The timing of this trip was perfect. I work for a big tech company and two days before we'd launched the project I'd spent six months working on and those six months had been one hell of a rollercoaster. Time to disconnect for three weeks in New Zealand, but first, a day on the California coast.
Day one started with a bus ride to DEN and a quick VX flight on to SFO. My CX flight wasn't until midnight, so I booked a flight arriving in SFO around noon and planned to spend the day renting a car and cruising down Skyline Boulevard to Pescadero, then back up Highway 1.
While on the bus to DEN, I noticed in the CX app that my SFO-HKG flight was no longer in first—I was in business class! ExpertFlyer showed that my flight no longer had F at all. I called CX once I cleared security but was on hold for so long I never reached an agent before the door closed. I bought wifi on the flight and messaged both CX and AS on Twitter. AS responded but said there was nothing they could do, CX eventually replied to my tweet a few days later.
There was a voicemail waiting for me from CX stating that I'd been downgraded and would get my miles back plus $390 in compensation.
When I landed at SFO I walked over to the international terminal to talk to the CX agents operating check-in for the earlier flight. Unfortunately I was never able to get past the Swissport contract agents. I tried to get them to reroute me on the LAX flight that night, offering to make my own way down there. EF showed F3 with plenty of J and Y inventory so the flight didn't appear to be oversold. Unfortunately the contract agents weren't much use and refused to help.
So, I gave up and just accepted J—CX F is only worth so much of a fight, honestly. I've flown both products several times and since I would be the difference between a J and F award back from AS, plus cash, I realistically came out ahead on the deal.
Off to Silvercar instead.
I'll admit the Silvercar setup at SFO is pretty awful. Airtrain to a shuttle and then finally to your car. I'm not sure I'd bother with them again at this location.
But at least once you're in the car, things get much better.
Started by cruising down Skyline to Alice's Restaurant, a destination restaurant with a parking lot filled with cool cars and motorcycles, deep in the woods on the peninsula. Great burgers and breakfasts, but admittedly an awful parking situation.
A little slice of Americana.
After a burger and a glass of wine I turned west towards the coast, driving on windy roads through redwood forests and enjoying the fact I'd rented something with a V6.
By mid afternoon the fog started rolling in, just as I was reaching Pescadero.
Pescadero is very much a one-street town, just inland a little bit from the coast. First stop was Duate's Tavern, for a slice of oallieberry pie.
Then across the street to Downtown Local, a super-cool little coffee shop. Part cafe, part museum, part movie theater—there's a tiny room in the back with classic movies on a loop.
A mile or two down the road is Pescadero State Beach. The north end is a sandy beach, south end is mostly rocky outcrops. Good place to sit for a bit.
From there, up the PCH. Stopped at a wine bar in Pacifica for a glass before heading back to SFO. The Silvercar attendant called me an Uber rather than driving me back in the shuttle—works out nicely since you get dropped at the terminal this way instead of the AirTrain station.
Next up: how many CX agents does it take to pay out four hundred bucks?