Platinum A332
Jul 12, 03, 8:08 pm
I recently took a trip to Melbourne, in Qantas Business Class, while in Melbourne I stayed at the Marriott. Enjoy the report
I arrived at the Qantas Club around 20 minutes prior to boarding, and by using Quickcheck, I was allocated 1K, window seat on the right side of a Boeing 767-300 aircraft. After a Cappuccino and a couple fruit slices, it was time to board.
FLIGHT TO MELBOURNE;
Flight Details;
QF 417
Date - 09/07/2003 (DD/MM/YYYY)
Dep - 0830 (0830)
Arr - 0955 (0955)
Meal - Breakfast
Aircraft - Boeing 767-336 VH-ZXBorG (Can't remember exactly)
After settling into my seat, a stewardess promptly took my jacket and later offered me a glass of water. The Qantas Domestic Business seats are very comfortable. On the Boeing 767-300 aircraft the seats have a pitch of around 38-inches, and feature a number of controls such as Footrest, Recline, Lumbar Support etc, all manual.
After a safety demonstaration we departed to Melbourne. Shortly after take-off, the In-flight Entertainment began, which consisted of a 20 minute News Bulletin and some program called What's On which is a program about events that are on in Australian Cities. Preceeding the programs however was a DVT Video, and that Deborrah Hutton Welcome Aboard video thingy, which i might add, gets boring if you view it 3-4 times per month.
Breakfast was also served on the flight, and I was thankful that I didn't recieve peanuts or a Stale Granola Bar like what you'd get in the United States. We were offered an Omelette or Cereal. I chose the Omelette, which had a filling of Cheese, Onion, Potato, Ham and Tomato and was suprisingly tasty. Accompanying the Omelette was some Fruit Salad, and we were also offered a slice of Raisin and Regular Toast. The Breakfast was very filling and I could like to commend Qantas Catering.
What made the flight outstanding however were the crew, they were young and energitic and were happy to answer to any requests, as well as addressing passengers by their names. The crew on this flight were among the best I have ever come across, and they are great ambassadors to Qantas.
Shortly after trays were cleared away, we began our descent into Melbourne, and we landed on time. After that I was out of the airport, and went to collect my car from Hertz, due to no cars being available at Avis. May I add that Avis in Australia has newer model cars than Hertz from my experience. Today we were offered from Hertz an ex-model Falcon.
HOTEL;
The Marriott Melbourne (ex Rockmans Regency) is a fantastic hotel, also with friendly staff. The rooms are well equipped and the hotel has a host of features, including Gym, Pool, Spa, Sauna, Business Floor etc. On check-in, the staff welcome you with Water or Orange Juice. I was on the Executive Floor, and everyday the room was replenished with Mineral Water and Mandarines or Apples, and an Executive Lounge was available on the 9th floor. Room Service Catering is excellent also. One Day I ordered a Chicken Burger and it was huge. A Grilled Chicken Breast on a Toasted Garlic Foccacia, with Mesclun Salad, Tomato, Avocado and Melted Swiss Cheese, that came along with Fries and Tomato Chutney. Fantastic. Room Service Breakfasts are also fantastic and generous, although nothing beat the Chicken Burger that I had. I would reccomend the Marriott Melbourne to anyone travelling to Melbourne, as they have reasonable rates for a 5-star hotel (between $150 and $200 a night) and the staff are fantastic
RESTAURANTS;
If you love Greek Food, I reccomend Dion on Lonsdale Street in the Greek Precinct. Food is generous and falvourful, Atmosphere is Open yet cosy, and food seems to be healthy. Afterwards (if you still have room)go to Medallion Cafe, next to the restaurant and enjoy some Coffee and Cakes which are fantastic. I reccomend that you order a Banquet, so you could sample an array of Greek Food.
For a cultural and dining experience, go to Lygon Street in Carlton. Over two blocks i swear there are more than 100 Italian Restaurants all reasonably priced, and all have generous servings. Afterwards, I reccomend that you have some Gelato, at a place that I can;t remember the name of (Just look for the place with heaps of people).
I arrived at the airport just as our Airbus was meant to begin boarding (1210), and after rushing and using Quickcheck and was allocated seat 2A, a window seat in the 2nd row on the left hand side of the aircraft. Our 1230 flight was to begin boarding at 1245, so I made my way to the club, enjoyed some Antipasto and a Coke, and then our flight began to board.
FLIGHT FROM MELBOURNE;
Flight Details;
QF 432
Date 11/07/2003 (DD/MM/YYYY)
Dep - 1230 (1310)
Arr - 1350 (1405)
Aircraft - Airbus 330-200 VH-EBD
The Airbus 330-200 are fantastic aircraft, and have a much more modern interior than the Boeing 767-300 aircraft. Passengers board through 2 doors, one for Business Class, Platinum Flyers and Oneworld Alliance equivalent, and the other for Economy Class. The seats on the Airbus 330 are the same as the Boeing 767-300 except they are newer, and I think have about 2-3 inches more legroom. The crew offered me a glass of water and took my jacket, and after the safety demonstartion, we were on our way to Sydney.
In-flight Entertainment began with a DVT Video, Welcome Aboard program with Deborah Hutton (again), 20 mins of a Getaway Episode, a Leunig Cartoon and an Amusing Short Film called "Hard Luck".
Lunch was served on this flight, consisting of a very Healthy looking salad with a Salmon Fillet, Snow Peas, Beans, Walnuts and Cherry Tomatoes with a Mustard Dill Dressing. Accompanying Lunch was the usual Bread Roll with Butter, Cheese, Crackers and Apricots. This lunch was even more filling than the breakfast on the way down, and i sent a 1/3 of it back!!! First time I've ever done this on a plane. Once again, congrats to Qantas Catering.
Crew were again young and energetic, although service wasn't as personalised, most likely due to the fact that 38/38 Business Class seats were occupied, compared to about 20/30 on the way down.
We had a very scenic landing into Sydney from the south, and I was able to view the coast from the Royal National Park all the way to Botany. Despite departing 40 minutes late, we only landed 15 minutes behind schedule, thus making this flight the quickest MEL-SYD flight I have been on.
This time I rented a car from Avis, and the car i recieved was a Magna AWD, with only 18kms on the Odometer and only registered the day before.
I hope you all enjoyed reading my trip report and I apoligise about the length.
[This message has been edited by Platinum A332 (edited 07-14-2003).]
I arrived at the Qantas Club around 20 minutes prior to boarding, and by using Quickcheck, I was allocated 1K, window seat on the right side of a Boeing 767-300 aircraft. After a Cappuccino and a couple fruit slices, it was time to board.
FLIGHT TO MELBOURNE;
Flight Details;
QF 417
Date - 09/07/2003 (DD/MM/YYYY)
Dep - 0830 (0830)
Arr - 0955 (0955)
Meal - Breakfast
Aircraft - Boeing 767-336 VH-ZXBorG (Can't remember exactly)
After settling into my seat, a stewardess promptly took my jacket and later offered me a glass of water. The Qantas Domestic Business seats are very comfortable. On the Boeing 767-300 aircraft the seats have a pitch of around 38-inches, and feature a number of controls such as Footrest, Recline, Lumbar Support etc, all manual.
After a safety demonstaration we departed to Melbourne. Shortly after take-off, the In-flight Entertainment began, which consisted of a 20 minute News Bulletin and some program called What's On which is a program about events that are on in Australian Cities. Preceeding the programs however was a DVT Video, and that Deborrah Hutton Welcome Aboard video thingy, which i might add, gets boring if you view it 3-4 times per month.
Breakfast was also served on the flight, and I was thankful that I didn't recieve peanuts or a Stale Granola Bar like what you'd get in the United States. We were offered an Omelette or Cereal. I chose the Omelette, which had a filling of Cheese, Onion, Potato, Ham and Tomato and was suprisingly tasty. Accompanying the Omelette was some Fruit Salad, and we were also offered a slice of Raisin and Regular Toast. The Breakfast was very filling and I could like to commend Qantas Catering.
What made the flight outstanding however were the crew, they were young and energitic and were happy to answer to any requests, as well as addressing passengers by their names. The crew on this flight were among the best I have ever come across, and they are great ambassadors to Qantas.
Shortly after trays were cleared away, we began our descent into Melbourne, and we landed on time. After that I was out of the airport, and went to collect my car from Hertz, due to no cars being available at Avis. May I add that Avis in Australia has newer model cars than Hertz from my experience. Today we were offered from Hertz an ex-model Falcon.
HOTEL;
The Marriott Melbourne (ex Rockmans Regency) is a fantastic hotel, also with friendly staff. The rooms are well equipped and the hotel has a host of features, including Gym, Pool, Spa, Sauna, Business Floor etc. On check-in, the staff welcome you with Water or Orange Juice. I was on the Executive Floor, and everyday the room was replenished with Mineral Water and Mandarines or Apples, and an Executive Lounge was available on the 9th floor. Room Service Catering is excellent also. One Day I ordered a Chicken Burger and it was huge. A Grilled Chicken Breast on a Toasted Garlic Foccacia, with Mesclun Salad, Tomato, Avocado and Melted Swiss Cheese, that came along with Fries and Tomato Chutney. Fantastic. Room Service Breakfasts are also fantastic and generous, although nothing beat the Chicken Burger that I had. I would reccomend the Marriott Melbourne to anyone travelling to Melbourne, as they have reasonable rates for a 5-star hotel (between $150 and $200 a night) and the staff are fantastic
RESTAURANTS;
If you love Greek Food, I reccomend Dion on Lonsdale Street in the Greek Precinct. Food is generous and falvourful, Atmosphere is Open yet cosy, and food seems to be healthy. Afterwards (if you still have room)go to Medallion Cafe, next to the restaurant and enjoy some Coffee and Cakes which are fantastic. I reccomend that you order a Banquet, so you could sample an array of Greek Food.
For a cultural and dining experience, go to Lygon Street in Carlton. Over two blocks i swear there are more than 100 Italian Restaurants all reasonably priced, and all have generous servings. Afterwards, I reccomend that you have some Gelato, at a place that I can;t remember the name of (Just look for the place with heaps of people).
I arrived at the airport just as our Airbus was meant to begin boarding (1210), and after rushing and using Quickcheck and was allocated seat 2A, a window seat in the 2nd row on the left hand side of the aircraft. Our 1230 flight was to begin boarding at 1245, so I made my way to the club, enjoyed some Antipasto and a Coke, and then our flight began to board.
FLIGHT FROM MELBOURNE;
Flight Details;
QF 432
Date 11/07/2003 (DD/MM/YYYY)
Dep - 1230 (1310)
Arr - 1350 (1405)
Aircraft - Airbus 330-200 VH-EBD
The Airbus 330-200 are fantastic aircraft, and have a much more modern interior than the Boeing 767-300 aircraft. Passengers board through 2 doors, one for Business Class, Platinum Flyers and Oneworld Alliance equivalent, and the other for Economy Class. The seats on the Airbus 330 are the same as the Boeing 767-300 except they are newer, and I think have about 2-3 inches more legroom. The crew offered me a glass of water and took my jacket, and after the safety demonstartion, we were on our way to Sydney.
In-flight Entertainment began with a DVT Video, Welcome Aboard program with Deborah Hutton (again), 20 mins of a Getaway Episode, a Leunig Cartoon and an Amusing Short Film called "Hard Luck".
Lunch was served on this flight, consisting of a very Healthy looking salad with a Salmon Fillet, Snow Peas, Beans, Walnuts and Cherry Tomatoes with a Mustard Dill Dressing. Accompanying Lunch was the usual Bread Roll with Butter, Cheese, Crackers and Apricots. This lunch was even more filling than the breakfast on the way down, and i sent a 1/3 of it back!!! First time I've ever done this on a plane. Once again, congrats to Qantas Catering.
Crew were again young and energetic, although service wasn't as personalised, most likely due to the fact that 38/38 Business Class seats were occupied, compared to about 20/30 on the way down.
We had a very scenic landing into Sydney from the south, and I was able to view the coast from the Royal National Park all the way to Botany. Despite departing 40 minutes late, we only landed 15 minutes behind schedule, thus making this flight the quickest MEL-SYD flight I have been on.
This time I rented a car from Avis, and the car i recieved was a Magna AWD, with only 18kms on the Odometer and only registered the day before.
I hope you all enjoyed reading my trip report and I apoligise about the length.
[This message has been edited by Platinum A332 (edited 07-14-2003).]