The first-class experience in the sky is forever gettingmore extravagant.A number of commercial airlines have now also builtfirst and business classbars onboard, offering aspacefor their wealthiest passengers to quaff champagne while theysocialise at 35,000 feet.Gilbert Ott, aNew York-based travel expert,has tried them all.Ott profiled his first-class bar experiences on his blogGod Save the Points. To his knowledge, there are only six airlines in the world to have onboard bar lounges, including Virgin Australia, Korean Air, Etihad Airways, Emirates Airlines, and Qatar Airways. Virgin Atlantic is currently the only airline to boast a bar on all of its airplanes.Otthelped us rank these bars, and revealedwhich one scored highest in the luxury stakes.6. Virgin Australia ' The full-service bar onboard the Boeing 777 "has a modern, hotel lobby style layout," Ott wrote on his blog.Guests travelling to LA or Abu Dhabi on Virgin Australia'sBoeing B777 can enjoy a business class bar "with a modern, hotel lobby style layout," Ottwrote on his blog.There's space at the bar for up to four guests to sit and have a drink, while aseparate lounge area offers seating for two more passengersto relax and soak up the ambiance.Ott posted: "It's not the biggest, but if at any point during your 13 hours in the air between Australia and the US you need a place to hang, it's pretty magnificent!" 5. Virgin Atlantic ' This airline, which gives business class passengers bar access on all of its planes, is "big on cocktails," said Ott.Virgin Atlantic is the only airline to have bars on all of its planes, available to business class passengers. The airline is"big on cocktails," Ott told Business Insider."Virgin Atlantic often does a mojito or something similar. Refreshing and clean in the air. Definitely makes leaving a nice place easier."In fact, Ott had one of his best plane experiences in upper class withVirgin Atlantic, flying from London Heathrowto JFK on New Year's Eve."We took off around 9:30, a bit late and 3 hours into the flight I was at the bar, the captain called the bar phone and started a countdown with the stewardess. As everyone counted they poured champagne for us, apple juice for them and we had a new years toast at a bar on a plane. We did this I think two more times as we crossed the five time zones en route to NY, landing just before one last midnight!"4. Korea Air's Celestial Bar ' Found aboard the carrier's A380 planes, this bar is a "futuristic hotspot where people chill out and drink Absolut vodka," Ott wrote.Instagram Embed:http://instagram.com/p/BQmRtKrlAxD/embed/Width: 658pxGuests aboard Korean Air's A380 airplanes can experience the futuristic"Celestial Bar."Ott wrote on his blog: "Peoplechill out drinking Absolut vodka and make their own cocktails" at this lounge. The leading vodka brand has partnered with Korean Air on this venture."It's a futuristic hot spot in the sky, which also happens to be underutilized, giving guests space to spread out, there's even a second mini location too," headded.See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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