Duke787

Trip Report
After another year of classes it’s once again time to undertake a Spring Break adventure (I know I'm posting this even though I'm just finishing SB 2015. Thankfully this time I wrote most of it during the trip so it is be posted fairly quickly once I select pictures for each section). Initially we were going to go to Europe but after much discussion and debate we ultimately landed on Phuket as the key destination for Spring Break. I’ve always wanted to visit Singapore to it made sense to add that to the list especially since it was in the vicinity not to mention it had multiple EK flights with F availability.

In terms of ticketing and routing, I’ve established a nice chunk of AS miles between buying them during their 50% bonus sales and flying Delta J while crediting to AS so of course my immediate thought was EK at least in one direction. I also had a stash of AA miles so with the pending devaluation the timing was perfect to go ahead and clear out the account.
After calls and swaps the final routing was as follows:

RDU – IAH (UA)
IAH – DXB – SIN (EK with AS miles)
SIN – HKT (Jetstar cash ticket)
HKT – HKG (KA J) – HND (CX F) // NRT – ORD (JL F) – CLT – RDU (AA F/Y)

RDU – IAH (UA)

I have such a love/hate relationship with UA. After all I spent the first two years of my consulting career flying them every week all around the country including a five month stint going from DC to Vegas and two stints of DC to LA for three months each. This was a direct flight on the E175 with a 4 hour layover to our EK flights to ensure we had plenty of time to get our bags and get over to Terminal D (in fact we even had to for the GF to stop at CBP to get do her Global Entry “interview”).

Thanks to my Marriott Platinum I have UA Silver which allowed us to move up to 7D/7E for the flight at check-in. Those two are by far my favorite seats on the E170/E175 given the legroom though the new slimline seats were horrible. There was metal pressing into my back for the entire 2.75 hour flight which made it absolutely miserable.
No drinks or meal service on this flight:

Duke787

IAH – DXB (EK F A380)
This was the holy grail of the trip. Emirates First Class has always been an aspirational product for me. I had the great fortune of flying it AKL – MEL back in 2014 and loved every second of the journey but knew I had to check it out for long-haul eventually. When booking IAH was an obvious gateway given the fact that at the time EK was still running an A380 but due to the slowdown in oil the flights were not particularly full. The golden ticket!



We checked in and were given access to the uber-luxurious “Executive Club” over by D5. We never made it, instead we headed to the KLM Lounge that I had access to via Priority Pass (thank you Citi Prestige) which was actually closer to the gate than the Executive Club. Nothing special about this lounge and I only took one picture which admittedly doesn’t show much (but not to worry you aren’t missing anything):



At 5:45 we headed to the gate to board our chariot to Dubai:



After a brief wait for boarding to begin we boarded and found ourselves in seats 1E and 1F. Today’s load ended up being 8/14 after the seatmap showing 4/14 up until roughly 3 days before the flight. Not a big deal though given the excellent service and privacy of the suites. Today’s FAs had the typical EK diversity with a Korean FA serving my aisle and an Australian serving my gf’s aisle.

A quick check of the suite for the flight revealed this was a slightly newer A380 with a bigger screen. Otherwise it was identical to the plane I flew AKL – MEL a few years back:









A glass of champagne to start (sadly no Dom yet while still on the ground) and of course a date and Arabic coffee:







Despite weather in the area the taxi out was quick and we were on our way with a stated flight length of 14.5 hours which is on the long side for this flight (FlightAware show 13.75 – 14.25 being the average length). Once in the air our lovely flight attendants quickly brought us the first of many Dom glasses:

Today’s menu presented a few solid options but based on various reports I quickly settled on the following: Caviar, Arabic Mezze, Thai Beef Salad, Chicken, and a box of chocolates for dessert. A look at the menu first:



















In the words of SFO777, showtime:









After doing a number on the food (the Thai Beef salad being the clear winner) it was time to go check out the bar. We had two lovely bartenders during our time, one from Romania and one from Portugal. Also at the bar was a gentleman from Texas who has spent a number of years living in Qatar and a gentleman from Britain who traveled extensively but was based out of Dubai. Of course a Polaroid at the bar was necessary alongside multiple Hennessey Paradis glasses.

FC Bar including Hennessey Paradis (which I enjoyed) and Patron XO Café (which my gf enjoyed)



Our Texas friend with one of two bartenders:



And us behind the bar (apologies for the censorship):



From there it was time to stumble back to the seat and pass out until it was time to wake up for a shower roughly 1.5 hours from Dubai. It was my second time enjoying the shower spa on Emirates but it was still just as fun and mind-blowing to be showering while hurtling through the air (sorry for limited pictures after all it was a shower not really many pictures to take):



Refreshing fruit after shower:



After a shower it was time to change out of the PJs and get ready for landing and a brief 1.5 hour layover in Dubai.

TPJ

Great report so far!

BTW... I think Executive Club at IAH is slightly less mediocre than the KLM Lounge...

Madone59

Great start - looking forward to the rest ^^

flyertalker00156

Looking forward to this trip! Great photos so far!!!!

Duke787

Thank you! And good to know - I'll have to check it out next time!

Thank you!! Posting next couple of sections shortly - just uploading and pulling pictures in from photobucket!

Duke787

Dubai Layover
Upon arriving in Dubai we initially headed to the A lounge and Timeless Spa. When we arrived they informed us that we should head to the B lounge given our departure gate and brief layover. So we turned around and headed over to the B lounge (next time I’ll put in a longer layover). Upon arrival in the B lounge the attendant asked if we were on an AS award ticket which I confirmed and we were able to quickly enter (oddly I wasn’t asked that at the A lounge).

The “A Lounge” entrance from our very brief visit there:







A quick look around the Terminal B lounge. Didn’t have time to really explore but it looked quite nice:





With the short time we had we both headed to the Timeless Spa where the gf went for a paid pedicure along with a complimentary foot massage while I went for the back massage. While the massage was nice after a 14.5 hour flight (and nearly 24 hours of traveling when counting RDU – IAH and the layover) it certainly wasn’t even close to the 60 minute back massage at the TG BKK F lounge a couple years back.

Despite being stuffed I took one for the team and grabbed a few nibbles in the dining room while the gf finished her treatment. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough time to order anything off the menu so it was mainly bread, cheese, and piece of sushi on this trip:









After finishing the food I headed over to the spa (it was 8:55pm at this point) and found out that my girlfriend was still receiving treatment. With a 9pm boarding time and a 910pm gate closure panic immediately set in. I asked the kind desk agent to go get her given that our gate was at the far end of the terminal and at exactly 9:02pm we finally exited the B lounge. At that point I knew 910pm was listed on the ticket for gate closure but I still was booking it. Halfway there I glanced up on the board (at 9:07 by this point) and saw that the gate was listed as closed (despite the ticket clearly listing that boarding began at 9pm and the gate didn’t close until 910pm).

Nonetheless I pressed on and arrived at the gate right at 9:09 (perhaps even 910pm depending on the watch). I’m convinced if we didn’t have F tickets we would’ve been informed the gate was already closed but thankfully we had the golden tickets and were welcomed on to the plane.

Leading up to the flight I’d been reading over on the EK forum that this flight (EK 352) was typically operated by a 773, not a 77W. That means the flight had the SkyCruiser II seat in a 2-2-2 layout in First and not the F suites that are found on the 77W, 77L, and A380. In the days leading up to the flight however EF was showing a 77W and in fact at one point both the EF seatmap and the EK seatmap showed that it had been swapped to a 77W with a 1-2-1 layout.

Alas when we finally boarded I found we had gotten the original 773 and SkyCruiser II seat. Oh well – still these things lay flat and the 930pm departure has full meal service (including caviar) unlike the A380 departures in the middle of the night that would’ve guaranteed a suite so not a big deal:









A few minutes later we were up in the air for the short 6.5 hour flight to Singapore. As expected the FAs immediately jumped into action and a glass of Dom was quickly poured for both of us. Despite being stuffed from the IAH-DXB flight and my time in the lounge I couldn’t resist the temptation of another EF menu:





I quickly settled on the caviar and pasta before finishing with the fruit and cheese knowing that was about the maximum my stomach could handle. They also provided an amuse bouche:











Unfortunately by this point the IFE / seat controller was completely INOP despite being reset multiple times. Thankfully the 4/12 load meant there were plenty of other seats that the crew could move me to for sleeping and they did just that. I moved back to 2G and promptly got 3 hours of sleep. When I woke up we were about 1.75 hours from Singapore with morning fast approaching. Despite it being breakfast I opted for another round of fruit and caviar while enjoying the sunrise:



All too quickly it was time to move back to 1E where I grabbed a Nespresso and prepared for our arrival into Singapore:



Singapore
Upon arrival we grabbed our bags an exited customs where I was surprised to see someone with a Grand Hyatt Singapore sign waiting for us. Apparently they had proactively checked their arrivals against incoming flights (I may have put it in the reservation given our early arrival) and sent someone to retrieve. Now I know we weren’t entitled to a car from EK since I was using AS miles but the gentleman from the GH led us to the EK desk where he promptly arranged a complimentary chauffeur (after telling us that we were supposed to book it before the flight) to take us to the GH Singapore. A short while later we were headed into town and we got our first glimpse of Singapore:



Grand Hyatt Singapore:
When initially planning this trip I was unsure where to stay in Singapore. I had Marriott Platinum from an extended stay at the RI San Mateo this past summer but thanks to the generous status matches offered by both Hilton and Hyatt I had translated that Marriott Platinum into Hyatt Diamond and Hilton Diamond. I went back and forth between the Conrad and the GH + DSU until I stumbled upon a fantastic rate on getaroom.com which I was able to BRG to a ridiculous 979 SGD (inclusive of tax) for 3 nights at the GH Hyatt. The cherry on top was ample DSU availability and the 4 2016 DSUs that Hyatt had given me.

Upon arrival at the GH Singapore we were led up to the EL for check-in and informed that we had been further upgraded from the Duplex Suite to the Corporate Suite. At the time of check-in this suite was selling for over $1000 USD/night so it was quite a steal for us at our measly ~$235 USD/night.
The suite wasn’t quite ready so they invited us to the lounge to enjoy the breakfast (which was still being served) while we waited for our suite to be ready by 11am.

We headed up to the lounge and at first glance it seemed quite nice. The staff was proactive in seating us and went out of their way to offer us coffee. First a couple snaps of the lounge (sorry never got any good pictures of the lounge while there – it was always full and it felt awkward setting up to take pictures even with my iPhone):



Bread selection:



Despite a feast on the two EK flights, I decided to try and get my body onto Singapore time by having breakfast so I had the first of many freshly made egg white omelets with tomato, peppers, and cheese:



Thankfully the wait for the room was shorter than anticipated and by 10:30am they came to inform us that the room was ready.

Room 1517 was a very lovely room that served us well. The room itself contained 3 “rooms” separated by sliding doors. The first was a bathroom which had the attached master bathroom as well as the luggage room:







Through the first set of sliding doors was a desk and work area:


Finally through the last set of sliding doors was the living and dining areas. This area contained an additional powder room along with a full kitchenette (including stove, microwave, full-size fridge with complimentary water, soda, yogurt, etc.), a sofa / TV area, and a full dining room table:

Duke787

Day 1 in Singapore:
By this point we had literally traveled halfway around the world and been traveling for over 30 hours so we decided to keep it low key and go for a safe lunch over at Paul. On the way we did a bit of exploring in the Orchard Road area and began to get our bearings before crashing for the night:









Being from North Carolina we were shocked to see this NC icon 9500 miles away in Singapore!



I don’t think we’ll ever see something this “healthy” at KFC in the US:



Open-air Starbucks across the street from the hotel:

Duke787

Day 2 in Singapore:
The body alarm clock came far too early so after a quick visit to the gym it was time for another egg white omelet:



After breakfast it was time to accomplish one of our main goals for Singapore, eating delicious food. Coming into the trip I wanted to visit at least one Hawker Center and between talking to Singaporean friends and doing my own research, I settled on chicken rice from the Maxwell Hawker Center. I knew that there were two options, Tian Tian, a highly touted placed that Anthony Bourdain visited a few years bag, as well as Ah Tai, opened a few years ago by the former cook at Tian Tian after a falling out.
Despite the heat we decided to walk over from the GH which allowed us to get a nice view of Chinatown along the way:

















Of course once we got to Maxwell it was time for the main attraction. Lines at both restaurants were short and well, who knows when I'll be back to Singapore, so I decided to try both.

First up Tian Tian:









A quick break to walk around and digest:









And then Ah Tai:





I can’t quite put my finger on why but Tian Tian was a clear winner in my book. I think the chicken was just slightly more succulent and the rice more flavorful though An Tai certainly was a worthy competitor.

While there we also had some Roti Pratha:





After eating we walked over to Raffles Center and had a look around at CBD as well as the area around The Fullerton Hotel:

















By this point we were exhausted and had to go prepare for a 7pm reservation at Osteria Mozza so we headed back to the GH and crashed for a couple of hours.

For dinner we decided to make the trek over to the Marina Bay Sands and try out Mario Batali’s Osteria Mozza and also check-out the view from the top of the MBS (sorry for the lack of views from the top – mine just didn’t come out well on my iPhone so not worth putting up when high quality ones can be easily googled):



Complimentary amuse bouche:



Caprese:



Focaccia di Recco:



Garganelli with ragu Bologese:



Agnolotti with butter and sage:



The focaccia wasn't what we were expecting but it was pretty good. The pasta was absolutely incredible and of course you can never go wrong with caprese. Overall a nice meal and a delicious way to end the day.

chongl

Awesome report so far...I'll be heading to SIN in August so I'll be taking some food locations from your list

roadwarrier

Awesome! Looking forward to the rest.

Duke787

Thank you! If I had to choose one it would be Komala Vilas (in the installment I'm about to post) with Tian Tian a close second

Thank you!

Duke787

Singapore Day 3:
For Day 3 we again were focused on one thing: food. For lunch we decided to walk over to Little India and try Komala Vilas. The walk was fairly easy and we were soon in Little India which seemed a world away from both

Chinatown and Orchard Road:













There were a couple places we’d heard about in Little India but Komala Vilas kept coming up as a can’t miss and it was clear we’d made a good choice when we walked in at 1:30pm and saw the place packed and seemed to be the only tourists in the place:



They led us upstairs and ordered a combination of garlic naan, roti, paneer masala, samosas, some sort of onion pancake, and of course rice on the side.

First up, samosas:



Onion pancake:



Garlic naan:



Roti:



Paneer masala:





Words can’t begin to describe how delicious the meal was – safe to say it was the best Indian food I’ve ever had and I would have no problem recommending it to others going forward (and our Western stomachs had no issue with it either).

After walking back to the hotel I headed to the pool where I finally succumbed to my inner tourist and ordered a Singapore Sling to enjoy while relaxing at the GH pool (which really was an oasis in the middle of the city):











After recharging the batteries we headed to Din Tai Fung to finally try the much-hyped soup dumplings. About 9 months ago we found ourselves in China and passed on the opportunity to try soup dumpling (XLB at DTF) and weren’t about to make the same mistake twice.

First a stop by the lounge for some prosecco and cheese:



After that we headed to the flagship location in Paragon and watched the chefs hard at work while waiting to be seated:







After about a 15 minute wait were shown our seats and promptly ordered the following.

Wonton Noodles:



Shrimp Friend Rice:



XLB (Chicken):





Crab Buns:





Shrimp XLB:



Needless to say it was wayyyy too much food but it was absolutely delicious.

Singapore Day 4:

We spent much of our final day in Singapore packing but couldn’t resist venturing out for some ice cream. My girlfriend opted to see how Coldstone Singapore compared to its US (and Bangkok) counterparts while I opted to try the ice cream sandwich I’d been seeing on the street:



On day 1 we had seen ice cream put inside bread and were instantly intrigued. We couldn’t tell if the bread was actually pound cake or if they were making a literal “ice-cream-sandwich.” Well I can now say definitely that they in fact were making a literal “ice-cream-sandwich” though it wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be (though admittedly it wasn’t great):



Next up, the short hop to Phuket and 5 days at the magnificent Renaissance Phuket!

Madone59

Did anything ever come of this question or were they just asking out of curiosity?

Duke787

My understanding from the AS forum is that on EK, AS award tickets are coded as staff tickets for some reason which is problematic since AS award tickets receive lounge access but staff tickets do no.

In Dubai it's generally not an issue because they've seen them but at outstations it has occasionally been an issue.

I assume in this case it was just that and he was just confirming that it was an AS ticket and not a staff ticket but that over in the A terminal they didn't need the verbal confirmation since it should've been obvious that we weren't staff.