iceman77_7

Introduction
AA F SFO-JFK
Radisson Martinique Broadway and a food tour of Manhattan
JFK LH F Lounge
LH F JFK-FRA
FRA LH Senator's Lounge and TG F FRA-BKK Part 1
TG F FRA-BKK Part 2
TG BKK F Lounge/Spa Experience and TG J BKK-SIN
Conrad Centennial Singapore and Food Tour Day 1
Food Tour Day 2
SIN Airport and The Private Room
SQ F SIN-HKG
SQ F HKG-SFO
Conclusion

Introduction: The inner musings of an avgeek

Pardon the verbosity and string of consciousness that follows, but in classic #avgeekfirstworldproblems, a lot of thought and agonizing went into planning this trip.

In my last big trip (described here), I added on a free one-way to NYC on AA several months after my original trip because I wanted to experience a premium transcon product. I had a week off of work and at the time, I was planning on spending a few days in NYC for vacation before coming back to SFO. However, after the big SQ computer upgrade glitch occurred, I knew I had to take advantage of the SQ award availability and decided to use NYC as my springboard for my trip. I wanted to spend a couple days in New York and then a few days in SIN, but my girlfriend at the time of the trip planning process wanted to spend more time in NYC with me before I headed to SIN on my own. I was looking at 3 nights in NYC and 2 nights in SIN. I originally booked the EWR-SIN non-stop in SQ J, with the return SIN-HKG-SFO on the 77W in F. I then looked at Europe routings and knew that TG was scheduled to run the Jet Airways-leased 77W from FRA-BKK with F availability. I could also take the SQ A380, albeit in J, from JFK-FRA. After much debate and endless sleepless nights (you FTers can sympathize with me, right?), I decided that flying in the SQ A380 and the Jet Airways 77W F as well as experiencing the TG BKK F lounge, was cooler than the longest flight in the world.

Fast forward a few months and TG took the 77W off the FRA-BKK route and replaced it with the A340 (blech). I knew TG operated the A380 on that route as well and after spying on award availability (thanks Expertflyer!), I was able to secure a seat in A380 F. I also figured that since I'd be paying F miles already, I should try and get a seat on the LH 747 JFK-FRA, which I was finally able to do so at T-72 hours from departure.

Now some of you may be asking (or maybe I'm the only one avgeek here, I don't know), why didn't I take the LH FRA-BKK non-stop so that I could experience the FRA FCT? The LH flight would mean a 10 hour layover in FRA (there are worse places to spend 10 hours than the FCT, but I was already spending so little time in SIN that I wanted to minimize layovers) and no TG F spa and lounge access.

With that settled, my final routing was AA 767 F SFO-JFK//three nights in NYC//LH 747-400 F JFK-FRA, TG A380 F FRA-BKK, TG A330 J BKK-SIN//SQ 77W SIN-HKG-SFO. Oh, and the girlfriend and I broke up so I'd be spending the extra night in NYC for naught. Just goes to show that you shouldn't let relationships get in the way of vacation planning.

Sit back, relax and enjoy the rest of the trip report! Lots of pics to come in the posts ahead.

I'll try to make a post or two a day, but I promise to finish it, unlike other TRs that I've seen posters complain about.

iceman77_7

Having been loyal to United for the last 10 years or so, it was a strange feeling to be taking an AA flight. I had not flown AA since 2000 back when I was in high school, and had never flown AA out of SFO. I had just been approved for Global Entry, but had never used pre-check before. I arrived at SFO the usual 75 minutes or so prior to departure and noticed the pre-check line on the far left, but having never used it before, didn't want to be booted out if I didn't get clearance. I instead went to the ID checker next to the pre-check line and when I got the magical three beeps, asked if I could go down the pre-check screening, which they allowed. Let me just reconfirm what so many have already said: pre-check is awesome! Just like traveling back in the 1990s.

I made my way into the beautiful terminal 2 and hung a left to check out the AAdmirals club, which I would get access to as an F passenger on SFO-JFK. Having never been to an AAdmirals Club, I was flat out blown away. Beautiful appearance, more superior snack options compared to the United Clubs. Though it was a Monday morning, there was still plenty of seating available. It was getting close to my departure time though, so I had to make my way to the gate.


My AA 763

AA 24 SFO-JFK
May 6, 2013
7:10 AM-3:50 PM
Seat 3A
Boeing 767-300


As I settled into my seat, I couldn't help but make constant comparisons to United. The product seemed vastly superior to United. Bose noise cancelling headsets, duvets, personal galaxy tab entertainment systems, friendly flight attendants, the ability to pre-order meals... If I weren't captive to SFO, I would consider switching!


Legroom


Fancy seat controls and a chocolate muffin from the AAdmirals club


Bose noise-cancelling headsets (the real deal and not some knock-off) and a duvet!


Samsung Galaxy Tab

With that great first impression, the FAs then distributed paper menus, a very nice touch. I'm always a fan of menus, if only just so I know exactly what I'm getting when I order food. I had already gone online and pre-ordered the corned beef hash prior to departure.


Menu cover



Breakfast is usually my least favorite airplane meal. On United domestic, it's usually some kind of thing that resembles an egg with dried potatoes and a sausage link. Overall a very small portion as well. I was blown away by the AA offering.


Large corned beef hash and egg dish, was quite tasty too!


Decent portion of fruit as well

As much as I loved the Galaxy Tab tablets, my main complaint with them is that it's very difficult to watch a movie or TV show while eating. I wish there were some way to attach the tablet to the compartment straight ahead of you, like an in-seat video screen so that it's easy to watch and eat. I would think it wouldn't be too hard to come up with some kind of slot or adapter for it.

I managed to keep myself entertained during the flight by watching Silver Linings Playbook, Skyfall and playing Bejeweled. The FAs were AMAZING throughout, constantly looking to refill beverages, always having a friendly smile, and being proactive with their services. I know there are good and bad crews on every airline, but judging from the love they get on Twitter and my experience on this flight, there must be a higher proportion of good crews on AA.

Maybe because I'm a kid at heart, I much preferred this over the wine and cheese plate, but prior to landing came my favorite part of any flight (maybe because I have yet to be on a plane with ice cream sundaes), warm chocolate chip cookie and milk!


Yumm....


I love a lot of fine foods, but could never get into cheese.

Before I knew it, we were already making our descent into JFK. I had a fantastic flight on AA and would definitely have to consider them for future flights, assuming I can get the upgrade of course. :-)

jsmeeker

nice start! glad you had a good experience on AA. I haven't been in SFO since they re-did the terminal AA uses. I need to get back there.

AirForceFlyer

Great start, can't wait for the rest!

iceman77_7

Disclaimer: this post will be photo-heavy and this wordy. A lot of my time in NYC was spent with friends, which doesn't really lend itself to a verbose trip report. Here are the potentially interesting parts of my trip.

Prologue: Having started the planning process for this trip over 6 months prior to the departure date, I naturally went through a lot of iterations, as you could tell from my introduction. For my NYC hotel, I was originally planning to stay at the Westin New York Grand Central with SPG points. Enter Club Carlson and their amazing stay 1 night, get 1 night, and stay 1 night, get 50K point promos. I quickly did a couple of mattress runs at my local Country Inn for $90 and I had enough nights/points to spend 3 nights at the Radisson Martinique.

After landing at JFK, I took the Airtrain to Jamaica station and then the subway to Grand Central. From there, I hoofed it to the Radisson. It's not much to look at from the outside with construction scaffolding in front and quite easy to miss. One thing I noticed while staying here is that a lot of airline crews use this hotel as well.

During check-in, I was acknowledged as a gold elite member and was informed that I had been "upgraded" to the penthouse level. I was totally excited about this until I found out later that it just meant I had a small window and a longer elevator wait. :-P

Some shots of the room:

King size bed to the left of the entrance


Small seating area to the right with random pillar in the middle of the room


Extremely small window. What good is the penthouse level if you can barely look out the window?


Nice welcome gift. I'm a huge fan of welcome gifts. They also provided a couple bottles of water as well.

I had only been to New York City once as a little kid. Though I'm from California, a lot of my high school and college friends have moved out here over the years and it was great to have a meal with a different friend every day. Some food samples:


Pastrami on rye from Katz Deli. (apologize for the poor photo quality)


Pork chop over rice from Hua Ji Pork Chop, a great deal for just $5 and delicious!


Beef buns from Ippudo ramen


Hakada classic with extra pork belly from Ippudo Ramen

Other highlights that I didn't take photos of: lobster sliders during happy hour at the Lobster Joint, Shake Shack.


The first of many cups of boba. I'm a boba connoisseur so I consider it my job to sample various places in different locations.

I also did the usual sightseeing things:

Central Park from the Mandarin Oriental Hotel


The Taiwan flag in Chinatown!


The weather was AMAZING too. Beautiful skies


The Freedom Tower, nearing the end of construction

Other highlight from my trip: Getting the last two rush tickets to see Kinky Boots, which is an outstanding musical. Totally pumped that it won the Tony for Best Musical. Definitely see it when it tours your city.

Before I knew, three days had flown by and I was ready to depart on the next leg(s) of my journey: flying around the world on three of the top first class airlines.

dat4life

Glad you enjoyed your foray to the dAAkside

Enjoying the read so far. Looking forward to the rest.

SFO777

Nice start to what promises to be a great trip. It's always fun to read 1st impressions of AA premium service from UA flyers who have grown accustomed to accepting mediocrity.

iceman77_7

After three days of seeing friends, sightseeing, and gluttony, I was ready to embark on the next segment of my trip: 30 hours of gluttony. I arrived at JFK at around 5 PM as I had to check out of my hotel at 1 PM and there was no good place to hang out with my carry on bag. Check-in at that time was a breeze as you might expect, particularly in F. I thought the silver LH F boarding pass sleeve was a nice touch as well.

I was able to find my way to the LH lounge immediately to the left after security thanks to the directions given to me by the check-in agent. On arrival, I showed them my TSA-marked up boarding pass and asked if I could have a reprint, just as a memento of my trip. That done, the agent escorted me up to the very top floor of the lounge, reserved for first class passengers.

As I stepped out of the elevator, I walked into the completely empty F lounge area. It was quite small with just a seating area immediately to the left upon entering and then a narrow hallway for the buffet, then the dining area. I was surprised that there was no staff around as well. I walked down the hall to the dining area and sat down. After 10 minutes, no one came by so I got up, poured myself a drink and started to look through the buffet.


One side of the buffet


Cold appetizers


Dessert bar including all you can eat macarons! I wish soon-to-be Mrs. iceman77_7 could have joined me for this part.

I glumly ate my food in solitude and admired the view. The F area is nice in that it is an elevated area that overlooks the Senator's lounge (something oddly elitist about looking down upon them) and has great tarmac views.


View from the F lounge

After 30 minutes or so in the lounge, I made my way back to the seating area and settled in. Eventually, another German speaking couple entered and finally one of the staff from the lounge came to greet us. I inquired if the sit-down menu was going to be available in the dining room, which of course it was, and the staff member was shocked that I had been there for over 30 minutes waiting. In any case, I made my way back to the dining area and perused the menu


A la carte menu


Buffet menu

I opted for the crab cake and the steak. Both of which were excellent.





After enjoying my meal, I asked about the showers and was told they were downstairs. Apparently there's no queuing system for the showers, at least that's what they told me. However, it seemed like there was no good way to tell if a particular shower was occupied, vacant but dirty, or clean. I lucked out though when I walked down and noticed a somewhat clean looking shower room and guessed it had already been cleaned.


Shower room. I think it was cleaned given the toiletry tray, but then someone left a random towel on the ground.

Enough with the lounge, let's get on to the flight!

iceman77_7

I could feel my excitement slowly building as I walked to gate 005. Once I got there, I was disappointed to here that there would be a delay, though unclear why as the plane was already there. So much for German punctuality...


The queen of the skies gets me every time...

LH 405
May 9, 2013
9:55 PM-11:35 AM
Seat 83C (love the uber-high numbers in the upper deck)
Boeing 747-400

As I walked up the stairs to the upper deck, there was another passenger already there putting their bag in the closet. I left my carry-on there as directed by the FA and headed to my seat. I've flown CX F and really enjoyed it, but nothing beats having a separate bed and seat.


Head-on shot of bed/seat


Side shot

Menus were distributed and copied below, with Dr. iceman77_7 and my seat number written on the front.

The dinner menu read as follows

After the LH FA took my order, warm nuts and champagne was distributed.


Gotta love my warm nuts!

After take off, I noticed every other passenger in the cabin change into pajamas and go to bed without dinner. Though I understand that this is a short TATL red-eye, how can you not eat dinner in first class?

First, some canape/amuse bouche was distributed.

Absolutely disgusting, but I really don't like cheese so I'm pretty biased.

Now I have heard and seen the famous Lufthansa appetizer stand and was very much looking forward to having one of these on my table. I was quite dismayed when he plated the appetizers that I ordered.


Jumbo shrimp cocktail


Thai beef salad


I absolutely LOVE garlic bread. The pretzel bread isn't bad either.

Now these were the appetizers that I ordered when the FA came around pre-flight. No caviar was served and I noticed it was supposed to be the first thing out on the menu. After asking my FA about it, I was told that I was supposed to have ordered it originally. Lesson learned. Always explicitly order the caviar.


Good sized helping of caviar. Good thing I like onions.


Seasonal salad

For my main course, I know I had just had a steak in the lounge, but none of the other entrees really appealed to me so I decided to see how LH steaks were in the air.


The steak looked pretty juicy and tasty from the outside, but the real test would be when it was cut open.


A pretty legit medium to medium-rare! Impressive!

Having just eaten two large meals in just a few hours, I begrudgingly had to pass on dessert, for probably the first time ever in my life. I went to the lavatory and changed into the pajamas. I've noticed that every airline's pajamas seem to follow the respective country's character. Cathay and their Shanghai Tangs, Thai with their baby blue PJs. Hence, it was only appropriate that LH's pajamas looked like this:

Distinctly utilitarian gray.

I laid down to sleep and the bed was extremely comfortable, probably more comfortable than the one I had in college. Well-padded, just a hair narrower than a twin bed. I slept for a solid six hours before getting up for breakfast.

The menu
Having read many trip reports over the years, I've always read about muesli, though I've never tried it before. Usually I'm relatively risk adverse when it comes to food, but decided to give it a shot.

I absolutely LOVE IT! I'm a big yogurt and fruit fan and this seems to combine both of those things quite nicely. I ended up having muesli multiple other times on the rest of my trip and have even tried looking at how to make it at home (harder than it seems).

Much too soon, we began our descent into Frankfurt airport and my Lufthansa adventure was over. Overall I would definitely take the hard product over Cathay (though they don't really compete on the same routes), and the soft product was solid. Was disappointed by the JFK lounge experience, but all in all, extremely pleased and glad I was able to switch the the LH flight from SQ A380 J.

iceman77_7

It's definitely very beautiful with lots of good food options.

Thanks for reading!

I'm an ardent UA supporter, but AA definitely blows UA out of the water. I'll be flying the new p.s. transcon in a couple months so will have a good comparison! Will definitely post that trip as well.

TomVexille

looks great so far, looking forward to reading the rest

gum

Thanks!

Babykings

Everything seems excellent so far! I am based in Hong Kong. Dont know which lounge you will use, just wish you a good journey, mate!

Jwebber57

cant wait to see more!!!

airbus320

TR