It was a fellow writer and occasional tour guide who first alerted me to the budget luxuries of flying Vietnam Airlines business class to Europe.
Prices vary depending on how far in advance you book and how full the flights are but for around $7k return to Paris, London, Munich and soon Milan, you get a lie-flat bed for the most punishing legs of the trip.
The 13 hours between Saigon and Europe are hard in coach and tolerable in premium economy. But for anyone who can afford it, those lie-flat beds are like time travel – you go to sleep after a very nice meal and wake up in your destination in the morning, ready for a full day of touristing.
Kudos then to Dr Will Davis, historian and author, who leads guided tours to the battlefields of Northern France , who first alerted me to this relatively luxurious way of getting to France and the UK.
As he pointed out, the daunting 16-hour layover in Saigon on the way back is far from punishing if you book into a hotel for a night or two, especially if you organise an early check-in and late check-out.
That means you get two full days at the beginning and end of the layover. You could even book a room for the day, depending on the hotel.
Our choice – the Silverland Ben Thanh – allowed a 7am check-in and 6pm check-out for 50 per cent of the room rate each. For us, slipping one night in between, that meant breakfast, a snooze and a shower on the morning of day one, and a full day including an early dinner on departure day.
Add in two free (and scrumptious) afternoon teas and you feel you’re being treated like royalty.
So what else does this minor extravagance get you? There’s the Vietnam Airline Lotus lounges as you pass through Saigon. These are not the most salubrious airline lounges you will ever encounter – far from it. But they have good wi-fi, mostly edible food, comfortable seats and, if you prefer to fly pre-loaded, unlimited alcohol.
The real treat is at the other end where the access to Air France lounges in Paris get you all of the above plus very fancy shower and nap rooms.
The seats on the flight are very comfortable – you are in a semi-enclosed space in a 1-2-1 herringbone formation – and uncurl into a flat bed, literally at the press of a button.
Just to be clear, I don’t always fly business class – I wish I could afford it – but I will choose Premium Economy, if it’s available. My new rule is any flight of more than nine hours has to be nearer the pointy end.
And there are a lot of tier two airlines that offer reduced rates for seats closer to the flight deck, although the definition of Business Class can vary considerably from airline to airline.
Madame Mildrover does not share my preferences in this regard. She thinks Business Class is overpriced and elitist. However, since she doesn’t drink alcohol and doesn’t eat on the flight – and I mean no food between take-off and landing – many of the little luxuries aren’t available to her anyway.
Speaking of food, even in business class and armed with a top-level frequent flyer rating, you still have to book your vegetarian or other irregular meal at least 24 hours before departure.
But the food that you do get is a cut above what you normally get further down the plane, with proper cutlery and a cloth napkin with a buttonhole sewn into one corner, so you can fasten it on and don’t end up wearing more of your meal than you eat.
That business class flight to Europe in October was also enhanced value because of the queue-jumping privileges of being a “priority” passenger. Check-in, immigration and security were all a breeze.
I was also a good, civilised start to the trip that I outlined last week which took us to Berlin, London, Glasgow, Limoges in France, and Paris. It was the last time we flew Business until we headed home, but it was worth every cent.
Next week: Berlin, from Burlesque to Bowie
