British Airways celebrates holidays with seasonal menu and lounge gifts
British Airways brings a seasonal holiday menu onboard this month
British Airways plans to bring Christmas joy and yuletide surprises onboard with its British Original Christmas this season, including a bespoke seasonal menu, celebrations across London Heathrow (LHR) and Gatwick (LGW), and special gifts for passengers in all cabins this month.
Passengers travelling through British Airways’ lounges at LHR and LGW throughout December can pick up special gifts at pop-up festive stalls featuring original British brands, such as individually wrapped chocolates by Harry Specters and The Cocobean Company in its Club (Business Class) lounges, and hand-piped baked goods by Biscuiteers in the Concorde Room. Those visiting the Concorde Room between December 23 and 25 can also sample Talisker's exclusive limited-edition 45-year-old Scotch whisky.
A bespoke winter picnic menu will also be available in all British Airways LHR lounges, including mince pies, brie and cranberry sandwiches and a specially crafted Christmas cocktail. In the airline’s First Class lounge, Santa’s helpers will be on hand to offer to wrap last-minute gifts for travellers, with specially designed snowflake wrapping paper incorporating the airline’s speedmarque.
British Airways' holiday menu in Economy Class
Passengers can expect these festive touches to continue onboard from specially designed headrest covers, to a dedicated Christmas inflight entertainment channel. The airline’s culinary team have also created a traditional British turkey dinner featuring all the trimmings, alongside a vegetarian option, available to enjoy on long-haul flights on selected routes. More than 250,000 turkey dinners are expected to fly across the world on board British Airways’ aircraft this Christmas, including more than 700,000 Brussels sprouts and 40,000 pigs in blankets.
Festive drinks onboard will include Twinings Christmas tea or a glass of BrewDog Hoppy Christmas IPA. First and Club World (long-haul Business Class) passengers can enjoy a special afternoon tea onboard, complete with a chocolate éclair and traditional fruitcake, and can sip a special winter warmer cocktail, featuring Johnnie Walker Blue in First and Johnnie Walker Black in Club World.
First Class amenity kits for the holidays from Alice Temperley
In First Class, travellers can expect to receive a limited-edition Alice Temperley amenity kit this month, with an intricate design inspired by flights through starry skies at 35,000ft. Continuing the tradition started last year, those travelling from December 23 to 25 can add another collectible Christmas bauble to their tree. This year’s edition features a hand-painted design incorporating Indian and British landmarks to mark 100 years of British Airways connecting the U.K. to India.
Cartwright & Butler fudge
Club World passengers will be offered a box of Cartwright & Butler fudge. Meanwhile, passengers in World Traveller (Economy) will receive a complimentary Christmas hat with their meal between December 15 to 27.
The airline’s youngest travellers can enjoy festive chocolate treats, Peggy and Leon activity sheets and can send special mail directly to the North Pole by posting it through Santa’s letterbox in its Heathrow Terminal 5 lounges.
“Christmas is such a special time, and this year is no different. We want to make it truly special, so we have pulled out all the stops to spread some cheer and create a truly British Original Christmas,” said Calum Laming, Chief Customer Officer at British Airways. “To our customers, wherever you are travelling and however you may celebrate, we hope that you enjoy our extra touches throughout your journey this festive season delivered by our incredible colleagues. We wish you all a very Merry Christmas!”
Passengers on short-haul flights can choose from a selection of festive delights through the High Life Café. This includes Tom Kerridge’s ultimate turkey feast sandwich, The Jolly Hog "pigs in blankets" roll, sweet treats from Pullin's Bakery as well as a variety of drinks including BrewDog’s Elf lager and Bottlegreen Edwards’ Vodka Raspberry Spritz. In Club Europe (short-haul Business Class), passengers can enjoy the airline’s festive menu on selected routes from December 24 to 27.
British Airways is also sponsoring the Royal Albert Hall this month as part of its “Christmas at the Hall” carol concerts. All donations raised at the concerts will be split between Alzheimer’s Society and the Royal Albert Hall’s engagement programme, which promotes well-being through creativity.
