-200. The carrier will also extend its seasonal New York JFK-Manchester service to a year-round operation this winter, operating three A330 flights a week effective December 14.

Another service extension this winter will come from Alitalia. Instead of ending its Los Angeles-Rome seasonal service on October 29 when the winter schedule kicks in, it will continue to fly the route three times a week. (It won’t be fully year-round service, however; Alitalia will suspend the route from January 15 to March 6.)

British Airways is planning some equipment changes to the U.S. for its winter schedule starting October 29. On its Washington Dulles-London Heathrow route, BA will replace a 777-200ER with a 787-9. The 787-200ER and -300ER used on the Atlanta-LHR route will also be switched out for a 787-9. And 777-200ERs will go into service between LHR and Houston instead of the current 787-9 and 747-400 service. As we mentioned previously, BA will also add a third daily Los Angeles-London frequency with a 787-9.

Don’t miss: What in the world is Thomas Cook Airlines?

Level will add more A330 routes next year — but where? (Image: IAG)

Look for more new routes in 2018 from Level, the new low-cost subsidiary of British Airways/Iberia parent International Airlines Group. Level started flying two-class A330-200s last month from Barcelona to Oakland and Los Angeles, and the carrier has just firmed up plans to add three more A330-200s to its fleet by next summer – although it hasn’t yet said where it will use them.

Ever been to Martinique or Guadeloupe? Those two Caribbean islands are technically and legally part of France, and that means Air France can fly to them from the U.S. The carrier has plans to begin twice-weekly service from Atlanta to Guadeloupe on November 21, using an A320.

Speaking of Air France – because Delta and Air France-KLM have had a close joint venture partnership for eight years now, you may have thought that Delta held an equity stake in the company. But it doesn’t. That’s now changing, however as Delta announced plans to acquire 10 percent of Air France-KLM, subject to a variety of shareholder and regulatory approvals. And it’s part of a three-way deal: Air France-KLM will acquire a 31 percent interest in Virgin Atlantic, which is 49 percent owned by Delta. Not a whole lot of good news for consumers with these deals, although the airlines will spin them that way…

Singapore Airlines’ Scoot subsidiary has Hawaii in its sights. (Image: Scoot)

Singapore Airlines used to have two low-cost subsidiaries – Tigerair, used on short-haul routes out of Singapore, and Scoot, for medium to long-haul routes. But it recently merged them into one operation, keeping the Scoot brand. Following the merger, Scoot plans to add more long-haul flights, including a new route from Honolulu to Singapore. Depending on how soon it can get regulatory approvals, the Honolulu flights could begin before the end of this year or early in 2018.

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Routes: JetBlue to Europe + AA, Delta, Norwegian, United, Avianca, Etihad

June 9, 2017

Will a larger Mint cabin on a new A321 model make Europe flights work for JetBlue? (Image: JetBlue)

In international route developments, JetBlue sees possibilities for Europe with new planes, more Mint; American’s new premium economy seating spreads to more routes; Delta kicks off Seoul service from its home base; Norwegian begins Barcelona flights this week; United drops a U.S.-South America route and Avianca adds one; and Etihad goes all-A380 on a key U.S. route.

JetBlue is in the midst of an analysis about how it can operate profitably on routes to Europe, according to an article in The Motley Fool, and the carrier reportedly sees two keys to making transatlantic flights work. One is the right aircraft – and JetBlue has taken steps in that direction by amending an aircraft order with Airbus to secure some A321LRs starting in 2019. With their longer range, those planes would let JetBlue fly from its Boston and New York JFK bases to major cities in western Europe. (How customers would react to a transatlantic flight on a single-aisle plane is another matter.)

The second key is competing not against ultra-low-cost operations like Norwegian and WOW, but against mainstream airlines’ premium cabins by offering business travelers a front cabin with more flat-bed Mint seats than the 16 that its domestic flights offer. JetBlue sees its domestic Mint deployment as a major competitive success story, and wants to repeat it. “Airbus’ Cabin-Flex concept will give airlines full discretion on how big to make their premium cabins by rearranging the locations of the emergency exits,” the article noted, and JetBlue is said to be looking at boosting Mint seating to 22 if it goes transatlantic.

American’s new Premium Economy section, with 2-3-2 leather seats, is coming to more routes later his year. (Image: American Airlines)

We noted recently that American Airlines has started installing its new international premium economy seating on its 777-200ERs, and Airlineroute.com reports that the carrier is taking reservations for premium economy travel starting December 15 on a number of routes. (The new section has initially been available only on select routes where AA uses new 787-9s.) In mid-December, the premium economy seats will be available on AA’s 777-200ER routes from Dallas/Ft. Worth to Buenos Aires, Frankfurt and Tokyo Narita; from Los Angeles to Tokyo Narita and Tokyo Haneda; and from Miami to Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Madrid, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Santiago (Chile).

Delta has launched new daily transpacific service from its Atlanta hub to Seoul Incheon, supplementing the daily flight in the same market operated by its partner Korean Air. The Delta flight uses a 777-200LR featuring a Delta One cabin with 37 lie-flat seats; 36 Comfort+ extra-legroom economy seats; and 218 main cabin seats in a nine-across layout. All seats have power ports and entertainment on demand, and satellite Wi-Fi is available.

Low-cost transatlantic specialist Norwegian kicked off three new U.S. routes this week, all of them to Barcelona with 787 Dreamliners. The carrier is operating twice a week to Barcelona from Los Angeles (increasing to three a week in August); twice a week from Newark (going up to four a week in August); and twice a week from Oakland (increasing to three in August). Norwegian’s Oakland-Barcelona route is already facing competition from new entrant Level, a low-cost subsidiary of British Airways/Iberia parent International Airlines Group.

Venezuela has been going through unprecedented political and economic turmoil in recent months, and travel to that country has suffered as a result. The latest evidence: United Airlines plans to end its daily flights to Caracas from Houston Bush Intercontinental effective July 1. United is just the latest of several carriers that have suspended Venezuela flights, in part because they have had trouble getting money from ticket sales out of the country.

Avianca added A319 service to Boston from Bogota. (Image: Avianca)

Avianca has launched new U.S. service between Bogota, Colombia and Boston Logan. The Star Alliance member flies the route four times a week from Terminal E at BOS, using a two-class A319 with 12 business class seats and 108 in economy. The flight operates on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays from Boston, and is the only non-stop service between the two cities.

Etihad Airways has put an Airbus A380 onto its second daily New York JFK-Abu Dhabi flight, replacing a 777-300ER. The other daily flight has been using an A380 since late 2015, so the aircraft change makes JFK-Abu Dhabi one of the airline’s few all-A380 routes, along with Abu Dhabi-London and Abu Dhabi-Sydney.

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Can Oakland cope with global growth?

June 2, 2017

British Airways Boeing 777 landing at Oakland International Airport (Photo: Port of Oakland)

Oakland International Airport today adds another transatlantic competitor as new low-cost Level begins Barcelona service. It’s the latest in a growing roster of international flights at OAK, and it makes us wonder how much the airport can handle in its current state.

The new service from Level – with a two-class, 314-passenger A330 flying the route three days a week – comes just five days ahead of new twice-weekly Oakland-Barcelona flights from Norwegian, which has settled on the East Bay airport as its preferred home in the Bay Area. (OAK-BCN fares started as low as $400 round trip, but are now running $500-$700 for peak summer season trips.)

Level’s parent, International Airlines Group (which owns British Airways and Iberia), has also settled on Oakland — as the gateway where it will fight back against the low-cost flights of Norwegian. At the end of March, British Airways started four weekly flights from Oakland to London Gatwick — a route that Norwegian has flown for more than a year, and will boost from three flights a week to four this fall.

Level is flying A330s from Oakland to Barcelona. (Image: IAG)

On the same day that BA launched those OAK-Gatwick flights, Norwegian started twice-weekly service from Oakland to Copenhagen; it already flies from OAK to Oslo and Stockholm.

Is your mind sufficiently boggled by all that?

That’s just part of the burgeoning international growth at Oakland. In addition:

Norwegian just announced plans to begin twice-weekly service next February from Oakland to Rome Fiumicino – the first Bay Area non-stops to Italy in many years. There is some speculation that IAG’s Level could decide to go head-to-head with Norwegian on that route as well.
In February, Southwest Airlines kicked off its first international service from Oakland, with daily flights to Puerto Vallarta and San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos, Mexico.
Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris recently won rights to operate from Oakland to Mexico City, with service expected to begin by summer of 2018.

Norwegian flies Boeing 787 Dreamliners on its routes from Oakland to Europe.

With all the new transatlantic service, Oakland has surpassed San Diego to become California’s third-largest gateway to Europe. The airport is doing its part this year to give those carriers a boost: Through August 15, it is offering five free days of parking, worth $120, to travelers flying roundtrip to Europe.

But all that growth comes at a cost: We’ve been hearing some grousing from readers about long waiting times at Customs and Immigration at Oakland airport.

Here are some select quotes from emails sent from the plane waiting on the OAK tarmac from reader SS: Trapped w/babies on sweltering Southwest flight from Puerto Vallarta. Customs can’t handle our flight & another big Norwegian flight that came in. So we’re stuck on plane.

Later, SS wrote: There were TWO 200-300 passenger widebodies processed ahead of us. Norwegian Air & British Airways. Only four customs agents processing passengers when we arrived to customs- three for US citizens, and one for non-US. OAK clearly unprepared for this new level of international arrivals. Even customs hall wasn’t large enough to handle us well.

Emails like that make us wonder about the ability of OAK’s international terminal to handle all the growth (the airport recently reported that its overall passenger numbers during April jumped almost 13 percent year-over-year).

We reached out to airport spokesperson Keonnis Taylor about this, and she wrote: The events of last evening were partially the result of irregular operations. Southwest Airlines Flight 125 arrived 20 minutes early and the international arrival gates were occupied by other flights. Unfortunately, about the same time as this early arrival, a system-wide outage of CBP’s APC (Automated Passport Control) kiosks occurred. The outage, which was not limited to OAK, required all passengers arriving on international flights to be processed through Customs without the benefit of the APCs, which streamline the process otherwise fully conducted by its agents. This kiosk outage caused delays in passenger processing and, subsequently, a long period of waiting for other aircraft that had arrived, which were not able to access the International Arrivals Building until after previous international arrivals had deplaned all passengers.

Fortunately, OAK is hard at work on a $35 million expansion of its international arrivals facility, which should be finished this summer. Plus, Oakland does have Global Entry, which should help when things get backed up!

Have you flown from Oakland yet? Would you? Please leave your comments below.

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Routes: Delta, Aeromexico, Finnair, Qatar, Alitalia, Norwegian, United + more

June 1, 2017

Flight from HEL: Finnair rolled out VWs and surfboards at HEL to launch its new Helsinki-San Francisco flights today (Image: Finnair / Twitter)

In international route developments, Delta starts up Europe routes and teams with Aeromexico to add transborder markets; Finnair comes to San Francisco; Qatar delays the addition of a new U.S. gateway; Alitalia extends its Los Angeles schedule; Norwegian alters some U.S. schedules and boosts London frequencies; Southwest expands Mexico service this winter; United adds an Asian code-share; and Air Canada starts a new U.S. route.

Delta has started service on several seasonal routes to Europe. One new seasonal route this summer is Portland, Oregon to London Heathrow, now operating four days a week with a 767-300. Other new Delta seasonal routes to Europe include daily service from Boston to Dublin and from New York JFK to Glasgow (in addition to its JFK-Edinburgh service). Delta has also resumed seasonal daily flights from JFK to Berlin and to Lisbon. In other Europe news, Delta plans to scale back its Salt Lake City-London Heathrow route to seasonal status, discontinuing the flights from October 29 to March 23.

Meanwhile, Delta also announced plans to start selling its Comfort+ extra-legroom economy seating as a separate fare category on more international routes. The seats are now on sale for travel beginning September 20 on routes from North America to Brazil, Argentina, Peru and Chile; and to China and Hong Kong.

The Delta-Aeromexico joint venture will add transborder routes and frequencies. (Image: Delta)

That new joint venture between Delta and Aeromexico has announced plans to start service on five new transborder routes sometime this fall, after they get government approval. The five routes, all to be operated by Aeromexico, include Atlanta-Merida, Atlanta-Queretaro, Los Angeles-Leon, Seattle-Mexico City and Portland-Mexico City. The joint venture will also add a second daily flight between LAX and Los Cabos, and a third between New York JFK and Cancun, both operated by Delta; and a second daily flight from Atlanta to both Leon and Guadalajara, both operated by Aeromexico. With the two airlines now operating as one in terms of scheduling and pricing, these changes could mean higher fares for travelers to Mexico – but the extra flights could also mean fewer connecting hassles at Mexico City’s congested airport.

Finally, Delta is adding more service to Southeast Asia – not on its own, but through new code-shares with transatlantic joint venture partner Air France. According to Routesonline.com, Delta’s code has gone onto Air France’s Paris CDG-Bangkok service, and will do the same October 3 on Air France’s Paris-Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam flight.

Finnair is using an A330 on its seasonal San Francisco route. (Image: Finnair)

San Francisco International’s newest transatlantic route is to Helsinki, Finland. Finnair this week introduced seasonal service from SFO to the Finnish capital, using an Airbus A330-300 to fly the route three times a week, departing SFO on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. The Helsinki flights will continue through September.

We reported a while ago that Qatar Airways was planning to add another U.S. gateway in early January with the addition of service between Doha, Qatar and Las Vegas. But the carrier’s latest schedule filings now show that launch date has been pushed back to June 1, 2018. Qatar still expects to fly the route four days a week with a 777-200LR.

It looks like Alitalia will turn its seasonal Los Angeles-Rome service into a year-round operation — almost. Alitalia, a member of Delta’s Skyteam alliance, filed a new schedule showing its LAX-Rome service will not end October 29 as previously planned, but will continue after that three times a week – at least until January 15, when it goes on hiatus until March 6.

We’ve reported previously on the big plans by Norwegian Air International to begin new low-fare service in June from the northeastern U.S. to various points in Europe using its brand-new, longer-range 737MAX 8 aircraft. But Boeing has warned the carrier of delays in delivering the new planes, so Norwegian has been scrambling to adjust its fleet plans. Instead of the new 737MAX 8s, the company now plans to substitute Norwegian Air Shuttle 737-800s for much of the summer on new service from Providence to Bergen, Norway; Belfast, Northern Ireland; and Shannon, Cork and Dublin, Ireland, as well as service from Stewart Airport in Newburgh, N.Y. to Shannon, Dublin, Edinburgh and Bergen.

Norwegian will increase 787 frequencies on U.S.-London Gatwick routes this winter. (Image: Norwegian)

Meanwhile, Norwegian is also planning to increase frequencies on several U.S. routes to London Gatwick when its winter schedule kicks in on October 29. All the affected routes use 787-9s. Norwegian will boost Oakland-London service from three flights a week to four, while Los Angeles-LGW increases from five flights a week to daily service; Orlando-LGW goes from one a week to two; Ft. Lauderdale-LGW increases from three a week to four; and Boston-Gatwick from four a week to five.

Although Delta and Aeromexico are tightening their grip on the transborder market, other competitors are stepping up their game as well. Southwest Airlines’ winter schedule, effective November 5, shows an increase of its Houston Hobby-Mexico City schedule from three flights a day to four, while its weekly flights from Denver to Puerto Vallarta and Los Cabos both go to daily frequencies. On November 11, Southwest will kick off new weekly flights to Cancun from both Nashville and St. Louis. Interjet, the low-cost Mexican carrier, plans to boost its service between New York JFK and Mexico City from 18 flights a week to 25 starting June 15. And United on December 17 will introduce seasonal weekly flights (on Saturdays) between its Denver hub and Cozumel.

Speaking of United, here are a couple of new developments to Asia: United has put its code onto Star Alliance partner ANA’s daily 787 service between Tokyo Narita and Phnom Penh, Cambodia; and United’s aircraft switch on its San Francisco-Seoul flight effective October 29 from a 747-400 to a 777-200ER has changed; the carrier now plans to use a 787-9 instead of a 777. And today we shared the news about what’s missing on United’s new Los Angeles-Singapore nonstops in another post.

Air Canada has added a new destination from Denver. The carrier recently started Air Canada Express service twice a day from Denver to Vancouver, using a 75-passenger CRJ705.The schedule will drop back to once a day September 10.

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Trip Report: Oakland-London, British Airways business class

April 24, 2017

First stop on my journey to London: BART’s 24th Street station in San Francisco where I caught a train to Oakland International (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Last month I jumped on British Airways’ new Oakland-London Gatwick nonstop for a quick two-day business trip. I’ve never flown to Europe from Oakland, so I was eager to give it a go and share my experience here.

I was also eager to test taking BART from San Francisco to Oakland Airport. And in another test, I skipped my normal practice of taking sleep aids on this overnight flight.

On the OAK-LGW route, British Airways is following in the contrails of Norwegian Air, which launched its Oakland-London Boeing 787 Dreamliner nonstops in May 2016 at rock bottom fares– as low as $400 round trip, but with many extra fees.

Currently, the cheapest BA fares on OAK-LGW are running about $975 for economy class roundtrips in June. These economy class fares pretty much match Norwegian’s fares when you add in all Norwegian’s extras. Premium economy runs about $1,450 roundtrip. The least expensive business class seats are going for about $3,700 roundtrip, but in some cases climb as high as $7,000. When BA first announced the nonstops it offered a special economy fare of just $500 round trip, but that fare is long gone now that peak summer season approaches.

British Airways’ new Oakland-Gatwick flights operate four days a week using a Boeing 777-200ER that seats 275 passengers: 203 in economy, 24 in premium economy and 48 in business class. British Airways’ premium economy (aka World Traveller Plus) is in a separate cabin, bigger seats with 38-inch pitch, in-seat power, and choice of meals from the business class menu. BA is the only carrier at OAK offering lie-flat business class seats to Europe.

BA Club World (business class) travelers flying out of Oakland receive up to five days of free parking in OAK’s Premier Lot, an added value of $190. They also get complimentary access to a new Escape lounge located in Terminal 1 near BA gates. One-time passes to the lounge go for $45.

Note: Chris McGinnis was a guest of British Airways for this trip to London to attend a press briefing. Here’s what that was all about!

BART’s Coliseum station is where passengers connect to the new BART Connector to Oakland Airport (Chris McGinnis)

When taking BART to Oakland International Airport, you get off at Coliseum station. From there you walk up the steps to the new Oakland Airport Connector station for the short spur ride to the front door of the airport. (Fares vary from your starting point, but run in the $10 range) Wanna see what that ride is like? Watch the video below!

Here’s the ride from BART Coliseum to Oakland Airport

British Airways check in counters are located in an unusual spot near airport security in Oakland’s Terminal 1 (Chris McGinnis)

British Airways operates out of Oakland’s Terminal 1. When I first walked in I could not find the British Airways ticket counter among all the other counters in the main corridor. When I asked, I discovered that BA’s counter is in a new space (currently under construction) closer to the security screening lines.

I picked up my boarding pass at the counter, breezed through security– I did not get PreCheck for this flight, although it is available at OAK– but did not really need it since there were only about 10 people in line at midday.

Total transit time from the BART station in SF to the Escape lounge beyond security just 70 minutes. Not bad!

After security I headed straight to the new Escape Lounge– since I was flying business class, I had comp access to the lounge which was a nice quiet oasis from the hubbub of the terminal.

When I checked my watch, I was pleased to see that the entire journey from the BART station in SF, under the Bay in a train, connecting to the airport spur, checking in, going through security and walking to the gate took just 70 minutes! That’s faster and easier than I expected, and the ease of the trip probably had a lot to do with the time of day I was there (midday). If it had been morning or evening rush hours, it would have probably taken a bit longer.

Modern design, generous food and drink and views at Oakland’s new Escape Lounge (Chris McGinnis)

Last year Oakland International Airport opened a new Escape Lounge that’s open to all passengers for a $45 one-time-use fee. (British Airways business class passengers and Norwegian Air’s Premium passengers are comped.) It is located in Terminal 1 between gates 8 and 8A, across from gate 9. The 2,700-square-foot facility can accommodate 50 travelers, and has separate zones for relaxing, dining/drinking and work. It’s open daily from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m.

Warm mac and cheese, avocado toast, cheese and crackers at the Escape Lounge (Chris McGinnis)

When I was there around lunchtime, The Escape lounge buffet had a nice selection of hot and cold items, including these cute cast iron ramekins of yummy macaroni and cheese, avocado toast, soup, salad, fresh fruit, cold cuts, crackers, cheese and chips. There’s also a separate full complimentary bar with waiter service. Food and drink is service on china and glass. Nice tarmac views out big windows. I found this lounge almost as nice as any Amex Centurion Lounge I’ve visited recently, but only half as crowded.

Now let’s go jump onboard! BA 2278 was scheduled to depart at 3:10 pm but was delayed until 3:50 pm. Flight time to London is 10.5 hours, and is scheduled to land at 9:30 am.

British Airways deploys a Boeing 777-200ER on the Oakland-London Gatwich route (Chris McGinnis)

The Boeing 777-200ER deployed on this route is not a new plane, but the interior felt like it had been through a recent refresh. There were 48 business class seats in two cabins separated by a galley and it felt airy and bright with huge overhead bins.

Luckily business class was only about 1/3 full so I was able to get a rear-facing window seat and did not have to face a fellow forward-facing passenger during take off and landing. To make life easier on the flight attendants, I left the translucent screen separating passengers down for the entire flight.

British Airways signature forward and rear facing business class seats (Chris McGinnis)

To me, the window seats in British Airways business class are the best because they are so private– you are really tucked away in your own cocoon over there (My seat is off to the right in the photo above- 3A). Aisle seats are much more exposed to activity in the aisle. Seats are configured 2-4-2.

The downside to this set up is that window seat passengers must step over the legs of the aisle seat passenger to get out. That’s long been a bone of contention among BA business flyers, however, that should be changing soon. The reason I was on this trip in the first place was to meet with BA’s CEO Alex Cruz– and during that meeting he revealed that the next generation business class section would offer 100% aisle access- what was less clear is if the new seats would be forward and rear facing.

British Airways seats 3A (mine by the window) and 3B (unoccupied) on OAK-LGW (Chris McGinnis)

Something interesting about those translucent screens– see below? When flight attendants look down from the aisle, the screen is transparent. But from the passenger level, it’s translucent, so when it’s up you can only see shadows of the passenger seated next to you.

The translucent divider separating business class passengers goes up and down (Chris McGinnis)

One interesting thing about taking off from Oakland Airport vs SFO… taxi time! From the time the door closed and we backed up, taxied and took off felt like about 10 minutes. Plus there were plenty of nice views of the marshes surrounding OAK from the windows.

A glass of Albarino and a bag of nuts to start the meal service (Chris McGinnis)

Shortly after take off, flight attendants came around with a drinks cart and nuts. On this flight, the Kendall-Jackson California chardonnay listed on the wine menu was not in stock, so I settled for an Spanish Albarino.

In-seat stowage space in BA’s business class is limited to this drawer by your feet– it’s big enough for a laptop, magazines, phone, headphones, camera, etc. Kinda difficult to access, but good to have.

British Airways does not currently offer in-flight wi-fi on any flights… which seems strange given its global reach and reputation. It was sorely missed on this flight. However, on this trip we learned that BA is aiming to have nearly all its fleet outfitted with wi-fi within two years.

In seat stowage space limited to a small drawer by your feet (Chris McGinnis)

First course was a fresh and colorful salad and as an appetizer I chose a “deconstructed Greek salad” of feta, black olive tapenade, tomatoes, carved cucumbers, onions and watercress.

Tossed salad and as an app: Descontructed Greek Salad with olive tapenade and pea shoots (Chris McGinnis)

I’m usually not much of a beef eater so I chose the haddock. While the presentation of the meal was lacking, it tasted really good– creamy, cheese-y and fishy with a nice side of fava beans and rice. I asked flight attendants if I could see what the steak looked like– and to snap a photo. They happily obliged. Shoulda chosen the steak!

Other mains included Pappardelle pasta tossed with kale pesto or a nicoise salad with grilled chicken.

Haddock in white wine herb risotto, fava beans with smoked bacon and chive beurre blanc (Chris McGinnis)

Seared fillet of midwest beef with red wine jus, chorizo potato rosti and roasted root vegetables (Chris McGinnis)

Triple mousse cake with chocolate sauce (Chris McGinnis)

Some nice American cheeses with a tomato jelly and oatmeal wafers for dessert. I passed on the chocolate mousse since I thought it might interfere with the sleep I hoped to get on this flight.

Krystal cave aged cheddar and Wisconsin blue with green tomato jam (Chris McGinnis)

After dinner I took a stroll through the plane and found it pretty empty. When I checked in, agents told me that there were only 95 passengers (out of 275 seats) in economy class. Not surprising considering this was during slow season, and only the first week of the flight.

In premium economy there were only four passengers. It’s a quiet, cozy cabin located between economy and business class. seats are configured 2-4-2. Passengers can choose from the business class menu. Downside: When seats are empty, you can’t lie down flat across the rows due to the fixed arm rests.

Premium economy on British Airways B777-200ER (Chris McGinnis)

At the back in economy, this British Airways B777 is configured 3-3-3– thankfully not the emerging 10-across (3-4-3) standard- but that could change. In our meeting with Cruz, he indicated that Gatwick flights, which are more leisure oriented and price driven, could soon see 10-across, too. Time will tell.

Since this flight was so empty, many coach passengers (who likely paid just $500 roundtrip) were able to snag what business class passengers pay dearly for: a long flat surface for sleeping. In the photo below, it may look like that middle cabin is empty, but there’s a body sprawled across each row!

Economy class seats configured 3-3-3 on BA’s B777-200ER (Chris McGinnis)

Back in my business class cocoon, I laid my six-foot frame flat and comfortably for 4-5 hours, but did not get much sleep. I experimented with not taking any sleep aids on this flight and learned my lesson! It did not help that flight attendants kept the cabin very warm for the overnight flight– for some reason nearly all European carrier flights are kept WAY too warm for good sleep. I would have loved to cuddle under the nice quilt provided, but used it as a pillow instead.

Our flight landed at London Gatwick about 30 minutes late at around 10 am. Unlike British Airways flights arriving at Heathrow, there is no Fast Track through customs and immigration for business class passengers. Since other flights were arriving at the same time and lots of passengers to process, this meant waiting in line for about 30 minutes.

If you want to avoid that wait, you can pay about $13 for Gatwick Premium access to get in a fast lane which was empty when I was there. Had I known about this, I would gladly have paid the $13 to speed through!

Once I got through immigration, I sped through customs with my carry on bag and exited to the busy south terminal. Finding my way to the Gatwick Express train was easy– the service has recently been updated, so there’s a dedicated ticket line in the airport.

New Gatwick Express trains depart every 15 minutes for the 30 minute trip to Victoria Station (Chris McGinnis)

At Gatwick, BA uses the recently renovated South Terminal — recent improvements include a brand new business class lounge, and upgraded check in area, and easier access to the Gatwick Express.

Gatwick Airport (LGW) is 28 miles south of central London but still convenient and even preferred by many travelers. Why? Because the easy 30-minute, approximately $25 Gatwick Express train whisks you from the airport to Victoria Station in the heart of the city every 15 minutes. There’s free wi-fi onboard– which makes it easy to catch up on emails that have arrived overnight.

Clean, new and modern trains on the Gatwick Express (Chris McGinnis)

British Airways put us up at The Corinthia, one of my favorite London hotels, for two nights. It’s located on the banks of the Thames near the Embankment and Charing Cross stations. The taxi fare from Victoria station to the hotel was about $15.

Here’s my bedroom at the Corinthia, but check out the view from my window!

Early morning view from my #hotel room #jetlag #london #travel #sunrise
A post shared by Chris McGinnis (@chrisjmcginnis) on Apr 5, 2017 at 12:42am PDT

Have you flown British Airways before? What did you think? Would you give it a go on the new Oakland-Gatwick flight? Please leave your comments below!

Disclosure: Chris McGinnis was a guest of British Airways for this trip, which included roundtrip air transportation and two nights hotel. TravelSkills covered all other costs related to the trip.

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Routes: Norwegian SEA/DEN-London $199; LOT, JAL, United, EVA + more

April 6, 2017

Norwegian will fly 787-9s to London from Seattle and Denver. (Image: Norwegian)

In international route news, Norwegian is adding two more U.S. gateways with low-cost service to London; LOT Polish starts new west coast service; Japan Airlines adds a new route out of New York; United will drop an intra-Asian route; Eva adds more flights to San Francisco; a European leisure carrier plans San Diego-Zurich service; and an Avianca affiliate adds a Miami route to Brazil.

Transatlantic low-cost carrier Norwegian just keeps adding more routes to the U.S. In its latest foray, the airline said it will start flying to London Gatwick from both Seattle and Denver beginning in mid-September. It will use 787-9s on both routes. The schedule calls for Denver service to start September 16 with two flights a week, increasing to three on November 2. From Seattle, Norwegian will start flying on September 17 with four weekly non-stops to LGW.

Norwegian’s “launch fares” on both routes start at $199 one-way in economy, including taxes; and $839 one-way in its Premium Cabin. Flying economy can bring lots of add-ons for various services and amenities; the premium fare includes a luggage allowance, lounge access, priority boarding, sleeper seats, and all meals and drinks. Seats are on sale now at www.Norwegian.com/us.

Those two routes are just the latest in an onslaught of U.S. service for Norwegian in 2017. In June, it will start flying to Barcelona from Los Angeles, Newark and Oakland; and in June and July it will kick off a slew of 737MAX routes from three smaller northeastern airports (Newburgh, N.Y.; Providence, R.I.; and Hartford, Conn.) to points in Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Norway. Orlando-Paris and Ft. Lauderdale-Barcelona start later in the summer.

Business class on a LOT 787-8. (Image: LOT Polish)

LOT Polish this week began service from Los Angeles to Warsaw, using a 787-8 to fly the route four times a week. The 6,500-mile route is the longest in LOT’s network. The Polish carrier – a member of the Star Alliance — is due to start Newark-Warsaw flights at the end of April, and to begin Chicago-Krakow service in August.

Japan Airlines this month started flying from New York JFK to Tokyo’s close-in Haneda Airport. The daily flight to Haneda is in addition to JAL’s daily service from JFK to Tokyo Narita. The new Haneda flight uses a 244-seat 777-300ER, and JAL switched its JFK-Narita flight from a 787-8 to a 777-300ER as well. The larger 777 has a first class cabin that the Dreamliner doesn’t, along with business class, premium economy and regular economy seating.

At the end of October, United Airlines is planning to discontinue service on its route from Tokyo Narita to Seoul Incheon, which it serves once a day with a 737-800. The route will continue to be served by United’s Star Alliance partner Asiana.

Taiwan’s EVA Air has filed plans to boost frequencies on its route from Taipei to San Francisco. The carrier currently flies the route twice a day, and plans to increase that to 17 a week starting November 5. The extra flights will use a 777-300ER. EVA is a member of the Star Alliance.

Edelweiss will use an A340-300 for San Diego-Zurich seasonal service. (Image: Edelweiss

Ever hear of Edelweiss? Yes, it’s a small mountain flower and a song in ‘The Sound of Music’, but it’s also a leisure carrier affiliated with Swiss International (www.flyedelweiss.com). And it plans to start seasonal service June 9 between San Diego and Zurich. Edelweiss will use an A340-300 to fly the route twice a week, with SAN departures on Fridays and Mondays. The aircraft has a business class with lie-flat seats along with premium economy and regular economy seating.

Avianca’s Brazilian affiliate, Avianca Brasil, has started taking reservations for a new route between Miami and Sao Paulo Guarulhos, which it will start flying June 23. The service will operate once a day with an A330-200.

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Routes: Norwegian/BA at Oakland, Alaska/Condor, China Eastern, KLM, Air Canada, Volaris

March 20, 2017

British Airways will fly nonstop between Oakland and London-Gatwick using a Boeing 777-200ER (Photo: British Airways)

In international route developments, Norwegian and British Airways begin new Oakland flights; Alaska inks a frequent flyer partnership with a European carrier; China Eastern adds a U.S. route; KLM returns to Minneapolis; Air Canada begins a new transcontinental link from Vancouver; and Volaris starts Houston service.

It will be a busy time at Oakland International next week, with two new transatlantic services coming to the Bay Area airport. March 28 is the launch date for Norwegian’s newest low-cost transatlantic route, linking Oakland with Copenhagen twice a week, using a 787-8. And on the same date, British Airways will kick off new daily flights linking Oakland with London Gatwick – a route served since last year by Norwegian. The new BA flights out of OAK will operate four days a week, using a 777-200ER with business, premium economy and regular economy seating. BA already flies to London from San Francisco and San Jose – but to Heathrow, not Gatwick. Meanwhile, BA will also begin new service on March 27 between New Orleans and London Heathrow, offering 787-8 flights four days a week.

Speaking of Oakland, the new carrier LEVEL, which announced new nonstops to Barcelona for just $149 each way bragged on Twitter this week that it sold 52,000 tickets in a single day:

On our second day of “Life” Hello world! ? Yesterday we hit record sales: 52,000 tickets sold. Wow!
— LEVEL_en (@flywithlevelEN) March 18, 2017

Condor is Alaska’s newest Mileage Plan partner. (Image: Condor)

Alaska Airlines has added another European carrier as a partner in its Mileage Plan frequent flyer program. The new partner is Condor, a leisure-oriented subsidiary of Thomas Cook that is based in Germany. The two carriers already had an interline agreement, but now passengers will be able to earn and spend Mileage Plan miles on Condor as well. Alaska passengers can link up with transatlantic Condor flights to Frankfurt at Seattle, San Diego, Las Vegas, Portland, Anchorage and Fairbanks; in June, Condor will add Seattle-Munich flights.

Mileage Plan members can start earning elite-qualifying miles on Condor flights now (and so can Virgin America Elevate members who have a Mileage Plan account number). Award travel redemption “will begin at a later date,” Alaska said. Condor, which uses three-class 767-300ERs on its transatlantic routes, is expanding its North America network this year to a total of 16 cities, mostly served a couple of times a week. The airline primarily serves vacationers, but offers a nice (but non-lie-flat) business class, reviewed here.

China Eastern wants to start Houston-Shanghai flights. (Image: Airbus)

China Eastern Airlines has its eye on new U.S. service linking Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport with Shanghai Pudong, according to a report in Air Transport World, an aviation industry journal. China Eastern, a member of Delta’s SkyTeam global alliance, reportedly hopes to begin the service in June or July. The only other non-stop service between Houston and China is an Air China route from Houston to Beijing.

KLM set a March 27 start for seasonal service between Minneapolis-St. Paul and its Amsterdam Schiphol hub – a route it hasn’t flown since 2001. The Dutch carrier will fly the route three days a week, continuing through October. KLM’s SkyTeam partner Delta, which has a hub at MSP, already offers service to AMS up to three times a da

On June 23, Air Canada will introduce new seasonal service linking Vancouver with Boston, continuing through September 4. The carrier will offer one daily roundtrip using a two-class A319. The Canadian carrier will also resume Montreal-Washington Dulles daily service starting June 19, using a 50-passenger CRJ-100; Air Canada already flies between Montreal and Washington Reagan National.

Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris has started up new service between Houston Bush Intercontinental and Mexico City, operating four days a week. Volaris already flies from Houston to Guadalajara.

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Most popular: London sale + Clean planes + Hilton Honors + New premium economy + Trivia Quiz

February 5, 2017

Looking at London across the Thames from the Corinthia Hotel (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

TravelSkills’ 10 most popular posts over the last week (descending order):

1 Deal Alert: $457 to London from SFO, San Jose, Oakland (Deal expired, but we’ll monitor for its return)

2 How often are planes washed?

3 Big changes for Hilton’s Honors program

4 WOW Air adds “premium” seats for West Coast flights

5 How to ride on United’s very first real Polaris flight

6 Test your travel smarts with this fun trivia quiz (1,600 readers have taken the test- what about you?)

A new InterContinental Hotel, the tallest in LA, will open later this year. Which airline owns it? Take the QUIZ to find out (Image: AC Martin)

7 At LAX: New United terminal, Qantas hangar, American & Delta swap

8 Routes: American’s Beijing problem + Virgin Atlantic, United, Air India, Bliss Jet

9 Watch this: PBS series takes inside look at aviation

10 Bay Area airports booming

We’ll be tuning in for this travel geeky PBS series on Feb 8– will you?

Links to stories from other sources that we thought you’d like to read:

10 new Bay Area hotels to open in 2017, 4 in downtown San Francisco

Airlines gearing up for fight with Trump over Cuba

TSA says it will significantly reduce number of non-members in PreCheck lines

Delta and Virgin Australia offering DOUBLE miles

10 of the best American cities to live comfortably on $40,000 a year

TravelSkills reader Janis C spotted TravelSkills’ Chris McGinnis quoted in this month’s American Way magazine en route to London.

Peak cherry blossoms in Tokyo March 22

Delta may be looking to increase business fares

Norwegian eyes a “low-cost alliance” with Europe’s Ryanair, easyJet

Spirit reduces allowable size of carry-on personal items

Atlanta is once again the world’s busiest airport for 2016

Trump’s hiring ban is said to leave TSA seriously understaffed

ICYMI, see the 25 most recent TravelSkills posts right here

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Deal Alert: $457 to London from SFO, San Jose, Oakland

February 2, 2017

British Airways' inaugural San Jose flight arrives at the gate. (Image: Mineta San Jose Airport)

British Airways’ inaugural San Jose Boeing 787 Dreamliner arrives at the gate. (Image: Mineta San Jose Airport)

A few weeks ago we saw Bay Area to London roundtrip fares plummet to under $500 – an astounding deal. Now, with competition heating up, those cheap fares are back… and available from ALL three airports: SFO, San Jose and Oakland! And on all airlines serving the route: British Airways, Norwegian, Virgin Atlantic and United.

In these heady days, we now have up to NINE roundtrips every day between the Bay Area and London (Gatwick and Heathrow).

One at San Jose SJC (British Airways)
Two at Oakland OAK (British Airways and Norwegian)
Six at San Francisco SFO (British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, United)

With competition like that, I bet we’ll see cheap fares for at least the rest of this year.

This sample is for May 1 – May 8 (Google Flights)

What is great about these deals is that they are currently available all the way through mid-May— which means you can fly to London for Spring Break if you fancy that! ‘Tis lovely in the spring!

After May, fares creep up into the $600 round trip range, but even that is a great deal when you consider it’s available during peak summer travel season June-August) when fares normally rise to near $1,800 round trip.

Find these deals on Google Flights. NOTE: If flights are not found on Google flights, try BritishAirways.com, NorwegianAir.com, United.com or VirginAtlantic.com, all of which are still showing these fares as of Noon Thursday Feb 2.

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Deal Alert: SFO-London $481 roundtrip United, Virgin

January 18, 2017

Virgin Atlantic's shiny new toy coming to SFO: Boeing Dreamliner 787-9 (Photo: Virgin)

Virgin Atlantic flies only Boeing 787s on its SFO-London nonstops (Photo: Virgin)

Today United and Virgin Atlantic have a great deal on round trip, nonstop flights to London from many major US gateways- just $481 round trip for winter and spring trips!

This is an especially good deal– any time we see nonstops west coast to Europe for less than $500, we jump!

What’s best about this sale is the wide window during which you can get the deal- according to Google Flights, the deal is good for flights from now all the way through mid May 2017. This includes the popular and busy spring break timeframe.

Google flights showing LAX-London for just $504 rt in March

Google flights showing SFO-London for just $481 for winter and spring trips

From SFO, you can now fly on Virgin Atlantic’s two new B787 Dreamliners plying the route across the pond. United flies 777s on the SFO-LHR Heathrow route.

WOW Air’s one-stop flights from SFO to London are as low as $440 (with big fees). From Oakland, Norwegian Air offers fares from Oakland to London as low as $385 roundtrip (with restrictions) so this is clearly a competitive move on the part of the majors. From San Jose, there are competitive fares ($495) on to London on Air Canada and United, but require a stop enroute.

NOTE: Currently British Airways does not seem to be participating in this great deal.

Find these deals on Google Flights. NOTE: If flights are not found on Google flights, try United.com or VirginAtlantic.com, both of which are still showing these fares as of 6 pm Wednesday.

Virgin Atlantic flights SFO LHR

Fares available on Weds January 18 and subject to change.

ICYMI, see the 25 most recent TravelSkills posts right here

Is BART’s Oakland Airport rail service in trouble?

November 29, 2016

The BART link to Oakland Airport is losing money and riders. (Photo: BART)

It was just two years ago that the Bay Area Rapid Transit system launched service on its Airport Connector line from Coliseum Station to Oakland Airport. But now the line is having money problems in the face of competition from ride-sharing companies.

According to the East Bay Times, figures from BART indicate that the Oakland Connector line is losing money and seeing its ridership decline – even though the airport’s passenger numbers are rising. Specifically, instead of meeting BART’s initial expectation of a $2 million profit on the Airport Connector during its first two years, the line has lost $860,000. And during the third quarter of this year, rider numbers fell 4.5 percent from the same period a year earlier.

At the same time, the report noted, business on ride-sharing services like Uber, Lyft and Wingz has tripled. The fact that airport passenger numbers grew by 6 percent while BART’s Airport Connector ridership has dropped indicates to airport officials that the ride-sharing companies are benefiting at the expense of the mass transit line.

Also, Oakland Airport makes driving to the airport more attractive by offering a variety of on-airport parking discounts and freebies based on your airline or destination. More on those here.

The AirBART station is located at the front door of Oakland International

There has been some speculation that BART’s $6 fare for a ride to OAK might be too expensive compared with the convenience of door-to-door ridesharing service. BART officials defend the service, noting that the airport line coves 96 percent of its operating costs with passenger fares, vs. 76 percent for the BART system overall. Still, they say BART will take a comprehensive look at its fare structure in 2017, not just for the Oakland Airport Connector but for the whole system.

New airline service is boosting OAK’s passenger numbers. Southwest Airlines has been building up more domestic routes out of Oakland Airport, and transatlantic travelers are seeing new low-cost options from Norwegian Air Shuttle, which keeps adding European routes at OAK. Norwegian’s inauguration of Oakland-London Gatwick flights earlier this year has drawn a competitive response from British Airways, which will fly the same route starting in March 2017.

Have you used the BART connector or flown to or from Oakland lately? How does it compare to other Bay Area airports? Please leave your comments below.

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First look: Oakland’s spiffy new lounge (slideshow)

November 28, 2016

Oakland’s new Escape Lounge boasts nice tarmac views and more! (Photo: K Taylor)

This month, Oakland International Airport opened a new Escape Lounge that’s open to all passengers for a $45 one-time-use fee. It is located in Terminal 1 (all airlines except Southwest, which operates out of Terminal 2) between gates 8 and 8A, across from gate 9. The 2,700-square-foot facility can accommodate 50 travelers, and will have separate zones for relaxing, dining/drinking and work. It’s open daily from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m.

The lounge is another of an increasing number of “common use” lounges found at other airports across the country. For example, MAG, the British company that runs Oakland’s lounge, also has outposts at Minneapolis-St Paul International and Bradley International in Hartford, CT. Similarly, there are 10 “The Club” lounges at airports across the US, including The Club at SJC, which which provides free access to business class passengers of international airlines operating there.

While the Escape lounge in Minneapolis offers access to holders of Priority Pass, the Oakland Escape lounge does not at this time.

The Escape lounge is best suited for business and first class passengers headed to Europe on Norwegian Air or British Airways (Photo: K Taylor)

Premium cabin customers of Norwegian Airlines flying non-stop from OAK to London-Gatwick, Oslo, Stockholm, and Barcelona will receive complimentary use of Escape Lounge. We are still awaiting final word on whether British Airways business class passengers will get comped access to the lounge when its London-Gatwick nonstops arrive at Oakland in April.

The lounge includes contemporary furniture and great runway and tarmac views. It also boasts, “An extensive complimentary locally inspired menu (see it below); a wide array of unlimited complimentary alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, including local coffee brand RoastCo; flight information screens; free high-speed Wi-Fi and reading materials” according to a press release. The bar offers a wide range of complimentary beer, wine and booze plus higher end brands and craft beers for $5-$15.

Well-known local Oakland chef Chris Pastena has developed breakfast, lunch and dinner menus. Pastena owns Chop Bar, Lungomare and Calavera in Oakland.

Take a spin through our photos below:

Full bar (Photo: K Taylor)

(Photo: K Taylor)

Plenty of room to eat, work or relax, including semi-private booths (Photo: K Taylor)

Breakfast, lunch and dinner is served (Photo: K. Taylor)

(Photo: Keonnis Taylor)

Chef Chris Pastena helped develop breakfast, lunch and dinner menus (Image: MAG)

Oakland’s Escape Lounge is located in Terminal 1 across from Gate 9 (Photo: K Taylor)

Oakland has been on a roll lately, adding new international flights, offering bennies like free parking, a new all-rail BART link to downtown San Francisco, and now, a new lounge.

Have you used Oakland Airport lately? Would you now? Please leave your comments below.

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Deal Alert: British Airways, Virgin Atlantic to London

November 22, 2016

Afternoon tea at the Palm Court in London’s elegant Langham Hotel is a sight to behold! (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Today British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have a great deal on round trip, nonstop flights to London from many major US gateways- just $504 round trip!

This is an especially good deal for flights from western cities such as SFO, LAX, Seattle, and Denver– but it’s also in Atlanta and other eastern cities.

What’s best about this sale is the wide window during which you can get the deal- according to Google Flights, the deal is good for flights from January all the way through May 2017. This includes the popular and busy spring break timeframe.

Google flights showing LAX-London for just $504 rt in March

From SFO, you can now fly on Virgin Atlantic’s two new B787 Dreamliners plying the route across the pond. British Airways flies an A380 and a B777 on the SFO-London Heathrow route. From Oakland, Norwegian Air has a handful of flights to London Gatwick airport selling for $468 round trip.

UPDATE: This fare sale seems to be spreading and is now available to/from many more US and European cities. So dig in and take a look around!

Find these deals on Google Flights.

Fares available on Tuesday, Nov 22 and subject to change.

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Routes: SFO, Seattle, Oakland-Rome, JFK, Boston, Montreal, Detroit

September 30, 2016

China Eastern is using an A330 for its new San Francisco flights. (Image: Airbus)

In international route developments, Norwegian hints at Oakland-Rome nonstop; China Eastern adds San Francisco service; China’s Xiamen Airlines comes to Seattle; Delta will add new Europe routes from the East Coast next spring; Air Canada plans a very long haul from Montreal; and Aeromexico will begin a Detroit route.

Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines, a member of Delta’s SkyTeam global alliance, this week kicked off new service to San Francisco from Kunming – the capital of Yunnan Province in southwest China – via a stop in Qingdao, a port city in Shandong Province. China Eastern will use an Airbus A330 and will operate the flight three times a week, with SFO departures on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

A Xiamen Airlines 787 now flies to Seattle from Xiamen (Image: Boeing)

A Xiamen Airlines 787 now flies to Seattle from Xiamen and Shenzen (Image: Boeing)

Another new China route also opened up this week: Xiamen Airlines started service to Seattle from its hometown of Xiamen, operating via a stop in Shenzen. It’s the airline’s first U.S. route (although it also flies to Vancouver) and the first non-stop service between Shenzen and the U.S. The carrier’s future plans include service from Xiamen to Los Angeles and Fuzhou-New York, officials said. Xiamen has inked a partnership pact with Alaska Airlines for easy connections at SEA. It’s also a member of the Delta-led SkyTeam Alliance. The carrier will use a 787 Dreamliner on the route, which operates on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

A new nonstop between the Bay Area and Rome? Hope so! (Photo: Pixabay)

It was really big news when Norwegian Air announced new Oakland-Barcelona and Oakland-Copenhagen nonstops starting next spring. When TravelSkills attended the announcement event at Oakland’s Jack London Square, we snagged a few minutes with Norwegian Air execs. They told us that since they’ve received such a positive reception in the Bay Area, the carrier will soon announce nonstops between Oakland and Paris…. AND that the carrier is looking to add Oakland-Rome and Oakland-Madrid, too! Stay tuned for more details.

Delta will add some new service to Europe next spring. On May 25, Delta will begin daily flights from Boston to Dublin as well as daily service from New York JFK to Lisbon. At the same time, Delta will resume daily flights between JFK and Berlin. The Dublin and Lisbon routes will use 164-seat 757-200s, while the Berlin service will be operated with a 225-seat 767-300, Delta said. Meanwhile, Delta also announced an expansion of its six-month-old code-sharing partnership with India’s Jet Airways. In addition to the existing connections at Amsterdam to Delhi and Mumbai, starting October 30 Delta flyers will also be able to connect via Paris Charles de Gaulle to Jet Airways flights to Mumbai and beyond to 20 other Indian destinations. Delta joint venture partner Air France KLM is also a party to the code-sharing deal with Jet.

Air Canada will put a 787 onto its new Montreal-Shanghai route. (Image: Air Canada)

A new route between North America and China will begin on February 16, when Air Canada is due to begin flying once a day from Montreal to Shanghai with a 787-8. It will be Air Canada’s first use of a 787 out of Montreal. Onward connections at Shanghai will be available from Star Alliance partners Air China and Shenzen Airlines, Air Canada said. The carrier plans to begin another ultra-long-haul starting July 1, with three non-stop flights a week between Toronto and Mumbai, using a 787-9. Air Canada hasn’t served that route since 1991. Also on tap for the Canadian carrier: Daily Vancouver-Taipei 787 flights beginning June 8, and three 767-300ER flights per week between Vancouver and Nagoya, Japan, starting June 1.

Aeromexico will add a new U.S. route starting January 10, when it begins flying between Detroit and Monterrey, Mexico. The carrier will use an Embraer 190 for the daily service.

Don’t miss out on these popular TravelSkills posts! Kicking support animals off planes | Shocked passenger refuses to pay $3 for water | Marriott-Starwood: Higher prices, better rewards | The 10,000 points question! | Eye-catching maps explain state of the world | Test your planespotting skills! )

DONT MISS! The 100,000 points question!

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Popular: Cheaper phone roaming + Delta spat + More at SFO + Quiz + Norwegian Air + United secret

May 22, 2016

Can you name this business class section? Hint: Look at the big windows! Plus it’s included in our fun quiz! (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

TravelSkills’ 10 most popular posts over the last week (descending order):

1 Must sign up to get it: AT&T follows Verizon, T-Mobile to more roaming

2 Nonstop ribbon cuttings Slew of new flights at SFO

3 Oh, pulleeaze! Inside Qatar Airways event that sparked Delta tantrum [PHOTOS] (See comments)

Don’t miss the AJC editorial about the Delta-Fox brouhaha which starts out like this: Atlantans were aghast last week when the body of the beloved Fox Theatre was found in a car trunk, bound and gagged, a single shot to the back of the head.

4 Battle begins Alaska, Southwest fight for California with new flights

5 Try it, you’ll like it Are you a business class seat expert? Take our fun quiz! Come on, 2,000+ readers have taken it so far!

6 Oldie but goodie remains popular TSA explains confusion over PreCheck policies

Premium Economy seats on Norwegian Air (Image: Norwegian Air)

7 New nonstop Oakland-London on Norwegian: Low fares, low frills

8 Routes: Atlanta, Raleigh-Durham, Chicago, Newark, Honolulu, JFK

9 Check ’em out, then check in 4 brand new hotels in New York City

10 Members only Hilton’s big summer sale

TravelSkills was invited to a big United Airlines event in NYC in early June which requires signing a non-disclosure agreement to get in the door. Regrettably we can make it due to a prior commitment (flying Turkish Airlines to Istanbul!), but we’ll keep an eye out for the news. Rumor has it that United will reveal a new BusinessFirst seat design at the event. But who knows? What do you think it could be? Leave your prognostications below.

United is rolling out a new first class seat for its A319, A320 and some 757 aircraft (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

United revealed this new first class seat for its domestic A319, A320 and some 757 aircraft last year. Will a new BusinessFirst seat be revealed next week? (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Links to stories from other sources that we thought you’d like to read:

Atlanta Airport director Miguel Southwell sacked

Beware Delta’s new middle seat “upgrade”

United offering mystery elite status upgrades. Get one?

Scariest item ever seen by TSA? Gruesome

Summer sale at Kimpton hotels: 25% off + double points

Smarter to use ATL’s international terminal to avoid TSA security lines? Maybe. Maybe not.

San Francisco’s newest tourist attraction: The Apple Flagship store on Union Sq

Delta’s new CEO Ed Bastian in his office at ATL HQ (Image: Airline Guys)

VIDEO: See inside Delta CEO Ed Bastian’s office at Delta HQ in ATL

Delta optimizes ‘SkyMiles Experiences’ website for mobile

Uber tests self-driving car in Pittsburgh

Eight low-cost Asia-Pacific airlines form an alliance

Falling fares will bring a record number of U.S. air travelers this summer

These are the most popular U.S. cities for meetings and conventions

American discontinues in-flight announcements of connecting gate information

(Image: Big Imagination Project)

In case you missed Saturday’s post about one of our favorite subjects, the much-loved Boeing 747: The 747 Project

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Routes: San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, LAX, Salt Lake City, Denver + more…

May 10, 2016

There are lots of developments in international services this week. United started a new China route; Air Canada kicks off a San Jose route; European carriers begin new transatlantic service from LAX, Oakland, Salt Lake City and Denver; a Chinese carrier sets the date for new Seattle flights; Chicago gets a new transpacific option; and a South American carrier comes to Washington D.C.

United Airlines on Sunday started its newest transpacific route, linking its San Francisco hub with Xi’an, a city of 8 million in central China; it’s the only non-stop service between the U.S. and Xi’an. United will fly the seasonal route three times a week – through October 27 – using a 787 Dreamliner. Westbound flights depart SFO on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays at 1:25 p.m. The westbound flight takes a little over 13 hours.

Low-cost European carrier Norwegian is set to begin its previously announced Oakland-London Gatwick service on May 12. The carrier will use a 787-8 with economy and premium seating, offering non-stop service three times a week. Norwegian’s initial fares on the route started at $299. On May 10, Norwegian increases Los Angeles-London Gatwick service from three flights a week to four.

On May 9, Air Canada kicks off new non-stop service out of Mineta San Jose International Airport to Vancouver. The Canadian carrier will offer two daily roundtrips using CRJ705 regional jets with 10 seats in business class and 65 in coach. Speaking of Vancouver, Air Canada recently announced it will begin a new ultra-long-haul route there on October 20 with non-stop service to Delhi, India operating four days a week with a 787-9 Dreamliner.

This is the Captain Kirk seat– one of the two best seats in Aer Lingus biz class (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Aer Lingus last week kicked off Los Angeles-Dublin flights — the first of three new U.S. routes it will be adding this summer. The year-round service from LAX operates four times a week, using an Airbus A330-200. Later this year, the Irish carrier plans to begin new daily flights from Newark starting September 1, and new service from Hartford in late September.

Instead of resuming seasonal service this year between Amsterdam and Dallas/Ft. Worth, KLM opted instead to go with Salt Lake City, where it started flying last week. Its transatlantic joint venture partner Delta also serves the SLC-Amsterdam route. KLM started off with twice-weekly flights Thursdays and Saturdays, and will add a Monday departure on July 4. It’s using an A330-200 on the route. KLM also plans to add seasonal Miami-Amsterdam service in late October.

May 11 is the launch date for new Lufthansa service between Denver and its Munich hub; the German carrier already flies from Denver to Frankfurt. The new Munich service will operate five days a week (Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday), using an Airbus A330—300 with four classes of service, including premium economy, for the 10-1/2 hour flight. The eastbound flight leaves Denver at 4:05 p.m. Easy connections to the new route are available through Lufthansa’s Star Alliance partner United, which has a hub at DEN.

China’s Xiamen Airlines, a member of Delta’s SkyTeam global alliance, has started taking bookings for its new Seattle-Xiamen route, which will begin September 26. The new service will operate three days a week via an intermediate stop in Shenzen, using a 787-8.

Taiwan’s EVA Air plans to launch new service on November 2 from Taipei to Chicago O’Hare, flying the route four times a week with a 777. EVA also will increase its Taipei-New York JFK schedule effective October 3 from the current 10 flights a week to twice-daily service.

A LATAM 767-300 with the carrier’s new livery. (Image: LATAM)

South America’s LATAM Airlines last week started its newest U.S. route, linking Washington Dulles with Lima, Peru – the only non-stop service between the two capital cities. LATAM will initially offer three flights a week, using a 767-300 with business class and regular economy seating.

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Bay Area to London for $299 + United non-stops to Singapore? + New Paris route + more

December 15, 2015

Norwegian’s Oakland-London Gatwick service will start at $299 one-way. (Image: Jim Glab)

In international route news this week, Norwegian confirms its plans for Oakland-London service; United says it is considering new non-stops to Singapore; Air France will add a new Paris route — but not to Charles de Gaulle; a Chinese carrier plans new LAX flights; KLM will boost its San Francisco schedule; and Southwest will drop a Mexico route.

Following up on our report from last week, European low-cost carrier Norwegian has confirmed that it plans to start new service from Oakland to London Gatwick effective May 12, operating three flights a week. The carrier said fares on the route will start at $299 one way, including taxes (plus ancillary fees, of course; it’s already taking bookings at www.Norwegian.com/us). Norwegian also announced plans to increase its Los Angeles-London Gatwick schedule from three to four flights a week starting May 10, and to move up the start of Boston-London service from late May to March 27, with five weekly flights instead of four. The carrier’s long-haul routes use 787-8s with economy and premium seating.

Have you flown or heard from someone who has flow Norwegian? What’s it like? Please leave your comments below.

London Gatwick airport is about 30 minutes south of the city (VisitLondon.com)

London Gatwick airport is about 30 minutes south of city center by train (VisitLondon.com)

Now that Singapore Airlines is on track to resume non-stop flights to the U.S. in 2018, United Airlines is considering a competing service. A United executive told Aviation Daily that the company is considering its aircraft options. “When we have the right aircraft, we will tackle that market” (i.e., non-stops to Singapore), United’s VP-Network Brian Znotins told the publication. Singapore Airlines will use a long-range version of the Airbus A350 designated the A350-900ULR. Znotis did not say which U.S. gateway United has in mind, but Av Daily noted that San Francisco would be the carrier’s hub closest to Singapore.

Air France already operates several flights a day from New York JFK to Paris Charles de Gaulle, but in June it plans to add a daily flight from JFK to Paris Orly, using a 309-seat 777-200 with business, premium economy and regular economy classes. Connections at Orly are available to the airline’s domestic network. Air France also plans to begin three weekly flights from CDG to Teheran, Iran in April.

According to Airlineroute.net, China’s Hainan Airlines plans to begin service between Changsha and Los Angeles on January 21, operating two flights a week with a 787-8. Changsha is the capital of Hunan Province in south-central China.

For its summer schedule beginning May 4, KLM plans to increase its Amsterdam-San Francisco schedule from seven flights a week to nine, using 787-9 Dreamliners for the two extra flights. The others will continue to use a 747-400.

Southwest Airlines will change its Mexico City operations on March 16, according to Airlineroute.net. The carrier plans to discontinue its daily service between San Antonio-Mexico City and to add a second daily roundtrip between Houston Hobby and Mexico City.

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: New Oakland-London route + Big hotel acquisition + Uber at Las Vegas McCarran + American’s international Premium Economy service + Healthy eating for travelers

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Routes: Oakland-London + Dulles-Dubai dropped + BA/Aer Lingus code-shares + more

December 10, 2015

Norwegian reportedly plans new Oakland-London service with a 787. (Image: Creative Commons)

In international route news, Bay Area travelers may see a new low-cost option to London in the spring; another U.S. carrier pulls out of the Dubai market; British Airways and its new sister company Aer Lingus are sharing codes all over the place; China Eastern will boost frequencies to a Midwest gateway; and Southwest eyes new international service from LAX.

Although the airline hasn’t announced or confirmed it yet, the website Airlineroute.net reports that European low-cost carrier Norwegian has filed a proposed schedule to fly between Oakland and London Gatwick. Based on data from the OAG Schedules Analyzer, Airlineroute.net said Norwegian plans to use a 787-8 to fly the route three days a week (Monday, Thursday and Sunday) starting May 12. Norwegian already has service from Oakland to Stockholm and Olso twice a week; it currently shows one-way fares to Stockholm in January for as little as $169 (plus ancillary fees).

The proposed Norwegian service, infrequent though it is, would give Bay Area travelers to the U.K. another option instead of flying out of San Francisco International — in addition to the new British Airways service from Mineta San Jose International to Heathrow that starts May 4 with a 787-9. In other news, Norwegian has pushed up the start of new Boston-London Gatwick 787 flights — slated for five days a week — from May to March 27.

Remember how Delta blamed government-subsidized competition and excess capacity from the big Mideast carriers for its decision to discontinue Atlanta-Dubai service this coming February? Now United is following suit, saying it will stop flying from Washington Dulles to Dubai after January 25. United blamed the entry of “subsidized carriers such as Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways into the Washington D.C. market,” but it also cited a decision by the U.S. government to shift its contract for Washington-Dubai flights to JetBlue, which has a code-share partnership with Emirates. (Earlier, United said it would discontinue its service from Dulles to Kuwait and Bahrain after January 13.)

Now that British Airways and Ireland’s Aer Lingus are sister companies under the umbrella of parent IAG, they have embarked on a big code-share expansion for their U.S. routes. According to Airlineroute,net, Aer Lingus’ code is going onto BA’s London Heathrow routes from 19 U.S. gateways, as well as its Gatwick service from New York JFK, Las Vegas and Orlando; and BA’s code goes onto Aer Lingus flights to Dublin from San Francisco, Orlando, Washington Dulles, JFK, Newark, Hartford and Boston, as well as Shannon flights from JFK and Boston.

China Eastern, a member of Delta’s SkyTeam alliance, plans to boost service on its Shanghai Pudong-Chicago O’Hare route — which starts March 18 — from three flights a week to daily. The airline will use a 777-300ER on the route.

Southwest Airlines plans to add a new international route from Los Angeles International in April, subject to government approval. The carrier said it will offer daily flights from LAX’s Terminal 2 to Liberia/Guanacaste, Costa Rica, the gateway to that country’s coastal resort area.

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Routes: Hong Kong Airlines to LAX + Delta, Cathay Pacific, United, LATAM & more

December 22, 2017

Business class on a Hong Kong Airlines A350-900. (Image: Hong Kong Airlines)

In international route developments, there’s a new entrant in the U.S.-Hong Kong market; Delta will put a new aircraft on a China route and will beef up transpaciifc code-sharing; Cathay Pacific will add another U.S. gateway next year; United is eliminating first class on many routes and cuts back China service; a Lufthansa affiliate is adding a new business class; LATAM is coming to Las Vegas; San Jose gets more service to Mexico; Copa begins Denver service; an Italian airline plans new U.S. routes; Alaska ends its relationship with two European partners; and Norwegian revamps its U.S. schedules next summer, adding frequencies from the West Coast.

Hong Kong Airlines, a Hong Kong-based sister company of China’s Hainan Airlines, this week started service to the U.S. for the first time. The carrier is using a new Airbus A350-900 on the Los Angeles-Hong Kong route, configured with 33 lie-flat business class seats, 109 premium economy seats with 34-inch pitch, and 193 regular economy seats with 31-32 inch pitch. The new LAX-Hong Kong flights operate four times a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday), with a 10:45 a.m. departure from LAX. Hong Kong Airlines plans to add San Francisco service in late March, and New York flights later next year.

So far, all of Delta’s Airbus A350-900s have been scheduled for routes out of Detroit or Atlanta, but now the airline is planning to operate one of the new planes out of Los Angeles. According to Routesonline.com, Delta plans to start flying the new plane from LAX to Shanghai Pudong on July 2, alternating days with a 777-200LR until July 18, when the A350 will go onto a daily schedule. Delta’s A350s – which feature the airline’s new Delta One suites and new international premium economy section – are already used on flights from Detroit to Tokyo Narita and Seoul Incheon, and are slated to start Detroit-Beijing service January 17; Detroit-Amsterdam and Atlanta-Seoul March 24; and Detroit-Shanghai April 19.

Meanwhile, Delta will expand code-sharing with its transpacific partner Korean Air on January 10, putting the DL code onto Korean’s flights to Seoul Incheon from Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Cathay Pacific will fly a new A350-1000 to Washington Dulles. (Image: Airbus)

In other transpacific news, Cathay Pacific has unveiled plans to add another East Coast gateway in mid-September 2018, when it will start flying from Hong Kong to Washington Dulles. The carrier already serves Boston, New York JFK and Newark. Cathay reportedly plans to fly the route – which will be the longest in its system – four days a week with a brand-new Airbus A350-1000.

A couple of months ago, we reported on United’s plans to reconfigure its international long-haul 777-200s, putting in new lie-flat Polaris business class seats, taking out first class, and going from nine-across to 10-across seating in economy. A recent entry in Routesonline.com about United’s 2018 schedules shows where the reconfigured 777s will be deployed, based on the elimination of first class from seating availability. It shows the elimination of 777 first class in late April from San Francisco to London, and from Washington Dulles to Brussels, Frankfurt and Tokyo Narita; and at the end of August from Chicago O’Hare to Beijing, Hong Kong, Tokyo Narita, Shanghai, Sao Paulo, Frankfurt and Munich. Meanwhile, United’s seasonal summer route from San Francisco to Xi’An, China, which had previously been scheduled for three 787 flights a week from May 6 through September 4, has been eliminated for 2018.

Las Vegas is due to get its first non-stop service to South America next summer. LATAM Airlines Brasil has filed plans to operate a 767 three times a week between Las Vegas and Sao Paulo from June 21 through August 31.

We recently reported that Lufthansa’s lower-cost leisure affiliate Eurowings plans to launch new transatlantic routes in 2018, including JFK-Dusseldorf starting April 28, Dusseldorf-Miami as of May 4, and Dusseldorf-Ft. Myers beginning May 3. Now it appears that the airline will try to entice business travelers onto those flights by adding a new business class cabin. According to reports from Europe, the new Eurowings cabin, simply called Bizclass, will feature seats that recline fully and will include upgraded meals and other special amenities. Details of Eurowings’ new Bizclass are expected to be introduced in March at the big ITB Travel Fair in Berlin.

Mexico’s Volaris added two new routes out of San Jose. (Image: Volaris)

Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris, which already had service out of San Jose to Guadalajara, has now added two more routes. Volaris has started twice-weekly flights from SJC to Morelia on Fridays and Sundays, as well as twice-weekly service from SJC to Zacatecas on Mondays and Thursdays. Next summer, Aeromexico is due to begin SJC-Mexico City flights.

Panama’s Copa Airlines, a member of United’s Star Alliance family, has added Denver as its 13^th U.S. gateway. The carrier has kicked off new non-stop service four days a week from Denver to Panama City, with Denver departures on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at 10:16 p.m. Copa offers onward connections in Panama to 55 Latin American destinations.

Italian carrier Meridiana plans to add two U.S. routes next summer. On June 1, it will begin daily service from Milan Malpensa to New York JFK, followed up on June 8 by four flights a week from Malpensa to Miami. The airline will use a 247-passenger, two-class Airbus A330 on both routes.

On April 30, 2018, Alaska Airlines will end its Mileage Plan partnership with Air France-KLM – not really a surprise considering that the European duo has a joint venture partnership with Alaska’s arch-rival Delta. Alaska and Delta ended their own mileage partnership last spring. The Alaskan carrier notes that it still has partnership agreements to Europe in place with British Airways, Finnair, Icelandair and Condor.

The latest schedule updates from Norwegian show the low-cost carrier plans to boost service on several U.S. routes in late March, increasing its weekly Barcelona frequencies from three to four out of Los Angeles, from three to five out of Oakland, and from four to six out of Newark. The carrier will also boost LAX-Copenhagen service from three flights a week to four. At Boston, Norwegian plans to increase London Gatwick service from four flights a week to seven starting June 12, but it will discontinue its seasonal Boston-Oslo and Boston-Copenhagen flights.

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Even more cheap flights to Europe coming in 2018

November 28, 2017

Level operates two-class A330s to Europe. (Image: IAG)

Europe just keeps getting cheaper. British Airways/Iberia’s low-cost Level affiliate will expand transatlantic service in 2018, adding flights from Paris, but a sister company already on that route will cease operations.

Citing the “incredible success” of the Barcelona flights started earlier this year by its low-cost Level subsidiary, International Airlines Group (the parent of British Airways, Iberia and Aer Lingus) said it will begin Level service out of Paris Orly next summer, including two routes to North America. The carrier will also add another U.S. route to Barcelona.

Plans call for Level to base two A330-200s at Paris Orly, starting service July 2 to Montreal three times a week, and adding Newark-Orly service four times a week beginning September 4. The company said it will also begin new Boston-Barcelona flights on March 28, operating up to three times a week through the summer, starting at $149 each way.

IAG said the Newark-Paris flights will also start at $149 one-way. Level already flies to Barcelona from Oakland, and from Los Angeles in the summer. But the decision to open a base for Level at Paris Orly comes with a cost: IAG said it plans to discontinue operations of its OpenSkies airline at the end of next summer.

Don’t miss: Iberia adds new nonstops between SFO and Madrid

An OpenSkies business class seat-bed.(Image: OpenSkies)

OpenSkies, which calls itself a “luxury boutique” airline, flies from both Newark and New York JFK to Paris Orly, targeting business travelers with specially-configured, 100-passenger 757s that have three seating classes. The carrier started flying in 2008 as a subsidiary of British Airways, taking advantage of then-new Open Skies rules allowing European airlines to fly routes between the U.S. and Europe that didn’t require a stop in their home country.

Level’s A330s have two seating classes – economy and premium economy. The airline has five pricing levels with varying services and amenities included, ranging from the most basic fare – which provides only one cabin bag – to its Premium Flex level, which provides a seat in the front cabin, two checked bags and one cabin bag, meal service, seat selection, and the ability to change travel dates or obtain refunds.

Economy seating in a Level A330-200. (Image: Level)

IAG created Level in part as a response to new low-cost competition from airlines like Norwegian and Iceland’s WOW. IAG’s British Airways unit is also striking back at Norwegian by adding higher-capacity aircraft on transatlantic routes to London Gatwick from some U.S. cities served by Norwegian.

In addition to the new Paris-Newark and Paris-Montreal service, Level will also add flights from Orly to the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique starting on July and September respectively.

Don’t miss: Fare war to Paris?

Even if you don’t plan to fly Level, the move will put pricing pressure on all carriers flying between Europe and the U.S. So maybe getting to Europe will be cheaper next year than it was this year… and this year was pretty cheap!

Have you flown Level yet? Would you? Why or why not? Please leave your comments below.

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Even more super-low fares, new routes to Europe

July 5, 2017

A Norwegian Air 787 Dreamliner parked at Oakland International Airport (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Norwegian Air announced yet another another disruptive move in the transatlantic air travel market today.

Starting in Spring 2018, it will launch new nonstops from Oakland (4/10), Newark (2/28) and Boston (5/2) to Paris-Charles de Gaulle. Checking today for flights next spring, we are finding roundtrips in the $400-$500 range, which is a very good deal for nonstops between US cities and Paris.

Norwegian also announced that it would bring its low fares to two new U.S. cities next spring: Austin (3/27) and Chicago (3/25) with nonstops to London-Gatwick.

With these additions, the Scandinavian low-fare powerhouse will soon fly nonstop between 15 U.S. and 13 European cities.

This is exciting news, but it’s important to remember a few things about Norwegian: First, don’t think those low fares don’t come with some steep fees. For example, checking a bag between Oakland and Barcelona will run you an additional $130 roundtrip– double that ($260 roundtrip) if you change planes. To reserve a specific seat, you’ll pay a whopping $90 roundtrip on transatlantic flights. See Norwegian’s fee schedule here.

Norwegian Air Premium cabin seats on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner recline, but don’t lie-flat. (Photo: Nancy Branka)

You should also know that Norwegian rarely operates its flights on a daily basis— many U.S.-Europe flights only run 3-5 times per week. If for some reason your flight is delayed or canceled, you are in for quite a long wait for the next Norwegian flight. It will not put you on another carrier’s flight during irregular operations. For more on this, see our post The Problem with Low-Fare Flying.

In addition, Norwegian Air is not part of any of the big three airline alliances, so there is no opportunity to earn or burn frequent flyer flyer miles with U.S. partner airlines.

Despite these drawbacks, Norwegian is growing like crazy in the U.S. It flies new Boeing 787 Dreamliners on its current transatlantic runs– and generally earns high marks from travelers. (See Norwegian’s Dreamliner seatmap on Seatguru here.) For those who want a little separation from the vacationing masses, it offers a nice premium cabin at a higher price point with fewer fees.

See Norwegian Air press release about new flights here and check fares or book flights here.

What about you? Have you flown Norwegian yet? Would you? Please leave your comments below!

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3 U.S. cities get cheap new nonstops to Rome

May 31, 2017

A Norwegian Air 787 Dreamliner parked at Oakland International Airport (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Norwegian Air today announced it will launch flights from Los Angeles, Newark and Oakland to ROME starting later this year and into 2018. This is the first time the Bay Area will see nonstops to Italy since Alitalia’s SFO-Rome service ended many years ago.

Rome-Fiumicino will be Norwegian’s seventh long-haul European destination from the U.S. following Barcelona, which will launch this June; Paris; London; and the three Scandinavian capitals of Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm.

Norwegian says that one way fares from all three cities to Rome will start as low as $189-$229— but keep in mind that you will rarely find fares that low to return, and you’ll also be faced with a panoply of fees for checked bags, seat assignments, etc.

However, checking today, we found a fare for just $419.80 (including taxes) for a March 2018 round trip between Oakland and Rome. That’s a great deal that will not last.

Norwegian will fly its brand new Boeing 787 Dreamliners offering both an Economy and Premium cabin on the route. Norwegian’s premium service is a good low-cost option for business travelers– especially those from the Bay Area who’d prefer to take a nonstop flight.

Flights from Oakland International Airport to Rome will launch on February 6, 2018, with a twice weekly service. Fares from Oakland start from $229 one-way, including taxes. Premium fares from Oakland start from $719 one-way including taxes.

Flights from Newark Liberty International Airport will launch on November 9, 2017, and operate four times a week until the early February 2018 when it increases to six times per week. Economy launch fares to Rome from Newark start as low as $189 one-way, including taxes. The lowest fares in Norwegian’s Premium Cabin to Rome from Newark start at $539 one-way including taxes.

Service from Los Angeles International Airport will launch on November 11, 2017, and operate twice weekly until February, when it becomes a thrice weekly service. Fares from Los Angeles start from $229 one-way, including taxes. Premium fares from Los Angeles start from $719 one-way including taxes.

Economy class seating on Norwegian

All fares are now available for sale on Norwegian’s website. Additionally, the website’s low fare calendar displays the lowest available fares to all of Norwegian’s destinations.

Have you flown Norwegian yet? How was it? Will you consider it for your next flight to Rome?

Here’s a 360 degree YouTube video tour of Norwegian’s premium cabin:

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American Express Platinum adds 3 new lounges

May 15, 2017

Oakland’s new Escape Lounge now open to Amex Platinum card holders (Photo: K Taylor)

American Express announced today that it will add access to three Escape Lounges as a new perk for Platinum cardholders.

In the U.S., Escape Lounges are located in Hartford, CT, Minneapolis and Oakland airports. (In Europe, there are three Escape lounges at Manchester and one each at East Midlands and Stansted airports- but these are not part of the Platinum plan.)

The new benefit starts today. Fine print says: Platinum Card Members receive complimentary access and may bring up to two guests. To enter the U.S. Escape Lounges, simply present your American Express Platinum Card, a same-day boarding pass and valid government issued I.D. to the front desk.

Escape Lounges are not affiliated with specific airlines, so anyone can enter for $45 per visit. Some Escape lounges have agreements with airlines in the airports where they operate to allow complimentary access to business or first class passengers. The lounges offer free wi-fi, hot and cold food and bar service.

Escape Lounge Hartford

Escape Lounge Minneapolis

Escape Lounge Oakland

This is welcome news for Platinum members, but I’m worried that the new benefit could result in crowding at the Escape lounges. Just last month I enjoyed the Escape Lounge in Oakland prior to a British Airways flight to London, and one of the highlights of the visit was that the lounge was only half full.

Below is a snippet from that Trip Report: Oakland-London, British Airways business class

Modern design, generous food and drink and views at Oakland’s new Escape Lounge (Chris McGinnis)

Warm mac and cheese, avocado toast, cheese and crackers at the Escape Lounge (Chris McGinnis)

H/T: USA Today

Have you been to an Escape Lounge? What did you think?

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British Airways’ posh plans for business class [PHOTOS]

April 7, 2017

British Airways has posh plans for the pointy end of the plane (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

With $490 million in his pocket, British Airways’ CEO Alex Cruz has big plans to snag more business travelers with a massive product upgrade rolling out now.

To show off what he’s talking about, Cruz invited 40 travel writers, bloggers and media personalities from around the world to London for an action- and content-packed one-day event. TravelSkills was there! (Chris flew over on British Airways’ new Oakland-Gatwick nonstop–stay tuned for his Trip Report!)

In the morning, we met in BA’s newest lounge at Gatwick Airport. From there we boarded a brand new four-class Dreamliner for lunch and a press conference on a two-hour joyride over the bright green English countryside up to Scotland and back.

On board, BA offered a sneak-peek of its upgraded inflight food/beverage offerings, and Cruz revealed news about the airline’s new business class seat and its plans for a rapid roll-out of inflight wi-fi, among other juicy details. After that, we landed at Heathrow Airport for a chat in BA’s busy arrivals lounge (with a whopping 78 showers!) and then walked through its exclusive new “First Wing” located in the far right end of Terminal 5.

A most unusual boarding pass: Check the origin and destination! (Chris McGinnis)

Here are highlights:

BA has taken its lumps recently for implementing something that Americans have long been used to: Buy-on-board food, or “Bob” as Cruz called it. (See new menu and prices here.) Now that it does, the British are going bonkers. This day was Cruz’s chance to show how the cutbacks that economy class passengers may feel will not be felt at the front of the plane. He said, “We need to focus on enhancing premium – offering contemporary service, improved catering and lounges, and a consistent service experience. In economy, where we know that price is the driver, we need to focus our efforts on delivering more seats at the lowest fares and giving customers choices.”

British Airways’ latest version of first class on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

New Planes: We took a ride on a brand new Boeing 787 Dreamliner with four classes of service: First, business, premium economy and economy. The plane was gorgeous and quiet. It now flies to San Jose and Newark from London. But the biggest change in fleet will come when BA gets its new Airbus A350s this summer. These big wide-bodies will soon be the workhorses of BA’s long haul fleet, replacing the carrier’s much-loved but long-in-the-tooth Boeing 747s. Cruz said that with oil at $50 per barrel, there is less incentive to get rid of these gas-guzzlers; but nonetheless, they’ll likely be phased out in the next five years. The last 747s will disappear from U.S. carriers at the end of this year. (See Delta’s 747 Experience here.) It also sounds like BA will be moving to a 10-across economy configuration on its 777s. “A 10-across 777 is an incredibly competitive machine, especially on leisure routes out of Gatwick,” he said. Currently, the 777-200 on OAK-LGW is nine-across.

At one time, British Airways’ forward- and rear-facing seats were considered innovative. They’ll soon be retired. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

New seats: The biggest news that Cruz broke is that BA will move away from its famous forward/rear-facing business class seats. To me, the seats are fine, but make for awkward moments during takeoff and landing when you feel weirdly in the personal space of your seatmate and his or her direct gaze. Cruz would not offer specifics (other that saying the new seats will offer 100% aisle access), but said, “The time has come for us to change. We are falling behind our competitors and intend to catch up with a new design.” BA was the first airline to introduce lie-flat business class seats in 1999, which revolutionized long-haul travel. In a veiled reference to United’s recent issues with the delayed roll-out of its new Polaris seats, Cruz told me, “We will not over-promise on our new seat like some of our competitors have done. Instead we intend to over-deliver.”

New flights: Last month IAG, which owns British Airways and Iberia, created a new low-fare carrier called Level, which will be based in Barcelona. This summer it will offer cheap non-stops to Oakland and Los Angeles. When Cruz and I discussed this, I told him I thought it was great to get non-stops from the Bay to Barcelona, but that Norwegian was already in that game. I said what we really need in the Bay Area is a non-stop to Italy. His reply? “I think Level will take care of that need very soon.” Stay tuned for more on that!

Metallic walls separate first class passengers from the riffraff at London Heathrow Terminal 5 (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

New First Wing: These days nearly everyone is a super elite, business or first class passenger — or so it seems when you enter the so-called “fast” lanes at airport security. The same thing has been happening at British Airways’ big Terminal 5 at Heathrow. In order to better serve its paid first class passengers, gold-level Executive Club members and Oneworld Emeralds, BA has carved out a new, exclusive lane called the First Wing. After checking in, First and Gold members proceed to an adjacent sleekly designed private security area for screening. (Sorry, no photos: Photography not allowed.) After that, they walk a few hundred feet through a wood-paneled corridor and directly into BA’s first class lounge, where they can relax, eat, work or proceed directly to their flights. Nice touch! An executive told me that about 2,000 passengers per day will use the First Wing.

British Airways’ big, bright first and business class lounges–big views, high ceilings and a few pink crushed velvet chairs (Chris McGinnis)

New/Refurbished lounges: BA bragged about its new lounge at Boston, which I’ve not seen. But apparently it’s big, bright and has a horseshoe bar that passengers are raving about—not only for the drinks, but also for the fantastic sunset views through a wall of west-facing windows. Plus it has direct access to the plane. BA’s lounge at New York JFK is slated for a $65 million redo that should be completed in two years. BA’s lounge at SFO has been bursting at the seams since the carrier introduced its A380—there’s simply not enough room to accommodate all the business, first and elite flyers (from BA and partners) at peak times. BA execs told me that the plan is still to add a new mezzanine level, but they could not offer a firm date about when that might occur, or how they will accommodate passengers displaced when construction begins. “We are working with the airport to explore temporary accommodations,” said one. At Heathrow, BA’s massive lounge complex in Terminal 5 is now 10 years old—still nice, but due for a makeover, according to Cruz, although no timetable has been set for the upgrade.

TravelSkills editor Chris McGinnis and British Airways CEO Alex Cruz on a Dreamliner joyride (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

New Gatwick Lounge: BA recently moved from the north to the south terminal at London Gatwick and has opened a mod new two-level rooftop lounge with fantastic runway views, modern furnishings (including new pink crushed velvet chairs) and a generous buffet with a very British “Toast” bar (yes, a buffet line consisting of toast only. So Brrritish!). The lounge is 40% larger than the old one in the south terminal, but on the day we were there, it was quite full at around noon.

More wi-fi: Believe it or not, BA has only one aircraft outfitted with inflight wi-fi at the moment, but that will soon change. Cruz said that 90% of its short- and long-haul aircraft will get wi-fi in the next two years. He said that long-haul flights will use a satellite-based system and short-haul European flights will use a ground-based one. Similar to what we see at hotels, BA will offer two tiers of wi-fi–basic starting at 5 pounds per hour, and full service for 8 pounds (including streaming).

There’s a nice heft to BA’s new cocktail tumblers (Chris McGinnis)

Bread served in a small silver basket instead of a plate (Chris McGinnis)

Meals served from tier trolleys instead of boxy blue carts (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

British Airways has teamed up with Do & Co for catering– it’s the same company that works with Turkish Airlines (Photo: Chrisi McGinnis)

Cheeses served on slate-like plates (Photo: Chris McGinnis

Better food and drink: Cruz said that BA will invest heavily in business class food and drink, which passengers will begin to notice this summer. On our flight up to Scotland and back, we were served some of the new food—for example, instead of bread on a plate, you get a warm roll served in a small silver basket. Champagne is served from big bowls of ice. Instead of bulky carts, flight attendants roll starters and dessert options on tiered trolleys– a great show. (Reminds me of how Turkish Airlines does it.) Part of the upgrade includes all-new cups, glasses and cutlery, with larger wine glasses for fuller pours and hefty cut crystal-like tumblers for cocktails. (See photos above.) BA’s busy New York-London flights will be the first to see the upgrades as soon as this summer, and it will roll out to other routes later in 2018.

Better sleep: Also on the way: bigger pillows, new mattress toppers, duvets, ear plugs and eye masks as well as revised inflight service schedules designed to maximize good sleep (sounds like United Polaris to me!). Regrettably, none of these features were on our joyride, so no photos.

New self boarding gates at Heathrow use your boarding pass and facial recognition (Image: British Airways)

More self-boarding gates: Currently, BA has three automated boarding gates at Heathrow. These gates operate turnstile-like entry points activated by facial recognition and the bar code on your boarding pass. (At Heathrow, your photo is taken when you enter security, and is matched with another photo taken when you board. If they don’t match, you don’t board.) Cruz said that based on the success and positive feedback from business travelers, there will soon be more of these.

British Airways created a hashtag for the event and coverage of its new investment—check it out here” #BAinvesting4U

Are you a regular on British Airways? What do you think of the changes? Please leave your comments below.

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Ten new Europe routes will offer $65 fares

February 23, 2017

Norwegian will add 10 new routes this summer. (Map: Norwegian Air)

In its latest assault on the transatlantic market, Norwegian Air has unveiled details of its much-rumored plans to add a bunch of new low-fare routes to Europe from the northeastern U.S. this summer.

The airline said it will kick off service on 10 new routes, with one-way fares starting at $65, including taxes and government fees. That’s a total of 38 flights a week to four airports in Ireland and one in Scotland, all using the carrier’s new 737 MAX aircraft — a next-generation version of the single-aisle plane that has greater range and fuel efficiency.

The flights will operate out of Stewart Airport in Newburgh, N.Y. (about 60 miles up the Hudson from New York City); and from Providence, R.I. and Connecticut’s Bradley International near Hartford. Destinations include Cork, Shannon and Dublin in Ireland; Belfast, Northern Ireland; and Edinburgh, Scotland.

A screenshot from Norwegian’s U.S. website today (Feb. 23)

Why the smaller U.S. airports? “These airports offer good access into the New York, Boston and New England areas but carry significantly lower landing charges, allowing Norwegian to offer some truly affordable fares that will allow as many people as possible to fly,” the company said.

Specifically, the schedule calls for service to Edinburgh starting June 15 from all three U.S. airports (daily from Stewart, four a week from Providence and three a week from Bradley); the only transatlantic non-stops into Belfast, beginning July 1 from Stewart (three flights a week) and Providence (two a week); the only transatlantic flights into Cork, starting July 1 from Providence (three flights a week); and service into Shannon and Dublin from Stewart and Providence, also starting July 1. The Shannon flights will operate twice weekly from both airports, while the Dublin schedule includes daily service from Stewart and five a week from Boston.

A Boeing 737MAX in Norwegian livery. (Image: Boeing)

The new flights are already on sale. The $65 one-way fares are subject to capacity controls, and do not include separate charges for a variety of services and amenities.

Norwegian is on a strong growth track. The airline is due to take delivery of nine more 787-9s this year, which it uses on longer-haul U.S. routes, along with half a dozen 737 MAX aircraft. Norwegian already flies to London Gatwick from Oakland, Los Angeles, New York JFK, Ft. Lauderdale and Orlando, and on several other transatlantic routes.

Norwegian is also negotiating with European carriers Ryanair and EasyJet about the creation of a low-cost carrier alliance that would permit passengers to easily connect among their networks.

Soooo dear readers, how do you feel about flying a 737 across the Atlantic? Have you flown Norwegian Air yet? Please leave your comments below.

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Ultra-cheap transatlantic fares for 2 new cities

February 7, 2017

Norwegian plans to fly 737 MAX aircraft to Europe from Providence’s T.F. Green Airport. (Image: T.F. Green Airport)

Ultra-low-cost Norwegian Air intends to continue its relentless U.S. expansion from additional gateway airports – unless the Trump Administration steps in to block it.

Norwegian confirmed this week that the second U.S. base for its new 737 MAX transatlantic flights will be Providence, Rhode Island’s T.F. Green Airport (PVD). Meanwhile, the carrier’s CEO suggested he would like to add new West Coast 787 service from Seattle-Tacoma as well.

In December, word came out that the first U.S. gateway for Norwegian’s 737 MAX operations will be Stewart Airport, located at Newburgh, N.Y., some 60 miles north of New York City. The carrier will reportedly offer base fares as low as $69 one-way to Scotland, Ireland, England and Norway, operating up to 21 flights a week from Stewart starting in June. The 737 MAX is a new fuel-efficient version of the single-aisle plane that has greater range than its predecessors.

A Boeing 737 MAX in Norwegian livery. (Image: Boeing)

Norwegian confirmed to USA Today this week that its second 737 MAX base will be Providence, which can draw business from the nearby Boston market. The airline had also been considering Hartford, Conn. and Portsmouth, N.H. as options.

It did not reveal any specific route plans for Providence. Providence is about a three hours east of Newburgh by car, and about a hour south of Boston

Separately, Norwegian chief executive Bjorn Kjos told the Seattle Times that subject to government approval, he wants to begin new 787 Dreamliner flights from Seattle to London. (Currently, Delta, Virgin and British Airways have a lock on nonstops between Seattle and London.)

The airline is due to take delivery of nine more 787-9s this year, along with half a dozen 737 MAX aircraft. Norwegian already flies to London Gatwick from Oakland, Los Angeles, New York JFK, Ft. Lauderdale and Orlando.

In other developments, Norwegian is negotiating with European carriers Ryanair and EasyJet about the creation of a low-cost carrier alliance that would permit passengers to easily connect among their networks.

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Norwegian wants to team up with Ryanair for a low-cost alliance. (Photo: Ryanair)

All of Norwegian’s plans, of course, depend on maintaining and expanding its access to U.S. airports – something that major U.S. carriers and their pilot unions are fighting against. The U.S. companies argue that Norwegian is taking advantage of various international agreements and labor laws – like basing a subsidiary in Ireland, for example – to undercut its rivals in wages and other operating costs.

The heads of major U.S. airlines are due to meet with President Trump on Thursday, and the Norwegian situation is likely to be high on their agenda – along with their bitter opposition to the Big Three Gulf States airlines – Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways – which the U.S. carries allege are competing unfairly thanks to subsidies from their governments.

Update from FlightGlobal on Trump’s view of Norwegian via spokesman Sean Spicer: “There is a deal in which [Norwegian’s] having 50% of the crews and the pilots are American based, they’re flying Boeing planes – there’s a huge economic interest that America has in that deal right now,” he says during a press briefing today. Spicer’s comments are the first by a Trump administration official on the subject of Norwegian. Full post here

So where do you think this is all going? Leave your comments below.

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Bay Area airports booming

February 3, 2017

International traffic is reaching new highs at San Francisco’s airport. (Image: San Francisco International Airport)

As airlines laid on more flights and frequencies in 2016, the three Bay Area airports all reported fast-growing passenger traffic in statistics released this week.

Officials at San Francisco International said the airport handled a record 53.1 million travelers last year, a gain of 6.1 percent from 2015 and the seventh straight year of growth for the facility.

The jump in traffic was even greater for international flights at SFO, officials said, with a 10 percent increase over 2015. (And in 2015, SFO’s 9 percent increase in international traffic was the highest growth rate for any U.S. airport.)

That’s great news for the city and the airport, but not such great news for travelers who’ve found themselves more frequently waiting on the tarmac after long flights because another plane is at their gate.

New international carriers coming to SFO last year included Iceland’s WOW, Fiji Airways, and Mexico’s Volaris. United Airlines added three international destinations, including Tel Aviv and the Chinese cities of X’ian and Hangzhou; and China Eastern started non-stop service from SFO to Quingdao. That gives SFO service to more cities in China than any other airport in the Americas, officials said.

British Airways added San Jose service last year. (Image: Mineta San Jose Airport)

At Mineta San Jose International, 2016 traffic surged by almost 1 million passengers last year, to a total of 10.8 million. That represented an increase of 10.2 percent over the previous year, and marked SJC’s fourth straight year of traffic increases.

SJC added new international service in 2016 from Lufthansa to Frankfurt, British Airways to London Heathrow, Air China to Shanghai, and Air Canada to Vancouver. In addition, Southwest added a new transcon route to Baltimore/Washington and American started seasonal transcon service to its Charlotte hub. This spring, the airport expects to finish work on an $8 million expansion of its International Arrivals Building.

Southwest Airlines jets at Oakland International Airport (Photo: Port of Oakland)

Oakland International’s 2016 passenger total hit almost 12.1 million, a growth rate of 7.7 percent from the previous year. That caps 37 straight months of increasing numbers, and gave the airport its busiest year since 2007, when it hosted 14.6 million travelers.

That makes OAK California’s fourth-busiest airport. Southwest is set to continue its steady growth at OAK in 2017 with new international service to Puerto Vallarta and Los Cabos, as well as new transcons to Newark; meanwhile, new transatlantic flights coming to OAK this year include British Airways to London Gatwick in March, along with Norwegian Air service to Copenhagen in March and Barcelona in June.

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WOW Air adds “premium” seats for West Coast flights

February 1, 2017

WOW flies A330s from the West Coast. (Image: WOW Air)

Icelandic low-cost carrier WOW Air will be adding a new business-travel-friendly option for West Coast travelers this summer: premium seating.

The new section (called “Big Seats”) is going into WOW’s A330s on its routes to Reykjavik from San Francisco, Los Angeles and Miami, probably starting on some aircraft by June 1, according to Conde Nast.

A WOW Air spokesperson told TravelSkills: “The Big seat (pitch is 37″+) is an entirely different seat, bigger with a foot rest and will at first only be in our A330 planes.” WOW Air also said that the seat would be Avianor model 5810, which we cannot find online. However, Zodiac Aerospace makes a seat with a model number 5810, which it says is a premium economy seat (pictured below). Perhaps it will mimic the larger premium economy seats now flying on Norwegian Air’s B787s? We’ll just have to wait until we get more details from Wow Air.

Image of Zodiac Aerospace seat model 5810 (Image: Zodiac)

The section will offer 37-inch pitch (vs. 31 in regular economy), and fares for the premium seats will include carry-on bags, checked bags, in-flight food service and priority boarding – as opposed to its regular economy pricing, which includes nothing but the ride and a single under-the-seat personal item. Other amenities and services all incur extra fees. The airline has not yet indicated what level of premium passengers will pay for the premium seating, which will be sold as “WOW Biz.”

However, the carrier is also said to be planning a new fare category called WOW Plus, which will buy a regular economy seat, a carry-on for the overhead bin, a single checked bag, and cancellation protection.

As the airline continues its U.S. expansion, offering very-low-cost base fares from the U.S. to Iceland and to points in Europe via a Reykjavik connection, it appears to be broadening its marketing to appeal to business travelers as well as backpackers.

Have you flown WOW Air yet? Would you? Please leave your comments below.

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New East Coast-U.K. 737 flights for $69

December 29, 2016

A Boeing 737MAX in Norwegian livery. (Image: Boeing)

Norwegian Air, Europe’s fast-growing low-cost transatlantic airline, revealed plans to begin new service between New York State and Scotland next summer with fares as low as $69 one-way.

The Scotsman newspaper reported this week that the carrier plans to use its newly acquired Boeing 737MAX aircraft to launch super-low-cost flights linking Edinburgh with the New York area.

Norwegian will be getting six of the planes in April, and will start flying the new Edinburgh route a few months later, the newspaper said. The 737MAX is a next-generation, fuel-efficient model of the 737 that can fly longer distances than its predecessors.

Norwegian Air CEO Bjorn Kjos told the newspaper that the airline will cut costs on the new route even more by using “secondary airports” in New York for the service instead of JFK or Newark to take advantage of lower landing fees. (Although Norwegian’s base fares are very low, passengers are assessed separate fees for a wide variety of amenities and services.)

Kjos didn’t identify any airports, but The Times Herald-Record newspaper in upstate Middletown, N.Y. recently reported that Norwegian plans to start a significant amount of transatlantic service in 2017 – as many as 21 flights a week — from Stewart Airport to Scotland, Ireland, England and Norway with its new 737MAX aircraft.

Stewart Airport is in Newburgh, N.Y., a Hudson Valley town about 60 miles north of New York City. Despite the distance from the city, Stewart is controlled by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

New York’s little Stewart Airport could get a lot busier next year. (Image: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey)

Norwegian is also said to be considering new transatlantic 737MAX routes out of Providence, R.I., or Portsmouth, N.H.

An official with New York State’s Orange County, where Stewart Airport is located, told the newspaper that discussions have started with bus lines to provide express service between the airport and New York City for Norwegian’s passengers, and that plans are under way to expand the airport’s Customs facilities. Officials suggested that a large Norwegian presence could lead U.S. carriers to operate more domestic service into the airport.

The airline already flies from New York JFK to London Gatwick with fares starting at around $150 each way, and recently announced plans to increase service next year on routes from Gatwick to New York, Oakland, Los Angeles, Ft. Lauderdale and Orlando. The company also won U.S. approval recently for its new Irish subsidiary, which is expected to start flying to the U.S. East Coast from Cork and Shannon, Ireland in 2017.

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SFO, LAX could get new low-fare flights to Spain

December 26, 2016

International Airlines Group plans to fight back against transatlantic low-cost competition. (Image: IAG)

British Airways’ parent company plans to launch new low-cost transatlantic service from Barcelona to the U.S. in 2017.

International Airlines Group — which owns British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, and the low-cost Spanish airline Vueling – is considering adding a new subsidiary in 2017 that will offer cheap fares to and from the U.S. West Coast in response to low-fare competition from Norwegian, according to The Times of London.

The newspaper said IAG’s new operation is expected to use Airbus A330s to fly from Barcelona’s El Prat Airport to San Francisco and Los Angeles beginning in June 2017. The new venture is also targeting transatlantic flights from Barcelona to Buenos Aires, Argentina; Santiago, Chile; and Havana, Cuba, the report said.

Tickets are not expected to go on sale until February or March 2017, and no fare information is currently available according to CAPA.

Vueling, IAG’s low-cost Spanish subsidiary that serves short-haul markets, will provide passenger feed into Barcelona for the transatlantic flights. There were no details yet on specific schedules or fares for the West Coast service. IAG suggested that it might operate the new service under one of its existing brands if it does not create a new subsidiary.

Europe’s legacy airlines have recently been stirred to action on the low-cost front as Norwegian adds more long-haul routes at extremely low base fares. Norwegian in recent months has started or announced new and increased low-fare service from major U.S. airports to London Gatwick, Paris and Barcelona, especially from the West Coast. Lufthansa is concentrating on growing its low-cost Eurowings subsidiary, adding aircraft from Airberlin and Brussels Airlines for that purpose.

Air France KLM recently revealed plans to develop a low-cost long-haul operation tentatively called Boost, based at Paris Charles de Gaulle, although few details are available. And in addition to IAG’s new Barcelona-based operation, British Airways is adding service to Oakland and Ft. Lauderdale in 2017 from London Gatwick instead of its Heathrow hub, in response to Norwegian’s increasing Gatwick service. BA is said to be planning eventually to use higher-capacity 777s with 332 seats instead of 280 for its long-haul Gatwick operations, in order to make them cost-competitive with Norwegian.

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$69 flights to Europe coming next year

December 7, 2016

Norwegian Air is upsetting the apple cart even more on transatlantic fares for summer trips. (Image: David Peacock / Norwegian Air)

>Upstart low-fare carrier Norwegian Air poised to put even more pressure fares to Europe next summer with more flights

Last week, we reported that low-cost European carrier Norwegian plans to add a new route from Orlando to Paris next year, and to expand Paris frequencies from Los Angeles, New York and Ft. Lauderdale in July. From the Bay Area, it recently added London and Barcelona. But now Norwegian has even more plans to add cheap flights in 2017, especially to London and Ireland.

For one thing, Norwegian just announced plans to increase capacity between the U.S. and London Gatwick starting in mid-April. The airline said Oakland-Gatwick frequencies will increase from three flights a week to five; its Los Angeles-Gatwick schedule will grow from five flights a week to daily service; Ft. Lauderdale-Gatwick increases from one weekly flight to two; and Orlando-Gatwick will grow from two weekly flights to three. In August, Norwegian will boost its New York JFK-Gatwick from seven flights a week to 13.

And that’s not all. Last week, the U.S. Transportation Department finally awarded a foreign air carrier permit to Norwegian’s Irish subsidiary, Norwegian Air International – despite rabid opposition from U.S. airlines. The U.S. said it had no choice but to issue the permit under terms of the U.S.-Europe Open Skies agreement.

U.S,. travelers will get more low-fare Norwegian seats to London Gatwick in 2017. (Image: Jim Glab)

And Norwegian said as soon as that decision came down, it immediately started planning new services from the U.S. to Ireland; it expects to announce details early next year and to start flying next summer.

Norwegian said it is currently planning to launch new flights from “the Greater Boston and Greater New York areas” to Ireland’s Cork and Shannon airports. It hasn’t figured out pricing yet, but it noted that other U.S. route introductions typically featured starting fares as low as $69 one way, and average roundtrip prices of $300 to $350 including taxes. However, the airline’s many add-on fees typically boost the total travel cost.

USA Today reports that Norwegian will fly from New York’s suburban Newburgh Airport and perhaps Portsmouth NH using new smaller 737 MAX jets instead of its stable of larger Dreamliners.

Once those low fares come on line, we’ll write about them on TravelSkills so sign up for our daily or weekly updates!

Have you or would you fly Norwegian Air? Please leave your comments below.

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More cheap flights across the Atlantic?

November 5, 2016

Air France's bhub at Paris Charles de Gaulle. (Image: Parisinfo.com)

Air France’s hub at Paris Charles de Gaulle. (Image: Parisinfo.com)

As ultra-low-cost carriers and well-financed Middle Eastern airlines continue to expand internationally and capture more global market share, Air France-KLM and British Airways are trying new strategies to fight back with cheap flights.

Air France-KLM just announced it will create a new long-haul operation – it currently calls the project ‘Boost’ – to be based at Paris Charles de Gaulle, as a “response to the Gulf State airlines which are developing at low production costs on key markets where Air France-KLM is pursuing its growth ambition.” And British Airways is mounting a competitive response to Norwegian on a pair of North American routes, using reconfigured aircraft with more seats that will permit lower operating costs. (Note those new nonstops just announced between Oakland & London- resulting in a nice fare war putting cheapest flights in the $500 roundtrip range)

Air France-KLM said that the new company, which will have 10 long-haul planes by 2020, “will propose a simple, modern and innovative offer, whose positioning will not be low cost. It will offer its customers business and leisure destinations with standards comparable to those of Air France in terms of product quality and the professionalism of the crews.” But it said the new operating unit will be “competitive and innovative,” and will serve as a laboratory for new products, technology, catering, cabin design and customer service innovations.

The company said Boost will allow it “to go on the offensive by opening new routes, reopening routes closed due to their lack of profitability and maintaining routes under threat.” It is expected to start operating in about a year, initially focusing on routes to Asia.

British Airways will fly nonstop between Oakland and London-Gatwick using a Boeing 777-200ER (Photo: British Airways)

British Airways, meanwhile, is focusing on long-haul competition to the U.S. from ultra-low-cost competitor Norwegian. BA recently announced plans to start flying next year to Ft. Lauderdale and to Oakland from Norwegian’s U.K. base at London Gatwick instead of BA’s big hub at London Heathrow. Norwegian already flies both of those routes from Gatwick.

And news came out this week that BA’s new Gatwick routes will eventually use reconfigured 777s that are packed with more seats. According to the U.K. publication Business Traveller, BA plans to increase economy seating in its Gatwick-based 777s from nine-across to 10-across. The aircraft will still offer Club World business class, but with the seat count in that cabin decreased from 40 to 32. The total seat count on the planes will grow from 280 to 332.

BA said the reconfiguration will give its Gatwick-based 777s a lower per-seat operating cost than Norwegian’s 787 Dreamliners.

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Most popular: Europe on sale + $3 water + Hawaii + SkyMiles to Asia + Tipping Uber + more

September 11, 2016

Super cheap flights to Spain from 4 US cities. Pictured: Antoni Gaudi’s Casa Batllo in Barcelona (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

TravelSkills’ 10 most popular posts over the last week (descending order):

1 Bay Area to Barcelona, nonstop, $199 + more low fares to Europe

2 More PreCheck | Easy Virgin points | Cell phone warning | Delta biz class | Hotel bonuses

3 Shocked passenger refuses to pay $3 for water

4 Routes Roundup: United, Delta, JetBlue, AA, Southwest, Alaska, Frontier

5 Tips from a trip to Hawaii + more!

Fewer Turkish Airlines flights to/from the US. Photo out the plane window at Istanbul (Chris McGinnis)

6 International routes update: Delta, Air China, United, Hainan, Turkish, Southwest, American + more

7 What Delta, Korean Air fence-mending means for SkyMiles

8 JetBlue, Delta slugfest could mean lower fares

9 Oakland-London on Norwegian: Low fares, low frills

10 Should I tip my Uber or Lyft driver? [Poll]

Super lucrative offers from credit cards are hot-hot-hot in the news this week! Check ’em out here!

Dont miss! Newer is almost always better when it comes to hotels, right? Here are several shiny new ones for ya:

Exciting new hotels: New York, Chicago, Washington, Minneapolis, Denver

Links to stories from other sources that we thought you’d like to read:

Virgin America’s newest A320’s have sharklets on the wings. Seen em? (Photo: Virgin America)

Consumers file lawsuit to block Virgin America – Alaska Air merger

Atlanta mayor and fired airport manager drop dispute

Bay Area boom means record setting debt sale for SFO- funds expansion

My first job out of grad school came with an office on the 27th Floor of Tower 1 at the World Trade Center in NYC

I still get chills: Scary times remembered: TravelSkills alerts from the morning of September 11, 2001

Security checkpoint construction at ATL to close Starbucks, temporarily shut North entry

Yes, those TSA security lines really were shorter this summer despite the early scare

Stranger soothes baby on plane so mother can rest

Get a haircut at the Virgin Clubhouse at London Heathrow Terminal 3 (Photo: Virgin Atlantic)

Delta consolidating all London Heathrow flights a Terminal 3

A nice new Marriott option in London

Thomas Cook adds SFO-Manchester nonstop

New survey probes how business travelers use hotel apps

FAA urges travelers not to use Samsung Galaxy Note 7s on aircraft

Delta travelers get a new lounge at Sao Paulo’s airport

WOW Air targets Miami with $99 one way fares to Iceland

Capt Sullenberger talks about Miracle on Hudson Movie out this week

Atlanta Airport digging tunnel under main terminal to extend “Plane Train”

American Express forms a partnership with Delta Private Jets

Airbus project studies Uber-like urban air transport

Poll finds few Americans use credit card points for travel

(We’re back from summer vacation! In case you missed our other recent round-up posts, here they are: Domestic Routes Roundup | Tips from a Hawaiian Vacation | August’s most important travel news)

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Shocked passenger refuses to pay $3 for water

September 9, 2016

Welcome onboard! We charge $3 for a bottle of water, okay? (Photo: WOW Air)

Over the last few years, travelers welcomed a new type of airline known as “ultra-low-cost carriers” or, in travel industry parlance, “ULCCs.”

You may have never heard of many of these airlines, but they are a key reason we’ve seen airfares come down this year. When a ULCC enters a market, major airlines usually pay attention and lower fares accordingly.

Domestically, ULCCs include Allegiant, Frontier, and Spirit Airlines. European ULCC’s include include WOW Air and Ryanair. Norwegian Air acts like a ULCC, but considers itself a low-cost, high frills carrier along the lines of JetBlue or Virgin.

Have you flown on an ultra-low-cost carrier yet? What did you think?

While ULCCs have been around a while, I still frequently hear from readers who are shocked SHOCKED to discover all the extra fees that come with those ultra-low fares. This include nearly everything from drinks and meals to carry-on bags and advance seat selection. Some even charge to print a boarding pass if you did not do it at home.

Here’s one of the most recent reader letters. Take a read and let me know what you think. Is it okay for a ULCC to charge for a bottle of water? Please leave your comments below.

Dear Mr. McGinnis,

As an expert traveler, blogger, and columnist who has written extensively about traveling and has been an advisor to frequent travelers at SFGATE, you were the person I thought of, who could address in your columns the risks of flying with a low-cost airline.

I would like to share with you my experience regarding a recent flight that I took on August 23rd on a low-cost carrier called WOW airlines, an Icelandic airline (wowair.com) from San Francisco to Paris. I decided to fly on this airline because the cost of the ticket was a lot cheaper than on other airlines ($760 round trip + $77 to check a bag). At the time, I was aware that flying with WOW meant that items such as food and beverages were not complimentary. [Currently, WOW Air is promoting fares as low as $440 roundtrip between SFO and Iceland for fall trips. From the east coast, fares are as low as $239 round trip. That is CHEAP!]

I have experienced this when traveling on other low-cost airlines in Europe such as EasyJet. I didn’t mind this, seeing as the duration of the flights were usually short, i.e. no longer than three hours.

However, I had assumed that on longer flights, the airline would provide passengers with food and beverages free of charge. I was stunned when I discovered that on the first leg of the flight from San Francisco to Keflavik, the main airport in Iceland, food and beverages were not complimentary. This was after all an 8-hour flight! I believe that flights that are transatlantic and longer than six hours, should provide at least some food to their passengers.

Wow Air offers roundtrip fares as low as $440 between SFO and Iceland

While I wasn’t thrilled about this, I told myself that this is the way low-cost airlines work. If I pay less, then, this is to be expected.

What I did not expect was having to pay for water on this flight! I had taken a water bottle with me and had drunk all of it. When I asked if I could refill my water bottle, the flight attendant came back with a water bottle and a portable credit card machine. She told me that it cost three dollars to buy the water bottle.

I was shocked. How could they charge for water? It’s a basic need! Plus, the cost was ridiculously high for a water bottle. I told her that I just wanted to fill the bottle with water, but she replied that they only had water bottles.

I refused to pay. This was really beyond the pale. How could a flight not have water readily available to its passengers? What if there was an emergency and a passenger needed to drink water ASAP? Would they charge him/her, too? Because I didn’t want to pay for water, I didn’t drink anything for several hours until I arrived in Paris.

When I came home, I wrote to the airline to inform them that I was very displeased with the fact that they charge for food and beverages, especially water on an 8-hour transatlantic flight. Soon after I wrote them, I looked at reviews of the airline online only to discover that it received scathing reviews due to poor customer service and its tendency to lose luggage, have significant delays, and be unavailable or unhelpful to passengers when they needed information about their flight.

I received yesterday a reply from WOW. Here it is:

Replied on Thursday August 25th:

Dear L,

Thank you for getting in touch with us. We are firm believers in the business model “you pay for what you use”. We are a low-budget airline so all extra services are not included in the ticket price and come for an additional charge.

We believe it’s unfair for our guests to pay for something they have no intention of using. That is why you are allowed to choose what you pay for, you do not pay for anything you do not use.

Feel free to write back should you have any more questions!

Have a nice day.

Kind regards,
Briet
WOW air

I found this answer unacceptable and appalling. As a result, I deemed it important to inform the community of travelers about this airline and its treatment of its passengers. By sharing our stories with travel experts and advisors, we can show that this kind of behavior is unacceptable and, in my view, amoral. I believe that low-cost airlines should be held accountable for the way they operate and treat their passengers.

Thank you very much for having taken the time to read this.

Kind regards,
LG

So readers, what do you think? Is it okay for an ultra-low-cost carrier to charge $3 for a bottle of water? Would you pay for it?

Please leave your comments below.

–-Chris McGinnis

This post originally appeared on Chris’s SFgate blog, The Frequent Travel Adviser. The post has attracted more than 300 comments and was the most popular post on SFgate two days this week.

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Bay Area to Barcelona, nonstop, $199 + more low fares to Europe

September 7, 2016

Barcelona El Prat's big bright and gorgeous international terminal (Chris McGinnis)

Barcelona El Prat airport’s big bright and gorgeous international terminal (Chris McGinnis)

Norwegian Air will add the Bay Area’s first nonstop service to Spain when it launches Oakland to Barcelona flights next summer. Introductory economy fares on the route are as low as $199 each way, including all taxes and fees. Norwegian has announced that it will also add new nonstops between Oakland and Copenhagen in March (starting at just $179 each way), with both routes using its fleet of new Boeing 787 Dreamliners.

The schedule is a little thin, though– flights to Barcelona and Copenhagen from OAK will run only twice per week during the peak summer months.

This expansion makes it clear that Bay Area travelers are responding well to Norwegian Air’s low-fare, low-frills service. With Barcelona and Copenhagen, Norwegian now flies to five cities in Europe from Oakland. (It does not offer service from SFO or San Jose). With the addition of these new flights, Oakland will become California’s third major gateway to Europe, beating out San Diego.

In addition to Oakland, Norwegian will offer nonstops to Barcelona from Los Angeles (starting June 5 2017), Newark and Ft Lauderdale. Oakland to Barcelona starts on June 7, 2017; Copenhagen starts March 28.)

Norwegian Air will fly a new Boeing 787 Dreamliner between Oakland and Barcelona next year. (Photo: Oakland International Airport)

This low-cost carrier flew into the Bay Area in two years ago with nonstops to Stockholm and Oslo from Oakland. Then earlier this year, it added nonstops from Oakland to London-Gatwick. Gatwick (LGW) is 28 miles south of central London but still convenient–the easy 30-minute, approximately $30 Gatwick Express will whisk you from the airport to Victoria Station in the heart of the city.

Don’t miss: Trip Report: Oakland>London Gatwick on Norwegian Air

On its 787 Dreamliner, it only offers seats in economy class (259) and premium economy class (32). All premium economy seats offer in-seat power outlets if you want to stay up and work across the pond. Norwegian refers to its premium economy seats as simply, “Premium.” Premium fares to Barcelona will start at $1698 round trip. Plus in-flight wi-fi is free on its intra-Europe flights.

Take a look at how Seatguru describes economy and premium economy seating on Norwegian Air’s 787 Dreamliner.

Limited recline in Norwegian’s premium economy seats might be disappointing for those longing to lie-flat. (Photo: Nancy Branka)

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Norwegian 787 economy class cabin has a clean look and decent seat pitch, configured 3-3-3. (Photo: Nancy Branka)

We checked today and the $199 fare is indeed available for SFO-Barcelona in June (see below). However, the least expensive return from BCN to SFO in June is $256, making the lowest round trip $455 all in– that’s quite a deal and it won’t last long.

Fare check on Weds Sept 7

Have you flown Norwegian Air yet? What did you think? Please leave your comments below.

–Chris McGinnis

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Routes: LAX-Paris for $446 + Atlanta, San Francisco, Dallas, New York

July 28, 2016

Norwegian started new 787 flights from LAX and New York to Paris. (Image: Norwegian)

In international route news, a low-cost airline launches a pair of new transatlantic routes; Delta will beef up Atlanta-London service; San Francisco attracts a Mexican airline; and Emirates and Etihad reshuffle their U.S. A380 plans.

European low-cost specialist Norwegian this week kicks off its newest transatlantic routes, beginning service to Paris Charles de Gaulle from New York and Los Angeles with two-class 787s. The carrier’s schedule calls for twice-weekly flights from LAX and four flights a week from New York JFK. When we checked Norwegian’s website, we found low-season (i.e. December) roundtrip no-frills fares as low as $446 from Los Angeles and $396 from New York. This comes on the heels of Air France warning about its concerns about France as a destination.

According to Routesonline.com, Delta will adjust its Atlanta-London schedule next spring along with partner Virgin Atlantic. Effective May 25, Delta is due to restore a third daily ATL-London departure, while Virgin will scale back from two flights a day to one. Meanwhile, Delta is also planning to end its seasonal Pittsburgh-Paris CDG service at the end of September, a month earlier than previously planned. The carrier will cut back frequencies in early September from daily departures to five a week.

Mexico’s Volaris will start San Francisco-Mexico City flights this fall. (Image: Volaris)

Mexican low-cost airline Volaris will introduce a new route linking San Francisco with Mexico City starting October 10. The carrier plans to operate four flights a week on the route, on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, with one-way fares starting at just $125. It’s a trip for night owls, however: The southbound flights are scheduled to arrive in Mexico City at 2:29 a.m.

A schedule update posted by Emirates for its Dallas/Ft. Worth-Dubai route says that the carrier will not put an Airbus A380 super-jumbo back onto the route September 1 as previously planned, but instead will keep operating it with a 777-300ER. Meanwhile, Etihad next spring is planning to go all-A380 on its Abu Dhabi-New York route after June 1, 2017. The carrier will use the super-jumbos on both of its daily JFK flights after that date; currently, one of the two uses a 777-300ER.

Related: How Emirates welcomes a new A380. Wow!

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: How to get the BEST summer fare deals | One airline fee fading fast | Trip Report: Aer Lingus Economy Class | 5 top jobs for frequent travelers | First class phase out coming soon

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San Francisco snags new UK nonstop

March 30, 2016

A Virgin Atlantic A330 in Manchester (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Virgin Atlantic is introducing new stops to Manchester airport (MAN) in northwest England from San Francisco starting next spring.

Operating three times weekly between March and October, Virgin Atlantic will be the first carrier to provide nonstop flights between San Francisco and Manchester, where a thriving music scene, gritty industrial architecture, and emerging tech community will have a variety to offer visitors. Manchester is located near the scenic Lake District, the historic walled city of York, or Liverpool, home of the Beatles.

Both flights will use Virgin’s newest A330 aircraft with Upper Class (lie-flat business), Premium Economy and Economy cabins.

What’s somewhat strange about this announcement is that it’s come so early. Nonstops between SFO and Manchester won’t start for another year (currently slated for March 28, 2017)– and a lot can happen in a year!

In any case, a nonstop to Manchester will be a relief for those weary of flying to London’s busy airports:

Currently, British Airways, United and Virgin offer nonstop flights to London Heathrow.
In June, Norwegian Air will offer nonstops from Oakland to London Gatwick for as little as $299 each way.
British Airways adds new nonstops from San Jose to London Heathrow this June.

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: Should I tip my Uber driver? + Boeing 747 nearing its end? + Bargain hunters travel guide for 2016 + World’s best airline lounge? + Fares to Europe tumble

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Flying to the tech center of the universe

March 7, 2016

SFO's new 221-foot air traffic control tower will open next summer (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

SFO’s new 221-foot air traffic control tower is not just a gateway to the Pacific, it’s a gateway to Silicon Valley. CLICK to see inside it! (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

San Francisco International Airport had the highest rate of international passenger growth among US airports last year, and continues to add new international flights at a dizzying pace. And it’s not just SFO that’s growing– San Jose and Oakland are picking up new overseas flights, too.

This is most likely due to the strength of the Bay Area economy, and the need for better, faster access to the tech center of the universe.

According to the International Trade Administration, SFO posted a 9 percent increase in international travelers in 2015, ahead of other major international gateway airports such as New York-JFK, LAX, and Miami. Much of the increased traffic to SFO and elsewhere in the US is coming from China which grew a whopping 25% in 2015.

If you are having trouble keeping up with all the new flights coming to the Bay Area, here’s a rundown:

In 2015, SFO added the following new flights:

The right side of Turkish Airlines B777 is a mural of Istanbul (Chris McGinnis)

The right side of Turkish Airlines inaugural B777 to SFO was a mural of Istanbul- on the left was a mural of San Francisco (Chris McGinnis)

April – Turkish Airlines launched nonstop B777 service to Istanbul
May – Swiss International nearly doubled its nonstop service to Zurich
June – China Southern began nonstop service to Guangzhou
September – COPA launched with nonstop 737 service to Panama City
December – Air India launched the first nonstop flight from U.S. West Coast to Delhi
December – Qantas returned to SFO with B747 nonstop service to Sydney

Fiji Airways is SFO's latest coup (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Fiji Airways is SFO’s latest coup with flights starting in June (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

In 2016, SFO keeps up the momentum:

March – United Airlines begins nonstop service to Tel Aviv
May – Air Berlin launches with nonstops to Düsseldorf, Germany
May – United Airlines begins new nonstop flights to Xi’an, China (Plus there are rumors of a new United nonstop SFO to Hangzhou)
June – United Airlines begins the first U.S. nonstop flight to Singapore
June – WOW Air launches nonstop flights to Reykjavík, Iceland
June – Fiji Airways inaugurates nonstop service to Nadi, Fiji

It’s not just SFO that is growing by leaps and bounds…so are other Bay Area airports. For example, San Jose International has recently snagged (or has pending) new 787-9 nonstops to London (British Airways), Frankfurt (Lufthansa), Beijing (Hainan) and Shanghai (Air China) in addition to its ANA nonstop service to Tokyo.

Norwegian Air flies 787 Dreamliners to Oakland International (Image: Oakland International Airport)

Oakland is on a growth spurt, too, with its major international carrier, Norwegian Air adding nonstops to London-Gatwick this June in addition to its flights to Stockholm, Sweden, and Oslo.

All this new competition is very good news for frequent flyers. That’s because more flights and more seats usually mean cheaper fares.

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: Should I tip my Uber driver? + Boeing 747 nearing its end? + Bargain hunters travel guide for 2016 + World’s best airline lounge? + Fares to Europe tumble

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Fares to Europe tumble

February 19, 2016

Norwegian uses 787s on its transatlantic routes. (Image: Norwegian)

European carrier Norwegian has unveiled plans to add three more new U.S. routes this summer, the latest blow in an escalating assault by low-cost transatlantic airlines on the industry’s established players.

Using new 787 Dreamliners, Norwegian says it will begin flying July 29 to Paris Charles de Gaulle from New York JFK, Los Angeles and Ft. Lauderdale, with introductory off-peak fares starting at $175 one-way. Fares in peak summer months will be about twice as much.

Norwegian’s newest foray into the U.S. market comes only two months after it announced plans to start flying from Oakland to London Gatwick on May 12 with fares starting at $299 one way. It already flies from Oakland to Stockholm and Olso, and from Los Angeles to Gatwick and Scandinavia, and will begin five weekly Boston-Gatwick flights on March 27. Also on tap for Boston: a few flights a week to Copenhagen and Olso, and in May, service from Boston to Cork, Ireland. The low-cost carrier already flies from New York to Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm and London Gatwick.

Many roundtrips to Europe from NYC are sub-$500 for summer trips (Image: Kayak Calendar)

Many summertime fares from SFO to Europe are still sub-$1,000 (Image: Kayak)

Meanwhile, Iceland-based Wow – another low-cost specialist – last year started flying to Reykjavik from Boston and Baltimore-Washington with fares starting as low as $99 one way. And this June, it will add flights to Reykjavik from Los Angeles and San Francisco starting at that same $99 rate, using Airbus A330s. Wow also has connecting service to European cities for fares as low as $199 each way from the U.S.

For both airlines, frequencies from their U.S. gateways vary by route; they could be as few as one or two a week, ranging up to daily. And the base fares they quote can be misleading: While they include taxes, they do not include all the miscellaneous add-on charges that proliferate on low-cost airlines, and the lowest rates are capacity-restricted.

Still, even with the extras, they can represent a significant savings over the legacy transatlantic airlines. It will be interesting to see whether and how the established carriers respond to the interlopers’ low-fare tactics.

We are already seeing some new competitive discounts from the likes of Aer Lingus and Turkish Airlines, so keep an eye on those airlines, too. For example, checking Google’s flight maps, we are still seeing peak season summer round trips between the West Coast and Europe in the $1100 range, which is quite a deal for July. From the East Coast, they are still sub-$1,000 in July and around $500 in early June.

Do you plan to go to Europe this year? If so, how much would you expect to pay for a round trip from your home airport? Please leave your comments below.

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: Boeing 747 nearing its end? + “Targeted” for an upgrade? + 5 newest biz class hotels in New York + TSA PreCheck is exploding + Bargain hunters travel guide for 2016

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#1 Boeing 787 Dreamliner hub in the U.S.

October 12, 2015

United is concentrating its 787 fleet at San Francisco International. (Image: United)

With recent announcements of even more Dreamliner routes out of San Francisco International, United’s current and future routes at that airport will make it the biggest 787 hub in the U.S., according to a report in TheStreet.com.

United currently has 22 787 Dreamliners in its fleet and expects to take delivery of three more by the end of 2015.

Over the last several days, the carrier announced new 787 service from San Francisco to Xi’an, China as well as new upcoming routes to Auckland, New Zealand and Tel Aviv, Israel.

As we reported a couple of months ago, United is also planning to redeploy some 787s onto other transpacific routes from SFO, including Sydney, Taipei and Tokyo Haneda.

TheStreet.com noted that when all the route plans are in operation, United will be flying 787s from San Francisco to nine global destinations — more than any other U.S. airport.

A United executive told the publication that the economics of the 787 work best for routes out of the airline’s San Francisco hub. He said they are “the longest stage length flights in our system and the airplane will benefit you the most where you fly the longest flights, which offer the greatest fuel burn savings, and also {because} the West Coast is really competitive, so we are offering our best airplane product on the most competitive routes.”

Virgin Atlantic is one of several carriers putting 787 Dreamliners onto Bay Area routes. (Image: Virgin)

Virgin Atlantic is one of several carriers putting 787 Dreamliners onto Bay Area routes- starting this month. (Image: Virgin)

At SFO, United is currently using Dreamliners across the Pacific to Osaka, Japan and Chengdu, China; China Southern has 787 flights to Guangzhou; and Virgin Atlantic is poised to begin SFO-London Heathrow flights with a new 787-9 beginning October 24.

European budget carrier Norwegian has started flying Dreamliners from Oakland to both Oslo and Stockholm. And at San Jose, Dreamliners are available on flights to Tokyo Narita with ANA; to Beijing with Hainan Airlines; and next spring to London Heathrow with a new British Airways 787-9.

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More 787 Dreamliners headed west

August 31, 2015

Don’t miss! Our full report & slideshow of Delta’s new SFO Sky Club! Wow!

Look for more United 787s on transpacific routes next year. (Image: United)

Look for more United 787s on transpacific routes from California next year. (Image: United)

United has announced that it will be shifting most of its Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet from Houston to its West Coast hubs at San Francisco International and Los Angeles starting in Spring 2016.

When the redeployment is complete, it will fly the 787-9 on routes between SFO and Sydney, Taipei and Tokyo Haneda. In addition, it will fly SFO-Seoul with a 787-9 between Aug. 1 and Oct. 21, 2016.

From LAX it will fly new Dreamliners to Melbourne (Australia), Tokyo Narita, Shanghai, Sydney and London Heathrow.

The Houston routes that it previously flew with the 787-9 will be replaced with Boeing 767s and Boeing 777s, and the 777s displaced from LAX and SFO will be re-assigned primarily to Newark, Chicago O’Hare and Washington Dulles.

Hainan Air arrives at SJC with 787 nonstops to Beijing (Photo: SJC)

Have you inhaled that new airplane smell on your own first Dreamliner flight yet? Frequent flyers who want to experience Boeing’s newest widebody will find their best odds at the mega-gateways of Los Angeles and New York — but the Bay Area isn’t far behind.

The website Airlineroute.net recently compiled a handy listing of every route worldwide where the 787 is now flying, or is about to start flying soon. By our count, it includes 16 routes out of New York (JFK and Newark) and 16 out of Los Angeles International, with the Bay Area (San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose) currently in third place among U.S. gateways with nine (not counting United’s plans mentioned above).

European budget carrier Norwegian has started flying Dreamliners from Oakland to both Oslo and Stockholm. And at San Jose, Dreamliners are available on flights to Tokyo Narita with ANA; to Beijing with Hainan Airlines; and soon to London Heathrow with a new British Airways 787-9.

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Don’t miss! Our full report & slideshow of Delta’s new SFO Sky Club! Wow!

The sad state of summer airfares to Europe

June 5, 2014

Onboard British Airways’s new A380 (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

If you are planning to buzz over the pond this summer, I hope you’ve already made your reservations. Whether you’re flying at the front or the back of the plane, it’s going to be painful. But there is some light at the end of the ~~tunnel~~ summer…and some bright spots when it comes to business class…

Let’s take a look at three key markets (New York, Atlanta and San Francisco) to get a picture of what’s going on nationally…

First stop: the hyper-competitive New York to London nonstop market. According to Google’s phenomenal ITA Software airfare search tool, the cheapest nonstop round trips for June and July are already at $1,600 and climbing. The good news is that fares start to tumble on around August 24, with roundtrip nonstops in the $1,100 range. Business class fares start out steep—around $6,000 in June, but tumble to just $3,500 in July and August when biz travelers are on vacation (and not on the company dime!)

It gets worse.

Atlanta to London is less competitive, and prices reflect that. June nonstops ATL-LHR are already at a rather shocking $2,100 round trip in economy. Ouch! But if you can travel after August 23 and into September, that coach fare comes down to a more manageable $1,300. Business class nonstops ATL-LHR are running at about $6,200 round trip all summer long. Flights to smaller European cities from ATL are a bit cheaper; for example, I found a few nonstops to Dublin or Barcelona in the $1,700 range. One of the better biz class bargains out of Atlanta this summer is on Lufthansa to Frankfurt, now selling for just $3,300 roundtrip throughout July and August. Delta’s matching fare is $3,700.

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A business class seat in full recline on an SAS A340 SFO-CPH (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

A $3,028 business class seat in full recline on an SAS A340 SFO-CPH. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Moving west, there’s something interesting going on. San Francisco to London nonstops are just over $2,000 in mid-June, then decline to around $1,700 in early July. By August 25, they nosedive to $1,150, which is not bad. Business class roundtrips on SFO-London are a stiff $7,800+ through June but in July (when biz travelers tend to stay home) prices drop to about $4,500 round trip. Norwegian Air is offering sub $1,000 roundtrip fares on a handful of its new Oakland-Stockholm or Oslo nonstops. The best summer business class deal to Europe from SFO is on SAS— fares on its SFO-Copenhagen nonstops are currently running just $3,028 roundtrip all summer long, then pop back up to $4,700 when business travelers go back to work in September. (I flew SAS to from SFO to Copenhagen last winter. Here’s my trip report) United and Lufthansa have business class roundtrips SFO-FRA at about $3,700 throughout much of the summer.

Are you or someone you know hoping to head to Europe this summer? How much did you pay for your ticket? Or how many miles did you redeem?

(NOTE: Nonstop fares searched on Thursday June 5 and subject to change.)

—Chris McGinnis

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