* Alliance RTW in C class
in Singapore? No way 
Oct 12, 2006, 10:20 pm
#18
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Brighton England
Programs: AA Plat, various hotels
Posts: 1,220
9th-12th October - Singapore
I was a bit concerned about my booking as it had been inexplicably cancelled and i had to get the uk priority club helpline to reinstate it. Needn't have worried, from the moment we got out the cab, they had already unloaded the boot and seen the priority club tags and were addressing me by name. We were quickly ushered to the club floor and given the correct room. Its a great hotel, dont know how im going to cope with Best Westerns later in the holiday!! Club lounge is great, brilliant free breakfasts, including hot and cold food and smoked salmon no less. Happy (2) hour for cocktails is great too, with waitresses pouring a large selection of drinks down your throat. The nibbles were more style than substance, but very nice all the same.
One little tip, beware where you leave your dirty clothes. Di and i had kept clothes that we were going to throw away after wearing for last outing, then we were going to chuck them, thus freeing up some suitcase space as we travelled. Di left a throw away blouse and pair of panties in the bathroom, and hey presto the next morning they turned up again valeted. I laughed, Di was not so amused as we'd just racked up a £4 cleaning bill for clothes which were going to be thrown away!!
One day when Di was feeling a bit under the weather, i went to the lounge for breakfast alone, i was immediately asked where Di was, when i said she wasnt quite the ticket, they quickly produced a breakfast tray and took it to the room, they also offered to prepare a breakfast in the lounge early for us as we were leaving at 6 am. I know there had been some concerns shown about this hotel but i can only speak as i find and i couldnt fault the service at all.
Used our time in Singapore to slow down a bit, recharge the batteries ready for the next stretch in the antipodies.
Its still a clean, efficient and stress free place and easy to walk or travel around.
Im sitting in the Raffles lounge availing myself of the excellent food options and free internet access. This is an excellent lounge.
I notice we are at gate F60 which is the furthest away, so im off for a long walk.
I was a bit concerned about my booking as it had been inexplicably cancelled and i had to get the uk priority club helpline to reinstate it. Needn't have worried, from the moment we got out the cab, they had already unloaded the boot and seen the priority club tags and were addressing me by name. We were quickly ushered to the club floor and given the correct room. Its a great hotel, dont know how im going to cope with Best Westerns later in the holiday!! Club lounge is great, brilliant free breakfasts, including hot and cold food and smoked salmon no less. Happy (2) hour for cocktails is great too, with waitresses pouring a large selection of drinks down your throat. The nibbles were more style than substance, but very nice all the same.
One little tip, beware where you leave your dirty clothes. Di and i had kept clothes that we were going to throw away after wearing for last outing, then we were going to chuck them, thus freeing up some suitcase space as we travelled. Di left a throw away blouse and pair of panties in the bathroom, and hey presto the next morning they turned up again valeted. I laughed, Di was not so amused as we'd just racked up a £4 cleaning bill for clothes which were going to be thrown away!!
One day when Di was feeling a bit under the weather, i went to the lounge for breakfast alone, i was immediately asked where Di was, when i said she wasnt quite the ticket, they quickly produced a breakfast tray and took it to the room, they also offered to prepare a breakfast in the lounge early for us as we were leaving at 6 am. I know there had been some concerns shown about this hotel but i can only speak as i find and i couldnt fault the service at all.
Used our time in Singapore to slow down a bit, recharge the batteries ready for the next stretch in the antipodies.
Its still a clean, efficient and stress free place and easy to walk or travel around.
Im sitting in the Raffles lounge availing myself of the excellent food options and free internet access. This is an excellent lounge.
I notice we are at gate F60 which is the furthest away, so im off for a long walk.
Oct 13, 2006, 12:27 am
#20
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Brighton England
Programs: AA Plat, various hotels
Posts: 1,220
SQ 219 SIN-SYD
Seats 17J and 17K
747-400
Oh dear , oh dear, oh dear, who's idea of boarding is this. As we approach the end of the travellator, we can barely get off because of the mass of people. Gates 59 and 60 share the same entrance and security and theres a Brisbane flight going 25 minutes after ours. What a mess. The staff were putting yellow stickers on our arms so the could tell which passengers were for the Sydney flight. It took 40 minutes to clear security and fight our way to the plane from getting off the end of the travellator. I would have expected better of Singapore where everything else runs like clockwork. Got onto the plane and were ushered to the sanctuary of our exit row seats upstairs.
Im not a regular business class traveller and this is only my second trip on Singapore Airlines in Raffles class, but whenever im comparing the products being offered by the different airlines, i always seem to use Raffles as the benchmark. The seats are similar to the sloping seats on many airlines now, but its the presentation and attentiveness that always wins me over. We were full upstairs, but the 3 crew could not have been better and seemed to anticipate your every need. The food was good, menu below, and i was seriously stuffed at the end of it and had to refuse the chocolates with coffee.( For those that know me, yes i turned down chocolate, and i have a witness !!)
Please would the Aussies give us back metal knives, blimey if the brits think its safe, surely the aussies can let us use them.
The wiseman entertainment system is good too, this is one area where the other airlines are catching up though.
Without doubt the best flight so far. The 'sling' drinks are recommended!!
Continental Breakfast
This was basically fruit juice, cakes, buns and croissants with tea or coffee
Lunch
A Savoury note
Romaine lettuce in oriental dressing with drunken prawns and marinated jelly fish
The Main Event
Wok fried beef in black pepper sauce with garlic. French bean with dry shrimp in XO sauce, fish noodle with bean sprout
Pan seared lamb chops served with rosemary jus, stewed vegetables in tomato fondue and mashed potato.
Indian style fish fillet in marsala sauce with vegetable korma and steamed basmati rice
Grilled herb marinated chicken breast served with asparagus, stewed tomato and extra virgin olive oil flavoured mashed potato.
A sweet note
Ben and jerry ice cream, cherry garcia or chocolate fudge brownie
The cheese board
Gourmet cheese with garnishes
Tea, Coffee and pralines
We landed on schedule and were out of the door in less than 20 mins, immigration were friendly and customs helpful.
Went outside to wait for the courtesy coach to the Holiday inn, Mascot.
Seats 17J and 17K
747-400
Oh dear , oh dear, oh dear, who's idea of boarding is this. As we approach the end of the travellator, we can barely get off because of the mass of people. Gates 59 and 60 share the same entrance and security and theres a Brisbane flight going 25 minutes after ours. What a mess. The staff were putting yellow stickers on our arms so the could tell which passengers were for the Sydney flight. It took 40 minutes to clear security and fight our way to the plane from getting off the end of the travellator. I would have expected better of Singapore where everything else runs like clockwork. Got onto the plane and were ushered to the sanctuary of our exit row seats upstairs.
Im not a regular business class traveller and this is only my second trip on Singapore Airlines in Raffles class, but whenever im comparing the products being offered by the different airlines, i always seem to use Raffles as the benchmark. The seats are similar to the sloping seats on many airlines now, but its the presentation and attentiveness that always wins me over. We were full upstairs, but the 3 crew could not have been better and seemed to anticipate your every need. The food was good, menu below, and i was seriously stuffed at the end of it and had to refuse the chocolates with coffee.( For those that know me, yes i turned down chocolate, and i have a witness !!)
Please would the Aussies give us back metal knives, blimey if the brits think its safe, surely the aussies can let us use them.
The wiseman entertainment system is good too, this is one area where the other airlines are catching up though.
Without doubt the best flight so far. The 'sling' drinks are recommended!!
Continental Breakfast
This was basically fruit juice, cakes, buns and croissants with tea or coffee
Lunch
A Savoury note
Romaine lettuce in oriental dressing with drunken prawns and marinated jelly fish
The Main Event
Wok fried beef in black pepper sauce with garlic. French bean with dry shrimp in XO sauce, fish noodle with bean sprout
Pan seared lamb chops served with rosemary jus, stewed vegetables in tomato fondue and mashed potato.
Indian style fish fillet in marsala sauce with vegetable korma and steamed basmati rice
Grilled herb marinated chicken breast served with asparagus, stewed tomato and extra virgin olive oil flavoured mashed potato.
A sweet note
Ben and jerry ice cream, cherry garcia or chocolate fudge brownie
The cheese board
Gourmet cheese with garnishes
Tea, Coffee and pralines
We landed on schedule and were out of the door in less than 20 mins, immigration were friendly and customs helpful.
Went outside to wait for the courtesy coach to the Holiday inn, Mascot.
Oct 13, 2006, 1:30 am
#21
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Programs: AA 2MM - PLT, BA GGL, SPG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,221
Originally Posted by Gatwick Alan
SQ 219 SIN-SYD
Seats 17J and 17K
747-400
Please would the Aussies give us back metal knives, blimey if the brits think its safe, surely the aussies can let us use them.
Seats 17J and 17K
747-400
Please would the Aussies give us back metal knives, blimey if the brits think its safe, surely the aussies can let us use them.
I asked my CX crew about the metal cutlery and they said it was Britain and Australia that were holding out now. They can use metal to the US though.
Even more interesting was that on my HKG-LHR flight ALL the cutlery was plastic, not just the knives as on the Aussie route. (This was in First!)
I don't understand why CX can't use metal to the UK but BA can
Oct 13, 2006, 2:05 am
#23
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Brighton England
Programs: AA Plat, various hotels
Posts: 1,220
[QUOTE=Moomba]Enjoying your report. Which hotel was it in SIN (did I miss where you stated that)?
No you didnt miss it, im an idiot for not saying that it was the intercontinental hotel, must have been all that free booze fuzzying my mind
No you didnt miss it, im an idiot for not saying that it was the intercontinental hotel, must have been all that free booze fuzzying my mind
Oct 13, 2006, 2:18 am
#24
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Brighton England
Programs: AA Plat, various hotels
Posts: 1,220
Originally Posted by BEYFlyer
It's as if you are describing my own upcoming trip Gatwick Alan... Brilliant ^ ... Thanks for the information and enjoy the rest of your journey.
Do tell, whats the plan then?
Hope you will post a report, if i can anyone can!!
Oct 13, 2006, 8:06 am
#25
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: VIENNA VA
Programs: BA emerald, AF rouge ,UA premier executive, SQ,ANA, HYATT,, AMENITI
Posts: 836
[QUOTE=Gatwick Alan]
In a matter of fact you did mention the hotel in post # 14
[[I]B]As normal, getting through Changi airport was a pleasure, only 20 minutes from getting off the plane to getting in the cab, and only £7 to get to the intercontinental hotel. Is there a more attractive road to and from the airport than the one in Singapore[/B][/I].
So keep on boozing you are doing great
Originally Posted by Moomba
Enjoying your report. Which hotel was it in SIN (did I miss where you stated that)?
No you didnt miss it, im an idiot for not saying that it was the intercontinental hotel, must have been all that free booze fuzzying my mind
No you didnt miss it, im an idiot for not saying that it was the intercontinental hotel, must have been all that free booze fuzzying my mind
[[I]B]As normal, getting through Changi airport was a pleasure, only 20 minutes from getting off the plane to getting in the cab, and only £7 to get to the intercontinental hotel. Is there a more attractive road to and from the airport than the one in Singapore[/B][/I].
So keep on boozing you are doing great
Oct 16, 2006, 3:31 pm
#26
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Brighton England
Programs: AA Plat, various hotels
Posts: 1,220
12 Oct- 17 Oct, Sydney and surrounds
Phew its hot, apparently this weather has come 2 months early, 95 degrees F,(36C) for a couple of days, and just like last time i was here ive managed to overdo it a bit and get burnt. At least this time i remembered a hat so its mainly my arms. Not that im complaining, especially when i keep hearing how bad the weather is back in England. Spent the first part of our time doing the mandatory sights, Opera house etc and a trip on the public ferry to Manly. The beach on the bay side was quiet, the beach on the ocean side was absolutely packed. Apparently violence broke out on the beach later in the day, with rival gangs fighting, not much different to the problems in the uk then.
On the saturday went and collected the first of 5 different hire cars that we will be using on this holiday. This one was a Holden Commodore station wagon (Estate car to us Brits). Not wishing to do a car review i will just say to the Brits that its very much like a Vauxhall Vectra.
Of course driving in Australia is easy for me as they drive on our side of the road, but that didnt stop me doing a scenic tour of the suburbs around Sydney airport, before deciding that i should look at a map to see just how far in the wrong direction i was going. That sorted me out and so took a leisurely drive to Katoomba.
Stayed at the Best Western Motor Alpine Inn, which is a typical roadside inn. Room service was a bit shoddy, such as only making one of the 2 beds and not replacing the toilet paper, but overall it was fine for a short stay.
The blue mountains are beautiful to see, in Katoomba its fairly commercialised, but well worth taking the steepest incline railway in the world to the forest floor, doing a circular walk for an hour or so and then catching the cableway back up. We got there first thing in the morning when it was deserted, and that made the walk in the forest so much more rewarding. The incline railway is like a roller coaster in slow motion. If you get out of Katoomba and visit some of the lesser known lookouts, they are much more quiet and the walks more rugged, but the views are just as good.
Had an "isnt the world a small place" experience when loading the car i got chatting to the guy loading the car next to mine. Not only did he live 10 miles from me back in England, but also worked for one of the building contractors that my firm compete with. Spooky.
Driving back to Sydney had the first rain of the holiday up in the mountains, but it was gone as we reached lower levels, much to the disappointment of the locals who are suffering with serious drought problems.
On taking the car back to the airport i had to fill it up with fuel, and what a pleasure, i was able to drive to the pump, fill it with petrol, walk to the cashier, pay cash and drive off. Oh how normal. Hopefully New Zealand will be the same, unlike America which i know from experience wont be.
Had a quick overnight stop at the Airport Holiday Inn, before heading off to the airport at the ungodly hour of 6am.
Phew its hot, apparently this weather has come 2 months early, 95 degrees F,(36C) for a couple of days, and just like last time i was here ive managed to overdo it a bit and get burnt. At least this time i remembered a hat so its mainly my arms. Not that im complaining, especially when i keep hearing how bad the weather is back in England. Spent the first part of our time doing the mandatory sights, Opera house etc and a trip on the public ferry to Manly. The beach on the bay side was quiet, the beach on the ocean side was absolutely packed. Apparently violence broke out on the beach later in the day, with rival gangs fighting, not much different to the problems in the uk then.
On the saturday went and collected the first of 5 different hire cars that we will be using on this holiday. This one was a Holden Commodore station wagon (Estate car to us Brits). Not wishing to do a car review i will just say to the Brits that its very much like a Vauxhall Vectra.
Of course driving in Australia is easy for me as they drive on our side of the road, but that didnt stop me doing a scenic tour of the suburbs around Sydney airport, before deciding that i should look at a map to see just how far in the wrong direction i was going. That sorted me out and so took a leisurely drive to Katoomba.
Stayed at the Best Western Motor Alpine Inn, which is a typical roadside inn. Room service was a bit shoddy, such as only making one of the 2 beds and not replacing the toilet paper, but overall it was fine for a short stay.
The blue mountains are beautiful to see, in Katoomba its fairly commercialised, but well worth taking the steepest incline railway in the world to the forest floor, doing a circular walk for an hour or so and then catching the cableway back up. We got there first thing in the morning when it was deserted, and that made the walk in the forest so much more rewarding. The incline railway is like a roller coaster in slow motion. If you get out of Katoomba and visit some of the lesser known lookouts, they are much more quiet and the walks more rugged, but the views are just as good.
Had an "isnt the world a small place" experience when loading the car i got chatting to the guy loading the car next to mine. Not only did he live 10 miles from me back in England, but also worked for one of the building contractors that my firm compete with. Spooky.
Driving back to Sydney had the first rain of the holiday up in the mountains, but it was gone as we reached lower levels, much to the disappointment of the locals who are suffering with serious drought problems.
On taking the car back to the airport i had to fill it up with fuel, and what a pleasure, i was able to drive to the pump, fill it with petrol, walk to the cashier, pay cash and drive off. Oh how normal. Hopefully New Zealand will be the same, unlike America which i know from experience wont be.
Had a quick overnight stop at the Airport Holiday Inn, before heading off to the airport at the ungodly hour of 6am.
Oct 16, 2006, 10:32 pm
#28
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: East Ester, Alaska
Programs: Alaska Million Miler, United Million Miler, Wyndham Rewards Diamond, Choice Hotels Diamond
Posts: 12,148
Great report, Alan! Between yours and Kiwi Flyer's reports of late, I'm feeling quite anxious to return to the rarified air of international premium class travel.
