TimF10

Seat 2A, John MD, and all: Thanks for the kind words, this is my first trip report!

fbgdavidson: Interesting about the CW seats, I remember on the safety video they mentioned to sit back in the seat when the f/a called, "brace". By the way, I noticed this on both BA and CX, but not on American carriers. Do any of you know why we don't have the, "Brace" component in our videos?

Carbonchaser: I agree about the Whiskey, but old habits die hard. Perhaps it means I need to fly BA First a few more times so that I can get used to drinking Woodford Rerserve straight.

sftvlr: Good joke!

TimF10

In London I stayed at the Euston Plaza Hotel because I found a great deal using Tripadvisor.com The room was pretty large for London and the service was good. The hotel is a two minute walk to the Euston Tube and Train station, so I was able to get around London with ease. After a wonderful time in London, it was time to get back on a plane and earn some miles. I had hotelink pick me up from the hotel at 8:15 a.m. and we arrived at 9:30 a.m. Hotelink is similar to super shuttle van service, so we made a couple of stops on the way to the airport.

June 27, 2004
British Airways flight 107 London-Dubai
777 seat 2A
Scheduled departure: 12:20 p.m. actual: 12:45 p.m.
Scheduled Arrival: 10:20 p.m.

BA has a separate first class check-in in terminal 4 that is very nice, with comfortable chairs for family/friends to use while one is checking in. There was no line when I arrived and so quickly I received my boarding pass, made sure that the priority baggage tags were on my luggage and received my Fast Track immigration sticker and directions to the different lounges at my disposal.
Passing by the regular security it seems like they had a good sized line, but in Fast Track I had no line. Again, the agents were extremely friendly and polite. Passing security I went to the BA lounge complex and presented my boarding pass to the agent. In this complex there is a business class lounge (Terraces), a first class lounge (I believe for short haul first as well as top level oneworld elites) and the Concorde room (for first class long haul pax). I was invited to the Concorde room, but due to the good advice I received on the BA board, I first went downstairs to the Moulton Brown Spa to book my massage. The spa offers a number of free treatments including facials and massages, but I opted for the back/neck massage at 11 a.m. Then I headed back upstairs.
The Concorde room is very spacious, with a wonderful view. Sadly, part of the view was a KLM jet. In the corner on the far right is a smoking room which is sealed off from the rest of the lounge. Near there is a dining area and bar as well as a self-serve area for snacks. The middle part of the lounge has a number of very comfortable chairs, coffee tables and end tables. There are two magazine racks in this section. On the left are restrooms and a business area. I looked over the menu, even though I knew from reading other flyertalk posts that I would try the bacon baguette. The waiter was surprised when I told him that I only wanted one along with some orange juice. The baguette was as good as has been described by the people on flyertalk. ^ I wish I could have these more often. After my breakfast, I read the newspapers and magazines while looking out the window.
At 11 a.m. I went to the spa for my massage. The therapist was waiting for me and gave me a great massage. Finishing at 11:30, I started wandering toward the gate which opened shortly after I arrived. As there are so many flights, our plane was parked away from the terminal and we boarded a bus to get to the plane. This was kind of a pain as I my ankle was with by a stroller twice by a woman who kept rocking the baby’s stroller while we were driving. A couple other pax also got hit. Thankfully, the bus ride was short and I emerged unharmed. BA is building a new terminal that should resolve this issue. Once at the plane we boarded through door 2L and I had the wonderful experience of turning left as the f/a escorted me to my seat. He then asked, "once you get settled, may I bring you something to drink?" Of course I chose the Woodford Reserve Kentucky Whiskey and Sprite. This was served with warm cashews and almonds. Twice I was offered refills on the drinks and nuts but declined. While enjoying the drink, I was given the BAg amenity kit, chose my movie ("The Witches of Eastwick"), then I was offered a date and coffee from a traditional silver coffee pot. I don’t drink coffee but enjoyed a couple of dates. After the drinks I was offered a hot towel.
The 777 cabin has 1-2-1 seating, totaling 16 suites, with lots of woods, gray fabrics and tan accents. On our flight there were 4 pax. In the front of the center section is a black and white scenic photo while in back there was a vase with some flowers in it.
As we taxied to the runway we passed one of the Concorde planes and I regretted never having flown on it, but was reassured that at least I was fulfilling one of my dreams by flying around the world.
The CSD came by and asked if I would mind filling out a survey on the flight. I stated that I was willing but also filled one out on the way to London. No problem and I was able to give BA even more input on their excellent service but make a pitch for noise canceling headphones in First.

TimF10

Once airborne I had another Woodford and Sprite along with some canapés. This time they included pate, which is my favorite, so I was very happy. The rest of the menu was:
Starters:
--Prawn and tabouleh salad with chermoula dressing
--Glazed Pecorino cheese and potato tart with parsley and truffle oil dressing
--Cream of watercress soup
--Fresh Salad leaves with choice of dressing.
I had the balsamic on the salad which was quite nice.

Mains:
--Rib-eye beef steak, roast shallots and balsamic butter
(This was perfectly cooked and was very tender.)
--Halibut with red pepper and citrus coulis
--Fresh pasta with your choice of creamy rocket, basil and pesto sauce or arrabbiata sauce.
--Duck confit salad with foie gras, fresh beans and bitter orange dressing.

Snacks:
--Grilled fillet of beef and red onion marmalade toasted sandwich
--Cream of watercress soup and side salad
--Selection of cheese and fruits

Dessert and Cheese:
--Pistachio creme brulee
(although a little rich, this was excellent) The dessert wine was very nice (Chateau de lon Mulonniere, Coteaux du lLayon Beaulieu, 2000) and I had four glasses of it!
--lemon tart with clotted cream and Mascarpone
--Brie, stilton, Fountains Gold, unpasteurized Lincolnshire Poasher Adan Meulusine Goat cheese.
--fresh fruit

For Afternoon Tea we were served a selection of sandwiches (a fish one which I did not eat, a roast beef and a tomato and cheese sandwich)
This was followed by either warm fruit scones with cotted cream and strawberry preserve or Raspberry creme brulee tart, mille feuille and chocolate brownie or pralines. I was quite full so I opted for the pralines.

After lunch, I finished reading, "The Loved One" by Evelyn Waugh and then took a nap. During the tea service I listened to my CD of Akhnaten by Philip Glass. I tried to pair music with the location to which I was flying. Akhnaten lived in Egypt and so was as close to the UAE that I had musically in my collection. Akhnaten was the last of a trilogy of modern operas by Glass about influential people (the others were about Gandhi and Einstein).
While flying to Dubai, I noticed on the flight tracker that we went around Iraq and then headed South, but we arrived on schedule into the airport. The immigration process was quite pleasant and then after claiming my luggage I was greeting by the Fairmont Hotel rep. who guided me to meet my car and driver.

If you ever saw the episode of Absolutely Fabulous when they go to Morocco, you may remember the characters walking out of the airport into the heat. That is how I felt--just about knocked over by the heat and humidity. Luckily, I was in the car in a matter of minutes and then to the hotel, where I was greeted by name outside and taken to the lounge for check in formalities. This was a great hotel and I would recommend it for anyone not interested in staying on the beach. After settling in, I went to the club lounge and sat overlooking the city of Dubai drinking a glass of wine while waiting for sleep to hit after another great flight.

newcx12345

Timf10.

I think you made a mistake. There should only be 14 F Class seats on the BA744.

Always love people who want to maximise the miles of the Oneworld RTW ticket.

I did the following last year in J Class:

SYD-JFK(QF F Class)
PHL-DFW-IAH-DFW-YVR (AA F Class - really bad!)
YVR-JFK (CX - excellent!)
JFK-LHR-CDG-LHR-DXB-LHR-SIN (BA, really good)
SIN-HKG-KIX-HKG (CX)
HKG-AKL (CX F Class, the best)
AKL-MEL-PER-SYD (QF)

Total Miles earned = 61,000miles!!
Total sectors travelled = 20

I hope you enjoy the CX F Class expereience. I must say after you experience the F Class lounge in HKG for CX, you will think what a TRASH AA provides!

Enjoy

carbonchaser

Ouch, it happened again. I may have to stop watching this movie.

BTW, great report. Looking forward to another opinion in the great BA vs CX war

TimF10

NewCX12345: You are correct, the BA f747 irst class has 14 seats. How I came up with 15 when adding 5 + 5 + 4 is beyond me. Thanks for the correction

carbonchaser: The good news is that instead of 1/2 Sprite I cut it down to 1/3 Sprite, so at least I was making progress. I still think I need to take another trip in First in order to get into the habit of drinking Woodford straight. Actually, I was looking to buy some at the store tonight, but they did not stock it. I will have to try somewhere else, as it is the best I have had.

TimF10

After a relaxing night at the Fairmont Hotel, I was up early to get back to the airport. After a quick breakfast in the club lounge, I was off to the airport the driver I had was great and gave me a strong sense that I should come back again to Dubai as it is very safe and there is a lot to see and do. On this trip I had to promise that I would not wander far away from the hotel as my family was worried that something would happen to me. As much as I tried to explain that each country is different, there was no reasoning with them. Anyway, I hope to return soon to enjoy this great city.

June 28, 2004
BA flight 108
777 seat 2A
Scheduled departure: 9:30 a.m. Actual: 9:30 a.m.
Scheduled arrival: 2:15 p.m. Actual: 2:10 p.m.

In the departures area I found the BA check-in area with ease and then went to the combined first and business class check-in. There were only two people working this section and I think it may have been quicker to go to the coach line as they had a lot of agents working and their line went very quickly. I waited close to 15 minutes in order to check in. Once there, the check-in was efficient and then I went through emigration and security. There were no lines for either of these processes. Dubai is known for its duty free shopping and there were huge shopping areas in the airport. I did not see anything that was worth hauling half-way around the world so did not buy anything, but decided to go to the Terraces lounge. The Dubai lounge was fairly large with a similar layout as the other lounges. To be in the spirit of the lounge, I took one of the chaise lounge chairs and helped myself to more chocolate croissants and orange juice. I read the various newspapers and then headed toward the gate.
At the gate I had a scare: I presented my boarding pass and the agent asked where my ticket was located as normally it is in the sleeve of the boarding pass. I checked my pockets and they were empty. Maybe the check-in agent kept it? As it turns out, he forgot to insert it in the boarding pass and it was still in my ticket book. For a few seconds, I had visions of missing the flight. After the 30 seconds of fright were finished, the agent apologized for the oversight of the check-in agent and sent me through the secondary security screening that all pax were required to walk through. This x ray machine was much more sensitive than any I had experienced so far on the trip and people were surprised as it was picking up anything metal. I waited in the departure lounge for a couple of minutes before they began boarding the flight. The airport at Dubai has two doors for each gate so we used doors 1 and 2 L. I was greeted by name and escorted to my seat. For a pre-departure drink we were offered water. Then I had the movie selection form to complete, review the newspaper options, receive my BAg amenity kit, and receive the date and coffee service (no coffee for me).
In my last report I described the cabin. On this flight first had 9 of 16 suites occupied. To serve us we had 3 male flight attendants--a ratio of 3 to 1. Once the doors were closed we were sprayed with insecticide according to WHO rules. Luckily we were not individually sprayed, rather the f/a walked down the aisles spraying in the air. The CSD asked if I would take another survey, so I was able to again suggest they distribute Bose headphones in first and comment that the new f/a uniforms looked too casual to me. The flight attendants also told me that did not like the new uniform either. They agreed that for first or business class the male flight attendants should wear a regular suit coat, not just a waist coat. One of the reasons I like BA is that they have some of the formality that to me looks and feels classy. I hope they don’t parrot the low fare carriers.
Once airborne, we began the meal service which began with continental breakfast. I chose:
Orange juice
Fruit plate which was rather large composed of grapefruit, orange, a couple of types of melon and strawberry.
Some additional pastries and rolls.
While eating I began to watch the Daffy Duck movie that was out a few months ago as I heard that the mixing of live action and animation was well done.

A few hours later we had lunch served. After a round of hot towels we ordered drinks (I chose sprite) accompanied by warm cashews and almonds.
The lunch menu was:
Starters:
--Smoked salmon, gravlax Adan prawns on warm spring onion pancakes with sour cream dressing.
--Red and yellow tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, fresh mint tabouleh salad with lemon olive oil dressing.
--Green bean and herb broth with olive oil and cheese toasts.
--Fresh salad leaves with your choice of citrus creme fraiche mayonnaise or balsamic olive oil.
(I chose the salad, figuring I have to eat something that appeared healthy.)

Mains:
--Grilled fillet of beef with horseradish ccremefraiche, sspinachand potato fans.
--Skewered fresh swordfish with lobster fish cake Adan Hollandaise sauce
--Fresh pasta with your choice of mushroom sauce or basil and tomato sauce
--Mediterranean chicken salad
(I selected the fillet and asked that it be cooked medium well. The f/a timed it perfectly and the potato was steaming hot when it arrived. I drank the Sancerre Les Chasseignes 2002 Domaine Fouassier Chardonnay with this and my glass was refilled every time I drank 25 % of the wine. I am not a wine expert, but found this wine to have a wonderful flavor, even with the red meat.)

Dessert and Cheese:
-Coffee torte
-Warm Plum cake
--Cheese plate
--Fresh fruit
I started with the plum cake and was surprised how nice it tasted. I also ordered the dessert wine and the f/a brought me a choice of two: The one on the wine list which I had enjoyed on an earlier flight or a sauterne from Australia. I tried the Australian wine and was not disappointed! If only I could remember the name! It was fantastic.
After the dessert I had cheese and port wine (Warre's 1986 Reserve Tawney Port) which made a nice finish to an excellent meal, I thought. However, once I was finished with the cheese course, the f/a brought around pralines which blended perfectly with the port although I was tempted to have the pralines with another glass of that wonderful Australian dessert wine.

After the movie, I read various magazines and again listened to David Bowie to get me back into the British mode. For a while I also watched some of the TV, but don’t remember the details of what I saw…sorry.

As we approached London, the CSD thanked me for the survey and gave us information about the Fast Track immigration, telling us that usually the airport closes it at Noon, but just in case it was open he wanted us to have the invitation. The lane was closed, but immigration was not as long as the time I arrived from YVR. Again the luggage was waiting for me.

I decided to stay at the airport and to take the Hoppa bus. I did not realize how difficult it would be to get from T4 to the other terminals and get the bus. It seemed like I walked a mile after the Heathrow express dropped me off. Once on the bus, it was very convenient. The Renaissance Hotel is your typical airport hotel--nothing extraordinarily good or bad but I had a great night's sleep and was able to watch the planes take off from my room. In fact I went to the club room during happy hour to eat some appetizers and to watch for the CX plane that I would be taking the next day. Once she was airborne, I headed out to dinner at a local restaurant for some pizza. After dinner I had a good 45 minute walk. The next day I was able to sleep late and did not hear any airport noise until the alarm sounded at 11:00 a.m.

TimF10

newcx12345: I was rather unimpressed by the first class section of the Wing. As you will read when i get the reports finished, the Wing was the worst part of the CX experience for me. For example, I wanted to have a western type breakfast and the first time I ended up with fruit yogurt, a piece of toast and some juice. No eggs or any western style hot food. The second time, there were three people working there: 2 talking with each other in the corner (never left there the brief time I was there) and a lady who asked what I wanted to drink as I started to arrive at a table. I said, "Orange Juice" and she pointed to the buffet area, said "It's over there" and walked away. Again, nothing Western to eat (not even fruit flavored yogurt ). So, I had a pastry and juice. Then I asked if there was a McDonalds or someplace where I could get either some fruit yogurt or any type of breakfast with egg or meat and was told that the best choice was Burger King and then was given directions how to get to Burger King. After eating at Burger King, I went back and waited to get to a computer as 1/4 of them were out of service. Anyway, enough ranting....sorry.

newcx12345

I am surprised at your ill treatment at the Wing. Did you goto the F Class section?

They do have a full English BReakfast menu there (A La Carte) normally. It is actually werid they didn't offer you anything cooked.

Also I am not sure did you get to try out the Cabanas?

Anyway, next time you are in HKG you should try out the Pier and hopefully you will have a better experience.

Sorry to hear about your bad experience. I will post this up onto the CX Board and hopefullly someone from CX can rectify this.

But other than the Lounge experience, how do you find the F Class service on Board the plane? Enjoy the caviar or and the Balik Salmon.

RTW4

Congradulations... This is one of the best trip reports that I have read....The details about the BA flights are wonderful. Thanks for all of the information and especially the menus.

carbonchaser

If you are SNA based - try trader joe's. They have it off and on.

JohnMD

I'm really enjoying your report. BA First is simply amazing and is definitely at par with Cathay Pacific, Singapore, and Qantas. Can't wait for the next segments ^

sftrvlr

Enjoying it. Awaiting more ...

romcarlos

Wow....I am reaching 40 in a couple of years and I guess I should do this before my mid life crisis.... Does any one know the price of one of this trips?

Gnopps

What a wonderful trip report to read. I don't know how, but you manage to write in an interesting way without making me too jealous.