Tag: SFO

View All Tags

/ / / / / / / / /

Everything You Need to Know to Grab Virgin America Elevate Gold

July 26, 2012 at 3:05 PM | by | Comments (0)

Well this is sure the week to announce loyalty programs changes, huh? First we had the announcement of JetBlue's TrueBlue Mosaic level, and now Virgin America is going to reward their more frequent flyers with two—count 'em—two levels above regular Elevate Red, and with accompanying complimentary perks.

Please welcome Virgin America's Elevate Silver and Elevate Gold to the frequent flyer status dance party. The program officially kicks off August 8, so don't go logging in to check your status quite yet.

Becoming Virgin America Elevate Silver

· First off, you've got to be a member of the Elevate program in general. Join here for free and you'll begin at level Red.
· Fly somewhere, and do it a lot. To go from Red to Silver, you must earn 20,000 status points in a calendar year. Elevate points are based on how much money you spend on flights, not on miles flown, and it's 5 points per $1 spent.
· You'll need to spend $4,000 in one year flying Virgin America. Assume you spend $500 on each roundtrip, coast-to-coast flight, that's doable in 8 roundtrips.

more ›

/ / / / / / / / /

Putting United's Transpacific Business Class Under the Microscope

July 18, 2012 at 5:34 PM | by | Comments (4)

Spending 14 hours on a plane sounds like absolute airline hell. A few things can make that hell a lot more bearable, and spending the entire flight in a lie-flat business class seat is definitely one of those things. Flying a super long-haul transpacific journey to and from Australia on a United bird was the way we chose.

After finding a great deal to redeem some miles we had with United, we looked over the routing. Our entire itinerary took us from Sydney to Chicago with a stop at LAX. One the way back, we had a layover in San Francisco. All up, it only reduced our mileage account by 135,000 miles for the entire premium cabin roundtrip.

more ›

/ / / / /

A 6 Hour Layover in San Francisco, Viewed Through Instagram

July 17, 2012 at 11:14 AM | by | Comments (0)

When life hands you long layovers, go explore! That's just what we did on a long layover in San Francisco. At first, when we were stuck with the itinerary including SFO (on a transpacific long-haul), we weren't very happy. But then we had a think and a few friends sent along their recommendations to make a painful layover a bit more interesting.

We were flying internationally and our connecting flight put us in to SFO about 7 hours before we were scheduled to depart overseas. Our options were catching some z's in the lounge or partaking in some duty free shopping. Neither of those appealed so we decided to go on a mini adventure with our Instagram app ready to snap!

more ›

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Why Yes, This Donut is Shaped Like an Airplane

June 8, 2012 at 3:41 PM | by | Comments (0)

"Put a bird on it!" That may be the most famous quote from the popular IFC series "Portlandia," but it's also Virgin America's goal—to put one of their birds on a Portland route. Today, that bird flies SFO-PDX for the first time and we're on board.

Let's start out by saying that Virgin America knows how to throw a launch party. They do it often enough that it's now a finely crafted work of party art. For this week's first landing in Portland, the theme was "local": local libations, local entertainment and local celebrities.

Just steps after disembarking the A320 named "Mt. Hoodie," the planeload of first flyers was greeted with a glass of champagne (not cheap stuff, either) and a red carpet, where "Portlandia" mayor Kyle MacLachlan gave a speech in character. It was hilarious and he made sure to let us know that even though his preferred method of travel is bicycle, he was still excited about Virgin America's entry into the city.

more ›

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Virgin America's CEO Dishes During Their Inaugural Flight to PDX

June 6, 2012 at 7:37 PM | by | Comments (2)

"Put a bird on it!" That may be the most famous quote from the popular IFC series "Portlandia," but it's also Virgin America's goal—to put one of their birds on a Portland route. Today, that bird flies SFO-PDX for the first time and we're on board.

To say that Virgin America took advantage of every second of the short, hour-and-a-half inaugural flight from SFO to PDX would be a gross understatement. The second the doors closed, all the way until we disembarked in Portland, the activities for passengers kept on coming. Meanwhile, we dutifully filled you in from the air.

To kick off, the flight began by screening an episode of "Portlandia" that heavily featured the flight's two big guests: "Portlandia" mayor, actor Kyle MacLachlan and real Portland mayor/"Portlandia" mayor's assistant, Sam Adams. The episode got everyone on the flight pumped up and ready to party (as if they weren't already), as well as primed for a quick game of "Portlandia" trivia, which we knew all the answers to (duh).

Shortly after takeoff, Virgin's hand-picked crew began beverage service and, before we knew it, we were sitting with Virgin America CEO David Cush. Time for some serious questions.

more ›

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Hello from 32,000 Feet, Onboard Virgin America's First Flight to Portland, Oregon

June 5, 2012 at 6:07 PM | by | Comment (1)

"Put a bird on it!" That may be the most famous quote from the popular IFC series "Portlandia," but it's also Virgin America's goal—to put one of their birds on a Portland route. Today, that bird flies SFO-PDX for the first time and we're on board.

LIVE from 32,000' above Northern California:

We are officially airborne and on our way to Portland! The pre-departure festivities at San Francisco's snazzy Terminal 2 were complete with cookies and celebratory remarks by Virgin America CEO David Cush and "Portlandia" mayor's assistant/real Portland mayor, Sam Adams. Kyle MacLachlan, who plays the mayor in "Portlandia," is here as well, so really we just need to have shell art kits in the seatback pockets and all will be ideal.

more ›

/ / / / / / / / / / /

Is Virgin America Secretly Psyching Up to Launch Hawaii Flights?

May 14, 2012 at 4:46 PM | by | Comments (6)

Okay, who wants to go to Hawaii? Really, the better question would be who doesn't to go to Hawaii? Even though it seems all the state can do is cry about how they need more tourists, airlines have been upping their island game all season. Heck, Hawaiian Airlines is gearing up to begin NYC-Honolulu direct service next month, while that Mokulele thing is doing some other island-hoppy stuff and now we may be able to throw Virgin America an "aloha."

The SFO-based low-cost airline is flying their birds back and forth between San Francisco and Hawaii already...but not with paying passengers. Instead, the FAA is onboard as, according to the NYCAviation discussion board, the airline's Airbus A320s undergo ETOPS trials.

more ›

/ / / / / / /

'Put a Bird on It' and Take 20% Off a Virgin America Flight

May 11, 2012 at 9:50 AM | by | Comments (0)

Oh hey— do you live in California or Oregon? Well, as if you needed any more reason to be excited for the start of Virgin America flying to Portland, the airline has launched a contest called "Arts and Aircrafts" with IFC's hit show "Portlandia." Of course there's a prize in it: a free flight to PDX and the opportunity to party in an airplane hangar.

To enter, go HERE, pick one of your Facebook photos, then, well, YOU PUT A FRIGGIN' BIRD ON IT (as we've done with this photo). Don't worry if you don't understand the reference, you will soon enough. The top-voted photo winners will get a free trip to PDX on Virgin America's inaugural flight in a few weeks, in addition to joining in on the Portland hangar party.

more ›

/ / / / / / / /

Get Inside Cathay Pacific's New SFO Lounge, No Matter Your Airline, with a Little 'Klout'

Where: San Francisco International [map], San Francisco, CA, United States
May 10, 2012 at 10:22 AM | by | Comments (2)

What's your Klout score? Wait—don't groan at the question, because finally Klout—the social media influence measurement index or whatever—is useful for something other than sounding super douchey when talking about your "online presence."

You see, Klout just launched an iPhone app. It's free to download and you can do so here, straight from the iTunes store. With this app, you can gain access to Cathay Pacific's new SFO First & Business Class lounge, no matter what airline you're flying or class you're traveling.. The only catch? You've got to have at least a Klout score of 40, and you've got to be traveling from the "A" boarding gates at SFO (list of airlines below).

Not only is this a freaking brilliant idea, but it's going to spoil whoever opts to check it out, since the SFO lounge (Cathay's only lounge in the entire United States), has computer workstations, three shower suites, a noodle bar (featuring the famous Dan dan mien), a booze bar, modern seating areas and free WiFi.

more ›

/ / / / / / / / / /

The Little Things: Dan Dan Mien on Cathay Pacific

Where: Hong Kong International Airport, Lantau, Hong Kong
May 7, 2012 at 7:37 PM | by | Comments (0)

In the midst of the bustle of travel, it's all too easy to overlook the details. We're talking about special touches others have stressed over just so you can enjoy a unique experience, whether you know it or not. Every so often we'll highlight The Little Things like this, so now you will know.

The Little Thing: Cathay Pacific's Dan Dan Mien noodles served in all of their airport lounges.

For China and Hong Kong-based flyers on Cathay Pacific, stepping onboard the aircraft means the start of a journey home. If you're flying in Business or First Class however, that feeling comes even earlier, when you're in one of Cathay's own airport lounges and ordering the Dan dan mien from the Noodle Bar.

Dan dan mien is a spicy noodle dish flavored with chilli, peanut, scallions, pork or chicken, sesame oil and soy, plus a few more ingredients here and there. Aside from being a staple of Sichuan cuisine, it's a staple in Cathay lounges and something for which frequent flyer's mouths start watering the moment they flash their boarding passes to enter a CX space.

more ›

/ / / / / / /

Why You'll Want to Check In at Cathay Pacific's SFO Lounge...on Foursquare

April 6, 2012 at 2:52 PM | by | Comments (0)

Flying out of San Francisco International anytime soon? You're going to wish you were on the other side of the sliding glass doors that lead into Cathay Pacific's brand new Business/First Class lounge, and not just because airline lounges are awesome, but because Cathay is running a Foursquare special this month for flyers who check in to the lounge using the location-based social networking app.

If you're a flyer with access to the lounge, be sure to fire up Foursquare on your phone and show your checkin to the lounge receptionist. For that, you'll receive a free Cathay Pacific "keepsake," as well as be entered to score an upgrade on your next flight if you leave a business card.

more ›

/ / / / / / /

Chihuahuas on a Plane!

February 14, 2012 at 2:47 PM | by | Comments (3)

As much as we loathe the forced lovey-doveyness of Valentine's Day, we love doggies. We especially love doggies who get to hop cross-country flights in search of a new and loving home, as chihuahuas have been doing on Virgin America for a couple years now.

Today marked the fourth ever Operation Chihuahua in partnership with Animal Care & Control San Francisco. It's all a case of supply and demand...and having a little heart. Shelters on the west coast are overpopulated with the tiny dogs, but homes on the east coast can't get enough of them. Thus, every so often the airline flies a bunch of the pups from shelters in San Fran to loving arms in NYC. They even get to wear little red hoodies.

"Awww" over more pictures of them in flight here.

[Photo: Virgin America on Facebook]

Previous
Use of this Site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (effective 3/21/12) and Privacy Policy (effective 3/21/12). © Condé Nast. Your California Privacy Rights. All rights reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast.
Ad Choices