julier,

Does anyone know if this is a direct flight in both directions

The flight (FCA048) opperates outbound via Antigua; ie LGW-ANU-POP. The return flight (FCA049) is direct since it stopped in ANU on the way to POP.

Have a great time,

Darren

flying t sri lanka in april with fca what will the aircraft be and whats the legroom is it worth upgrading?

Factor30
Hi we flew SCP with First Choice Sept 06, on the whole it was really nice i have report on it here somewhere, If we fly long haul again i would definalty think about first choice but would save the extra it costs to upgrade and go in the star class and spend the £470 on the holiday. We did enjoy it though glad we did it , it was a special holiday couldnt afford to do it again, a few minor points really but nothing to bad to put us off going with them again Enjoy
Ali

woodward,

Have a read of my trip reports in my reply to Factor30 at the top of the page. That should answer most of your questions. If not, fire away! I'll be flying with them again in March 2007. For me, First Choice really are first choice when it comes to long haul.

Darren

We recently flew with First Choice from Manchester to Faro on a late-booked package.At check-in we were informed that,as we hadn't booked meals (quite true-I'm not stupid !) our seats had been pre-allocated and we were seated at the rear of the aircraft in seats either side of the aisle.
Fair enough, a 2.5 hour flight-not a problem........until, on boarding our B757 (250+ seats?)we found that I was seated in the outside seat of three on the port side of the aircraft with the other two seats alongside me unoccupied, and my wife was seated across the aisle with another couple seated in the same row !! In front of and behind us were four rows of unoccupied seats !!! Just before take off, I overheard one of the stewards report to his senior the total head-count ..... 68 !!!! ( on an aircraft configured to carry over 250 souls.)
Now, I'm no expert ,but I should imagine that,at check-in,some two short hours before take off,somebody involved with First Choice must have had a tiny inkling that, maybe,just maybe, the aircraft wasn't going to be jam-packed full -I mean, I've heard of last-minute rushes and all that but - come on !!!!
Perhaps someone on this forum who works for or has inside knowledge of First Choice's modus operandi can give me a logical reason for this but, until then, I'm of the decided opinion that someone,somewhere within First Choice, was being just plain bloody-minded. !!!!
(P.S. for what it's worth,the flight,inflight service and the rest of the holiday were absolutely perfect - what a pity that a "Jobsworth" was allowed to spoil everything.)

hi dazbo, we are fling fca 29 sept 2007 man to sanford,2 adults and 4 kids,not star class unfortunatley i wonder if you could recommend a good area to request for seating,we have paid to sit together,but i will never forget the time we came home from spain and sat with our backs against the toilets,and it felt like the whole plane was reclining in to our laps and we had to sit bolt upright at the back of the plane.i still bear the scars (mental) :rofl.this wasnt with first choice i hasten to add,and we have never had this problem since 1998,but couldnt bear the thought of our first long haul flight being ruined by us sitting in the wrong place. thanks mo

sagres,

I can't comment on the seating allocation, but FCA's 757-200's have 233 economy seats.

mobeckwith,

You will be flying star class, all seats on board FCA's aircraft are called 'star class'!! Their long haul aircraft, Boeing 767-300ER's have the full star class interiors with 33" seat pitch as standard and seat back IFE. Very nice interiors. As to where to sit, thats personal prefference. It all depends where you like. The aircraft is configured 2-3-2. All the seats are good to be honest. Around rows 17-20 are good if you don't like the sensation of flying since this is approx. the middle of the wing. Since you have seat back IFE, it doesn't make much difference. I like row 20-22 or 15 so I can get some decent photo's out of the window with part of the wing in view!

You'll have great flights regardless of your seat number. FCA really are first choice at the moment. 11 weeks and I'll be flying with them again
Darren

thanks dazbo and hi to sagres. mo

pps i meant star class premier. mo

Hey;

I'm off to Puerto Plata in June 07 with First Choice...my mum and I booked Star class premier it said at the time that we get 30kg luggage allowance each (we booked in August) I checked their website the other day and it said 23kg on our online booking! I phoned them up and I'm a bit confused, the girl said we do get 30 because we booked before december, but were allowed no more than 23 in one bag! Aren't we only allowed one bag each??? I'm really confused! I use my luggage on donations and gifts for locals, so can't really cut back!

There has never been a restriction on the NUMBER of bags you can take (although when packing, bear in mind the empty weight of each item before you start to pack it!). As far as I am aware, on First Choice flights, baggage allowance can be be "pooled" for a family or couple booked on the same booking reference - therefore 2 of you could take a total of 60 kg in three or four bags without excess charges applying.

BA have recently introduced a maximum single item limit of 23kg, and this appears to be the incoming industry standard as Health & Safety measure to protect baggage handlers!! Up to now - the maximum weight for any one item on a FCA flight has been 32kg.

FCA have decreased the weight limit on Star Class Premier flights to 23kg from the start of the forthcoming summer season (1st May 2007) although I understand that early bookings for next season showing the previous 30kg will be honoured - I have not yet been advised that we have a amximum single item limit of 23kg, but I wouldn't be surprised!! Will just have to pack another bag between us.

This page on their flights website refers to current allowances of hold and hand baggage http://www.firstchoice.co.uk/info/travelinfo/flyingbaggage.html

Must admit i normally always favour FC but i am finding more and more over this last year they have gone downhill customer service wise and the reduction to 23kg on long haul premium is making me think i will go with thomson next year. I like the 30kg weight as we take loads of gifts when we go to Cuba.

As I am typing this I am holding on First Choice (26 mins so far) as tickets have come today and they are incorrect, not recieved our day before check in confirmtion, asked 4 times in 4 months already and still not had visa which normally come 6 weeks before!

So excuse typo errors....!

30 mins........!

The Thomson's website no longer shows additional baggage allowance for Premier passengers either!! Baggage allowance shows as 25kg TO INCLUDE handbaggage to a max of 10kg - therefore if you chose to put 10kg in your handbaggage, you could actually only put 15kg in the hold!! There are no separate allowances quoted on premier - and it's not listed as a benefit in the premium flights section either! http://www.thomson.co.uk/editorial/extras/travel-options.html?essential=options

As things stand at the moment, you get the same legroom in First Choice Star Class (and another 3inches in star class premier) as Thomsons Premium, so I'd be tempted to forget the upgrade to premier, save the money and book Star Class only which is IMHO a pretty good service since they upgraded a couple of years ago!! Especially if you usually use day-before check in which negates one of the other "perks" - namely the star class premier shorter check-in queue. Paying the additional £200 odd pounds for premier means you need to drink an awful lot to get your money's worth!!

Did wonder at the time I saw the changes to baggage allowance on both the British Airways and First Choice websites if it was about to become 23kg with all the airlines................................ Otherwise why are they specifically choosing such an odd amount as 23kg???

BTW, I sympathise about the hanging on with the phone - was on for 58 minutes to MBNA this morning!!!

Second time in star class premier travelling to Dom Rep on Mon 5 Feb. Can't wait. Well worth paying the extra compared to Thomas Cook Plus (in my opinion).

Do the films change every month or will it be those films listed for January?

Flying at 10 am (ish) anyone know what the menu's are like now? We really enjoyed the food and the fact it was served on crockery, the trays could have been better designed though.

I also read that there is an inflatable cushion but didn't seem to be apparent when we flew last year or does it automatically adjust to your shape while in the chair??

Thanks for any replies.

Hi guys
I am new to the forum, we are thinking of going to Mexico with First Choice in December and I am just wondering what to expect with 2 young children aged 4 1/2 and 22 months? I have never been long haul myself before so don't know how it works with skycots etc that I have heard mentioned in various places. We have taken them as far as Spain before which was with Ryanair and quite hard work so I am a bit concerned and would love to hear your experiences before I decide!
TIA!!

Hi JENN28 ... in addition to any info which you may pick up here specifically related to First Choice, please also check out our "Flying with Children" thread.

David

Yes, flew last March to Goa - best flight I've had. Going with them again this March. Flew back from Majorca with them in September - good again.

We are flying with "Thomson Fly" this coming Sunday. Have never flown with them before. Anyone got any views on them?

barrie

have you looked in the tui/thomsonfly/britania thread a little further down the flights index page???

wizard