757

Another great report so far, SFO777! I've read some more on your SFO777.com.

Very cool that Austrian now flies to LAX from VIE. I flew them back in 1999 between JFK-VIE and remember them being a great airline. I would love to fly with them again sometime!

Your experience with LH in F looks much better this time than your last report. Looking forward to the rest!


Matthew

Betteronacamel

Subscribed.

Looking forward to the rest of this TR.

Happy Easter

RogueViator

SFO777 this trip report is something I've sorely needed after last week's ugliness!

apodo77

Always love a great SFO777 trip report. Looking forward to the rest.

Read ahead to your OZ flight and couldn't agree more on LaLa Land. No clue how Emma Stone won best actress especially.

SFO777

At around T-40, a Lufthansa First Class Assistant came to lounge to escort us to the plane at nearby Gate 150.





LAX-Frankfurt
Lufthansa 457
A380-800
3:20p-11:20a +1
April 10, 2017
Departed 8/8
Seat 2K





Up the elevator to the upper jet bridge.



The always classy Lufthansa First Class cabin although it lacks the private of the closed suite products. After a couple of really disappointing Lufthansa flights, today was a most pleasant surprise. A wonderful and attentive crew provided flawless service. And even the food was edible today.













A glass of champagne at the gate to kick things off, although the Henroit was a little disappointing.



Nice new Jil Sander leather amenity kit. Although I was reminded of the saying "you can put lipstick on a pig"...



... as it was the same old, same old inside.



Today's menu. Better than December but still a little on the eclectic side.









And wine list. Meh.









Checking out the loot from Gate 134. Yummy wafers.





Time to get the show on the road.































And we're off. I'll be back at LAX in 68 hours.













OK, now that's pretty cool. Air France pilots are apparently showing off as they departed after us and overtook us shortly after.





Even without the EK shower, the First Class lavs are gorgeous.









Wifi worked pretty well most of the flight.



And a bargain at only 17 euros for 24 hours.





Mercifully, LH has finally changed the amuse bouche and the shrimp and cucumber was tasty.



Showtime.



Extra garlic bread.











But the starter trio was the usual meh, although the Watermelon, Radish with black sesame Seed, Wakame salad was nice.



The Chablis was excellent once it was chilled. Shades of BA as I asked for some ice to cool it.



Our FA was superb and suggested that we compare all the wines on the list. Just in case you're wondering, the front row is mine, the back row was Levi's.



For my main, I went with the Bison and filet which was excellent.





For dessert, the "Lukewarm" Salt Salt Brownie with Vanilla Bean ice cream.





Turning in for the night.









We arrived about 20 minutes early and pulled into our gate just before 11am. All in all, a most enjoyable flight. As is usually the case, a great crew can make all the difference and today's crew was outstanding.

SFO777

Thank you very much Nepasser.

Thanks Fraser. TheBOSman beat me to it..

Thanks very much TheBOSman. I agree on the OZ caviar service. I can't recall any airline that does it better. My only problem was opening the sealed caviar container. I didn't have any western utensils so I had to pry it open with a chopstick.

Thank you nequine.

Thanks seat38a. The TBIT secret security is awesome. Just hope that not too many people start using before main TBIT security gets a dedicated PreCheck lane.

That would be correct. Thanks Madone59.

LOL. Thanks so much injian.

Thank you very much roadwarrier.

They were nice but not anything as spectacular as Tokyo or Kyoto.

Thanks so much glasman19. Nope, still the 60D and iPhone 5S.

Thank you Matthew. I'm glad to see OS now serving LAX-VIE. LO is also starting LAX-WAW service this spring. So lots of great new LAX service.

Thanks very much Betteronacamel. Happy Easter to you as well.

Thank you RogueViator.

Thanks so much apodo77. LOL on Emma Stone winning and for that matter the whole movie winning so many awards. I guess its not surprising considering it was one of those inside, made for Hollywood things.

SFO777

Lufthansa First Class Lounge B at Frankfurt


After deplaning, we headed for the Concourse B First Class Lounge since my connecting flight is on Asiana. Arriving Lufthansa First Class passengers are entitled to First Class Lounge access but only connecting/departing Lufthansa passengers can access the First Class Terminal. It's been so long since I've used this lounge that it took a long, long time and I'm sure we didn't take the most direct route as it took forever. Heck, I could have walked to the First Class Terminal and bank in that time. But after a lot of walking and a train ride, we're in the B20+ wing and getting close.



There has to be a better way than walking down a flight of stairs although perhaps the escalator goes down when it works.



Et voila!





Beautiful and elegant as always.



















Levi and I said goodbye and bon voyage as he was heading to the First Class Terminal and Oslo and I headed for a sleep room for a couple of hours. But wow, that mattress was firm, like as in concrete. My back was still feeling the pain 36 hours later.







And then a welcomed shower.











And then the Lounge dining room.







Lots of serve yourself options.



















But I'm going for the wonderful menu, now nicely bound.















And the signature Wiener Schnitzel. Amazing!





And then to one of the work rooms to catch up on some emails and work.

GetSetJetSet

What was the mistake fare? Why do I always miss them!

NashVegas37206

Excellent and looking forward to the rest. I took a look at the FS Seoul section; sharp. Could never clean windows on a skyscraper.

Andriyko

I concur.

Great great trip report SFO777!

LANDJ999

Are you missing Colorado? LA not for me.

CappuccinoAddict

Great report as usual!! On my way to Tokyo today, I hope I'll catch the last bit of cherry blossoms.

I'm so glad you had a redeeming experience in LH F! I wonder if it's that you've been flying into MUC the past few times? A few LH F regulars on this forum have stated they believe the F crews tend to be better out of FRA.

nequine

That looked a nice transit area to hang out in, even if the bed was hard, for your layover.

DanielW

Another epic and uber-luxurious adventure, SFO777.

My recent transit through LAX was slightly less exciting, flying out on a red-eye flight on a Mexican LCC.



Looking forward to the final JAL leg.

SFO777

Asiana OZ542 A380 First Class to Incheon


Around an hour before departure, I headed out for some exercise and the long trek to far end of the B concourse and Gate B46.





















Now that's one way to get around FRA.



Gate lice, Asiana style.



Frankfurt-Seoul Incheon
Asiana 542
A380-800
7:00p-12:20p +1
April 11, 2017
Departed 3/12
Seat 2K

Not a good start as First Class was lumped in with Business Class and Star Alliance Gold when boarding commenced.



First and Economy are both on the lower deck and board down the same jet bridge...



... until the split to 1L.



I really like the fact that Asiana configured its A380 to have First Class on the more spacious lower deck.



Lovely and spacious cabin and with privacy doors.











My Suite 2K was roomy and very nice.





Love the doors.





And the huge TV screen.











A major negative as there is only one First Class lav. Not as elegant as Emirates or Lufthansa's A380 First Class lavs. With only 3 passengers tonight, the single lav was not an issue. I just wouldn't want to be in a full F cabin flight.









Major point deduction as Asiana apparently refuses to pay the local alcohol tax and only offers non-alcoholic pre departure beverages.





On the other hand, extra points for a great Ferragamo amenity kit.





With great stuff you can take home and actually use. Tuscan Soul is one of favorite travel hand creams.



















Tonight's menu. Attractive packaging with an adequate but not overly generous selection.







But the "wine list". Yikes. This one isn't even worthy of Business Class.



Sure hope they are paying these three well as I'd be embarrassed to have my name on this list.





Robert Mondavi Chardonnay??? Seriously? And the Fleur Cardinale Grand Cru was either corked or just bad from the get go.









Showtime as I went with the Korean option tonight.



The Pan Fried Yam was light and refreshing.



Unforunatly, the poor man's Laurent Perrier and not the Grand Siecle.







The surprise of the night was the caviar... beautiful set up and presentation. And delicious.







The other starters were just OK.





What little duck was good but there just wasn't enough to satisfy.



For my main, I went with the Korean Royal Cuisine, Bibimbap and Grilled Cod. The cod was moist and delicious. The bibimbap was good but not like on Korean probably because I don't know how to add the right proportion of ingredients.











I watched La La Land and for the life of me, can't figure out how it won any awards. Jeez. And then to bed in 1K.





About 3 hours later, I woke up starving. Apparently too much air in that bibimbap dish. The Udon was OK but the ham, cheese and tomato sandwich was just what the doctor ordered.







Another movie and it was time for breakfast or "Brunch" as the menu describes it. This was actually pretty good.







The croissant and muffin were both delicious.

















We arrived on time after what all in all was a pleasant 10 hour flight. Service was excellent throughout, the cabin was comfy but it's just not a top tier First Class product. Food is average, the wine list pathetic and First Class ground service non-existent. There is no snack bar or bar of any kind for that matter. And the lack of Wifi in 2017 is unforgivable. Only Air France can get away with that these days. While I wouldn't go out of my way to fly them, they are certainly better than Air China and BA, but not as good overall as even Korean.

The arrival process at ICN is very efficient and dispute the lack of any Fast Track or Priority immigration, it only took a few minutes to be processed.







The fastest way to get to the city is by the Express Train. I just followed the signs for Airport Railroad.





Paid my 8500 KRW (or about US$7.50) and followed the signs to my 1pm train.



Although seats are assigned when you buy your ticket, there were lots of open seats and you're free to sit anywhere. Very clean. And free Wifi!









Some 43 minutes later, we were at Seoul Station. It's not for Mrs. SFO777, but a very clean and efficient way to get to the city.