BrewerSEA

Introduction and Planning

While I spent my last summer traveling the world, come September I had not left the United States at all and done little flying. It was disappointing to not be able to use my increased free time to travel, but a number of obligations and a traveling companion's schedule prevented a planned trip to Thailand and Germany. In the middle of August on a whim I decided to check out JL F award availability out of North America. Generally considered one of the most difficult AAdvantage redemptions (QF F out of LAX notwithstanding) I wasn't hopeful, but I was surprised to see that JL was consistently opening up Sunday-Wednesday on ORD-NRT, though LAX and JFK still had no availability. One of my very best friends is studying abroad in Granada this fall and I had long said I would try to visit her. As my Junior year at the University of Washington would begin at the end of September immediately after labor day seemed as good a time as any. But how to link JL F TPAC to a trip to Spain? AA's wonderful F fare out of Sri Lanka of course. This fare has been around for a few years now and lies in a territory somewhere between mistake fares and great deals. As far as I know it is the lowest CPM F fare in existence (though I would love to be proved wrong!). Colombo is oddly in AA's Asia 2 award region, probably due to the fact that most oneworld service is on CX from HKG, SIN, and BKK, though RJ serves it from AMM as well. It will be interesting to see if this is changed with Sri Lankan's (UL) entry into oneworld next year. I for one will not look forward to paying 90k in F over the 67.5k currently charged ! AA requires that the over-the-water carrier publish a fare origin-destination for AAdvantage redemptions. While CX publishes a SEA-CMB fare, JL does not (constructing SEA-SFO + SFO-CMB). Therefore I needed to start my award in SFO. I bought a one-way coach flight on AS SEA-SFO which was upgraded to F (I am MVP Gold) about two days out. As JL only had availability Sunday-Wednesday and I needed to be in Seattle Labor Day weekend to work at Penny Arcade Expo I had to get a redeye out of SFO to connect to the JL flight. I booked SFO-DFW-ORD on AA, connecting to JL ORD-NRT. I really love Japan so decided to overnight in Narita. CX only 3-class aircraft to HKG out of Haneda, so I booked HND-HKG on a 77W followed by HKG-SIN on a 744. Another free overnight (though I wish AA actually allowed stopovers other than in North America) in Singapore then a regional J flight to Colombo.

Back to the ex-CMB fare. In the spring it was still possible to fly SQ in F on the 77W on this fare by booking an LH codeshare on SIN-FRA. Unfortunately in June LH pulled all "A" availability on that flight until end of schedule and none has been loaded since. I have done extensive research on all routes served by SQ 77Ws since that change and no carrier (the SQ code cannot be booked directly) that codeshares on those flights has loaded a single A seat. My next plan was to book a combination of TG and LH F, especially considering TG scheduled their 744 with the new suites the date I intended to book BKK-NRT. Unfortunately my TA could not book that fare with a stopover in FRA as my base for travel around Europe so I was forced to look at other options. I had a bad experience flying EK F last year but decided to give them another try. I was able to book CMB-SIN-DXB-CDG-LHR-SEA with two segments in EK A380 F and the TATL on the BA 747 with a ~80% chance of New First. I have been fortunate in that all five of my BA F flights to date have featured New First, even though once departing LAX I was told at check-in that my plane was equipped with Old First. I think I just jinxed myself…

During my week-long stopover in CDG I needed to get to Granada and back in time for my morning flight. I planned on purchasing a flight back, but Iberia wanted $1000 for economy. There was easy availability in J (but not Y) so for 20k AAdvantage miles and around $100 in taxes/"surcharges" I booked GRX-MAD-LHR-CDG including a segment on IB's longhaul A340. Not bad considering I thought I was going to be flying intra-europe J with that ridiculous blocked middle seating. I still haven't actually figured out how I'm getting from Paris to Granada, but it will probably involve trains and perhaps a domestic flight PNA-MAD-GRX in paid economy as I'd like to visit one of my fraternity brothers in Pamplona (Phi Alpha!).

To Hotels. I really wanted to stay at the Conrad Tokyo as I've heard such great things about that property and am a Hilton Diamond. Unfortunately they wanted JPY32000 while the vastly more convenient Hilton Narita was only JPY8000 and did not require nearly as much time and money for transfers between both airports. For my night in Singapore I booked the Conrad Singapore with the always useful PR13CB code for less than 200SGD. As I've been to Colombo before, I decided to just stay in the transit hotel rather than deal with the horrendous traffic that would await me on the ride back to the airport from the Hilton. For my arrival in Paris I booked the Waldorf=Astoria Trianon Palace Versailles. While I am not looking forward to the pretentious attitude reported on FT, it seems to have good Diamond recognition and I found a pretty good (for Paris) Getaway rate including breakfast. For the night before my flight home I booked the Hilton CDG which I've stayed at before and was a pretty good deal (less than half what they wanted for the night of my arrival in CDG!).

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Can't wait to read more and see pics, as I am hoping to do a very similar trip starting in October of this year.

BrewerSEA

Leaving Seattle

My last days at home were extremely busy and when Monday evening rolled around I was exhausted. Nonetheless I had a bit of a party. I moved into a townhouse very close to school a week before this trip, so my roommates and I invited a handful of friends and we celebrated a roommate's birthday (9/2) as well as that of one of my closest friends (9/5). Needless to say we partied hard, making the day of departure very hectic. In all the chaos I forgot that my DSLR was at my parent's house. I realized this about an hour before I planned to leave for the airport and wasn't really in a condition to drive at that point so all pictures in this report will be from my iPhone. Fortunately the 4S has a decent camera, though I can't wait to see what the iPhone 5 features like when it's announced next week!

At 7pm my my car arrived. I saw him pull up in front of my apartment but my phone did not ring. After grabbing my bags he was gone. Multiple calls to the service went straight to voicemail. I was really annoyed at this point so pulled out my phone and booked an Uber cab which said it would arrive 10 minutes later. Fortunately I did not have to pay their inflated prices (they are a decent value for moving around town but certainly not for airport transfers) as my driver appeared again 5 minutes later. My driver was quite congenial and we talked the entire 30 minute drive. He mentioned he was from Iraq and considering he did not look Arab I asked if he was Kurdish. I told him I had traveled to Hawler (Erbil) the previous summer and he excitedly told me that was his home town. Never before had he met a Westerner who had traveled to Iraq, let alone one who even knew the Kurdish name of his home town. For the rest of the ride we talked about Iraqi politics and the prospects for a Kurdish state. It was probably the most fascinating airport transfer of my life. On arrival I gave him an outrageous tip and headed to the central checkpoint. Unfortunately I got the dreaded single beep (for those of us who have grown used to TSA PreCheck) which was the second time in a row when flying AS (remember, I was not on an international itinerary yet). A quick drink in the Board Room (entry due to my Admirals Club membership and connecting AA flights) and I boarded the 80 minute flight to SFO.

I had tried a number of times to change from connecting in DFW on my way to ORD, including an appeal to revenue management about 12 hours out. Unfortunately these all failed. I spent much of my flight to SFO texting a friend who offered to make another call for me. He succeeded where I failed, and upon landing I went airside to check in with American. They were only able to print my boarding pass to ORD, which didn't bother me as I wanted one printed on JL stock anyway. I had a horrible experience in the Admirals Club that I thought would end in my arrest. If anyone wants to know the story, PM me. My flight to ORD was delayed about 90 minutes but I wasn't to bothered considering it meant I would be tired enough to sleep the entire flight, which I ultimately did. I arrived right next to the H/K Admirals Club and took a quick shower. There was a dedicated JAL desk upstairs and a nice Japanese woman who spoke perfect English checked me in, attached a First tag to my rollaboard and directed me to the Flagship lounge. The Angel at the desk advised me that I would be welcomed to board around 11:00 for my 11:10 flight. I relaxed for the next three hours, downloading some new music (apparently Trap is the new Dubstep) and TV for the trip. I had headphones on most of the time and think I may have missed the announcement as at 11:00 final boarding was announced and my name paged immediately after. The Japanese staff looked frantic to be missing an F passenger when I walked up to the gate and seemed very relieved when I confirmed that I was Mr. Brewer. The American agent standing with them made a crack about me being glad they didn't leave without me which made me feel better about unnecessarily agitating the other employees.

BrewerSEA

JL 9 ORD-NRT First Class

I was the last passenger to board and was welcomed by four beautiful Japanese flight attendants who directed me to my seat, 2K. There was one other passenger who had originally been booked in 1A but had moved to 1K. I didn't feel it necessary to move at this point, and the cabin felt very private with only the two of us being served by three FAs. My first impression of the cabin was mediocre. Not because there was anything wrong with it but because it looks nothing like the pictures on JL's website. The leather and seats were more grey than tan and the design seemed more clinical, but these complaints were all superficial and only a product of different expectations.


Cabin shot


Flat seat

I was offered pajamas and led to the larger of the two F lavs where the door was held open and then closed for me. This was an indication of the service to come, and the same FA was waiting outside to hang my clothing when I opened the door. There was no offer of PDB, which I understand is typical of Japanese carriers due to some Japanese government regulation. I was offered a selection of newspapers and a hot towel, which was the first of maybe five or six offered during the flight.


Hot towel and newspaper

Each FA came to my seat individually, kneeled, and introduced herself while pointing at her name tag. While the procedure felt robotic it was appreciated as I had trouble understanding their accents. This was a hint at what to expect ahead, as their English skills were quite limited. I have flown many international carriers and JL's FAs were by far the least proficient in English. This is typical of Japan, however, and I knew what to expect. I was given a large leather binder that contained the menu, wine list, immigration forms, duty free, and a small card signed by the FAs thanking me for flying with them.

MENU

JAPANESE CUISINE

Zatsuki
Poached "Matsutake" Musrooms & Spinach

Japanese Appetizer
Mukouzuke
Fluke "Sashimi" Roll / Laver Jelly
Tsubo
Steamed Abalone dressed with Cream Cheese
Shizakana
Smoked Salmon & Egg Yolk "Sushi" Style / Sweet-simmered Chestnut
Soy-marinated Beef-Tongue / Grilled Lobster Miso Flavor
Kobachi
Sesame Tofu with Raisin / Simmered Prawn
Grilled Squid / Yam Jelly with Chopped Okra
Simmered Conger Eel & Vegetables

Dainomono
Steamed Greenland Halibut with Chestnut

Seasoned Rice with Crabmeat
or
Steamed Rice
We are pleased to offer freshly steamed Koshihikari rice.

Soup
Stewed Chicken in Japanese Soup

Japanese Pickles

Japanese Sweet

CHEF'S RECOMMENDATION

Amuse Bouche
Bleu Cheese Cream with Celery Boat
Crabmeat Salad with Grapefruit
Salmon Canape

Hors d'Oeuvre (Choice)
Caviar
Lobster and Foie Gras with Ravigote Sauce
Salad Appetizer with Salmon Cake, Tartar Sauce

Main Dish (Choice)
Grilled Fillet of US Prime Beef with Wild Mushroom Sauce
Free Range Chicken Breast au Jus
Miso Flavored Sea-bass with Pancetta Provençal Sauce

Grand Dessert
Maracuya Cake with Blueberry Sauce

A LA CARTE

Japanese Delicacies
Steamed Anglerfish Liver Mousse with Soy Vinegar Sauce
Salt-pickled Squid
Jellyfish mixed with Sea Urchin

"Yakitori" - Skewered Grilled Chicken and Chicken Ball

Cheese
Assorted American Artisan Cheese

Japanese A La Carte
TOKYO CURRY LAB. X JAPAN AIRLINES
Japanese Vegetable Keema Curry with Steamed Rice
~Tenderly stewed new feeling keema curry~
Oshi Sushi
Eel "Teriyaki" & Grated Yam on Steamed Rice
Japanese Pickles

Western A La Carte
Mushroom & Potato Chowder
Hamburger & Potato Chips
Crabmeat Ravioli with Alfredo Sauce

Noodles
Japanese Hot "Udon" Noodles with Seaweed

Healthy Menu Selection
Fresh Salad
Prepared Fresh Fruits

Japanese Tray
"Natto" - Fermented Soybeans
Grilled Sablefish "Saikyo Miso" Flavor
Steamed Rice
Miso Soup
Japanese Pickles

[i]Western Tray/i]
Veal Ribeye Steak with Saffron Morel Sause
Assorted Rolls
Sabayon

Sweet
Vanilla Ice Cream
Chocolate

WINE LIST

LIQUEUR & SPIRIT

Aperitif ∙ Cocktail
Tio Pepe Dry Sherry
Martini Rosso[sic] Sweet Vermouth
Martini Extra Dry Dry[sic] Vermouth
Campari
Lejay Crème de Cassis
Plum Wine
Martini
Mimosa
Kir Royal
Kir
Bloody Mary

Whisky
Chivas Regal Royal Salute 21 Years
Suntory Hibiki 17 Years
L&G Woodford Reserve

Spirits
Bombay Sapphire Gin
Absolut Vodka

Japanese Sake

Beer

Brandy ∙ Liqueur
Rémy Martin X.O. Premier Cru
Cointreau
Baileys Irish Cream

Port Wine
Graham's Tawny Port 30 Years

CHAMPAGNE
Champagne SALON 1999
Champagne Dom Pérignon 2003

WHITE WINE
Domaine du Pavillon Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru 2007
Gustave Lorentz Pinot Gris Grand Cru Kanzelerberg 2005
Weingut St.Urbans-Hof Wiltinger Alte Reben Riesling Kabinett Feinherb 2011
Arvga Branca Vinhal Issehara 2011

RED WINE
Chateau Rauzan-Ségla Margaux 2007
Domaine Michel Gros Nuits Saint George 2006 or 2007
Kenzo Estate "rindo" 2007
Kusuda Wines Syrah Martinborough 2009

PREMIUM JAPANESE SAKE
Isojiman, Sakatomo, Junmai Daiginjo, Emerald
Sharaku, Junmai Daiginjo, Shizuku-tori

Premium Japanese Shochu
Mori Izo
Kanehachi

PREMIUM JAPANESE TEA
ROYAL BLUE TEA "Queen of Blue"

BEVERAGE

Soft Drink
JAL Original Drink "SKY TIME"
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola Light
Sprite
Ginger Ale
Oolong Blended Tea
Cold Green Tea
Still Mineral Water
Sparkling Mineral Water

Fruit Juice
Orange
Apple
Tomato
Grapefuirt

Japanese Tea
Japanese Green Tea "Sen-cha"
Roasted Japanese Tea "Houji-cha"

Selection of Tea
(We proudly serve you "Mariage Frères" Tea of France)
Darjeeling
Orange Pekoe Ceylon
Earl Grey Impérial
"Marco Polo" Flavory Tea
"Bourbon" Herbal Tea Non-Caffeine

Coffee
JAL Café Lines
Espresso
Cappuccino
Decaffeinated Coffee

We departed a few minutes late but expected an early arrival due to a flight time about an hour shorter than blocked. The 77W blasted into the sky almost alarmingly quickly with those wonderfully powerful GE90s. I really can't wait to fly one in American's beautiful livery, hopefully some time next year When the bell chimed for 10,000 feet the FAs sprung into action. There was a little bit of confusion when I was first approached, in retrospect I think she was just suggesting I look at the menu, but I ordered the Japanese option with caviar to start along with a glass of the Salon 1999 champagne. A very small champagne flute was promptly delivered along with a tablecloth and silverware set wrapped in a napkin. The champagne was poured at my seat.


Napkin and silverware


Salon 1999 Champagne

It was interesting, but a bit dry for my taste and after two glasses I switched to the 2003 Dom Perignon whose honey sweetness I adore (which is interesting because I'm usually a fan of drier whites). Soon amuse bouche were offered along with a set of different Japanese snack mixes. I really enjoyed the dried lotus root from the snack mix.


Amuse bouche and Japanese snack mix

Next the caviar plate was offered (the Dom continued to flow) with the usual garnishes. The lemon peel had been artfully cut which while pretty was extremely impractical as it makes it nearly impossible to squeeze the juice without making a mess.


Caviar with traditional garnishes

An FA asked if I wanted the Zatsuki of poached Matsutake mushroom with spinach, which was excellent. At first I couldn't find the chopsticks as they were underneath the purple napkin I assumed was decorative as I already had the napkin delivered with the silverware. After figuring this out an FA seemed shocked to see me using chopsticks. I bet most Westerners don't order the Japanese option anyway, but everyone I know can use chopsticks proficiently. Perhaps it's a Seattle or west coast thing.


Poached Matsutake mushroom with spinach

Next I was brought the Japanese appetizer. It was packaged in a beautiful two tier wooden box wrapped with a ribbon. Everything inside was delicious, though I confess I wasn't really sure what it all was.


Japanese appetizer box


Clockwise from upper-left: sesame tofu with raisin and simmered prawn, soy marinated beef tongue, simmered conger eel with vegetables, fluke sashimi roll with laver jelly, smoked salmon and egg yolk with sweet-simmered chestnut, steamed abalone dressed with cream cheese

After that was cleared I was offered rice and asked if I wanted crabmeat on it. Who would ever say no to crab? (An aside, but I maintain that Dungeness crab is the best in the world and vastly superior to lobster) The halibut was easily the best I've had and the chicken soup good too.


Steamed rice with crabmeat


Steamed Greenland halibut with chestnut, stewed chicken in Japanese soup

After all my food was cleared the FA asked if I wanted anything else to eat. At first I said no but she pushed me saying there had been some misconnects so I conceded and asked for some more caviar and Dom. I was pretty full at this point but accepted the offer of dessert, though only ate a few bites as it was pretty mediocre.


Maracuya cake with blueberry sauce


She asked if I wanted the Japanese dessert too and when delivering it struggled to explain what it was. I could see that it was mochi so interrupted the awkward silence which elicited a relieved smile.


Mochi

I asked for a cup of the Grand-cru Bellavista Farm Colombian coffee. It was delivered in a french press with an hourglass counting down the brewing time. As a Seattleite I was happy to see such attention to detail with coffee. It was easily the best cup I've ever had in the air.


Colombian coffee

BrewerSEA

JL 9 ORD-NRT First Class Part 2

The seat was extremely comfortable Tempur-Pedic covered with leather. When I arrived there was a small Tempur back pillow as well, and I was soon offered a wool blanket. The tray table sits under the TV screen and slides toward the seat. It is an extremely good design in that you can push the table completely out of the way during the food service if you need to get up. There were extensive seat controls with a massage feature (I didn't try it) as well as separate preset buttons for takeoff, relaxing, and bed. The bed moved very slowly and without making any noise to the point where the first time I used it I thought it wasn't moving for a few seconds. After the meal service I went to the lav to freshen up and on the way in asked the FA to make my bed. She handed me a men's amenity kit featuring Shiseido products.


Amenity kit

When I returned a larger, softer Tempur pad had been placed on the flat seat.


Mattress pad

I lay down and the FA tucked me in with the moderately thick duvet (perhaps halfway between CX F and AA's terrible new duvet) and gave me a down pillow in addition to the Tempur pillow I already had. I had read in the past about JL FAs tucking in the duvet and thought it might be awkward, but it really wasn't at all. I can't decide whether I like the JL or QF A380 F bed better, but nothing else I've experienced even compares. In the menu JL claims a "supreme bed time beyond clouds." Can no Japanese company hire a single native English speaker to proofread these things? As I was preparing to sleep one of the FAs came over to my seat with the duty free list and asked if I wanted her to save some particularly popular Satsuma Shochu for me. I thought, why not, and said yes as my dad is a fan from when he lived in Japan forty years ago.

I slept a solid 6 or 7 hours which is pretty typical for me in international First, though I guess that's typical for me anywhere. I woke up as an FA was passing and she immediately knelt to ask if I needed anything. I asked for the eel teriyaki which was delivered about ten minutes later. I love eel but it really wasn't that good compared to all the other Japanese food.


Eel teriyaki and grated yam on steamed rice

For dessert I ordered some ice cream with the Queen of Blue Tea and a Kir Royal with Dom. She came back a few minutes later to apologize that they were out of Dom Perignon. Apparently together with the Japanese gentleman in front of me we had polished off all 3 bottles. Considering they were adding crème de cassis I didn't mind the drier Salon anyway.


Ice cream and kir royal

The tea was served in a wine glass and was excellent. I am no expert but it was much better than the cold green tea I'm used to drinking in Japan.


Queen of Blue tea

I was next offered the cheese plate which was good, though I only ate a small amount.


Cheese plate

Next she presented some set of savory Japanese snacks. I thought they were sweets at first and was disgusted when I put the "candy" in my mouth and tasted fish. I'm sure I could enjoy such food under different circumstances, but I was definitely not expecting fish. I guess I should have known better considering it included a whole shrimp.


Savory japanese snacks

At this point we were about an hour out of Tokyo so I got up to change out of the pajamas. When I returned the seat had been returned to its original state. An FA came to ask me if I needed anything and noticed the Hiroshima Carp shirt I was wearing. She asked if I was a professional baseball player and then exclaimed in excitement that this was her favorite team and asked how I knew of them. I said I had been to a game where I bought the shirt but that I was in fact not a player (though one of my exes now plays NCAA Division 1 baseball). I assume that she thought someone my age and build wearing a baseball shirt in international F was likely a pro . A few minutes later my duty free was delivered. I asked if they sold the special coffee mugs promoted in the menu as I really like them and she came back a few minutes later with a pair wrapped up as a gift, a very pleasant surprise. As I left the aircraft I was thanked with many bows and smiles. While the service in JL F can certainly be described as obsequious, it was seemed warm and sincere. If the opportunity arises again I will definitely fly JL F over any other oneworld carrier except perhaps CX, though I'm not even certain of that.

lido168

Nice photos! I really enjoy flying Japanese airlines with their more refined food and sound passenger service.

yoonny

This is not a QUICK RTW!! I had to summarize the routing to follow better:
SEA-SFO-DFW-ORD-NRT(1nt)-HKG-SIN(1nt)-CMB-SIN-DXB-CDG(1wk)-LHR-SEA
CDG-PNA-MAD-GRX-MAD-LHR-CDG (during the 1wk stopover in CDG to get to Granada)

So all this to see the friend in Granada (she must be special!) Only a FT'er would...

What is the total cost of the flights (in miles and $$)?

Anyways, great report so far and looking forward to the rest.

BrewerSEA

It looks a lot crazier when you write it all out like that . Basically I had two free weeks and wanted to visit a very good friend for the few days her schedule permitted. It's true that only a FT would fly that route to get from SEA-GRX.

Total was 87.5k miles and about $2400 for taxes and the CMB ticket.

SFore

How is that possible? That's incredible!

blr1222

That's awesome that they gave you a timer with your coffee.

Also, I don't know a single American who doesn't know how to use chopsticks in this day and age.

Carfield

Thanks for sharing the RTW trip report with us!

JAL First Class remains amazing and I am glad that they kept up the good service and did not cut back much on catering and other amenities, despite the difficult time they had last year.

Regarding the JAL mug, I believe they are always offered as a first class gift, but I love how the F/A will go the extra step by wrapping them up for you.

Thanks again for sharing and I can't wait to read the rest of them!

Carfield

JALPak

Actually they had a GOOD year with record operating profit last year. They are investing on new seats in all cabins and new services coming next Jan. So be prepared to get an improved JAL Suite in F soon.

They don't offer the mug to everyone in F. Only the chopsticks are listed as the gift you can take home. But sometimes the CA took initiative and gift you the mug without you asking Last time when they handed me the wrapped mug (and I didn't ask for it), the CA told me this is something special from the CAs just for you

BrewerSEA

Thanks everyone for the comments.

Funny that they didn't offer the chopsticks then

My CX flights were both very good and the second one I had the F cabin on the 744 all to myself! That has only happened to me once before, on BKK-DEL last summer.

Reports should be up in the next day or so.

projecteva

Slight off topic, whats the best way to search for JL availability now? without charge that is. Thanks.

Moomba

Great start to your report BrewerSEA.

JAL looks like it has some great food options on their flights.