grabaflyer

My trip all began at the conclusion of 2009, when Air New Zealand's promotional website grabaseat.co.nz was releasing a number of $1 flights to destinations all around New Zealand, as well as the occasional international route. Thankfully, the period of promotion co-incised with my study leave. So with a book in front and my laptop behind, I would sit on grabaseat all day while "efficiently" studying away. From this I was able to nab about thirty return flights, twenty two of which were for myself. This meant that for about four months the following year I had planned to fly away for just about every weekend; much to the envy of my friends at school. It became apparent very soon that if I took all of these flights, my airpoints status would be upgraded from jade to silver. The key benefit of becoming a silver status member is the use of a one sector one class upgrade voucher. This became the inspiration behind my trip; so that I could use it to upgrade from Y to C on Air NZ from Auckland to Osaka. From there I decided to travel around Asia on my own, staying with friends I had made from previous trips etc.

On the day of departure, Christmas day, I rang up AirNZ, and thankfully they informed me that my upgrade to Osaka had cleared. I was very thankful because the thought of twelve hours in Y on a 767 wasn't all that appealing.



NZ 302
CHC-AKL
737-300
December 25th, 2010
8:30P-9:50P
20F
Economy

Although a domestic route, this flight departs from the international terminal in Christchurch to allow for an easier transit between international flights. Because this was the only flight departing, there was no queue at check-in, nor were there many pax to be seen anywhere. Because this was the only international flight departing, business passengers are able to use the domestic koru lounge instead. So after saying farewell to my family, I headed up.


Domestic lounge entrance


Seating area


Food bar - Salads, cheeses, savory items and a chicken dish



There were five people all up, including myself, which was rather empty for this lounge.

Customs was also empty, which meant within a few minutes I was into the international departures lounge. Surprisingly, most of the shops were still open.


International departures lounge

We boarded thirty minutes late due to the late inbound arrival of the aircraft. Once on board we waited another twenty minutes for "technical difficulties". In this time, a glass of water was served.




View from my seat

The service on board a domestic jet service in NZ is minimal, but adequate for the short flight. There is a choice of tea, coffee, and mineral water, as well as casava crisps, fruit pieces and a muesli bar. I had the fruit pieces and the muesli bar. I was lucky enough to have a nine month old baby sitting next to me, who cried the whole way. And whats more, the baby and her parents were also on my next flight, in the row behind myself. Joy! Something to look forward to for the next twelve hours.

We landed in Auckland almost an hour late. Our tiny 737 parked next to a 772, making it seem incredibly small. After another security check, I headed up to the International Koru lounge, my first ever visit there.


The recently renovated Departures lounge at Auckland International Airport


International koru lounge entrance


Seating area






Shower room

It wasn't long after a shower that my flight began boarding. A short walk to gate got me to a long queue of passengers. Thankfully I was able to skip the queue, which was a nice feeling. At the business class queue, the crew member seemed surprised to see a 17 year old standing there. She gave me the "are you lost?" look, and said Business class?



NZ 97
AKL-KIX
767-300ER
December 25th, 2010
11:59P-7:30A+1
4A
Business

A warm welcome on board and I found my seat, 4A. A pre-departure glass of orange juice lead to a rather awkward conversation with a cabin crew member
Her: On your own?
Me: ...Yea
Her: On Christmas Day?
Me: Yup...
Her: *shakes head... how very sad. *Walks off
Great, now I had the pity from the cabin crew.


C cabin


4A

The seat was comfortable. AirNZ's 763 is not fitted with business premier, so lie flat seats are out of the question. The seat was more of a lazy boy, but all the same, it was comfortable. Plenty of leg room and despite being in the last row for C, recline was not affected. The amenity kit was rather disappointing, just the usual socks, eye mask, ear plugs, gels, tooth brush and pen. I think the only thing that was worth keeping was the bag it came in, and maybe the grippy socks. The bottle of water was nice as well. Oh and who could forget the wonderful slippers? I think they can stay on the plane.

Business class was rather lightly loaded, with only 9/24 sold on boxing day. However on departure there were about 16 people. Luckily I had a spare seat next to me. We started taxiing five minutes early, just in front of a 772 heading for Hong Kong. A rather smooth take off and roll to the right was about as exciting as it got, as the remainder of the flight was rather smooth.

Soon after take off, menus were handed out, and the fast dine option was offered. The menu was as followed;

Auckland - Osaka
-------------------
Fast Dine

Pumpkin soup with sour cream and chives
White Chocolate and Raspberry panna cotta and chocolate brownie
-------------------

Starter
Japanese appetiser selection

Bakery
Sourdough bread, dark rye with caraway seed bread and garlic bread

Main Course
Seared beef eye fillet with Cabernet glaze, porcini butter, green beans and herb gratin potatoes by Rex Morgan

Basil and feta chicken thigh with golden kumara and thyme mash, broccolini and pickled black Doris plum jus by Geoff Scott

Japanese braised snapper with sweet soya sauce, daikon, deep fried tofu, eggplant, beans and steamed rice and cod roe
*Japanese green tea, miso soup and Japanese pickles to complement your meal.

Dessert
Gourmet dessert of strawberry ice cream and lemon meringue ice cream with chocolate almond wafer

Cheese and Fruit
A selection of fine New Zealand cheese and fresh seasonal fruit

Hot Drinks
Freshly brewed or decaffeinated coffee, tea, Japanese green tea, herbal tea or hot chocolate

-------------------

Self-Service Snacks

Help yourself from our range of snacks available to you to enjoy your flight. For something more substantial, ask your flight attendant for a selection of club sandwiches or a Japanese Onigiri rice snack with pickled plum.

-------------------


Japanese Starter


That's about as appetising as Garlic bread comes...


Basil and feta filled chicken thigh

grabaflyer

Gourmet ice-cream


Cheese, crackers and grapes.

Dinner was rather nice, in particular the kumara and thyme mash, but what is Broccolini? Wouldn't it be much easier to say Broccoli? Why confuse everyone. The main course was cleared about thirty minutes after serving, which was fine. Dessert was lovely, it's always nice to have ice cream on a flight. Two servings of cheese and fruit afterwards was kind of awkward, because I hate cheese on crackers, and I certainly wouldn't step up for a grape, but I felt obliged to accept the generous offer of two servings from the FA. I also felt obliged to finish them, so after getting through one piece of cheese I hid the rest in the napkin. None the wiser.

Drinks were a bit slow in coming around, one before dinner was about it for 90 minutes, and after my third glass of pineapple juice I was shrudely told I'd single handedly drunk all the pineapple juice on the plane. Great, now I feel guilty. Looks like water from here on in.

A few more bumps on the way, and shortly after dinner the lights were dimmed for sleeping. I had been avoiding a fair few movies for the past few months so that I wouldn't be bored to tears on the flight, so it became a bit of a marathon to get through six before the flight landed. After two and a half, I was completely exhausted, (having left packing to 11pm the night before) so a short nap turned into a few hours of decent sleep.

What was missing was the noise canceling head phones, but for some reason there were none left, so I was spoilt by choice with nothing or Y headphones. I'm not picky, but it seemed slightly disappointing to be wearing Y headphones when everyone else was using the noise canceling ones. Didn't really matter anyhow.

After my sleep, I figured I'd make the most of the self-service snack bar. Surprisingly AirNZ had laid out the snacks over the front right emergency exit door. Is that right? The snack bar had a range of bits and pieces, bottles of water, pieces of fruit, biscuits, cookie times and small chocolate bars. More than adequate for the 12 or so of us in Business.

Service was impressive, because every time I tried to get a snack from the self service bar, an FA would be straight over offering to make something more substantial or to get a drink. Eventually I caved in, and a few minutes later an Onigiri rice snack was brought to my seat.


Japanese onigiri rice snack and coke

Before long, the lights were back on and it was time for breakfast.

-------------------

Breakfast

-------------------

Wake-up Drinks
Start your day with a fruit smoothie, your choice of juice, freshly brewed or decaffeinated coffee, tea, Japanese green tea or hot chocolate

Light Breakfast
A bowl of muesli topped with Greek style yoghurt and fresh fruit is available as a lighter option

Full Breakfast
Fruit and cereals will be offered followed by a hot bakery selection and your choice of a hot breakfast

Fresh fruit salad

Fruit or plain Greek style yoghurt

Toasted Muesli and Cluster Crisp Triple Berry cereal, Weetbix, Cornflakes

Bakery
Croissants, muffins, Vogel's brioche or fruit toast served with fruit conserve

Hot Breakfast
Creamy chive scrambled eggs with chicken sussages, mushroom ragout, potato hash cake and cherry tomatoes

Vanilla hot cakes with apple, cinnamon and blueberry compote, and Pohutukawa honey cream

Japanese breakfast of grilled salmon with red plum sauce, egg cake, burdock, fish cake and steamed rice with takana

-------------------

The wake up drinks were wonderful, a nice touch, and rather delicious. That was joined by a glass of orange juice. Great start to the morning.


Banana and honey smoothie

I'm not a big eater, but I felt like a little bit of everything, so I ordered just about everything off the breakfast menu. The croissant was lovely and warm, although i'm use to having cheese in a croissant, not Jam. So that didn't get finished. Also i'm a melon hater, so only the yoghurt and pineapple got eaten. As I say, I wanted a bit of everything.


Breakfast starter

Because of my slow eating, it took about forty minutes to get my next course. For some peculiar reason, I choose the scrambled eggs and sausages. These are pretty typical breakfast options in Y, and lets be honest, it doesn't matter what class your in, there aren't many airlines that can do it justice. I wish I had chosen the pancakes because i', a huge fan, but I guess that's what happens to a sleep deprived youth.


Scrambled eggs, sausages and something to do with mushrooms

And i'm not going to lie, the scrambled eggs didn't fail to disappoint, they were exactly as I had anticipated when I boarded; miserable. The sausages were over cooked, the scrambled eggs were... well they were as they look. Nice to have proper knives and forks, although I can't help but think every time I get proper knives, doesn't this defeat the purpose of not being allowed knives through security? Obviously the knives aren't particularly big, but still.

The toilets were nice, seemingly more spacious than Y. Plus a few skin care products. Nice not to have to queue at all.


Toilet


Economy

Landing soon commenced, passing over the harbor at Osaka for about ten minutes. Things were mostly grey, so I wasn't particularly intrigued. There was very little turbulence, and landing was very smooth. A ten minute taxi took us to our gate. This was my first time to Kansai airport, so I made sure I was given pretty clear instructions as to where to go for transit. Because of it's length, kansai has four trains, two at each end, which take passengers to the middle for customs etc.


Our aircraft parked up


Kansai

Kansai airport was nice, impressive considering it was built entirely on a man made island. Another security check caught me by surprise, as I had a few bottles of water I had collected, so they were all tipped out. There were a fair few aircraft there, and because I had a six hour transit, I had plenty of time to walk around. I had made a friend who was on the same flight and got upgraded mid-flight because the elderly lady next to him almost died or something. He didn't really know, because he was more excited about the surprise upgrade. So he and I walked around and used the free internet and trains.


Various airlines at Kansai

It seemed unusual, coming from New Zealand, that there were smokers' rooms, but by the end of my trip it seems NZ is unusual for having next to nothing like that.


Smokers' lounge

We then went to the Kansai Refresh Cabin. For 1500 Yen you can use the lounge for two hours. In the lounge there are four massage chairs, computers, showers, free drinks and little rooms. The rooms were incredibly small! But they had a bed and tv, and were really nice to just get away from all the noise. The showers were nice too, especially after a twelve hour flight.

I have a slightly bad reputation for electronic goods back home, i've managed to make my way through three iPod touches (number four should be on it's way) four cellphones, and a few digital cameras. SO it was little surprise when my camera stopped working in Osaka. Thankfully my parents back home send me money to buy another one, but I still missed the rest of my trip to Incheon. Long story short, two days later it turns out my camera was indeed not broken, but needed new batteries.

OZ 111
KIX-ICN
330-300
December 26th, 2010
12:50P-2:40P
32B
Travel Class

Because my camera had "broken", I have no photos from this flight. This was my first flight on an A330, so I was a little excited. As was it also my first time on Asiana, and considering they were skytrax number one airline, I had high hopes. And they didn't let me down. Boarding was on time, and the staff were very friendly. The seat was nice and comfortable, and the aircraft felt new and very clean.

All safety messages were spoken in four languages, which I was grateful for, because despite the fact that I'm "fluent" in korean, I'd be hopeless without the english. AVOD doesn't start until after takeoff which was a shame, but I was incredibly tired so it didn't really matter.

I had a neighbour sitting next to me. She didn't speak english, and I don't speak korean, so we got on fine. Take off was very smooth, and after a loop around Osaka we headed off for Incheon. Soon after, cabin crew began handing out the meal. There was no choice in the meal offerings, but for a two hour flight you can't be picky. The meal was an assortment of Japanese food. Sushi etc was there, but having never been to Japan, I had no idea how to eat anything; what to eat first?

My neighbor seemed to know what she was doing, so from the corner of my eye I watched her, and followed suit. However, i'm not the most subtle person out, and after a few bites, she stopped eating and sort of turned away. Understandably she was confused as to why I was copying her. But when a man has to eat...

My avod frooze, and once it was re-started I found there was next to nothing available for english, so I tuned to Su-do-ku. I get the feeling my neighbor was a math teacher, because she found it amusing I was stuck for about fifteen minutes.

Ten minutes early, we landed in Incheon amidst low grey cloud. Another smooth landing, and de-boarding was very quick. Outside, although there was no snow, everything was white. It was soo cold everything had frozen. Incheon airport is wonderful, and clearing through customs etc is a quick and simple process. Incheon airport really is tough competition for Changi, although Singapore does seem superior. One thing I noticed is the lack of personality among the customs staff, even on my last trip you are indeed very lucky to be acknowledged with he nod of a head.

grabaflyer

OZ 361
ICN-PVG
747-400
January 15th, 2011
9:30A-10:30A
21A
Business

A rather early start of 4:30am was greeted with . I ended up catching one of the airport limousines, which although slightly more expensive than the train, meant I would get there quickly and directly. It was soo cold that even the inside of the windows on the bus were frozen. It was -7 degrees when I got up, but by the time I had arrived at the airport it was -13 degrees.

I arrived at Incheon airport at about 6:45am, and after walking from one end to the other, I finally found Asiana’s check in area. Because I had booked in “travel” class, I headed to the appropriate line. The queue was about half full, but within twenty minutes it was full, so I was glad I chose to get there early. After my three week stay in Seoul, my Korean was still poor, or non-existent to be exact. But I was very kind to the check in agent, using the few simple phrases I knew. This was mainly because I was significantly over weight, but she needn’t know that. While she was typing away, there was this little pause, for about thirty seconds. She looked at me strangely, and then printed my tickets. No word about my luggage, or my three carry on bags. She just indicated where security was.

I had planned on getting to the airport early to make use of Incheon Airports private lounge facilities, “he HUB”. While trying to find the lounge, I walked past Asiana’s first and business lounge. The idea came to mind about just walking in, blaming ignorance on my lack of Korean. But instead I continued my walk. The cost was a little pricey, but because I was an Asiana customer, I had read that the price was discounted. I went to the counter, and the staff there said the original price. I showed her my onward boarding pass, and she said, “Sir are you transiting?” I said “Yes, yes I am” She replied “Where are you transiting from?” The only Asiana destination I could think of was Sydney. Had the agent had any knowledge of Asiana’s flight schedule, she’d have known the flight from Sydney didn’t arrive for another twelve hours. But she didn’t. So on I went.

The lounge was nice, although I was slightly disappointed. The website led me to believe it was a lot bigger than it actually was, when it was only one big room. Food offerings were nice, scrambled eggs, dumplings, noodles, rice, a meaty dish, and cup-of-noodles. The drinks on offer were a very limited selection of white and red wines, and a fridge of local popular drinks, including Pocari sweat, orange and grape juice, Iced coffee, cold tea, iced tea and so on. Two coffee machines were also on offer, and beside them was a small freezer with small pottles of ice cream. Nice. Numerous computers were on offer. After sending a few emails, I decided to have a shower.

The showers were separate from the lounge, and were free to all passengers. What was not free, however, was the use of a towel. I was leaving the country, so I had no cash left, and my visa card wasn’t working. To be honest I don’t think I would really pay $5 or so for a towel anyhow, so I decided to use paper towels. I had left everything on the ground, passport, camera, clothes etc. And after having a very pleasant shower, I threw all the paper towels into the toilet, and flushed. For anyone with more common sense than me would have predicted the toilet would block, and sure enough, it did. Not wanting to get in trouble, I quickly began to get dressed and get out. Before I knew it water began to fill the toilet at an alarming pace. Closing and sitting on the lid, I had no idea what to do next, but I figured so long as I remained sitting, I’d be alright. But soon water gushed from the sides, all over the floor, under the door into reception, and into my personal belongings. Long story short, most of my clothes were saturated, so I was left wearing less than anticipated, but thankfully I had packed a lot of clothes into my hand luggage.


Our B744 for the short 2 hr flight to Shanghai

I assume boarding started on time, because I turned up twenty minutes early, just as boarding was closing. Like at many big international airports, Incheon utilize two air bridges for each aircraft, generally the first used for business/first and the second for the left overs. I took the second option, and after snapping a few photos, was greeted by two Asiana staff at the door.



I tried to turn right into the economy section, but there was that awkward yet wonderful moment when both staff put their arms out and pointed to business.


View from 21A

I was incredibly excited. This would explain why there was no charge for being over in my luggage allowance, because having read a previous thread by Jafa39, I should have been charged thousands of won. This was my first time with lie flat beds, so despite the short flight time, I decided I would have to try it out. A very light load in C, only 11/21 seats on the main deck, as was the Y cabin, although the F cabin was full.

A Pre departure drink of orange juice was offered, and as both doors were closed, I was stoked that the seat next to me would remain vacant. Having closed the doors fifteen minutes early, we waited at our gate for taxi clearance.


Pre-Departure Drink

Asiana's new C cabin was very nice. The seat itself was spacious and comfortable, and with many different positions I imagine it would be most enjoyable for long-haul. Plenty of leg room on offer too. The cabin was very spacious, with Asiana opting for a 2-3-2 configuration. The AVOD was a great size, and once in the air, a wide selection of movies in English and Korean was available.


Sorry for the crap quality!




A quick taxi and departure saw us take off into the north and roll shortly after take off to the left. It had been a long time since being in the old 744, but it was incredibly smooth. The view of Seoul was lovely, because of a recent dumping of snow.



About ten minutes after take off, the in flight entertainment was activated, so I tried to make it through Killers. A meal was served soon after. No options were available, not too sure why, and I couldn't help but wonder if this was the same meal being served to economy?





Some sort of beef meal, rather western I felt, except for the pottle of tofu. Two drinks services were appreciated, which I believe were not offered in Y. The meal was cleared about 40 minutes later, which was fine because I put the tray on the seat beside me.

I decided to go exploring. Economy would barely be half full, and I went to see the seat I had picked, 32A, but it was not vacant. A visit to the C toilets was nice, because Asiana offer a nice range of amenities for the short flight (i'm guessing its standard on all flights) There were razors, tooth burshes, and hair brushes in a nice leather case. A walk down to economy meant I found even Y offered something; tooth brushes and mouth wash. Nice. The only thing the F toilets had were a few bottles of moisturiser. On return, I tried to finish the movie, but found my seat too comfortable when it was at 180 degrees. It was flightly uncomfortable being at a slight angle, but all the same I was able to get a quick sleep in. Arrival cards were handed out, and before I knew it we landed just a few minutes early into PVG. Again, a very smooth landing, i'm not sure if I'm happy or sad.


Descent into Shanghai


The rear of Y



Pudong airport wasn't as bit as I had anticipated but there were a lot of foreign aircraft there. Things seemed to be a bit dis-organised at the transit counters, but as I was entering China it didn't matter. My luggage came out about midway, so I wonder if the check in agent did know if I was in business. Surely she'd have said something? Anyway, I was very impressed with Asiana, and it is little wonder why they are one of the best airlines in the world.

ikvliegveel

A warm welcome onboard and I found my seat, 4A. A pre-departure glass of orange juice lead to a rather awkward conversation with a cabin crew member
Her: On your own?
Me: ...Yea
Her: On Christmas Day?
Me: Yup...
Her: *shakes head... how very sad. *Walks off
Great, now I had the pity from the cabin crew.




so how did the FA treat you the rest of your flight ?

grabaflyer

This one in particular FA acted like my mother, which was nice in theory.

brenrox

Great report so far and some really good photos!

brenrox

.....

lyrad89

aha i LOVE the small pix, doesnt take a while to load.