First class Infant travel and a trip of many (F)irsts
Feb 26, 2011, 10:54 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
First class Infant travel and a trip of many (F)irsts
Disclaimer: If you are easily offended from political incorrectness then this may not be a suitable read. There will be generalisations and poor attempts at humour which may cause joy to some but frustration for others.
Cameras used: Nikon D80 with AF Nikkor 18-35mm 1:3.5 - 4.5D and the Blackberry Bold.
Background: Sweden is dreadful between November and January. I mean it is seriously affecting people so much they become miserable sods. The suicide rate in the country peaks during the dark winter months. In December dawn is after 8am and dusk before 2.30pm. And those few hours are mostly grey, like when it rains in London. People just want to get out of here or they hide at home, feeling miserable because everything sucks. The remedy? For the commoner it is Charter.
A packaged trip to Tenerifa, Rhodes, Agia Napa, Sharm el sheik (er, perhaps not for a while) or a lovely place like Benidorm. And of course Thailand! People are often drunk before they board the crammed all Y machine to the sun. People clap when it lands. Some tour companies offer "Premium packages" with a lounge and seats with more space. You know like First class. To many this is the annual trip with airplanes. Overly excited but often too pissed to remember. Many return looking like lobsters. Red.
Those with creative minds and perhaps a slightly bigger wallet tend to avoid the worst charter destinations. They go to Vietnamn or maybe Bali. Saigon is so hot right now.
The culturally minded often do long city weekend breaks in southern Europe. Those with stronger cash flow (higher up in the rat race food chain) go exclusive with resorts on
Indian Ocean islands or the Caribbean. International Business Class is sometimes part of the itinerary. They are the center of jealousy at the office when they return, bronzed up from the BGI sun sharing the fun stories and how the Champagne flowed over their flat seat.
Then there are people like us. Frequent Flyers or Mileage junkies. Traveling in J or F for as little as possible. Staying in 5-star establishments often paying less than the 'cheap' options in town. I am one of them. By no means poor. Willing and able to pay for J/C travel. F however is pushing it. That's when the miles come in. Things are different this year. We have a baby now so various new aspects and challenges have to be considered when planning travel. Babies are not keen on switching time zones. Hence, plus or minus three hours from GMT +1 was the limit. Cape Town was pinned for a while. With a close friend staying there with beach access from his place it was a given. Mrs Petrus then thought twice and concluded it may be pushing it with 11-12 hours on juniors maiden long-haul flight, even in F.
Junior had received flying training 10 days prior to this trip. ARN-AMS return went perfect.
So DXB was presented as an alternative to CPT. 6-7 hours flying direct from ARN. One problem, the only direct flight is with DY. LCC all Y. But whY!? It will come as a great surpirse then to find out we opted to fly BA via London. C/J ARN - LHR and in F LHR - DXB.
Nearly five hour lay-over. It was perfect. BA provide private rooms eloquently named Cabanas in the Concorde Room, the BA lounge for F ticketed PAX only. Lets get busy with the trip then:
First time:
- flying BA EU J with a baby
- flying BA long-haul with a baby
- flying on a 777 on any carrier
- trying out the new BA F!
- visiting The Middle East
- not being able to binge (that would be irresponsible!)
- staying in a hotel with junior
- flying with my wife both holding Gold status on a BA flight
With so much media available from the trip I shall write less to let the photos and one video tell the story.
The route according to Great Circle Mapper:
Sector 1
ARN - LHR
BA: Club Europe/C
Seat 1D
Crew: Pretty OK
Equipment A319
Distance 911 miles
Flying in BA First with an entourage consisting of two adults and an infant the baggage allowance is 7. Wow, not bad. We managed 6 including the baby car seat and the pram. You may note the PramPack in the picture. Folds out and protects the pram when traveling.
Our street when leaving around lunch time. Minus -17 but at least the sun was out.
First thing to be done once security was cleared was to change on Junior. The outsourced rubbish Menzies lounge has no nursing facility so had to head out among the charter people. Junior was in shock. So many people walking funny and talking really funny.
Walking from the restroom to the non-Schengen area something familiar screamed for attention outside. BA are making a statement at ARN. Two early morning flights, one to LHR and one to LCY.
All good in 1E which is actually blocked for sale. Junior could not care less.
Shameless BA. This is what was served on a 2.5 hours scheduled J flight. Two sandwiches the size of a blue collar workers fingers. You also get a scone the size of a small apple. Disgraceful and insulting actually. Apparently it is called afternoon tea.
Oh well might as well down my sorrows with Champagne.
One great aspect of flying C within Europe with a baby on BA is that you can secure row 1 without being Gold. (Both of the adults are though, mind you). Lots of space for junior to stretch out.
Arrived in Blighty. Junior was fascinated with all those colourful machines.
FC T5 LHR looking promisingly calm, beyond the escalators is a lottery.
It was chaos. Fast Track disarray. Spotted one line which was looking good, only suits in it. The BAA goon refused to let us in. "Dude seriously we are two Golds ticketed in First". As I was about to hand him the BP's we where allowed in. So far the lesson was that when traveling with an infant, plan double time for everything. There was no rush due to the long lay-over at LHR. The Concorde Room and a Cabana booked for 4 hours sure did help make this a very pleasant connection with an infant.
Security cleared, looking south.
In the sanctuary of a Cabana.
Shabby shower.
The team.
CCR signage.
It was around 5pm with the DXB flight leaving 9.40pm. Lots of time to sample the delights in the CCR.
More on that in the next part.
Cameras used: Nikon D80 with AF Nikkor 18-35mm 1:3.5 - 4.5D and the Blackberry Bold.
Background: Sweden is dreadful between November and January. I mean it is seriously affecting people so much they become miserable sods. The suicide rate in the country peaks during the dark winter months. In December dawn is after 8am and dusk before 2.30pm. And those few hours are mostly grey, like when it rains in London. People just want to get out of here or they hide at home, feeling miserable because everything sucks. The remedy? For the commoner it is Charter.
A packaged trip to Tenerifa, Rhodes, Agia Napa, Sharm el sheik (er, perhaps not for a while) or a lovely place like Benidorm. And of course Thailand! People are often drunk before they board the crammed all Y machine to the sun. People clap when it lands. Some tour companies offer "Premium packages" with a lounge and seats with more space. You know like First class. To many this is the annual trip with airplanes. Overly excited but often too pissed to remember. Many return looking like lobsters. Red.
Those with creative minds and perhaps a slightly bigger wallet tend to avoid the worst charter destinations. They go to Vietnamn or maybe Bali. Saigon is so hot right now.
The culturally minded often do long city weekend breaks in southern Europe. Those with stronger cash flow (higher up in the rat race food chain) go exclusive with resorts on
Indian Ocean islands or the Caribbean. International Business Class is sometimes part of the itinerary. They are the center of jealousy at the office when they return, bronzed up from the BGI sun sharing the fun stories and how the Champagne flowed over their flat seat.
Then there are people like us. Frequent Flyers or Mileage junkies. Traveling in J or F for as little as possible. Staying in 5-star establishments often paying less than the 'cheap' options in town. I am one of them. By no means poor. Willing and able to pay for J/C travel. F however is pushing it. That's when the miles come in. Things are different this year. We have a baby now so various new aspects and challenges have to be considered when planning travel. Babies are not keen on switching time zones. Hence, plus or minus three hours from GMT +1 was the limit. Cape Town was pinned for a while. With a close friend staying there with beach access from his place it was a given. Mrs Petrus then thought twice and concluded it may be pushing it with 11-12 hours on juniors maiden long-haul flight, even in F.
Junior had received flying training 10 days prior to this trip. ARN-AMS return went perfect.
So DXB was presented as an alternative to CPT. 6-7 hours flying direct from ARN. One problem, the only direct flight is with DY. LCC all Y. But whY!? It will come as a great surpirse then to find out we opted to fly BA via London. C/J ARN - LHR and in F LHR - DXB.
Nearly five hour lay-over. It was perfect. BA provide private rooms eloquently named Cabanas in the Concorde Room, the BA lounge for F ticketed PAX only. Lets get busy with the trip then:
First time:
- flying BA EU J with a baby
- flying BA long-haul with a baby
- flying on a 777 on any carrier
- trying out the new BA F!
- visiting The Middle East
- not being able to binge (that would be irresponsible!)
- staying in a hotel with junior
- flying with my wife both holding Gold status on a BA flight
With so much media available from the trip I shall write less to let the photos and one video tell the story.
The route according to Great Circle Mapper:
Sector 1
ARN - LHR
BA: Club Europe/C
Seat 1D
Crew: Pretty OK
Equipment A319
Distance 911 miles
Flying in BA First with an entourage consisting of two adults and an infant the baggage allowance is 7. Wow, not bad. We managed 6 including the baby car seat and the pram. You may note the PramPack in the picture. Folds out and protects the pram when traveling.
Our street when leaving around lunch time. Minus -17 but at least the sun was out.
First thing to be done once security was cleared was to change on Junior. The outsourced rubbish Menzies lounge has no nursing facility so had to head out among the charter people. Junior was in shock. So many people walking funny and talking really funny.
Walking from the restroom to the non-Schengen area something familiar screamed for attention outside. BA are making a statement at ARN. Two early morning flights, one to LHR and one to LCY.
All good in 1E which is actually blocked for sale. Junior could not care less.
Shameless BA. This is what was served on a 2.5 hours scheduled J flight. Two sandwiches the size of a blue collar workers fingers. You also get a scone the size of a small apple. Disgraceful and insulting actually. Apparently it is called afternoon tea.
Oh well might as well down my sorrows with Champagne.
One great aspect of flying C within Europe with a baby on BA is that you can secure row 1 without being Gold. (Both of the adults are though, mind you). Lots of space for junior to stretch out.
Arrived in Blighty. Junior was fascinated with all those colourful machines.
FC T5 LHR looking promisingly calm, beyond the escalators is a lottery.
It was chaos. Fast Track disarray. Spotted one line which was looking good, only suits in it. The BAA goon refused to let us in. "Dude seriously we are two Golds ticketed in First". As I was about to hand him the BP's we where allowed in. So far the lesson was that when traveling with an infant, plan double time for everything. There was no rush due to the long lay-over at LHR. The Concorde Room and a Cabana booked for 4 hours sure did help make this a very pleasant connection with an infant.
Security cleared, looking south.
In the sanctuary of a Cabana.
Shabby shower.
The team.
CCR signage.
It was around 5pm with the DXB flight leaving 9.40pm. Lots of time to sample the delights in the CCR.
More on that in the next part.
Feb 26, 2011, 10:54 am
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
More of The CCR and LHR T5.
CCR Dining area. Waited service.
Possible one of the youngest patrons ever in The Concorde Room. Looks like junior is holding a rifle.
Yes! Tattinger Comtes de Champagne 1999. Finally some great Champagne in this lounge after the demise of the Bollinger Grand Annee 1999.
A pie of sorts. The Bordeaux is a Grand Cru Classe St Julien. Nicely done BA!
The Signature burger. Not sure why they call it signature. Nothing special.
A cup of coffee, dessert and JW Blue is always welcome.
We retired to the Cabana after this late big lunch. Starving after the rubbish BA served on the short-haul sector. After a calorie and carb snooze it was time for me to leave junior and Mrs Petrus alone. It turns out my fellow BAEC co-moderator Prospero was passing through T5! How wonderful. Two co-mods of the BAEC forum meet up on a blind date in BA's most exclusive lounge. After the hour long discussion over fine wines Prospero had to leave for his domestic. I ventured out for some shopping and snapping for your viewing pleasure.
No one likes me but I don't care.
I'm so disliked I had to sell my soul to Microsoft.
T5 Shops.
Up to the main South lounge complex which consists of Galleries Club for J pax, Silvers and OW Sapphires, Galleries First for Golds and OW Emeralds, The Concorde Room for F pax, Premier and CCR card holders and finally The Elemis Spa.
Next part for juniors first ever long-haul and daddies first try on a 777. When flying BA in either Club or First you always try to get on a 747 due to the Upper Deck business cabin and the First cabin located in the nose. So far a 100% hit rate... no more.
CCR Dining area. Waited service.
Possible one of the youngest patrons ever in The Concorde Room. Looks like junior is holding a rifle.
Yes! Tattinger Comtes de Champagne 1999. Finally some great Champagne in this lounge after the demise of the Bollinger Grand Annee 1999.
A pie of sorts. The Bordeaux is a Grand Cru Classe St Julien. Nicely done BA!
The Signature burger. Not sure why they call it signature. Nothing special.
A cup of coffee, dessert and JW Blue is always welcome.
We retired to the Cabana after this late big lunch. Starving after the rubbish BA served on the short-haul sector. After a calorie and carb snooze it was time for me to leave junior and Mrs Petrus alone. It turns out my fellow BAEC co-moderator Prospero was passing through T5! How wonderful. Two co-mods of the BAEC forum meet up on a blind date in BA's most exclusive lounge. After the hour long discussion over fine wines Prospero had to leave for his domestic. I ventured out for some shopping and snapping for your viewing pleasure.
No one likes me but I don't care.
I'm so disliked I had to sell my soul to Microsoft.
T5 Shops.
Up to the main South lounge complex which consists of Galleries Club for J pax, Silvers and OW Sapphires, Galleries First for Golds and OW Emeralds, The Concorde Room for F pax, Premier and CCR card holders and finally The Elemis Spa.
Next part for juniors first ever long-haul and daddies first try on a 777. When flying BA in either Club or First you always try to get on a 747 due to the Upper Deck business cabin and the First cabin located in the nose. So far a 100% hit rate... no more.
Feb 26, 2011, 10:55 am
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
Sector 2
LHR - DXB
BA: First
Seat 2K
Crew: Good
Equipment 777-200
Distance 3421 miles
All good in 1K.
Nooo! It is the old BA IFE without AVOD. No big deal since it was a night flight. More Champagne Please!
Unfortunately the cot that BA provide seems to be designed by folks who think babies are forever 50 cm tall... Junior tried but it was too small. Solution: Spoon it baby.
Junior was a star. No fuzz. Not much noise. Crew and fellow F pax alike where in awe. "What a golden little boy he is" they said. We've been blessed and lucky so far.
Another advice we got was to feed or give a bottle during climb and descent. Worked perfectly with all ears in good shape.
Dubai was approaching fast. Just look at the size of the Burj Khalifa.
Being F helps with immigration. But alas it made no difference due to BA once again failing to sort out priority luggage. Made no difference in the end as one of our pieces ended up in secondary screening at DXB. The infant car seat. A car for pick-up had been arranged in advance with our hotel, The fantastic 5-star Crowne Plaza in Dubai Festival City. Great property. We had a 1 bed Superior Suite which was just to our liking. High quality all over, but not over the top. Extra touch having double doors, just to make it clear to everyone else on the floor you have the suite. We arrived about 10am. No problem to check-in and suite available. Fantastic. The CP reception staff where outstanding.
Entry view.
From the window.
Hallway to master bedroom. Extra toilet on your right for your guests.
Wonderful subtle master bedroom, as illustrated by Mrs Petrus and junior.
Pretty hungry now due to the limited breakfast on the flight. At 12.30 the famous and coveted Intercontinental Lunch Buffet at Anise would open. I have read about it here on FT in previous reports and very much looked forward to it. We killed sometime on the terrace outside the restaurant with possibly the best latte ever.
The view.
Lets start the feast with some nibbles.
Looking towards some of the buffet stations.
Proper Cantonese station! Dim-sum, Peking duck etc.
Something from India.
Asian mix with prime beef.
Sashimi cut fresh.
Pizza!
Just about able to squeeze in some sweet stuff. Tiramisu and Creme Brulee. The dessert station was ridiculous! Chocolate fountains included.
At AED 170 this buffet is amazing value. I would pay treble. I'm going back.
After this food binge we felt like in a coma and decided to siesta the rest of the day.
Around six the sun set with stunning views from our suite.
At 8pm I got a call from a good friend who also happened to be in Dubai this week. Off we went to Mall of The Emirates for late night shopping and dinner.
More from Dubai in the next part.
LHR - DXB
BA: First
Seat 2K
Crew: Good
Equipment 777-200
Distance 3421 miles
All good in 1K.
Nooo! It is the old BA IFE without AVOD. No big deal since it was a night flight. More Champagne Please!
Unfortunately the cot that BA provide seems to be designed by folks who think babies are forever 50 cm tall... Junior tried but it was too small. Solution: Spoon it baby.
Junior was a star. No fuzz. Not much noise. Crew and fellow F pax alike where in awe. "What a golden little boy he is" they said. We've been blessed and lucky so far.
Another advice we got was to feed or give a bottle during climb and descent. Worked perfectly with all ears in good shape.
Dubai was approaching fast. Just look at the size of the Burj Khalifa.
Being F helps with immigration. But alas it made no difference due to BA once again failing to sort out priority luggage. Made no difference in the end as one of our pieces ended up in secondary screening at DXB. The infant car seat. A car for pick-up had been arranged in advance with our hotel, The fantastic 5-star Crowne Plaza in Dubai Festival City. Great property. We had a 1 bed Superior Suite which was just to our liking. High quality all over, but not over the top. Extra touch having double doors, just to make it clear to everyone else on the floor you have the suite. We arrived about 10am. No problem to check-in and suite available. Fantastic. The CP reception staff where outstanding.
Entry view.
From the window.
Hallway to master bedroom. Extra toilet on your right for your guests.
Wonderful subtle master bedroom, as illustrated by Mrs Petrus and junior.
Pretty hungry now due to the limited breakfast on the flight. At 12.30 the famous and coveted Intercontinental Lunch Buffet at Anise would open. I have read about it here on FT in previous reports and very much looked forward to it. We killed sometime on the terrace outside the restaurant with possibly the best latte ever.
The view.
Lets start the feast with some nibbles.
Looking towards some of the buffet stations.
Proper Cantonese station! Dim-sum, Peking duck etc.
Something from India.
Asian mix with prime beef.
Sashimi cut fresh.
Pizza!
Just about able to squeeze in some sweet stuff. Tiramisu and Creme Brulee. The dessert station was ridiculous! Chocolate fountains included.
At AED 170 this buffet is amazing value. I would pay treble. I'm going back.
After this food binge we felt like in a coma and decided to siesta the rest of the day.
Around six the sun set with stunning views from our suite.
At 8pm I got a call from a good friend who also happened to be in Dubai this week. Off we went to Mall of The Emirates for late night shopping and dinner.
More from Dubai in the next part.
Feb 26, 2011, 10:56 am
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
Now lets set the record straight. You don't go here for culture. It is about excess, insanity, shopping, more shopping and the weather. Walking is limited due to the layout of the city. Taxis are dirt cheap however. If you don't like nouveau riche then this is not the place for you. Plenty of loud Russians with trophy wives and their mullet hair kids. Deary me, I've never seen so many mullets before. 
Time to nap after a long but eventful day.
Turn down service.
Kempinski Hotel and entrance to Mall of The Emirates.
Mall of The Emirates is particularly famous for the indoor ski slope. I just had to try it.
Here is a video I recorded with the Smartphone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5W62URRAd10
The novelty wears of quickly. It's more about the experience of skiing on snow in the desert inside a dome constantly kept at -4 centigrade. For an intermediate or better a few runs is enough. What I found cool however is that one forgets your inside.
No trip to DXB is complete without a visit to the insanity that is The Palm and Atlantis Hotel. Here's a shot from the Atlantis Aqua Park beach.
Encore, with Burj-al-Arab on the horizon.
"I want it! I don't know what it is but I want to taste it." After the taste junior now tries to put everything in his mouth hoping it will taste as good.
Post Atlantis the entourage hit The Diamond and Gold park next door to Mall of The Emirates.
After scouring the shops and bargaining for hours (if you know a little about diamonds and can bargain there are fantastic deals to be made with prices making 47th Street in NYC look expensive) tiredness kicked in so it was decided to make use of room service.
Crowne Plaza shined here. 20 minutes was all they needed. Other 5-star hotels can take sometimes up to an hour. As for the food we opted for the healthy lean stuff...
Some pictures of the hotel:
This is the 5th floor terrace with a large pool. The two IHG hotels here are tightly connected and as such guests make use of all facilities as if it was one hotel. Works very well. Down town DXB is to your left outside the view.
Terrace view.
IC. Looks like serious damage has occurred to the building.
Sunset from the bedroom.
The view is so nice it deserves more attention.
Hotel tour: the bedroom
Suite entry on the right with the curved floor visible.
Creative stuff.
The conference facility between the two hotel lobbies.
IC Lobby.
Recharge required.
More Dubai including the worlds second largest aquarium coming up.
Time to nap after a long but eventful day.
Turn down service.
Kempinski Hotel and entrance to Mall of The Emirates.
Mall of The Emirates is particularly famous for the indoor ski slope. I just had to try it.
Here is a video I recorded with the Smartphone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5W62URRAd10
The novelty wears of quickly. It's more about the experience of skiing on snow in the desert inside a dome constantly kept at -4 centigrade. For an intermediate or better a few runs is enough. What I found cool however is that one forgets your inside.
No trip to DXB is complete without a visit to the insanity that is The Palm and Atlantis Hotel. Here's a shot from the Atlantis Aqua Park beach.
Encore, with Burj-al-Arab on the horizon.
"I want it! I don't know what it is but I want to taste it." After the taste junior now tries to put everything in his mouth hoping it will taste as good.
Post Atlantis the entourage hit The Diamond and Gold park next door to Mall of The Emirates.
After scouring the shops and bargaining for hours (if you know a little about diamonds and can bargain there are fantastic deals to be made with prices making 47th Street in NYC look expensive) tiredness kicked in so it was decided to make use of room service.
Crowne Plaza shined here. 20 minutes was all they needed. Other 5-star hotels can take sometimes up to an hour. As for the food we opted for the healthy lean stuff...
Some pictures of the hotel:
This is the 5th floor terrace with a large pool. The two IHG hotels here are tightly connected and as such guests make use of all facilities as if it was one hotel. Works very well. Down town DXB is to your left outside the view.
Terrace view.
IC. Looks like serious damage has occurred to the building.
Sunset from the bedroom.
The view is so nice it deserves more attention.
Hotel tour: the bedroom
Suite entry on the right with the curved floor visible.
Creative stuff.
The conference facility between the two hotel lobbies.
IC Lobby.
Recharge required.
More Dubai including the worlds second largest aquarium coming up.
Last edited by Petrus; Feb 26, 2011 at 11:18 am
Feb 26, 2011, 10:57 am
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
This is the sight we woke up to on this particular day. If I was religious this would be my calling! God is talking to me. And how fitting that it was the Birthday of the Prophet. A more scientific conclusion says that the sun happens to reflect dramatically on The Emirates Tower hotel. Very cool effect.
If I were religious this would be heaven. Now I don't believe in the Spaghetti monster or whatever bizarre ideas people may get from the books however when entering Mall of Dubai it's like you connect with some greater spirit! Call me an Agnostic I suppose.
Time for good deeds. I forced Mrs Petrus to spend as many hours as possible on her own before junior got hungry. Dubai Mall is a great place for a recent mum in need of a wardrobe to unwind. Hence, I kidnapped the pram and junior. He was in awe when spotting the aquarium. Our boy is at the age where everything is extra interesting and the eyesight is almost 100%. His head was spinning and limbs flapping.
That is the biggest fish I've ever seen! 8 feet long. And ugly too.
The aquarium was one of the highlights of the trip. It is truly amazing. A whole block dedicated to kids clothing. Juniors wardrobe is secured until fall.
Yep. Taco Bell. Can you guess which establishment in all of the mall food courts I saw was the busiest? McDonalds. And it was locals lining up to have junk served.
Dawn over the Burj Khalifa Tower and fountain. Fountain show was impressive however things would be so much more pleasant if they chose to not play Whitney Houston ballads. Just look at the size of the base of the Khalifa tower.
Did my best to catch all of the 828m/2,717ft madness.
Attempt at night shot. Long shutter obviously... did my best without a tripod.
We broke our mall record. Spent 9 straight hours at the Mall of Dubai. It is the best mall in the world quite possibly. It is so well designed and ample facilities for looking after infants. The designers did not forget about all these shoppers wanting to get home.
It's an eternity of cabs.
I'll end this part on a negative note. The following morning the hotel was jam packed busy. Locals from all over the region had arrived in force. What is with some cultures and people? It is like they own the world and anyone not adjudged to be one of them is frowned upon. And how some treat people is just dreadful. We had breakfast in an area with 3 other families.
All families had one or two nannies looking after the kids. There was one mom with two kids and a nanny for each child. The nannies where so badly treated it was shocking. The mom did not once talk to the nannies and when she had finished her breakfast she would not let the nannies finish (or barely eat at all). Forks still stuck in the food on the barely untouched plate. Cruel.
If I were religious this would be heaven. Now I don't believe in the Spaghetti monster or whatever bizarre ideas people may get from the books however when entering Mall of Dubai it's like you connect with some greater spirit! Call me an Agnostic I suppose.
Time for good deeds. I forced Mrs Petrus to spend as many hours as possible on her own before junior got hungry. Dubai Mall is a great place for a recent mum in need of a wardrobe to unwind. Hence, I kidnapped the pram and junior. He was in awe when spotting the aquarium. Our boy is at the age where everything is extra interesting and the eyesight is almost 100%. His head was spinning and limbs flapping.
That is the biggest fish I've ever seen! 8 feet long. And ugly too.
The aquarium was one of the highlights of the trip. It is truly amazing. A whole block dedicated to kids clothing. Juniors wardrobe is secured until fall.
Yep. Taco Bell. Can you guess which establishment in all of the mall food courts I saw was the busiest? McDonalds. And it was locals lining up to have junk served.
Dawn over the Burj Khalifa Tower and fountain. Fountain show was impressive however things would be so much more pleasant if they chose to not play Whitney Houston ballads. Just look at the size of the base of the Khalifa tower.
Did my best to catch all of the 828m/2,717ft madness.
Attempt at night shot. Long shutter obviously... did my best without a tripod.
We broke our mall record. Spent 9 straight hours at the Mall of Dubai. It is the best mall in the world quite possibly. It is so well designed and ample facilities for looking after infants. The designers did not forget about all these shoppers wanting to get home.
It's an eternity of cabs.
I'll end this part on a negative note. The following morning the hotel was jam packed busy. Locals from all over the region had arrived in force. What is with some cultures and people? It is like they own the world and anyone not adjudged to be one of them is frowned upon. And how some treat people is just dreadful. We had breakfast in an area with 3 other families.
All families had one or two nannies looking after the kids. There was one mom with two kids and a nanny for each child. The nannies where so badly treated it was shocking. The mom did not once talk to the nannies and when she had finished her breakfast she would not let the nannies finish (or barely eat at all). Forks still stuck in the food on the barely untouched plate. Cruel.
Feb 26, 2011, 10:58 am
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
We accepted this is a different part of the world with other values. This day was all about relaxing by the pool and not dwelling on cultural differences.
IC Pool area.
Healthy luncheon.
The CP burger. Fantastic. I asked for medium rare however it turned out very rare. I barely had looked up and a waiter appeared knowing exactly what the issue was. 5 minutes later a new mouth watering burger arrived.
Do you note anything special about the cans? (not the print obviously...)
CP lobby area.
We where now on our last day of the trip however a day earlier we realised we had booked the hotel or the flight out of synch depending on your perspective. With the flight leaving on the 22nd the hotel was booked with check-out on the 22nd. The flight left at 02.35am however so the final night in the hotel would go to waste. We did not cancel and instead thought it was rather comfortable not having to check out around noon with no private space to rest and look after junior for the remainder of the day. The 02.35 BA flight would have The new First cabin which I obviously was overly excited about. Arms flapping and legs kicking just like a happy infant. But alas, without much arguing I called BA to check if we could change the flight to the following morning at 10.05am. It would be far less taxing on junior and Mrs Petrus. I will get the chance to try BA NF later. BA agreed to change free of charge! Two golds in F helped our case for sure. BA redemptions are non-changeable 24hours before departure. As the saying goes; ask and you shall receive.
The flight change allowed us to relax the last evening with check-out the following morning instead. It was the right choice.
After all that rambling time for more photos. The Zaytoun CP restaurant.
The last supper at Zaytoun.
Departure day. One last look at that view.
Check-out was a smooth painless experience. I have only praise for the CP Dubai Festival City. Wonderful facility. Approaching the airport with a new terminal being erected. Look at the size of it and how tiny the workers are.
Another mall, er actually it is DXB airport.
Yes. Palms in the airport. And gold.
Next up the first long haul day flight with junior.
IC Pool area.
Healthy luncheon.
The CP burger. Fantastic. I asked for medium rare however it turned out very rare. I barely had looked up and a waiter appeared knowing exactly what the issue was. 5 minutes later a new mouth watering burger arrived.
Do you note anything special about the cans? (not the print obviously...)
CP lobby area.
We where now on our last day of the trip however a day earlier we realised we had booked the hotel or the flight out of synch depending on your perspective. With the flight leaving on the 22nd the hotel was booked with check-out on the 22nd. The flight left at 02.35am however so the final night in the hotel would go to waste. We did not cancel and instead thought it was rather comfortable not having to check out around noon with no private space to rest and look after junior for the remainder of the day. The 02.35 BA flight would have The new First cabin which I obviously was overly excited about. Arms flapping and legs kicking just like a happy infant. But alas, without much arguing I called BA to check if we could change the flight to the following morning at 10.05am. It would be far less taxing on junior and Mrs Petrus. I will get the chance to try BA NF later. BA agreed to change free of charge! Two golds in F helped our case for sure. BA redemptions are non-changeable 24hours before departure. As the saying goes; ask and you shall receive.
The flight change allowed us to relax the last evening with check-out the following morning instead. It was the right choice.
After all that rambling time for more photos. The Zaytoun CP restaurant.
The last supper at Zaytoun.
Departure day. One last look at that view.
Check-out was a smooth painless experience. I have only praise for the CP Dubai Festival City. Wonderful facility. Approaching the airport with a new terminal being erected. Look at the size of it and how tiny the workers are.
Another mall, er actually it is DXB airport.
Yes. Palms in the airport. And gold.
Next up the first long haul day flight with junior.
Feb 26, 2011, 10:59 am
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
Sector 3
DXB - LHR
BA: First
Seat 2A
Crew: disappointing
Equipment 777-200
Distance 3421 miles
Check-in smooth. Junior was relaxed. No problems with the three security stations. Due to the flight change we had limited seat options. 1A and 4A. The BA ground staff proactively asked us if we'd like them to ask the couple in 2A and 3A to switch so we had 1+2 and they 3+4. Our response was that we're ok as is and it is not necessary and we wish to make no fuss. However, they did ask them anyway so at the gate the move was complete. I thanked them discreetly onboard.
BA lounge entrance.
The flag and the beard.
The equipment.
Nooooooooooooooooo! Oldest Non-AVOD again. On a day flight.
Promptly filled in the DVD request sheet. Had requested The Sorcerers Apprentice which sounded like a Harry Potter movie. Turns out it was some Disney rubbish. Second choice was The Expendables. It is apparent how mentally challenged I wanted to be by the movie choices.
Flying BA F with an infant is great. They went out of their way to make sure our baby was well looked after. Looks like he was happy.
Time for lunch. Table set.
No canapes unfortunately, but some sort of pate was dished out.
Soup was good.
The best part was the pesto.
Lets escape our own little world and see how the others are doing.
All good in 1A so I jumped right back in to my seat for more me time.
Yummy.
Wall street 2.
1A popped by for a chat. Junior was a star. I suppose it helps to travel in great comfort. The baby senses the parents are relaxed hence no stress.
I could get used to this!
The flight went by quickly without ever getting tedious or boring. Junior performed admirably. The crew though should get a slap for being lazy. Once meal service finished they all disappeared behind the curtains in the F galley never to be seen unless you pressed the call button. In international First class?! This is the main issue with BA. Inconsistent crew. Some F sectors are a dream with attentive crew while others stink.
More to follow.
DXB - LHR
BA: First
Seat 2A
Crew: disappointing
Equipment 777-200
Distance 3421 miles
Check-in smooth. Junior was relaxed. No problems with the three security stations. Due to the flight change we had limited seat options. 1A and 4A. The BA ground staff proactively asked us if we'd like them to ask the couple in 2A and 3A to switch so we had 1+2 and they 3+4. Our response was that we're ok as is and it is not necessary and we wish to make no fuss. However, they did ask them anyway so at the gate the move was complete. I thanked them discreetly onboard.
BA lounge entrance.
The flag and the beard.
The equipment.
Nooooooooooooooooo! Oldest Non-AVOD again. On a day flight.
Promptly filled in the DVD request sheet. Had requested The Sorcerers Apprentice which sounded like a Harry Potter movie. Turns out it was some Disney rubbish. Second choice was The Expendables. It is apparent how mentally challenged I wanted to be by the movie choices.
Flying BA F with an infant is great. They went out of their way to make sure our baby was well looked after. Looks like he was happy.
Time for lunch. Table set.
No canapes unfortunately, but some sort of pate was dished out.
Soup was good.
The best part was the pesto.
Lets escape our own little world and see how the others are doing.
All good in 1A so I jumped right back in to my seat for more me time.
Yummy.
Wall street 2.
1A popped by for a chat. Junior was a star. I suppose it helps to travel in great comfort. The baby senses the parents are relaxed hence no stress.
I could get used to this!
The flight went by quickly without ever getting tedious or boring. Junior performed admirably. The crew though should get a slap for being lazy. Once meal service finished they all disappeared behind the curtains in the F galley never to be seen unless you pressed the call button. In international First class?! This is the main issue with BA. Inconsistent crew. Some F sectors are a dream with attentive crew while others stink.
More to follow.
Feb 26, 2011, 11:00 am
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
Lets have a little case study of the BA long-haul product.
First.
Club World (Business) Looks messy compared to F.
World Traveller Plus (Premium Economy) eeeer?
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRH! What is this?
Landed on time with a pretty smooth connecting experience at T5. Other pax praised junior and so did the crew. Once again a Cabana had been reserved. Junior appeared to be getting used to this type of comfortable travel. I cannot stress enough what a luxury it is to havea private space to fresh up, change and then dine in private when traveling with an infant.
I left mommy and baby to relax. Once again it turned out that another FT'er was passing through the airport. More Champagne Sir? was in the First/Gold lounge. Accordingly he was invited to the Concorde for More Champagne
Great to meet you. I picked him up here. This is the landing between Galleries First, Elemis Spa, The CCR and the escalators up to Galleries Club.
Concorde Room detail.
Time was up and the ARN flight would be boarding. Gate was A9 so only a short stroll from the lounge complex.
Sector 4
LHR - ARN
BA: Club Europe/C
Seat 5C
Crew: average (did their best, seemed short)
Equipment A319
Distance 911 miles
Again BA inconsistency annoyed us. The policy I cannot speak of but why oh why do they sometimes have organised boarding (e.g. families with young children and infants pre-board, then elites at their leisure and by row number) and sometimes complete disorder, like on this occasion?
Once settled in a less than half full Club Europe cabin junior was already fast asleep. What a traveling angel he is.
Proper portions of food where served due to the timing of the flight. Mrs Petrus went for chicken and yours truly for meatballs.
And with that rather bland photo this will be the end of the report. To summarise:
Traveling with an infant was in our case a breeze. I suppose it gets worse when they start moving about. BA are fantastic with young children. Everyone appeared genuinely pleased and helpful. Junior obviously deserves praise. Traveling up front probably helped a lot as mentioned earlier. Not so much directly for the baby but for the parents.
DXB is what it is. I will go back. But what is it with locals having to touch your baby? Leave him alone. Yes, he is cute, adorable has no hair, but I would never touch your child.
It was interesting to visit The Middle East. It is an inherently different world to the West. The Crowne Plaza Festival City is a great property and highly recommended! Thanks for looking and hope it was worth the read.
First.
Club World (Business) Looks messy compared to F.
World Traveller Plus (Premium Economy) eeeer?
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRH! What is this?
Landed on time with a pretty smooth connecting experience at T5. Other pax praised junior and so did the crew. Once again a Cabana had been reserved. Junior appeared to be getting used to this type of comfortable travel. I cannot stress enough what a luxury it is to havea private space to fresh up, change and then dine in private when traveling with an infant.
I left mommy and baby to relax. Once again it turned out that another FT'er was passing through the airport. More Champagne Sir? was in the First/Gold lounge. Accordingly he was invited to the Concorde for More Champagne
Great to meet you. I picked him up here. This is the landing between Galleries First, Elemis Spa, The CCR and the escalators up to Galleries Club.Concorde Room detail.
Time was up and the ARN flight would be boarding. Gate was A9 so only a short stroll from the lounge complex.
Sector 4
LHR - ARN
BA: Club Europe/C
Seat 5C
Crew: average (did their best, seemed short)
Equipment A319
Distance 911 miles
Again BA inconsistency annoyed us. The policy I cannot speak of but why oh why do they sometimes have organised boarding (e.g. families with young children and infants pre-board, then elites at their leisure and by row number) and sometimes complete disorder, like on this occasion?
Once settled in a less than half full Club Europe cabin junior was already fast asleep. What a traveling angel he is.
Proper portions of food where served due to the timing of the flight. Mrs Petrus went for chicken and yours truly for meatballs.
And with that rather bland photo this will be the end of the report. To summarise:
Traveling with an infant was in our case a breeze. I suppose it gets worse when they start moving about. BA are fantastic with young children. Everyone appeared genuinely pleased and helpful. Junior obviously deserves praise. Traveling up front probably helped a lot as mentioned earlier. Not so much directly for the baby but for the parents.
DXB is what it is. I will go back. But what is it with locals having to touch your baby? Leave him alone. Yes, he is cute, adorable has no hair, but I would never touch your child.
It was interesting to visit The Middle East. It is an inherently different world to the West. The Crowne Plaza Festival City is a great property and highly recommended! Thanks for looking and hope it was worth the read.
Feb 26, 2011, 11:21 am
#9
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: The Hague, NL
Programs: GMLFL, Life 2.0 - Mucci Premiere Classe & des Chevaliers Toulousiens
Posts: 22,911
Excellent report! Love the shot of MiniYou with the boarding pass in the lounge. ^ Babies like yours I would have no problem traveling with.
I have done about the same trip including the Crowne Plaza 2 years ago (albeit without a baby) and I found it a wonderful hotel. Better in many ways to the ridiculously overpriced options on Jumeirah beach.
Shame you missed out on NF.
I have done about the same trip including the Crowne Plaza 2 years ago (albeit without a baby) and I found it a wonderful hotel. Better in many ways to the ridiculously overpriced options on Jumeirah beach.
Shame you missed out on NF.
Feb 26, 2011, 11:31 am
#10
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
Programs: AF Platinum, EK Gold, AA EXP, UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 21,602
Feb 26, 2011, 12:16 pm
#11
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: ARN
Programs: Mucci Entry Level, BA Gold, EK Pleb, SK Pleb, QR Pleb
Posts: 3,585
Now this is a TRIP REPORT ^^
Excellent text and pictures. Now, sadly I have to comment on a few things:
Why is one plus baby Petrus seq 11 and the other seq 2? Who was the proactive traveller?
And really five checked bags for two people and a baby
But in conclusion, an excellent TR and a worthy candidate for the BA TR 2011 award ^
I also notice that you live very near me at U-gatan. I'm at St Eriksplan. So we are three FT:ers living in close proximity, Bjorns is also near you
Excellent text and pictures. Now, sadly I have to comment on a few things:
Why is one plus baby Petrus seq 11 and the other seq 2? Who was the proactive traveller?
And really five checked bags for two people and a baby
But in conclusion, an excellent TR and a worthy candidate for the BA TR 2011 award ^
I also notice that you live very near me at U-gatan. I'm at St Eriksplan. So we are three FT:ers living in close proximity, Bjorns is also near you
Feb 26, 2011, 12:22 pm
#12
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: In the skies of the world
Programs: SAS Gold, FB Gold, BA Gold, EY Silver
Posts: 3,167
Nice report Petrus! ^
Maybe I should follow your advice and look a bit more into OW...
But the food on ARN-LHR?? Pathetic! You'll find better food in SAS economy extra on the same route.
Maybe I should follow your advice and look a bit more into OW...
But the food on ARN-LHR?? Pathetic! You'll find better food in SAS economy extra on the same route.
Feb 26, 2011, 12:23 pm
#13
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: in a cabin
Posts: 6,522
Wife is at the countryside with me left to my own devices tonight. Beer?
The sequences are mismatched due to not being able to fill in API for the infant until 24h before departure. At T24 I did not have his passport on me so could only check-in Mrs P.
Jacob: The food is much better during breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is the two slots between, called Extended breakfast and Afternoon Tea that is the joke seen here.
The sequences are mismatched due to not being able to fill in API for the infant until 24h before departure. At T24 I did not have his passport on me so could only check-in Mrs P.
Jacob: The food is much better during breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is the two slots between, called Extended breakfast and Afternoon Tea that is the joke seen here.