Here We Go Again...A HUGE Circle Around The Pacific in CO/CA/TG/SQ/NZ whY
Aug 5, 2011, 12:05 am
#16
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SEA
Programs: AS MVP 75K, DL Diamond, LH SEN, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Ambassador
Posts: 2,360
Flight V: HKG-SIN
Singapore Airlines Flight SQ891 Hong Kong to Singapore
Departure: 12:30 PM
Arrival: 4:10 PM
Equipment: Boeing 777-200ER
Aircraft in HKG
Gate Area
Route Map
Gate Neighbors
Legroom
International Selection
In Flight
Over Vietnam
Gate in SIN
SIN Immigration
Departure: 12:30 PM
Arrival: 4:10 PM
Equipment: Boeing 777-200ER
Aircraft in HKG
Gate Area
Route Map
Gate Neighbors
Legroom
Singapore Airlines Economy Class SQ891B HKG-SIN Menu
International Selection
Appetiser
Pasta salad with smoked beef
Main Course
Pan friend chicken in mushroom sauce with seasonal vegetables and potatoes
Cheese
Cheese and crackers
Dessert
Ice cream
From the bakery
Roll and butter
Hot Beverages
Coffee - Tea
Oriental Selection
Appetiser
Chinese barbecued pork and Asian slaw
Main Course
Stir fried fish fillet with chinese chives in oyster sauce, sauteed vegetables and steamed rice
Light bites
Chinese snack
Dessert
Ice Cream
From the Bakery
Roll and butter
Hot Beverages
Chinese tea
International Selection
Appetiser
Pasta salad with smoked beef
Main Course
Pan friend chicken in mushroom sauce with seasonal vegetables and potatoes
Cheese
Cheese and crackers
Dessert
Ice cream
From the bakery
Roll and butter
Hot Beverages
Coffee - Tea
Oriental Selection
Appetiser
Chinese barbecued pork and Asian slaw
Main Course
Stir fried fish fillet with chinese chives in oyster sauce, sauteed vegetables and steamed rice
Light bites
Chinese snack
Dessert
Ice Cream
From the Bakery
Roll and butter
Hot Beverages
Chinese tea
In Flight
Over Vietnam
Gate in SIN
SIN Immigration
Aug 5, 2011, 10:40 am
#18
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: IAH
Programs: UACO Plat/1K, DL Plat, Hertz 5*, Avis - PC, SPG Gold, Colorado Pass
Posts: 228
Oh yeah, my sister. You see, a couple of years ago I told my baby sister that I would take her anywhere she wants to go as a graduation gift. Well, she graduated in June and both of our schedules had free space for July and August so I started making arrangements. Her travel experience is US + Mexico and she doesn't fly enough to understand the rules and procedures associated with complex itineraries so there was some initial disappointment when the original plan (F/J instead of Y) didn't work out. SQ will always behave like SQ and their dominance in Southeast Asia is unavoidable when trying to fly on *A. Still, a trip involving 7 countries (including Malaysia by land) is an accomplishment when booked on relatively short notice!
Looking forward to the rest of the report!
Aug 5, 2011, 7:08 pm
#20
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SEA
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Posts: 2,360
Thank you! We stood in line for over an hour for the ride going up and 90 minutes for the ride going down but it was worth the wait.
Thanks! Yes I will earn lots of good brother points for this haha. The new seats are nice although they're a little narrow. They don't recline to 180 degrees flat but they'll suffice for a regional flight. When I was booking these tickets I saw plenty of TG C availability on that route and our flight was almost empty in C so I don't know why these seats aren't selling!
Thanks! The route map showed a westward route at first but changed as we flew over the arctic. The final part of the flight was southeast over Russia and Mongolia. I flew CO89 once before in March but we didn't take the eastward polar route. At first I thought it might be a glitch in the AVOD but once we landed I checked online and it displayed the same route.
I remembered you mentioned that you were going to fly 24k miles BIS but on an award ticket in whY. The horror! I thought to myself that's so un-BryanIAH-like. I understand now. A good brother.
Nice going on the op-up. I have this flight booked in business in October so I'm glad you wrote it up. It's funny; I was wondering last night how royal silk on this particular flight would be. Thanks!
Looking forward to the rest of the report!
Nice going on the op-up. I have this flight booked in business in October so I'm glad you wrote it up. It's funny; I was wondering last night how royal silk on this particular flight would be. Thanks!
Looking forward to the rest of the report!
Thanks! The route map showed a westward route at first but changed as we flew over the arctic. The final part of the flight was southeast over Russia and Mongolia. I flew CO89 once before in March but we didn't take the eastward polar route. At first I thought it might be a glitch in the AVOD but once we landed I checked online and it displayed the same route.
Aug 6, 2011, 4:31 am
#21
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Phuket, Thailand
Programs: Qatar Gold, Asiana Club Diamond, THAI silver
Posts: 169
Enjoy all the hi-def photos. Many thanks for such a quality trip report.
On the side note, I'd like to see more pics from the cabin.
I'll be flying CO 777-200ER and 767-400ER trans-atlantic, I hope seats will be nice to me as this will be my first Economy class over trans-atlantic. I used to non-rev in Business class all the time.
Not sure how CO PC lounge at EWR terminal C is like. Are there free alcohol beverages for me to calm myself down knowing that none is complimentary later on the flight?
The food on CO looks nasty. They could have done a bit more with the presentation if not the quality of food.
THAI 777-200 you were on was actually non ER one.
What happened to your main course on SQ flight? They should never use that hard aluminium-like stuff.
Thank you once again.
On the side note, I'd like to see more pics from the cabin.
I'll be flying CO 777-200ER and 767-400ER trans-atlantic, I hope seats will be nice to me as this will be my first Economy class over trans-atlantic. I used to non-rev in Business class all the time.
Not sure how CO PC lounge at EWR terminal C is like. Are there free alcohol beverages for me to calm myself down knowing that none is complimentary later on the flight?
The food on CO looks nasty. They could have done a bit more with the presentation if not the quality of food.
THAI 777-200 you were on was actually non ER one.
What happened to your main course on SQ flight? They should never use that hard aluminium-like stuff.
Thank you once again.
Aug 6, 2011, 5:07 am
#22
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: HKG, BOS
Programs: CX SL, AB Gold, AF/KL FB Silver, HU/HX Silver, SPG Gold
Posts: 2,596
I was also on SQ891 a few weeks ago (not OP's flight), and they were too using the disposable casserole rather than the washable one. Same thing on SQ2 out of SIN. Apparently, as per SQTalk, they're cost-cutting. It doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the meal presentation...
Aug 6, 2011, 7:39 am
#23
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SEA
Programs: AS MVP 75K, DL Diamond, LH SEN, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Ambassador
Posts: 2,360
Enjoy all the hi-def photos. Many thanks for such a quality trip report.
On the side note, I'd like to see more pics from the cabin.
I'll be flying CO 777-200ER and 767-400ER trans-atlantic, I hope seats will be nice to me as this will be my first Economy class over trans-atlantic. I used to non-rev in Business class all the time.
Not sure how CO PC lounge at EWR terminal C is like. Are there free alcohol beverages for me to calm myself down knowing that none is complimentary later on the flight?
The food on CO looks nasty. They could have done a bit more with the presentation if not the quality of food.
THAI 777-200 you were on was actually non ER one.
What happened to your main course on SQ flight? They should never use that hard aluminium-like stuff.
Thank you once again.
On the side note, I'd like to see more pics from the cabin.
I'll be flying CO 777-200ER and 767-400ER trans-atlantic, I hope seats will be nice to me as this will be my first Economy class over trans-atlantic. I used to non-rev in Business class all the time.
Not sure how CO PC lounge at EWR terminal C is like. Are there free alcohol beverages for me to calm myself down knowing that none is complimentary later on the flight?
The food on CO looks nasty. They could have done a bit more with the presentation if not the quality of food.
THAI 777-200 you were on was actually non ER one.
What happened to your main course on SQ flight? They should never use that hard aluminium-like stuff.
Thank you once again.
I was also on SQ891 a few weeks ago (not OP's flight), and they were too using the disposable casserole rather than the washable one. Same thing on SQ2 out of SIN. Apparently, as per SQTalk, they're cost-cutting. It doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the meal presentation...
Aug 7, 2011, 11:05 pm
#24
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SEA
Programs: AS MVP 75K, DL Diamond, LH SEN, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Ambassador
Posts: 2,360
Singapore
Singapore is one of my favorite destinations in Asia so I was excited about this visit even though it was for only 23 hours. After leaving my sister told me that Singapore is her favorite stop on this trip!
With such a short stop we decided to visit Orchard Road and of course the Singapore Flyer.
With such a short stop we decided to visit Orchard Road and of course the Singapore Flyer.
Aug 8, 2011, 11:45 pm
#25
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: ORD, HKG
Programs: UA*G, AA Emerald, HHonors Diamond, Hyatt globalist
Posts: 10,279
Have you ever flown CO TPAC yourself ? It actually doesn't looks nasty (it is just he didn't set the tray in the right positions of photos) and the quality is very high compare with UA and DL on TPAC routes, even compatible if not better than some asian carriers. I mean how many airlines still have menus in Y ? And how many airlines have ice-cream for mid-flight snack ? CO have both ! Even like NH they are selling icecream instead of giving out for free.
Aug 9, 2011, 1:46 pm
#26
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: EWR, SLC, SGN
Posts: 1,113
disagree
Have you ever flown CO TPAC yourself ? It actually doesn't looks nasty (it is just he didn't set the tray in the right positions of photos) and the quality is very high compare with UA and DL on TPAC routes, even compatible if not better than some asian carriers. I mean how many airlines still have menus in Y ? And how many airlines have ice-cream for mid-flight snack ? CO have both ! Even like NH they are selling icecream instead of giving out for free.
but i am enjoying the TR, thanks for sharing as always.
Aug 10, 2011, 6:51 am
#28
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Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SEA
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Posts: 2,360
Aug 10, 2011, 8:49 am
#29
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SEA
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Posts: 2,360
Flight VI: SIN-BWN
SQ's flights to Brunei depart from Changi's Terminal 2. We tried to check in online but SQ's system could not process the request so we used the counters in SIN.
*G members flying in Y don't have access to the SilverKris lounges and are instead herded into the SATS Lounge in T2 or the KrisFlyer Gold Lounge in T3. We used the T2 lounge and weren't impressed at all. Upon entry our ears were immediately bombarded by the ramblings of a businessman on his cell phone who paced around the lounge as hetalked screamed on the phone! The lounge staff did nothing to address this issue even though we saw two people complain about the problem. DYKWIAs aside, the food and beverage selection was limited and the wifi was slow. We left after about 30 minutes as my sister wanted to explore the airport.
Airport Pond & Trees
Finally it was time to board so we went to the gate for a security check. The gate lounge wasn't very full and only about half of the seats on the plane were filled.
Singapore Airlines Flight SQ182 Singapore to Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
Departure: 2:45 PM
Arrival: 4:55 PM
Equipment: Boeing 777-200 (3 class)
Our flight was operated by a 777 with the regional First/Raffles class configuration - equivalent to domestic F seats in the US. Since the plane was far from full we were each able to occupy our own row during the flight.
Menus weren't offered on this flight but we were given a choice of beef or fish for the meal. We both selected the beef but it wasn't very good.
We landed in BWN on time and sprinted to passport control. Even though we passed all of the F/J pax we were still behind about 40 people in the queue. BWN was very hot with limited air conditioning and reminded me of my wait at KBP immigration two years ago. After about 45 minutes we formally entered Brunei!
The sale of alcohol is illegal in Brunei but non-Muslims can import a certain quantity. After baggage claim we completed an orange form and presented it to the customs officials where we were waived through without using the x-ray machine. I guess he liked us or something.
A taxi to the hotel was B$25 (about $20 USD) and we passed several Shell stations along the way. Brunei has large oil deposits and the government sets the price at B$.53 per liter - about $1.65 USD per gallon!
I'll post more details about our stay in Brunei in the next installment.
*G members flying in Y don't have access to the SilverKris lounges and are instead herded into the SATS Lounge in T2 or the KrisFlyer Gold Lounge in T3. We used the T2 lounge and weren't impressed at all. Upon entry our ears were immediately bombarded by the ramblings of a businessman on his cell phone who paced around the lounge as he
Airport Pond & Trees
Finally it was time to board so we went to the gate for a security check. The gate lounge wasn't very full and only about half of the seats on the plane were filled.
Singapore Airlines Flight SQ182 Singapore to Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
Departure: 2:45 PM
Arrival: 4:55 PM
Equipment: Boeing 777-200 (3 class)
Our flight was operated by a 777 with the regional First/Raffles class configuration - equivalent to domestic F seats in the US. Since the plane was far from full we were each able to occupy our own row during the flight.
Menus weren't offered on this flight but we were given a choice of beef or fish for the meal. We both selected the beef but it wasn't very good.
We landed in BWN on time and sprinted to passport control. Even though we passed all of the F/J pax we were still behind about 40 people in the queue. BWN was very hot with limited air conditioning and reminded me of my wait at KBP immigration two years ago. After about 45 minutes we formally entered Brunei!
The sale of alcohol is illegal in Brunei but non-Muslims can import a certain quantity. After baggage claim we completed an orange form and presented it to the customs officials where we were waived through without using the x-ray machine. I guess he liked us or something.
A taxi to the hotel was B$25 (about $20 USD) and we passed several Shell stations along the way. Brunei has large oil deposits and the government sets the price at B$.53 per liter - about $1.65 USD per gallon!
I'll post more details about our stay in Brunei in the next installment.