Trip Reports - From California to Israel on Delta First/BusinessElite

This was my first vacation after moving to San Francisco. I was deciding between a move to Tel Aviv or California, and I ended up in the latter. I decided, however, that I would travel to Israel as often as I could.

As always, I’d much prefer to fly El Al, but I’m a gold—bordering platinum—frequent flyer on Continental it wouldn’t make much sense to make such a long trip on a non-SkyTeam airline.

It was a toss-up between Delta and Continental. They each have their pros and cons. Delta was a few hundred bucks cheaper, so I bought a ticket.
I deliberately built in a longer connection. The last thing I wanted was to be stuck somewhere on such a short, but long-distance trip. This paid off; the short-connection flight was delayed two hours. I would have been completely screwed.

SFO
There was a very long line to check-in, and a lot of confusion about Delta and Northwest-operated flights. There were only two people in front of me in the first class line, but they each had >5 bags to check.
The agent who assisted me, however, was delightful. She was all smiles, apologetic for the delay, and wished me a pleasant trip.

SkyClub SFO
There was another long wait to get into the SkyClub. It was the same people in front of me at check in: KLM passengers from India, who were flying domestically and wanted access. They-uhh—“left their WorldClub information int heir checked bag.” Right.
The agent was once again very apologetic to me, and wished me a good trip.

The club itself is sad. It’s small, boring, with nothing to eat. I had some orange juice and creepy multicolored dried fruit.
At least there is free WiFi.

Delta 1068
27 June 2009
San Francisco-Atlanta
B767-300
Seat 3B
Security was extremely quick, and I did not have to interact with any TSA personnel (that’s always my goal.)

The flight was overflowing, with quite a few servicemen and women.
First class felt cramped—even more cramped than I’d anticipated. But 3B isn’t a bad seat.

As anticipated, the entertainment was wonderful: on-demand HBO, movies, as well as live TV. I loved watching Will Ferrel and Dana Carvey full-length shows. These were very graphic for airplane viewing!

The food was meager but edible: a reuben sandwich or Greek salad with chicken. I had the latter, which came with a (good) Love and Quiches marble brownie. The salad was fine, it was just really small. It came with breadsticks—no warm roll, or anything like that. At least there were no Pepperidge Farm cookies (I never really liked them—I don’t know why everyone else is so happy to have them on their meal trays.)

Service was indifferent but professional. The crew was calm, but perhaps in need of Lexapro. There was also an unfortunately hair dye situation… maybe that was affecting her mood.

Atlanta
A zoo, as one might anticipate. The SkyClub in Atlanta was even sadder. No showers due to a lack of towels! This has been the case for eight days, according to the concierge, who was more than a little snippy about it.

I remember when that lounge had hot canapés, little cookies and brownies, mousse cups, and Elements Essentiel toiletries.

Now it has a filthy bathroom, some goldfish, and little jars of hummus—but no bread. I had a stale oatmeal raisin cookie and some coffee from the 1980s.

As is frequently the problem with T-Mobile, my Macintosh can’t connect to the WiFi. So I switched to the Windows side of my machine, which worked.

Delta 152
27 June 2009
Atlanta-Tel Aviv
Seat 10G
Boarding was delayed by about 30 minutes due to problems with the air conditioning. There were few announcements, and there was a bit of chaos in the gate.

The sky marshals made no attempt to appear in disguise. Five portly gentlemen kept lurking around an alternate entrance to the gate. Once I saw them board (bypassing the security check), I figured we’d be ready to go.
Boarding was surprisingly orderly. This involved a quick and unobtrusive metal detector and x-rays. Incidentally, they do not allow large bottles of liquids on board—even if purchased airside.

Once on board, I received a warm greeting in Hebrew, and was shown to my seat.

The BusinessElite seat is well-known to me, so I knew it’s pros and cons. I really don’t think it’s all that different from the Continental 777. This was a 777-ER; I’m yet to experience the pods on the 777-LR.

We made an expeditious departure. I noted that the announcements were in Hebrew and English only (the safety video is no longer in both languages). And they no longer have Arabic announcements.

Chatter was kept to a minimum, and there were no threatening security-related announcements.

The purser came around and introduced herself, but was not particularly interested. She did, at least, guide me away from the mahi mahi. “I wouldn’t eat it,” she explained.

Since Delta’s BusinessElite menus are posted on their web site, I have not transcribed them here.

I had the Michelle Bernstein Chicken a l’orange. Although maligned on FlyerTalk, it’s actually quite good. It came with nice garlicky green beans, and an inedible “celeriac puree” (congealed cream of wheat mixed with Comet Cleanser.)

Unlike the New York flight, there is a formal mid-flight breakfast service of a warm croissant, yogurt, and fruit. It was delicious. And I was hungry. This was a nice addition.

The pre-arrival meal remains unchanged: salty pizza or Asian chicken salad. They still have the amazing chocolate truffle cake with this meal. I could eat that every day. Northwest has a similar cake on the Minneapolis-Honolulu flight… it’s fantastic.

Service was not typical of Delta. It was cold, bordering on bitter. The crew seemed unhappy, flustered, and irritated. I always felt like I was in their way, even if I was just sitting in my seat watching movies.

The shining stars—as always—were the three [b]Hebrew speakers.[b/] Just like Continental, these tend to be cheerful, bright, and lively people. Unfortunately, they almost always serve the Economy Class cabin.

I slept for most of the 11 hour 35 minute flight. During my waking hours, I did my Advanced Cardiac Life Support renewal. This involves computer software with goofy, overly-dramatized simulations of the emergency room. It was nice to have a long expanse of time to just get through it.

We arrived about 45 minutes late. I was fortunately to be in the first row of the “B” cabin, which meant an easy escape for the mad dash to immigration.
This was successful, and there was only ONE person in line in front of me. The agent actually smiled, and really didn’t have any questions (they can be really harsh at immigration.) I double checked to make sure I was actually at Ben Gurion Airport.

Bags arrived within 10 minutes, and I hopped in a cab.
And now, having watched the sunset, I’m having drink watching the lights of the City of Gold. It makes any of the hassles of travelling well worth it.

Good report. The domestic F cabin in the 763 is horrible, space-wise.

Good report. Sorry to hear the crew was not in a great mood on your long-haul.

It's the little things that count.

And now, having watched the sunset, I’m having drink watching the lights of the City of Gold. It makes any of the hassles of travelling well worth it.
Trips sounds OK, but that sounds heavenly - literally!

Regency Hotel, Jerusalem
I’ve always stayed here. It’s a bargain, the view is breath taking, and the service is friendly. The rooms are fine: not amazing, but comfortable. The Regency has a great gym, including a nice pool, a hamam, multiple Jacuzzis, etc. There is a nominal fee for regular guests, but higher-level room rates are exempt.

Crowne Plaza, Ein Bokek, Dead Sea
This is my third stay at the Crowne Plaza. It is one of only a handful of hotels with direct beach access to the Dead Sea. (Le Meridien David is away from the water.) It’s no longer a bargain, but the rooms all have a sea view, the staff is bubbly and accommodating, and the Dead Sea is lots of fun. They have a huge pool, indoor saltwater pools, and a fantastic breakfast (it rivals the Regency.)

Getting around
This was a short, trip with only a few ports-of-call, so I chose not to rent a car. Why did I ever watch “Paradise Now?” I was always a bit scared of Egged buses after seeing that movie. Anyway, the buses are really easy, the bus stations are not hard to navigate, and the ticket agents are used to clueless tourists. It was much easier than I had anticipated.

Sheraton Tel Aviv and Towers
In the past, I’ve always stayed at the Dan in Tel Aviv. My last stay there was pretty dismal. I even wrote to them, and got a pretty snotty email in response. So I decided to try something else.

The beach hotels in Tel Aviv are all roughly the same price, and I’d read that the Sheraton had recently been renovated.

It’s quite nice: not mind-blowing, but nice. I was assigned to a “club room,” which was fine. Nothing to write home about, but not bad. This features access to a “club lounge” with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and an open, self-service bar. This proved to be highly desirable :)

The “club lounge” was a hangout for Delta Air Lines crew members. They were all a friendly, outgoing group, and nothing like their coworkers on my flight from Atlanta to Tel Aviv.

A word about Israel
There is a poem about how one is never just a tourist here… you are a witness, a pilgrim, and so on.

This is my fourth time here, and it will be agonizing to leave. Nothing can compare to watching multiple, simultaneous bar mitzvot at the Western Wall, soaking one’s feet in the Dead Sea, passing the neat rows of palm trees in the Negev, playing “Matkot” on the beach, or—like tonight—strolling along the Ayalon river on Friday night. Israel is as beautiful as it is emotional.

At a time when my investments are shrinking, I pondered whether or not it is worth a few thousand dollars to come here. Is it worth hoarding frequent flyer miles—sometimes flying inconvenient itineraries to “save up” for a trip here? The answer is “absolutely.”

Sounds like a great time. Are you still in Israel or have you returned home?

Sounds like a great time. Are you still in Israel or have you returned home?

I think he still in TLV for awhile. He probably will be back home to SFO within weeks. I have been there in TLV years ago. It was so much enjoyable the entire trip. I remember where we are stayed at Marriott Hotel near the beach. I remember where I have to put secondary screening at the gate before I am onboard into the aircraft. We took long flight out of ATL-TLV nonstop on operating 777 aircraft. Whta about security concerns onboard the entire aircraft. Make sure the passengers are safe and secure our flight. What about 30 minutes rule to stay in the seat? I didn't understand why I got off the seat during 30 minutes rules out of ATL-TLV-ATL. So maybe I will have more answered the questions from security reason. We went to the Immigrations where we are wait for our turn. Because the immigrations line is too long.

Although I was initially lukewarm about the Sheraton, it grew on me. The staff are particularly friendly, the food is good, and they have one great perk: very late check-out for $25 per hour. Since flights leaving Israel depart late at night, this is convenient and reasonable. Other hotels charge a full room rate, so I was delighted to take advantage of this. I was more than happy to shell out $100 to keep my room until 6:00 pm.

I spent the afternoon body surfing in the Mediterranean, and took a long hot shower and got cleaned up.

The taxi ride to Ben Gurion seemed to take forever. We got stuck behind two buses at the security checkpoint at the airport entrance, so that led to some delay. For the first time, the security officer spoke to me. He only asked where I was from, and wished me a pleasant flight.

Ben Gurion Airport
The Delta check-in was a bit of a mess. One of the x-ray scanners was down, so the line was overflowing.

As usual, I failed to interest the security staff, and was promptly issued a “number 1” sticker after answering a handful of questions. The woman wasn’t particularly friendly; in fact, she was kind of robotic. They’re usually sort of bubbly and cute. You could tell that they were stressed about the x-ray situation.

The Business Class check-in was a mob scene as well, but this was due to large groups with lots of bags.

The agent, however, was quite pleasant, and she took care of me quickly.
The security checkpoint was—as always—very quick and easy. Shoes and belts stay on. No yelling. Liquids are of no interest. Passport control was similarly expeditious (the immigration lady talked on her cell phone the whole time.)

Although I would have happily purchased a bunch of Ahava products and some Sabra, Israel continues to maintain a ban on liquids for flights to the USA—even if purchased past the security checkpoint.

I’m not a huge fan of the Dan Lounge. The El Al lounge is amazing, so the Dan Lounge seems kind of dreary. There is certainly food, beer, wine, an espresso machine, and very slow wireless. At least they have wireless; this was lacking on previous visits.

DL 153
TLV-ATL
777-200
Seat 1A
Boarding was both quick and orderly. The Delta staff do ask if you have any liquids, but they weren’t checking bags this time around.

I settled in to seat 1A, which has been recommended on FlyerTalk. It’s actually a great seat. Nobody reclines in front of you, there is no noisy or bright galley nearby, and it’s a nice place to sleep.

The cabin crew were nicer this time around, but not particularly pleasant either. I suppose they wouldn’t turn down any requests, but they weren’t in a rush to be hospitable. The exception—once again—were the Hebrew speakers, who were great.

Dinner was edible, but still definitely airplane food. I had the chicken, which was tough, and not particularly thrilling. I wonder if it was catered out of Atlanta. The soup, salad, and ice cream were very good.

Thanks to the quiet cabin and Delta’s nice blankets and pillows, I slept for perhaps eight or nine hours.

I missed the mid-flight snack of fruit and sandwiches, but woke up for the usual breakfast. This morning’s choices included an omelet or tortilla espanola. I had the latter, which was pretty odd. In my world, tortilla espanola is served cold, and it is served with cocktails, not for breakfast.. I would have been happier with a more traditional Israeli breakfast… or perhaps if I just stayed in Israel ☺

We arrived 30 minutes early, which meant waiting 10-15 minutes for Customs to come meet the aircraft.

As usual, I was greeted in Atlanta by a screaming psychopath yelling at everyone to form one line, but simultaneously dividing the line into two parts. This woman doesn’t just lack training, she lacks fundamental logic. What is the point of screaming at everyone? It’s such an embarrassment to the United States.

Immigration was equally unpleasant. The agent asked me some questions without even looking at me, saying hello or goodbye, and doing so next to a poster talking about how polite and welcoming he should be. Nice work.

Fortunately, bags were quick and Customs was quite pleasant. A nice customs agent wished me a good morning, as she did to everyone else.
Unlike previous experiences in Atlanta, security was actually quick. There was no vocal interaction with the TSA, which is how I prefer it.

Within a few minutes, I was upstairs in the SkyClub. The SkyClub staff—all three concierges—welcomed me, asked if I needed anything, etc. I was happy to take a nice hot shower, and have a few cups of coffee.
Food offerings were pathetic, but this was not unexpected.

DL 1065
ATL-SFO
767-300 (domestic)
Seat 1E
There was a long train ride and walk from Terminal E to Gate T3, which involved traversing a lot of tired travelers.

Boarding was underway when I arrived at the gate, and I hopped on board.
Seat 1E, despite claims to the contrary, is actually pretty good. There isn’t an overabundance of leg room, but it’s not so bad.

The cabin crew, at least the one serving my section, were okay.
Breakfast options (no surprise) were cereal or an omelet. I had my hopes up for cereal, but they ran out, so I settled for the fruit bowl and a lukewarm croissant. I later had a couple of bananas from the snack basket to tide me over.

We landed about 10 minutes late in San Francisco, and bags took perhaps 15-20 minutes.

As is typical with Delta, priority tags are meaningless. These seem to work quite well on Continental, but they’ve never been helpful on Delta.

Recommendations
Regency Hotel, Jerusalem: a great bargain, terrific gym, outstanding view. Grade A.

Crowne Plaza, Ein Bokek: overpriced, but there is no comparable property. Grade B

Sheraton Tel Aviv: expensive, but a lot of nice perks. Grade A-.

Delta Air Lines: Grade B.

I think it’s a toss-up between Delta and Continental in business class to Israel. They each have their pros and cons.

Good points:

For the first time in more than a year all of my flights were on time or close to it.
The seats really are fine, and I slept well. The blankets and pillows are especially good.
Ground services were friendly at every port of call.
The food in BusinessElite is still pretty decent.
The Hebrew-speaking cabin crews are outstanding. (They’re good on Continental too).
Entertainment was outstanding, particularly on domestic segments.


Bad points:

The SkyClub is dismal and needs food.
The food in domestic first class transcon flights is tragic.
The cabin crews have deteriorated drastically over the past year. Delta used to have such hospital and gracious crews. Now they just seem to want to get out of there as soon as possible. They mostly seemed tired, irritable, and unwelcoming.
Delta should use its clout at the Atlanta Airport to get rid of the “screamers” at the entrance to immigration. These are contract employees—not customs and immigration agents. They’ve been a problem for a long time, and they probably do more harm than good.

Wow! What a fabulous trip reports! I'm glad that you had a great time in Israel for weeks. Hope your flight will be very successful out of TLV-ATL-SFO. I am looking forward to hear from your writing the trip reports. Hope you are enjoyable the entire trip. This is my last trip out of ATL-TLV-ATL is not bad situation at all. I couldn't sleep very well for whole flight out of TLV-ATL. I am trying to walk the economy class to get more stretch the legs. When I get in ATL where I hoping next flight for ATL-PHX. I am trying to get some sleep but, I missed the refreshments. So when we get back home to PHX where I need to get some sleep at our house. Because we are very long jetlegs out of TLV-ATL-PHX.

Great report Mats! ^

Thanks for the great report! ^

Thanks for the trip report.

Why would you always prefer EL AL?

Thanks for the trip report.

Why would you always prefer EL AL?

No, he doesn't want to be on LY. Because it was terrible connection in JFK/EWR. I don't think he will ever put on LY for awhile. I think he want to have more convenient for connection flight in ATL. He will have best time for him and instead of going to JFK/EWR.

Doesnt LY fly from lax direct as well?

Yes, El Al has a nonstop flight from Los Angeles to Tel Aviv. They code share with American, so there are connections available via Chicago or JFK.

I think that El Al has exceptionally friendly service, good food, and it's nice to fly on an Israeli airline.

To be fair, the food and seats are actually a bit nicer on Continental and Delta. And the entertainment is much better on the US carriers.

Doesnt LY fly from lax direct as well?

Yes, it is nonstop from LAX-TLV operating 3x or 4x weekly frequencies. I'm sure LY will be very successful route for LAX-TLV nonstop to becoming year-round.

I think that El Al has exceptionally friendly service, good food, and it's nice to fly on an Israeli airline.

To be fair, the food and seats are actually a bit nicer on Continental and Delta. And the entertainment is much better on the US carriers.

Thanks for the answer. I'm getting it seems to be more of emotional response than a straight comparison.

Yes. You're right.
This is not an objective comparison.

Hey, Mats! I enjoyed your report.

Had to laugh about the greeting in ATL with the gal yelling at everyone to form one line. In May I arrived from NRT and was greeted by the same situation; namely, 3 customs agents hollering at once. I thought, welcome to the USA....how embarrassing!

I don't even think she works for customs and immigration... I think she was just a contract employee on a power trip at 6:00 am. This is not a woman with very good coping skills.

DL hires some very cheap labor at JFK immigration too. Except at JFK they are actually wearing DL uniforms. One time, the DL people were clueless about APEC diplomatic cards and after I complained to an INS guy, he scolded them in front of dozens of passengers. :)

When I did my report on our trip to Tuscany, I didn't fully elaborate on some of the points you hit really well, such as:

1. I don't know why the employees at TSA or in the immigration halls have to scream out instructions. After a long flight where my body has been vibrating for hours, even in the most comfortable of seats, the last thing I need is for the airline or the government to torture me with loud, obnoxious announcements.

2. Delta has gotten really inconsistent on having their FA's welcome pax to BE. I think before each flight, the FAs have two different computer printouts, the first one the preliminary manifest, and then, right before the door closes, the GA brings on the final paperwork, which is the final manifest. In other words, the FAs know your name, and who is supposed to be sitting where, before the flight starts. In January, when I got op-ups in both directions to and from LHR, the pursers on each flight greeted me by name and chatted with me for a bit before we got going. This small gesture, which costs the airline nothing by the way, can set the tone for a really great flight, and can overcome some problems later on, such as the IFE not working, turbulence, a catering error, etc. This is because they've got the support and goodwill of the pax.


On our trip two weeks ago, neither my wife nor I were greeted by any of the FAs by name, except for one FA on each leg. Going over to Pisa, the purser, a 50+ male, was efficient and courteous but cold. On the way back, the ground staff at PSA screwed up the boarding by stopping pax who were already in the jetway from going onto the plane for 10 hot minutes, and then there was chaos on board as the passengers in Y were pushing past the passengers in BE. I tend to look at a flight's quality by on-time departure and arrival, cleanliness of aircraft, promptness of service, comfort of seat, level of quiet, and our flight had all of that. The personality of the FAs, a short but fun chat, a unique kindness or favor, those are the things that one always remembers.

3. The flight kitchen can make the difference. On this past trip, I thought the flight kitchen at PSA did an outstanding job. One of our FAs wanted to give the credit to Michelle Bernstein, whom she said is "organizing things for us", but as I have gone through all kinds of airports over the years, I recognized that the fresh ingredients and flourishes that were on that particular flight could only come from a place where people put an immense amount of work and pride into food, such as Tuscany. I'm old enough to remember that Delta flights in ATL and DFW were once catered by an outfit called "Dobbs Houses". In those days, Delta flights had far better food than they have today.

As far as the ground crew outside of immigration... these are contract staff, and they're just awful. These are absolutely the lowest-paid employees, and I imagine that they have no training at all. These are not people with good coping or social skills.

And on board...
Yeah, I remember Dobbs catering. That wasn't too long ago.
I've had some really great meals in BusinessElite, but I've had some pretty bad ones too. From the US, I think the food is better out of New York. Atlanta is usually worse (I once had the Mahi Mahi from Atlanta to Buenos Aires. Oops.)

Delta's crews used to be a lot more polished. Although there were always a few jerks out there, most were warm, attentive, accommodating, and social. This was definitely not the case on this trip. The impression I got was, "We're retiring or getting furloughed tomorrow, we don't care, and we hate our lives."

I can remember Delta flights where the purser would remember my name on the way out and on the way back. Crews who would want to chat, always asking if you wanted anything, etc. I think those days are over. (Mind you, this wasn't 100%--but Delta was the best of the US carriers.)

There are plenty of days when I am frustrated with work, mad about money, benefits, or management... but I don't let that show when I'm with patients. I try to be as personable and thoughtful as possible with them despite the circumstances.