1. Vancouver to Johannesburg via Lufthansa business class
We did a reasonable search for a good airline to take us on this journey that fell just short of 17,000km. While KLM did look promising, we settled on Lufthansa and promptly purchased our tickets. The Vancouver-Frankfurt flight on both legs was supplied by the 747-400 in a business/premium economy/economy setup. It seems like the 747-400's upper deck has lost its special First Class on the upper deck, at least on this route. We seized this opportunity to sit in the upper deck section on all four flights and reserved our seats online. The upper deck always feels more intimate in the 747, and there's a privacy aspect that makes you feel like you've got a small cabin and crew to yourself.
The check in was easy and after passing through airport security we visited the Air Canada Maple Leaf lounge until our flight boarded. The lounge was pretty adequate though nothing to write home about. Boarding was organized and we ascending the few steps to the upper deck only to be greeted by very friendly crew. Let me just mention that we had sensational crew on all of our flights. They were friendly and professional, and always around to top up our wine or reintroduce the infernal infinite breadbasket. The upper deck has a 2-2 configuration with parallel seats. While this is great for a couple, I suspect it can be quite inconvenient for strangers as there is literally no privacy between the seats. The seats were very comfortable, though not as good as on the 747-8 and the foot section narrows down quite significantly. There is plenty of leg room, and the pillow and blanket provided were plush. Surprisingly, none of our planes had manual air vents and we were at the mercy of Lufthansa climate control, which is notoriously toasty, though we only suffered occasionally during the journey. The amenity kit was standard business class but it's not as good as some of the middle eastern airlines despite the L'Occitane products.
After a quick glass of sparkling wine we were off in an initial western direction that quickly reversed course across Canada and on to Frankfurt. The whole flight was very smooth with almost no turbulence, which I was thoroughly grateful for. Our starting drinks were a glass of red wine that didn't empty no matter how hard I tried (but turned to white after a while), and of course a gin and tonic. It feels a little ridiculous to complain about the peanuts not being warm, but if I don't write it here who could I possibly tell?
Canada remains exceedingly beautiful to fly over in the day, no matter what the season. Luckily we were flying out, as an Arctic chill settled on the country after we left that almost buried it in snow. By the time we returned it had passed and the snow had largely melted in part. After settling at our cruising altitude it was time for lunch.
Starters with bread, and a lovely presentation.
Salad with almond flakes and Parmesan
Beef fillet with mash and side vegetables. It looks messy but it was extremely tasty, as was all the food.
Kingclip and sides were apparently quite good too!
Grand dessert... one of my favourite things on an airline when I can't decide on dessert is when the flight attendants bring both out of their own volition. It always makes it seem like they want you to have a good time onboard and not experience the 'stress' of choice.
After all of this I was thoroughly satiated, but they did return a few moments later with chocolate which I of course ate. We then settled back as the sun went down and watched a few movies before sleeping until dawn. The 747-400 is quite dated and really starting to show its age if you compare it to competitors, though it has a deep nostalgic value to me as I grew up in awe of it and always prized its presence on my itinerary. I noticed that when the flight attendants entered the flight deck there were two security doors, and I'm convinced that this is new and led to a much smaller bathroom that lies behind the cockpit. The bathroom is really much too small and there is no doubt that large people will collide with barriers if they try and turn around in there.
As dawn peaked we were offered a really great breakfast as we flew over Europe and admired the lights of the cities and the bright horizon. After 10 hours and a memorable flight we touched down.
Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of the outbound 747-8 flight to Johannesburg, mostly because it took off quite late that night after a hefty layover. They offered us a first class upgrade for C$5000, which I thought was pretty outrageous for a single leg flight, so we declined. The 747-8 is definitely superior regarding passenger comfort on Lufthansa. The plane is significantly quieter on take-off and probably while cruising too. The cabin has slightly different seats but more space for your feet. There are large containers between your seat and the window and these are big enough to place a backpack in, and are exceptionally convenient. There are also two lavatories, one in the front and back - so overall a better plane to fly on if you have a choice. On this flight we were provided with pyjamas, but not on any of our other legs which was curious. I'm always amused at fleet inconsistencies like how we got mixed nuts on 3 legs and only walnuts on the one. That said, it had been 35h since we left Vancouver and we landed in Johannesburg refreshed and really pleased with the business class experience on Lufthansa.