30th B'day trip to Park Hyatt Dubai (Terrace suite) QF F vs QR F showdown
Feb 16, 2015, 3:05 pm
#1
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Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: Ronin - churn and burn
Posts: 701
30th B'day trip to Park Hyatt Dubai (Terrace suite) QF F vs QR F showdown
With only a few days of holiday to spare (due to already taking a week off for each of these trips: Champlagnes & Excellent Adventure) I knew that my birthday celebration would need to take place somewhere closer to home in 2014.
However with it being my 30th, I really wanted to do something special.
I have long maintained that one of the best value redemptions out there is the 80,000 mile round-trip F from Europe to the Middle East (either on USDM or AA miles).
My previous knowledge of the region had been limited to a single transit through BAH (a flight to BKK on Gulf Air back in 2001 – my first ever opup!); as such I thought it was high time that I explored Dubai. I had a Hyatt suite certificate to use and had read on Lucky’s blog that FHR/ Virtuoso bookings would have an upgrade applied, even on suite bookings, at the Park Hyatt Dubai. The Terrace Suite overlooking the Dubai creek was almost certain to be mine.
Of course, accommodation is half the equation. (I should TM that). I needed to see what F seats I could find to really complete the trip.
Looking for availability two months out I was shocked to find 2 seats in QF F available on a Wednesday night. QF is notoriously stingy when it comes to F availability. I'm a real fan of the Aussie service and am very keen on the wine selection on QF but their J seats (and catering) leave a lot to be desired. An opportunity to fly F would hopefully remove the less desirable elements whilst improving on my favourite ones.
I spotted two QR F seats on the way back. This would involve a lazy Sunday breakfast at the hotel followed by a hop over to the new DOH airport to check out the outrageous looking Al-Mourjan lounge; followed by a relaxing afternoon of Krug and caviar. I would then arrive in LHR at a reasonable hour on Sunday evening, the warm champagne glow preparing me gently for the new week ahead... The perfect long weekend.
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As I mentioned in my last report, please feel free to check out my girlfriend’s blog www.euriental.com, which features SLR photos of our trips as opposed to the sometimes dubious offerings from my smartphone. (She also posts stuff up much more quickly than me so you’ll get some spoilers on my future TRs there too!)
I also finally got an instagram account: @jarvismarcos
I'll post live TRs, as well as pics from all of my trips over the years, there too.
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Introduction
Part 1: The Lounges of LHR T3: EK, CX and BA
Part 2: QF F A380 (LHR-DXB)
Part 3: Park Hyatt Dubai
Part 4: Eating and drinking our way around Dubai
Part 5: QR F A330-300 (DXB-DOH-LHR) + Al Mourjan Lounge
Last edited by Jermyn; Mar 15, 2015 at 9:23 am
Feb 16, 2015, 5:04 pm
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: Ronin - churn and burn
Posts: 701
Part 1: The Lounges of LHR T3: EK, CX and BA
I’m a massive geek when it comes to my flight reservations. From the moment I get an itinerary locked in, the fun begins. I make sure to switch to the appropriate FF number (I don’t always have status in the same programs that I have miles with), I get my seats assigned (taking care to observe the most frequent flight trajectory on flightradar to assure the best views) and I select meals where applicable (this is particularly fun on SQ where the menu varies quite a bit depending on the flight origin).
As luck would have it, this meant that I locked in my limo transfers on the QF F tickets a couple of weeks before the policy was changed, eliminating limos for award tickets.
The result:
What a way to finish a dull working Wednesday, my very own chauffeur driven Mercedes to Heathrow.
I was impressed by how spacious the car was and loved the luxurious look of all of the leather and walnut trim. There was even a selection of “inflight magazines” as well as some bottled water. This definitely felt like the appropriate way to begin an F trip.
After an hour or so we pulled up to LHR Terminal 3. My girlfriend K arrived in her own limo about 30 minutes later; she was coming from home and I’d come straight from the office. Unfortunately her driver refused to change the route when she asked him to avoid traffic (“don’t worry, I drive this route every day”) and then left her with 3 large bags at the opposite end of the terminal to the QF check-in. Not the most auspicious start for her. Not that this would linger long in our minds, given what was in store for us
We quickly checked in at the QF F area (which is also available to BA CE passengers as well as OW Emeralds) and the agent let us know that we were able to use not only the BA lounge but also the EK lounge, as a result of QFs partnership with Emirates. I wasn’t expecting this as previously this wasn’t the case for flights on QF metal. Given that Alaska doesn’t allow non-US residents to buy their miles any more, I really wasn’t expecting to have much to do with EK for the foreseeable future and was excited to experience a little of this hitherto unknown airline's product.
EK F Lounge (LHR Terminal 3)
One thing that I like about LHR Terminal 3 is that all the lounges are close together, so lounge hopping is a relatively simple task. We headed to the EK lounge first. There is a reception area on the ground floor with elevators and stairs heading up to the actual lounge.
The cool thing about this lounge is that it has jetbridges connected to EK’s A380s. Also they have Voss water which, if you care about that sort of thing, is a pretty fancy water. The bad thing about the lounge is… pretty much everything else. The lounge is enormous and has the feel of a, moderately fancy, Spanish motorway service area to it. Marble floors, lots of wooden chairs and lots of tables packed closely together.
The food selection was probably the highlight for me, with a variety of hot and cold options. I went with some cooked chili prawns and a mixed ceviche plate.
Also, it has to be said, the alcoholic beverages were definitely more on the business class end of the spectrum.
Given that this lounge is shared between F and J you would hope that the F would bring the average up so to speak. This is not the case. If I was travelling in EK F, making this my only lounge option, I would definitely try and minimise my lounge time and get on board asap.
With a couple of hours to go before our scheduled departure, we moved quickly on to the CX F Lounge.
CX F Lounge (LHR Terminal 3)
What a difference. Where the EK dragons were abrupt and officious the CX receptionist was warm and polite, wishing us a pleasant stay in the lounge as we entered.
The lounge itself is quite small and has the feel of a private club. There is a TV area with large sofas, just as you enter. There are a few dining tables next to the F & B and then a series of sofas and chairs overlooking the tarmac.
The décor is warm and modern. I particularly liked the opaque glass walls, illuminated to show the bamboo behind them.
I always get a warm and fuzzy feeling when I see a Solus chair. I instinctively associate them with positive travel experiences.
There was a selection of noodles and dim sum available as well as salads and cheese. The drink was a notch above the EK lounge with LPR champagne available as well as Woodford Reserve and one of my favourite gins: Citadelle.
Of the three lounges we visited in T3 this was my favourite, K agreed although she was disappointed to hear that we wouldn’t be visiting the VS clubhouse on this occasion (which is better than the majority of F lounges worldwide, in my opinion).
Before anybody accuses me of being biased and taking way more photos in this lounge, I'll say that the privacy afforded to us by the relative lack of people (especially after the departure of the CX evening flight) made it much easier to take pictures, without drawing excessive attention to myself.
BA F Lounge (LHR Terminal 3)
I’d read on a number of TRs that the BA Galleries First lounge was worth visiting as it had a champagne bar serving LPGS, a restaurant reserved for ticketed F passengers and access to the spa in a nearby pay-lounge since the closure of its on-site Elemis spa.
The entrance to the T3 BA F lounge
Whilst the Elemis spa is now closed for good, there is a spa at the Number One lounge, useable by QF F passengers. The BA dragon was unsure of the procedure though and radioed for a QF agent to confirm. She said that he would find us and that we should enjoy the lounge in the meantime.
The champagne bar
Our first stop was the champagne bar, which surprisingly had zero people in it. The LPGS is now gone, ‘enhanced’ away by BA and replaced with standard Laurent Perrier Brut. Not a bad champagne of course but also not a drink worth making a detour for.
That explains the lack of people.
The wines were very much of the £5-£7 a bottle calibre and the buffet selection…
A picture tells a thousand words. Although in this case one word would suffice. Disgusting.
No problem we thought, we can head to the restaurant for pre-flight dining. An exclusive facility reserved for ticketed F passengers.
We waited around for a while until someone ran over, genuinely surprised to see anybody in the restaurant. He dumped down a couple of menus and then disappeared for a while. He came back asking if we wanted any champagne. I thought I'd try my luck, "I don't suppose you have any of the Grand Siecle champagne lying around do you?"
He looked at me like I was from Jupiter.
"The one in the black bottle."
"No, I don't think so, I'll check."
And off he went.
Shortly after this the QF agent (actually the same guy who was manning the check-in counter) came over to let us know that the spa was not available. He said that in future we should let staff know at check-in if we want to use it as it closes early. Whilst I understand that there may be procedures in place, it would have been nice to have been made aware of them during check-in rather than being told after the fact.
5 minutes later the waiter returned to take our food order, no mention of the champagne. Having looked through the options there really wasn't anything appealing on offer. We decided to make ourselves some small plates of chorizo and cheese, retiring to the main bar area of the lounge.
I have to admit, the decor here was pretty decent. I'm more a fan of the CX style but this lounge definitely has more character than a lot of others I've visited. In fact, it is a really apposite lounge for BA. Not the best hard product, soft product or F&B but nonetheless it has a certain style and charm that people really like.
I’m a massive geek when it comes to my flight reservations. From the moment I get an itinerary locked in, the fun begins. I make sure to switch to the appropriate FF number (I don’t always have status in the same programs that I have miles with), I get my seats assigned (taking care to observe the most frequent flight trajectory on flightradar to assure the best views) and I select meals where applicable (this is particularly fun on SQ where the menu varies quite a bit depending on the flight origin).
As luck would have it, this meant that I locked in my limo transfers on the QF F tickets a couple of weeks before the policy was changed, eliminating limos for award tickets.
The result:
What a way to finish a dull working Wednesday, my very own chauffeur driven Mercedes to Heathrow.
I was impressed by how spacious the car was and loved the luxurious look of all of the leather and walnut trim. There was even a selection of “inflight magazines” as well as some bottled water. This definitely felt like the appropriate way to begin an F trip.
After an hour or so we pulled up to LHR Terminal 3. My girlfriend K arrived in her own limo about 30 minutes later; she was coming from home and I’d come straight from the office. Unfortunately her driver refused to change the route when she asked him to avoid traffic (“don’t worry, I drive this route every day”) and then left her with 3 large bags at the opposite end of the terminal to the QF check-in. Not the most auspicious start for her. Not that this would linger long in our minds, given what was in store for us
We quickly checked in at the QF F area (which is also available to BA CE passengers as well as OW Emeralds) and the agent let us know that we were able to use not only the BA lounge but also the EK lounge, as a result of QFs partnership with Emirates. I wasn’t expecting this as previously this wasn’t the case for flights on QF metal. Given that Alaska doesn’t allow non-US residents to buy their miles any more, I really wasn’t expecting to have much to do with EK for the foreseeable future and was excited to experience a little of this hitherto unknown airline's product.
EK F Lounge (LHR Terminal 3)
One thing that I like about LHR Terminal 3 is that all the lounges are close together, so lounge hopping is a relatively simple task. We headed to the EK lounge first. There is a reception area on the ground floor with elevators and stairs heading up to the actual lounge.
The cool thing about this lounge is that it has jetbridges connected to EK’s A380s. Also they have Voss water which, if you care about that sort of thing, is a pretty fancy water. The bad thing about the lounge is… pretty much everything else. The lounge is enormous and has the feel of a, moderately fancy, Spanish motorway service area to it. Marble floors, lots of wooden chairs and lots of tables packed closely together.
The food selection was probably the highlight for me, with a variety of hot and cold options. I went with some cooked chili prawns and a mixed ceviche plate.
Also, it has to be said, the alcoholic beverages were definitely more on the business class end of the spectrum.
Given that this lounge is shared between F and J you would hope that the F would bring the average up so to speak. This is not the case. If I was travelling in EK F, making this my only lounge option, I would definitely try and minimise my lounge time and get on board asap.
With a couple of hours to go before our scheduled departure, we moved quickly on to the CX F Lounge.
CX F Lounge (LHR Terminal 3)
What a difference. Where the EK dragons were abrupt and officious the CX receptionist was warm and polite, wishing us a pleasant stay in the lounge as we entered.
The décor is warm and modern. I particularly liked the opaque glass walls, illuminated to show the bamboo behind them.
I always get a warm and fuzzy feeling when I see a Solus chair. I instinctively associate them with positive travel experiences.
There was a selection of noodles and dim sum available as well as salads and cheese. The drink was a notch above the EK lounge with LPR champagne available as well as Woodford Reserve and one of my favourite gins: Citadelle.
Of the three lounges we visited in T3 this was my favourite, K agreed although she was disappointed to hear that we wouldn’t be visiting the VS clubhouse on this occasion (which is better than the majority of F lounges worldwide, in my opinion).
Before anybody accuses me of being biased and taking way more photos in this lounge, I'll say that the privacy afforded to us by the relative lack of people (especially after the departure of the CX evening flight) made it much easier to take pictures, without drawing excessive attention to myself.
BA F Lounge (LHR Terminal 3)
I’d read on a number of TRs that the BA Galleries First lounge was worth visiting as it had a champagne bar serving LPGS, a restaurant reserved for ticketed F passengers and access to the spa in a nearby pay-lounge since the closure of its on-site Elemis spa.
The entrance to the T3 BA F lounge
Whilst the Elemis spa is now closed for good, there is a spa at the Number One lounge, useable by QF F passengers. The BA dragon was unsure of the procedure though and radioed for a QF agent to confirm. She said that he would find us and that we should enjoy the lounge in the meantime.
The champagne bar
Our first stop was the champagne bar, which surprisingly had zero people in it. The LPGS is now gone, ‘enhanced’ away by BA and replaced with standard Laurent Perrier Brut. Not a bad champagne of course but also not a drink worth making a detour for.
That explains the lack of people.
The wines were very much of the £5-£7 a bottle calibre and the buffet selection…
A picture tells a thousand words. Although in this case one word would suffice. Disgusting.
No problem we thought, we can head to the restaurant for pre-flight dining. An exclusive facility reserved for ticketed F passengers.
We waited around for a while until someone ran over, genuinely surprised to see anybody in the restaurant. He dumped down a couple of menus and then disappeared for a while. He came back asking if we wanted any champagne. I thought I'd try my luck, "I don't suppose you have any of the Grand Siecle champagne lying around do you?"
He looked at me like I was from Jupiter.
"The one in the black bottle."
"No, I don't think so, I'll check."
And off he went.
Shortly after this the QF agent (actually the same guy who was manning the check-in counter) came over to let us know that the spa was not available. He said that in future we should let staff know at check-in if we want to use it as it closes early. Whilst I understand that there may be procedures in place, it would have been nice to have been made aware of them during check-in rather than being told after the fact.
5 minutes later the waiter returned to take our food order, no mention of the champagne. Having looked through the options there really wasn't anything appealing on offer. We decided to make ourselves some small plates of chorizo and cheese, retiring to the main bar area of the lounge.
I have to admit, the decor here was pretty decent. I'm more a fan of the CX style but this lounge definitely has more character than a lot of others I've visited. In fact, it is a really apposite lounge for BA. Not the best hard product, soft product or F&B but nonetheless it has a certain style and charm that people really like.
Last edited by Jermyn; Feb 21, 2015 at 6:20 am
Feb 20, 2015, 3:55 pm
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: Ronin - churn and burn
Posts: 701
Feb 21, 2015, 6:07 am
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: Ronin - churn and burn
Posts: 701
Part 2: QF F A380 LHR-DXB
After the evening's lounge hop it was time for us to make our way over to the gate, to board our whalejet.
The QF gate area at LHR is absolutely enormous, so large in fact that there are two distinct areas separated by a large wall of glass doors, in the middle.
Y and F board on one side and J on the other.
We sat next to the doors so that we could get on asap and get some shots of the cabin.
When boarding was called for premium passengers, we headed straight to the desks. It was funny to see how the disparaging look on the desk agent's face immediately melted into a smile, when I produced the gold, Qantas emblazoned, wallet containing our boarding passes.
"Good evening Mr Jermyn, just follow the path straight down and head through the door on the left".
QF F LHR-DXB
A380-800
QF2 21:25-07:20 (+1)
Seat 3K 14/14
I'm always super excited to be walking down a jetbridge. I'm even more excited when it leads to the F cabin of an airline which I've never flown before. Add to this the fact that this particular F cabin was on an A380 and well... that's enough excitement to lead a man to drink.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves though.
My only other A380 experience was on TG F, which is located on the upper deck. My initial impression of the QF cabin was one of space. There is a notable extra height to the lower deck of the A380. The spacious feeling is also compounded when the plane is on the ground, as all the privacy screens are down.
Whilst the seats may not look all the private, the design is very clever. Once you are seated, particularly on the K side, the seats are staggered in such a way that you cannot see anybody at all.
Although the K side shares an aisle with the the centre F seats, the Fs are actually angled towards the As so in this sense the K seats feel the most private. Foot traffic is a non-issue in F cabins generally, so the aisle was no bother.
(I usually check trip reports as well as seatguru and seatexpert when choosing seats. On this occasion I stumbled upon this site: http://airreview.com/Seatmap/Qantas/A380/index.htmhttp://airreview.com/Seatmap/Qantas/A380/index.htm. Although I may not agree with all the seat choices, I absolutely love the layout. Seriously, great job).
After putting down my things, I joined K in seat 3K. More specifically, in my habitual position as 'buddy'.
My other experience of a buddy seat was on a CX 747; the QF F offering is far better. As far as the main seat is concerned, it doesn't have the 'wow factor' of CX but what it lacks in size it certainly makes up for in comfort. I am also a big fan of the quality of the finishes in the cabin. Everything was spotlessly clean and had that great heavy feel to it. Brushed metal and sleek wooden surfaces abounded.
Awesome detail here, the TV screen from the seat behind blends with the wood to form a very congruous privacy screen.
We had been greeted and shown to our seats by a really friendly set of FAs that did a great job of getting everybody settled in, particularly given the fact that all 14 F seats were taken.
We were handed menus and asked what we wanted to drink. Although three champagnes were listed in, only the VC Grande Dame was loaded for this flight. Whilst it would have been great to have some Comtes de Champagne or Cuvee Winston Churchill I manged to soldier on through with just the one champagne
I love this photo: the stemware is so elegant, the canapes were superb and to top it all off, an SQA380 was parked next to us!
The FAs were highly proactive, they topped us up twice before take-off.
K switched to G and Ts and got into a conversation with the FA about lime vs cucumber, different tonic waters and brands of gin. Usually I'd be all for it but when I'm on a plane I am single minded in my champagne focus.
Soon enough it was time to buckle our seat belts, ready for take off. I slid my shoes off and got into the slippers that were lain in front of my seat.
I loved the fact that I could put my bag away take off my shoes and still have plenty of room to store other items and move around. QF's use of space really is excellent.
An FA had also left PJs and an SKII amenity kit on my seat. I photographed these the next day, as the lighting post take-off was quite dark:
The contents are from the female amenity kit. K loved the small mirror. The men's kit had a similar selection with male versions of the various lotions and potions.
Once we reached cruising altitude, the FAs sprung into action. They are obviously aware that people want to sleep on this sector (the flight continues past DXB and on to SYD), and quite a few people asked for an immediate turndown service.
The FAs took our orders and brought drinks over before getting started with the turndowns.
I've already mentioned how comfortable the buddy seat is, the table is also massive and there is plenty of space to place drinks on the side and even to get up and move around once the table is set. This has to be one of the best setups for couples dining in the air.
I didn't manage to take any snaps of the menu before the FA took our order, so I will just leave you with the pictures.
The dinner service consisted of a number of 'small plate' options. As you can see, the plates were not exactly miniscule.
The catering in F is a stratospheric leap over the offering in QF J. From the beautifully rare beef carpaccio slices to the tender lamb, succulent fish and myriad cheeses. Every dish was presented fantastically and the FAs were warm and engaging throughout the service.
I skipped dessert and asked for a herbal tea to end the meal. K couldn't resist ordering the ice cream.
After the meal service I asked the FA to turn our beds down for us and headed to the bathroom to change into the extremely comfortable PJs.
The seat can be adjusted in an extensive number of ways, using the control screen, but the FAs need to intervene to set up the bed with the mattress, sheets and pillows.
The bed is the most comfortable I've ever slept in, in my opinion it beats the newest F products on ANA, CX, TG and OZ.
I awoke around 45 minutes before landing. After all the food and drink the night before I wasn't too hungry so just ordered a flat white.
What a way to start the day. It never ceases to amaze me. The night before, I was in London, and now I was enjoying a decent coffee flying over the Middle East, the bright morning light streaming through the windows, whilst seated comfortably in one of humankind's greatest technical achievements.
I was sad to leave this flight. I felt like I'd only really had a chance to scratch the surface of the QF F offering, given that I'd spent so much of the flight asleep.
In a strange way I'm a little disappointed that EY has now got such a good hard product, not only to the UAE but also continuing on to SYD. This probably means that I won't fly QF F again, given the fact that both can be had for the same number of AA miles.
Still, if EY is not available and I have to take QF F again for some reason, I'll be far from disappointed.
After the evening's lounge hop it was time for us to make our way over to the gate, to board our whalejet.
The QF gate area at LHR is absolutely enormous, so large in fact that there are two distinct areas separated by a large wall of glass doors, in the middle.
Y and F board on one side and J on the other.
We sat next to the doors so that we could get on asap and get some shots of the cabin.
When boarding was called for premium passengers, we headed straight to the desks. It was funny to see how the disparaging look on the desk agent's face immediately melted into a smile, when I produced the gold, Qantas emblazoned, wallet containing our boarding passes.
"Good evening Mr Jermyn, just follow the path straight down and head through the door on the left".
QF F LHR-DXB
A380-800
QF2 21:25-07:20 (+1)
Seat 3K 14/14
I'm always super excited to be walking down a jetbridge. I'm even more excited when it leads to the F cabin of an airline which I've never flown before. Add to this the fact that this particular F cabin was on an A380 and well... that's enough excitement to lead a man to drink.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves though.
My only other A380 experience was on TG F, which is located on the upper deck. My initial impression of the QF cabin was one of space. There is a notable extra height to the lower deck of the A380. The spacious feeling is also compounded when the plane is on the ground, as all the privacy screens are down.
Whilst the seats may not look all the private, the design is very clever. Once you are seated, particularly on the K side, the seats are staggered in such a way that you cannot see anybody at all.
Although the K side shares an aisle with the the centre F seats, the Fs are actually angled towards the As so in this sense the K seats feel the most private. Foot traffic is a non-issue in F cabins generally, so the aisle was no bother.
(I usually check trip reports as well as seatguru and seatexpert when choosing seats. On this occasion I stumbled upon this site: http://airreview.com/Seatmap/Qantas/A380/index.htmhttp://airreview.com/Seatmap/Qantas/A380/index.htm. Although I may not agree with all the seat choices, I absolutely love the layout. Seriously, great job).
After putting down my things, I joined K in seat 3K. More specifically, in my habitual position as 'buddy'.
My other experience of a buddy seat was on a CX 747; the QF F offering is far better. As far as the main seat is concerned, it doesn't have the 'wow factor' of CX but what it lacks in size it certainly makes up for in comfort. I am also a big fan of the quality of the finishes in the cabin. Everything was spotlessly clean and had that great heavy feel to it. Brushed metal and sleek wooden surfaces abounded.
Awesome detail here, the TV screen from the seat behind blends with the wood to form a very congruous privacy screen.
We had been greeted and shown to our seats by a really friendly set of FAs that did a great job of getting everybody settled in, particularly given the fact that all 14 F seats were taken.
We were handed menus and asked what we wanted to drink. Although three champagnes were listed in, only the VC Grande Dame was loaded for this flight. Whilst it would have been great to have some Comtes de Champagne or Cuvee Winston Churchill I manged to soldier on through with just the one champagne
I love this photo: the stemware is so elegant, the canapes were superb and to top it all off, an SQA380 was parked next to us!
The FAs were highly proactive, they topped us up twice before take-off.
K switched to G and Ts and got into a conversation with the FA about lime vs cucumber, different tonic waters and brands of gin. Usually I'd be all for it but when I'm on a plane I am single minded in my champagne focus.
Soon enough it was time to buckle our seat belts, ready for take off. I slid my shoes off and got into the slippers that were lain in front of my seat.
I loved the fact that I could put my bag away take off my shoes and still have plenty of room to store other items and move around. QF's use of space really is excellent.
An FA had also left PJs and an SKII amenity kit on my seat. I photographed these the next day, as the lighting post take-off was quite dark:
The contents are from the female amenity kit. K loved the small mirror. The men's kit had a similar selection with male versions of the various lotions and potions.
Once we reached cruising altitude, the FAs sprung into action. They are obviously aware that people want to sleep on this sector (the flight continues past DXB and on to SYD), and quite a few people asked for an immediate turndown service.
The FAs took our orders and brought drinks over before getting started with the turndowns.
I've already mentioned how comfortable the buddy seat is, the table is also massive and there is plenty of space to place drinks on the side and even to get up and move around once the table is set. This has to be one of the best setups for couples dining in the air.
The dinner service consisted of a number of 'small plate' options. As you can see, the plates were not exactly miniscule.
The catering in F is a stratospheric leap over the offering in QF J. From the beautifully rare beef carpaccio slices to the tender lamb, succulent fish and myriad cheeses. Every dish was presented fantastically and the FAs were warm and engaging throughout the service.
I skipped dessert and asked for a herbal tea to end the meal. K couldn't resist ordering the ice cream.
After the meal service I asked the FA to turn our beds down for us and headed to the bathroom to change into the extremely comfortable PJs.
The seat can be adjusted in an extensive number of ways, using the control screen, but the FAs need to intervene to set up the bed with the mattress, sheets and pillows.
The bed is the most comfortable I've ever slept in, in my opinion it beats the newest F products on ANA, CX, TG and OZ.
I awoke around 45 minutes before landing. After all the food and drink the night before I wasn't too hungry so just ordered a flat white.
What a way to start the day. It never ceases to amaze me. The night before, I was in London, and now I was enjoying a decent coffee flying over the Middle East, the bright morning light streaming through the windows, whilst seated comfortably in one of humankind's greatest technical achievements.
I was sad to leave this flight. I felt like I'd only really had a chance to scratch the surface of the QF F offering, given that I'd spent so much of the flight asleep.
In a strange way I'm a little disappointed that EY has now got such a good hard product, not only to the UAE but also continuing on to SYD. This probably means that I won't fly QF F again, given the fact that both can be had for the same number of AA miles.
Still, if EY is not available and I have to take QF F again for some reason, I'll be far from disappointed.
Last edited by Jermyn; Feb 21, 2015 at 6:32 am