"But at my back I always hear time's winged chariot drawing near."
As another year draws to a close, it is again time to share your travel experiences from this past year. Tell us what flights you took, the hotels in which you stayed and whatever other details you'd like to add. As we did in 2004, I thought we should again give awards for best flights, best hotels, best meals, etc. Here is last year's thread:
BRU-JFK AA B767-300ER Business Class
JFK-MIA AA A300-600R First Class
MIA-BDL AA 737-800 First Class
BOS-LHR AA 777-200ER Business Class
LHR-DXB BA 747-400 First Class
-Sheraton Towers Dubai Creek-
DXB-LHR BA 777-200ER First Class
LHR-BOS AA 777-200ER Business Class
February
LGA-ATL DL 767-400ER First Class
ATL-MIA DL 767-300 First Class
MIA-MVD AA 767-300ER Business Class
-Sheraton Montevideo-
MVD-SCL LA A319 Economy Class
SCL-DFW AA 767-300ER Business Class
DFW-LGA AA 737-800 First Class
March
BDL-DFW AA MD-80 First Class
DFW-LAS AA 757-200 First Class (flight on which I earned my millionth AAdvantage mile)
-Westin las Vegas-
LAS-DFW AA 757-200 First Class
DFW-BDL AA MD-80 First Class
April
BDL-ORD AA MD-80 First Class
-W Chicago Lakeshore-
ORD-BDL AA MD-80 First Class
May
BDL-DFW AA MD-80 First Class
DFW-ORD AA 777-200ER First Class
-Westin Chicago River North
ORD-BDL AA MD-80 First Class
June
JFK-LHR Air India 747-400 First Class
LHR-HEL BA A320 Club Europe
-Hotel Kamp-
HEL-LHR Finnair A321 Business Class
LHR-BOS AA 777-200ER First Class
-Sheraton Newton Hotel-
BOS-JFK AA ERJ-135 Economy Class
July
None
August
BDL-DFW AA 737-800 First Class
DFW-AUS AA MD-80 First Class
-Hilton Austin-
AUS-DFW AA MD-80 First Class
DFW-SJU AA 757-200 Business Class
SJU-BDL AA A300-600R Business Class
BDL-ORD AA MD-80 First Class
ORD-DCA AA MD-80 First Class
-Westin Embassy Row-
DCA-MIA AA 737-800 First Class
MIA-BDL AA 737-800 First Class
September
None
October
JFK-LHR AA 777-200ER First Class
-Sheraton Park Lane-
LHR-SIN QF 747-400 First Class
-Oriental Hotel & Ritz-Carlton Millenia-
SIN-HKG CX A330-300 First Class
HKG-TPE CX 777-200 Business Class
-Westin Taipei-
TPE-HKG CX 747-400 First Class
-Sheraton Towers Hong Kong-
HKG-LAX CX 747-400 First Class
-Sheraton Gateway LAX-
LAX-JFK AA 767-200ER First Class
November
LGA-ORD AAMD-80 First Class
ORD-LGA AA MD-80 First Class
LGA-DCA AA ERJ-135 Economy Class
DCA-LGA AA ERJ-135 Economy Class
December
BDL-ORD AA MD-80 First Class
-W Chicago Lakeshore-
ORD-MIA AA 757-200 First Class
MIA-BDL AA 737-800 First Class
JFK-ATL DL 767-300ER BusinessElite
ATL-SCL DL 767-300ER BusinessElite
SCL-EZE AF 777-200ER First Class
-Park Tower-
AEP-USH AR MD-80 Business Class
-Patagonia Village-
**trip pending
Awards
Best Hotel Experience:
Hotel Kamp, Helsinki
Best In-Flight Meal:
British Airways LHR-DXB First Class
Best Airline Lounge:
The Wing, Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong
Most Pleasantly Surprising Flight:
Air India JFK-LHR First Class
Most Dissappointing Flight:
Lan Airlines MVD-SCL Economy Class (flight downgraded to single class flight)
Best Airplane Bathroom:
Qantas 747-400 LHR-SIN First Class
Best Flight:
British Airways 747-400 LHR-DXB First Class
GregWTravels
Dec 16, 05, 1:24 pm
Map of flights: Flights in 2005 (http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=YYZ-EWR-AMS-JRO%0D%0AARK-ZNZ%0D%0AZNZ-ARK%0D%0AJRO-AMS-EWR-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-LGA%0D%0ALGA-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-EWR%0D%0AEWR-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-CDG%0D%0ACDG-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-SFO%0D%0ASFO-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-SFO%0D%0ASFO-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-CDG%0D%0ACDG-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-YUL%0D%0AYUL-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-CDG%0D%0AHKG-YVR-YYZ%0D%0AYYZ-LCE%0D%0A&RANGE=&PATH-COLOR=red&PATH-UNITS=mi&SPEED-GROUND=&SPEED-UNITS=kts&RANGE-STYLE=best&RANGE-COLOR=navy&MAP-STYLE=)
Miles flown: 66,218 (all of it in (gasp) economy!)
Airlines flown:
Continential (YYZ-EWR, EWR-AMS, and return)
KLM (AMS-JRO, and return)
Air Excel (ARK-ZNZ)
??? can't recall (ZNZ-ARK)
Air Canada (YYZ-YUL-YYZ * 14, YYZ-CDG-YYZ * 3, YYZ-SFO-YYZ * 2, YYZ-LGA-YYZ * 1, YYZ-EWR-YYZ * 1)
Air Canada (booked via United) (HKG-YYZ-YVR)
Air Transat (YYZ-LCE (yet to be taken))
Awards:
Best Flight: Air Excel (ARK-ZNZ). First, for being the smallest commercial plane I have ever been on. 6 paid passenger seats, though they flew with one pilot and put a paying passenger in the co-pilots seat. Second, for the great views of Stone Town harbour and the peak of Kilimanjaro. Three, because the CEO himself was flying the plane (it's not a big company).
Worst Flight: There was an 2 hour delay on one of the YYZ-YUL flights, which upsets me because that means the delay was twice as long as the flight, but nothing too upsetting this year. Of course, I haven't taken the Air Transat flight yet. It's a charter, and so things don't seem likely to be great.
Best Hotel: Hotel Michelet Odeon in Paris. Nice rooms (though small) with Wifi. Close to the metro. 12 TV channels, plus the woman across the street would walk around her apartment with no clothes on, so lots of entertainment. All this for 90 euros a night.
Best Chain Hotel: Marriott Renaissance Harbour View, Hong Kong. Great views of the bay and across to Kowloon. Centrally located. Good service. Not the nicest Marriott I've been in ever, but the nicest this year.
Worst Hotel: Hotel Acacias at 20 rue du Temple. At 94 Euros a night, certainly priced like a business class hotel, but you would never have guessed it from the interior. My room was on the top floor, and was the most weirdly shaped hotel room I have ever seen. Walking into the room, the bed was to your right and the bathroom (as small as a closet) was straight ahead. To your left was a low, slanted ceiling (almost like the underside of a staircase), which, after a quick duck and drop of around 3/4 of an inch, opened up to a small desk, and long thin hallway towards the window. Plus you couldn't stand in the shower without turning off the water.
Worst Chain Hotel: La Quinta Inn and Suites, Alpharetta, GA. Actually, I didn't stay there in 2005. But I did in 2004, and the memory still haunts me.
Best Airport: A tie between Amsterdam and Vancouver. Both beautifully laid out and well lit and lots of cool stuff to see. Vancouver has the beautiful tie ins to the local nature and native culture. Amsterdam has a museum and a casino. Nice!
Worst airport: Montreal. Bad transit to and from the airport, the taxi drivers are MAD insane. It's not very pretty. The Air Canada lounge is small.
Greg
Kiwi Flyer
Dec 16, 05, 2:13 pm
Based on flights to date and expected through to the end of the year.
Map of flights (http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=lhr-lax-akl-syd-cns-syd-akl-sin-nrt-sin-cgk-sin-akl-sin-nrt-sin-cgk-sin-akl-mel-adl-nzir-adl-mel-akl-mel-akl-bne-akl-sin-nrt-sin-cgk-sin-akl-lax-lhr-ams-cph-vno-waw-prg-muc-lju-vie-ksc-vie-bud-vie-zag-muc-zrh-man-zrh-fra-sin-cgk-sin-pek-sin-akl-sin-icn-sin-cgk-sin-akl-rar-ppt-rar-akl-syd-akl-bne-syd-cbr-syd-mel-adl-syd-mel-akl-sin-nrt-sin-cgk-sin-akl-sfo-las-lax-akl-sin-nrt-sin-cgk-sin-bkk-sin-akl-wlg-nsn-wlg-akl-sin-icn-sin-cgk-sin-akl-mel-syd-asp-syd-mel-akl-mel-syd-ayq-syd-mel-akl-nou-akl-syd-cns-syd-per-syd-cns-syd-akl-sin-fra-bcn-fco-zrh-nce-zrh-fco-bcn-fra-tlv-fra-sin-akl-sin-nrt-bkk-hkg-bkk-sin-kul-sin-bkk-sin-akl-sin-nrt-sin-akl-sin-icn-sin-cgk-sin-akl-sin-icn-yvr-yeg-cxh-zna-cxh-yyj-yvr-jfk-dfw-fat-dfw-lga-fra&RANGE=&PATH-COLOR=red&PATH-UNITS=mi&SPEED-GROUND=&SPEED-UNITS=kts&RANGE-STYLE=best&RANGE-COLOR=navy&MAP-STYLE=)
Flown Miles 364,550 (approx) - Antarctic overflight mileage included in this total is based on McMurdo Station
Segments 180
(Amazingly I had an almost 8 week break from flying!)
Countries 31 (9 new)
(Andorra*, Australia, Austria, Canada, China, Cook Islands, Croatia*, Czech Republic*, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary*, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lithuania*, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland*, Singapore, Slovakia*, Slovenia*, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, US, Vatican City*)
Territories 3 (2 new)
(French Polynesia*, Hong Kong SAR, New Caledonia*)
(new marked *)
Shortest segment YVR-YYJ vv 39 miles
Longest segment AKL-SFO 6,512 miles
Best flight - even though I still have some flights left this year, no doubt it will be the Antarctic overflight (see trip report below).
Trip reports
Champagne and figure eights on ice (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=395111)
a Lit.tle sPRinG.Ly JoUrney (BUDding KiwiS Can zig-ZAG around Europe) (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=413562)
Big DO DOs - or a Kiwi Flyer's Month of Madness (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=483205)
Met lots of great FTers in DOs and when our paths just happened to cross, in New Zealand and around the world (Andorra, Australia, Germany, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, US to name just a few).
stut
Dec 16, 05, 3:33 pm
Here we go... Aircraft on the BD flights is anything of A319/A320/A321, I have no record... Only hotels of note (for me, anyway) are listed. You can assume half the hotels in Amsterdam should be there too...
January
Alas, a relapse, and too ill to travel :(
February
A successful 'test flight' that has me back in the air...
1: LHR-CDG BD C 32x
2: CDG-LHR BD C 32x
March
3: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
4: AMS-LHR BD Y 32x
5: LHR-AMS BD C 32x
6: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
7: LHR-OPO TP Y 321
8: OPO-LHR TP Y 320
9: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
10: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
11: LHR-AMS BD C 32x
12: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
April
13: LHR-AMS BD C 32x
14: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
15: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
16: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
17: QQW-XPG ES C TRN
(Hotel Prince de Galles)
18: XPG-QQW ES C TRN
19: LHR-CDG AF C 320
(And I have to break in at this point to introduce a mad dash as part of a 5-hour stopover, into a maternity unit in central Paris, to meet my close friends' wonderful, 12-hour-old baby daughter. The happiest event of the year!)
20: CDG-TAS AF C 319LR
(Le Meridien Tashkent)
21: TAS-DEL HY Y 310
22: DEL-BLR 9W C 738
23: BLR-COK 9W Y ATR
(Malabar House Hotel)
May
24: TRV-BOM 9W Y 738
25: BOM-LHR BA C 744
26: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
27: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
28: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
29: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
30: LGW-BUD BA C 734
(Andrassy Hotel)
31: BUD-LGW BA C 737
32: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
June
33: AMS-LHR BD Y 32x
34: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
35: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
36: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
37: AMS-LHR BD Y 32x
38: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
39: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
40: QQW-XPG ES C TRN
41: XPG-QQW ES C TRN
42: LHR-AMS BA C 319
43: AMS-LGW BA C 734
Note the subtle change in airline to AMS there. About the time that BD announced their 'New Business Model', coincidentally enough... Still a few more, though, enough to keep *G for another 18 months.
July
44: LHR-AMS BD Y 32x
45: AMS-LHR BD C 32x
46: LHR-VIE OS Y 321
47: VIE-BUD OS Y DH8
(Le Meridien Budapest)
48: BUD-VIE OS Y DH8
49: VIE-LHR OS Y 320
50: LGW-AMS BA C 734
51: AMS-LGW BA C 734
52: LGW-PRG BA C 734
53: PRG-LHR BA C 320
August
54: LHR-AMS BA C 319
55: AMS-LGW BA C 734
56: LHR-VIE OS C 739
57: VIE-TSR OS C DH8
58: TSR-VIE OS C CR4
59: VIE-AMS OS C 319
60: AMS-LHR BD Y 32x
(Another aside here, as I decide to buy a bike, as I used to cycle everywhere, and could use the exercise. At this point, I start commuting daily by bike, but also discover that LCY is within cycling distance of both home and work. I have rarely used public or private transport in London since. A month or so later, and I also buy a bike in Amsterdam, something that really transforms your perspective of the city.)
61: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
62: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
62: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
63: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
64: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
September
65: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
66: LHR-HEL BA Y 319
67: HEL-LHR AY Y 321
68: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
69: AMS-LCY KL C F50
70: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
71: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
72: LCY-AMS KL C F50
73: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
October
74: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
75: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
76: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
77: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
78: LCY-CDG AF Y 143
79: CDG-PRG AF Y 320
(Andel's Hotel)
80: PRG-AMS OK Y 321
81: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
82: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
83: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
November
84: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
85: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
86: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
87: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
88: LHR-AMS KL Y 762
89: AMS-MXP KL Y 737
(Le Meridien Excelsior Gallia)
90: MXP-BKK TG C 345
91: BKK-HKG TG F 744
(Langham Place)
92: HKG-MNL CX Y 343
93: MNL-CEB 5J Y 320
December
94: TAG-MNL PR Y 734
95: MNL-HKG CX Y 333
96: HKG-BKK TG C 743
97: BKK-MXP TG C 345
98: MXP-AMS KL Y 738
99: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
100: LCY-AMS KL C F50
101: AMS-LCY KL C F50
102: LCY-AMS KL Y F50
103: AMS-LCY KL Y F50
And that's me for the year! Unless I find a weekend away over the Christmas/Hogmanay period... But 99 flights and 4 Eurostar rides are more than plenty for one year.
Best Flight: Tough call against the unexpected BA C flight BOM-LHR (rebooked from a cancelled BD award flight), but the TG 345 in C wins it, for the extra size of the seat, the quality of the new aircraft, and the sheer friendliness of service.
Worst Flight: Not through virtue of the airline, and especially not the crew, but there was one LCY-AMS flight that was so turbulent (in that little F50) it was extremely uncomfortable to the point of scary. The sole FA persevered with serving sandwiches and bottled water, despite having to jump from seat to seat, as she couldn't stand up!
Best Airport: LCY. Having rediscovered it, nothing will draw me back to LHR when there's a decent alternative from here. It's small, efficient, friendly, and I can ride there on my bike, and now, the DLR goes there too! Not bad for a city this size...
Worst Airport: BOM international was awful, from the queues, to the crowds, to the especially bad mosquito bites I got waiting in the huge traffic queues to get there.
Best Lounge: The Wing (C) at HKG. The first time I have experienced a lounge this enjoyable and innovative.
Worst Lounge: BA C at BOM. Overcrowded (I ended up giving up my seat and leaving) and badly stocked.
Best Hotel: Malabar House. I couldn't fault it in the slightest. Friendly, laid-back, luxurious and with the best food in town. An honourable mention to Nuts Huts in Loboc in the Philippines, though - wonderful huts and surroundings, pretty good for the equivalent of £6.50 for two.
Worst Hotel: The Cock Inn, Milton Keynes. Yes, the location may not be the most inspiring, and it was a great venue for the wedding reception I was at, and friendly with it. The rooms, though - stained, damp walls, overpowering bleach smells barely masking something far more unpleasant I didn't even want to think about, as well as a pervading odour of lamb fat in the hallways.
Great Circle Map (http://snurl.com/kulw)
luxury
Dec 17, 05, 2:04 am
January:
YVR-NRT AC J 343
NRT-LHR BA J 744
March:
LHR-YUL AC J 333
YUL-YVR AC J 320
April:
YVR-YUL AC J 320
YUL-LHR AC J 333
June:
LHR-YYZ AC J 333
YYZ-YUL AC J 320
YUL-YVR AC J 319
YVR-YYZ AC J 321
YYZ-YUL AC Y CRJ
YUL-LHR AC J 763
LHR-VIE OS J 321
VIE-FRA JP J CRJ
FRA-CDG LH J 321
July:
LHR-JFK BA F 744
LGA-IAD UX Y CRJ
IAD-SFO UA F 320
SFO-YYC AC J 320
YYC-YEG AC J 320
YEG-YVR AC J 320
August:
YVR-YYZ AC Y 763
YYZ-YUL AC Y 320
YUL-YYZ AC Y 320
YYZ-YOW AC Y 320
YYZ-YEG AC J 320
YEG-YVR AC J 320
November:
YVR-YXC 8P Y BEH
YXC-YVR 8P Y BEH
Hotels:
Hilton Narita Four Seasons Tokyo at Chinzan-So
Lanesborough Hilton London Aldwych
Inter-Continental London
Sheraton Wall Centre Vancouver (3 stays)
Fairmont Vancouver International Airport
Fairmont Queen Elizabeth, Montreal
Four Seasons London at Canary Wharf The Cadogan, London
Hotel Bristol, Vienna Hotel Le Bristol, Paris
Hilton Paris Tour Eiffel Four Seasons George V, Paris
One Aldwych, London Waldorf Towers, New York
Four Seasons San Francisco Hilton Montreal Dorval
Hilton Montreal Bonaventure Westin Ottawa
Hilton Toronto (2 stays) Sheraton Toronto Centre
Hampton Inn Vancouver (4 stays) Westin Whistler
Westin Bayshore, Vancouver Westin Grand, Vancouver (forthcoming)
Restaurants: (highlights)
Taillevent, Paris Tan Dinh, Paris L'Angle du Faubourg, Paris
Yauatcha, London J. Sheekey, London Beiteddine, London
Rosa Mexicano, New York Il Teatro, Tokyo
Trattoria di Umberto, Whistler
Best Hotel Suite: Prince of Wales Suite, Hotel Bristol, Vienna (tie)
Duplex Suite, Four Seasons George V, Paris (tie)
Best Hotel (Lux): Four Seasons George V, Paris (tie)
One Aldwych, London (tie)
Waldorf Towers, New York (tie)
Honourable Mention: Four Seasons Tokyo at Chinzan-So
Hotel Bristol, Vienna
Best Hotel (Mid): Hilton Toronto
Best Restaurant: Taillevent, Paris
Most disappointing Hotel: Hotel Le Bristol, Paris (tie)
Four Seasons San Francisco
Most disappointing Meal: Gordon Ramsays Royal Hospital Road, London
New Airlines flown 2005: Austrian, Air Adria, Pacific Coastal
Best flight: LH471 YYZ - FRA: Excellent exit row seat, good service and a very relaxed flight (read: lots of sleep).
Best bump: 2 x EUR 500 vouchers at FRA for a bump for me and the wife for skipping the last FRA - HEL of the day and taking the morning flight on Sunday. Including a night at the rather fancy Steigenberger Airport hotel in FRA.
Worst flight: KF643 HEL - CPH on 21.1 - Weather-related delay of 3+ hours, incompetent ground handling @ CPH another 45 minutes - causing myself to miss my FI flight to KEF.
Best hotel: Le Meridien Park hotel in Frankfurt: huge room, exellent view over the "Mainhattan" scyscrapers, friendly service - all for a Priceline bid of roughly 50 EUR per night. Great.
Worst hotel: Libertel Austerlitz in Paris: Tiny room, weird staff, not-so-optimal location. Honorable mention: Quality Hotel Egdbaston in Birmingham - Crap location, dated rooms, hostile staff.
New countries visited this year: 3 (Slovenia, Canada, Bulgaria)
Seat 2A
Dec 19, 05, 1:33 pm
Here's a map of Routes I Flew in 2005 (http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=PER-MEL%2CMEL-SIN%2C+SIN-LHR%2C+LHR-SFO%2CSFO-SEA%2CSEA-DEN%2CSEA-ORD%2CORD-PHL%2CPHL-DFW%2CDFW-DEN%2CFAI-ANC%2CANC-SEA%2CANC-MIA%2CMIA-CCS%2CCCS-LIM%2CLIM-SCL%2CSCL-EZE%2CFTE-USH%2CPUQ-PMC%2CPMC-ZCO%2CZCO-CCP%2CCCP-SCL%2CSCL-GYE%2CGYE-BOG%2CBOG-MIA%2CSEA-YVR%2CYXS-YVR%2CYVR-HKG%2CHKG-SYD%2CSYD-MEL%2CMEL-ADL%2CADL-HBA%2CDRW-SYD%2CMEL-HBA%2CHKG-LAX%2CLAX-SEA%2CEWR-SEA%2CORD-TPA%2CTPA-DFW%2CDFW-SEA%2CTPA-IAD%2CIAD-BDL%2CBDL-CLT%2CCLT-TPA%2CORD-JAX%2CJAX-MIA%2CMIA-ORD%2CORD-DEN%2CRSW-MIA%2CRSW-DFW%2CRSW-ORD%2CYLW-YVR%2CYVR-YWG%2CYWG-YYC%2CYYC-YLW%2CORD-EWR%2CORD-DFW%2CSEA-SFO%2CSFO-LAX%2CLAX-MIA&RANGE=&PATH-COLOR=red&PATH-UNITS=mi&SPEED-GROUND=&SPEED-UNITS=kts&RANGE-STYLE=best&RANGE-COLOR=navy&MAP-STYLE=).
Here's the trip reports that describe it all:
MORE CHAMPAGNE, SIR? ~ Life and times in BA's First Class Between Australia and California (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=396392&referrerid=6135)
This trip starts in Perth with a flight aboard Virgin Atlantic to Melbourne. The journey continues from Seat 2A aboard British Airways from Melbourne to London to San Francisco.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: From the Top of North America to the Bottom of South America (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=413907&referrerid=6135)
Travel from Alaska all the way down to the very tip of South America via First and Business Class with Alaska and LAN Chile. Also included are accounts of luxury bus travel around Argentina along with a four day ferry trip down through Chile’s Inside Passage.
THE JOURNEY CONTINUES: From the Bottom of South America to the Top of Australia (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=421265&referrerid=6135)
Continuing from Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world, I fly fly a variety of LAN Chile aircraft (Business Class) through six South American cities back to Miami. On to Alaska for a change of clothing, then down to Vancouver Island for a 24-hour ferry trip up to Prince Rupert, BC. ViaRail's "Skeena" provides the transport over to Prince George, AC to YVR, then First Class aboard Cathay Pacific daytime flights to Hong Kong and Sydney. Virgin Blue to Adelaide is followed by a ride on the world's only South to north transcontinental train trip aboard "The Ghan" up to Darwin.
FIRST CLASS TRAVEL FROM AUSTRALIA TO AMERICA (via HONG KONG) (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=443929&referrerid=6135)
The title pretty much says it all. First Class on Cathay Pacific ~ twenty one hours of life in the lap of luxury.
STATISTICS
Total Flights: 173
Total Mileage Flown: 216,340 (Includes Award Travel)
SYD-AKL Emirates First
AKL-KUL Malaysia First
KUL-LAX Malaysia First
LAX-DCA NW Coach and First (1/2 elite upgrades)
DCA-LAX NW Coach and First (1/2 elite upgrades)
LAX-MCI CO/NW First (Z fare)
MCI-LAX CO/NW First (Z fare)
LAX-DCA NW Coach and First (1/2 elite upgrades)
March
DCA-SIN NW First/Business
SIN-BWN SQ/MH First/Business
BWN-BKI Royal Brunei Business
BWI-SDK MH Business
SDK-BKI MH Business
BKI-KCH MH Business
KCH-JHB MH Business
SIN-DCA NW First/Business
May
DCA-YVR NW First
YVR-DCA AS First
DCA-YVR NW First (2/2 elite upgrades)
YVR-DCA NW Coach/First (1/2 elite upgrades)
DCA-SXM US First/Coach (1/2 elite upgrades)
SXM-STT Caribbean Sun
EIS-SXM Caribbean Star
SXM-DCA US Coach (0/2 elite upgrades)
DCA-PEK CO Business
PEK-FNJ Air Koryo Coach
FNJ-PEK Air Koryo Coach
PEK-DCA CO Business
November
DCA-AMS CO Business
AMS-DCA CO Business
December
DCA-LAX NW Coach (unless elite upgrades comes through)
LAX-KUL MH First
KUL-SYD MH First
SYD-LST JetStar
HBA-SYD Virgin Blue
Awards
Best Hotel Experience:
Sheraton Wall Centre, Vancouver
Best In-Flight Meal:
Malaysia AKL-KUL First
Best Airline Lounge:
Malaysia F Lounge, KUL
Most Pleasantly Surprising Flight:
Air Koryo - without a doubt
Most Dissappointing Flight:
Air Canada YYZ-DCA - hitting the wake of a 757 in a CRJ was the first time I've ever been so scared on a flight I thought it was all over
Best Airplane Bathroom:
Malaysia 747-400 First
Best Flight:
Malaysia AKL-KUL 747-400 First
Berto
Dec 22, 05, 12:05 am
This year was my most traveled year yet. I managed to go the farthest East (Italy), West (Seattle, WA) and South (Melbourne, FL) in my life, and managed to cross three countries off my list (France, Italy, Vatican City).
May
PFN-ATL DL/ASA ATR-72 Coach (U)
ATL-SEA DL B767-300 Coach (U)
SEA-ATL DL B767-200 Coach (L)
ATL-PFN DL/ASA ATR-72 Coach (L)
ATL-CDG AF B777-200 Tempo (G)
CDG-MXP AF A319 Tempo (G)
Map of the Routes I flew. (http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=pfn-atl-sea-atl-pfn%0D%0Aatl-cdg-mxp%0D%0Afco-atl-msp%0D%0Apfn-atl-mlb-atl-pfn&RANGE=&PATH-COLOR=&PATH-UNITS=mi&SPEED-GROUND=&SPEED-UNITS=kts&RANGE-STYLE=best&RANGE-COLOR=&MAP-STYLE=)
Total Miles Flown: 16947
Trip Reports:
2005 Imagine Cup US National Finals for Software Design - PFN-ATL-SEA r/t - Delta (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=443464)
School Trip to Italy - Milan-Venice-Florence-Pisa-Assisi-Pompeii/Sorrento-Capri-Rome! (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=454224)
Best Overall Travel Experience of 2005:
Getting to spend 10 days in Italy with some of my friends on a school trip. I cant think of any better trip that I have been on....it truely was a once in a lifetime experience. :cool:
Best Airport:
Ok, maybe I am biased as the winner is my home airport: PFN. I like the fact that parking is close to the terminal, the lines are short, and I can show up about 30 minutes before my flight. ^
Worst Airport:
I would have to go with CDG as the worst airport I have encountered. First of all I transited through CDG with a group which was split up due to conflicting advice to get to our connecting terminal. Some took the bus tour of CDG, while others took some sort of train or monorail (suppossedly). Also, two people in my group had their luggage lost by Air France in CDG.
Best Hotel:
Redmond Marriott Town Center. I was originally booked at the Residence Inn across the street, when I was in Redmond to compete in the Imagine Cup Software Design Invitational, but due to overbooking, we were given a room at the Marriott. Unfortunatley they wanted to only put me and my dad there for one night, but a talk to the hotel event manager got us a free stay there for the rest of the Imagine Cup. :D
Worst Hotel:
The Hotel Residence Florence in Florence, Italy. Ok, so this was part of a cheapo tour, so I guess I cant really say that I was going to expect much, but this place was bad. The hotel first of all wasnt near Florence, but requires a 30 minute drive from the city center on the freeway. Also it seemed to be in a commercial/light industrial area, was right next the the freeway, on approach to an airport, had garage doors over the windows, room doors that I could have punched though with little effort, a broken minibar, my bed was child sized and hard as a rock. Plus the elevator would often get stuck since the weight limit was something like four people.
Best Flight
I think Delta Flight 77 FCO-ATL was the best flight of the summer. The FAs were great, the food was good in Coach, and I had a good time talking to the person sitting next to me.
Worst Flight:
Air France Flight 307 ATL-CDG was probably the worst. The FAs were ghosts, I only saw them when they served dinner and breakfast, and when they enforced the window shades down rule. Also the food that was served was pretty bad, especially the beef tortellini and the lavatories in the rear of the plane are rather small.
f4freeJunior
Dec 26, 05, 7:53 am
Nothing special at all....except maybe the month of November :)
total miles flown: 17506 (http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=GVA-ORY%0D%0AORY-GVA%0D%0AGVA-LGW%0D%0ALGW-YYC%0D%0AYYC-LGW%0D%0ALGW-GVA%0D%0ASTR-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-VIE%0D%0AVIE-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-MXP%0D%0AMXP-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-BCN%0D%0ABCN-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-MXP%0D%0AMXP-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-VIE%0D%0AVIE-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-STR%0D%0AGVA-BCN%0D%0ABCN-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-STR%0D%0ASTR-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-BCN%0D%0ABCN-GVA%0D%0AGVA-BCN%0D%0ABCN-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-STR%0D%0ASTR-ZRH%0D%0AZRH-BCN%0D%0ABCN-GVA%0D%0A&RANGE=&PATH-COLOR=red&PATH-UNITS=mi&SPEED-GROUND=&SPEED-UNITS=kts&RANGE-STYLE=best&RANGE-COLOR=navy&MAP-STYLE=)
2005 March 30 GVA-ORY U2
2005 April 3 ORY-GVA U2
2005 September 1 GVA-LGW U2
2005 September 1 LGW-YYC TS
2005 September 7 YYC-LGW TS
2005 September 8 LGW-GVA U2
2005 November 12 STR-ZRH LX
2005 November 12 ZRH-VIE LX
2005 November 12 VIE-ZRH LX
2005 November 12 ZRH-MXP LX
2005 November 12 MXP-ZRH LX
2005 November 12 ZRH-BCN LX
2005 November 13 BCN-ZRH LX
2005 November 13 ZRH-MXP LX
2005 November 13 MXP-ZRH LX
2005 November 13 ZRH-VIE LX
2005 November 14 VIE-ZRH LX
2005 November 14 ZRH-STR LX
2005 November 19 GVA-BCN LX
2005 November 19 BCN-ZRH LX
2005 November 19 ZRH-STR LX
2005 November 19 STR-ZRH LX
2005 November 19 ZRH-BCN LX
2005 November 19 BCN-GVA LX
2005 November 26 GVA-BCN LX
2005 November 26 BCN-ZRH LX
2005 November 26 ZRH-STR LX
2005 November 26 STR-ZRH LX
2005 November 26 ZRH-BCN LX
2005 November 26 BCN-GVA LX
Comments:
-Had a lot of fun to discover other FT during my MRs in November. I met AirOli, Frequent_Flyer1, f4free, Rorschi,juan516, Beaubo, and AndyZRH
- Overnight in BCN with f4free, AndyZrh and rorschi was cool!
-Best flight experience: Probably one of thouse zrh-mxp over the Swiss Alps.
Airfrancefan
Dec 29, 05, 7:18 am
January
2:DL 125 BRU-ATL B763ER N394DL U 5C
6:DL 124 ATL-BRU B763ER N1604R U 5C
February
6:AF 7184 ZYR-CDG TRN 4307 1/1/43
6:AF 304 CDG-ATL B772 F-GSPG Z 6A
10:AF 301 ATL-CDG A343 F-GNIH Z 3F
March
27: KL 1722 BRU-AMS F70 PH-KZP U 14F
27: KL 621 AMS-ATL B763 PH-BZB U 5G
April
5: DL 680 ATL-EWR M80 N910DE L 18A
8:KL 658 EWR-AMS B763 PH-BZO U 4C
July
7: AF 7182 ZYR-CDG TRN 1/1/34 4535
7: AF 316 CDG-ATL A343 F-GLZA H 34B
August
9: AF 301 ATL-CDG A343 F-GLZC T 33J
10: AF 7181 CDG-ZYR TRN 1/2/66 4303
22: TV 540 BRU-FAO B734 OO-VBR V 1A
25: TV 541 FAO-BRU B734 OO-VEN V 1C
October
4: SN 1015 BRU-BRU 146 OO-DWA Y 9A
December
24: OS 352 BRU-VIE 319 OE-LDD V 15D
27: OS 357 VIE-BRU F70 OE-LFK V 05F
rorschi
Dec 29, 05, 3:01 pm
Hello,
as every year, below my list (if I will find a cheap flight to the sun on Dec 31st, I will edit the post afterwards...).
7-Jan-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IYW Y
7-Jan-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXT C
7-Jan-2005 LX ZRH to BKK A340-300 HB-JMD C
19-Jan-2005 LX BKK to ZRH A340-300 HB-JMG C
20-Jan-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IYW C
28-Jan-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXT Y
30-Jan-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXS Y
25-Feb-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXQ Y
5-Mar-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXN C
5-Mar-2005 LX ZRH to NRT A340-300 HB-JMA C
7-Mar-2005 NH NRT to NGO F50 JA01NV Y op. by Air Central
20-Mar-2005 LX NRT to ZRH A340-300 HB-JMH C
20-Mar-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXX C
1-Apr-2005 LH MUC to FRA A300-600 D-AIAM Y
1-Apr-2005 LH FRA to ATH A300-600 D-AIAZ C
5-Apr-2005 LH ATH to MUC A321 D-AIRX Y
8-Apr-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXR Y
10-Apr-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXU Y
29-Apr-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXS Y
1-May-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXN Y
14-May-2005 LX MUC to ZRH A319 HB-IPS Y
14-May-2005 LX ZRH to LHR A320 HB-IJS Y
14-May-2005 LX LHR to ZRH A320 HB-IJW Y
15-May-2005 LX ZRH to VIE A319 HB-IPV Y
16-May-2005 LX VIE to ZRH A320 HB-IJO Y
16-May-2005 LX ZRH to LHR A320 HB-IJQ Y
16-May-2005 LX LHR to ZRH A321 HB-IOK Y
17-May-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXT Y
21-May-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ85 HB-IXK Y
21-May-2005 LX ZRH to LHR A319 HB-IPY Y
21-May-2005 LX LHR to ZRH A320 HB-IJI Y
18-Jun-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXW Y
20-Jun-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ85 HB-IXG C
13-Aug-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ85 HB-IXK C
13-Aug-2005 LX ZRH to PMI A320 HB-IJO Y
16-Aug-2005 LX PMI to ZRH A319 HB-IPX C
16-Aug-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ85 HB-IXK C
2-Sep-2005 LH MUC to ZRH A319 D-AILR Y
4-Sep-2005 LH ZRH to MUC CRJ200 D-ACRB Y op. by Eurowings
23-Sep-2005 LH MUC to DRS BAe146-300 D-AEWQ Y op. by Eurowings
25-Sep-2005 LH DRS to MUC CRJ700 D-ACPG Y op. by Cityline
1-Oct-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXS Y
1-Oct-2005 LX ZRH to LIS A320 HB-IJS Y
3-Oct-2005 LX LIS to ZRH A320 HB-IJI Y
3-Oct-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXQ Y
7-Oct-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ85 HB-IXG Y
10-Oct-2005 LX ZRH to MUC A319 HB-IPS Y
15-Oct-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IYZ Y
17-Oct-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXX Y
23-Oct-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ100 HB-IXN Y
25-Oct-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ85 HB-IXG Y
28-Oct-2005 LX MUC to ZRH RJ85 HB-IXG Y
30-Oct-2005 LH ZRH to MUC CRJ700 D-ACPK Y op. by Cityline
5-Nov-2005 LX MUC to ZRH A319 HB-IPV Y
5-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to CDG RJ100 HB-IYW Y op. by Swiss European
6-Nov-2005 LX CDG to ZRH RJ100 HB-IYW Y op. by Swiss European
6-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXN Y op. by Swiss European
12-Nov-2005 LX MUC to ZRH A319 HB-IPS Y
12-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to MXP RJ85 HB-IXG Y op. by Swiss European
12-Nov-2005 LX MXP to ZRH RJ85 HB-IXG Y op. by Swiss European
12-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to BCN A319 HB-IPR Y
13-Nov-2005 LX BCN to ZRH A319 HB-IPR Y
13-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to MXP RJ85 HB-IXG Y op. by Swiss European
13-Nov-2005 LX MXP to ZRH RJ85 HB-IXG Y op. by Swiss European
13-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to MUC RJ100 HB-IXP Y op. by Swiss European
26-Nov-2005 LH MUC to ZRH BAe146-200 D-AEWD Y op. by Eurowings
26-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to DUB A319 HB-IPR Y
27-Nov-2005 LX DUB to ZRH A319 HB-IPV Y
27-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to MUC E145 HB-JAM Y op. by Swiss European
30-Nov-2005 LH MUC to ZRH CRJ700 D-ACPB Y op. by Cityline
30-Nov-2005 LX ZRH to BKK A340-300 HB-JMD C
13-Dec-2005 LX BKK to ZRH A340-300 HB-JMA C
14-Dec-2005 LX ZRH to MUC A320 HB-IJI C
This were the "bouqets" of the travel year:
-The introduction of lie-flat-seats on LX's A340-300 C-Class, I like them very much. This is a comfort which was not known a few years ago, even not in First Class ^ .
-The nice mileage-runs with LX in May and November. Overlaps with f4freeJunior's list above are coincidentally, of course ;)
This were the "brickbats":
-The lady at the check-in at MUC which did not put a baggage-tag on my bag on my trip to NRT. I recognized that I received no luggage receipt at NRT only... My bag arrived 24hours later.
-The removal of the quiet-area at LX's ZRH-Lounge :td:
-The SEN-Lounge at MUC, which has about 60% of the necessary capacity during peak-hours :td: :td:
-The end of my favourite FFP (Swiss-Travelclub), an eleven years old love comes to the end for me... :(
And finally, my wish for 2006:
-No introduction of cell-phone-technology on airplanes, at least not for voice-applications, PLEASE.
Oldest aircraft : I-DAWO born 04/05/1984 (CDG-FCO in June)
Youngest aircraft : D-AIKF born 12/17/2004 (LOS-ACC in July) * - TIE
Youngest aircraft : A7-AEB born 12/17/2004 (DOH-LHR in November) * - TIE
Most Memorable Flight : GHB100P LGW-ACC the delivery flight of the first aircraft for Ghana's new national airline.
Honorable Mention : The inaugural service LGW-ACC for Ghana International Airlines with my dad on board on his birthday. The crew sang Happy Birthday to him as he cut a cake inflight after the captain made a PA announcement wishing him.
Most Eventful Flight : ACC-AMS on KLM when a violent drunk attempted to attack the crew and I had to assist in subduing and restraining him.
Most Anti-climatic flight : ACC-LOS on the Virgin Nigeria inaugural service, featuring an egg salad sandwich and a cup of room temperature Coke.
Most Comfortable Flight : MCT-LHR on Gulf Air in First Class. An exceptional crew, great food and a perfectly comfortable bed to sleep in made the 8 hour flight seem way too short.
Most Uncomfortable Flight : BOM-MXP On Alitalia in Magnifica Class, with a 104F fever and heavy antibiotic medication.
Honorable mention : MAN-CDG on an Air France ERJ with a horrible hangover.
Honorable mention : 12+ hours in a middle seat KIX-DOH on Qatar Airways after I was moved away from my pre-requested aisle seat to accomodate a large group.
Most Coincidental Events : Running into a friend not once but twice while nonrevving on Lufthansa's LOS-ACC service.
Honorable mention : Being seated next to the secretary of a guy I had a meeting with the next day on a British Airways LHR-ACC flight.
Glenlivet
Jan 7, 06, 9:47 am
01/17/05 ZRH ORD LX8 4,440 C
01/17/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 C
01/21/05 ORD MCI UA537 402 Y
01/23/05 MCI ORD UA446 402 Y
01/23/05 ORD ZRH LX9 4,440 C
01/24/05 ZRH HAM LX1056 430 C
01/29/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 C
01/29/05 ZRH LAX LX40 5,933 C
01/29/05 LAX HNL AA267 2,554 F
02/01/05 HNL KOA HA 163 Y
02/15/05 KOA LAX AA246 2,502 F
02/18/05 LAX ZRH LX41 5,933 C
02/19/05 ZRH HAM LX1054 430 C
03/09/05 HAM ZRH LX1050 430 C
03/09/05 ZRH SIN LX182 6,402 C
03/13/05 SIN MNL SQ76 1,473 C
03/16/05 MNL SIN SQ75 1,473 C
03/17/05 SIN ZRH LX183 6,402 C
03/18/05 ZRH HAM LX1050 430 C
04/07/05 HAM MXP LH3930 555 Y
04/08/05 MXP CDG AF 372 Y
04/08/05 CDG HAM AF2510 453 Y
04/12/05 ZRH HAM LX1061 430 Y
04/13/05 ZRH HAM LX1060 430 Y
04/17/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 C
04/17/05 ZRH MIA LX64 4,880 C
04/17/05 MIA STL AA2192 1,067 Y
04/21/05 STL BOS AA4497 1,045 Y
04/21/05 BOS ZRH LX53 3,742 C
04/22/05 ZRH HAM LX1056 430 C
04/26/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 C
04/26/05 ZRH IST LX1804 1,097 C
04/27/05 IST SVO SU208 1,106 C
04/29/05 SVO IST SU205 1,106 C
05/06/05 IST ZRH LX1805 1,097 C
05/06/05 ZRH HAM LX1066 430 Y
05/07/05 HAM ZRH LX1067 430 Y
05/07/05 ZRH CDG LX634 296 C
05/09/05 CDG ZRH LX657 296 Y
05/09/05 ZRH HAM LX1066 430 Y
05/10/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 Y
05/10/05 ZRH LHR LX338 491 Y
05/12/05 LCY ZRH LX451 472 Y
05/12/05 ZRH HAM LX1056 430 Y
05/12/05 HAM ZRH LX1061 430 Y
05/12/05 ZRH FCO LX1734 431 Y
05/16/05 FCO ZRH LX1737 431 Y
05/16/05 ZRH HAM LX1066 430 Y
05/17/05 HAM ZRH LX1067 430 C
05/17/05 ZRH JFK LX16 3,928 C
05/18/05 LGA DCA AA 213 Y
05/20/05 DCA EWR CO 198 Y
05/20/05 EWR ZRH LX19 3,942 C
05/21/05 ZRH HAM LX1056 430 C
06/05/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 C
06/05/05 ZRH ORD LX8 4,440 F
06/05/05 ORD MSP UA789 333 Y
06/09/05 MSP ORD UA 333 Y
06/09/05 ORD ZRH LX9 4,440 F
06/10/05 ZRH HAM LX1056 430 C
06/17/05 HAM FRA LH7 256 Y
06/18/05 FRA HAM LH10 256 Y
06/22/05 HAM AMS KL 235 Y
06/22/05 AMS ZRH LX735 374 Y
06/22/05 ZRH GRU LX96 5,953 F
06/26/05 GRU ZRH LX97 5,953 F
06/27/05 AMS HAM KL1783 235 Y
06/27/05 ZRH AMS LX728 374 C
06/27/05 GRU ZRH LX97 5,953 F
07/01/05 HAM AMS KL 235 Y
07/01/05 AMS BRS KL 326 Y
07/04/05 BRS AMS KL 326 Y
07/04/05 AMS HAM KL 235 Y
07/11/05 HAM ZRH LX1067 430 Y
07/11/05 ZRH DME LX1326 1,368 C
07/13/05 DME ZRH LX1327 1,368 C
07/13/05 ZRH HAM LX1066 430 C
07/28/05 ZRH FCO LX1732 431 Y
07/28/05 ZRH HAM LX1057 430 Y
07/31/05 FCO ZRH LX737 431 C
07/31/05 ZRH HAM LX1066 430 Y
08/07/05 HAM VIE LH3594 477 Y
08/07/05 VIE KBP PS 846 664 Y
08/09/05 KBP DNK Z6 302 234 Y
08/10/05 DNK VIE Z6 202 853 Y
08/10/05 VIE HAM OS171 477 Y
08/30/05 HAM ZRH LX1066 430 C
08/30/05 ZRH SIN LX182 6,402 C
09/03/05 SIN ZRH LX183 6,402 C
09/04/05 ZRH DME LX1326 1,368 C
09/06/05 SVO ALA 4L 876 1,943 C
09/08/05 ALA SVO 4L 0875 1,943 C
09/09/05 DME ZRH LX1327 1,368 C
09/09/05 ZRH HAM LX1066 430 C
09/26/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 C
09/26/05 ZRH BOS LX52 3,742 F
09/28/05 BOS STL AA2403 1,045 Y
09/28/05 STL DEC AA5461 109 Y
09/30/05 IND MIA AA1861 1,020 Y
09/30/05 MIA ZRH LX65 4,880 C
10/01/05 ZRH HAM LX1056 430 C
10/26/05 HAM BSL LX857 431 Y
10/26/05 BSL FCO LX1760 461 Y
10/30/05 FCO ZRH LX1737 431 C
10/30/05 ZRH HAM LX1054 430 C
11/07/05 HAM CDG AF1711 453 Y
11/08/05 CDG HAM AF2510 453 Y
11/11/05 HAM DUS LH69 211 C
11/11/05 DUS ORD LH436 4,227 C
11/13/05 ORD DCA UA610 611 Y
11/15/05 IAD FRA LH419 4,077 C
11/16/05 FRA HAM LH10 256 C
11/17/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 C
11/17/05 ZRH MIA LX64 4,880 C
11/23/05 MIA ZRH LX65 4,880 C
11/24/05 ZRH HAM LX1056 430 C
12/04/05 HAM ZRH LX3645 3,742 Y
12/04/05 ZRH DME LX1326 1,368 Y
12/06/05 DME ZRH LX1327 1,368 Y
12/06/05 ZRH HAM LX3648 430 Y
12/09/05 HAM ZRH LX1051 430 Y
12/09/05 ZRH CDG LX638 296 Y
12/11/05 CDG ZRH LX639 296 Y
12/11/05 ZRH HAM LX1054 430 Y
12/14/05 HAM ZRH LX1055 430 C
12/14/05 ZRH SIN LX182 6,402 C
12/16/05 SIN BKK LX183 893 C
12/18/05 BKK SIN LX182 893 C
12/19/05 SIN ZRH LX183 6,402 C
12/20/05 ZRH HAM LX1050 430 C
195,890
Total segments : 130 (F8/C62/Y60)
Op. Upgrades : 12 (C-F3/Y-C9)
Countries visited : 16
New countries visited this year: 1 (Ukraine)
Airlines flown 2005 : 15 (LX87/LH8/AA8/KL6/UA4/AF4/SQ2/4L2/Z62/SU2/CO1/US1/HA1/PS1/OS1)
New Airlines flown 2005: 3 (Ukrainian Airlines, Dniepravia, Air Astana)
Awards
Best Hotel Experience
Halekulani, Honolulu : Nice and immaculate rooms, fantastic view (Diamond Head rooms), first class service, , fantastic breakfast buffet, best hula show in the evening and a fantastic restaurant ("La Mer") the maitre d’hotel is a first class sommelier (how would you rate a sommelier in the U.S. that knows Swiss wines)
Worst Hotel Experience
Grosvenor House, London : I will not comment, I would have to be impolite, so let’s be polite and say that any motel 6 in the U.S. offers a better experience
Best Flight
LX57 ZRH-BOS : Good food and wines, excellent crew and time to enjoy the F class. You do not really enjoy it on overnight flights as you sleep most of the time. Enough to regret not being upgraded on a my ZRH-LAX flight...
Worst Flight
AA267 KOA-LAX : Calling it F class it is adding insult to injury!
LH419 IAD-FRA : Fell asleep before the dinner, woke up just after they finished serving breakfast, asked for water (no bottle of water distributed prior or during the night) several time, never got it until finally the steward told me "I’m sorry we cannot serve you anything as we are going to land soon" - Welcome in LH world!
Best Travel Experience of 2005:
Long week end in Rome : lots of sightseeing, lots of eating, lots of drinking, lots of shopping, all top of the notch and to put a sherry on the cake 2 op. upgrades (FCO-ZRH & ZRH-HAM) on the way back home for both of us (Mrs Genlivet liked it.... What more can you ask for!
Worst experience of 2005 :
Learning the my favourite FFP will end 31.3.06. I joined in 1993, becamed TC member in 1994, TCG from the creation of the status (99?) and finally TCC (a flying Circle, not a social Circle) from Jan. 04. Let's hope that M&M will surprise us.
Gardyloo
Jan 7, 06, 11:07 am
Map:
http://tinyurl.com/9a85j
Segments: Around 40
BISM: Around 80K
Most memorable flight experience: QF J SYD-JNB
Picture:
http://tinyurl.com/dmacq
Most memorable hotel experience: Ezulwini lodge, nr Kruger Park, South Africa. Elephants outside the door and a cobra pays a visit.
Best amusement park: Luna Park, Sydney
Best airline meal: CX J, YVR-JFK
Worst excuse for a first class meal: Pizza on AA (choice of flights)
Most consistently late flights: AS, LAX-SEA or vv.
Most unfavorite air travel related "service" - multi-year winner of Golden Raspberry: Hotel Hoppa Bus, LHR. As if LHR wasn't bad enough...
Most insane few days: Link (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=510931)
thegoderic
Jan 8, 06, 3:50 am
I won't bore you with the details, but 211 flights and 80,062 miles.
Best Flight CO Business First EWR - GLA. 3 PAX, 4 Crew.
Worst Flight Landing without flaps at LHR on a BA flight GLA- LHR. Seriously scary.
Best Innovation The BA / Gate Gourment dispute. I gained 50,000 BA Miles in compensation, learned that eating in the lounge is better than eating on the plane in short haul and my children loved the vast quantities of chocolate I bought for them with teh catering vouchers.
Worst Idea bmi's Modular nightmare. I flew 33 bd sectors in the first half of 2005 and 1 in the second half. 'nuff said.
Consistently worst airport security FRA. Slow, officious and designed to raise the blood pressure. (honourable mention goes to TSA at BOS, for generally being aholes).
In flight experience of the year As the only Club PAX on a BA CE flight FRA - GLA. Held on the tarmac for 90 mins at FRA for a thunderstorm during which time the crew worked so hard to get me totally wrecked. We arrived in GLA 2 hours late, but I was in no state to bother. BA's stocks of Champagne took a huge hit that day.
Fraser
Jan 9, 06, 10:04 pm
Segments - not many
Miles - not enough as I'd like
Best Flight (long haul):
LHR-IAD in F.
My first F since 2001 and thinks certainly were not as I remember it partly due to reduction in service and partly hangover from the catering strike. Still nice to enjoy all the space and hopping between my sleeping seat and window seat...and frankly it is better than Club World :)
Worst Flight (long haul):
Not done enough longhaul to find a duffer. My small amount of short hauls this year have all been J and F :)
Best Flight (short haul):
Tough choice. LGW-JER in CE was very short, yet everything was done in the nick of time.
BCN-AGP in IB C, purely because myself, flyclub, BA97.com and my school mate constituted Business Class :D It was unique and fun!
Surprise of the year probably comes in form of SOU-EDI on BA CitiExpress as I got an almost CE breakfast for 64 GBP!
Worst Flight (short haul):
A tough call between LGW-DUB at 6.30am, which meant a 3.30am start from home, just too early. To rub it in it was my first EuroChaveller flight ( :rolleyes: ) , somehow the chap across the aisle was drinking Stella Artois! The redeeming features were I booked it 12hrs before for just 97 GBP return and my girlfriend was with me :)
EDI-SOU - Almost missed the flight thanks to overboozing it in the Terraces, only to be circling over SOU for what seemed like an eternity due to bad weather. Then diverted to BHX following second go round where we were met by rain, a coach and a two hour trip to SOU. To make things worse I could see my house from the road only to drive past it for another hour then have to drive all the way home. Got home at close to 2am :(
If I hadn't been so drunk I'd fallen asleep I may well have nominated the infamous IB service on the AGP-BCN leg with aforementioned travelling party. ;)
BRU-LHR in BD Economy - 120min weather delay, no food, no drink. Only my father bringing back the food from J helped me avoiding starvation....
Best Airport:
LGW - Decent BA lounges and the North Terminal is rather pleasant.
Worst Airport:
IAD - No elite security line, long lines, always means saying goodbye to my girlfriend, mobile lounges, Concourse D, did I say mobile lounges?
Best Lounge:
Concorde Room - Not as I remember it but felt rather civilised drinking a glass of the Bellefon Rose and eating get a bacon roll while filling out immigration forms at breakfast.
Worst Lounge:
AGP - :(
Best Hotel:
Kirstin Towers, Richmond, VA - Good breakfast, 1100 sq. ft. suite with 42" HDTV and as many cable channels as you can get your hands on. Free highspeed internet, personal chef, chauffeur car service 24/7....:rolleyes:
Worst Hotel:
Loew's Annapolis, MD - Room just felt a little shabby and corridor's felt very 80s. Alas the convenience made it a better choice than the Sheraton 3 miles out of town.
tomashi
Jan 13, 06, 4:08 pm
Finally my statistics for 2005.
The year was not really outstanding as I was pretty much occupied with my transfer to a new university, a new apartment and so on. That created quite some flights between my three "home-airports" FDH (Friedrichshafen, Germany), ZRH (Zürich, Switzerland) and GRZ (Graz, Austria). On the longhaul side, a trip to San Francisco was the only big highlight of the year.
All flights except one were in Economy Class. The exception was my last flight of the year IB812 MAD-LPA (Madrid-Gran Canaria) on Christmas Eve. My first upgrade due to a completely overbooked flight. A nice x-mas present. Iberia domestic C-class is nothing special though!
02/09/05 MUC-CDG Air France AF1123 Airbus A-320-200 F-GFKP
02/09/05 CDG-SFO Air France AF084 Boeing B-747-400 F-GITI
11/09/05 SFO-CDG Air France AF083 Boeing B-747-400 F-GEXA
12/09/05 CDG-MUC Air France AF2022 Airbus A-320-200 F-GFKT
18/09/05 FDH-GRZ Intersky 3L142 Intersky Dash 8-Q300 OE-LSB
11/11/05 ZRH-FRA Lufthansa LH3735 Boeing B-737-300 D-ABEF
11/11/05 FRA-GRZ Lufthansa LH3636 Boeing B-737-500 D-ABIS
13/11/05 GRZ-FRA Lufthansa LH3635 Boeing B-737-500 D-ABIM
14/11/05 FRA-FDH Lufthansa LH0390 BAE 146-300 D-AEWP
Best service and food: Air France Economy Class CDG-SFO
Most annoying airline: Iberia (schedule changes, no service, always overbooked, many worn MD87s on their European routes)
Best shorthaul carrier: Styrian Spirit
Best airports: SFO International Terminal, ZRH Zurich (especially the new "Airside Center"-area)
Worst airport: MAD (Madrid) - the new terminal finally opens on Jan 29!
Best hotel stay: The Westin Palo Alto, got a wonderful room with direct access to the tiny "private" pool.
Best value for money: Marriott San Francisco, 119 USD per night for a great high-floor room with a pretty nice view.
That´s it for 2005!
Have a great and safe travel year 2006!
TrayflowInUK
Jan 14, 06, 7:54 am
74 Segments on KL, NW, CO, AZ, US, probably some others. Not a year of superlatives, but a lot of good solid fun!
Best Airport:
HAM, and indeed most German airports bar FRA, have a special place in my heart for being clean, fast, efficient, and catering to business travellers.
Worst Airport:
EWR is embarassing. I think connecting international to domestic at that airport is close to my definition of hell.
HUY (Humberside, UK) deserves honourable mention purely because there is one immigration queue, and non-EU citizens get put in a holding pen and have to wait until the very last person off the plane is processed. I don't have any problem with giving EU citizens preferential processing, but I swore off this airport after I arrived in the morning after connecting from the US. Was sitting in 1C on an F70, had no bags to gather at the bottom of the airstairs, walked right in to the terminal a good 60 seconds before the next person, and that a$$hole of an immigration officer made me wait until the rest of the airplane got there and was processed. Then he made sure I was the last of the non-EU citizens to get processed. So, here I am, the last person to get processed, and he sneers at me and says, "what's wrong, having a baaaad day?" I bit my tongue, said f**k all to him, and left the airport ASAP. This wasn't the first time this guy pissed me off (I think there are only 2 or 3 immigration officers that work HUY). I can't believe I still get worked up about this 4 months later.
Best Hotel:
Grand Hotel Praha in Tatranska Lomnica, Slovensko - huge room, wonderful view of the high Tatras, exceptional (and cheap!) restaurant. Seemed like there were three people waiting to help you in any way they could.
Worst Hotel:
Panamint Springs Lodge, Panamint Springs (Death Valley), CA - Avoid this s**thole like the plague, rarely have we been so disgusted with a hotel room that we got up at 4:30 am and were gone by 5 am and stayed out of the shower because it was nasty beyond belief.
Best Flight:
CO EWR-MAN 767-200 Y - 16AB, bulkhead seat. Never been so comfortable in Y (tied with 10AB on a NW A330-300), but great seat mates, really really good crew, smooth ride and first time ever getting decent shut-eye in economy.
Had quite a few paid intercontinental business class trips on KL, and they were all solid and probably a better experience than above, but it's the flight that sticks in my mind for going beyond expectations. Regarding KL, which has been our most-flown airline for two years, I really felt that service in 2005 improved over 2004, both in long- and short-haul C and short-haul Y. Can't comment on long-haul Y.
Worst Flight:
CO MAN-EWR 757-300 Y exit row, I've never been so mad to get off a plane. My arse fell asleep somewhere over Ireland and didn't wake up until immigration in EWR. Cramped cabin, nowhere to walk and stretch out. I will avoid all intercontinental in Y on single-aisle aircraft from now on.
Good Experiences:
Loads; a few stick in my mind.
Driving into Andorra after the snowploughs cleared a spring snowfall
Taking the Gondola up to Lomnicky Stit in the High Tatras
Eating a mixed grill of about six pounds of meat in Brno
Watching the sunset from Moro Rock in Sequoia National Park
Not missing one elite upgrade on NW and CO in 2006
Staying half-board at the newly-opened Virgilio Grand Hotel in Sperlonga, south of Rome. The chef had only us to entertain for two nights, and must have brought six or seven courses each night. Must have put on a stone!
Sitting on a park bench across from the castle in Vaduz (in Liechtenstein, a country I always wanted to visit), watching rain storms over the Swiss Alps.
Eating cassoulet in a small family-run hotel in the Pyrenées, man was that good!
Eating dinner with an old friend at Moscow on the Hill in St. Paul, during a five-hour layover in MSP
Sitting at the front table at Blue Chicago watching Willie Kent & The Gents with other old friends, and just getting lost in the music
Being the only passenger in F, let alone Rows 1-7, on an RJ-85 flying DTW-BGR. The FA and I just talked about this and that for the whole flight.
Changing my MAN-AKL F-class award tickets five times without penalty and getting the dates and classes I wanted each time, sometimes it's good to be PE! I also have got to say that 75% of the time I ring NW, I get a really good agent. This has got to be the highest success rate for any call-centre operation I've ever had to frequently use.
WearyBizTrvlr
Jan 14, 06, 11:33 am
It's only been since I've been frequently FlyerTalk that I have kept track of my flights. Still, 2005 was definitely the busiest year for flying. I racked up a total of 158,246 miles in 106 flights. That puts the average flight length at 1,493 miles, but that's highly misleading, as the median flight length is 287 miles. So it's a very highly skewed distribution with a great many short flights (mostly AMS-LON) and some very long ones too (SIN-EWR).
I estimate I spent a total of 14 days and 16 hours on airplanes. Add travel to/from airports, check-in, lounge time, etc, and it adds up...
Business flights dominated again, at 66% of miles flown in 78 flights, with paid personal flights at 25% (26 flights) and 8% on award flights (2 of those).
18 different airlines flown:
Airline Miles Miles% Flights
SQ 52,794 33.4% 16
CO 33,599 21.2% 11
BA 27,491 17.4% 20
KL 16,316 10.3% 16
DL 8,407 5.3% 3
LH 3,340 2.1% 12
UA 2,880 1.8% 3
AA 2,592 1.6% 2
AZ 2,376 1.5% 4
CX 1,909 1.2% 3
OK 1,504 1.0% 4
OS 1,196 0.8% 2
B6 1,121 0.7% 1
EN 1,094 0.7% 4
MI 607 0.4% 1
AF 522 0.3% 2
US 280 0.2% 1
BD 218 0.1% 1
To note here is that KL is skewed by an AMS-SIN-AMS award ticket. That that out, and KL drops to 6th place at 3,246 miles. SQ accounts for over a third of my flown miles, and shares the number two spot with KL at 16 flights each. BA is the airline I flew most at 20 flights. Taking MFU'd leisure trips quickly adds to the total with the stopover in London.
Alliance Miles Miles% Flights
ST 62,724 40% 40
*A 61,802 39% 39
OW 31,992 20% 25
none 1,728 1% 2
Breaking it down by alliance, the SQ influence is apparent by pushing *A close to the top at 39% of flown miles. SkyTeam comes first, mostly because of my frequent AMS-NYC flights, which are only served non-stop by SkyTeam. And most of those were on CO. Paradoxically perhaps I still feel most affinity with oneworld, even though it's the alliance I flew the fewest miles with.
I earned SEN status on LH mostly by flying SQ, and Platinum Elite on KL mostly by flying CO. Status on BA was earned mostly through BA flights, while SQ PPS is 100% SQ-based.
I flew through 34 unique airports: AMS, BKK, BOG*, BOS*, CDG, CTA*, DEN, EWR, FCO, FRA, HAJ, HKG, HKT*, IAD, IAH*, ICN*, JFK, KUL, LCY, LGA, LGW, LHR, MCO, MIA, MUC, MXP, NCL*, PHL*, PRG*, SIN, TPE*, VIE, VRN*, ZAG*. The eleven new ones are marked with an asterisk.
The top eight:
Airport Visits
AMS 59
SIN 18
LHR 16
FRA 12
EWR 11
LCY 10
LGW 8
MCO 6
Using the NYC and LON coterminals, they total 15 and 34 visits each.
There have been wild fluctuations month-to-month in the number of miles flown:
month miles miles% flights flight% mi/flt
Jan 7,748 4.9% 4 3.8% 1,937
Feb 12,154 7.7% 10 9.4% 1,215
Mar 20,752 13.1% 6 5.7% 3,459
Apr 1,288 0.8% 6 5.7% 215
May 3,658 2.3% 10 9.4% 366
Jun 10,248 6.5% 8 7.5% 1,281
Jul 27,932 17.7% 9 8.5% 3,104
Aug 1,978 1.2% 8 7.5% 247
Sep 25,808 16.3% 14 13.2% 1,843
Oct 24,828 15.7% 11 10.4% 2,257
Nov 14,274 9.0% 16 15.1% 892
Dec 7,578 4.8% 4 3.8% 1,895
I almost wonder whether my April and August totals are correct. :)
That's almost it for the number-crunching... on the extremes, awards, highlights and depths of depression. :D
Longest flight: SQ 22 SIN-EWR at 9535 miles.
Shortest flight: Various SIN-KUL and back at 187 miles.
Best flight: BA67 LHR-PHL. I'd booked it in WT+, used miles to upgrade to Club World, and ended up with an op-up at the gate to F. ^ As much as I love SQ C, I'll take BA F any day! Also documented as a trip report. (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=405081)
Worst flight: It's hard to point to a single horrible flight this year. There were quite a few that were bad, but no single one that deserves extraordinary opprobrium. Perhaps I should just say here "any flight with KL." :D
Biggest disappointment: My first ever flight on CX in J from TPE to ICN. The aircraft looked really tacky and tired and the food was horrible. Having heard the hype about CX, I thought it fell far short. Still, it was way better than any European business class flight, and also much better than domestic F. CX did redeem themselves a bit on a morning HKG-TPE flight in J, which was on a 744.
Biggest rip-off: Any US domestic flight in F. Two stand out especially: UA DEN-IAH and CO EWR-MCO. I never expected much from UA, but I was very disappointed with CO. No food on the flight except for some pretzels or nuts; so much for "meals at mealtime." Apparently 7:30pm is no longer mealtime. :rolleyes: :td: My expectations weren't high to begin with, but this was a disappointment nonetheless. I get more food on JetBlue for crying out loud than on CO in F.
Worst travel experience: Arriving at EWR on CO70 from AMS just as a blizzard was getting going. Plane touched down around 3:30pm, and I was at the Peninsula hotel in Midtown at 10:30pm, with what felt like incipient frost-bite. I spent over an hour in a very hot bathtub, sipping hot tea and wolfing down the excellent Pen beefburger. The black car I'd ordered never showed up, cabs had all disappeared, getting to the EWR train station from Terminal C was impossible as the monorail had broken down due to the cold. In the end, after waiting in many lines for many hours in the freezing blowing cold, I managed to get on the last bus from EWR to Penn Station Newark, got on the train to Penn Station in NY, and took a cab from there. It took me longer to go from EWR to Midtown than it did from AMS to EWR.
Meeting the Grim Reaper (almost):Driving across Sicily with an Italian colleague of mine in order to catch the last flight from CTA to MXP, so that I could make my speaking engagement in London the next morning, and the speaking engagement in Singapore the day after. Think squealing tires on hairpin roads, violation of every rule in traffic law, etc. We made it with 10 minutes to spare. It wasn't even scary at the time, as I was so pumped up on adrenaline (being the navigator) that it only hit me afterwards how dangerous it'd been. :D
Worst long-haul experience: KLM award flight in C AMS-SIN-AMS. Read the trip report (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=417532) and weep.
Best sleeper seat long-haul: BA Club World.
Long-haul seat comfort rating in business class: BA, SQ, CO (777). Others tied at the bottom: CO (767), KL (747), DL (767).
Most underdimensioned seat in business class: CO EWR-BOG on a 737. Ugh. I wanted to take the Avianca flight from JFK, but was schedule-constrained.
Worst European business class: KLM. 3+3 seating with awful seats and dreadful catering.
Best European business class: Although I haven't flown them that much this year, the award goes to OS. No middle seat ever, serious hot food (which can be hit-and-miss, but usually I like it) and not entirely hostile FAs.
Best lounge: CX F at HKG. It wasn't as good as the hype again, but still, pretty damn good. I forget which lounge I was in (Pier or Wing), but it was the one on the left. Close second is the SKL F at SIN: they have satay! ^
Worst lounge: UA RCC at DEN. Pathetic. Utterly pathetic. Then again, no surprise. American lounges tend to be horrible. Therefore...
Best US lounge: CO PC at EWR. Free WiFi internet, Cape Cod chips, free booze.
Most improved lounge: KL's Schengen lounge at AMS. It's almost (gasp!) good! ;)
Best satay in a lounge: SKL F at LHR. Freshly made on request, much better than the satay in the SKL F at SIN.
Best business class meal: Peranakan chicken curry using SQ's Book The Cook. I've had it a few times now, and it's become my favorite. The fish assam manis ex-AMS BTC deserves a mention too.
Most disappointing business class meal: Satay as a main course on SQ324 SIN-AMS. Nowhere near as good as I had hoped. Tacky presentation of the satay sauce in an aluminum foil container.
Worst business class meal: See my KL trip report above. ;) Some of the BA offerings in Club World were disappointing too, although I can't remember specifics.
Best plane-substitution trip: Driving from Munich to Amsterdam in five and a half hours. Faster than going to the airport, checking in, security, lounge, flight, Polderbaan, taxi, taxi, taxi, walk, walk, walk, etc. :D
Worst delay: Six hours stuck at HAJ with the usual mess that KL ground staff are capable of producing. The lounge dragon was one of the weirdest I've met. So:
Weirdest lounge dragon: At the HAJ lounge. I was on a KL C ticket, but that did not entitle me to the lounge without an invite, so I just shower her my BA Gold card. It's a BA lounge too, so with anytime Gold access, I was allowed in. Until she asked for my flight and saw it was a KL flight. She insisted I needed an invite after all because I was on a KL flight. I said BA Gold anytime access allows me in. Yes, she said, but not if you're on KLM. :eek: :confused: :rolleyes: Back and forth a few times. I gave up and went back to the KL check-in desk to get the invite. Sigh. After that she was very nicet to me, but incredibly rude to a large group of very loud annoying Frenchmen who were waiting for the AF flight.
Most efficient airport: Changi. Duh. (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=514096)
Best arrival experience outside of Changi: Arriving from AMS on DL at JFK. No really. I have no idea what happened, but there were no lines at immigration and my bag came up within a few minutes. Must have been a parallel universe. One honorable mention also goes to CO at EWR, again because it was so unexpected.
Worst arrival experience: Arriving at LHR from MXP on AZ. Long line even for EU citizens at immigration, luggage took forever and then to top it all off I took the wrong train at the HEX station; not the HEX, but the then-new local service which took forever to reach Paddington.
Most infuriating arrival experience: Several Italian airports (CTA and VRN) with a remote stand that is perhaps 100 feet from the terminal, yet you still have to be bused in. And bused out again on departure. Walking would be so much faster.
Most convenient airport: LCY. Just can't be beat for location (I need to be in Canary Wharf most of the time) and general convenience.
Best new hotel:Trump International in NYC. Truly a gem! It's now my preferred NYC hotel.
Best hotel overall: Tough one. RC SIN remains a perennial favorite, the FS HKG is off to an OK start but needs some work (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=478348), I love the MO in Miami, remain a Dorchester fan in London... in terms of value for money, the RC SIN has to be the winner.
Quaintest hotel: Tie between Casa Medina in Bogota and Gabbia d'Oro in Verona. Both are older buildings converted to hotel use. The room I had at Casa Medina was huge, but partially with slanted roofs. Although styled as a five-star hotel, it falls short of that. Probably still the best in Bogota. Gabbia d'Oro is fantastic old medieval palazzo converted to hotel use with very small rooms. It's decorated in period style and I think it fits the ambience of Verona perfectly. My colleague hated it. :)
Best resort: Phuket Pavilions. I'll be posting a full review in the Luxury Hotels forum soon. There were some glitches in service, but the size of the villa is amazing and the privacy is fantastic. One of the highlights was a wonderful starlit private dinner next to the private pool.
Worst hotel: Nothing truly appalling this year, but the Marriott Marquis in NY stands out as a painful experience. Last minute trip to NY in December, all the good hotels fully booked (at least at reasonable rates that my company will reimburse). Horrible tourist trap.
Best FFP: I love my SQ PPS status. Over the last year I got a birthday gift (box of excellent chocolates), renewal gift (SGD180 in SQ gift vouchers for tax-free shopping) and Christmas gift (desktop calendar). I don't much care for the latter, but it's still way more than any other FFP has ever given me. But even more importantly, the main benefit of PPS status is the magic effect of clearing waitlists. I've managed to grab a seat on so many flights that were completely zeroed-out in all classes weeks in advance that I've lost count. This makes traveling SQ much more appealing as I know I have a good chance of making the flight I really want. I don't know how they do it, but this alone is reason enough to want to keep PPS status. In the next nine months, I just need 1.25 PPS sectors, so I'm OK there. :)
Honorable mention: Perhaps surprisingly and somewhat grudgingly, it's BA. Many of my leisure trips take me to the US, and often there is good award availability for MFUs. If BA had more MFU availability for the Far East, they'd get even more of my money. In any case, BAEC is the reason why I never fear I have to fly to the US in coach anymore
Most devalued FFP: Flying Blue obviously. "Generous by nature." Yeah, right. :rolleyes: I still maintain my PE status (mostly again by flying CO) simply because I'm based in AMS, and I'm well on my way to retaining PE for 2007.
Plans for 2006: Do a AONEx RTW with oneworld.
I guess that wraps up the year. :) Here's to more flying in 2006! :-:
hilltopper
Jan 14, 06, 2:41 pm
18-MAR-2005 FCO-ZRH LX1727 C
18-MAR-2005 ZRH-LHR LX332 C
20-MAR-2005 LHR-GVA BA732 C
20 MAR-2005 GVA-FCO LX 1756 C
26-MAR-2005 FCO-FRA LH3853 C
26-MAR-2005 FRA-CAI LH582 C
28-MAR-2005 CAI-FRA LH583 C
28-MAR-2005 FRA-FCO LH3852
23-APR-2005 FCO-ZRH LX1735
23-APR-2005 ZRH-CAI LX236 C
27-APR-2005 CAI-ZRH LX237 C
27-APR-2005 ZRH-FCO LX1734 C
02-MAY-2005 FCO-FRA LH3841 Y
02-MAY-2005 FRA-DEL LH760 Y
05-JUN-2005 DEL-MUC LH763 Y
05-JUN-2005 MUC-FCO LH3866 Y
16-JUL-2005 FCO-GVA LX1751 C
16-JUL-2005 GVA-LHR BA727 C
17-JUL-2005 LHR-GVA BA732 C
17-JUL-2005 GVA-FCO LX1756 C
30-JUL-2005 FCO-ZRH LX1727 C
30-JUL-2005 ZRH-AMS LX728 C
31-JUL-2005 AMS-ZRH LX729 C
31-JUL-2005 ZRH-FCO LX1732 C
18-AUG-2005 FCO-ZRH LX1735 C
18-AUG-2005 ZRH-CAI LX236 C
21-AUG-2005 CAI-ZRH LX237 F
21-AUG-2005 ZRH-FCO LX1734 C
28-OCT-2005 FCO-HEL Official State flight
28-OCT-2005 HEL-FCO Official State flight
23-NOV-2005 FCO-ZRH LX1727 C
23-NOV-2005 ZRH-CDG LX638 C
24-NOV-2005 CDG-ZRH LX645 C
24-NOV-2005 ZRH-GRU LX96 C
27-NOV-2005 CGH-SSA JJ3486 Y
28-NOV-2005 SSA-IOS JJ3487 Y
11-DEC-2005 IOS-CGH JJ3487 Y
11-DEC-2005 GRU-ZRH LX97 C
12-DEC-2005 LX638 ZRH-CDG C
12-DEC-2005 LX657 CDG-ZRH C
12-DEC-2005 LX1734 ZRH-FCO C
16-DEC-2005 AZ210 FCO-LHR C
18-DEC-2005 AZ207 LHR-FCO C
Best experience: official visit to Helsinki on a State flight. The car awaiting by the staircase on the tarmac - no security, no passport control... speeding on the highway barely 5 minutes after landing. You can't beat that! :D
Worst experience: Ilheus airport shut because of "very bad weather" (it was my first day of holiday after one year without any breaks...and I was definetely hoping for some sunshine). Flight diverted to Salvador, I missed the announcement on board that the flight was diverted (it was in portuguese only), TAM staff at Salvador airport spoke no english at all... :rolleyes:
Best flight: LX1734 12-DEC (crew worked really hard!) ^
Worst flight: AZ210 16-DEC (crew nearly hostile) :td:
sftrvlr
Jan 16, 06, 6:45 pm
Lots of mundane up and down the coast, but some serious longhauls in First Class to burn up some miles and test my endurance for pampering :D.
Worst flight Toss up between ORD-SFO in the center seat of the last row on UA, and CMB-BKK on TG in Business Class on their nasty old A300-600
Most surprising flight CMB-MAA in Business Class on UL (superb service and not at all what I was expecting)
Best lounge Lufthansa First Class Terminal at FRA
Worst lounge Toss up between TG at CMB (the airport restaurant) and TG at KBV (also the airport restaurant)
Best hotel JW Marriott Resort & Spa, Phuket
Worst hotel Best Rest Inn off I-5 in Lebec, CA (Y-U-C-K!)
Billman27
Jan 17, 06, 11:16 am
Here are my travels and tribulations for the year 2005 in the Middle East:
1/15/05-JAX-ATL-CDG-DXB - DL/AF 12,230
3/24/05 -DXB-BEY - EK 1,329
3/26/05 -BEY-DXB - EK 1,329
5/15/05-DXB-LHR-LGW-TPA - BA 9,774
5/23/05-JAX-JFK-DXB-DL/EK 7,663
6/5/05 - DXB-IST -EK 1,868
6/11/05 - IST-DXB - EK 1,868
6/28/05 - DXB-KWI - EK 530
6/30/05 - KWI-DXB - EK 530
8/28/05 - DXB-BAH - EK 500
9/2/05 - RUH-JED- SA 560
9/3/05 - JED-DXB - EK 1055
11/20/05- DXB-KWI - EK 530
11/21/05 - KWI-DXB - EK 530
11/26/05 - DXB-BOM-GOA EK/Jet 1,197
12/1/05 - GOA-BOM-DXB EK/Jet 1,197
12/17/05 - DXB-JED EK 1,055
12/22/05 - RUH-DXB EK 542
12/23/05 - DXB-JFK EK 6,834
12/23/05 - JFK-JAX EK 829
Total: 51,950
Best Flight - DXB-JFK in coach is seriously amazing, it's rarely full and the entertainment system is top of the line. With 3 full meals on this 14 hour flight you will hardly going empty stomach. Just wish I could be in First Class.
Worst Flight - Internal Flight in Saudi Arabia - Delayed for 2 hours no reason and completely packed. People started getting up and getting their bags 2.1 seconds after the plane lands.
Best Hotel - Intercontinental in Riyadh or Hyatt Istanbul- Seriously amazing rooms and service outstanding.
Worst Hotel - Le Meridien Jeddah - the rooms are great and it's a very nice hotel, but the thing I will always remember is when I went to the concierge to ask for a nearby restaurant, he would only recommend the two in the hotel. When I pushed him more, he got flustered and pulled the yellow pages out. Ended up walking down the street to the corniche where there are tons of nice restaurants.
2006 Forecast- Well since Americans can now get visit visas on arrival to Iran, I will be hitting up the ski slopes very shortly. Libya, Egypt, Hong Kong,
hauteboy
Jan 21, 06, 2:13 am
JAN07 CUZ-LIM TA J
JAN07 LIM-UIO TA J
Hotel: JW Marriott Quito
JAN09 UIO-GPS (Galapagos) TAME Y
Cruise: Celebrity Xpedition
JAN16 GPS-UIO TAME Y
JAN17 UIO-LIM TA J
Hotel: Hilton Colon
JAN18 LIM-DFW AA J
JAN19 DFW-AUS AA F
mileage run:
FEB04 AUS-DFW AA F
FEB04 DFW-SEA AA Y
FEB04 SEA-SFO AS Y
FEB04 SFO-JFK AA J
FEB05 JFK-MIA AA F
FEB05 MIA-SJO AA J
Hotel: Hampton Inn SJO Airport
FEB06 SJO-MIA AA J
FEB06 MIA-DCA AA F
FEB06 DCA-JFK AA Y
FEB06 JFK-LAX AA J
FEB06 LAX-SEA AS Y
FEB06 SEA-DFW AA F
FEB07 DFW-AUS AA F
mileage run
FEB12 AUS-DFW AA F
FEB12 DFW-LGB AA F
FEB12 LGB-DFW AA F
FEB12 DFW-CDG AA Y
FEB13 CDG-ORD AA J
FEB13 ORD-SFO AA F
FEB14 SFO-DFW AA F
FEB14 DFW-AUS AA F
MAY20 AUS-CVG DL Y
MAY20 CVG-CLT DL Y
MAY23 CLT-ATL DL Y
MAY23 ATL-AUS DL Y
MAY31 AUS-IAH CO Y
MAY31 IAH-MSY CO Y
Hotel: Hilton Riverside
JUN03 MSY-IAH CO Y
JUN03 IAH-AUS CO Y
mileage run
JUL03 AUS-IAH CO Y
JUL03 IAH-DFW AA F
JUL03 DFW-RDU AA F
JUL03 RDU-TPA DL Y (rerouted)
Hotel: HI Express Tampa Stadium
JUL04 TPA-MIA AA F
JUL04 MIA-RDU AA F
JUL04 RDU-DFW AA F
JUL04 DFW-IAH AA F
JUL04 IAH-AUS CO Y
JUL09 AUS-ORD AA F
JUL09 ORD-NGO AA J
Hotel: Centrair Nagoya Airport
JUL10 NGO-ICN KE Y
JUL10 ICN-ULN (Mongolia) KE Y
Hotel: Hotel Mika, UlaanBaatar
JUL16 ULN-SVO SU J
Hotel: Holiday Inn Lesnaya, Moscow
JUL19 SVO-BAK SU Y
Hotel: Velotrek, Baku
Hotel: Hotel Lile, Tbilisi
Hotel: Hotel SIL, Yerevan
Hotel: Sheraton Tbilisi
JUL30 TBS-LHR BA Y
JUL30 LHR-BRU BA J
Hotel: Crowne Plaza BRU Airport
JUL31 BRU-JFK AA J
JUL31 JFK-DFW AA F
JUL31 DFW-AUS AA F
milage run:
AUG13 AUS-IAH CO Y
AUG13 IAH-DFW AA F
AUG13 DFW-RDU AA F
AUG13 RDU-MIA AA F
AUG13 MIA-TPA AA F
Hotel: HI Express Tampa Stadium
AUG14 TPA-MIA AA F
AUG14 MIA-RDU AA F
AUG14 RDU-DFW AA F
AUG14 DFW-AUS AA Y
Cow 'DO
AUG02 AUS-DFW AA Y
AUG02 DFW-EZE AA Y
AUG05 EZE-MVD AA Y
AUG05 MVD-SCL LA J
AUG05 SCL-MIA LA Y
AUG06 MIA-DFW AA Y
AUG06 DFW-AUS AA Y
OCT21 AUS-LAX AA F
Hotel: Marriott Newport Beach
OCT23 SAN-ORD AA F
OCT24 ORD-AUS AA F
Boo 'DO
OCT27 AUS-ORD AA Y
OCT27 ORD-DUB AA Y
OCT28 DUB-LHR EI Y
OCT28 LHR-BCN IB Y
Hotel: NH Calderon, Barcelona
Hotel: Hilton Diagonal, Barcelona
OCT30 BCN-LHR BA Y
OCT30 LHR-ORD AA Y
OCT30 ORD-AUS AA Y
DEC30 AUS-CVG DL Y
DEC30 CVG-CLT DL Y
Best Flight:
CUZ-LIM-UIO on TACA had excellent service and good food for the short flights. Great view of the Andes on the right side as well!
Worst Flight:
TBS-LHR ; we had booked a Biz award, but availability didn't open up until three days before our flight and we couldn't get the tickets reissued in the Caucasus. We ended up in the very last row on the 320.
Best Airport:
ICN : Huge place with plenty of amenities
Worst Airport:
SVO : Dark and nothing to do
Best Hotel:
Hilton Diagonal Mar in Barcelona, I was upgraded to the Exec Floor in this brand new hotel, although it is a bit out of the way
Worst Hotel:
Velotrek in Baku, no bed sheets but rat droppings in the corner were free.
Best non-flight experience:
Weeklong cruise aboard the Celebrity Xpedition in the Galapagos.. Celebrity service and sealions!
Most unique experience:
Mongolian hospitality: drinking airag (fermented mare's milk) in a ger.
Worst experience:
Missing my connection in Nagoya by 10 minutes and missing the first day of the Naadam festival in Mongolia.
bcmatt
Feb 1, 06, 4:18 pm
A bit less hectic than usual in 2005...
January
MAN-IST TK Business Class
IST-BAK TK Business Class
BAK-IST TK Business Class
IST-MAN TK Business Class
March
MAN-DXB EK Business Class
DXB-BAK EK Business Class
April
MAN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-TUN AF Economy Class
TUN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-MAN AFG Economy Class
May
MAN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-TUN AF Economy Class
TUN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-MAN AF Economy Class
MAN-WAW LO Economy Class
WAW-KBP LO Economy Class
ODS-WAW LO Economy Class
WAW-MAN LO Economy Class
June
MAN-MXP AZ Business Class
MXP-TUN AZ Business Class
TUN-MXP AZ Business Class
MXP-MAN AZ Business Class
July
MAN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-TUN AF Economy Class
TUN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-MAN AF Economy Class
MAN-LHR BA Business Class
LHR-OTP BA Business Class
OTP-LHR BA Business Class
LHR-MAN BA Business Class
September
MAN-FRA LH Economy Class
FRA-VIE LH Economy Class
VIE-PRN OS Economy Class
PRN-VIE OS Economy Class
VIE-FRA LH Economy Class
FRA-MAN LH Economy Class
December
BHX-MUC LH Business Class
MUC-SOF LH Business Class
SOF-MUC LH Business Class
MUC-BHX LH Business Class
Great Circle Map (http://tinyurl.com/bomdl)
bcmatt
Feb 1, 06, 4:18 pm
A lot less hectic than usual in 2005...
January
MAN-IST TK Business Class
IST-BAK TK Business Class
BAK-IST TK Business Class
IST-MAN TK Business Class
March
MAN-DXB EK Business Class
DXB-BAK EK Business Class
April
MAN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-TUN AF Economy Class
TUN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-MAN AFG Economy Class
May
MAN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-TUN AF Economy Class
TUN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-MAN AF Economy Class
MAN-WAW LO Economy Class
WAW-KBP LO Economy Class
ODS-WAW LO Economy Class
WAW-MAN LO Economy Class
June
MAN-MXP AZ Business Class
MXP-TUN AZ Business Class
TUN-MXP AZ Business Class
MXP-MAN AZ Business Class
July
MAN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-TUN AF Economy Class
TUN-CDG AF Economy Class
CDG-MAN AF Economy Class
MAN-LHR BA Business Class
LHR-OTP BA Business Class
OTP-LHR BA Business Class
LHR-MAN BA Business Class
September
MAN-FRA LH Economy Class
FRA-VIE LH Economy Class
VIE-PRN OS Economy Class
PRN-VIE OS Economy Class
VIE-FRA LH Economy Class
FRA-MAN LH Economy Class
December
BHX-MUC LH Business Class
MUC-SOF LH Business Class
SOF-MUC LH Business Class
MUC-BHX LH Business Class
Great Circle Map (http://tinyurl.com/bomdl)
CMK10
Feb 4, 06, 7:57 pm
January
8: UA JFK-SFO Business
8: UA SFO-LAX First
9: UA LAX-SFO First
9: UA SFO-JFK Business
15: AA LGA-BUF Main Cabin
15: AA BUF-LGA Main Cabin
16: AA LGA-DCA Main Cabin
16: AA DCA-DFW First
16: AA DFW-PHX Main Cabin
February
18: AA PHX-DFW Main Cabin
18: AA DFW-DTW First
21: AA DTW-DFW First
21: AA DFW-PHX Main Cabin
March
12: HP PHX-LAS Main Cabin
12: AA LAS-DFW Main Cabin
12: AA DFW-JFK First
15: AA RDU-LGA Main Cabin
17: AA LGA-CLE Main Cabin
18: AA CLE-ORD Main Cabin
18: AA ORD-LGA Main Cabin
19: AA JFK-DCA Main Cabin
19: AA DCA-STL First
19: AA STL-LAS Main Cabin
19: HP LAS-PHX Main Cabin
April
16: HP PHX-BUR First
16: HP BUR-PHX Main Cabin
May
7: HP PHX-LAX First
7: AA LAX-SFO First
7: AA SFO-JFK Business
29: AA RDU-DFW Main Cabin
29: AA DFW-ONT First
29: HP ONT-PHX First
June
11: UA PHX-SFO Main Cabin
13: UA SFO-PHX Main Cabin
30: AA PHX-DFW Main Cabin
30: AA DFW-RDU Main Cabin
July
4: AA RDU-DFW Main Cabin
4: AA DFW-SNA First
4: AS SNA-OAK First
4: UA SFO-PHX Main Cabin
22: HP PHX-LAS Main Cabin
22: HP LAS-SMF First
25: HP SMF-PHX First
August
6: AS PHX-SEA First
6: AA SEA-DFW Main Cabin
6: AA DFW-RDU First
9: FL RDU-ATL Main Cabin
9: AA ATL-ORD Main Cabin
9: AA ORD-LGA First
12: AA LGA-RDU Main Cabin
16: AA RDU-STL Main Cabin
16: AA STL-ORD First
17: AA ORD-LGA Main Cabin
17: AA LGA-RDU Main Cabin
20: AA RDU-MCO Main Cabin
20: AA MCO-DFW First
20: AA DFW-PHX Main Cabin
23: HP PHX-LAS Main Cabin
24: HP LAS-PHX Main Cabin
September
23: HP PHX-LAX Main Cabin
24: AA LAX-DFW Main Cabin
24: AA DFW-PHL First Class
26: AA PHL-ORD Main Cabin
26: AA ORD-PHX Main Cabin
October
22: AA PHX-DFW First
22: AA DFW-MCO First
24: AA MCO-LAX First
24: AA LAX-SAN Main Cabin
24: HP SAN-PHX Main Cabin
November
23: AA PHX-ORD Main Cabin
23: AA ORD-RDU Main Cabin
27: AA RDU-DFW First
27: AA DFW-SLC First
27: UA SLC-DEN First
27: UA DEN-PHX Main Cabin
December
17: AA PHX-ORD Main Cabin
17: DL ORD-CVG First
17: DL CVG-AZO
20: AA DTW-ORD First
20: AA ORD-RDU First
28: DH RDU-IAD Main Cabin
28: UA IAD-RDU First
30: AA RDU-DFW First
30: AA DFW-PDX First
30: AS PDX-LAX First
30: AA LAX-SJC Main Cabin
31: AA SFO-JFK First
31: AA JFK-LHR Business
The Facts
- 2 Voluntary Denied Boardings, 1 with United, 1 with American
- 4 Operational Upgrades, 2 with United, 2 with American
- 72,587 Actual Flown Miles
- 189,752 Earned Miles
- 2 Equipment Upgrades
- 1 Equipment Downgrade
- Zero Cancelled Flights
Opinions
- Best Fight: 12/31 AA 100 JFK-LHR. The 35 seat cabin had 6 people in it and the service was outstanding in every way.
- Worst Flight: 9/23 HP 35 PHX-LAX. After being told by a phone agent my later flight would be delayed, I ran to the airport, traded in my First Class seat for an aisle seat in row 28 of this ancient 757 and had to gate check my bag. Upon arrival in Los Angeles I was told the information given to me by the phone agent was erronous and my original flight would arrive on time.