A long weekend in Sydney – and a Qantas transcon from Perth in Y
Feb 13, 2017, 5:21 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 223
A long weekend in Sydney – and a Qantas transcon from Perth in Y
So, this is the story of a quick trip to Sydney.
It’s a story that started around 9 months ago when one of my best friends and work wife was relocated from Perth to Sydney. I promised to visit regularly, this is the story of one of these visits.
Anyone who grew up in New Zealand knows that you never pay full price for anything at Briscoes, you don’t like Aucklanders unless you are one, and you support the All Blacks. Always. These are the things that you do, lest one’s passport be taken back.
In the same vein of absolutes, if you are planning a transcon trip more than a couple of months out, don’t buy a ticket unless they are one sale. Because they are on sale, every couple of months. Like clockwork. Hence, this trip was on purchased about six months ago, on sale for 189 each way. Which is not bad for Qantas, across the continent.
About a week beforehand, I was offered the opportunity to bid for an upgrade to business on the flight over, I’m okay with 5 hours or so in economy, so put in the lowest possible bid, $200 and 4,000 points, as expected, it was not accepted.
Sydney Airport is somewhat complicated for those travelling from the west in the evenings, you see there is a curfew for Sydney Airport and it’s strictly enforced, so the airlines schedule their flights accordingly. This means that Qantas only really has two options for an evening departure, a 3:15 departure that gets in before the 11pm curfew or the 11:05 red-eye which arrives just after it lifts at 6am. Neither is ideal. I went with the 3:15.
So, its Thursday and its time to go to Sydney, I left the office around 2:15 for the 25-minute uber ride out to the airport, it was raining in Perth, a strange occurrence in the summer, and as usual, the locals were unsure of what to do about water falling from the sky. It doesn’t happen often, or so you might think based on what you see on the roads.
I checked-in on my phone, and with the Qantas app, it’s a one click process, certify you aren’t carrying bad stuff and you are good to go! I also like the fact you can change your seat after you have checked in, so as people move about, you can sometimes get a better seat. Qantas also have self-service kiosks for check-in at the airport, self-service baggage drop, and as you can see there are no queues…. Technology is awesome when it works!
Also, working well were the security folk, again – no queues to speak of.
Qantas Business Lounge – Perth Domestic
The Qantas business lounge in Perth opened, maybe a year ago? It’s a wonderful space, I like it. It was built to complement the existing Qantas Club, which was uncomfortably busy and there were times where you would arrive to find there were literally no seats…
It new lounge was also busy, so I didn’t get that many photos.
There is a coffee station, dining table and some crazy guy on the TV…
There are dining tables, and buffet station mirrors the fare found upstairs in the Qantas Club, but the point of difference is a pizza oven… which I initially thought of as a gimmick. But it works, so now I think of it as a feature.
When the lounge is busy however, it’s a little funny to watch everyone lining up like hungry seagulls to swoop on the next pizza out of the oven…. In fact, if I’m honest… this photo was taken as I was waiting for the chef to cut the pizza he had just taken out, so I’m one of them.
There are several different seating areas, a bar and some nice toilets. I had 15 mins in the lounge before boarding was called and with the gate right outside I was sitting in my seat 5 mins later.
Qantas QF566
Airbus A330-200 (VH-EBO)
Perth (PER) -> Sydney (SYD)
Depart 15:13, Arrive 22:22, Flight Time: 4:09
Tonight’s flight is pretty full with most of the seats taken, I re-discovered for what seems like the 10th time that 25A has a missing window, but luckily you can still see out of the other one, so it’s not too bad… Still makes me feel stupid tho!
The flight today was on a refurbished A330-200, the refurbishment program is now mostly complete with only a couple of the international ones outstanding. The IFE has been updated and had a pretty good selection, kept me busy with a couple of movies I haven’t seen yet. After everyone was aboard, we were underway a couple of minutes early.
It was a little bumpy on the climb out and I do love that even when it’s a bad day on the ground, if you can fly high enough, you can see the blue sky.
A boxed lunch was served about 45 minutes after take-off, it came with some crackers and a drink.
There were three options and I chose the chicken green curry and was very happy.
After the mess from the meal was cleared away, ice-cream was delivered wrapped in chocolate and coconut – which is a combination I love!
Not much more to report, there was nice sunset, and we ended up arriving a couple of minutes early. All in all, a good flight and exactly what I expected.
After landing in Sydney, it was a shortish walk to the ridesharing pick up area for an uber into the city. It was hot, uncomfortably hot, and I was pleased when my ride got there so I could shelter in the air conditioning.
The Westin Sydney
As a SPG loyalist, and now sometimes Marriott guest, the Sheraton and Westin are my hotels of choice in the city. The Westin had the better rates and I booked a superior heritage room – however was lucky enough to get an upgrade to a deluxe room in the tower at check in.
The rooms are a little old school; however, they have curtains that actually block out the light, awesome AC and super comfortable beds, so I quite like them.
The bathroom has a large bathtub and a shower with good pressure, but doesn’t quite get up to temperature as fast as I would like. But overall, a perfectly acceptable place to sleep for a few days.
It’s a story that started around 9 months ago when one of my best friends and work wife was relocated from Perth to Sydney. I promised to visit regularly, this is the story of one of these visits.
Anyone who grew up in New Zealand knows that you never pay full price for anything at Briscoes, you don’t like Aucklanders unless you are one, and you support the All Blacks. Always. These are the things that you do, lest one’s passport be taken back.
In the same vein of absolutes, if you are planning a transcon trip more than a couple of months out, don’t buy a ticket unless they are one sale. Because they are on sale, every couple of months. Like clockwork. Hence, this trip was on purchased about six months ago, on sale for 189 each way. Which is not bad for Qantas, across the continent.
About a week beforehand, I was offered the opportunity to bid for an upgrade to business on the flight over, I’m okay with 5 hours or so in economy, so put in the lowest possible bid, $200 and 4,000 points, as expected, it was not accepted.
Sydney Airport is somewhat complicated for those travelling from the west in the evenings, you see there is a curfew for Sydney Airport and it’s strictly enforced, so the airlines schedule their flights accordingly. This means that Qantas only really has two options for an evening departure, a 3:15 departure that gets in before the 11pm curfew or the 11:05 red-eye which arrives just after it lifts at 6am. Neither is ideal. I went with the 3:15.
So, its Thursday and its time to go to Sydney, I left the office around 2:15 for the 25-minute uber ride out to the airport, it was raining in Perth, a strange occurrence in the summer, and as usual, the locals were unsure of what to do about water falling from the sky. It doesn’t happen often, or so you might think based on what you see on the roads.
I checked-in on my phone, and with the Qantas app, it’s a one click process, certify you aren’t carrying bad stuff and you are good to go! I also like the fact you can change your seat after you have checked in, so as people move about, you can sometimes get a better seat. Qantas also have self-service kiosks for check-in at the airport, self-service baggage drop, and as you can see there are no queues…. Technology is awesome when it works!
Also, working well were the security folk, again – no queues to speak of.
Qantas Business Lounge – Perth Domestic
The Qantas business lounge in Perth opened, maybe a year ago? It’s a wonderful space, I like it. It was built to complement the existing Qantas Club, which was uncomfortably busy and there were times where you would arrive to find there were literally no seats…
It new lounge was also busy, so I didn’t get that many photos.
There is a coffee station, dining table and some crazy guy on the TV…
There are dining tables, and buffet station mirrors the fare found upstairs in the Qantas Club, but the point of difference is a pizza oven… which I initially thought of as a gimmick. But it works, so now I think of it as a feature.
When the lounge is busy however, it’s a little funny to watch everyone lining up like hungry seagulls to swoop on the next pizza out of the oven…. In fact, if I’m honest… this photo was taken as I was waiting for the chef to cut the pizza he had just taken out, so I’m one of them.
There are several different seating areas, a bar and some nice toilets. I had 15 mins in the lounge before boarding was called and with the gate right outside I was sitting in my seat 5 mins later.
Qantas QF566
Airbus A330-200 (VH-EBO)
Perth (PER) -> Sydney (SYD)
Depart 15:13, Arrive 22:22, Flight Time: 4:09
Tonight’s flight is pretty full with most of the seats taken, I re-discovered for what seems like the 10th time that 25A has a missing window, but luckily you can still see out of the other one, so it’s not too bad… Still makes me feel stupid tho!
The flight today was on a refurbished A330-200, the refurbishment program is now mostly complete with only a couple of the international ones outstanding. The IFE has been updated and had a pretty good selection, kept me busy with a couple of movies I haven’t seen yet. After everyone was aboard, we were underway a couple of minutes early.
It was a little bumpy on the climb out and I do love that even when it’s a bad day on the ground, if you can fly high enough, you can see the blue sky.
A boxed lunch was served about 45 minutes after take-off, it came with some crackers and a drink.
There were three options and I chose the chicken green curry and was very happy.
After the mess from the meal was cleared away, ice-cream was delivered wrapped in chocolate and coconut – which is a combination I love!
Not much more to report, there was nice sunset, and we ended up arriving a couple of minutes early. All in all, a good flight and exactly what I expected.
After landing in Sydney, it was a shortish walk to the ridesharing pick up area for an uber into the city. It was hot, uncomfortably hot, and I was pleased when my ride got there so I could shelter in the air conditioning.
The Westin Sydney
As a SPG loyalist, and now sometimes Marriott guest, the Sheraton and Westin are my hotels of choice in the city. The Westin had the better rates and I booked a superior heritage room – however was lucky enough to get an upgrade to a deluxe room in the tower at check in.
The rooms are a little old school; however, they have curtains that actually block out the light, awesome AC and super comfortable beds, so I quite like them.
The bathroom has a large bathtub and a shower with good pressure, but doesn’t quite get up to temperature as fast as I would like. But overall, a perfectly acceptable place to sleep for a few days.
Feb 15, 2017, 3:36 am
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 223
Part 2: Sydney Day 1
The first day in Sydney was a Friday and I was starting the day meeting up with some ex-colleagues and friends for breakfast. Alas, they had to work, so 10am wasn’t really going to suit all of us… apparently a 7 am breakfast would be best… which with the 3-hour time zone difference meant I was up at 3:45… I only get up that early for friends! Fortunately, they were slightly sympathetic and selected a location a 5-minute walk from the hotel. Unfortunately, I walked out the front door into a furnace… it was going to be a hot day.
After a couple of hours, I bid them farewell and went for a walk along the waterfront, it was a lovely day, however with the heat – I was sweating buckets after 10 minutes. There were even some photo bombing seagulls.
It was the last few days of the Chinese New Year festival, and there were a range of animal lanterns representing the 12 zodiac animals. There were a couple of roosters either dancing or fighting in front of the Opera House. They were much more impressive at night, alas my photography skills were unable to capture their beauty in the dark!
I kept walking through the botanic gardens, were I encountered a few others silly enough to be out in the heat.
The next stop was the art gallery, where I was catching up with a couple of friends for lunch at the restaurant, but first I had a couple of hours to explore, which with the air conditioning, seemed to make everything even more interesting!
My favourite was the 20th century Australian art (which claimed a couple of Kiwis I might add…)
The restaurant serves lovely food, and has wonderful view over Potts Point and Garden Island where you can see your tax dollars hard at work.
After lunch, I went for a wonder through the City, encountered cute little ambulances, and sheltered in the ice-cold air conditioning of a range of shops along the way, and ended up back at The Westin around 2:30.
Later in the afternoon, I caught up with my best ever contiki friend, and we walked down to Circular Quay, where we consumed ice cream to ward off the heat and saw a few more of the zodiac lanterns. We then walked under the bridge, past Dawes Point the Barangaroo Reserve and ended up in Cockle Bay, for another serve of Ice Cream. Boy, was it hot!
Along the way we encountered cars crushed by rocks and a range of hotels and theatres.
Next stop was dinner, so we meet up with another friend and headed for Newtown, where there is a plethora of Thai restaurants, our choice tonight – Thai Riffic – plus, it had air conditioning! Score.
Dinner was followed by drinks at Garden Bar above the Marlborough Hotel, which along with some great home brew ginger beer has a lovely view over the intersection… by this time it was cool enough to sit outside with the breeze and after a few drinks it was time to head back to the hotel after a big day!
Feb 15, 2017, 3:40 am
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 223
Thanks!
Yes, we are pretty lucky in Oz with a fantastic transcon product from both Virgin and Qantas.
Yes, we are pretty lucky in Oz with a fantastic transcon product from both Virgin and Qantas.
Feb 21, 2017, 6:46 am
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 223
Part 3: Sydney Day 2
Being a Saturday afforded far more reasonable waking hours, with brunch scheduled at 10 am, along with friends at the Carriageworks, a very cool converted train workshop, complete with farmers market, café and a range of exhibition and event spaces. An awesome idea!
Bruch was followed by a trip into town to visit Kinokuniya, a great bookshop, and new addition to my favourite places in Sydney list…. I was restrained and walked away with only a couple of purchases. It’s a place where rational financial don’t exist.
The evening’s entertainment was a show, Barbu, at the Opera House. It looked good, had eye-candy for all genders and an impressive circus performance. Really impressive.
I’d never been in the studio at the Opera House before, but it was surprisingly intimate and everyone was close to the action. The show was awesome, with a little more nudity than I was expecting and it really reinforced the need to improve my French from pretty much non-existent to something that can be actually useful.
We came out just as the sun was setting, which looked spectacular, dinner was at bodhi a vegan friendly yum cha place, in a great location just over the back of Hyde Park.
Off to Newtown for a night cap, and found a lovely little bar, Bloodwood, that does Fancy Beers… Excellent! A great range of craft beers and better yet – super cold air-conditioning. Just watch out for the $70 a bottle ones…. Crazy!
Feb 21, 2017, 7:01 am
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 223
Part 4: Last Day in Sydney and flight to Perth
The last day started with brunch in Redfern with a couple of friends, our chosen location – Tripod, an interesting little café on the main street. Another crazy hot day, but I guess that’s what you get when you go to Sydney in February…
They seemed to do stupid large meals, but mine tasted so good I managed to get the job done.
Brunch was followed by yet more coffee as we walked towards the city heading for the Chinese Garden of Friendship around the back of Darling Harbour, which is a really cool garden hidden in the city. A clam oasis in the middle of the city and, with it being CNY it was pretty busy.
There were opportunities to become acquainted with Australian wildlife. These were just as big as they look in the photos!
Wondered past the dragon boating in Cockle Bay as part of the final CNY festival. This race, was the race of the Accountants! With three KPMG teams, Deloitte, and a couple of local firms. Much an excess of corporate love…
And took a ferry ride around the harbour to Circular Quay where we split up, one of my friends was going to an interesting concert at the opera house, I did want to go, however with CNY wrapping up and a vague finishing time, it could be tight getting to the airport, so I decided not to risk it… Checked out one of my other favourite places… the MCA.
After an hour or two there it was time to head home. I stopped by the Westin for a shower, checked out and took the airport train which is a very convenient 5 min walk down George Street.
Qantas have a well policed premium security queue off to the left, which was quick – taking only a couple of minutes.
Also, well policed, but less agreeable is the Qantas lounge dress policy. Almost un-Australian I would say.
The business lounge in Sydney is, if a little old school, lovely. Also, very busy on a Sunday evening, luckily, I managed a seat along the windows and watched the world go by. With tonight’s flight being on a 737 tonight and it being full, I wanted to be at the gate as boarding began to get a space for my carry on near my seat.
Qantas QF566
Boeing 737-800 (VH-VXN)
Sydney (SYD) -> Perth (PER)
Depart 18:10, Arrive 19:54, Flight Time: 4:44
Flight delayed on boarding, looks like a late inbound, but nothing mentioned at the gate, we started boarding about 5 mins before departure, a little annoying, as I probably could have gone to the concert in hindsight. Oh well, next time.
The 737 we are flying on is one of the older ones, it has been refitted with the wifi streaming IFE, however no in-seat power, so while it’s great for trips up and down the eastern seaboard, for the transcon trips over to Perth it’s starting to push the batteries on your device. Fairly quick flight time today with the Captain giving us an estimate of 4:35.
Exit row really is the place to be, tonnes of leg-room, same if not more as business…
Meals in boxes were served shortly after take-off and I can’t actually remember what I had. Clearly it was neither offensive nor memorable.
I mainly watched a couple of my own movies, and didn’t even connect to the wifi.
A couple of hours after dinner, desert was brought through, and this was memorable… Loved it. Not much more to report, landing was firm in a rainy Perth and it was a short uber ride home. Which cost less than half of what a taxi used to… I’m okay with that.
All in all, a great weekend away.