Star Alliance - Starting RTW in (surprise surprise!) JNB - some practical questions

Arriving in JNB at 0730 from LHR in Y class ;o( - Departing on the SQ flight in the Afternoon (1400 or so I think)

My questions:

A) - Showers - might be a good idea after the flight from LHR!! Is there a JNB equivalent of the SIN Transit Hotel ? Do any of the airport hotels rent rooms by the hour ;o)
B) - Check in - What time does SQ check-in open at ?
C) - Lounge(s) - I'm sure this has been answered before but I can't find it on a search - what Lounge facilities are available to departing SQ J class pax (and if the answer to A above is no - do the lounge(s) in question have showers?)
D) - I guess on a 6+hr connection it's best to clear customs and immigration - I presume it's not worth remaining in the transit area - or am I wrong?

I don't know the details - but what I have done on my previous 2 "day-transfers" in JNB is to rent a room in HolidayInn or InterConti (which is 20 meters from the airport).

Both hotels are VERY nice!! - And very reasonably priced. Around USD45,- 50,-

I find it worth it - even for just get a few hour nap.

Talk about timely...

Guess where I am! Hint: Rhymes with Cape Town. I fly SAA to Johannesburg tomorrow morning, and I connect to the SQ flight JNB - SIN. I probably won't be able to answer much of A or D, but I've printed this up and will ask about B and C when I get to JNB, and I'll post from the airport if they have internet availability. Btw, I think SQ uses the SAA lounge (at least for 1st), and I've heard (I think on this board) that it's not too bad; I'll post what I find out.

Will

A) - Showers - might be a good idea after the flight from LHR!! Is there a JNB equivalent of the SIN Transit Hotel ? Do any of the airport hotels rent rooms by the hour ;o)

If you choose to exit through customs & immigration (instead of staying "in transit") then you can kill a few hours in the terminal. There are several restaurants. You can check in with SQ ~ 10:30 AM at the earliest; SwissPort manages SQ presence in JNB; check-in is on the second level, one flight up from the ground floor. SQ typically uses check-in counters in the 61-65 region, towards the middle. The Intercontinental offers a dayroom for 700 ZAR (50 yards from the terminal) and the Holiday Inn (1/2 mile by shuttle bus) for ~ 400ZAR. Six hours each, approx. The IC hosts BA's arrivals facility. (You can wait to use the Virgin Clubhouse for a shower?)

B) - Check in - What time does SQ check-in open at ? 10:30 AM, maybe closer to 11:00 AM

C) - Lounge(s) - I'm sure this has been answered before but I can't find it on a search - what Lounge facilities are available to departing SQ J class pax (and if the answer to A above is no - do the lounge(s) in question have showers?)

You can use the Virgin CLubhouse, one of the nicer lounges I've seen. They have two or three nice shower rooms, good eats/drinks and PC's.

D) - I guess on a 6+hr connection it's best to clear customs and immigration - I presume it's not worth remaining in the transit area - or am I wrong?
This is a tough one; I've cleared customs & immigration and I asume that you can too. Just be ready to prove your onward flight. You may be able to stay "in transit" but I'm not sure where you would check in for SQ 405? Perhaps there is a transfer desk? There probably is.

Yeah, what transpac said. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

Just got to the Virgin Clubhouse here. Immigration took 20 seconds, literally. LOVE when that happens.

The Clubhouse is nice, but the steam factor in the showers is pretty high. Nothing a good ventilation fan couldn't fix. Clubhouse is used for both SQ biz. and 1st pax. Great internet connection!! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

I walked over to the Airport Sun Intercontinental (a Six Continents hotel...) to check out the answer to Question A, and they said that they do NOT offer partial day rates, only full day rates, which are currently R850,00 (approx. $85.00). You may want to email 'em to clarify this. Either things changed since transpac was here, or he's getting his info. somewhere else, or I was misinformed by the desk (which happens) or I misunderstood (which is happening a lot the older I get...).

Check in opens at precisely 11:00 ante meridiem.

Will

[This message has been edited by TravelinWilly (edited 08-17-2002).]

I was at JNB last Thurs. The designated *Alliance lounge is Silver Kris, but it is no longer in operation.

If you are travelling on SQ, you can use the Virgin Lounge.

If you are travelling on LH, SAA lounge.

They will only accept *G pax with SQ and LH. Other *G (e.g UA) will not work.

I don't think there are showers in the SAA lounge (visited the basement one). The lounge was packed around 6pm.



[This message has been edited by ws8n (edited 08-18-2002).]

Where is the lounge in SAA lounge in JNB? The last time I have been there I wasn´t able to locate it.It was just on the LH flight from CPT via JNB to Munich so not much time there but I want to have a look inside the lounge there...

Tim

After immigration, go left, and you will find escalators going down. It is across from British Airways Executive Lounge.

If you are taking SQ, I strongly suggest going to the Virgin Lounge on the second floor.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Tim2008:
Where is the lounge in SAA lounge in JNB? The last time I have been there I wasn´t able to locate it.It was just on the LH flight from CPT via JNB to Munich so not much time there but I want to have a look inside the lounge there...

Tim</font>

...and the SAA 1st class lounge is upstairs, to the right of the Virgin Clubhouse.

Do LH 1st class pax get to use this one? I'll be back there on LH in December.

Will

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by TravelinWilly:
...and the SAA 1st class lounge is upstairs, to the right of the Virgin Clubhouse.

Do LH 1st class pax get to use this one? I'll be back there on LH in December.

Will</font>

I used the SAA Firstclass lounge last time I flew LH F. I think I remember there were 2 - one quite large, and one "quite small" with VERY VERY nice small-hot-dishes, INCREDIBLE nice food served from "Restaurant Menu"

Due to a relatively high intake of Champagne on the flight down to JNB I don´t remember too much details.....

I'm flying on LH in Y to Cape Town in November. I'm *G on AC. Are there any lounges to access in either JNB or Cape Town? From the previous posts it looks like I'm out of luck.

Thanks

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by LondonElite:
I'm flying on LH in Y to Cape Town in November. I'm *G on AC. Are there any lounges to access in either JNB or Cape Town? From the previous posts it looks like I'm out of luck.

Thanks</font>

Unless you are a M&M Senator, you are out of luck. I don't think they have a Star Alliance designated lounge replacement in JNB after the shutdown of SQ lounge.

So - if I am a LH Sen. (*G), traveling on a LH biz ticket to JNB, have a six hour stay and then fly on an SQ biz ticket to SIN, can I go both to the Virgin Clubhouse (http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/upper_class_relax_at_the_airport.view.do?flash=tru e) and to the SAA F Lounge (Cycad Premium Lounge) (http://www.flysaa.com/in_flight_information/Lounges_Cabins/cycad_premium_lounge.html)?

Thanks for clarifying this for me http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif.

[This message has been edited by attorney28 (edited 03-10-2003).]