Ni Hao - A trip to China BA F, CZ F & Y+
Sep 13, 2011, 7:02 am
#31
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: SZG/MUC
Posts: 348
Fantastic trip report! I now have a few more places to put on my ever-growing list of places to visit! Those frogs in a bag look delectable! I hope you bought some to take home with you and roast for Thanksgiving in place of a turkey! 
Sep 14, 2011, 6:24 am
#33
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Thanks SQ325. The resort was quite basic but the staff and setting were absolutely fabulous and it was only a 15 minutes (30 yuan) ride into Yangshuo proper if you wanted to go out.
Sep 14, 2011, 6:30 am
#34
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Day 7
Day 7 A county drive & a Disney boat ride
This was our final day at the lovely retreat and as we had to check out at noon we opted for one last late leisurely breakfast on the terrace.
After breakfast we packed out things ready for checkout. We had pre-booked a car transfer from the retreat to our hotel in Guilin for 12:30. We had the option of paying extra to go on the toll roads and save half an hour or so or to go the cheap route. As we had opted the toll roads from Guilin airport we decided to do the slow route back.
We checked out and noon and said our goodbyes to the lovely staff at the Yangshuo Mountain Retreat and waited for our driver to arrive.
He turned up on time and we headed off to Guilin. I was glad we had chosen to do the non toll road route as it meant driving through many smaller villages and towns that were off the tourist trail. My only regret was that were unable to stop and explore some of them on the way.
I suppose now is as good a time as any to talk about road travel in China. One of our guides in Beijing mentioned that the annual road death toll in China is greater than the population of some of the smaller European countries. After having travelled by car and taxi quite a bit over the last week I can fully understand why. It is quite obvious that the lines on the road delineating the traffic direction or cycle from car lanes are there simply because they look nice. No one took any notice and we often found ourselves overtaking other vehicles whilst oncoming traffic had to veer into their bicycle lane to avoid us. Likewise the cyclists and scooter riders had no qualms about moving into the car lanes to pass slower traffic without looking for cars. Especially in Beijing it seems that holding your hand on the car's horn makes for easier negotiation of the chaos on the road. Another interesting technique I noticed by some drivers was to turn left into a road and undertake the cars stopped at the red light no the road we were turning into by driving on the left of them instead of going out around them on the right.
After an hour or so the countryside gave way to more built up areas and before we knew it we were once again in the hustle and bustle of a city. We negotiated Guilin's streets over the Li River and down to the Sheraton Guilin that would be our home for the night.
We checked into the hotel and given a suite of sorts with the living area near the front door and the bedroom at the back that led out onto a balcony. It was a great step up from the retreat but nowhere near as luxurious as the St Regis.
We went out for a bit of a walk in the local area and my friend did some souvenir shopping. We decided to try our luck doing the Four Lakes Two Rivers tour for that evening and booked this through the travel desk in the hotel. The agent warned us the tour would have no English commentary.
We grabbed a late lunch/early dinner across the street from the hotel and later went to the lounge for some drinks and canapés. The lounge was quite small and had a limited supply of drinks and food.
At around 19:45 we walked down the road and across the river to the pier where our boat ride would start. At 20:30 the boat arrived and we piled on into our assigned seats. The tour takes you along the Li River for a spell and then enters a lock arrangement where the vessel is lifted up to a higher elevation and you pour out into one of the lakes. At this point cheese gushed forth to engulf your sight and sound senses. There were lights and music and Chinese musicians and dancers all plying their art. The local tourists on the boat seemed to love it and my friend and I could barely contain our laughter. It was like being on the 'It's a small world' tour at Disneyland.
The tour then proceeded to take us through several lakes in the Guilin town area that are connected. The scenery was mostly just the buildings in the city itself. We did pass under some lovely old bridges on the tour but mostly it was uninspiring. The tour concluded after a more traditional lock arrangement took us down to river level and we emerged from the boat near a famous rock formation known as Elephant Rock.
I apologise that my photos of this tour are a little lacklustre as I used my old point and shoot rather than taking my new toy. Also there wasn't that much really to take a picture of. Unless you are into cheese with a capital C I suggest you give this tour a wide berth (excuse the pun).
Next up; time to say goodbye to China (a.k.a Moomba travels Y)
This was our final day at the lovely retreat and as we had to check out at noon we opted for one last late leisurely breakfast on the terrace.
After breakfast we packed out things ready for checkout. We had pre-booked a car transfer from the retreat to our hotel in Guilin for 12:30. We had the option of paying extra to go on the toll roads and save half an hour or so or to go the cheap route. As we had opted the toll roads from Guilin airport we decided to do the slow route back.
We checked out and noon and said our goodbyes to the lovely staff at the Yangshuo Mountain Retreat and waited for our driver to arrive.
He turned up on time and we headed off to Guilin. I was glad we had chosen to do the non toll road route as it meant driving through many smaller villages and towns that were off the tourist trail. My only regret was that were unable to stop and explore some of them on the way.
I suppose now is as good a time as any to talk about road travel in China. One of our guides in Beijing mentioned that the annual road death toll in China is greater than the population of some of the smaller European countries. After having travelled by car and taxi quite a bit over the last week I can fully understand why. It is quite obvious that the lines on the road delineating the traffic direction or cycle from car lanes are there simply because they look nice. No one took any notice and we often found ourselves overtaking other vehicles whilst oncoming traffic had to veer into their bicycle lane to avoid us. Likewise the cyclists and scooter riders had no qualms about moving into the car lanes to pass slower traffic without looking for cars. Especially in Beijing it seems that holding your hand on the car's horn makes for easier negotiation of the chaos on the road. Another interesting technique I noticed by some drivers was to turn left into a road and undertake the cars stopped at the red light no the road we were turning into by driving on the left of them instead of going out around them on the right.
After an hour or so the countryside gave way to more built up areas and before we knew it we were once again in the hustle and bustle of a city. We negotiated Guilin's streets over the Li River and down to the Sheraton Guilin that would be our home for the night.
We checked into the hotel and given a suite of sorts with the living area near the front door and the bedroom at the back that led out onto a balcony. It was a great step up from the retreat but nowhere near as luxurious as the St Regis.
We went out for a bit of a walk in the local area and my friend did some souvenir shopping. We decided to try our luck doing the Four Lakes Two Rivers tour for that evening and booked this through the travel desk in the hotel. The agent warned us the tour would have no English commentary.
We grabbed a late lunch/early dinner across the street from the hotel and later went to the lounge for some drinks and canapés. The lounge was quite small and had a limited supply of drinks and food.
At around 19:45 we walked down the road and across the river to the pier where our boat ride would start. At 20:30 the boat arrived and we piled on into our assigned seats. The tour takes you along the Li River for a spell and then enters a lock arrangement where the vessel is lifted up to a higher elevation and you pour out into one of the lakes. At this point cheese gushed forth to engulf your sight and sound senses. There were lights and music and Chinese musicians and dancers all plying their art. The local tourists on the boat seemed to love it and my friend and I could barely contain our laughter. It was like being on the 'It's a small world' tour at Disneyland.
The tour then proceeded to take us through several lakes in the Guilin town area that are connected. The scenery was mostly just the buildings in the city itself. We did pass under some lovely old bridges on the tour but mostly it was uninspiring. The tour concluded after a more traditional lock arrangement took us down to river level and we emerged from the boat near a famous rock formation known as Elephant Rock.
I apologise that my photos of this tour are a little lacklustre as I used my old point and shoot rather than taking my new toy. Also there wasn't that much really to take a picture of. Unless you are into cheese with a capital C I suggest you give this tour a wide berth (excuse the pun).
Next up; time to say goodbye to China (a.k.a Moomba travels Y)
Sep 15, 2011, 1:25 pm
#36
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Day 8
Day 8 A last wander in Guilin and Moomba in Y shocker
Our final day in China (unless you count a SAR as China) was spent doing a little more sightseeing in Guilin before catching a CZ flight from KWL to HKG.
We breakfasted courtesy of the Sheraton Club in the restaurant next door to it. There was quite a range of food mostly Asian although they did have some of the usual Anglo items such as eggs, bacon sausage etc and the traditional continental offerings of meats, cheese and the like.
After our feast we walked along the road that followed the Li River. The Chinese do tend to create wide tree lined paths and there always seem to be activity be it someone just sitting in the cool or groups of people having a dance lesson on the path.
We made our way down to Fubo Hill where we entered caves within that contained old Buddhist images carved into the rock. We also climbed to the top of the karst for what should have been some pretty decent views of Guilin. As per the rest of our trip visibility was terrible and most of what we could see disappeared into the haze.
After an hour or so at Fubo Hill we walked back up to the hotel to shower and make ready to head to the airport for our 15:00 flight to Hong Kong.
We caught a taxi out to the airport which is about 40 minutes out of town. On arrival we located the CZ desks and approached the agent at the elite desk. She started typing away and asked us to put our bags on the belt. She then said we were over weight by 4.5 kilos. We were travelling Y+ and our allowance was only 20kg each. My friend said as I was SkyTeam elite we should be allowed extra baggage. I pulled out my KLM card and presented it to her. She did some more typing and had a conversation with another agent but eventually let us go with our boarding passes for 31J & 31K.
When we purchased the tickets the TravelZen website doesn't allow the option of purchasing economy plus tickets but you can view all economy ticket buckets and we could select the Y+ fare bucket. When we got the 31J & 31K boarding passes we were a little perplexed and thought our plans had come unstuck. Oh well nothing much could be done about it now so we proceeded to emigrations and then security both of which were quick and painless. We did the full 3 minutes tour of the Duty Free store in the international part of the terminal and then used our Priority Pass cards to get us into the only lounge in that part of the terminal.
The lounge had very basic offerings of tea, coffee, juices and some sweet and savoury biscuits and cake. It was quiet and we were able to grab a cold drink while we waited for the flight. There was no wifi apart from the airport wide service supplied by Chinese telcos.
At the scheduled boarding time we went out to wait at the gate until the flight was called. Boarding started without any priority call, iirc.
Flight CZ3031 KWL-HKG Seat 31K
Aircraft: 737-800
Departure time: 15:50
We went on board past the 2 rows of business and then I started walking toward the rear of the aircraft past the Y+ seats. It was only after I had taken a few steps that I looked up and noticed the seat numbers. CZ have row 1 & 2 as business then a divider and the next row is 31 and it indeed Y+. We had to back track up to row 31 and we took our seats. The Y+ seat has extra legroom and came with a pillow but apart from that the service is all Y.
The people in Y+ were given a bottle of water prior to take-off that the rest of the economy cabin didn't get.
We pushed back at 15:45 and the block time of the flight was 1.5 hours. We took off shortly at around 15:50. After the belt sign was extinguished the crew took the trolleys up to the front and soon returned with the meal service. A tray with a vegetable salad, some sort of jelly thing, pineapple and a cinnamon roll type bread. Another bottle of water was handed out with the meal.
Half an hour into the flight the crew announced that we would be landing in half an hour. Talk about padding. The meal tray was taken away and the crew finished up the service with the delivery of a mint at the top of the descent.
We landed out 16:50 and taxied to the infield terminal at HKG. This meant that we needed to take a bus to the main terminal. After plying out of the bus and up to immigrations we were met with the usual lengthy queues.
After we made it through we still had to wait a while for our bags and they were out within the first dozen or so.
A friend of my travelling companion met us outside and they took off to his apartment whilst I made my way on the AEX to the Sheraton HKG for a few days.
I will forego any details on my time in Hong Kong as it was mostly spent eating and drinking.
That means next up is the end of the road for this report with a flight back to LHR.
A few more photos here
Our final day in China (unless you count a SAR as China) was spent doing a little more sightseeing in Guilin before catching a CZ flight from KWL to HKG.
We breakfasted courtesy of the Sheraton Club in the restaurant next door to it. There was quite a range of food mostly Asian although they did have some of the usual Anglo items such as eggs, bacon sausage etc and the traditional continental offerings of meats, cheese and the like.
After our feast we walked along the road that followed the Li River. The Chinese do tend to create wide tree lined paths and there always seem to be activity be it someone just sitting in the cool or groups of people having a dance lesson on the path.
We made our way down to Fubo Hill where we entered caves within that contained old Buddhist images carved into the rock. We also climbed to the top of the karst for what should have been some pretty decent views of Guilin. As per the rest of our trip visibility was terrible and most of what we could see disappeared into the haze.
After an hour or so at Fubo Hill we walked back up to the hotel to shower and make ready to head to the airport for our 15:00 flight to Hong Kong.
We caught a taxi out to the airport which is about 40 minutes out of town. On arrival we located the CZ desks and approached the agent at the elite desk. She started typing away and asked us to put our bags on the belt. She then said we were over weight by 4.5 kilos. We were travelling Y+ and our allowance was only 20kg each. My friend said as I was SkyTeam elite we should be allowed extra baggage. I pulled out my KLM card and presented it to her. She did some more typing and had a conversation with another agent but eventually let us go with our boarding passes for 31J & 31K.
When we purchased the tickets the TravelZen website doesn't allow the option of purchasing economy plus tickets but you can view all economy ticket buckets and we could select the Y+ fare bucket. When we got the 31J & 31K boarding passes we were a little perplexed and thought our plans had come unstuck. Oh well nothing much could be done about it now so we proceeded to emigrations and then security both of which were quick and painless. We did the full 3 minutes tour of the Duty Free store in the international part of the terminal and then used our Priority Pass cards to get us into the only lounge in that part of the terminal.
The lounge had very basic offerings of tea, coffee, juices and some sweet and savoury biscuits and cake. It was quiet and we were able to grab a cold drink while we waited for the flight. There was no wifi apart from the airport wide service supplied by Chinese telcos.
At the scheduled boarding time we went out to wait at the gate until the flight was called. Boarding started without any priority call, iirc.
Flight CZ3031 KWL-HKG Seat 31K
Aircraft: 737-800
Departure time: 15:50
We went on board past the 2 rows of business and then I started walking toward the rear of the aircraft past the Y+ seats. It was only after I had taken a few steps that I looked up and noticed the seat numbers. CZ have row 1 & 2 as business then a divider and the next row is 31 and it indeed Y+. We had to back track up to row 31 and we took our seats. The Y+ seat has extra legroom and came with a pillow but apart from that the service is all Y.
The people in Y+ were given a bottle of water prior to take-off that the rest of the economy cabin didn't get.
We pushed back at 15:45 and the block time of the flight was 1.5 hours. We took off shortly at around 15:50. After the belt sign was extinguished the crew took the trolleys up to the front and soon returned with the meal service. A tray with a vegetable salad, some sort of jelly thing, pineapple and a cinnamon roll type bread. Another bottle of water was handed out with the meal.
Half an hour into the flight the crew announced that we would be landing in half an hour. Talk about padding. The meal tray was taken away and the crew finished up the service with the delivery of a mint at the top of the descent.
We landed out 16:50 and taxied to the infield terminal at HKG. This meant that we needed to take a bus to the main terminal. After plying out of the bus and up to immigrations we were met with the usual lengthy queues.
After we made it through we still had to wait a while for our bags and they were out within the first dozen or so.
A friend of my travelling companion met us outside and they took off to his apartment whilst I made my way on the AEX to the Sheraton HKG for a few days.
I will forego any details on my time in Hong Kong as it was mostly spent eating and drinking.
That means next up is the end of the road for this report with a flight back to LHR.
A few more photos here
Last edited by Moomba; Oct 5, 2013 at 4:11 pm
Sep 15, 2011, 1:27 pm
#37
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Sep 16, 2011, 12:06 pm
#40
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Home again
The flight home
After a couple of days in and out of the sub-zero air-conditioning of most buildings in Hong Kong and then the wet heat outside my body couldn’t cope and I ended up on my last day fighting the beginnings of a cold.
My last day I spend just lolling about the hotel room and waiting for checkout at 16:00. The hotel agent invited me to stay in the lounge until it was time for me to go to the airport and have one last drink.
At around 19:30 I headed out to catch the bus to Kowloon station and checked in for the flight there. A quick ride on the AEX and I was walking up to the airside checkpoint. Security was quick and emigration was only marginally slower. I turned left and headed to the CX F lounge where I immediately headed for the showers to freshen up.
After a cooling shower it was time to eat. I was escorted to a seat in the restaurant and asked for a glass of Sauvignon Blanc. I checked out the buffet spread and grabbed some vegies and osso bucco to have for my late lunch. The much raved about Peninsula catering was only good, not great.
Actually apart from the service in the lounge there is not a lot going for it these days. In its hey day this was one of the best lounges in the OW network. But now it is tired and old and I am not surprised that they are currently refurbishing the lounges at HKG.
CX F Lounge HKG
CX F Lounge HKG
CX F Lounge HKG
My friend turned up at the lounge at around 21:30 and we stayed there for one drink before heading over to the joint BA/QF lounge. The lounge agent welcomed us in and we grabbed a glass of bubbly each and sat down to wait out our flight.
BA/QF F Lounge HKG
BA/QF F Lounge HKG
The F lounge is one floor up from the departures area. To get to the gate we had to walk back to towards the centre of the building do go down an escalator and then double back to the gate. It is a bit of a faff and a shame that one cannot descend down one floor any closer to the gates that BA use.
Boarding had commenced by the time we got to the gate via a quick side trip to the windows to take a snap of our bird. We were able to walk straight up to the elite desk and had our BPs checked before walking down the ramp to the plane.
Flight BA0028 HKG-LHR Seat 1A
Aircraft: 747-400
Departure time: 23:45
I had managed to nab the elusive pair of seat 1AK for us at around 78 hours out from our departure when BA open theses seats up through the manage my booking pages on ba.com. We were both escorted to our seats and immediately asked if we would care for a take off beverage. I of course asked for champagne. Amenity kits and PJs were then handed out. This time we were pleased to see the new BA F cabin.
The champagne was delivered and was the newest BA champagne offering of the Laurent-Perrier Grand Siecle.
There seemed to be less upgraders on this flight with only 3 more seats occupied by the time we pushed back than those that were pre-assigned when I checked in online.
The captain came on the horn to give us the routing and announced a flying time of 11 hours and 50 minutes.
We pushed back at 23:45 and taxied down to the end of the far runway. Take off was at seven minutes past midnight and we flew out over Hong Kong although the views were not that great as we entered a cloud layer just when it was about to get interesting.
After the belt sign was turned off the crew came out with the menus and hot towels and offered drinks. I went with more bubbly that was delivered soon after along with some warm nuts. The F purser dropped by and took our dinner orders at this point.
The Menu
DINNER
STARTERS
Salmon gravlax with apple and crabmeat salad
Mushroom mousse timbale with mushroom cream sauce and tomato sauce
Creamy spinach and Stilton soup
Fresh salad leaves with your choice of pear olive oil vinaigrette or Pommery mustard sour cream dressing
MAIN
Beef tenderloin with red wine jus
King prawn with spinach and artichoke risotto
Wok-fried chicken with crab paste and chilli
Chilled soba noodles and mushroom salad with duck
BISTRO SELECTION
Pappardelle with Teleggio cheese fondue
Warm bacon roll
A selection of biscuits
A selection of cheese and fruit
DESSERT
Praline almond tuile with chocolate mousse
Cherry clafoutis with toffee sauce
CHEESE PLATE
Blue Stilton
Cheddar
Edam
WINE LIST
Aperitif
Kir Royale
Champagne
Laurent-Perrier Grand Siecle, Champagne, France
White
Meursault Le Limozin 2007, Vincent Girardini, Burgundy, France
Grand Vin Sec Du Chateau Doisy-Daene 2008, Bordeaux, France
Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling 2008, Clare Valley, Australia
Red
Chateau Labegorce-Zede 2004, Cru Bourgeois Margaux, Bordeaux, France
Newton Johnson Pinot Noir 2009, Walker Bay, South Africa
The Laughing Magpie 2007, d’Arenberg, McLaren Vale, South Australia
Dessert
The Noble Mudpie 2010, d’Arenberg, McLaren Vale, South Australia
Warre’s 1992 Colheita Tawny Port
Sprits, Digestifs and Liqueurs
Gonzalez Byass Sherries
Smirnoff Black Label Vodka
Tanqueray No. 10 Gin
Johnnie Walker Blue Label Scotch Whisky
The Glenlivet 18-year-old Single Malt Whisky
Woodford Reserve Kentucky Whiskey
Otard XO Cognac
The table was set a while later and my champagne glass was refilled. An amuse bouche of potato wrapped in prosciutto and a mustard onion arrangement was delivered. There were plenty of refills of champagne and the crew seemed to be constantly out checking on their charges.
The crew on this flight were so different to the previous flight and nothing was too much trouble, they were proactive rather than reactive and they took a genuine interest in the passengers. They asked how I liked the food and were constantly offering to get more water, wine, bread etc. In short this First crew acted like they were a First crew and how different it felt to the LHR-PEK flight.
After the bouche it was time for the dinner service to commence.
I started with the mushroom event that was quite nice but with two sauces was a little over sauced.
The soup and salad were up next and the soup was lovely but very thick. Well a salad is a salad.
I was tempted to give the beef and go but after the last disaster I instead went safe with the wok-fried chicken. This was quite nice although quite bland for something that stated it had chilli in it.
Plenty of bread was offered throughout the meal and I switched to the lovely Laughing Magpie that was also topped up regularly. After the crew cleared away my plate I was asked if I wanted dessert. Well who could resist the chocolate mousse? Not me. I switched up to the Mudpie dessert wine that was delectable as usual.
Finally the F purser tried to tempt me with some cheese. When I declined he winked and said ‘come on you have had everything else’. The cheek of this fellow.
As I was finishing up the dessert one of the crew came around offering duty free sales. I said I would like something and she said ‘you finish your meal first I will come back’. How nice it was to have a fabulous crew like this one for this flight home.
After I finished off the last of my wine I asked one of the crew to make up my bed. I retired soon after and was awoken by the cabin lights being switched on for breakfast at 03:00 UK time.
Breakfast
Starters
Chilled fruit juice
An energising smoothie
A selection of yoghurts
A selection of cereals
Fresh seasonal fruit plate
A wide selection of breakfast pastries and rolls
Main
Traditional English breakfast of scrambled eggs, pork sausage, bacon, mushroom, tomato and bubble and squeak
Gruyere omelette
Stir-fried Shanghai noodles with chicken and dim sum
Beverages
Teas – Traditional English Breakfast, Darjeeling, Early Grey, Pure Green, Pure Camomile, Pure Peppermint, Lemon and Ginger or Blackcurrant, Ginseng and Vanilla
Coffee – Freshly roasted and ground, decaffeinated, espresso or cappuccino
I tried not to stir too early as I wanted to get as much rest as possible with this cold bearing down on me and a ridiculous Moomba plan about to unfold. I did eventually rise closer to landing time and asked for a pot of tea with lemon.
I knew I would be able to have a much better and leisurely breakfast in the arrivals lounge.
At forty minutes out the captain came on the horn and told us we would be landing shortly. The crew started to make ready the cabin and we landed at LHR at 05:05 on a reasonably bright morning by London standards.
We landed at a B gate and to my surprise the ramp was attached to door 1L, which meant the F cabin could disembark first.
We caught the train thingy over to the main terminal and I was able to successfully use IRIS to get me into the country. We were down at the baggage carousel by 05:27 and the bags started to roll around 10 minutes later. Of equal surprise to me our bags came out relatively quickly and BA pulled of the magnificent feat of my having nothing to complain about for this flight. I can assure you that doesn’t happen that often.
We made our way out and up to the arrivals lounge where the agent asked be me if I would like an invite to the CR breakfast room which I confirmed.
After a shower in the strange slurpy, cramped shower room it was time for breakfast.
We entered the inner sanctum and a waiter appeared to take our orders. I went with some juice, fruit and the eggs benedict. The food was OK but the benedict is nowhere near the standard of the best airline lounge egg B and that can be had in MEL or SYD in the QF F lounges.
After breakfast it was time for me to HEX and tube my way home to do a couple of loads of washing and get some kip before heading out to the airport again for my next adventure to begin…….
A few more photos here
After a couple of days in and out of the sub-zero air-conditioning of most buildings in Hong Kong and then the wet heat outside my body couldn’t cope and I ended up on my last day fighting the beginnings of a cold.
My last day I spend just lolling about the hotel room and waiting for checkout at 16:00. The hotel agent invited me to stay in the lounge until it was time for me to go to the airport and have one last drink.
At around 19:30 I headed out to catch the bus to Kowloon station and checked in for the flight there. A quick ride on the AEX and I was walking up to the airside checkpoint. Security was quick and emigration was only marginally slower. I turned left and headed to the CX F lounge where I immediately headed for the showers to freshen up.
After a cooling shower it was time to eat. I was escorted to a seat in the restaurant and asked for a glass of Sauvignon Blanc. I checked out the buffet spread and grabbed some vegies and osso bucco to have for my late lunch. The much raved about Peninsula catering was only good, not great.
Actually apart from the service in the lounge there is not a lot going for it these days. In its hey day this was one of the best lounges in the OW network. But now it is tired and old and I am not surprised that they are currently refurbishing the lounges at HKG.
CX F Lounge HKG
CX F Lounge HKG
CX F Lounge HKG
My friend turned up at the lounge at around 21:30 and we stayed there for one drink before heading over to the joint BA/QF lounge. The lounge agent welcomed us in and we grabbed a glass of bubbly each and sat down to wait out our flight.
BA/QF F Lounge HKG
BA/QF F Lounge HKG
The F lounge is one floor up from the departures area. To get to the gate we had to walk back to towards the centre of the building do go down an escalator and then double back to the gate. It is a bit of a faff and a shame that one cannot descend down one floor any closer to the gates that BA use.
Boarding had commenced by the time we got to the gate via a quick side trip to the windows to take a snap of our bird. We were able to walk straight up to the elite desk and had our BPs checked before walking down the ramp to the plane.
Flight BA0028 HKG-LHR Seat 1A
Aircraft: 747-400
Departure time: 23:45
I had managed to nab the elusive pair of seat 1AK for us at around 78 hours out from our departure when BA open theses seats up through the manage my booking pages on ba.com. We were both escorted to our seats and immediately asked if we would care for a take off beverage. I of course asked for champagne. Amenity kits and PJs were then handed out. This time we were pleased to see the new BA F cabin.
The champagne was delivered and was the newest BA champagne offering of the Laurent-Perrier Grand Siecle.
There seemed to be less upgraders on this flight with only 3 more seats occupied by the time we pushed back than those that were pre-assigned when I checked in online.
The captain came on the horn to give us the routing and announced a flying time of 11 hours and 50 minutes.
We pushed back at 23:45 and taxied down to the end of the far runway. Take off was at seven minutes past midnight and we flew out over Hong Kong although the views were not that great as we entered a cloud layer just when it was about to get interesting.
After the belt sign was turned off the crew came out with the menus and hot towels and offered drinks. I went with more bubbly that was delivered soon after along with some warm nuts. The F purser dropped by and took our dinner orders at this point.
The Menu
DINNER
STARTERS
Salmon gravlax with apple and crabmeat salad
Mushroom mousse timbale with mushroom cream sauce and tomato sauce
Creamy spinach and Stilton soup
Fresh salad leaves with your choice of pear olive oil vinaigrette or Pommery mustard sour cream dressing
MAIN
Beef tenderloin with red wine jus
King prawn with spinach and artichoke risotto
Wok-fried chicken with crab paste and chilli
Chilled soba noodles and mushroom salad with duck
BISTRO SELECTION
Pappardelle with Teleggio cheese fondue
Warm bacon roll
A selection of biscuits
A selection of cheese and fruit
DESSERT
Praline almond tuile with chocolate mousse
Cherry clafoutis with toffee sauce
CHEESE PLATE
Blue Stilton
Cheddar
Edam
WINE LIST
Aperitif
Kir Royale
Champagne
Laurent-Perrier Grand Siecle, Champagne, France
White
Meursault Le Limozin 2007, Vincent Girardini, Burgundy, France
Grand Vin Sec Du Chateau Doisy-Daene 2008, Bordeaux, France
Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling 2008, Clare Valley, Australia
Red
Chateau Labegorce-Zede 2004, Cru Bourgeois Margaux, Bordeaux, France
Newton Johnson Pinot Noir 2009, Walker Bay, South Africa
The Laughing Magpie 2007, d’Arenberg, McLaren Vale, South Australia
Dessert
The Noble Mudpie 2010, d’Arenberg, McLaren Vale, South Australia
Warre’s 1992 Colheita Tawny Port
Sprits, Digestifs and Liqueurs
Gonzalez Byass Sherries
Smirnoff Black Label Vodka
Tanqueray No. 10 Gin
Johnnie Walker Blue Label Scotch Whisky
The Glenlivet 18-year-old Single Malt Whisky
Woodford Reserve Kentucky Whiskey
Otard XO Cognac
The table was set a while later and my champagne glass was refilled. An amuse bouche of potato wrapped in prosciutto and a mustard onion arrangement was delivered. There were plenty of refills of champagne and the crew seemed to be constantly out checking on their charges.
The crew on this flight were so different to the previous flight and nothing was too much trouble, they were proactive rather than reactive and they took a genuine interest in the passengers. They asked how I liked the food and were constantly offering to get more water, wine, bread etc. In short this First crew acted like they were a First crew and how different it felt to the LHR-PEK flight.
After the bouche it was time for the dinner service to commence.
I started with the mushroom event that was quite nice but with two sauces was a little over sauced.
The soup and salad were up next and the soup was lovely but very thick. Well a salad is a salad.
I was tempted to give the beef and go but after the last disaster I instead went safe with the wok-fried chicken. This was quite nice although quite bland for something that stated it had chilli in it.
Plenty of bread was offered throughout the meal and I switched to the lovely Laughing Magpie that was also topped up regularly. After the crew cleared away my plate I was asked if I wanted dessert. Well who could resist the chocolate mousse? Not me. I switched up to the Mudpie dessert wine that was delectable as usual.
Finally the F purser tried to tempt me with some cheese. When I declined he winked and said ‘come on you have had everything else’. The cheek of this fellow.
As I was finishing up the dessert one of the crew came around offering duty free sales. I said I would like something and she said ‘you finish your meal first I will come back’. How nice it was to have a fabulous crew like this one for this flight home.
After I finished off the last of my wine I asked one of the crew to make up my bed. I retired soon after and was awoken by the cabin lights being switched on for breakfast at 03:00 UK time.
Breakfast
Starters
Chilled fruit juice
An energising smoothie
A selection of yoghurts
A selection of cereals
Fresh seasonal fruit plate
A wide selection of breakfast pastries and rolls
Main
Traditional English breakfast of scrambled eggs, pork sausage, bacon, mushroom, tomato and bubble and squeak
Gruyere omelette
Stir-fried Shanghai noodles with chicken and dim sum
Beverages
Teas – Traditional English Breakfast, Darjeeling, Early Grey, Pure Green, Pure Camomile, Pure Peppermint, Lemon and Ginger or Blackcurrant, Ginseng and Vanilla
Coffee – Freshly roasted and ground, decaffeinated, espresso or cappuccino
I tried not to stir too early as I wanted to get as much rest as possible with this cold bearing down on me and a ridiculous Moomba plan about to unfold. I did eventually rise closer to landing time and asked for a pot of tea with lemon.
I knew I would be able to have a much better and leisurely breakfast in the arrivals lounge.
At forty minutes out the captain came on the horn and told us we would be landing shortly. The crew started to make ready the cabin and we landed at LHR at 05:05 on a reasonably bright morning by London standards.
We landed at a B gate and to my surprise the ramp was attached to door 1L, which meant the F cabin could disembark first.
We caught the train thingy over to the main terminal and I was able to successfully use IRIS to get me into the country. We were down at the baggage carousel by 05:27 and the bags started to roll around 10 minutes later. Of equal surprise to me our bags came out relatively quickly and BA pulled of the magnificent feat of my having nothing to complain about for this flight. I can assure you that doesn’t happen that often.
We made our way out and up to the arrivals lounge where the agent asked be me if I would like an invite to the CR breakfast room which I confirmed.
After a shower in the strange slurpy, cramped shower room it was time for breakfast.
We entered the inner sanctum and a waiter appeared to take our orders. I went with some juice, fruit and the eggs benedict. The food was OK but the benedict is nowhere near the standard of the best airline lounge egg B and that can be had in MEL or SYD in the QF F lounges.
After breakfast it was time for me to HEX and tube my way home to do a couple of loads of washing and get some kip before heading out to the airport again for my next adventure to begin…….
A few more photos here
Last edited by Moomba; Sep 21, 2011 at 1:43 pm
Sep 17, 2011, 6:25 am
#41
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: UK
Posts: 10,709
Thank you for an excellent and enjoyable trip report.
I do like the way the 747 looks like a disco in the First section from the outside. http://www.flickr.com/photos/9773617...57627540102811
I do like the way the 747 looks like a disco in the First section from the outside. http://www.flickr.com/photos/9773617...57627540102811
Sep 18, 2011, 11:29 am
#42
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Thank you for an excellent and enjoyable trip report.
I do like the way the 747 looks like a disco in the First section from the outside. http://www.flickr.com/photos/9773617...57627540102811
I do like the way the 747 looks like a disco in the First section from the outside. http://www.flickr.com/photos/9773617...57627540102811
The blue light haze does look pretty cool in the dark.
Sep 18, 2011, 9:24 pm
#45
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Kent, UK
Programs: BA Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 3,809
A great final flourish Moomba. The photos were very good indeed.
The F lounges at HKG don't look very exciting I must say. Did you get a peek into the BA/QF J lounge?
I'm so pleased that you got a good crew on the way back. What a difference it makes! Also, it seems like you enjoyed the food this time around. That mousse looks excellent.
As a veteran of many an F cabin, how would you say that the new F experience (when done right) compares?
The F lounges at HKG don't look very exciting I must say. Did you get a peek into the BA/QF J lounge?
I'm so pleased that you got a good crew on the way back. What a difference it makes! Also, it seems like you enjoyed the food this time around. That mousse looks excellent.
As a veteran of many an F cabin, how would you say that the new F experience (when done right) compares?