Every major airline offers a tiered experience with multiple class options for travelers. For the London Heathrow Airport-based airline, British Airways, this consists of four distinct classes within its fleet: World Traveler, World Traveler Plus, Club World, and First. Each class caters to different types of customers, and for those who want to avoid the prices of first class but still have a comfortable experience, Club World is a good choice.
Club World on British Airways (BA) aircraft has everything one has become accustomed to expecting on an international business class trip. Lie-flat seats, large entertainment screens, and airport amenities are some of these benefits. The new Club Suites in Club World go further in creating a comfortable trip for passengers, elevating Club World in the global business class market.
What Is Club World?
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As mentioned, British Airways operates with four classes in its long-haul cabins. While the names may sound unfamiliar, they are effectively the traditional economy, economy plus or premium, business class, and first class cabins. Club World is BA’s long-haul business class cabin. For the most part, Club World is a fairly standard business class offering. Travelers can expect a seat that converts to a fully lie-flat bed for those overnight transatlantic crossings, among other benefits.
The Club World name has been around since 1988 on British Airways, with a few similar iterations appearing in the years prior. It enjoyed popularity among business travelers and in 1996, BA introduced the cradle seat to its Club World cabin. This looked like a zero-gravity seat, and ultimately paved the way for lie-flat seats in Club World a few years later. In the early 2000s, British Airways officially introduced a Club World cabin with all lie-flat seats that each had direct aisle access.
This cabin was unique thanks to its “yin-yang” design, which consisted of forward and rear-facing seats. This Club World cabin layout is still present on some of BA’s long-haul aircraft, but is nearing the end of its run. The airline is currently in the process of revamping its Club World cabins to feature new, updated Club Suites.
The New Club Suite
Credit: Stuart Bailey | British Airways
The Club Suite is a relatively new, revamped business class offering that differs from the legacy Club World offering. It features new lie-flat seats in a 1-2-1 layout on BA’s wide-body aircraft. These seats look more like traditional business class one can expect on US airlines.
While having a similar name, the Club Suites are still part of the Club World cabin, but have a slightly different name to distinguish it as a new product. The most striking difference with the new suites is that they feature a door. When closed, this creates a true enclosed suite. This creates an aspect of privacy not seen before in British Airways business class.
The Club Suite features 40% more storage space than the traditional Club World seats, with an updated look. In addition, all the seats in the new cabin face forward. Overall, the Club Suites are a refreshed version of the old Club World seats. The added privacy from the door and more storage room are features that put British Airways more in-line with what competing airlines are offering. Increasing privacy in business class has been a trend in recent years, and is slowly becoming more of a standard. These updates are a welcomed addition that will keep British Airways competitive in the business travel market.
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Retrofitting The Fleet With The Suite
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The Club Suite was introduced in Summer 2019 on the airline’s new Airbus A350-1000 aircraft. There are 56 total Club Suites on each A350-1000. Since then, the new cabin has been retrofitted on many of the other wide-body aircraft in the fleet. As of early November 2025, the new suites were flying on the 777-200ER, 777-300ER, 787-8, and 787-9, in addition to the A350-1000. The airline also plans to retrofit the 787-9 with the new seats, as well as the 777-9, if they ever get delivered.
BA Aircraft Equipped with Club Suites
Aircraft
Total with Club Suites
Total in Fleet
A350-1000
18
18
A380-800
12
777-200ER
30
43
777-300ER
15
16
787-8
8
12
787-9
18
787-10
12
12
Source: British Airways
The majority of the British Airways long-haul fleet includes the Club Suites. Some aircraft, like the 777-200ER, still have a number of aircraft with the old Club World layout. These are primarily 777-200 aircraft based out of London Gatwick Airport. For those traveling out of London Heathrow, it is more than likely that your aircraft will have the new Club Suites.
Cabin Configurations of Club Suite-fitted Aircraft
Aircraft
First Class seats
Club Suite (Club World) seats
World Traveler Plus seats
World Traveler seats
A350-1000
56
56
219
777-200ER (77L)
48
40
184
777-200ER (77M)
8
49
40
138
777-300ER
8
76
40
132
787-8
31
37
136
787-9
8
38
39
130
787-10
8
48
35
165
Source: AeroLOPA
For an in-depth look into the entire cabin configurations for the Club Suite-fitted aircraft, see the table above. The 777-200ER has two cabin configurations that contain the Club Suites, and the 787-9 configuration is not yet available, but is a planned configuration.
Business Lounges
Credit: Stuart Bailey | British Airways
Like any international business class seat worth something, a Club World ticket with British Airways comes with access to dedicated lounges across the world. British Airways has business lounges at London Heathrow as well as a dedicated arrivals lounge located in Terminal 5. The airline also has business lounges at over 20 airports outside the UK.
International lounges include locations in Geneva, Johannesburg, and Lagos. Each space offers typical amenities such as menus à la carte, extensive drink options in modern bar settings, and plenty of space to relax or get work done. As a member of the oneworldalliance, travelers with a Club World ticket get access to all the lounges of oneworld airlines. This opens up a vast network of lounges for Club World passengers spanning nearly every continent.
There are specific oneworld lounges unaffiliated with any particular partnering airline at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and Incheon International Airport that Club World passengers are able to access as well. While the British Airways business class lounges may not be as opulent as those of other airlines, being able to access all the oneworld lounges is a definite benefit.
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Benefits Overview
Credit: British Airways
In addition to the lounges, there are some other benefits that come with a Club World ticket. In-flight dining options are tailored to the specific route, and passengers in the business cabin can choose what they eat during the flight. When meals are served, cabin attendants put a tablecloth down for added ease of eating. Afternoon Tea is also a staple when traveling on British Airways Club World.
At the airport, Club World tickets allow for a much smoother experience. Passengers in Club World have access to priority check-in kiosks and fast-tracked security lines at three airports: London Heathrow, London Gatwick, and New York JFK Airport. These tickets also give you priority boarding, so you can start enjoying the seat before the plane leaves the gate.
Legacy Club World Seat vs. New Club Suite Seat
Feature
Club World
Club Suite
Bed length
6ft
6ft 6in
Screen size
12″
17″
Direct aisle access?
Yes
Yes
Configuration
2-4-2, 2-3-2
1-2-1
Direction
Forward and rear-facing
Forward
Source: AeroLOPA
When it is time to sleep, Club World passengers receive bedding designed specifically for British Airways by The White Company. If you need a minute or two to freshen up, travel essentials are provided at each seat in an amenity kit also made by The White Company. All of these benefits work to make the Club World experience a premier business class experience. Especially for those traveling between New York and London, Club World is a great choice.
Club World: A Solid Choice
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Overall, the British Airways Club World long-haul business class cabin is a solid choice for those looking for a comfortable way to spend a long flight. It is not flashy like some business class cabins of other major airlines, but it hits all the bases one has come to expect out of a business class seat in the top half of the market.
The recent updates to the Club Suites have totally elevated the Club World offering too. This has been a good step by British Airways in ensuring they stay a competitor in business travel. And this is especially important considering how much British Airways relies on the transatlantic crossing business revenue.
It is important that British Airways continues to market the Club Suite, as that new offering is where the airline will really become a competitor with other airlines. Once the revamping efforts are complete across the British Airways wide-body fleet, Club World and the Club Suite will be much more broadly known as a top-end business class offering, helping the British carrier to challenge other global carriers for premium fares.
