jacob_m

Holiday time again and rarely before has a long relaxing longhaul trip been more needed.
This has been a very tough year for me mainly because of a prioritised project at work where I have a leading role and which has resulted in more overtime hours than I want to count right now. Fortunately the result has been quite good so far though.
So when my holiday period was finally set and approved I really wanted to do something as least related to work as possible, and what could be better than to go to the other side of the work and review some new business class products?

I had my usual sleepless nights with lots of coffee, Expertflyer, the Star Alliance travel desk program, the SAS Eurobonus pages and a new booking page for me called Terminal A, and step by step and after some considerations the itinerary was created.
Since I only needed a few thousand points to re-quality for SAS gold and have flown so much Star Alliance in the past years the itinerary was almost solely created based on carriers I wanted to fly and places I wanted to visit, which in my opinion ended up being the most interesting itinerary I have created since my round the world trip three years ago with some real goodies.

For those who have read my previous reports this one will be in the same style and format, i.e. rather extensive with lots of pics, menus and details.
I will continue to include my pics as links. I have a few hundred photos to upload and I rather see that the readers can decide themselves which ones to look at instead of having to wait for every single one to load, especially for those with slow connections. Also that makes it easier for me to include comments to the photos.
Unfortunately I got problems with my camera after just one day of the trip, the screen stopped working and from time to time I had problems with zoom and flash.
The vast majority of the pics ended up being just as perfect as expected, but there might be one or two that are slightly blurry or where the object isn’t centered, because I could not check the result straight away and had to rely on using the eyepiece.

So fasten your seat belts let this pure enjoyment trip start. As always feel free to write comments and ask questions!

Table of contents

Part 1: ARN-IST with Turkish Airlines in C
Part 2: A day and a night in Istanbul and a room with a view
Part 3: IST-ICN with Turkish Airlines in C
Part 4: A visit to Panmunjom, the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea
Part 5: Images of Seoul
Part 6: ICN-NAN with Korean Air in C
Part 7: NAN-AKL with Air Pacific in C
Part 8: AKL-APW with Air New Zealand in C
Part 9: Introducing Samoa, a paradise on earth
Part 10: APW-AKL with Air New Zealand in C
Part 11: AKL-SYD with Emirates in C on the Airbus A380
Part 12: SYD-ICN with Asiana in C
Part 13: ICN-IST with Turkish Airlines in C
Part 14: IST-ARN with Turkish Airlines in C
Summary of the trip
Final comments about the different business class products reviewed

Here are links to some of my previous trip reports:

Read all my latests trip reports here!

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=857191]Ni hao Taipei! A crazy itinerary on SK/QI/CX/CI/LH, all in business class (with pics)
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=845338]Turkish Airlines Business Class - A review of the newest *A member!
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=761237]ARN-SIN and back in three day on LH/SK/TG in C + Shangri-La Singapore + lots of pics!
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=676816]European Business class can be pretty nice!! LH/TP/LX/LO/VO/OS in C with 100+ pics!
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=626793]The trip of trips!! FRWSTAR2 around the world! 57 days, 34 flights, and a few trains…

jacob_m

Departure time and check-in at Arlanda airport

It took nearly 11 hours to finish off my last day at work and do the handover to those who would take care of my work while away and I finally arrived at home rather exhausted at 7.30 pm, still had not even had time to fetch my suitcase from the attic. Fortunately my flight would not leave until late afternoon the next day.

I left my house at 2 pm the following day. Getting to the airport for me is rather easy with the nearest underground station just around the corner and the airport bus stop two stations away, a bearable route even with heavy luggage.
Everything worked out as planned and I made the trip to Arlanda airport in just 55 minutes.

Because of the midsummer holiday the airport was very quiet this afternoon with a large number of the regular flights not operating.
Turkish Airlines had four check-in desks assigned in the old check-in area of terminal 5, one check-in desk for business class and Star Gold and three desks for economy class passengers. Check-in and ground handling were handled by Menzies rather than by SAS, which might explain why TK is not using the general Star Alliance check-in area in terminal 5.
The flight seemed to have a very good load with possibly 50 people in line for economy check-in, fortunately there was not a person in the priority line so after the economy class passenger who had been directed to the business desk was checked in it was my turn.
I had already prebooked seat 02F for this flight so the check-in process was rather quick, my baggage was tagged to IST and a priority tag was attached accordingly.
Rather annoyingly it was not possible to enter my SAS frequent flyer number on the Turkish Airlines webpage, they only accept TK FF-numbers, so had to ask the agent to it for me. She could only enter it for my upcoming flight but suggested I should visit the ticket desk opposite the check-in area so I could have it entered in the booking.
She also gave me an invitation to use the fast track immigration in Istanbul, which was very appreciated.

Pics
Turkish Airlines check-in area in Terminal 5
TK Business and *G check-in with the usual red carpet in front
The departure board, this is not what it usually looks like on a regular weekday afternoon

After visiting the TK ticket office to sort out the FF-number I used the fast track security to get airside. The fast track has previously only been available to SAS golds flying on SAS (and LH and KF I think) but it was recently reported in the SAS forum that SAS golds can now use it flying on any Star Alliance carrier the same day.
The dragon still refused me access though claiming that SAS and Turkish Airlines did not cooperate, but after telling him about the rule change I was aware about he decided to “make an exception” and let me through.

Passing the new tax-free area at terminal 5

There is a brand new shopping area airside in terminal 5 which is the best that has ever been available during my lifetime.
The 1700 sqm tax-free shop right after security opened in December 2008 and is actually very nice-looking and a real improvement to the airport. I read it recently won an award for the best newly-opened tax-free shop in the world, which I am sure the airport management are very happy about.
In April a few more shops opened including a pretty cool toy store and Designtorget, a shop selling mostly interior decorations designed by Swedish artists.
The only drawback of the large tax-free shop is that all passengers have to pass about 80% of it and you actually walk in the opposite direction of most Schengen gates. Although the majority of the passengers probably don’t care it gets a bit annoying if you’re a frequent traveller at Arlanda as you need to do a lot of unnecessary walking.

With a few other tax-free shops to visit during the trip I skipped the shopping, exchanged some money and headed for the lounge instead.
There were quite a few passengers at the service desk opposite the stairs to the lounge and one man was shouting rather aggressively at the poor SAS agent. Apparently a flight to Munich was nearly two hours delayed (late incoming aircraft) and many people were going to miss their connections.
Not an easy situation for the ground staff to handle, especially with few alternative flights to rebook to.

Pics
The brand new tax-free shop in terminal 5
Excellent whisky selection, too bad alcohol is only available for passengers travelling to non-EU destinations
The new toy store Koffert
Designtorget

SAS Scandinavian lounge, Stockholm/Arlanda

Just like the airport in general the lounge was rather empty this afternoon with only a handful passengers.

As I mentioned the departure of this trip was during the midsummer holiday which is one of the most important Swedish holidays celebrating the arrival of the summer and Midsummer eve is also the longest day (shortest night) of the year in a country where winters are cold and dark, especially in the north.
Very nicely the usual lounge food had been replaced by some traditional Swedish midsummer food. Of course a rather limited selection of what is usually available in a midsummer buffet, but there was some herring, potatoes with dill, red onions and a delicious midsummer cake as dessert. ^

The buffet had also been decorated with a miniature midsummer pole which you can see on the photo of the buffet below. The real pole is a few meters high which you decorate with flowers and sing and dance around on Midsummer eve. The pole was in old times apparently also a celebration of fertility and with a bit of adult-oriented imagination you might see what the pole looks like, fortunately most people don’t know about this.

I spent about one and a half hour in the lounge having late lunch and some drinks before the monitors indicated boarding time for my flight to Istanbul around 30 minutes before scheduled departure.

Pics
Inside the SAS Scandinavian lounge
Computers with free internet and a bookshelf with books to read
The self-service buffet area
The midsummer food on offer and the miniature midsummer pole
Excellent drinks selection
Midsummer cake and pastries

The flight departed from gate 19 at the far end of the B-pier, quite a trek from the lounge in the beginning of the A-pier.

At the passport control a rather honest officer informed me the photo page of my passport was about to break away and that if it happened my passport would not be valid.
This was not exactly what you want to hear just about to depart on a longhaul trip with a tight itinerary that did not have any margins for embassy visits (and visiting countries that might not even have an embassy or consulate).
As a regular traveller who has shown this passport easily a few hundred times I should have known passports don’t break that easily and the small damage on the photo page had probably already been there for some time without me even noticing it, but it did continue to be a worry throughout the trip when check-in agents were bending or leaning over that poor piece of document. Oh well…

Stockholm/Arlanda-Istanbul, flight TK 1796 operated by Turkish Airlines
Departure: 17:15
Arrival: 21:40
Aircraft: Boeing 737-800
Class: Business Class
Seat: 02F

Most people had already boarded when arriving at the gate so there was no wait at all.
The flight to Istanbul was operated by a Boeing 737-800 but in contrast to my experiences of Turkish Airlines shorthaul flights (including B737) last year this aircraft had proper business class seats onboard. That was a very positive and unexpected surprise! ^
The aircraft had five rows of business class seats with a 2-2 configuration and a 35” seat pitch (in contrast to a 3-3 configuration in economy class). On the TK flights I took last year business class basically had economy class seats but with empty middle seats where a drink table had been attached.
The business class seats were in black leather and actually really comfortable and spacious, more than adequate for a 3-hour flight.
Only five passengers in business class on this flight (while economy class seemed almost full) so certainly no lack of space onboard.

After all passengers were seated pre-departure drinks were offered in business class, a choice of water, orange juice or champagne.
I started off my first of a large number of flights with the only appropriate choice, a glass of bubbly of course.
Newspapers were also distributed in the cabin before the doors were closed.

A timely pushback at 5.15 pm sharp and with few departures this afternoon we were airborne within five minutes from runway 01L.
Nice views of the Swedish countryside before we turned towards the Baltic Sea. The route to Istanbul would take us over the island of Gotland, then Lithuania, Belarus, Romania, Bulgaria and across the Black Sea to Istanbul.

Pics
Lots of passengers waiting to board the TK Boeing 737
The business class cabin onboard with proper business class seats, very comfortable!
Another photo of the business class cabin
Pre-departure champagne
Take-off roll passing terminal 5 with Air China and Ethiopian Airlines planes on the apron
Swedish countryside

Meal service

After the seat belt sign had been switched off the meal service started with hot towels, drinks and peanuts.

Menus were distributed and here is what was on offer on the flight to Istanbul, a delightful menu for a three hour flight prepared by excellent Do&Co.

Pics
The business class menu, “Who is in the kitchen today?”

The meal was simply excellent. The Turkish appetizers were quite innovative (although a bit too cold), the main course (I had the Turkish Külbasti) was very tasty and so was the hazelnut cake as dessert.
I asked for some red wine to drink with the meal and chose the Turkish wine they had on offer. I finally finished off the dinner with coffee and a glass of Chivas Regal.
I had some more drinks during the flight and funnily every time I asked for something to drink I also got some more packaged peanuts, it ended up being a lot of peanuts…

Pics
Turkish red wine to drink and peanuts
Appetizer
Main course
Dessert, coffee and a glass of Chivas (and more peanuts)

Arrival in Istanbul

There was no individual inflight entertainment on the Boeing 737 (not even in business class) but they did show a movie on the overhead screens and if I remember correctly there were some music channels available as well, headphones were distributed to all passengers.
For a three hour flight it did not matter that much, especially since I had a laptop with several movies to watch.

The flight passed very quickly and somewhere over the Black Sea we started our descent into Istanbul, right during sunset which provided some very nice scenery outside my window.
Before landing hot towels were again handed out followed by a health declaration card from the Turkish authorities where we had to fill in our full permanent and temporary (while away) contact details. In case there would be any incidents of swine flu in Turkey that could be traced back to our flight they would have contact details to each one of us.
We were told we would not be allowed to disembark until we had completed the form. Although the form was rather extensive and time-consuming to complete there was not much to say about it, it’s good that the authorities take these things seriously and act proactively.

There was a lot of inbound traffic to Istanbul and we made most of our final descent over the Sea of Marmara and it was easy to see and follow all the traffic into runway 06 which was in use this evening.
We finally touched down at 9.35 pm local time and quickly taxied to the international terminal.

Pics
Beautiful sunset over the Black Sea
The flight map showing we are approaching Istanbul
Leaving the nice Turkish coastline to start final approach over the Sea of Marmara
Can you spot the four aircrafts on approach in a straight line to IST?
Welcome to Istanbul Atatürk airport!
The fast track immigration card

Sitting on the second row I was one of the first passengers off the plane and followed the signs for passport control and once there the signs for the premium passport control number 29 and 30.
With lots of subsequent arrivals the normal lines were very long and slow and I was very happy to have the fast track card with only two persons in front of me.
I was through immigration within five minutes and found the designated baggage belt at the far end of the baggage hall, and believe it or not the baggage delivery started the same second I got there with my priority-tagged bag third on the belt.
That’s what premium travel should be like!! The time it took from touchdown to the bus stop outside the arrivals hall including immigration and baggage reclaim was almost exactly 20 minutes. ^
That takes some effort to beat!

Unfortunately it took a bit more than those 20 minutes for the hotel shuttle bus to arrive, but that’s a different story...

Pics
Lots of traffic also on the other side of the terminal building

Conclusion
Excellent flight with great food and drinks. I was very surprised to find a proper busienss class seat onboard, the seat was very comfortable and with the seat next to mine empty I had more than enough space onboard during the flight.
The arrivals experience at Istanbul was flawless, this should be the norm at all airports!
The crew onboard was friendly and attentive but although their command of English was OK they sometimes spoke so fast it was hard to follow with their Turkish accent.

I am a bit surprised how well the priority tag worked since the baggage handlers at ARN are normally completely useless when it comes to priority baggage handling. Perhaps Menzies (handling TK at ARN) is much better at this than SAS (handling most other *A carriers at ARN)?!

But overall, well done Turkish Airlines! ^

Moomba

Nice to see you are in the air again Jacob_m.

Yours is not the first report I have read praising TK food. Must give them a try one day.

Have a glass of bubbly for me on your next flight.

Looking forward to the remaining parts of the TR.

Kiwi Flyer

Looking forward to the rest of the report Jacob_m. It should be quite a trip.

jacob_m

I stayed overnight in Istanbul at the Radisson hotel, the stay was completely free with breakfast included using some SAS Eurobonus points.
The primary reason for staying overnight was that it simply did not work out with just a quick transit in Istanbul with the timetable/flight availability and the plans and wishes I had. But at the end I really had no objections to a free overnight stay at a good hotel and a full day in downtown Istanbul, which is a really great city.

Radisson SAS Conference and Airport Hotel, Istanbul

The Radisson hotel is located just 2 km from the airport and offers a free shuttle bus from the airport terminal to the hotel, unfortunately it only leaves once an hour from the airport and with TK’s excellent priority baggage handling it meant I had to wait nearly half an hour for the bus.

The hotel had received some mixed reviews on the Tripadvisor webpage, one person claiming the carpets were dirty. I don’t know if that has been true in the past, but during my visit I saw nothing of that.
Surely it’s an airport hotel and not a city hotel, but the Radisson hotel was in very good condition with a rather nice looking atrium lobby and well-appointed rooms. The hotel also had several bars and restaurants, a shop, a large fitness center in the basement and free wi-fi internet. The staff were very friendly and accommodation and spoke perfect English. Nothing whatsoever to comment about.
The only complaint from my side was that the lobby bar was ridiculously expensive, I will not even mention what I paid for a cup of coffee, I can only blame myself for being such a coffee addict.

Pics
The lobby of the Radisson hotel
Another photo of the lobby
My superior class room with a large comfortable king-sized bed
Another photo of the room, nice lighting!

A room with a view

Upon arrival I presented my SAS gold card and asked if it was possible to get a better room because of my gold card. It turned out it indeed was and they upgraded me to a larger superior room with a few extra perks like bathrobe and slippers.
But the best part of the room was the view, full unobstructed view of the airport!
My room was on the fifth floor just opposite the threshold of runway 18L/18R with just a highway in-between (which you heard nothing of) and I could easily watch all planes using that runway.
From my experience of Istanbul airport with normal wind conditions runway 36 is used for departures of all aircrafts (taking off facing the hotel) and also arrivals of heavy/widebody aircrafts, while narrowbody aircrafts use the east-west runway for arrivals located south of the terminal just by the sea, quite far from the hotel.
So that explains a bit what was to be seen through the window. Anyway for an aviation enthusiast the view was a delight!

Pics
View of the airport from my room at night…
…and in daylight
Anyone knows what airlines/countries these aircrafts belong to?
An Airbus A340 from Turkish Airlines has just landed and is vacating the runway
Lots of MNG Cargo widebodies on the north apron
An aircraft (A320?) taking off from runway 36R
The highway outside the hotel and the skyline of western Istanbul

A visit to downtown Istanbul

After a lazy morning with some spotting from the room and a long and relaxed breakfast I checked out of the hotel just before noon to spend the afternoon in downtown Istanbul.
I left my luggage at the hotel as I would return to the airport in the evening again.

Most people who have been to Istanbul know taxis are both cheap and easy to find and a taxi ride from the airport to downtown Istanbul should be quite affordable.
However there is a second option to get from Istanbul Atatürk airport to the city centre: the underground (or “metro” as they call it).
On all my previous visits I have either arrived at inhuman hours or been short of time, so taxi has always been the only option, but that was not the case this time.
The metro was really cheap, a one way ticket from the airport to the city centre costs only 1.30 Lira (about 1 USD). About 80% of the tracks are outdoors meaning you get some very nice views of Greater Istanbul on the way from the airport.
The metro terminates at Aksaray station which is located slightly outside of tourist Istanbul, so you either need to walk 15-20 minutes or take a tram to get to the major attractions. Still, beside the cost it’s a nice option if you want to get some good and different views of city.

I spent most of the day in downtown Istanbul looking around and visiting the huge Grand Bazaar.
The weather was superb, very warm without a single cloud to be seen. Unfortunately with a rather rainy spring at home and a skin that has been used to the sunshine you get in an office, things were rather red in the evening, and my sun lotion was safely stored in my suitcase at the hotel the whole day. Oh well…

I am not going to spend too much time on city visits in this report, there are other forums and sites on the internet more suitable for those type of reports and discussions.
But with the nice weather I managed to snap some rather nice photos of Istanbul which I have included below.

Pics
Inside the Grand Bazaar with nearly 4000 shops
Very nice interiors in the Bazaar
Sultanahmet mosque
Hagia Sofia
The Galata bridge
Overlooking the Bosphorus

jacob_m

I had a nice afternoon in sunny Istanbul before returning back to the airport. I was tempted to do some shopping in the nice Grand Bazaar, but refrained from doing so as I would have enough to carry around anyway,.
Once at the airport I took the shuttle bus to the hotel, freshened up a bit and repacked my stuff, a quick cup of coffee, and returned back to the airport on the 7 pm shuttle bus.

A Turkish Airlines premium departure experience at Istanbul Atatürk airport

A quick five minutes drive and we arrived at the international terminal where the driver dropped me off.
Standard at most Turkish airports is that you need to pass security before entering the terminal, and that was also the case at Atatürk airport.
I saw a large sign at Entrance D where it said THY (standard abbreviation for Turkish Airlines), but as I approached it I noticed there was a second entrance just behind it, Entrance E, where it said “THY Business Class, First Class, Prime Class”, which sounded more appropriate for me.
As I got to the entrance a man greeted me and asked if I was flying in business class, I told him yes but he told me he needed to see a ticket or booking confirmation.
As I started looking for it in my bag he noticed the baggage tag on my suitcase where it says Star Alliance Gold, and that turned out to be enough evidence to let me inside.
So in conclusion I guess Star Golds can use this entrance as well.
The security check was a standard metal detector and an x-ray machine where you had to have both your checked luggage and hand luggage screened.
With no one in line I was inside the terminal building within 30 seconds, the airport was rather empty this early evening so I am sure the security screening would have been nearly as quick at the other entrances, but on a busy morning this would probably have been much more appreciated.

Pics
Turkish Airlines designated entrances/security checks, you can see Entrance E for premium passengers in the background

The Turkish Airlines premium check-in area was right in front of Entrance E, four business class desks were manned and not a single person in line for any of them.
A friendly young woman greeted me and quickly checked me in. I was slightly worried they would not let me check-in this early since there were over 4 hours until the departure time of my flight, but that was not an issue.
A priority tag was attached to my suitcase without having to ask for it and I received a printed personalised invitation to the TK business class lounge.
I had already pre-booked seat 02K for the flight, so she just confirmed I was happy with my seat assignment.

Next to the business class check-in desks was the single TK first class check-in desk, really standing out from the rest of the check-in area with a blue carpet and blue curtains.
TK now operates a first class service to a handful destinations in Asia and the US using 3 Boeing 777 aircrafts leased from Jet Airways.
The check-in desk was unmanned so I guess there were no more departures this evening with a first class cabin onboard.

Pics
Turkish Airlines Business class and Star Gold check-in, very empty this evening!
Turkish Airlines First class check-in

Just around the corner from the TK premium check-in area was the passport control with a fast track lane.
If I remember correctly the sign said TK first class and business class passengers were entitled to use it, I think Star Golds were also allowed to use it if flying TK (but probably not other *A carriers). A man was standing at the entrance checking eligibility.
Just like the airport in general the passport control was very empty and the officer in charge of the premium line was actually standing outside of his booth chatting with a colleague and had to go back inside when I arrived.

On the whole the departure experience as a Turkish Airlines business class passenger at Istanbul airport was completely relaxed and hassle-free.
This was a quiet evening and I guess economy class passengers found the experience rather swift as well, but from my experience of IST on a busy morning with an overcrowded terminal all these facilities would have been very appreciated.
Well done TK! ^

Pics
Turkish Airlines economy class check-in, far more people in line here

Turkish Airlines CIP lounge, Istanbul

The Turkish Airlines lounge is on the immediate left after passport control, just a short walk away. I handed over my lounge invitation at the reception and was allowed inside.

This lounge is a really nice lounge and is definitely on my list of one of the best Star Alliance lounges worldwide.
It’s large and spacious with an interesting design and lots of fun features.
I visited the lounge last year and reviewed it quite extensively in my previous trip report. On this visit there seemed to have been some minor changes, some furniture had been replaced for example, but otherwise everything looked the same.

Food is very good in the lounge with hot food, lots of vegetables, bread and pastries, packaged sandwiches, yoghurt, fruits, snacks and desserts. ^
I had not had any dinner so was happy to be able to make myself a rather decent dinner with some proper substantial hot food and vegetables. Rather tasty as well…
Just opposite the main lounge area there was a bar counter with a good selection of wine, beer and spirits. Unfortunately comparing it with my previous visit it seems like the selection of sprits had been downgraded a bit.
As for the whiskies they last year had Johnnie Walker, Ballantines and Famous Grouse, this had been reduced to only one brand on this visit, the much more low-key Cutty Sark. Same thing with the gin and vodka bottles which were now some local brands.
Just a reflection from my side, some people may not even bother much about this
On the other hand they had a nice banana liqueur which I tried with my coffee, very yummy!

The lounge has a separate room with six internet computers with free internet access, there are also two printers there you can use for free.
The lounge has a wifi service available but unfortunately it only works for Turkish citizens with a subscription to a local internet provider, foreign guests will need to use the lounge computers.

I spent about three hours in this lounge having drinks and watching some documentaries on my laptop.
Around 9-10 pm the lounge got much more crowded with many transit passengers arriving from all over Europe connecting to one of the late evening flights to Asia and the Middle East.
As the sun set outside the lounge many of the lights in the lounge were turned on creating a very nice and cosy atmosphere in the lounge.

Pics
The entrance to the Turkish Airlines lounge
Inside the vast lounge
Self-service buffet: Salad and vegetables
Self-service buffet: Bread and pastries
Self-service buffet: Sandwiches
Self-service buffet: Yoghurt and desserts
A rather nice lounge dinner
The bar area and departure monitors
A closer look at the bar area
Selection of spirits available
The lounge area with Turkish art and large chandeliers
The corridor leading to the business centre and restrooms
Evening ambience in the lounge
Nice evening lighting creating a very nice atmosphere

A walk around the transit hall

With a long overnight flight coming up I left the lounge around an hour before departure to stretch my legs a bit in the transit hall.
The transit hall is very modern and spacious with some very nice tax-free shops. Unfortunately the prices aren’t always the most competitive, Turkish candies for example can often be found cheaper in downtown Istanbul, but in some cases bargains can indeed be found.

Around 45 minutes before departure the monitors indicated we should proceed to the gate, located at the far end of the terminal.

Pics
Nice tax-free shopping in Istanbul
Everybody loves duty free…apparently
Lots of late evening departures to Asia and Middle East

Boarding

Security takes place at the gate in Istanbul. The standard set-up is that there is one gate area for every two gates and two metal detectors/x-rays at the entrance to each gate area.
There was another flight departing from our gate area to a destination in the Middle East (can’t remember which one) almost at the same time meaning two screening stations got a bit insufficient to process roughly 400 passengers in a short period of time. Unfortunately there was no such thing as a premium line either.
I arrived at the gate quite early so was through security fairly quickly.

Boarding started 30 mins before departure, with the exception of an elderly woman being allowed to board first there was just one general boarding call for all passengers.

Only one passenger bridge in use for door 2L and after being greeted at the door I turned left for the business class cabin.
I was one of the first passengers onboard and had the opportunity to take some photos of the cabin before most other business class passengers came onboard.

The aircraft that would take us to Seoul was an Airbus A340 named Mersin.
The business class cabin had a 2-2-2 configuration with six rows, except for the centre seats that only had five rows. That makes 34 seats in total and I think almost all seats were occupied on this flight.
In front of the centre rows there was a rather nice-looking bar counter where FAs prepared drinks during the flight, when boarding there was a bottle of champagne there waiting to be opened.
The cabin was modern, bright and spotlessly clean and gave a very good first impression.

Once seated a female FA approached me and offered to take my jacket. A few minutes later the bottle of champagne was opened in front of me and I had my first glass of bubbles onboard. Passengers who do not appreciate the delights of champagne could get some orange juice or water instead.

Turkish and international newspapers were handed out followed by Turkish Airlines slippers and a red amenity kit from L’Occitane.
The amenity kit is definitely one of the better I have got in business class. Other than the standard earplugs, eyeshades and a toothbrush it also contained miniature bottles of L’Occitane eau de cologne, L’Occitane body lotion and L’Occitane lip balm.

Pics
The Airbus A340 at the gate in Istanbul
The business class cabin onboard
The business class bar counter, with a bottle of champagne waiting to be opened
Finally I get my pre-departure bubbles
Amenity kit and slippers

Istanbul-Seoul/Incheon, flight TK 90 operated by Turkish Airlines
Departure: 23:45
Arrival: 15:50
Aircraft: Airbus A340-300
Class: Business Class
Seat: 02K

We pushed back slightly late at midnight. Surprisingly many departures around midnight, we were number 5 for take-off according to the captain.
Turkish Airlines has a very nice feature onboard so you can follow taxi, take-off and landing from the pilot’s view, in fact all screens in the cabin were automatically switched to this view during taxi (which I certainly did not mind).

We finally took off at 00.20 from runway 36R, a right turn was made and I enjoyed a superb view of Istanbul and the Bosphorus during the usual slow climb of the Airbus A340.

Pics
Take-off roll, pilot‘s view
The view seconds after take-off
Fantastic evening view of downtown Istanbul and the Bosphorus

The menu

After the seatbelt sign had been switched off the inflight service started almost immediately and hot towels and menus were distributed to all passengers.
The menu was available in a silver-coloured binder and I was very impressed to see the menu was personalised and had my name and seat number on it.
As far as I can remember this is the only airline where I have ever got a personalised menu onboard, that rarely even happens in international first class.

The left page of the menu contained the drink list. A rather decent selection with 3 whites, 4 reds, port, and plenty of spirits and soft drinks.

The middle page contained the a la carte menu for the main meal service.
Two choices of appetizer, salad or soup, three choices of main course, and an excellent selection of desserts.

The right page contained the options for the breakfast service.
You fill this in yourself, ticking the box next to the cold cuts, drinks, yoghurt and hot item you want for breakfast. Then you write your name and seat number on top of the form (actually already written on the menu for me) and hand it over to the crew before going to bed.
In the morning you get your personalised breakfast service from the crew.
Luckily I remembered to take a photo of the breakfast menu before giving it to the crew so you can also see below what the breakfast options were.

Overall a superb menu, personalised with a nice layout and excellent choices!! ^

Pics
The very nice and personalised business class menu

The meal service

In one word: Excellent!

After the menus had been distributed white tablecloths were laid on all tables and the TK signature cocktails were offered with a nice selection of canapés.
The cocktail is a mix of fresh orange juice and champagne decorated with some exotic fruits, quite tasty.

As appetizer I had the potpourri of Mediterranean Meze which was not bad at all, rather proving how delicious Middle-Eastern food can be.
I then had the potato leek soup to eat followed by the sautéed minced beef with steamed rice, also with a rather oriental flavour and an excellent choice.
I had red wine to drink with the meal, the Spanish Rioja wine which worked quite well with my meal choices.

The tables were cleared and the dessert trolley passed through the cabin.
This was almost the biggest surprise of the meal service, the selection was immense!! The dessert buffet contained several types of cheese, Turkish desserts, ice cream, tiramisu, tropical fruits, berries and chocolate soufflé.
I could have tried all of it but probably would not have managed after everything I had already eaten. I decided to limit myself to the excellent coconut ice cream and some fresh fruit.

A few minutes later the dessert trolley passed a second time offering coffee, tea and liqueurs, accompanied by some lovely petits fours.

The service onboard was overall very good, friendly and attentive and the meal service felt well coordinated with an optimal amount of time between every dish.
All drinks were prepared and poured at the bar counter in front of the business class cabin which looked very elegant. After the bottles had been used they were placed on the shelves behind the counter.
My only complaint about the meal service is that I had to ask for drinks and refills a few times, including top-up of water. My requests were naturally taken care of straight away, but having my glass of water (or wine) refilled is something I think should happen automatically in international business class.

Overall this was one of the best meals I have ever had in the air. With a slightly more personalised and polished service this meal service could easily be used for international first class in my opinion.
Excellent job Turkish Airlines!! ^

Pics
Cocktail and capanés
Appetizer
Soup
Main course
Dessert
The business class bar in full use
Some liquor after the meal

The seat

As mentioned there are 34 business class seats on the Airbus A340.
The seats are lie-flat with a 54” seat pitch, similar seats to those I have tried in SAS and Lufthansa business class.
The seat had several excellent features such as storage for newspapers, shoes and a bottle of water. There was also a power socket which worked very well, although I had to use an adapter to be able to use it with my laptop.
One aspect to mention is also that passengers are not allowed to store anything in front of the seat during take-off and landing, all hand luggage must be placed in the overhead bins. If you have a lot of hand luggage it’s a good idea to board early.

Overall the seat was very comfortable and with the nice blue duvets and pillows that were provided I got a few hours of proper sleep onboard and was actually in a reasonably good shape when disembarking in Seoul.
Before going to bed I changed into the grey pyjamas pants that I got in ANA F-class during my round the world trip. They are really comfortable and it has almost become a tradition to bring those on longhaul trips. It’s nice not having to sleep in the regular clothes, you really feel the difference the next day.

Pics
The Turkish Airlines business class seat
Seat control
Laptop power socket
Shoe storage, clearly marked which one to be used by which passenger
Storage for bottles of water
Passengers getting some proper sleep in business class

Inflight entertainment system

Another positive surprise was the inflight entertainment system, of course AVOD.
The selection of movies, documentaries, sitcoms and music was very extensive. Other than a large number of recent movies they also had some old/classical ones and some foreign ones from India and China.
Among the documentaries on offer I found one about the cars of James Bond (interesting for me who is a fan since birth) and several excellent travel programs.

I’d reckon 150-200 full music albums were available covering most music genres. Very nicely the album cover of each album was also displayed on the screen while playing.
There was also a decent selection of games.

In the information menu the cockpit camera could be accessed during the flight (both aft and forward) and there was a lot of info about TK such as the fleet, transit info, the frequent flyer program, IST airport map and a very good fully updated world news and weather service.
The flight map was also one of the better ones I have come across, it could also be zoomed and rotated, which was quite fun.

Pics
Inflight entertainment menu
The selection of “entertainment” options
Interesting documentary about the cars of James Bond
Supertramp, Live in Paris, and they have even a photo of the album cover!

Breakfast service

Two hours before landing the lights were turned on in the cabin and the breakfast service (or brunch service perhaps) started.
Hot towels were handed out followed by water and orange juice.

White tablecloths were once again laid on the tables and the meal trays were distributed, they had been created individually based on what you had indicated on the breakfast form the night before.
The tray contained the “cold breakfast”, in my case I had chosen a smoothie, coffee and yoghurt with apple mousse. The tray also contained some cold cuts, cheese and vegetables and a bowl with fresh fruit. The crew offered warm bread from a basket.

The plates were collected and the hot item delivered, I had chosen scrambled eggs with some kind of Turkish filled pastry. Quite OK, certainly a bit different from the usual hot breakfast you get onboard airplanes.
More coffee and tea were offered before the tables were cleared.

Pics
Approaching Beijing and the lights are turned on in the cabin for the breakfast service
Some facts about the flight, flying at 37,000 feet with 1h 50mins to go
Excellent cold breakfast
Hot breakfast

Arrival at Seoul Incheon airport

After the breakfast service I went into the lavatory to freshen up and change back to my regular clothes, small things that make quite a big difference at the end, both in the way you feel and look.

We started our descent to Seoul shortly after leaving the Chinese coastline, as many of you know the Airbus A340 has a very slow rate of climb and descent and it takes quite some time to bring this aircraft down from 37,000 feet.
Hot towels were again handed out before the cabin was prepared for landing.

We made our final approach over those nice islands west of Seoul and then made a left turn to align with the runway.
Interestingly no part of the flight took place in North Korean airspace as far as I could see, that would probably have shortened the flight time a few minutes.
We finally touched down on runway 34 at Seoul Incheon airport just after 4 pm and taxied to the new A-concourse of the international terminal requiring all passengers to take a take a train to the main terminal building.
Two passenger bridges were in use and all business class passengers could disembark through door 1L. The crew seemed to have forgotten to return jackets and coats to passengers before landing so they started doing it after the seatbelt sign had been switched off, which did not work very well.

After the breakfast service a Korean health declaration form was handed out to all passengers onboard which we had to complete. There were questions covered things like if we were or had been suffering from fever or any kind of pains in the past days, that could be symptoms of the swine flu.
At the gate a team of five was waiting to check the health declaration form for each passenger before letting us enter the terminal, all of them wearing masks.
In case of any suspicious passengers they were taken aside for questioning and further medical checks. Inside the terminal we also had to pass a type of x-ray machine checking the body temperature of all arriving passengers.
They had really taken some extensive measures, which at the end is for our own safety.

I was one of the first passengers to arrive at immigration which was quite fast with a friendly officer behind the desk.

Baggage delivery started shortly after I arrived at the baggage belt with only priority-tagged luggage in the first bag, I think my suitcase was the 8th bag to arrive on the belt.

Getting from Incheon airport to central Seoul is still a bit of a hassle.
There are lots of limousine buses that cover most of Greater Seoul, but with drivers speaking limited English and me not knowing what the area looks like where I had to get off it did not seem like a good option.
There is also an excellent airport express train, but so far is only goes to Gimpo airport where you have to change to the underground. The extension from Gimpo to downtown Seoul has not been completed yet.
Still I chose the train option since the underground line from Gimpo would pass a station just five minutes from my hotel for the night. The airport transfer took 90 minutes in total.

Pics
Approach over the Yellow Sea
Just landed at Incheon airport with the terminal building in the background

Conclusion

Needless to say a very good flight, if Turkish Airlines can just do this on and on again and make it a consistent product they should be regarded as one of the best carriers in the Star Alliance.
The dinner onboard was one of the best airplane meals I have had. Very tasty food and lots to choose between with some rather unusual dishes, a refreshing change from the usual stuff you get in the air. Very good selection of drinks as well and the selection of desserts was just wonderful. Top marks for the food and presentation!
The seat was very comfortable, although only lie-flat I slept very well onboard. Excellent inflight entertainment system as well, enough to keep you entertained during a large number of flights.
Ground services were also quite good, lots of premium facilities in Istanbul including a nice lounge. The priority tag has also worked well on the two completed TK flights.
The only room for improvement would be some parts of the service like topping up glasses without having to ask for it. I have too little experience of TK to know what the norm is, and after all this was an almost full business class cabin, so that’s for the future to see.

view

Nice! Looking forward to another report from you Jacob, in great detail, as always ^

camsean

Thanks for a very detailed trip report. As somebody with a slowish connection I appreciate you posting the links instead of the pics.

TK sound great.

jacob_m

Thanks for the comments!

The food in TK C-class is superb, definitely don't hesitate to give it a try. Tickets on TK are often suprisingly affordable.

Definitely! Easily one of the more interesting trips I have done with some very nice flights and experiences to come.

jacob_m

A visit to Panmunjom, the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea

I have always been fascinated by North Korea, or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), as it’s officially called.
Not that I sympathise with everything the regime does in any way, but rather for it being one of the last real communist countries in the world and for the completely different way of life in the country, with some obvious pros and cons for sure.
Pyongyang is on top of my list of cities I would like to visit, it has been very interesting to read the trip reports on Flyertalk from people who have visited DPRK, like Swanhunter for example. Although as it looks now a visit to Pyongyang is realistically not going to happen anytime soon.

However a much more accessible place is Panmunjom located in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North Korea and South Korea, 53 km north of Seoul.
It is impossible to get there on your own due to the heavy military presence, but there are organised tours from Seoul so I booked a seat on one of those tours.
Other than my interest in history and politics I had a more personal reason for wanting to visit Panmunjom. My grandfather was stationed there in the late 50’s as a UN officer and he told me a lot about his experiences there before he passed away. I have also seen many photos from the area that he took.

For most western nationalities getting a seat on the tour is quite easy, basically just to book a seat up to one day in advance by sending an e-mail with name and passport details to the tour company and then show up in the morning with the valid passport.
For some other nationalities, including nationals of some Asian and Middle Eastern countries and countries of the former Soviet Union, applications for the tour has to be made at least 7 days in advance.

There is also a dress code on the tour. No faded or torn jeans (preferably no jeans at all), no leather pants, no shorts, no sleeveless tops, no training pants, no slippers, and no military style attire.
The tour company will refuse anyone to board the bus who does not comply with the dress code. The tour guides checked our attire before departure from Seoul and in fact when entering the DMZ the military personnel checked both our clothes and shoes quite thoroughly.
Final rule is that you are not allowed to be intoxicated when joining the tour, not sure who would start the day by having booze at 7 am, but maybe that has happened in the past?!

The tour departed at 8.30 am from Lotte Hotel in central Seoul.
The drive to the first military checkpoint took about 90 minutes including a short stop for coffee.
There were two military checkpoints on the way to Panmunjom, each time a solider boarded the bus and checked passports and I also think they checked the baggage hold to verify we were not bringing anything dangerous or prohibited into the military zone.
The closer we got to Panmunjom the more rules there were to follow. Absolutely no use of cameras or video cameras, this was extended to no pointing or waving, which was finally extended to not being allowed to stand up in the bus.
Some of these rules were rather extreme and probably in reality unnecessary, but I guess they just wanted full control of the people they brought inside the DMZ and wanted to avoid anything even remotely close to an incidence.

Pics
Introduction in the tour bus of what to expect during the day and the rules we had to follow

After the two military checkpoints we stopped at the DMZ visitors centre.
Inside the building a short presentation was made about the DMZ, the history of the conflict and the current situation. All visitors also had so sign a document confirming we would follow the visitor rules set out by the United Nations. We also received a UN visitor badge that we had to wear during the visit.
Back outside we boarded a military bus with an American UN soldier standing in the front of the bus keeping an eye on us.
The only thing we were allowed to bring on the military bus was a camera. Other than that no loose items whatsoever, not even a camera case. Even wallets and purses had to be left in the tour bus unless they would fit in a pocket.
The tour guides, UN military and at the end the North Koreans were to have no doubts we were just tourists bringing nothing that could cause suspicion or pose a threat to anyone. Even an empty camera case could actually contain something else, a bomb for example.

A short drive on the military bus and we arrived at the joint security area of the DMZ. All movements within the area had to be either by military bus or walking in two lines directed by a UN soldier.
Panmunjom was a surprisingly calm and peaceful place, you could definitely not feel you were inside a military zone between two countries administratively still at war.
However there is now an agreement between the two countries limiting the number of soldiers each country is allowed to have within the DMZ, about 30 soldiers if I remember correctly.
This means it’s easier to keep track of what the other country is doing within the zone and avoid any unnecessary military mobilisation.

We visited the conference building where most talks between the two countries take place. The border between North and South actually goes right through the building, right through a conference table, but visitors can move freely within the building meaning I have technically been on North Korean soil for about two minutes.
Afterwards we visited the Freedom house, originally a tower where you get a pretty nice overview of the DMZ. Nowadays there is also a much more modern building also called Freedom house and the plan and wish is that North Korean and South Korean families should use the building to reunite in the future.
From the tower we got a good view of the buildings in the area, including Panmungak, the command post of the North Korean guard force. We were also allowed to take photos from there but absolutely not wave or point as these gestures could be used as propaganda by the North Koreans, they sometimes take photos of visiting westerns.
It was a strange experience to take photos of the grey North Korean building on the other side of the border where a North Korean guard in strict military uniform was looking at me through binoculars. Very strange!

Pics
The famous conference room. The table is actually the border between North and South, so technically I am standing on North Korean soil
A South Korean soldier in front of the door leading to North Korea, they told us he is standing there for our safety
The border between North and South clearly marked on the ground outside the conference building
Good overview of the joint security area, the conference buildings and Panmungak of North Korea
A North Korean soldier looking at me through binoculars from Panmungak, the command post of Korean People‘s Army at DMZ

Our last stop was an observation post a short drive away by bus.
From there we had a very good view of North Korea including the village Kijong-dong, also known as Peace Village in the North and Propaganda Village in the South.
According to South Korea nobody lives there, it’s just a way to show North Korea is more prosperous than is really the case. The rather nice-looking blue buildings actually don’t have real windows, it’s just black paint. Have a look and judge yourself based on the photo below!
I asked the tour guide how they can really know that and she said that for example when it’s time to harvest the farmers always arrive by bus or trucks. If the village was actually populated most people living there would probably be farmers and those buses and trucks would thus not be needed.
The village also has the world’s largest flagpole measuring 160 meters. It was created during a flagpole war between the two countries, South Korea has a rather impressive flag as well close to the border, but it is only 100 meters high.

Pics
The North Korean “Propaganda village“ with its huge 160 meter high flagpole. Do you agree the buildings look fake?

From the observation post we could also see glimpses of the Bridge of no return, which was used to exchange people between the two countries (who were not allowed to return after making the decision of where to live, hence the name).
There was a rather serious incidents here in 1976 when a few American and South Korean soldiers were killed when trying to cut down trees to get a better view of the border.
Visitors are no longer allowed to visit the area around the bridge freely, one reason is that the bridge is outside of the regulated military zone, so nobody knows how much military presence North Korea has on the other side of the bridge.

Pics
The bridge of no return, no longer fully accessible due to an incident in 1976

Another interesting fact the guide mentions is how one can easily distinguish North Korean territory from South Korean territory (if there are no visible flags, barbed wires etc).
After the Korean war there was a great need of trees that were to be used for anything from heating to rebuilding houses and infrastructure, consequently a huge number of trees in both countries were cut down for these purposes.
However the South Koreans realised they needed to do something about that, or there would not be any vegetation left in South Korea for future generations. A tree planting day was introduced which takes place on April 5th every year. However in the North there was no such focus, and even if there was there probably were not enough funds to introduce such a project.
Hence when looking into North Korea the hills and mountains are surprisingly bare, in contrast to South. According to our guide most trees that have been planted in the North are there to hide military facilities and equipment.
I don’t know how easy it is see the difference of vegetation between the two countries on the photos, but it was quite apparent during the visit.

The visit to Panmunjom was very interesting, definitely one of the strangest but most rewarding day tours I have taken.
It was a bit hard to judge how serious the situation really was at the DMZ. Were all those rules really necessary in such a calm and peaceful place? Or were they just there to make the tour a bit more exciting?
Fortunately nobody decided to check that out, we all did what we were told which was the only wise thing to do resulting in a completely problem-free visit.
The English-speaking tour guide was very friendly and charming and gave lots of interesting information about the place and I took the opportunity to ask several questions.
She told me what most South Koreans want more than anything is for the countries to be reunited again as a huge number of families were split up after the war.

RTW4

Excellent trip report.. Thank you so very much.. Your descriptions are great.. especially of your trip to North Korea....

jacob_m

Images of Seoul

Before continuing with the flight reports, here are also a few photos from the South Korean capital of Seoul.

Seoul is quite a massive city with an impressive 10 million inhabitants within the city boundaries and a massive 24 million inhabitants within Greater Seoul.
Absolutely unbelievable!

The size means that distances are often large and although visitors tend to stick to a few selected areas of interest it is hard to get an overview of the city, at least that’s what I thought.
A good start is to make a visit to the Namsan Seoul Tower in central Seoul.
Getting up there is a hassle requiring a long steep walk from the underground station, a cable car ride, more steep walking, and a finally a lift to the observation deck.
The view is quite breathtaking though and there are a few cafes and casual restaurants up there that were surprisingly affordable.

Pics
Taking the cable car to the Namsan Seoul Tower
Very nice views of downtown Seoul from the tower
Good view of the Han river from Seoul Tower

Seoul has a very exciting mix between traditional Korean neighbourhoods and temples and modern architecture with skyscrapers and neon lighting.
A nice way to get a glimpse of old Korea is to make a visit to Gyeongbokgung in the northern part of central Seoul which was the governmental heart for many centuries.
I believe most of the buildings here were constructed in the 15th century in some very beautiful green and mountainous surroundings.
Within this rather sizeable area there is also the National Folk Museum, also worth a visit.

Pics
The very nice Gyeongbokgung palace in northern Seoul
Change of guards at the palace
Inside one of the beautiful temples
The National Folk Museum, also located inside the palace gates
Beautiful surroundings

Downtown Seoul is supposedly located around the city hall, Eujiro and Myeongdong districts where there is good modern shopping, enough to keep even the most demanding and discerning shoppers happy. There is certainly no lack of shopping centres and underground shopping arcades in this city.
The City Hall had a rather cool outdoor stage where they free evening performances, for example a show with a very talented magician one of the nights, great fun to watch (and free).

Pics
Busy evening in the Myeongdong shopping district
Another photo of modern Myeongdong with the Seoul Tower lit-up in the background
The famous Lotte hotel and department store
The City Hall square in downtown Seoul
Great performance at the City Hall stage
The underground station at Hoehyeon. Seoul has a very extensive and efficient underground network

And finally two photos from the rather cosy and traditional Korean neighbourhood just north of Jongno where the hotel was located.

Pics
The traditional Korean neighbourhood close to the hotel in Jongno
A side street in the cosy neighbourhood

jacob_m

Time to leave Korea and time to review a new airline - Korean Air.

As the tour to the North Korean border/demilitarized zone was not operating all days of the week I had no choice but to book it the same day as I was due to leave Korea.
I double-checked the timetable of the tour with the tour company and also the transportation options to Incheon airport, and on a smooth day there should not be any problems or stress whatsoever, however quite a lot could also go wrong, everything from increased tension and extra military checks at the border to traffic jams in Seoul.
Fortunately everything worked out extremely well. After a very interesting visit to DMZ I picked up my luggage at the hotel and headed for the airport bus stop a few minutes walk away where the limousine bus arrived almost immediately.
Traffic was quite busy on the roads around Seoul, but not more than usual, after a 70 minute ride I finally arrived at Incheon airport. Arrival at 4.45 pm meant plenty of time before my 6.30 pm departure.

Pics
View from the highway as we are heading for Incheon airport, located on an island
Approaching ICN where a Korean Air plane is just about to land

Check-in at Seoul Incheon airport

Incheon is a lovely airport to use, the terminal is spacious, airy and spotlessly clean.
There is also some excellent shopping available and although the terminal is quite massive everything is clearly signposted and it’s easy to navigate inside the terminal.

Korean Air uses check-in island C for its premium check-in.
As I arrived all check-in agents were busy but there was no one else waiting so after 30 seconds I was waived over to the empty first class check-in desk.
A young Korean woman greeted me at the desk. I handed over my booking confirmation to her and after looking through it for half a minute or so I got the (by now usual) “where are you actually going”-look from the slightly confused girl.
Anyway, we sorted that part out and she proceeded to check me in and my bag was tagged accordingly. She also attached a blue Prestige class priority tag to my suitcase (where it actually just said “Prestige”).
Prestige Class is what Korean Air has named its business class by the way.
I already had a pre-booked seat 07H for the flight, a window seat on the first row of business class, so she just checked I was happy with that seat.
Finally I got directions to the lounge and a bit more surprisingly also a discount voucher for the duty free onboard the plane.

Unfortunately there is no fast track security in Seoul but the regular security check was fairly quick anyway. Very friendly and courteous staff working there, which is not the case at all airports.
I had by mistake forgotten a bottle of water in my bag which they discovered. As it wasn’t exactly the first time I went through an airport security control I should have remembered to throw it away, but no big deal.

Pics
Korean Air Prestige Class check-in
Inside the very airy and modern departure hall
Many shops in the departure hall

Korean Air Prestige Class lounge, Seoul/Incheon

I made my way to the Korean Air Prestige Class lounge, the KE business class lounge, located almost directly on the left after security on the fourth floor, one floor above the main departure level.

I did not really know what to expect of the lounge, but it turned out to be quite a positive surprise. ^
The lounge was airy, modern and well maintained. It had an excellent selection of food and drinks, and a superb view of the apron. What more can you ask for really?
There was also plenty of staff inside the lounge, there must have been something like 8-10 lounge attendants keeping the self-service buffet and the lounge tidy and clearing tables.

As mentioned the selection of food was very good. Among the hot food options they had for example lasagne, soup and crispy chicken with sweet and sour sauce.
There were also some very tasty sandwiches, sushi, vegetables and a nice selection of muffins and cakes.
There was also a good selection of beer and soft drinks for self-service. The selection of wine and spirits was adequate, OK although not extremely extensive.

I made myself a rather decent lounge dinner and had a seat by the window to enjoy the action on the apron. They also had several power sockets for laptop users which worked very well.
There was free wifi available throughout the lounge which you could access by entering your family name, flight number and seat number on the index page.

Pics
The entrance to the KE Prestige Class lounge
Inside the lounge
Lots of seating with a great apron view
Very airy and spacious lounge
The self-service buffet area
Sandwiches, sushi and hot food (in the background)
Lovely cakes and desserts
Beer and soft drinks
Nice lounge dinner: Chicken sandwich, lasagne, chicken in sweet and sour sauce, and a glass of red wine
Coffee and dessert
Superb view from the lounge! Lots of Korean air widebodies!

A walk around the terminal

I spent around 45 minutes inside the lounge and then had a look around the transit hall.
There is a large number of shops and restaurants available making Incheon a pleasant airport for departures and transits.

The headphones I had brought from home to use with my laptop and MP3-player broke during my visit in Seoul so I headed for one of the electronics shops to buy new ones.

Pics
Excellent shopping in the transit hall
The airy transit hall seen from the lounge
The departure board, busy evening at Incheon airport

Boarding

The flight to Nadi was due to depart from gate 26, right in the middle of the transit hall just a short walk from the lounge.
Boarding started at 6 pm sharp with priority boarding for first class, business class and top-tier status passengers using the exit to the right of the podium.
The boarding process itself was quite interesting. A few seconds before the boarding was about to start the gate staff stopped working and quietly stood at attention behind the counter.
Then a bell sounded and all staff bowed at the same time in front of all passengers, and then the boarding announcement was made. Very elegant I have to say!

Two passenger bridges were in use and I turned left and entered the aircraft through door 1L.
A female FA greeted me at the door and directed me to the right aisle, once at the seat another FA immediately approached me and offered to take my jacket.
I had pre-booked seat 07H for this flight which was a window seat on the first. Because of the seat being a bulkhead seat I had to place all hand luggage in the overhead bins during take-off and landing.

The aircraft operating the overnight flight to Nadi, Fiji was an Airbus A330-200.
Business class had three rows with a 2-2-2 configuration which means 18 seats in total, only six seats were occupied on this flight.
Sitting on the first row of business class I could also sneak into the first class cabin when then curtain wasn’t closed/fully closed.
First class was just one row, also with a 2-2-2 configuration. The seats were slightly wider, had far more legroom, and also reclined more, but otherwise I could not notice any major differences between the business class and first class seats.

After most passengers had boarded pre-departure drinks were offered in the cabin, a standard selection of champagne, orange juice or water. And no, I am not going to make you disappointed this time either.
Peanuts were also offered with the drink.

Pics
The Korean Air Airbus A330 at the gate
The gate area, soon time for boarding
The passenger bridges, as a business class passenger I naturally turn left
The business class cabin onboard
Sneaking into the first class cabin
Welcome onboard Korean Air
A glass of champagne before departure

Seoul/Incheon-Nadi, flight KE 137 operated by Korean Air
Departure: 18:30
Arrival: 07:40
Aircraft: Airbus A330-200
Class: Prestige Class (Business Class)
Seat: 07H

The doors were closed at 6.20 pm, 10 minutes before scheduled departure time, which also meant they managed to get all passengers onboard the Airbus A330 in just 20 minutes.
A few more aircrafts were in line for take-off and we were finally airborne at 6.45 pm taking off from runway 33L.
Quite a nice view right after take-off from Incheon, there are lots of small quite nice islands in the area. Our routing would take us across South Korea, over the Sea of Japan and southern Japan, passing over the city of Osaka, then a right turn and several hours over the Pacific Ocean before reaching Fiji and the South Pacific.

Pics
Pushback with the huge terminal building in the background, lots of KE metal
Beautiful view seconds after take-off from Incheon
Left turn heading for Japan and the South Pacific
Crossing the Korean peninsula

The menu

After the seatbelt sign had been switched off hot towels were offered to all passengers and the menus were distributed, a green rather elegant looking menu.
Tonight’s options were as follow:

Pics
The Prestige Class menu

The meal service

More drinks were offered and I had another glass of the rather tasty champagne they had onboard. They also offered what they called a pre-drink starter, a mozzarella and tomato skewer, nothing special.

Tablecloths were laid on the tables and the meal trays were brought out.
The appetizer was salmon and as main course I chose the Korean Air signature dish, Bibimbap, which I had read was supposed to be quite good.
What makes this dish a bit different is that you prepare it yourself, mixing the ingredients on the place with the rice you get in a bowl. You then add sesame oil and pepper paste (half the tube will give you a mild taste, a full tube will give you a hot taste). You also get side dishes and some soup.
If you are unsure how Bibimbap should be mixed there is a separate page in the menu describing all the steps.
I found Bibimbap to be very tasty, but also very filling. However I skipped the side dishes on the tray, some kind of pickles and mushrooms, not my thing!
The only negative aspect about Bibimbap is that I have heard it is served on all flights as one of the three main course options, and I can imagine frequent travellers on KE would prefer to see some other Korean dishes from time to time.

Regarding the selection of wines they had two reds and two whites available that were served rather elegantly from a specially designed basket.
I tried one of the reds and it was quite tasty. Very nicely the FA always let me taste the wines first before filling the glass.

Cheese and crackers were offered from a trolley and I had a slice of each one and some grapes.
Afterwards dessert, coffee and tea were offered. The dessert was a choice between ice cream and cheesecake. The cheesecake was quite good.

Overall the food onboard was OK, but not spectacular, although I did like the Bibimbap, I always enjoy trying local cuisine when travelling.
The drink selection was very good though, nice red wines and champagne and everything served elegantly by the crew.

Pics
Another glass of champagne and pre-drink starter
Appetizer
Main course
Instructions how to make Bibimbap
And here is Bibimbap ŕ la jacob_m
Cheese and crackers
Coffee and dessert
Peanuts and a glass of Chivas Regal

The seat, the inflight entertainment system, and other amenities

One word about the seat: terrible!
A seat like the one onboard should simply not be offered in business class to a paying passenger on a 10-hour longhaul flight, at least not in these days.
The seat was OK to sit in during the meal service, reasonably comfortable, but the recline was very limited making it very hard to get any kind of decent sleep during the night, I simply could not find a good position to sleep in. Finally I figured out how to make optimal use of the footrest, making things slightly better.
Most airlines abolished these type of seats many years ago, and I hope Korean Air will do the same.
To complement the review with some numbers the seat pitch was 47” and the seat width 20”.

To be honest I knew what to expect when I booked the flight, I also know Korean Air is currently installing new proper lie-flat seats in business class.
Unfortunately ICN-NAN is only operated by aircrafts with the old seats onboard, and all other KE routes that could have been of interest when creating the itinerary also had the old seats.
Well I still wanted to give Korean Air a try, but it was not my most comfortable night onboard an airplane and if I would have to take an overnight flight again KE perhaps wouldn’t be my first choice.

Just like the seat the inflight entertainment system was also an old version dating back to around year 76 B.C.
About 10 movies and two channels with news reports were available to watch on the miniature screen hidden in the armrest. Both the picture and the sound were of very questionable quality meaning IFE was not a feature I made any use of during the flight, except to look at the flight map.
Still it should be mentioned the aircrafts with the new seats also have a much better inflight entertainment system with larger screens and AVOD.

No amenity kits were handed out during the flight, but before the lights were dimmed in the cabin an FA passed through the cabin with a basket containing for example toothpaste and toothbrush, a water spray and eye masks.
In the morning after the breakfast service a second run was made with the basket in the cabin, at that time also offering shaving kits.

Pics
The seat control
Switches for the inflight entertainment system
This is about as much as the seat can be reclined
Amenities from a basket and landing card for Fiji
View of the business class cabin
Another photo of the cabin, my seat is the window seat on the first row

Breakfast service

Breakfast orders were taken already in the evening before going to bed which meant the length of the breakfast service was slightly reduced in the morning.

There was a Korean breakfast option with porridge and a continental option with omelette. I decided to give the Korean porridge a try, not the kind of food I am used to eat in the morning, but it was quite good and very filling.

An excellent selection of fruit juices was also offered as well as fresh fruit, coffee and tea.

Pics
Only a bit over an hour left to go
A glass of guava
Korean breakfast
Fresh fruit

The crew and the service onboard

I have slightly mixed feelings about the crew and the inflight service, I guess there were both highlights and lowlights.
Although the flight attendants were friendly and courteous and provided reasonably attentive service sometimes they just felt rather cold and slightly disinterested in what they were doing. I missed some smiles and some of the warmth and charm you can experience on other Asian carriers.
As always when mentioning “cold” the next question should be if the flight attendants were just not motivated, or if it is a cultural thing.
In many countries when experiencing “cold service” it is often because the attendants deliberately keep a certain distance, which is to show respect and not intrude too much on the passenger‘s privacy.
I have too little experience of Korean Air to know what the norm is, but I know Korea is a rather formal country.

On the other hand there were a few really nice moments during the flight.
I woke up in the middle of the night and made a quick visit to the lavatory. As I returned to my seat two minutes later my bottle of water had been replaced with a new one and two minutes later a young female FA came to my seat with some warm cookies on a plate telling me she took the liberty to prepare those for me as she thought I needed those.
Very nice indeed and the cookies were yummy! ^That is for sure something I don’t experience on every flight I take.

During the meal service there was also some turbulence and one of the FAs accidently spilled water on my sweatshirt and the adjacent seat, a fair amount of water.
She apologised profoundly and went to great length to try to get my sweatshirt dry, of course since it was only regular water she spilled there were no traces left of the small accident by the time we landed, but still a nice gesture.

A beautiful morning approach into Nadi

We started our descent around 7 am local time. As with all arrivals at South Pacific airports (at least smaller ones) the descent is quite straight forward, you basically start descending and continue to do so until you are on the ground.
No speed restrictions or holding patterns to worry about.

The approach into Nadi was absolutely lovely, it was early morning and the sun was rising in the horizon as we descended providing some fascinating scenery outside the window.
Around 15 minutes before landing the first few smaller islands of Fiji appeared outside the window followed by two larger ones.
Soon we approached Viti Levu which is the main island of Fiji where Nadi airport is located, a left turn was made to align with runway 02 while I got to see the rather fascinating landscape of the island through the window.
We finally touched down at 7.20 am, 20 minutes ahead of timetable, and made the short taxi to the international terminal which is one of the larger ones in the South Pacific with proper passenger bridges.

The ground staff had some problems positioning the passenger bridge to the our aircraft, but after a few tries they finally succeeded, the doors were opened and tropical air entered the cabin.

Pics
Approaching Fiji as you can see on the flight map
First sight of Fiji
First sight of Viti Levu, the main island of Fiji. A fantastic morning view!
Interesting landscape
Seconds before touchdown
Just landed at Nadi international airport passing the terminal building
A Pacific Sun ATR-42 is waiting to take-off after we have vacated the runway
Our Korean Air A330 at the gate in Nadi

Conclusion

To sum up in short:
*Check-in: 30 seconds wait, friendly and efficient service
*Lounge: Very nice, excellent food, great view
*Seat: Old, very limited recline, a bit hard to sleep in
*Inflight entertainment: No AVOD, bad picture and sound, few choices
*Food: OK, although not spectacular
*Drinks: Pretty good
*Crew and inflight service: Mixed experiences, some highlights and some lowlights
*Punctuality: Pushback 10 mins before scheduled departure, landing 20 mins ahead of timetable
*Priority service: Priority boarding/separate exit at the gate, priority tag worked well

In other words a rather mixed bag. Would I fly Korean Air again? Probably yes, if I get a flight with proper lie-flat seats and AVOD onboard.
Although as a regular Star Alliance flyer it’s probably not going to happen very soon for that reason.

Moomba

Indeed I was rather surprised to see the mixed bag of carriers you are using on this trip.

How did you ticket this? Is it some kind of RTW ticket or a combination of various tix?

jacob_m

A very nicely priced generic IATA-fare, so any route or airline could be used with unlimited transfers and stopovers.

I looked at everything from including Air Niugini via Port Moresby to Air Calin via Noumea (which would have given me 11 hours in New Caledonia) but finally came up with the current itinerary which I am very happy about.