jdtravels

So why this trip? I was in dire need for a break from work, and managed to get approved for a week off in November. This coincided with shoulder periods for tourism in many places - as a consequence, prices were relatively low.

More importantly, FlyerTalk forums had me thinking about planning my elite status qualification for the next year, as my previous status with QR was coming to an end soon. I thought about re-qualifying with QR, given their low thresholds, but I took serious issue about the difficulty of getting award tickets to come through with them.

After a lot of thinking, I decided to try for BA status (the thought process I will not bother outlining here). Whether these TP runs are worth the time and money, there has been plenty of discussion here. But for me and my personal travelling patterns, I concluded that one and a half years of OWE status followed by one year of OWS status was well worth this trip. Of course, ‘YMMV’, or so I quote.

Just so you know, most of my trips are short haul in the cheapest economy fares (if not redemptions), so lounge access is dependent on me having some form of elite status. Personally, I also do value priority check in (I often arrive just under an hour before my flight, and have a quick bite before boarding), security fast track (where available), priority boarding (to ensure optimal overhead bin space just above my seat - I tend to travel with a roller bag and a personal item to avoid checking in bags as far as possible) and priority baggage handling in the event I did check in bags - more often on the return journey (which luckily is offered and done quite well at my home airport, HKG; the same of which cannot be said of BA’s home at LHR).

So a note about this trip report: my first full report, so please excuse the shortcomings. I am not a natural-born writer, and I am quite boring, so expect a little monotony now and again. Oh, and I happen not to be a great photographer either (one wonders just what, if anything, I am good at. Oh dear) - all photographs, blurry or not, taken with an iPhone only. I also was not comfortable taking photos too obviously, or when the area was too crowded. Sorry!

jdtravels

My initial plan was to go for BA silver/OWS. As a benefit of travelling in low season, QR was offering very deep discounts on their R-coded business class fares HKG-DOH-LHR return, costing just a fraction more than a high season direct flight economy class ticket.

Then was the problem of getting the four BA-coded flights needed for silver tier. The easiest method was to get two short haul returns from London. I researched a little on where I wanted to go, but could not really find a destination that was very appealing, after factoring in the timing and cost of the flights, and also the fact that I’d be travelling alone (). One option was shuttling between London and Dublin - once on the day of arrival in London, and once the morning on the day of departure heading home. The problem was, the HBO fares (cheapest ones) would not earn me enough TPs at 5 per leg (my QR flights would provide a total of 560TP, and I needed another 40TP, so was looking for flights earning 10TP). I was sitting on exactly 0TP, having credited all my previous flights this year to the CX programme, or were award tickets, or would not earn credits anyway.

But before I could make up my mind on my European destination, I came across the thread on the ex-DUB run to Las Vegas. Crunching in the numbers, I would get to gold tier with the ex-DUB run. For the sake of convenience (I was really tired of trying to decide where to go by that point), and having always avoided US destinations for holidays before (I had no reason to go to the States otherwise), I decided to just try out flying to the States - open to actually exploring the country at some point in my life. Then came this promotion, and the deal was sealed. Only after booking, did I realise that one single night in Vegas seemed quite a stupid plan, but it was too late to change anything. That said, I would definitely go back at some point, and I’ll just use this as a chance to test out just how good these flat beds are for catching up on sleep!

With tickets booked, I entered all the details into the various apps to get countdowns and reminders (just like a kid waiting for Christmas presents). Just when I thought everything was alright, this and this happened (for those who cannot be bothered to click into the links, the first is the scare that BA suddenly decided that QR R class was non-earning; the second that AA was rebranding their domestic first class to business class with reduced BAEC earnings). I also managed to finish reading this thread, and got myself pretty worried. Luckily, as time went on, the first two issues also went on to resolve themselves, and the last “potential delays without protection” problem never emerged. Phew.

So my final routing would consist of:
HKG-DOH-LHR-DUB-LHR-JFK (overnight layover)-LAX-LAS (overnight stop)-LAX-JFK-LHR-DUB-LCY (stop), LHR-DOH-HKG

Or, as presented on a map:


Let's see how this trip would turn out.

jdtravels

Finally getting to the day, I used the in-town check in facility at Hong Kong Station (for those not familiar, HKG can be reached by a train called the Airport Express, which offers check in facilities for most airlines at two stations along the way, so you can get rid of your bags earlier. Another benefit is also pointed out here. I used this primarily as I wanted to check in way in advance to give myself time to do a little lounge hopping.



Cathay doing some advertising down town

At this point, my BA app was showing this:



A quick 30-or-so minutes later, I arrived at the airport, and breezed past the QR check in desks, which were empty, [read: not yet open].



After security (using the North gates), an immediate right turn took me to QF’s offering, the unimaginatively-named (though I appreciate the simplicity) ‘The Qantas Hong Kong Lounge’.







The food at the beginning was skewed towards a more Japanese offering, as there were JL flights departing at this hour, and the QF flights were not to leaving until another three or four hours later. After the last JL flight left, the buffet selection was quickly changed, replaced with more ‘usual’ QF lounge offerings. Still has my favourite food among the J class lounges in HKG.


May I just say that the curry was good, but that chocolate tart was simply amazing.











A fancy tap, which I later saw being used in the new CX lounge as well.


One would have thought the Australian lounge would have gotten their flat whites right. I would contest that.

I liked the openness of the lounge, the design aesthetic and also the views. Not much more to input here, I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

















Great view of an A350


After a short stay, I left for the newish CX The Pier Business Lounge. With plenty of time on hand, I decided to walk the length of the terminal, with the hope of spotting a few more planes along the way.



Unfortunately, there appeared to a limited selection of ‘exotic’ planes at this hour…


CX 777


Another CX A350; the satellite North Concourse in the distance, currently dominated by KA in old livery.


CX A330, and a bunch of other CX's


The North Concourse again, this time with a KA in new livery


Finally something not CX/KA - AY A350



Arriving at the lounge, I was admitted without any fuss. The dragons were friendly. I must say I am a fan of the new CX branding. Whether it will age well or not, one wonders.

The lounge itself was huge. But I really liked how many different spaces were created, catering for different moods of each traveller. On the day of travel, I was really drawn to the tea room located near the very end of the lounge - although it also appeared that quite a few people were also drawn to that space - so no pictures there.








The coffee cart on the left.






Well-designed bar table


A selection from the buffet


Offerings from the Noodle Bar


A cappuccino from the coffee cart

I napped for a bit in one of the new Solus chairs, and before long, it was time for boarding.

jdtravels

Boarding started, and I joined the priority boarding queue. This was well enforced. On board, I was shown my seat by the crew, and offered a welcome drink (chose the lime drink which was refreshingly tart), an amenity kit and the menu.






The 787 cabin felt open, and I liked the lighting effects.





The seat was a version of the B/E Super Diamond. The screen was fixed, so there was no need to stow the screen during taxi, takeoff or landing - the IFE system was active upon boarding.




The table slid out from underneath the screen, and was of a good size, while still allowing access to the aisle if the aisle-side arm rest was put in the 'down' position.








There was a reasonably sensitive and intuitive touchscreen control to the side.

In terms of storage, the aisle-side armrest could be lifted up (revealing a bottle of water and the noise-cancelling headset - quality was decent, but obviously not in the same league as the Bose), as could the knee rest (?) part on the window side of the seat. There was also a drawer near the floor on the aisle side great for storing shoes. Other than these, there was really not much closed storage. So for that, I really do prefer the Cirrus seat.


Not a good seat for plane spotting while parked at a gate


Finally time for departure









Once airborne and given the go-ahead beep by the captain, the FA's were quick in starting the service with warmed nuts and a drink.




I explored the menu while orders were taken starting from the first row. I opted to go light with just the salad and soup, seeing I had eaten and really wanted to catch up on some sleep given the long journey ahead to Vegas with practically no stop. However, the FA urged me to order more, "you sure you don't want some dessert at least?"

The meal was then served, starting with a trolley rolled through with linen, bread, butter and salt and pepper shakers. I think they only did this because everyone opted to eat something. For the other flights, tables were set with FAs carrying the stuff from the galley, and another FA following with the dish.






Roasted beef tenderloin and caramelised onion - the beef was definitely tender, and everything went together if you managed to stick it all on the same fork!


A good soup. I was informed that the soup would take a little time to heat, and asked whether I would prefer to have my appetiser first. Great touch, as I would have otherwise been just sitting there twiddling my thumbs.


The crust may have fallen (though I must admit the FA was profusely apologetic for - I really did not care, because that is a sign of a good, short crust anyway), but it was one of the best chocolate tarts I have ever tasted. Who knew ginger would work so well? Even better than chocolate and chilli.


Just before landing, these were given out while the FA's and CSD went around thanking each passenger. It was quite a useless card as it served no real purpose, and more than one passenger asked the FA what the card was for (the reply to which was to invite them to enjoy the lounge [though obviously, access was by scanning the boarding pass instead] before their connecting flight, given that most passengers were connecting and this flight would arrive just in time for the wave of westerly departures from DOH).

:-: TP count: 140; BA flight count: 0 (still need: 160TP, 2 flights)

jdtravels

Transfer at DOH was a breeze as always, no transit security check this time (as some have pointed out, this appears to be random for ports marked as safe).

I made my way to the big (ugly) teddy bear, turned towards the A gates and made my way to the Al Mourjan Business Lounge.




Transit security area, from the escalator leading up to the Al Mourjan lounge

First things first, I used the business centre to check in for my BA LHR-DUB flight and my ex-DUB run, and printed boarding passes just in case of delays (another credit to the other FT’ers for giving me this tip).





I spent my time at the buffet section on the second floor, enjoying the architecture more than the food. Not that the food was bad, but it was not amazing, quality being well below those of the QF and CX lounges at HKG. The creme brűlée dessert, however, was good.






It may appear as if I am a dessert fiend, but I assure you, I am not. But yeah, that creme brűlée was very good.


Even the staircase is pretty. As someone once pointed out, looking up from the ground floor, the staircase would actually look like a 'Q'.




All too soon, it was time to board. A380 gates at DOH have a separate entrance for first and business class passengers. After checking my passport and boarding pass, I was directed to the lift to take me upstairs to the (very empty) business/first class waiting area.


A 787 at the next gate, departing for Birmingham, I believe.


Lots of space here, though the same could not be said of downstairs (note someone sleeping on the floor):






Boarding through the dedicated jet bridge






Given the timing of the flight, most people just wanted to catch up on some sleep, so the cabin lights were kept dimmed for most of the time, even during boarding. Individual overhead lights could be used during dining, and did the job well. The crew was again friendly and efficient, given the size of this plane.


The same amenities, this time with pyjamas, were offered.


The bathroom had better finishes, however.





The seat was another version of the B/E Super Diamond with similar storage solutions though different placement of the power outlets. The IFE system was slightly less responsive, which I suspect is due to it being a slightly older system.










Menu; I pre-ordered my breakfast.


Amazing view of the Doha skyline

After a good nap, I was woken up for breakfast as requested.


Continental breakfast


Preparing to land at LHR.




Placed in the familiar holding pattern for LHR.


At gate, with an Oman Air (WY) plane somewhere in the distance. We luckily beat the Malaysia A380, which would arrive very soon and send loads of passengers into the immigration checkpoint.

Immigration was fast (although I admit I did use the e-gates being an EU national); bag delivery was slow, painfully slow. Priority baggage was, as expected, non-existent.



:-: TP count: 280; BA flight count: 0 (still need: 20TP, 2 flights)

Charlie26r

Really enjoyable TR, subscribed and very much looking forward to the next instalments.

nequine

Great couple of parts and looking forward to reading more.

jdtravels

Transfer to T5 was less of a hassle than I had expected. Exiting the terminal, I turned left for the last bus stop in the row. It was cold and dark, unfortunately.





For those preferring some warmth, transfers can also be done via the Heathrow Express or Tube - although these options would require a change at Heathrow Central (for terminals 2 and 3) and be significantly slower than the direct bus, which I found convenient enough.


There were great views during the transfer journey with the sun rising, though reproduction was impossible with my poor photography.


Etihad must have paid quite a bit for this display. Unfortunately, the bus windows were not ideal for taking photos.

I had decided to try out AirPortr, to avoid having to check my bags on my ex-DUB run. Having pre booked online, leaving my bags with them at their counter next to the Heathrow Express counter at T5 arrivals was easy.


Their counter was by that purple Heathrow Express sign at the bottom of the photo. My only criticism was that they didn't have larger signs, though their website was quite clear on where I could find them.

They checked my booking receipt that I had printed, scanned a few barcodes, and I was emailed a receipt to confirm that my bags were handed over to them.


Next stop was the BA check in desks, where I had my passport checked for my ex-EU trip (as suggested here), and had my boarding pass to JFK printed. I made my way to the Galleries South lounge, once again reminded of the inefficient UK airport security check - the lines! (Though I did deliberately avoid the Fast Track)




I did, for a while, think of putting this picture into this thread, but thought too many people would get it immediately.




On a side note, Itsu is indeed open again, serving some delicious sushi.

The lounge was a decent place to sit and look out of the windows. But that was about it.






Very clinical washrooms








The QR A380 getting ready to fly back to DOH


Food offering was abysmal (though better than I had expected given the comments on FT; and I did indeed try the bacon roll). To cheer myself up, I went for a latte from the espresso machine, and spiked it with some Baileys.


I must have misjudged my bar tending skills - the end result was very… (let’s just say I understand why Baileys are not usually served in large cups).




As luck would have it, my flight was assigned gate A4 - a bus gate! In daylight with decent weather, I do prefer bus gates for the plane spotting and photo opportunities from stranger angles.






Boarding was called, and priority boarding was enforced - though in some ways, useless for bus gates (except that you are less likely to get your bag gate checked).


My bag was tagged with the infamous yellow tag.









Despite the many complaints on the FT BA forum, I should say straight off that I had excellent crews (well, at least good) on all my flights this time. Plenty of smiles and greetings. Yes, some of the crews appeared more professional and composed, others bubbly and maybe less well rehearsed. But at no time did I experience any crew who did not try their best to accommodate passengers (as annoying as I thought their requests may have been - such as asking for last minute drinks, bringing four, yes, FOUR, bags on board and struggling to find space for them…).

This crew was of the latter type, but brought on board a very happy atmosphere.


Lucky enough to have a free seat next to me. Or rather, free seat next to the 'free' seat next to me.


Clean floors



The food was not bad (though word has it this is to change), and the views out the window were wonderful.


Breakfast offering












Beautiful silhouette of a 787


Two VS 787s facing off




EI following us across the Irish Sea


LHR T2








The Emerald Island


The clouds playing wonderful tricks with light








We arrived without any delay at the 200s gates. Funnily enough, the delay was due to a lack of available stairs to be brought to the plane. All these Ryanair jets?


Poor guy pulling the stairs up to the jet himself - must be pretty strong to do that, huh?

:-: TP count: 320; BA flight count: 1 (still need: 0TP, 1 flight)

Madone59

Happy mileage running!! I hope you get some In N' Out burger at LAX

roadwarrier

Great start to your TR!!
Looking forward to the rest.

jdtravels

Thanks! Reading yours too - and realising that I was just a few flights off yours. Even went to the same hotel!


Thanks!


Unfortunately missed that. I tried one in Las Vegas though! Couldn't resist after passing by on an Uber

jdtravels

For some reason, the 200s gates are an isolated section with unidirectional barriers from the rest of the terminal - once you go in, you cannot head to the other gates without going through border control and customs. With time to spare and for the sake of FT (no, it was just an excuse), I decided to head out of security and immigration, only to return quarter of an hour later (no red flags raised there!). Timing the process, I managed to get through to the arrivals hall in just over five minutes. Those e-gates really do their job well. Going back in was more time consuming, with the security check speed on par with that at LHR (although overall waiting times were definitely shorter as there were fewer travellers at DUB).

The DAA Executive Lounge was found up a set of stairs immediately to the right of the security check. The staff were again very friendly, and introduced the layout and offerings of the lounge. The lounge was typically European - not as bad as the usual BA offerings, but could be better type.



Walking back to my departure gate, I really liked the design of this Starbucks store.



Honour system water stand

The return flight was, again, typical. Not much to report, but definitely nothing to complain about.






There are a lot more rainbows than one would imagine in this world.








River of clouds


The tea selection was available this time - and I did enjoy the sandwiches quite a lot.


The best one of the lot - some form of curry-ish chicken - anyone know what was in it?


Terminal 3 oneworld lineup: AY, RJ, BA, AA, CX, BA, (BA)


Taxiing back into T5A, via the other end

:-: TP count: 360; BA flight count: 2 (still need 0TP, 0 flights)

jdtravels

My flight from Dublin should have pushed me into bronze tier, as that would have been my second BA flight. But, as we all know, these updates are not real time, and there are delays to TP/Avios posting, especially with partner airlines. By my count, I was at BA Bronze, but officially still a Blue. Nonetheless, let us just imagine this was showing on my app screen (just me being impatient showing off my new status as a BRONZE member!)



Thanks again to Flyertalkers, I made my way to the B gates knowing that my flight more-than-likely would depart from one of those gates.






By this time, I was in dire need for a shower. The showers were very good, with warm and strong jets from all the different ‘outlets’. But I still do not understand why the BA toilets have to be so clinical looking.








At least there were clear instructions.

Dinner selection was not much better: two soups were available (a very spicy gumbo-style minestrone (I think that is what they named it), and a cream of leeks and potatoes.





Boarding was open and I made my way to the (sure enough) B gate.




Priority boarding was again enforced, and I made my way to my seat… wait for it… 62A! (Again, thanks to tips on Flyertalk here and here. Those looks of envy on the other passengers’ faces when they saw me on 62A [grin] (or maybe [smirk]). 62A is really a very good seat, with a LOT of seat-side storage - in the end I did not even use the overhead lockers - to complement the (otherwise non-existent) in-seat storage. . No problems for my laptop here!





Just on a side note, I do feel 62A is better than 62K, simply because the crew seats are on that side of the plane, so you would definitely be looking at them at some point in flight.



So how did I score this seat? I made the booking entering my BAEC number, as some have suggested that the first FFP number may sometimes 'stick' (whether that is true or not, I could not risk it). Then I went into the Finnair MMB, and changed my FFP number. Believe it or not, this change was reflected immediately on ba.com. Using the status I had with that programme, I selected 62A for free, and kept it there until the last minute. For me, that was after online check-in - when my seat was confirmed. I just went back to Finnair MMB, and edited the number, then reprinted my online boarding pass and updated my Passbook app.

This crew was the extremely professional and composed type, obviously with a lot of experience. They handled the entire service efficiently with a lot of smiles, but remained approachable throughout. The passengers’ names were remembered and used during the entire flight. A very British crew for British Airways!

Menus were handed out very early.




If you cannot read this clearly, try looking here. Charlie26r appears to have had the same choices.








I must also happily report that the braised beef cheeks were very good - definitely tender, and a good choice for airplane food.





We arrived in JFK on a rather cold night.



When I first planned the trip, I was thinking of just sitting somewhere in Terminal 8 for a few hours (six or so), until I could get into the AA lounge. After all the flying, I was quite tired, so decided to book a hotel nearby instead. In times like these, I again, am thankful that I did read through parts of the JFK forum on FT.



In the end, I went online to book a night with my HHonors points while waiting to go through US customs - now I understand why everyone avoids transiting in the States where possible.



I took the AirTrain to Federal Circle where I waited for my transfer. Unfortunately, unlike Charlie26r, I waited a good half hour for the ride. The Hilton Garden Inn was a decent place to spend a night.




















Surprised that the otherwise outdated hotel had USB charging sockets



:-: TP count: 500; BA flight count: 3 (still need 100TP, 1 flight)

Charlie26r

I can't believe we did so many similar things! A huge thanks to you for taking all the photos that I meant to and didn't. Really enjoying this and taking me right back there!

jdtravels

The next day, I took the 4am transfer back to the airport (luckily I was still on another timezone). This time, the transfer bus dropped me off directly at T8, and I avoided having to take the AirTrain again - not that it would have been a huge problem.





I made use of the poorly advertised (except on FT) Flagship Check in facility. Actually, I used the self-check in terminals, then walked through the Flagship Check in to security, which deposited me at the Pre-Check line. At this hour, there were minimal queues.









Perhaps it was the lack of sleep, but I mixed up what I read on FT, and headed over to the Concourse C Admirals Club. On the plus side, the underground tunnel were plastered with Disney's adverts for the new film Moana.





The Concourse C Admirals Club agents quickly noted that I was flying Transcon First, and suggested I make use of the Flagship Lounge at Concourse A instead (she used her highlighters and wrote ‘FL’ in large letters on my boarding pass just to make sure the agents at the other lounge would point me to the Flagship Lounge). I was told that there was a wider selection of food at the Flagship Lounge - her exact words, I believe, were "they feed you better there". How wonderful.


The sign I should have seen, had I turned left upon seeing that pretty model plane


How cute, some child left a hand print!

The Flagship Lounge, now renamed as the International First Class Lounge, was found at the end of the Admirals Club.




Cubicle seats right at the entrance, but away from everything else. So could have been private, had they not been unfortunately placed in the corridor where everyone must pass through to get to the lounge... Made them quite useless, I thought.





The decor was definitely updated and brighter, and the food selection, as advertised, was much better than in the Admirals Club - at least there was more than cookies and pretzels for breakfast. I also liked how they had those Starbucks-like disposable cups with lids that you could use, should you wish to take your coffee with you onto the plane. And the coffee wasn't half bad either.















I was one of the last to board (I just had to get in one extra cup of coffee), but found the seat across the aisle still empty. The flight attendants today were what I have associated with the stereotypical southern American - loud, large personality and very friendly.







The Cirrus-like seat was great to be in, and I got plenty of rest on the long flight west (the flight just seemed to go on and on… a problem with westbound flights).










Dawn




Fruit plate to start


A nice American biscuit

It was confirmed that I had pre-selected the scrambled eggs, which turned out quite tasty.




Crisps from the snack basket


Cookies and milk! That made my day

Arriving (finally ) at LAX, we were delayed on the tarmac for nearly an hour, as there was a jam in the aisle leading into the gates between T4 and T6. That meant less time for lounge hopping, but more time for plane spotting.













More unfortunate still, it was raining - there goes my chance of seeing the Californian sun.

:-: TP count: 710; BA flight count: 3 (still need 0TP, 1 flight)