2015 Europe Trip: Iberia Airline IB3169 A320 LHR – MAD Economy Class

Time has come to an end for my stay in this fairytale English folks story and it is time for me to be leaving the UK, there have been regrets surely there will be, especially when I am a person who really loves to travel and see the world! I don’t really think that I will get bored and sick of a place unless I have really seen each and every square inch of it or staying there for a couple years at least. London is just such a luring destination for me! May it be the people, the language or the countless sights that I definitely miss out this stay that I have in London. Buckingham Palace and Borough Market are only the tip of the icebergs that awaits me! Then there is the shopping, I have not even enjoyed the shopping in classic British Shops. I am definitely sad to leave this amazing city and it definitely still ranks among the top of my bucket list to return! Despite all this, I am glad to be able to go to another destination that I have been think about since I have been here, MADRID, land of the Spanish and the heart of it. Tapas and the lifestyle are just some of the greatest attractions they have on me. I do not find it as touristy as Paris or Venice, allowing for a more relax lifestyle, especially when you are following the Spanish lifestyle time. Besides that, I am going to watch a match at Real Madrid, the perfect dream of mine.

 

Leaving London was easy and convenient, especially when the Paddington Station is only about 5 mins walk down straight from my Hotel. This is another reason why Hilton  London Metropole is so great! Although I guess something did cropped up when at the station, I guess you can’t call anything a plan unless you realise that it isn’t perfect. I made my way down to the station and first went to the tube station to get the refund on the Oyster Card. After that, I went to ask for direction for the platform to take the Heathrow Connect! Only at this point, I realised that I have missed the train and if I wait for the next one I will probably have miss my flight. Given In mind that you definitely have to cater extra time at Heathrow, the place is a maze and awfully crowded. In the end I have to bought extra ticket and get the Heathrow Express to avoid missing my flight. I guess the extra pounds are worth it, thank god there was an Easter promotion and I only pay 10 pounds per person. And yea, I managed to get a refund on my Connect tickets too, which was done thru email and me explaining my situation to them. So no difference in cost to me, but being able to arrive faster and try out a new product.

Heathrow Express is really great, the premier in service, you will be in Heathrow in a blink of an eye and the train are fairly empty, with ample luggage racks! The seats have also more leg space. Although with that in mind, I won’t really recommend getting the Express service for the average tourists, maybe when you are in a rush or being fully reimbursed. Given in mind that the Express cost twice as much as the Connect.

 

Shortly, I arrived at Terminal 5, the place was new and spacious, but was definitely packed! Thankfully the queue at the check in counter doesn’t take long, given the amount of counter they have. I was also services by a polished and nice lady from British Airlines, seems like the quality and service is so much better, probably due to the fact that it is their home base! The lady was really nice and allow my baggage even though it is slightly overweight since we are a 3 pax travelling party. The security queues were also fast, thankfully, I am really afraid of the long queues, like the one that I encounter when I am entering UK. Security was deep and through! Just like America I guess, given that the UK is a high targeted area. The terminal was really nice, plenty of shops and restaurants, there is also a Gordon Ramsey restaurant if you are interested. Harrods also had a branch there. Although spacious, it was packed and crowded, forget about trying to snag one of the public chairs or space at Starbucks and Prets. I have previously mention and introduce one of the noodle restaurant in my previous post, do check it out if you are ever in Terminal 5. Last but not least, my last piece and probably the greatest shopping advice for London. DO GRAB THESE BAILEYS CHOCOLATE BEFORE YOU FLY! I have not seen these anywhere else accept here! I would say that it is a must get!

 

Finally, I have boarded the flight to Madrid, booked under a BA promotion together with my ticket in from Prague, I paid a little over 150 for my ticket to Madrid. Although I would say that on a bad note, this was a flight that is operated under Iberia Airlines. I seemingly prefer such traditional seats, and the leg rest were pretty sufficient too!

On a good side, I will be able to try Iberia, an airline that I have never flown before and review their seats and service. On the bad note, there aren’t any refreshment served on Iberia when compared to the BA, this seems like a rip off to me! Although I will be able to save the space for some tapas and paella later on. The service staff was nice, similar to the one on BA, which I find them to be slightly better to the ones on Lufthansa. This time round, I would say that the Turkish airlines service seems to be lacking, perhaps I have too much expectation from them, after all it isn’t intra Europe flights anymore. I love how I am being approach with a Spanish flair, oh how I love Spanish, the people and also the language! Seats wise, it was great, Iberia seats were actually legit flight seats and not the “award winning” “innovative” slim line seats that most intra Europe flight have. The extra padding means that the seats were actually more comfortable and soft! I also had a chance to look at the menu on the flights, which was actually pretty affordable. I am also amaze by the amount of passenger that order snacks and drinks onboard. It just feels like an airline at was serving full meals as the flight attendant were just swarmed.

 

After a boring flight, which I had try to lessen by playing my phone, I was in the capital of Spain, so glad to return to this piece of land! Stay tuned for my feasting and shopping in Madrid! I will also do a write up the highlight of the tour, watching a match at Santiago Bernabeu. Stay tuned for that!