Gnopps
Nov 18, 03, 5:43 pm
(Adventure turns in to family holiday)
As usual this trip report turned out a lot longer than I had planned. Happy reading!
Background (or skip to actual flying)
Both my brother and I are aviationfreaks and wanted to experience something different. We wanted to fly with an airplane not being manufactured in the "western world". We wanted to fly in an Antonov, Tupolev or something similair. And we wanted to fly with a smallish company not offering the best service. Basically we wanted an aviationexperience out of the ordinary. Of course I asked FT (http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/Forum11/HTML/011098.html) for advice.
We phoned around travelagencies and various carriers with names hard to pronounce to find a suitable trip for us to do. There was little luck for us and the alternatives offered didn't appeal to us much.
So one day my brothers sees an ad in a local newspaper. It is Kish Air offering to fly CPH-MSQ-THR-KIH on a Tu-154M for about €180 (Copenhagen to Kish Island via Minsk and Tehran). This was very cheap and after some research (http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/Forum32/HTML/000028.html) we were just about to buy the ticket.
That is when I happened to see KLM offering AMS-SXM for €400. This seemed like a very good price and we decided on going there instead, the aviationexperience was still there with the famous airport. SAS offered flights CPH-AMS for about €120 so that seemed like a good connection. I am a student living on government loan and my extra jobs so this was a trip I could not afford. Luckily I have a generous brother who offered to pay the KLM segment(!!!!), maybe this is a good place to once again THANK HIM for his trip?
We booked our trips with the KLM flight leaving saturday morning, and looked for good SAS connections. We felt it was better to arrive with the last flight the evening before just in case. Problem was there was only one cheap seat left on that flight so I offered it to my brother and took the second last flight to Schiphol (=16h before our flight!!). We would not get a hotel in order to save money.
We were now going to a warm place good to be a tourist in and so my parents who were planning a vacation around the same time got interested and eventually decided to come along. With the cheap SAS-tickets now bought by us probably our parents instead opted for the second cheapest alternative, KLM-connections on a separate ticket also the night before.
Since our parents were coming, my brothers fiancé got in on it too. She was booked on the same flight as me with points.
And yes, I asked FT (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum28/HTML/001940.html) about this trip aswell.
The trip
SK 553 Copenhagen - Amsterdam
17.30-19.00 (90m) Nov 07
MD80 / Seat 2F
On this flight my brothers fiancé and me were travelling. We had checked in on internet the day before to secure exit-row. About 60 minutes before the flight we arrived and while dropping off our luggage I asked about the booking situation. I was told the flight was overbooked by 11 in Y while there were 6 seats free in C. Because of this information we went straight to the gate to wait for the agents. When they turned up I approached them immediately and told them that the two of us volunteered in case bumping was necessary. We waited impatiently as the people boarded and saw three people being upgraded to C. Finally the very nice agent told us the plane would leave with one seat free but as a thank you we were now seated in C.
Excited as I was about flying C for the first time (I always wear nice clothes when flying, hoping for something like this... :-) ) we boarded the plane. Soon after takeoff a meal consisting of shrimp & couscous salad was served with tzaziki. Two pralines for dessert and metal cutlery which it has been a long time since I held in my hands on an short-haul flight.
Drinks served seemed to be the same as in Y and I recognized the wine I ordered from a Y-flight earlier. The only boring thing about sitting in C is that the engines are so far back on the MD80 that you can hardly hear them at all in the front. I prefer to sit in the middle so I can hear the changes. However, this is a sacrifice I am more than willing to make. :-)
Waiting in Schiphol
We landed on time and waited for our parents arriving with KLM 90 minutes later. I was then left alone at the airport since my parents had booked a cheap hotel-room and my brothers fiancé accompanied them.
My brother finally arrived at 21.30 and we checked in for our KLM flight the next day. After having eaten a little we went around in the already now almost deserted airport. Diners lounge (Menzies) where we could get in offered nothing but drinks and soon closed. Inside the passport & securityzone we settled in in some red chairs looking very comfortable, they weren't after a couple of hours and so we switched to big black ones instead (those of you who have been there know which ones I mean). The night was long and when the NW-planes started to arrive in the morning I felt relieved by the activity starting up again. In total I slept about three hours during the night and so I was not very fresh in the morning when we met the others. Security at AMS were very friendly and helped us through when we passed by when they were almost closed. Also they never bothered me although I often looked out the windows with binoculars.
KL 737 Amsterdam - St. Maarten
11.15-14.50 (9h) Nov 8
MD11 / Seat 29HJK
Since my mother is a Silver Elite in Flying Dutchman I had prebooked bulkhead seats 10AB for my parents and 29HJK for the three of us because my brother likes to see the wing. Somehow my parents prebooking had been discarded and they were placed in 16AB.
Row 29 was a bit too close to the wing so a little of the view was blocked, still it was ok. My brother and I did a quick Paper-Scissor-Stone to see who would get to sit by the window when landing in SXM, I lost and placed myself by the window for takeoff.
Blankets, pillows and earphones were handed out to everyone and a drinkservice followed shortly after takeoff. An hour later mealservice began with the choice between chicken and pasta. Hot towels were offered before the meal. I had the chicken and ended up with three chocolate-cakes as deserts (I really liked them). Besides the drink-wagon being placed in the middle of economy-section orangejuice and water was pretty frequently offered during the flight. Some hours before landing another hot meal was served, though somewhat smaller.
IFE on this flight were news, two sitcoms, two movies and destination-information showed on tv's in the aisle. The inflightmagazine was not much to read. FAs were nice and one came to talk to us when she saw that our final destination was not SXM.
We landed in SXM with an AA757 already there. Just after us followed four 757's and the AF340. Luckily we had arrived before them and so immigration-lines were reasonable and luggage came quickly.
The stay (in Anguilla)
My brother, knowing a lot about destinations, had decided we would not stay in St. Maarten but the neighbour-island Anguilla. We took a taxi to the ferry and after passing through immigrations at Anguilla we ended up at our apartmenthotel called Roy's Place. There was good weather but as the sun set we did not see it again until the day we left a week later!!! We knew we came in a rainy period but this week rain lasted from morning to evening and all through the night. All the villagers and others told us they had not seen weather like this since the hurricane -99...
I wont go in to details here but rather tell you a little about Anguilla. Anguilla is a very relaxed place. The 12.000 inhabitants are all very friendly and helpful. Goats & chickens are walking around everywhere. Crime is low and we never locked neither our car or apartment (which didn't have any locks). There are not many tourists and so you can pretty easy find beaches where you are alone. The beaches are very beautiful and snorkeling is good.
Renting a car is adviced but beware of the bad conditions of the roads. Also, all the roads on the map are not driveable.
Anguilla is VERY expensive. Food, both in the supermarket and at restaurants will make a hole in your wallet. Though, eating out the food served is at a very high quality.
There are resorts but I don't know anything of them. We stayed at Crocus Bay by The Valley (main village) at Roy's Place. RP is more of a restaurant offering some apartments. It is very cheap and the apartments could use some renovating. Still, it is very good value for the money and Roy is very helpful.
Of course I went one day to SXM to do some planespotting. It was very impressive to stand under all the 757's as they landed, and the 340 was a great experience. Many captains waved to us on the beach and the atmosphere there was good. Standing behing the starting planes, blows you away, actually! And I recommend having a burger & beer at the Sunset Bar watching the planes.
On departure day there was another hour spent at Maho Beach, were the landing strip begins. Absolutely worth it going to the airport earlier in my opinion.
The trip back
KL 738 St. Maarten - Amsterdam
17.15-06.45 (8h) Nov 15-16
MD11 / Seat 37HJK
We arrived early to SXM and got in the check-in line. KLM had two counters open and they seemed to need at least 10 to 15 mintues per person when checking in. This ment the line hardly moved. Luckily a businessclass counter opened up and since my mother is a Silver-member we could go there. Otherwise, I don't know how long we would have had to wait...
We checked in all our luggage on our parents tickets all the way to CPH. That way we would have only hand-luggage in AMS and so it would be easier to stand-by for an earlier flight.
On this flight, all Elitemember were upgraded to business-seats, though with Y-service. This meant my parents sitting even further in the front while the three of us asked for seats further back in order to get a better view. (Of course we tried being placed with our parents, but without any luck). We paid local departuretax of $20 and my brother and I went away to do some planespotting while the other went inside the terminal. When we came back an hour or so before the flight we arrived to a crowded terminal. SXM, we learned, has only one big building. All the six gates share the same waiting room (divided partly by a wall). There is a lounge for PP-members or anyone paying $20 extra. We didn't but I can totally see the point in getting away from the big terminal.
There was not enough seats for everybody and the noise lever was very very high, you could harldy hear the boarding calls.
Eventually we got on our flight. There is not much sence describing this one in detail as it was more or less exactly the same as the flight there. Only difference was we were served a hot breakfast instead of dinner as our second meal. FAs were very friendly and once again stopped to chat with us. Our parents slept well, while we slept a bit less well :-) I tried one of the WBC-seat and it of course felt very good to sit there. I don't have anything to compare with though and so will not say any more about that.
SK 1550 Amsterdam - Copenhagen
17.10-18.20 (70m) Nov 16
MD80 / Seat 7A
The five of us arrived around 07 in the morning. My parents would fly with KLM at 14 while the three of us were booked on the SAS flight leaving at 17. This because the 12-flight was sold out of cheap tickets and the 08-flight was too soon for us to dare to book. Now that we had landed in time for the 08-flight we thoght that maybe with the aid of my brothers Eurobonus Gold-card we could be put on an earlier flight. We went to the gate and talked to the station-manager who, after some checking, refused. I can understand this becuase we were travelling on a VERY cheap fare. But we were not ready to give up yet and so we went to the transfer-desk and asked there. Unfortunately they called the stationmanager and then said no (a bit embarrasing). All of us sat down in the Diners-loung and started the waiting. For the 12-flight we went down to the gate again to try again, hoping we would be lucky this time. The station-manager spotted us coming closer and said (humorously) "no no no, I recognize you...". So we turned back and finally at 17 we boarded our plane to CPH.
Service was a small sandwich with cold drinks and coffee/tea. We landed in a foggy CPH and took the train back home. Phew.
Summary:
SAS: Basic Y service as usual. I fly them often and Y could be both better and worse short-haul. Still, ground crew is very nice.
KLM: The interior of the planes looked old. Inflight Y-service was very good though PTV would have been nice http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif
SXM: When arriving, make sure it is one of the first planes if on a day that all the jets land more or less at the same time.
When departing, go to check-in very early but don't go through security until late. You don't want to sit in that terminal for hours.
St. Maarten: Unless you are looking for hotels, hotels and more hotels, don't stay on this island. It is flooded with tourists and cruise ships.
Anguilla: The opposite of St. Maarten it seems. Very much recommended although expensive to live there.
[This message has been edited by PappaG (edited Nov 19, 2003).]
As usual this trip report turned out a lot longer than I had planned. Happy reading!
Background (or skip to actual flying)
Both my brother and I are aviationfreaks and wanted to experience something different. We wanted to fly with an airplane not being manufactured in the "western world". We wanted to fly in an Antonov, Tupolev or something similair. And we wanted to fly with a smallish company not offering the best service. Basically we wanted an aviationexperience out of the ordinary. Of course I asked FT (http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/Forum11/HTML/011098.html) for advice.
We phoned around travelagencies and various carriers with names hard to pronounce to find a suitable trip for us to do. There was little luck for us and the alternatives offered didn't appeal to us much.
So one day my brothers sees an ad in a local newspaper. It is Kish Air offering to fly CPH-MSQ-THR-KIH on a Tu-154M for about €180 (Copenhagen to Kish Island via Minsk and Tehran). This was very cheap and after some research (http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/Forum32/HTML/000028.html) we were just about to buy the ticket.
That is when I happened to see KLM offering AMS-SXM for €400. This seemed like a very good price and we decided on going there instead, the aviationexperience was still there with the famous airport. SAS offered flights CPH-AMS for about €120 so that seemed like a good connection. I am a student living on government loan and my extra jobs so this was a trip I could not afford. Luckily I have a generous brother who offered to pay the KLM segment(!!!!), maybe this is a good place to once again THANK HIM for his trip?
We booked our trips with the KLM flight leaving saturday morning, and looked for good SAS connections. We felt it was better to arrive with the last flight the evening before just in case. Problem was there was only one cheap seat left on that flight so I offered it to my brother and took the second last flight to Schiphol (=16h before our flight!!). We would not get a hotel in order to save money.
We were now going to a warm place good to be a tourist in and so my parents who were planning a vacation around the same time got interested and eventually decided to come along. With the cheap SAS-tickets now bought by us probably our parents instead opted for the second cheapest alternative, KLM-connections on a separate ticket also the night before.
Since our parents were coming, my brothers fiancé got in on it too. She was booked on the same flight as me with points.
And yes, I asked FT (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum28/HTML/001940.html) about this trip aswell.
The trip
SK 553 Copenhagen - Amsterdam
17.30-19.00 (90m) Nov 07
MD80 / Seat 2F
On this flight my brothers fiancé and me were travelling. We had checked in on internet the day before to secure exit-row. About 60 minutes before the flight we arrived and while dropping off our luggage I asked about the booking situation. I was told the flight was overbooked by 11 in Y while there were 6 seats free in C. Because of this information we went straight to the gate to wait for the agents. When they turned up I approached them immediately and told them that the two of us volunteered in case bumping was necessary. We waited impatiently as the people boarded and saw three people being upgraded to C. Finally the very nice agent told us the plane would leave with one seat free but as a thank you we were now seated in C.
Excited as I was about flying C for the first time (I always wear nice clothes when flying, hoping for something like this... :-) ) we boarded the plane. Soon after takeoff a meal consisting of shrimp & couscous salad was served with tzaziki. Two pralines for dessert and metal cutlery which it has been a long time since I held in my hands on an short-haul flight.
Drinks served seemed to be the same as in Y and I recognized the wine I ordered from a Y-flight earlier. The only boring thing about sitting in C is that the engines are so far back on the MD80 that you can hardly hear them at all in the front. I prefer to sit in the middle so I can hear the changes. However, this is a sacrifice I am more than willing to make. :-)
Waiting in Schiphol
We landed on time and waited for our parents arriving with KLM 90 minutes later. I was then left alone at the airport since my parents had booked a cheap hotel-room and my brothers fiancé accompanied them.
My brother finally arrived at 21.30 and we checked in for our KLM flight the next day. After having eaten a little we went around in the already now almost deserted airport. Diners lounge (Menzies) where we could get in offered nothing but drinks and soon closed. Inside the passport & securityzone we settled in in some red chairs looking very comfortable, they weren't after a couple of hours and so we switched to big black ones instead (those of you who have been there know which ones I mean). The night was long and when the NW-planes started to arrive in the morning I felt relieved by the activity starting up again. In total I slept about three hours during the night and so I was not very fresh in the morning when we met the others. Security at AMS were very friendly and helped us through when we passed by when they were almost closed. Also they never bothered me although I often looked out the windows with binoculars.
KL 737 Amsterdam - St. Maarten
11.15-14.50 (9h) Nov 8
MD11 / Seat 29HJK
Since my mother is a Silver Elite in Flying Dutchman I had prebooked bulkhead seats 10AB for my parents and 29HJK for the three of us because my brother likes to see the wing. Somehow my parents prebooking had been discarded and they were placed in 16AB.
Row 29 was a bit too close to the wing so a little of the view was blocked, still it was ok. My brother and I did a quick Paper-Scissor-Stone to see who would get to sit by the window when landing in SXM, I lost and placed myself by the window for takeoff.
Blankets, pillows and earphones were handed out to everyone and a drinkservice followed shortly after takeoff. An hour later mealservice began with the choice between chicken and pasta. Hot towels were offered before the meal. I had the chicken and ended up with three chocolate-cakes as deserts (I really liked them). Besides the drink-wagon being placed in the middle of economy-section orangejuice and water was pretty frequently offered during the flight. Some hours before landing another hot meal was served, though somewhat smaller.
IFE on this flight were news, two sitcoms, two movies and destination-information showed on tv's in the aisle. The inflightmagazine was not much to read. FAs were nice and one came to talk to us when she saw that our final destination was not SXM.
We landed in SXM with an AA757 already there. Just after us followed four 757's and the AF340. Luckily we had arrived before them and so immigration-lines were reasonable and luggage came quickly.
The stay (in Anguilla)
My brother, knowing a lot about destinations, had decided we would not stay in St. Maarten but the neighbour-island Anguilla. We took a taxi to the ferry and after passing through immigrations at Anguilla we ended up at our apartmenthotel called Roy's Place. There was good weather but as the sun set we did not see it again until the day we left a week later!!! We knew we came in a rainy period but this week rain lasted from morning to evening and all through the night. All the villagers and others told us they had not seen weather like this since the hurricane -99...
I wont go in to details here but rather tell you a little about Anguilla. Anguilla is a very relaxed place. The 12.000 inhabitants are all very friendly and helpful. Goats & chickens are walking around everywhere. Crime is low and we never locked neither our car or apartment (which didn't have any locks). There are not many tourists and so you can pretty easy find beaches where you are alone. The beaches are very beautiful and snorkeling is good.
Renting a car is adviced but beware of the bad conditions of the roads. Also, all the roads on the map are not driveable.
Anguilla is VERY expensive. Food, both in the supermarket and at restaurants will make a hole in your wallet. Though, eating out the food served is at a very high quality.
There are resorts but I don't know anything of them. We stayed at Crocus Bay by The Valley (main village) at Roy's Place. RP is more of a restaurant offering some apartments. It is very cheap and the apartments could use some renovating. Still, it is very good value for the money and Roy is very helpful.
Of course I went one day to SXM to do some planespotting. It was very impressive to stand under all the 757's as they landed, and the 340 was a great experience. Many captains waved to us on the beach and the atmosphere there was good. Standing behing the starting planes, blows you away, actually! And I recommend having a burger & beer at the Sunset Bar watching the planes.
On departure day there was another hour spent at Maho Beach, were the landing strip begins. Absolutely worth it going to the airport earlier in my opinion.
The trip back
KL 738 St. Maarten - Amsterdam
17.15-06.45 (8h) Nov 15-16
MD11 / Seat 37HJK
We arrived early to SXM and got in the check-in line. KLM had two counters open and they seemed to need at least 10 to 15 mintues per person when checking in. This ment the line hardly moved. Luckily a businessclass counter opened up and since my mother is a Silver-member we could go there. Otherwise, I don't know how long we would have had to wait...
We checked in all our luggage on our parents tickets all the way to CPH. That way we would have only hand-luggage in AMS and so it would be easier to stand-by for an earlier flight.
On this flight, all Elitemember were upgraded to business-seats, though with Y-service. This meant my parents sitting even further in the front while the three of us asked for seats further back in order to get a better view. (Of course we tried being placed with our parents, but without any luck). We paid local departuretax of $20 and my brother and I went away to do some planespotting while the other went inside the terminal. When we came back an hour or so before the flight we arrived to a crowded terminal. SXM, we learned, has only one big building. All the six gates share the same waiting room (divided partly by a wall). There is a lounge for PP-members or anyone paying $20 extra. We didn't but I can totally see the point in getting away from the big terminal.
There was not enough seats for everybody and the noise lever was very very high, you could harldy hear the boarding calls.
Eventually we got on our flight. There is not much sence describing this one in detail as it was more or less exactly the same as the flight there. Only difference was we were served a hot breakfast instead of dinner as our second meal. FAs were very friendly and once again stopped to chat with us. Our parents slept well, while we slept a bit less well :-) I tried one of the WBC-seat and it of course felt very good to sit there. I don't have anything to compare with though and so will not say any more about that.
SK 1550 Amsterdam - Copenhagen
17.10-18.20 (70m) Nov 16
MD80 / Seat 7A
The five of us arrived around 07 in the morning. My parents would fly with KLM at 14 while the three of us were booked on the SAS flight leaving at 17. This because the 12-flight was sold out of cheap tickets and the 08-flight was too soon for us to dare to book. Now that we had landed in time for the 08-flight we thoght that maybe with the aid of my brothers Eurobonus Gold-card we could be put on an earlier flight. We went to the gate and talked to the station-manager who, after some checking, refused. I can understand this becuase we were travelling on a VERY cheap fare. But we were not ready to give up yet and so we went to the transfer-desk and asked there. Unfortunately they called the stationmanager and then said no (a bit embarrasing). All of us sat down in the Diners-loung and started the waiting. For the 12-flight we went down to the gate again to try again, hoping we would be lucky this time. The station-manager spotted us coming closer and said (humorously) "no no no, I recognize you...". So we turned back and finally at 17 we boarded our plane to CPH.
Service was a small sandwich with cold drinks and coffee/tea. We landed in a foggy CPH and took the train back home. Phew.
Summary:
SAS: Basic Y service as usual. I fly them often and Y could be both better and worse short-haul. Still, ground crew is very nice.
KLM: The interior of the planes looked old. Inflight Y-service was very good though PTV would have been nice http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif
SXM: When arriving, make sure it is one of the first planes if on a day that all the jets land more or less at the same time.
When departing, go to check-in very early but don't go through security until late. You don't want to sit in that terminal for hours.
St. Maarten: Unless you are looking for hotels, hotels and more hotels, don't stay on this island. It is flooded with tourists and cruise ships.
Anguilla: The opposite of St. Maarten it seems. Very much recommended although expensive to live there.
[This message has been edited by PappaG (edited Nov 19, 2003).]