Delta One Review – My Big Trip to Europe in a Pandemic

Are we in a pandemic? Or is it “post-pandemic” (will it ever be?) – whatever it is, travel is opening up for US citizens. I flew Delta One PHL to FRA on June 18; here’s my Delta One Review in a pandemic.

Why was I anxious to go?

Whenever I travel overseas between the US and anywhere in Europe or Africa, I fly through Frankfurt Airport (FRA). My grandkids are 5 and 2 years old, and they live in Wiesbaden with their parents, so I stop by as often as possible for a visit. The last time I’d seen them was in March, 2020. I was in Egypt in February-March 2020, then stopped to visit before traveling on to the US from Frankfurt on March 14, in an empty plane at the start of the pandemic. (Seriously empty – it was a 3-4-3 configuration, and ALL the 4 seats across in the middle were completely empty.)

Why did I think Germany would allow me in?

Trying to navigate all the restrictions around travel has been tough (see, “Where in the World Can US Citizens Travel Right Now?”). When the President of the European Commission announced back in April that, “…all 27 member countries will be open to vaccinated US citizens this summer,” I optimistically booked a flight to Germany for June, on Delta One, to be there when my grandson turned 5 years old. Starting the second week of June, my anxiety began mounting. Germany hadn’t announced its opening yet, though France, Spain, Portugal, and Italy had.

My overnight flight was scheduled for June 18, to arrive in Germany on June 19. Finally, on June 17, Germany announced that it would open to vaccinated US citizens at midnight on June 20…I’d be arriving 15 hours before that! The Border Agents would be within their rights to send me packing back to the US. My daughter and I were communicating incessantly, trying to find all the restrictions, rules, and requirements and to translate them into English. Even though it sounded like I wouldn’t need a negative Covid test, I got one, trying to cover all bases. We decided on my strategy, none of which are my typical MO : 1. Be sweet and grandmotherly, 2. Act confused, 3. Tears. I tried to relax and open myself up to the idea that everything would work out…

Pre-Flight

I’d driven with a friend from New Mexico to Ohio, then on to Pennsylvania, visiting friends and family along the way. After recuperating for a few days, I took an Amtrak train from Lancaster to the 30th Street Station in Philadelphia, then the local SEPTA to the airport.

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Delta One

The Delta One experience has been on my bucket list for several years, so I was excited about that. Flying Delta One allowed me access to the Delta SkyClub instead of my usual Priority Pass airport lounges. (I’m so spoiled by the free champagne, drinks, comfy seats, showers, and food at the lounges; it makes airline travel so much nicer.)

Delta One! The main draw for me was the lie-flat seat. I was hoping that I could sleep for at least 6 hours and not have to deal with so much jet lag. Delta One passengers board first – after active military personnel. There were a few empty Delta One seats, but when I peeked at the back of the plane, it was packed – surprisingly, to me.

The seat was really comfortable, with lots of room, cubbyholes, and surfaces to put things on addition to the tray table. There was a bottle of water, and a nice amenities kit with toothpaste, a toothbrush, ear plugs, a mask (but not nicer than the routine international kit from Lufthansa). I had my own overhead bin. Usually I don’t use the overhead space, but I was glad of it this time since I’d just purchased an expensive fedora and didn’t want it to get smooshed. There was a darling light near my head, and a big TV screen, which folded out of the way.

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The champagne flowed freely, and the dinner was great. The service was attentive and spectacular. A cloth was put on my tray table, and I had a cloth napkin. I had chosen the sea bass, and it was excellent, though I briefly questioned my choice after smelling the tenderloin. There was delicious soup and a nice salad, and even ice cream!

The available entertainment – movies and such – was limited, compared to other airlines I’ve traveled. The seat did go flat when it was time for bed…one’s feet slide under the TV area – but that’s where my main disappointment arose. It was very narrow; difficult to turn over. (And I thought the Amtrak beds were small!) It was oddly narrow up at the shoulders, which meant that my arms were very cramped when sleeping on my side. The man across the aisle from me was a snorer – but the ear plugs from the amenity kit saved that situation.

I apparently did doze off, because suddenly it was time for breakfast – which was certifiably awful. There were “eggs” – disguised as white hockey pucks.

Another disappointment was the toilets. I thought that with such a small number of Delta One passengers, and dedicated crew, they’d be much cleaner – but, they were even nastier than normal. WHY can’t people wipe up after themselves????

And, then…🤗…

What Happened at FRA?

Gosh, I was so nervous! But – I took deep breaths and waited my turn in the line at Border Control. The number of people going into Germany honestly astonished me.

The agents were working quickly. When my time came, it was a young, very blond German man – I was hoping for a kind-looking, grey-haired grandfatherly type – you know, the kind of person that grandmotherly tears might work on.

But – I took another deep breath and walked confidently to the window. The agent looked at my passport and asked me to take off my mask to check my face against my passport photo. He then flipped further through the passport, and looked up with a frown. “Are you crew?,” he asked. I said, “No.” He looked confused, and asked, “Why are you coming to Germany?” I confidently said that I was here to visit my daughter who lives in Wiesbaden. 😬

The agent looked down. His brow was furrowed. His eyes were going back and forth, as though he was trying to access a stored data file in his brain. When he looked up, he pointed to a QR code taped to his window. I just shook my head that I didn’t have it. (I thought it was for a form that would need to be filled out if one had transited through an at-risk country, which does not include the US.) He looked down again, then stamped my passport and said, “Have a nice day.”

Whoa! What a relief! I was weak in the knees. In retrospect, I think the QR code is the way the EU is tracking Covid-19 vaccinations. He probably thought it wasn’t worth the effort to try to figure it out with me, with the hundreds of people behind me in line.

My family had driven to the airport to pick me up, but hadn’t told the kids, in case I couldn’t come in to Germany. The look on my grandson’s face when he saw me? Priceless!

Conclusion

I intended to write about Wiesbaden, but got going on this, so ‘all about Wiesbaden’ will be my next article. Do you ever just get into a groove? Anyway…

Delta One has been in my imagination since I first heard of it. I’m a miles and points hacker, so was able to book it with points; the Delta One ticket would’ve cost ~$2100 US, compared with the more typical $500-600 flights available. I’m still in Germany, and am flying back to the US on July 4 on Delta One, so I’ll add more if I have any further insights. I’m getting the tenderloin on that flight. 😋

Have you flown Delta One? What did you think? Am I way off base? Probably the top flight experience I have on my bucket list is to fly the Etihad apartments (shower included!) – have you done this? What has been your favorite upgraded flight experience?

And, as always, fire away with any questions for me!