A trip to Japan on QR J / JAL (Sake Fare)
Apr 29, 2017, 1:57 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Glasgow, UK
Programs: Seigneur des Tarifs Utils First Class Mucci with Honours :) - BA GGL / CCR
Posts: 1,551
A trip to Japan on QR J / JAL (Sake Fare)
This is the first time I have ever done a trip report so please go easy on me 
This first post is purely about what I booked, why and where I ended up selecting. The actual trip report starts on post 2 if you want to skip to there click HERE
Like a few others on the BA / QR forums I was having a quiet night in looking through FlyerTalk without anything in particular to do. Someone posted up on the Premium Fares thread that I was tracking that there was a crazy cheap QR Fare going for AMS/BRU-DOH-HND/NRT in J for 611€ per person as part of their travel festival.
The dates originally were wide open with most weeks still available however the connections at Doha were all very long as there was only one flight a day from Doha to Japan so this made it slightly less appealing. The next 30 minutes was a bit of a frenzy as I had to work out a date that work colleagues weren't off and also tried to get it around a bank holiday to get an extra day without taking the annual leave. These both proved difficult tasks.
I tried easter with the Friday / Monday as bank holidays and I was at the page ready to pay for it and the seats literally disappeared in front of me. I had to play it safe dates wise so I opted for the next best thing 30/4 - 11/5 this gave me the May day bank holiday and although it came with two very long connections at Doha either side it was in reality the only option I was getting and I didn't want to miss the deal all together.
Others from the BA forum took October / November time but I already had travel booked around then so this was it, All I had to do now was find a credit card at home with enough cash on it to book the trip. Few minutes later I was booked and had confirmation number in hand. delighted.
I had done some travelling already in Asia, but for me Japan always had that appeal to me as a place that i HAD TO visit at some point so the minute this oppurtunity came up I knew I had to take it and I am glad I did as minutes later all the seats were sold out for the rest of the year.
Flights
The QR flights booked in the end were:
BRU - DOH - HND / NRT - DOH - BRU
Positioning Flights
This turned out to be harder than I thought, With my bright idea that I would just book the trip over a bank holiday to get an extra days holiday backfired as it turned out this was the most expensive dates for picking flights.
The options were GLA/EDI - LHR - BRU (BA) This worked out about Ł160 each which was pretty steep for a positioning flight and I wasn't avios flush enough to blow 9000 avios each on the same trip as I wanted the miles for something else so in the end I (Regrettably) booked Ryanair EDI - CRL as the positioning flight for Ł50 each including luggage. I wanted to play it safe with the exEU positioning so I booked the positioning flights for the day before with an overnight planned in BRU. This descision turned out not to be the best nor the cheapest in the end which i will detail later.
EDI - CRL (RyanAir)
for the way back I really only had one option and that was BA. The main logic behind this is that as a BA GOLD / OneWorld Emerald I automaticaly got 2 x 32kg luggage allowance for me and my travelling companions on BA even on deep discount economy tickets and we usually bring a lot of gifts / shopping back from holiday trips so once you priced up RyanAir with the extra luggage allowance to match QR and BA it was only Ł10 cheaper than just booking BA so I booked BA (BRU - LHR - GLA) with enough time in Brussels to counteract any flight delays.
BRU - LHR - GLA (BA)
Osaka
We decided pretty much the week before travel that we wanted to see more of Japan than just Tokyo as we had no idea when or if we would ever be back so having looked online we decided to do 4 days in Tokyo (During Golden Week) and then 4 nights in Osaka (At the end of Golden Week) with a 1 night stay in Tokyo again on the way back before heading home. This would allow us to see Kyoto, Nara and Osaka. What sold the deal even more was that Japan Airlines (JAL) had redemption seats available between HND and ITM for 4500 Avios and Ł2.20 each an absolute steal and even cheaper than any rail pass or Yokoso discount fare was going to get us so we booked it.
HND - ITM - HND (JAL)
Flight Summary
The overall trip we are taking is:
EDI => CRL / BRU => DOH => HND => ITM => HND / NRT => DOH => BRU => LHR => GLA
(EDI-CRL) - Ryanair
(BRU-DOH-HND) - On Qatar in J (Sake Fare Tickets)
(HND-ITM-HND) - Redemption flights in Y with Japan Airlines booked with 9000 Avios (JAL)
(NRT-DOH-BRU) - On Qatar in J (Sake Fare Tickets)
(BRU-LHR-GLA) - Paid Y tickets with British Airways
Hotels
I am a purely leisure traveller so other than silver Marriot rewards that I earned a few years ago with work I had no hotel loyalty at all with the big chains the only thing I do make use of Hotels.com rewards scheme which I find pretty decent where every 10th stay in any hotel booked with them earns you a free night at the average nightly cost of your last 10 stays this for me is a pretty decent scheme and coupled with their price guarantee and 4% CashBack via TopCashBack.com for me its win win.
Brussels
The hotel in Brussels was an easy one, I just needed one next to the airport as it was to be a arrive, couple of drinks and sleep type deal so I opted for the cheapest option with a free shuttle and this was the PentaHotel - Brussels Airport. The cost was Ł77 but I used a free night redemption on it so it cost me nothing in the end other than 6€ city tax.
Doha
We arrive in Doha at 16:00 on the 29th April and the next flight for Tokyo didn't leave till the next morning at 0700 so we booked a hotel in Doha, Again just something cheap and cheerful with a Airport Shuttle so we opted for the Golden Ocean Hotel in Doha which was only a 10 minute drive to the airport so not too bad. We did attempt to get the STPC (Transit Hotel) that Qatar offer but we did not qualify becuase of how cheap our tickets were.
Tokyo
This was tricky. Mostly due to me not researching first when not to visit Japan and that Golden Week was pretty much the only week to avoid and this was the week I was infact going which made the hotel selection a bit sparse at best.
I wanted somewhere that was pretty central with easy connections to get around but at the same time not in the centre of the busy areas. I had a few options in mind Shibuya, Shinjuku, Rappongi & Minato / Akasaka. With the golden week prices taking a prescedence in the main locations I opted in the end for the APA Hotel in Mita. Now I am aware of how small the rooms are in these hotels but we really just want a clean and decent hotel to sleep at night doesnt need to be much more than that only functional.
Osaka
The hotel choice in Osaka was a bit more complicated as I knew even less about Osaka than I did Tokyo, the prices were a bit steep as it was the tail end of Golden Week but the fact that we decided to do Tokyo for golden week and then Osaka for the latter half was a good idea as it opened up a lot better cost effective options for hotels in Osaka. We in the end chose one from the cheap and cheerful range and was Hotel Claiton Esaka for 4 nights and I believe it was in the region of Ł250.
This first post is purely about what I booked, why and where I ended up selecting. The actual trip report starts on post 2 if you want to skip to there click HERE
Like a few others on the BA / QR forums I was having a quiet night in looking through FlyerTalk without anything in particular to do. Someone posted up on the Premium Fares thread that I was tracking that there was a crazy cheap QR Fare going for AMS/BRU-DOH-HND/NRT in J for 611€ per person as part of their travel festival.
The dates originally were wide open with most weeks still available however the connections at Doha were all very long as there was only one flight a day from Doha to Japan so this made it slightly less appealing. The next 30 minutes was a bit of a frenzy as I had to work out a date that work colleagues weren't off and also tried to get it around a bank holiday to get an extra day without taking the annual leave. These both proved difficult tasks.
I tried easter with the Friday / Monday as bank holidays and I was at the page ready to pay for it and the seats literally disappeared in front of me. I had to play it safe dates wise so I opted for the next best thing 30/4 - 11/5 this gave me the May day bank holiday and although it came with two very long connections at Doha either side it was in reality the only option I was getting and I didn't want to miss the deal all together.
Others from the BA forum took October / November time but I already had travel booked around then so this was it, All I had to do now was find a credit card at home with enough cash on it to book the trip. Few minutes later I was booked and had confirmation number in hand. delighted.
I had done some travelling already in Asia, but for me Japan always had that appeal to me as a place that i HAD TO visit at some point so the minute this oppurtunity came up I knew I had to take it and I am glad I did as minutes later all the seats were sold out for the rest of the year.
Flights
The QR flights booked in the end were:
BRU - DOH - HND / NRT - DOH - BRU
Positioning Flights
This turned out to be harder than I thought, With my bright idea that I would just book the trip over a bank holiday to get an extra days holiday backfired as it turned out this was the most expensive dates for picking flights.
The options were GLA/EDI - LHR - BRU (BA) This worked out about Ł160 each which was pretty steep for a positioning flight and I wasn't avios flush enough to blow 9000 avios each on the same trip as I wanted the miles for something else so in the end I (Regrettably) booked Ryanair EDI - CRL as the positioning flight for Ł50 each including luggage. I wanted to play it safe with the exEU positioning so I booked the positioning flights for the day before with an overnight planned in BRU. This descision turned out not to be the best nor the cheapest in the end which i will detail later.
EDI - CRL (RyanAir)
for the way back I really only had one option and that was BA. The main logic behind this is that as a BA GOLD / OneWorld Emerald I automaticaly got 2 x 32kg luggage allowance for me and my travelling companions on BA even on deep discount economy tickets and we usually bring a lot of gifts / shopping back from holiday trips so once you priced up RyanAir with the extra luggage allowance to match QR and BA it was only Ł10 cheaper than just booking BA so I booked BA (BRU - LHR - GLA) with enough time in Brussels to counteract any flight delays.
BRU - LHR - GLA (BA)
Osaka
We decided pretty much the week before travel that we wanted to see more of Japan than just Tokyo as we had no idea when or if we would ever be back so having looked online we decided to do 4 days in Tokyo (During Golden Week) and then 4 nights in Osaka (At the end of Golden Week) with a 1 night stay in Tokyo again on the way back before heading home. This would allow us to see Kyoto, Nara and Osaka. What sold the deal even more was that Japan Airlines (JAL) had redemption seats available between HND and ITM for 4500 Avios and Ł2.20 each an absolute steal and even cheaper than any rail pass or Yokoso discount fare was going to get us so we booked it.
HND - ITM - HND (JAL)
Flight Summary
The overall trip we are taking is:
EDI => CRL / BRU => DOH => HND => ITM => HND / NRT => DOH => BRU => LHR => GLA
(EDI-CRL) - Ryanair
(BRU-DOH-HND) - On Qatar in J (Sake Fare Tickets)
(HND-ITM-HND) - Redemption flights in Y with Japan Airlines booked with 9000 Avios (JAL)
(NRT-DOH-BRU) - On Qatar in J (Sake Fare Tickets)
(BRU-LHR-GLA) - Paid Y tickets with British Airways
Hotels
I am a purely leisure traveller so other than silver Marriot rewards that I earned a few years ago with work I had no hotel loyalty at all with the big chains the only thing I do make use of Hotels.com rewards scheme which I find pretty decent where every 10th stay in any hotel booked with them earns you a free night at the average nightly cost of your last 10 stays this for me is a pretty decent scheme and coupled with their price guarantee and 4% CashBack via TopCashBack.com for me its win win.
Brussels
The hotel in Brussels was an easy one, I just needed one next to the airport as it was to be a arrive, couple of drinks and sleep type deal so I opted for the cheapest option with a free shuttle and this was the PentaHotel - Brussels Airport. The cost was Ł77 but I used a free night redemption on it so it cost me nothing in the end other than 6€ city tax.
Doha
We arrive in Doha at 16:00 on the 29th April and the next flight for Tokyo didn't leave till the next morning at 0700 so we booked a hotel in Doha, Again just something cheap and cheerful with a Airport Shuttle so we opted for the Golden Ocean Hotel in Doha which was only a 10 minute drive to the airport so not too bad. We did attempt to get the STPC (Transit Hotel) that Qatar offer but we did not qualify becuase of how cheap our tickets were.
Tokyo
This was tricky. Mostly due to me not researching first when not to visit Japan and that Golden Week was pretty much the only week to avoid and this was the week I was infact going which made the hotel selection a bit sparse at best.
I wanted somewhere that was pretty central with easy connections to get around but at the same time not in the centre of the busy areas. I had a few options in mind Shibuya, Shinjuku, Rappongi & Minato / Akasaka. With the golden week prices taking a prescedence in the main locations I opted in the end for the APA Hotel in Mita. Now I am aware of how small the rooms are in these hotels but we really just want a clean and decent hotel to sleep at night doesnt need to be much more than that only functional.
Osaka
The hotel choice in Osaka was a bit more complicated as I knew even less about Osaka than I did Tokyo, the prices were a bit steep as it was the tail end of Golden Week but the fact that we decided to do Tokyo for golden week and then Osaka for the latter half was a good idea as it opened up a lot better cost effective options for hotels in Osaka. We in the end chose one from the cheap and cheerful range and was Hotel Claiton Esaka for 4 nights and I believe it was in the region of Ł250.
Last edited by cgtechuk; Apr 30, 2017 at 10:47 am
Apr 29, 2017, 1:58 pm
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Glasgow, UK
Programs: Seigneur des Tarifs Utils First Class Mucci with Honours :) - BA GGL / CCR
Posts: 1,551
29th April (Day One)
Day One and ready to go. We arrived at Edinburgh airport having only ever flown from Edinburgh on domestic routes so this was a first. When we got there check in was pretty painless as RyanAir use the automated Baggage Drop machines which compared to ones I had used in the past was pretty simple and just worked. Tagged both bags up and dropped them to the attendant standing at the bag drop. Now one thing that really grinds my gears about RyanAir is the sheer spam that you get, Even if you tell them not to email you and text you they get round that by sending you phone notifications trying to upsell you priority boarding, Fast Track, Seat Selection etc. It was funny to see " Do you not want to sit next to Mrs Cgtechuk? Book seats together now" lol. Thankfully I know to always get seats together for free. Anyway back on track. Security was pretty chaotic lots going on at once, I find GLA still one of the best security lay outs but hey im biased. Once through we had no lounge access based on status as we were flying RyanAir but I still had a Priority Pass that I bought last year that if I had of known i was going to end up BA Gold months later I wouldn't have bothered anyway we opted for the Aspire Lounge over the No1 Lounge as the reviews looked better.
Aspire Lounge
The lounge was actually quite surprising for a paid lounge and had a pretty decent selection. The chap at the door was very pleasant and we were in. As it was late morning / Lunch time the choices were :
Biscuits,
Hot Pastries, Croiisants, Pan Au Chocolaite
Highland Veg Soup with a vast selection of breads
Full Salad bar with Pasta, Chicken, Hams, Nuts,
Usual Crisps etc
Drinks were most run of the mill spirits and wines the champagne and cocktails were pay for which is normal for paid lounges.
All in all a good decent place to kill 2 hours before the flight was to leave and to stock up on Lunch as I wasn't planning on buying anything onboard the RyanAir flight.
RyanAir FR7352 EDI-CRL
The boarding was typical RyanAir, A zoo. Final boarding was called before anyone was even allowed on the plane so was a bit chaotic but suppose you get what you pay for.
On board we settled into our seats which turned out to be an aisle and a middle seat together. The cabin crew on the flight were quite cheery but the whole experience just seemed cheap and forced and they were upselling EVERYTHING including scratch cards.
The flight iself was uneventful and we arrived into CRL with one of the hardest landings I have ever experienced to the point where the plane bounced on the runway and glasses flew off lol. Pilot apologised and said it was wind and then joked he was just trying to get us here on time but never the less very odd.
CRL Airport to BRU Airport
This is where my cheapness had started to unravel rapidly. Through poor research on my part I didn't realised that CRL airport is literally at the other end of Brussels and a good hour away. The Bus Transfer was €34 and even that only got us as far as Belgium City Centre we then had to get to BRU airport. The wait for the bus was an hour followed by a very pleasant new coach journey but that too was an hour so we had already lost 2 hours to just getting to Brussels City Centre.
When we finally got there we then had to figure out the train system and this turned out to be pretty simple and after a few educated guesses about what airport and train was in French we had tickets for the train to Brussels Airport at a cost of 12€ each. So this is why RyanAir was a mistake as not only did it eat 2 hours out of our time in Brussels simply travelling between airports it worked out to be 58€ in additional costs that I had not anticipated which meant at this point the saving over the BA flight which would have took us straight to the right airport was gone. We arrived at BRU airport and we were taken aback with how serious the security was taken (Understandably due to recent events) but there was military everywhere. We found the Hotel Transfers exit from the terminal building and after waiting 20 minutes on the hotel transfer we finally made it to the hotel.
Penta Hotel Brussels Airport
This was a real gem of a hotel and I loved it. It was obvious the hotel had recentl had a complete make over and was really nice. It was very retro with a old school type bar and reception area with lots of modern quirks, These theme carried to the room and it had multitude of quirky touches like the old phone, Lamp etc. Was very impressed with the layout the hotel offered free movies and a multitude of channels on the TV should that be your thing but more on my mind was that we hadn't eaten since Edinburgh and it was now 9pm so we had no real choice but to eat in the hotel.
Food was pretty decent for an airport hotel. Being typical tourists we had Nachos, Pizza and a salad to share and I tried some of the local Belgian beers that everyone raves about and I thought they were pretty nice too. Wasn't too keen on the final price though the bill came to 50€ so was quickly becomming an expensive positioning but given how cheap the Tokyo tickets were I couldn't really complain.
Room:
Food / Drink:
Bar Area:
Day Two (30th April)
After a rather early wake up call (430am) We proceeded over to the airport shuttle point to see that there was already around 15 - 20 people in front of us, It was pretty busy for that time in the morning that is for sure.
Bus arrived and it was standing room only on the way to the airport but was pretty swift considering and we were there in around 10 minutes at the terminal
The Check-In desks have that "Luxury" touch that I thought was quite funny with the token bit of red carpet for that "premium" feel.
The check-in was very smooth and quick with the dedicated premium line and the bags were checked all the way through to Haneda, The Check-In agent imformed us that it was the BA lounge that they use in Brussels airport and that I was welcome to use the Fast Track Security as I was travelling in J.
Security was pretty quick but they have the Automated Passport Gates at brussels that I could use as a UK passport holder but wow they are frustrating to use but seemed to like my passport a lot better than the ones in Heathrow ever do, Even if it does snatch it off you nearly taking your hand with it! In fairness though it was a lot quicker than the look of the line to see a border agent so we went with it!
British Airways Lounge - Brussels
The lounge is quite well sign posted from after passport control and is up stairs from a cafe quite near the gate we ended up using.
Excuse the random wheelchair in the middle of the picture mind you.
I found the lounge all a bit meh to be honest. It had very limited options for breakfast which was basically cereal / Muesli, Yoghurt or Croissants, The lounge itself looks pretty snazzy with a decent alcohol selection but very limited on food (It redeemed itself on the return flight though but more on that later.)
To be honest I actually thought I had more pictures of the lounge but turned out I only had this one which in reality was the extent of the food options anyway but then it was an outstation lounge so one can't pass too much judgement.
We spent probably an hour or so here before needing to head to our gate but all in all experience so far was pretty good and Brussels airport even passed the Wife Approval Factor as it had a smoking area within walking distance of the lounge which is the number one complaint about Heathrow!
Off to the gate to catch our Qatar flight to Doha for the first part of our trip in true luxury!
QR196 (Brussels to Doha - Boeing 787 Dreamliner Seats 2F / 2K )
Boarding was prompt and Priority boarding was enforced by Class then by Status so we were one of the first to be let through the gate. What happened next was a little bizzare, We walked down the corrider towards the airbridge and when we got to the bottom of the gate area the double doors were still locked shut the reason this was bizarre was that the Pilot of the aircraft was standing behind us and was also waiting to get onto the airbridge lol. Few minutes later and we were allowed to board.
Boarding was via 2L which meant we got to turn left - Very pleasant welcome onto the aircraft with one of the cabin crew being even more surprised as apparently we had the exact same names as two of her friends also from the same country which she was expecting so that was odd.
Another cabin crew member showed us to our seats (2F and 2K) , Introduced herself and offered us a pre-departure drink, It could only be one thing for me.. Champagne, It is an odd one as I never drink it any other time than when I am flying as part of me says its the done thing.
My home for the next 5 odd hours:
After taking my wifes order she came back literally seconds later with both drinks, the Food and Beverage Menu for the flight and a choice of hot or cold towel.
Shortly followed by his and hers amenity kits by BRICS. These came pretty well stocked and made the Club World cloth one we got in BA a bit of a showing up...
The safety video started and I thought it was actually quite funny to have the Barcelona thing going on and made it a lot more watchable bit different from the really annoying BA tune with the cartoon playing
View as we left Brussels:
Food and Drink
Beverage Menu:
Click Here To Open A Larger Copy of The Image
Click Here To Open A Larger Copy of The Image
Food Menu:
Having flown on BA Club World a few months previously again for the first time this experience of true Dine on Demand where I could have anything on the menu when I wanted was truly something special. The other thing I found pretty decent was that I was given first selection at the menu being an Emerald which was something I was shocked at considering it is a partner airlines elite but who is complaining
The order was taken shortly after take off and when the drinks had been re-charged and was also asked a rough time when I would like the food but was assured I could have it when I wanted.
One thing I did note is that everyone got exactly what they ordered and there was seconds and most of the other selections were also there to mix and match if one was a little on the hungrier side. ( I fell into this category due to only having museli in the Brussels lounge).
The food in all was very well presented and in honesty tremendous, I would be delighted with the meal in a restaurant let alone 30000ft in the air. Truly a bar set for other airlines to match.
My Food:
Selection of Warm Artisan Breads
Amuse Buché
Roasted red pepper and tomato soup
Arabic Spiced Chicken Kapsa with Rice
White Chocolate and Ginger Cheescake with Strawberry Coulis
Mrs cgtechuk had:
Artisan Breads & Amuse Buché
Roasted red pepper and tomato soup
Seared Fillet of fish with lemon and spring vegetable sauce
White Chocolate and Ginger Cheescake with Strawberry Coulis
Once dinner was complete the crew took the white linen off the table and offered another round of drinks with warm nuts I opted for some sprits this time round to change it up from the Piper Rosé I had been drinking since we took off
After a while the food and the drinks had taken their toll and it was time to settle off for an afternoon nap. With the seat in bed mode I found it very comfortable and plenty of room for someone over 6ft tall. I didnt have it perfectly flat but the back raised a little and found this perfect and slept for 2-3 hours and only woke up with the captain announcing we were shortly beginning descent.
Not long after I had literally opened my eyes and raised the seat the cabin crew looking after us came straight over with some cold drinks and a hot towel which I thought was a nice touch that they notice these things. Nothing was ever too much for this girl she was very attentive and my wife and I were both addressed by name each and every time, She could really give a few other airlines a showing up and it's this attention to detail that I found staggering throughout all my flights with Qatar.
The Purser / SCCM or whatever Qatar call them came over for a chat and asked if everything was ok during the flight, Whether we had enjoyed the experience and if she could get us anything. She then again thanked for being an emerald and chosing Qatar.
Throughout the flight there was an older gentlemen in 1A that all the staff were making a huge fuss over, He was either famous or a QR Prem equivelant but I was more curious more than anything else lol. I overheard the Cabin Manager giving one of the junior staff a telling off for not getting his champagne quick enough. Which I thought was a bit odd as they couldn't literally have served it any quicker1
Anyway, We began descent into Doha and had a smooth landing and they even apologised for being 2 minutes late!! As we left the plane we got thanked again by name by all the staff handed some GoDiva chocolates and a cold bottle of water which I thought was also a nice touch.
Rating:
The flight was a solid 9/10 for everything and really enjoyed it the attention to detail from all the staff was something that was obvious and nothing was too much trouble. The whole experience was great from the friendly welcoming staff to the excellent food and drink quality to the cleanliness and presentation of the seat and plane. The 787 really is a wonderful plane.
Day One and ready to go. We arrived at Edinburgh airport having only ever flown from Edinburgh on domestic routes so this was a first. When we got there check in was pretty painless as RyanAir use the automated Baggage Drop machines which compared to ones I had used in the past was pretty simple and just worked. Tagged both bags up and dropped them to the attendant standing at the bag drop. Now one thing that really grinds my gears about RyanAir is the sheer spam that you get, Even if you tell them not to email you and text you they get round that by sending you phone notifications trying to upsell you priority boarding, Fast Track, Seat Selection etc. It was funny to see " Do you not want to sit next to Mrs Cgtechuk? Book seats together now" lol. Thankfully I know to always get seats together for free. Anyway back on track. Security was pretty chaotic lots going on at once, I find GLA still one of the best security lay outs but hey im biased. Once through we had no lounge access based on status as we were flying RyanAir but I still had a Priority Pass that I bought last year that if I had of known i was going to end up BA Gold months later I wouldn't have bothered anyway we opted for the Aspire Lounge over the No1 Lounge as the reviews looked better.
Aspire Lounge
The lounge was actually quite surprising for a paid lounge and had a pretty decent selection. The chap at the door was very pleasant and we were in. As it was late morning / Lunch time the choices were :
Biscuits,
Hot Pastries, Croiisants, Pan Au Chocolaite
Highland Veg Soup with a vast selection of breads
Full Salad bar with Pasta, Chicken, Hams, Nuts,
Usual Crisps etc
Drinks were most run of the mill spirits and wines the champagne and cocktails were pay for which is normal for paid lounges.
All in all a good decent place to kill 2 hours before the flight was to leave and to stock up on Lunch as I wasn't planning on buying anything onboard the RyanAir flight.
RyanAir FR7352 EDI-CRL
The boarding was typical RyanAir, A zoo. Final boarding was called before anyone was even allowed on the plane so was a bit chaotic but suppose you get what you pay for.
On board we settled into our seats which turned out to be an aisle and a middle seat together. The cabin crew on the flight were quite cheery but the whole experience just seemed cheap and forced and they were upselling EVERYTHING including scratch cards.
The flight iself was uneventful and we arrived into CRL with one of the hardest landings I have ever experienced to the point where the plane bounced on the runway and glasses flew off lol. Pilot apologised and said it was wind and then joked he was just trying to get us here on time but never the less very odd.
CRL Airport to BRU Airport
This is where my cheapness had started to unravel rapidly. Through poor research on my part I didn't realised that CRL airport is literally at the other end of Brussels and a good hour away. The Bus Transfer was €34 and even that only got us as far as Belgium City Centre we then had to get to BRU airport. The wait for the bus was an hour followed by a very pleasant new coach journey but that too was an hour so we had already lost 2 hours to just getting to Brussels City Centre.
When we finally got there we then had to figure out the train system and this turned out to be pretty simple and after a few educated guesses about what airport and train was in French we had tickets for the train to Brussels Airport at a cost of 12€ each. So this is why RyanAir was a mistake as not only did it eat 2 hours out of our time in Brussels simply travelling between airports it worked out to be 58€ in additional costs that I had not anticipated which meant at this point the saving over the BA flight which would have took us straight to the right airport was gone. We arrived at BRU airport and we were taken aback with how serious the security was taken (Understandably due to recent events) but there was military everywhere. We found the Hotel Transfers exit from the terminal building and after waiting 20 minutes on the hotel transfer we finally made it to the hotel.
Penta Hotel Brussels Airport
This was a real gem of a hotel and I loved it. It was obvious the hotel had recentl had a complete make over and was really nice. It was very retro with a old school type bar and reception area with lots of modern quirks, These theme carried to the room and it had multitude of quirky touches like the old phone, Lamp etc. Was very impressed with the layout the hotel offered free movies and a multitude of channels on the TV should that be your thing but more on my mind was that we hadn't eaten since Edinburgh and it was now 9pm so we had no real choice but to eat in the hotel.
Food was pretty decent for an airport hotel. Being typical tourists we had Nachos, Pizza and a salad to share and I tried some of the local Belgian beers that everyone raves about and I thought they were pretty nice too. Wasn't too keen on the final price though the bill came to 50€ so was quickly becomming an expensive positioning but given how cheap the Tokyo tickets were I couldn't really complain.
Room:
Food / Drink:
Bar Area:
Day Two (30th April)
After a rather early wake up call (430am) We proceeded over to the airport shuttle point to see that there was already around 15 - 20 people in front of us, It was pretty busy for that time in the morning that is for sure.
Bus arrived and it was standing room only on the way to the airport but was pretty swift considering and we were there in around 10 minutes at the terminal
The Check-In desks have that "Luxury" touch that I thought was quite funny with the token bit of red carpet for that "premium" feel.
The check-in was very smooth and quick with the dedicated premium line and the bags were checked all the way through to Haneda, The Check-In agent imformed us that it was the BA lounge that they use in Brussels airport and that I was welcome to use the Fast Track Security as I was travelling in J.
Security was pretty quick but they have the Automated Passport Gates at brussels that I could use as a UK passport holder but wow they are frustrating to use but seemed to like my passport a lot better than the ones in Heathrow ever do, Even if it does snatch it off you nearly taking your hand with it! In fairness though it was a lot quicker than the look of the line to see a border agent so we went with it!
British Airways Lounge - Brussels
The lounge is quite well sign posted from after passport control and is up stairs from a cafe quite near the gate we ended up using.
Excuse the random wheelchair in the middle of the picture mind you.
I found the lounge all a bit meh to be honest. It had very limited options for breakfast which was basically cereal / Muesli, Yoghurt or Croissants, The lounge itself looks pretty snazzy with a decent alcohol selection but very limited on food (It redeemed itself on the return flight though but more on that later.)
To be honest I actually thought I had more pictures of the lounge but turned out I only had this one which in reality was the extent of the food options anyway but then it was an outstation lounge so one can't pass too much judgement.
We spent probably an hour or so here before needing to head to our gate but all in all experience so far was pretty good and Brussels airport even passed the Wife Approval Factor as it had a smoking area within walking distance of the lounge which is the number one complaint about Heathrow!
Off to the gate to catch our Qatar flight to Doha for the first part of our trip in true luxury!
QR196 (Brussels to Doha - Boeing 787 Dreamliner Seats 2F / 2K )
Boarding was prompt and Priority boarding was enforced by Class then by Status so we were one of the first to be let through the gate. What happened next was a little bizzare, We walked down the corrider towards the airbridge and when we got to the bottom of the gate area the double doors were still locked shut the reason this was bizarre was that the Pilot of the aircraft was standing behind us and was also waiting to get onto the airbridge lol. Few minutes later and we were allowed to board.
Boarding was via 2L which meant we got to turn left
- Very pleasant welcome onto the aircraft with one of the cabin crew being even more surprised as apparently we had the exact same names as two of her friends also from the same country which she was expecting so that was odd. Another cabin crew member showed us to our seats (2F and 2K) , Introduced herself and offered us a pre-departure drink, It could only be one thing for me.. Champagne, It is an odd one as I never drink it any other time than when I am flying as part of me says its the done thing.
My home for the next 5 odd hours:
After taking my wifes order she came back literally seconds later with both drinks, the Food and Beverage Menu for the flight and a choice of hot or cold towel.
Shortly followed by his and hers amenity kits by BRICS. These came pretty well stocked and made the Club World cloth one we got in BA a bit of a showing up...
The safety video started and I thought it was actually quite funny to have the Barcelona thing going on and made it a lot more watchable bit different from the really annoying BA tune with the cartoon playing
View as we left Brussels:
Food and Drink
Beverage Menu:
Click Here To Open A Larger Copy of The Image
Click Here To Open A Larger Copy of The Image
Food Menu:
Having flown on BA Club World a few months previously again for the first time this experience of true Dine on Demand where I could have anything on the menu when I wanted was truly something special. The other thing I found pretty decent was that I was given first selection at the menu being an Emerald which was something I was shocked at considering it is a partner airlines elite but who is complaining
The order was taken shortly after take off and when the drinks had been re-charged and was also asked a rough time when I would like the food but was assured I could have it when I wanted.One thing I did note is that everyone got exactly what they ordered and there was seconds and most of the other selections were also there to mix and match if one was a little on the hungrier side. ( I fell into this category due to only having museli in the Brussels lounge).
The food in all was very well presented and in honesty tremendous, I would be delighted with the meal in a restaurant let alone 30000ft in the air. Truly a bar set for other airlines to match.
My Food:
Selection of Warm Artisan Breads
Amuse Buché
Roasted red pepper and tomato soup
Arabic Spiced Chicken Kapsa with Rice
White Chocolate and Ginger Cheescake with Strawberry Coulis
Mrs cgtechuk had:
Artisan Breads & Amuse Buché
Roasted red pepper and tomato soup
Seared Fillet of fish with lemon and spring vegetable sauce
White Chocolate and Ginger Cheescake with Strawberry Coulis
Once dinner was complete the crew took the white linen off the table and offered another round of drinks with warm nuts I opted for some sprits this time round to change it up from the Piper Rosé I had been drinking since we took off
After a while the food and the drinks had taken their toll and it was time to settle off for an afternoon nap. With the seat in bed mode I found it very comfortable and plenty of room for someone over 6ft tall. I didnt have it perfectly flat but the back raised a little and found this perfect and slept for 2-3 hours and only woke up with the captain announcing we were shortly beginning descent.
Not long after I had literally opened my eyes and raised the seat the cabin crew looking after us came straight over with some cold drinks and a hot towel which I thought was a nice touch that they notice these things. Nothing was ever too much for this girl she was very attentive and my wife and I were both addressed by name each and every time, She could really give a few other airlines a showing up and it's this attention to detail that I found staggering throughout all my flights with Qatar.
The Purser / SCCM or whatever Qatar call them
came over for a chat and asked if everything was ok during the flight, Whether we had enjoyed the experience and if she could get us anything. She then again thanked for being an emerald and chosing Qatar. Throughout the flight there was an older gentlemen in 1A that all the staff were making a huge fuss over, He was either famous or a QR Prem equivelant but I was more curious more than anything else lol. I overheard the Cabin Manager giving one of the junior staff a telling off for not getting his champagne quick enough. Which I thought was a bit odd as they couldn't literally have served it any quicker1
Anyway, We began descent into Doha and had a smooth landing and they even apologised for being 2 minutes late!! As we left the plane we got thanked again by name by all the staff handed some GoDiva chocolates and a cold bottle of water which I thought was also a nice touch.
Rating:
The flight was a solid 9/10 for everything and really enjoyed it the attention to detail from all the staff was something that was obvious and nothing was too much trouble. The whole experience was great from the friendly welcoming staff to the excellent food and drink quality to the cleanliness and presentation of the seat and plane. The 787 really is a wonderful plane.
Last edited by cgtechuk; May 29, 2017 at 7:37 pm
May 22, 2017, 5:38 pm
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Glasgow, UK
Programs: Seigneur des Tarifs Utils First Class Mucci with Honours :) - BA GGL / CCR
Posts: 1,551
I did originally plan on publishing this sooner but now that you have reminded me I'll get back on it and have it done over the next few days.
