durberville

Thanks for reading this trip report! Because I am posting the numerous parts of this report while I’m travelling, they will be published over the course of the next couple weeks. Enjoy!

You can also find this trip report on my blog.
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Part 1: How I booked it

Part 2: Kingston YGK-Toronto YYZ-New York City JFK AC Y

Part 3: New York City JFK-Hong Kong CX F

Part 4: Life in Hong Kong

Part 5: Hong Kong HKG-Johannesburg JNB CX F

Part 6: South Africa

Part 7: Going home! JNB-HKG-ORD CX F and ORD-YYZ AA Y
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YGK-YYZ-JFK

This was a simple Aeroplan booking, and 15k per person (we’re a party of two). About $80 of taxes and fuel surcharges. All flights are on Air Canada.

JFK-HKG-JNB-HKG-ORD

Evidently the most interesting flights of the trip are on Cathay Pacific First Class. To book these, all you need is 70K each way (JFK-HKG-JNB) to fly in First, or 140k round-trip, booking with Alaska points. I collected 280k Alaska points by churning the MBNA Alaska card.



Note that starting August 2nd 2014, Cathay Pacific will be stopping First class service to JNB. I will be on one of the last First class flights to JNB on Cathay!

To book a Cathay award using Alaska points, look at availability using BA Avios, and call Alaska Customer Service to book. You cannot book Cathay with Alaska online.

Cathay used to publish a lot of First Class award inventory, but lately, that inventory has been dwindling. When I booked this trip, I was just at the beginning of when Cathay was pulling First class inventory. I was amazed to find F seats on JFK-HKG-JNB-HKG without a problem, but the return to the USA only left me with 1 seat available in First to ORD. My partner decided he’d be OK flying in J while I was in F for this last segment, so I called Alaska to book. The customer service agent was able to find a second F seat for that flight (which was not appearing on the BA Avios search). Lesson is: if you’re only finding 1 F seat available, might as well call Alaska to see if they can find you more!

Taxes per person were about $54 for the round-trip!

ORD-YYZ

This was an easy one: I used 4500 BA Avios points per person + ~$5 in tax for two one-way flights on AA to YYZ.

JNB-CPT

This is a round-trip flight on South African low cost carrier, Kulula.com (yes, there’s a ‘.com’ in their official name!) This wasn’t the easiest flight to book: whenever I tried to use a Canadian credit card, my company would block the charge as fraud. Even after I called them, they continued to block it. The only card I had that would take the charge was my AMEX (which sucks, cause’ they charge a total of ~5% FOREX fee).

I had to change my flights, and MN has a very reasonable $35 per-person change fee which I happily paid.

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YGK-YYZ

I woke up nice and early to catch my 5:40AM flight from Kingston YGK to Toronto YYZ. I absolutely love the YGK airport: it's very small, clean, efficient, and their operations just work. The agents were able to through-check my luggage all the way to Hong Kong, even though that flight was on a separate itinerary.

Another great feature of the YGK airport (except for the microwave being the centre point of their cafeteria!), is that only a Beechcraft services the airport. The Beechcraft is an old-timey plane, with no cockpit door, a bathroom without a door, and loud-as-hell propellors.


My chariot awaits!


The gate is soooo big!


I would fly this all the way to Hong Kong!

The ride was pretty smooth, and it was really cool looking out of the cockpit the entire flight. I believe the Beechcraft is Air Canada’s only unsecured cockpit.

YYZ-JFK

My time in Toronto was surprisingly easy – my plane parked close to the Terminal F entry. Being Toronto, you have to re-clear security and do US immigrations. Everything was really smooth, especially with my NEXUS card.

My partner just got the AMEX Platinum card, which gave us access to the Plaza Premium Lounge. All in all, it was OK, with a decent hot-breakfast offering. It had plenty of light, however is was too small. We stayed there for about 30 minutes.


Plaza Lounge entrance.


Kinda small, eh?


Breakfast Spread

We then spent the rest of our layover at the Term F Maple Leaf Lounge. It’s a decent lounge, with a fine food selection, amble room and seating, and is bright with nice windows.



Boarding was called soon thereafter. It was a small plane, and was bout 3/4 full. We were seated right behind the J cabin. Honestly, the J seats looked almost like the Y seats, and the only real difference is that J gets a small bite to eat – not worth the extra points for such a shot flight!


JFK-YYZ Flight

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BA First Class Lounge – JFK

Cathay puts their First Class passengers in the BA First Class lounge at JFK. Note that BA First Class passengers actually use the Concorde Room, not this lounge.

On the whole, this lounge is ‘meh’. It’s a good business class lounge, but is not fit for First Class. Their food offerings were sparse, mostly fruit and some stale sushi, and they had no hot food. The liquor selection was decent, with Grey Goose and Laurent-Perrier on offer.

The business class lounge attached also has a dinning facility and a spa, but those aren’t staffed until 4PM, which is after the Cathay 2:50PM flight leaves.


The lounge is dark, and doesn’t have much in the way of a view.


Laurent-Perrier champagne.


Lunch in the lounge.

Cathay Pacific First Class: JFK-HKG

To start, let me just say WOW! This flight was excellent: the service was extremely attentive, the food absolutely wonderful, and the hard product (i.e. the seat) is the most comfortable in the sky (even better than the separate LH 747-400 seat&bed!).

We were welcomed onboard the Boeing 777 with a glass of Krug ($278 at the LCBO) and a ramekin of warm nuts. We were then handed PYE Organic Cotton pyjamas, which are incredibly comfortable. The pyjamas come with a coupon to redeem for a free gift at a PYE location in Hong Kong (six handkerchiefs). The flight attendant was wonderful enough to give me a second pair as a gift.

The amenity kit is made by Ermenegildo Zegna, and is sturdy with genuine leather. It was bare-bone, but contained all the essentials for a long flight.

What’s awesome about Cathay’s First Class seat is the ability to convert the ottoman into a second seat, and you can have a proper meal facing your travel companion, like you’re at a restaurant. My partner and I spent hours drinking fine wines and eating the delicious food. I highly recommend the Hong Kong Milk Tea, which is addictive.


The *huge* seat (can easily fit two people).


Ottoman + TV


Amuse-bouche: lobster & avocado.


Krug champagne


Amenity kit.


Dining together!


Caviar!


Pistachio dessert.


Delicious cod main.


Second dessert! Strawberry/raspberry cake. Yummy!


Hong Kong Milk Tea + Pralines

After two extravagant meals, I tried to get some shut-eye. The bed is absolutely amazing. I was able to snatch a second pillow (full-sized down) from a nearby seat, and the added mattress padding made this bed incredible. I must have slept for a solid 4-5 hours, and woke up and watched some Big Bang Theory on Cathay’s huge media library.

We landed in a stormy Hong Kong. Immigration/customs was a breeze, and our earlier through-checked luggage was one of the first pieces out. We then went to Cathay’s Arrival Lounge, which is located in Terminal 2 pre-security. It was small, and we didn’t spend much time there. I took a run for the shower, which was clean and spacious. Didn’t get any photos of this lounge, as I was only there for 20 minutes… sorry!

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To be honest, I’m not too fond of Hong Kong. I’ve been here before, and I find the city kind of lifeless, each district is more-or-less the same. However, Hong Kong has fabulous food, and prices in the city are surprisingly reasonable.

On day 1 we went to Macau, which was quite an experience. When we went to Macau, there was a ‘Tier 3′ typhoon warning, which meant that the ferry to and from Macau was extremely turbulent. We were knocked around, and a number of folks were puking throughout the journey.

We used TurboJet to get to and from Macau, and we went for the “business class.” It was about $10CAD more per-person than economy class, but the seats were much larger, the cabin smaller, and a (bad) meal and drink service is provided.



Weird thing in MGM Macau



Macau is really, really weird.

Later that day we picked up the “free gift” offered by PYE to Cathay Pacific F passengers. Attached to the PJ bag is a coupon for the free gift. Your choice is either a 500HKD gift certificate to PYE (which cannot be combined), or a box of six handkerchiefs. I chose the latter.



PYE free gift

On day two we took the cable car to the Buddha statue. The cable car offered beautiful views, but it was terrifying. Remember how we were in Hong Kong during a typhoon? Well, the wind whistles and pushes the cable cars from side-to-side… I was crying (In 2007 a cable car fell off). You get an awesome view of the HKG Airport, with the planes departing right beside you (adding to the terror). Sorry, I couldn’t get any photos during the cable car trip, crying and shaking in fear n’ all.



Big Buddha



View from Big Buddha

Later that evening we were off to Hong Kong HKG airport for our Cathay Pacific First Class flight to Johannesburg JNB. While there, the only available lounge for First Class passengers (due to construction) was The Wing. It took us awhile to actually find the lounge (bro tip: it’s right beside emigration). We were able to get a cabana, which we used most of our time there. It was incredibly spacious and comfortable. It has a bathtub, a shower, a toilet, and a pretty comfortable sofa/bed.



The Wing (CX First) cabana

There was also an excellent complimentary restaurant in the lounge, catered by the Peninsula Hotel (bro tip #2: the chocolates are AMAZING).



Yummy fish + black truffle



Pear tart and vanilla ice cream

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This flight, Hong Kong HKG to Johannesburg JNB, currently operates on a 747. In the near future, Cathay Pacific is set to retire all 747s. For the HKG-JNB route, this retirement is happening quite soon: the last official flight carrying first class is on August 2nd, and sporadic flights occurring for the rest of August.

The 747 uses the old First Class product. Compared to the new product, there isn’t much difference in the look of it, other than the fact it looks a little more worn, and the paneling is more plastic looking. Substantially, the cushioning on the seat felt noticeably worse than on the new First Class product. I would rather fly on the new First rather than on the Old version.

My partner and I were lucky enough to grab the front seats of the First Class cabin. On the 747, the front seats are placed at the nose (bottom floor) of the plane. It’s great for a couple: you’re really close to each other, and you can easily talk. Moreover, as there’s no traffic in the aisle, it feels as close as you’re going to get like a private jet.



As usual, the flight started with an amuse-bouche and a drink order. I had a glass of Krug (of course), and the amuse-bouche was a delicious tuna and mango medley.



Wanting to get some sleep later on this flight, I ordered dinner service right away. As I mentioned in my previous CX report, the First Class seat offers the opportunity for couples to dine together.

I have to offer my apologies: I forgot to take picture of my dinner. I’m bad, I know. Please forgive me. All I will say is that it was great :P I had the usual caviar, and a delicious lamb offering.

I tried to get to sleep, but sleep would just not come. I spent all night watching some sitcoms and drinking the delicious wines on offer.

I have to say, I do not like the TV they have in the old First Class. It is angled in such a way that when you try to lie down, it’s hitting your ankles. It’s also a PITA to store the TV when you want as the hinges were stiff.



For breakfast I had the dim-sum, which was delicious. My partner had the full-breakfast, which he said was the best he’s ever had on a plane.

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We landed in Jo’burg early in the morning. Immigration was no problem at all, even though Cathay doesn’t provide any fast track services to their premium cabin clients.

We were staying at the Crowne Plaza, which we got for 5,000 IHG points per night on a PointsBreak promotion. We had our AMEX Platinum concierge organize a driver with the hotel to pick us up, but they never showed. We took a taxi from the airport to the hotel instead (and paid basically what we were scheduled to pay anyways.) Note that the taxi driver from the airport was the only honest taxi service that we used our entire time in Jo’burg (often the opposite for airport cabs!).

Upon check-in we were informed that as IHG members (formerly Platinum, but now no status) we had access to the hotel’s lounge, free Wi-FI, late checkout, and were upgraded. That’s a pretty unique service from an IHG hotel, granting those kinds of amenities to any IHG member.

The Crowne Plaza was an interesting hotel. The lobby was kitchy as can be, but the rooms were tastefully decorated. The beds were firm but comfortable, and the pillows were huge and down-filled. We slept very well.


Crowne Plaza - The Rosebank

Jo’burg is a strange place. We’ve been to some pretty dangerous destinations, but Jo’burg was odd in that every residence had huge walls and barbed wire. Private security guards roamed the streets with machine guns, and we were told by the hotel what outdoor walk would be safe for us: the five minute walk from the hotel to the nearby mall. Jo’burg had a compound feel to it that we did not like.

Near Jo’burg, at Krugersdorp, is a UNESCO world heritage site: the cradle of humanity/humankind. If you’re ever in the region, I highly recommend it. The caves are where the earliest fossil remains of human ancestors were ever found. The historical dimension of the caves was fascinating, and the geology of the caves was impressive. Be warned though: if you don’t have your own car, getting to the caves is a trying task. We hired a taxi, who drove like a mad-man, and demanded 200ZAR in payment more than we agreed to earlier. Even after we paid, he had the nerve to come up to me trying the old “you gave me the wrong bill” trick. Infuriating.


Cradle of Humanity

To get back to Jo’burg, wanting to avoid the scamming of local taxis, we found a family who was willing to drive us within a 100ZAR cab ride of our hotel. They were lovely people, though they drove like mad! It’s a Jo’burg thing I guess.

The family dropped us off at a casino which was styled like an old Italian village. It was an interesting walk, even though we have no interest in gambling.

We found a taxi (metered this time to avoid asking for more than agreed upon), who then of course took us on a roundabout of the city, charging us over 350ZAR for what should have been a 150ZAR ride. We were tired of taxis at this point, and decided to hit the hay early.

The next day we were off to Cape Town on Kulula.com (MN). MN is an airline similar to Southwest, in that they’re a low-cost carrier, and they operate in a light-hearted fashion. Just look at our plane:


Kulula.com plane... SAW is my favourite place

We thought we would have access to the Bidvest lounge at JNB in two ways: first, we had an AMEX Platinum card, and we were also Hertz members. The lounge wouldn’t accept us, because (a) the AMEX card had to have been issued in South Africa, and (b) we would have had to show them a Hertz car reservation to be admitted. If we had our Priority Pass that came with you AMEX Platinum card with us we would have been OK, but we were still waiting for that in the mail. Oh well! Note that the same admission policy existed for the Bidvest lounge at CPT.

The flight to Cape Town CPT was uneventful. The MN cabin was nice, like a standard economy cabin on Air Canada. Legroom was fine, but they charge for everything (including water) for the drink/meal service. I like the security announcement that the flight attendant gave though: “we have two rules on this flight: (1) do what we tell you to do, and (2) don’t complain!”


Legroom on Kulula.com

We were staying at the five-star Sugar Hotel and Spa in Cape Town, which we got for a steal: $50/night on Splendia.com. Normally this hotel charges $180/night, so I was pretty pleased with the rate. It is very centrally located between major sites at Green Point.

We had a driver scheduled to pick us up, and he actually showed! We were brought directly to the hotel, which was stunning. It’s a tiny hotel, less than 8 rooms I think, and each room is huge, beautifully designed, and have great amenities: soak bath tub with bath salts, a personal outdoor hot-tub, and a California-king bed. Front desk service was also friendly and exceptional. The breakfast, which was included in our rate, was superb: we went with the smoked-salmon eggs benedict with fresh orange juice and a fruit plate everyday. There were other options, but I like my smoked salmon!


Sugar Hotel & Spa bathroom

We absolutely loved Cape Town. It’s a beautiful city with lots of character. I wouldn’t however advise walking out at night. We were harassed by beggars who would follow you for five minutes after you say no, and they would offer vague threats of robbing you. Just taxi around everywhere. They are much cheaper and don’t scam you nearly as much as they do in Jo’burg.

During our time in Cape Town we did a wine tour and a Cape Point tour. I will let the photos tell the story, as words couldn’t do the experiences justice.


Cape Point


Wine tour


PENGUINS!!

We had our return flight to Jo’burg on MN, which was the same. We were being picked up by a driver to take us to our Safari in Pilanesburg National Park. Be warned: the driver was very expensive, at 1900ZAR ($190CAD). If you drive yourself, I would recommend it. There is no public train or (safe) bus system between cities.

Reading up on national parks in South Africa, there are two major ones for doing a safari: Kruger and Pilanesburg. Kruger, the most famous and largest, is best done if you’re doing a long safari (1 week+). Kruger is more than a six hour drive away from Jo’burg. They have an airport at Kruger, but the flights weren’t cheap, and I couldn’t find any reasonable award inventory on them.

Where we went, Pilanesburg, is the smaller cousin of Kruger. It offers all the same animals, has the “big five” critters, but it’s too small to spend a long time there. We did three days at the park and felt like it was enough. Pilanesburg is a 2-3hr drive from Jo’burg.


Lion at Pilanesberg

We stayed at the Bakubung Bush Lodge. Unfortunately, I have to give the lodge a 3/5. The actual hotel is quite nice, the rooms spacious, and the included game drives and food decent. However, the front desk was absolutely pitiful. They were rude, uninterested, and every single time (save once) that we tried to organize something with them, they failed at booking anything properly. We took an afternoon trip to the nearby Sun City resort/theme park (tacky place, avoid at all costs!), and they forgot to send the return driver. We waited for almost two hours in the cold (and eventually dark), while the security at Sun City was yelling at them to bring a driver over. Note that we did get compensated for this incident (they waived a lunch charge and some laundry), but we feel the compensation wasn’t enough, and it was a huge hassle to get.


Bakubung Bush Lodge

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Cathay Pacific uses the Shongololo lounge at JNB. A number of other airlines use the lounge, and it’s a Priority Pass affiliate lounge. It was truly the nicest contract lounge I’ve been to. There was a good variety of alcohol, yummy and hot food, and there was ample seating throughout the lounge. There were shower rooms (which I did not use), and the bathroom was impeccably clean. Really an A+ lounge.

Our flight from JNB-HKG on Cathay Pacific was very similar to the flight to JNB. Again, we were seated at the nose of the 747. This was one of the last CX 747 flights!

In HKG we used The Wing lounge, where we were lucky to get a Cabana. The lounge was extremely busy (as OneWorld Emerald members get access, not just F passengers). We ate in the dining room, where I ordered Chinese-style noodles which were so-so.

Our next flight was HKG-ORD on a 777. The F cabin was completely full, but we had seats 1A and 2A. 1A and 2A are more private than the rest of the cabin, as the other four seats open up to each other, whereas 1A/2A just face open to themselves. That is, they have their own aisle.

This was an excellent flight, with on-the-ball flight attendants. They even (happily) made us mimosas with Krug… I know, I’m terrible, but it was delicious. The food service was top notch, though they ran out of the Hong Kong Egg Tarts before I could get one (only catered two), which was disappointing.

On landing in ORD, we picked up our bags, and dropped them off. They were through-checked to YYZ. We didn’t really have time to use the lounge, but we did grab a quick drink.

Our ORD-YYZ flight was in J on AA. It was a normal domestic J service without any real service. What was kind of neat is that the plane was 3 weeks old, and still had the new-plane smell. It was a really pleasant ride.

roastpuff

Looking forward to this! I'm getting closer to my CX F flight and I'm getting very very itchy thinking about it.

Mrtrash757

Looks exciting can't wait to read it!

durberville

Starting to write... currently in the BA First lounge at JFK (which btw sucks.)

mkjr

how do you churn that CC to get so many miles? or more appropriately, how long does it take...PM me if you want...my brother uses it for the companion vouchers to the HI islands...loves it for those.

tng11

Looking forward to reading this! ^ I'm travelling to South Africa myself in December - albeit "only" in OS/AC/SA J, how I wish I could do it in CX F!

durberville

"At least" you're not going the crazy long way like I am

SFore

Great report so far! I did SFO-JNB and back in CX F a couple month ago and it was a LONG trip. The worst part is the really long layovers in HKG, too short to go into the city but just long enough to be really annoying. Looking forward to the rest of your report! Lucky getting the "new" F.

SkyWhale

With AS awards you can have a stopover in the middle. Effectively allowing you to do two RT tickets in one.