Programs: Delta DM (come 1 MAR 10), BA Silver, Eagle Flier
Posts: 295
To the Sweltering Sun of Kuwait: Jazeera Airways DXB-KWI-DXB
DXB-KWI on Jazeera Airways
LCCs in the middle east offer substantial savings versus larger carriers. The price of an EK flight DXB-KWI was nearly AED 4000 (over $1000), while Air Arabia and Jazeera were both around AED 800 (AED 823 all in on Jazeera). I had flown with Air Arabia several times in the region and wanted to see how the Jazeera product compares to Air Arabia as well as to see how using DXB for a non-EK flight went. Several people had commented to me that Jazeera was superior to Air Arabia in almost every respect.
My flight to DXB left at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday. I booked a taxi for 6:30 a.m. and thanks to no traffic in Dubai on a Saturday morning was at the airport within 15 minutes. I spent some time at the food court before check-in, then walked down to the Jazeera counters, at the opposite end of the terminal from the EK check-in. Typically for the region, baggage was scanned before check-in.
I was early so the wait at check-in was only a few minutes. Everything happened efficiently. Once I had my boarding pass I had to walk clear to the other end of the terminal for security (essentially back to the EK check-in). I had always used the EK security line (for J and F only?), which never had a queue. In this case I was with the masses, but the whole process took only 10 minutes maximum. I then enjoyed the seemingly endless walk to the duty free area, where I spent some time examining the cell phones, gold and sheesha pipes.
Entry to the gate started a full hour before take-off. I waited until about 8:15 a.m., then managed to find a free albeit slow wifi signal and caught up on emails. Boarding was fairly orderly, though the gate area was not full by any means.
I was in seat 7F, a window seat near the front. I passed through the “Jazeera Plus” section, which had the middle seat blocked by some object. (The front of the plane gets a meal box during the flight as well.) Seats 7D and 7E were already occupied, but when I got into 7F I felt I had plenty of room. Maybe not quite as much legroom as on Air Arabia but still better than U.S. domestic carriers, and the seat was a comfortable width as well. The seats themselves were light grey leather or imitation leather, lending a clean but somewhat sterile vibe. The plane was moderately clean but showed some signs of wear, e.g. a broken armrest, tears in the seats, etc.
I'm not sure I'd say the hard product was better than Air Arabia, they both seemed about equivalent. Legroom seemed an inch or so tighter on Jazeera but it's hard to tell. If you are the kind of person who would pay for Jazeera Plus -- still a bargain compared to EK Y on the route -- Jazeera may be a better bet as I don't recall any kind of "plus" product on Air Arabia.
Before take-off it was clear the plane was only about half full and my neighbors moved themselves over a row, so I had the entire row to myself.
Take-off was fine. After a 22 second acceleration we lifted and made our way east, then made a turn so that we passed nearly directly over the Burj Dubai in its full glory of (delayed) construction. I’ve often thought that from the ground the building didn’t look THAT tall, but from the plane’s perspective it seemed that we were level with the tower while the rest of the buildings along Sheikh Zayed Road seemed much, much smaller. An unanticipated but pleasant view.
The flight itself was smooth with no view due to sand and haze that had been oppressing Dubai for a few days. Nearer Kuwait the weather cleared up. We took a direct approach into the airport from the south, versus the Air Arabia flight I had taken in the spring which took us north over the city and then looped back to the airport.
The Kuwait airport was fine, though not the most efficient airport in the region. I headed directly to “Visa Issuing” and found no line, versus previous visits where I had to take a number as though I were waiting in line at a deli. I’m not sure visiting the visa desk is totally necessary as some people seemed to get the visa directly at immigration. Getting the visa only took a few minutes at any rate, then I proceeded down to passport control.
The lines were crazy, with lots of various southeast asian and subcontinent groups being herded by security, sometimes into one line, then into another, then off to the side. A security guy noticed that I had my entry visa already and told me to just go out and to skip the counter, so I did. Maybe it did pay to get visit the "visa issuing" desk.
Our bags had already been unloaded by the time I got through, and I spent 5 minutes running around trying to locate my luggage and eventually did with the help of one of the workers. A driver from Le Meridien was waiting for me and took me to Le Meridien Tower, where we arrived in 15 minutes.
And finally I felt the real mideast heat! 45 degrees! Dubai had been unseasonably cool (low 30s), though disgustingly humid and dusty, very uncomfortable weather. But here in Kuwait, the real, dry, soul-warming heat!
The hotel was fine, with very overeager if slightly inefficient staff. It is a small hotel and had a boutique feel to it. The room was well appointed, though the TV is directly above the desk area, so when I was at the computer the tv was about 12 inches from my head. I flashbacked to my youth and my mother telling me not to sit too close to the TV. I ordered room service and the food was excellent, as was the breakfast in the restaurant. I was surprised once again that non-alcoholic beer can be genuinely refreshing, as Kuwait is officially dry so even the better hotels don't offer any alcohol.
At KWI now waiting for my return flight KWI-DXB. To be continued.
I used Jazeera KWI to BEY back in May. I was really quite impressed.
You MUST use the visa issuing counter in Kuwait unless you have a visa already provided for you (which you either bring with you or pick up from a different visa counter downstairs), or unless you have a residence permit.
Enjoy the heat. You're lucky you weren't here last week. 10 days of lung-incapacitating dust... along with 43c.
I'm glad to be leaving this place after two years, in two days time.
And finally I felt the real mideast heat! 45 degrees! Dubai had been unseasonably cool (low 30s), though disgustingly humid and dusty, very uncomfortable weather. But here in Kuwait, the real, dry, soul-warming heat!
The last time I was in Dubai on business was in middle of July a few years back and all I can say is that I felt like I was melting most of the time.
I remember going into the outdoor pool at the hotel (Emirates Towers) one day and feeling like I just had stepped into a hot bath.
I just could not understand how some of the immigrant workers that tend gardens etc. were not dropping like flies in that heat. But Dubai, being Dubai, of course had perfectly manicured green lawns even in 45 degree heat !!
Programs: Delta DM (come 1 MAR 10), BA Silver, Eagle Flier
Posts: 295
Return Segment KWI-DXB
KWI-DXB
I arrived to the KWI airport 3 hours before my flight departure, due to unexpectedly quick taxi transits back to the hotel to pick up my luggage and to the airport. The airport was maybe 15 minutes from downtown. I spent an hour at the Starbucks next to the Harley Davidson store, where I was pleased to find free internet access (you have to get a code, but it’s free to do so).
Check in was very easy, with no line two hours before departure. I had the same seat on the return as the incoming, 7F. After check-in I proceeded through passport control, which was easy, except the officer could not find my entry visa stamp in my passport (it’s there, I swear) so luckily I still had the separate piece of paper with the entry stamp on it as well, which satisfied him.
Once in the departure terminal I was at a bit of a loss. My gate was right next to the main food area with the McDonalds, Pizza Hut and coffee stand. I got a double espresso and found a seat, and was pleased once again to discover free wi-fi access here as well. After wasting some time writing my trip report for the first segment of this flight, I wandered around. KWI has a few duty free shops with the usual assortment of perfumes, tobacco and candy, but I was shocked to discover that there is no newsstand, at least none that I could uncover in an hour of searching. There’s a free business idea to any Kuwaiti local that can open a shop in the airport.
Somewhere between the purchase of my ticket and check-in the departure time had changed from 18:15 to 18:40. So I had even more time to kill in the airport. Finally boarding began and we all made our way through the gate, and then onto a bus to be shuttled to the plane. I was one of the first people on the plane, but was soon joined by someone in 7E, and the whole of row 8 D, E and F filled with a family with two young babies kicking the seat and screaming. I sighed, as the rest of the flight seemed calm and it is often my luck to get the very worst neighbors on a flight. However, once again the flight was slightly more than half full and I was able to move up one row to avoid the immediate downside of the family.
The flight itself was good. After moderate taxi time we took off on a straight shot to Dubai, with no banking around the country at all. The flight was smooth and uneventful. I was happy to see that most of the dust and haze I had experienced in Dubai had dissipated during my time away, and I had a good view of the city to the south on our approach.
We landed at a remote stand and were herded onto buses. I am used to the process of the EK buses, in which transit passengers disembark at the first stop, and arrivals at the second stop. The bus for Jazeera stopped at the transfer station and everybody started to get off. A few people who were obviously seasoned at the airport looked around, but there was no announcement or anything, so we eventually all got off. This was a slight annoyance as we had to walk all the way to the other end of the airport from the duty free shops, but not a disaster at the end of the day.
We arrived around 21:00 so the passport control was still mostly empty, and I was through in 2 or 3 minutes. Luggage took a big longer than normal. After than I was off to the taxi line, which was crowded, hot and unpleasant.
Conclusion
Between the two LCCs I’ve flown in the GCC region, I don’t think one was obviously better than the other. The DXB airport is closer to most locations anyone would travel from in Dubai, but the total transit time in the airport (check-in plus walking) would probably nearly equal the extra drive time to the Sharjah airport for Air Arabia. The Sharjah airport generally has very quick passport control and security and the gates are all basically within 5 minutes of each other. One downside to Jazeera for the Dubai traveler is that there are few direct flights to destinations without having to transit in KWI, versus many direct flight from SJH on Air Arabia. The good news in both cases is that both airlines were fairly punctual, comfortable and professional. Hopefully Mideast LCCs will continue to be better positioned than some of their global peers in the face of high jet fuel costs.
Programs: Delta DM (come 1 MAR 10), BA Silver, Eagle Flier
Posts: 295
Quote:
Originally Posted by moocherx
You MUST use the visa issuing counter in Kuwait unless you have a visa already provided for you (which you either bring with you or pick up from a different visa counter downstairs), or unless you have a residence permit.
Thanks for the info, I wasn't sure.
Quote:
Originally Posted by moocherx
I'm glad to be leaving this place after two years, in two days time.
Programs: Delta DM (come 1 MAR 10), BA Silver, Eagle Flier
Posts: 295
Quote:
Originally Posted by BiziBB
You timed the length of the takeoff run?
Yes, bizarre, I know, but I've always been a "counter". When I was a much younger and more nervous flyer I got in the habit of counting takeoffs and periods of turbulence, which seemed to settle my nerves. I still seem to count takeoff times even though I barely notice whether I'm in the air or on the ground at this point.
Yes, bizarre, I know, but I've always been a "counter". When I was a much younger and more nervous flyer I got in the habit of counting takeoffs and periods of turbulence, which seemed to settle my nerves. I still seem to count takeoff times even though I barely notice whether I'm in the air or on the ground at this point.
I always count too... started after we did a very-near-V1 abort in Reno (trying to go to ORD) one scorching August day in the early 80s. It was an old 727 and after blowing two tires, we sucked debris into #1 and #3. We managed to stop in the overrun about 40 feet from dirt. and not much further from Mill street.
Thanks for the interesting report, made even more interesting by the fact that I was in KWI at the same time as you -- we should have had a FT KWI DO. Got to enjoy both the dust storm and the 49 C heat with clear skies too...
My experience at the airport was broadly similar to yours, although there was quite a queue at the visa issueing desk that took an hour to get through; but once I did, I was waved through Immigration itself, just like you. As you noticed KWI is quite devoid of things to do while waiting for your plane out, and sitting near gate 26 (the other end from the McD cluster) I didn't even find the free wifi.
Got to enjoy both the dust storm and the 49 C heat with clear skies too...
