RTW TP Run in Jan 2026: Day 1 – London Heathrow (LHR) to Oslo (OSL)

By Nige on January 18, 2026 at 8:40 pm
Type: Post
Story: Round the World Tier Point Run in Jan 2026 Category: Travel
Tags: BA | Best Western | British Airways | LHR | London Heathrow | OSL | Oslo

The BA Lounge Agent at T3 was very polite but she didn’t ask me whether I wanted an invite into First Dining. That’s supposed to be one of those perks of being GGL.

However, with BA cutting perks from basic services, perhaps it’s another one that has bitten the dust?

I was happy to sit and relax for a while. I had just short of three hours before my flight was due to depart. It was fairly relaxed in the lounge with not too many passengers loitering around.

I popped out for a walk up to the area around Gate 40, just to stretch my legs and then wandered around the shops to see whether I could find a London postcode.

It does seem that it’s very much a thing of the past. I managed to grab a snap that I thought would be good enough for the snaps I want to take to reflect the airports that I visit.

I grabbed some dinner, which comprised a very tasty pie, some carrots, roasted potatoes and some gravy. The carrots were cold but the rest of it was half-decent.

However, I suspect the service offering here will pale into insignificance when I hit Hong Kong in 10 days time or so.

My flight to Oslo was due to depart from Gate 24C, which means I can enjoy the delights of a bus! Another great indicator as to the level BA continues to operate at, at Heathrow.

Brief chat with Vick whilst I waited to board the bus. There will be plenty of check-ins whilst I am away!

The bus was rammed with what appeared to be workers connecting on to flights to Bergen in the morning. For some it seemed to be their first week back after Christmas. Alright for some!

The aircraft was sat at remote stand 572 and to be fair to the driver, he didnt keep us waiting too long before we were heading up the steps.

On into seat 01F and I was lucky enough to have a protected seat next to me.

Only 5 rows of Club Europe. An indication of the decline in premium seat bookings perhaps?

We pushed back on time and we were on Runway 09R just 20 mins later.

I had a great view of Central London in the dark, admittedly from a distance. It’s unusual for me to experience taking off on a easterly direction.

I received a personal welcome from the Cabin Services Manager, which was appreciated.

Drinks and nuts were served soon after take off. Standard fare, but glad to see the nuts hadn’t been enhanced away, yet.

I ordered the shepherds pie for dinner, which was a little on the salty side. Age old debate about how much seasoning you need to apply.

The bread roll was noticeably warm and not crusty, a sign of being in the oven for too long.

Pudding was an apple crumble with cold custard which was lovely.

I dozed the rest of the flight. I was really tired already; partly due to the enormity of what I was doing and the fact that my beloved would have to deal with two cats fighting to get on her lap at the same time!

It was pretty foggy on final approach, but as we broke through the cloud, there was a lovely blanket of snow on the ground. The captain reported that it was zero deg c, so it was going to be a lovely walk to the hotel.

We arrived into Gate 48 and the ground crew were a little slow in hooking up the air bridge.

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Round the World Tier Point Run in Jan 2026