I unexpectedly found myself flying business class from Hobart to Sydney in December 2023.

I’d booked a standard economy ticket but later decided to bid for an upgrade. I didn’t think I would be successful, but thought: “What the hell, let’s give it a shot!” I was pleasantly surprised when Virgin Australia advised my bid was accepted the day before my flight.

I had flown business class with Virgin just once before, exactly 12 months prior, so I knew to expect an amazing experience. I had been blown away by the care and attention shown to me and my fellow business class passengers by the flight crew, and I found the extra leg room to be an absolute luxury.

Virgin provides people flying business class with access to Virgin Lounge areas, priority check-in and boarding, spacious leather chairs with a generous recline, a dedicated overhead baggage compartment, and a plated meal from the business class menu. All meals come with a choice of hot and cold drinks, including beer and wine.

I boarded the plane at Hobart Airport around 9:20am the next day with a few other passengers who had priority boarding status. Those travelling on economy tickets began to board the plane shortly after I sat down in my (very comfy) business class seat.

I hadn’t been sitting in my seat for long when a flight attendant served me and other business class passengers with a glass of orange juice – which was delicious.

A baggage handler injured himself while loading the plane with passengers’ luggage, so we were around 30 minutes late taking off. This was no big deal for me, since I didn’t have any important plans later in the day.

Because the flight was a morning one, I was offered breakfast by the same flight attendant who served me the orange juice. She listed the options from the menu, and I chose to have the ‘Vegetarian Breakfast’, which consisted of scrambled eggs, one hashbrown, baked beans, and mushrooms. She served it to me around 15 minutes later with a cup of black coffee and a small slice of cake. It was delicious. The food was tasty, and the coffee was strong. The only let-down was the hashbrown, which was soggy. I ate and drank it all in about 20 minutes.

The flight was mostly smooth (there was a little bit of turbulence here and there), and the plane landed at Sydney Airport quite bumpily around noon.

The crew were friendly and professional.

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I sat next to a lovely lady on the flight. She admired the Tasmanian landscape as the plane took off from Hobart.

“It doesn’t matter how many times I see it,” she said to me, “it’s always beautiful.”

I couldn’t agree more.

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I would recommend flying business class if you want convenience, comfort, and priority treatment.

Callum J. Jones studied English, History, and Journalism at the University of Tasmania. He has written fiction and non-fiction for Tasmanian Times since 2018, and can be traced by the smell of fresh coffee.

Follow him on Twitter (@Callum_Jones_10) and Facebook (@callum.j.jones.creative).