Every time I read a SFO777 TR, I wonder if, once again, he will select the same dishes and drinks from the menu as I would. And every time, it's always 90% or more identical. Congratulations on having great taste, SFO777 !

Wow - another insane trip. So amused about the tin foil - probably that was to replace the silver dome experience, except for the fact that in J you had to reveal the dish yourself. I am still amazed about the lounge at CDG, and it is no where to compare with TPR at Changi ......I hope with the renovations at Changi they can do a similar experience.

Amazing trip. You should create a side by side photo album and put pics of a Admirals Club vs La Premiere Lounge and mail it to Parker.

May I ask what they charge for the full CDG La Première Ground package?

LOL. Thanks so much 1P. I appreciate it.

Thank you sl00001. I hadn't thought about the tin foil vs. silver dome comparison. All our FA had to do was removed the tin foil and "voila".

Thanks enviroian. I'm just hoping that AA will reopen First Dining in the not too distant future. Not even closet to the LPL but it was a respectable high quality domestic lounge experience.

The full package that we bought was 500€ per person. It is only available by request to recent La Première passengers.

Love it - so true

You think DUI Dougie would care?

Off to Athens

At around 8:20pm. our evening PA escorted us downstairs to our BMW for the ride to our plane.



Paris CDG to Athens ATH
Air France AF 1032
A319
8:45pm-12:55am +1 (sked)
9:30pm-1:15am +1 (actual)
July 3, 2021
Seats 1D and 1F

We are arrived at our plane at 8:25pm or just 20 minutes before departure... or so we thought.







Since our PA had mentioned that the flight was completely full, I was surprised to see not that many pax on board, at T-20.



That was because few had boarded, and it took nearly an hour for the rest to board in a painfully slow boarding process.



Finally, we are under way.









Like we needed another meal. LOL.







On approach, my Greece QR code finally arrived. DFW-CK got a big V, while I got an ominously different big T. Little did I know the fun that was in store for those of us with a big T.



Oh joy, a bus gate. Fortunately, the first bus was for Business Class only.







So we left with just 14 on board.



And arrived at the terminal a few minutes later. We followed the arrows and rope lines to show our QR code and a quick exit, or not.



Except for me and a few others that got the big T, which I discovered means Test as in random Covid Test on Arrival. Despite being vaccinating and have three negative tests in the past 2 days, I was "randomly" pulled aside for a swab up the nose test. Ten minutes later, we were out, hoping that they don't run the tests quickly and I get a false positive. Sheesh.



And just before 2am, welcome to Athens. LOL.





And our home for the next 2 1/2 hours since our ATH-FRA departs at 7am. We mused that we should have inquired about hourly rates. LOL.



The Sofitel Athens Airport Hotel is excellent choice for a convenient overnight airport stay, less than 100 metres across the street from the terminal.







Nice room even it is was only for another two hours or so.

And back home... our day witth Lufthansa First Class

Not wanting an extended stay in Athens, we both set multiple alarms and then called each other at 4:15am. Then met in the lobby at 4:45am and headed across to check-in.



Oh my, TMI at this or any hour of the day. If you dare, the actual pic is at SFO777.com.





Off to Lufthansa counter to check-in. The main reason for choosing Athens as our turnaround point was that it is one of the best EU gateways for attractive LH and LX First Class fares to the US. Roundtrip fares are in the US$4,500 range (or 300,000 Amex MR points) for ATH-FRA-ORD-DEN/DFW-SFO-ZRH-ATH. And with the current LH/LX double EQM promotion, the roundtrip will get me Miles & More SEN (Star Alliance Gold) status for more than two years and the ability to book LX First (and LH) award seats up to 330 days out.



After check-in, off to security where there was no wait.







After a long walk thru Duty Free and by other shops, our First stop was the Lufthansa Business Lounge.



Small but attractive.







With a nice selection of food and beverage.





Star Alliance partner Aegean has a more spacious lounge next door. After checking it out, we moved over.













One more goodie bag from yesterday.







Our gate B29 which was pretty much below the lounge, so we headed down the nearby escalator around 6:20am, some 40 minutes before departure,



Athens ATH-Frankfurt FRA
Lufthansa LH 1285
A321 Neo
7:00am-9:00am
July 4, 2021
Seats 1D and 1F

Like AF, LH has separate bus for Business Class pax which pulled away at 6:30am.







Great idea in theory, except the crew wasn't ready for us to board. That and our driver parked our bus by the back door.



While we waited and waited. And waited so long that the 2nd bus with Economy pax arrived and parked behind us... by the front door. But of course.



Once the all clear was given, predictable chaos as both bus doors opened at the same time.













Since we were in bulkhead seats and other Business Class pax had boarded, nearby overhead space was impossible, especially with a crew bag on the A/C side.



And another crew bag on our D/F side, with crew stupid enough to have their baggage tag showing.







Gorgeous morning along the coast.



Once in the air, our "we're taking your overhead bin space" cabin crew provided excellent service.











Once unwrapped, a substantial and delicious breakfast.





Nice view of Frankfurt on approach, with an Emirates A380 landing on another runway.









We pulled into our A gate (A29) at just after 9am, and headed for the Lufthansa First Class Lounge at Gate A13.

I remember the 2 lounges in Athens. The LH lounge was so crowded we did the same you did.

Fabulous trip report so far, SFO777! Thanks for taking the time to post it here. Looking forward to reading the LH F segments next.

Pleasantly surprised to see Bruno Paillard - one of my favorite Champagne houses - featured in the CDG La Première Lounge.

-FlyerBeek

Great report. Funny to see your post about the bus waiting to board then to have the Y bus pull up to the front. Reminds me of my recent post on a similar subject.

Thanks so much FlyerBeek. The Bruno Paillard is one of my faves as well.

Thank you enviroian. It wasn't funny at the time, but it was pretty comical... now that it's over.

Lufthansa First Class Lounge at A13

We arrived from Athens on time at Gate A29 leaving us an hour and 45 minutes connection, enough time to visit the newly reopened First Class Lounge. As Lufthansa painfully and slowly reopens for First Class passengers and its own frequent flyers (HONs and SENs), they have not reopened the The First Class Terminal. Nor have they brought back lounge to gate private car service that makes FRA bearable. From our gate, it was a brisk 10 minute walk thru one of the ugliest terminals in Europe.



Nice to see it open but... this place was rather depressing... sterile and spartan.













Depressingly empty.







On the other hand, unlike a few weeks ago, at least Lufthansa is now serving something, albeit from an a la carte menu.





Excellent service from our waiit staffer and delicious breakfast offerings.

Lufthansa First Class to Chicago

The FCL dragon suggested leaving 45 minutes before departure. We wisely left at T-65. Not so much because of passport control or the long walk to Z62, but the Lounge dragon forgot to mention the chaotic and stupid “Medical Check”, where we had to show our PCR test for the 4th e**ing time today. Making it worse was that First Class passengers were lumped in with Business and Star Alliance Gold in a single slow moving lane manned by an idiot. The only lane that moved was the one for close in departures, which we finally convinced an agent to let us use.



Not that it got any better at the gate, where it was a free-for-all with gate agents boarding the usual nonsensical cadre of those that need more time (dozens and dozens of seminally able body Y pax), pax with children, blah, blah. Gate agent finally let us board when I complained about First Class having to wait and not getting any priority at all.



Frankfurt FRA to Chicago ORD
Lufthansa LH 430
747-8
10:45a-1:00p (sked)
11:00a-12:15p (actual)
July 4, 2021
First Class Seat 2A
Departed 7/8



And finally, back in one of the nicest cabins in the sky.











Our First Class flight attendant was surprisingly American (or at least Americanized).... cheerful, indeed bubbly but not very polished. Definitely the B team.





Meh.



Ms. Bubbly then asked about a pre departure beverage selection. I asked for champagne and received an unknown champagne poured in the galley and delivered to my seat. When I inquired, she couldn't even identify what it was. She went to the galley to check but "my colleague had put the bottle away". Seriously? Typically, the pre-departure spread is placed here in between 2A and 2K. Today? Nothing. And no standard pre-departure macadamia nuts.



A far cry from the Covid-era spread on our LAX-FRA flight last September. Lazy or challenged or both?



Today's menu...







And the wine list. Other than the champagnes, this was pretty pathetic.



Very nice on paper, but sadly not even close to what was actually loaded and served.







My unknown champagne.





As is normal prior to departure, the Purser made the rounds of the First Class cabin to greet everyone. He made the mistake of asking me how I was doing today. So I told him... happy to be on board and away from the chaos that is FRA. I recited the litany of Lufthansa’s ground flaws and that Lufthansa should be embarrassed by what it calls First Class on the ground at FRA. I then compared Lufthansa to spectacular Air France which never cut First Class service, in the air or on the ground. Also let him know that I knew a number of formerly loyal Lufthansa First passengers that have moved to Air France and are not coming back. Not sure whether he was more shocked at these failures or that a First Class pax would be so bold as to rip his employer a new one to his face.





Once in the air, pleasant but unpolished service continued. And at times, comical. I asked for another glass of champagne, specifically Laurent-Perrier Rosé. Ms. Bubbly came back a few minutes later to tell me that they don't have any rosé today. When I pointed to the Laurent Perrier Alexandra Rosé, the lights came on. Oh, rosé champagne. Off she went back to the galley only to return to apologize that catering didn't load that today. She did bring back an unopened bottle of Lanson to show me. I asked for the Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle, although I have no idea what I was drinking as she poured it in galley and brought the glass to me. I'm suspecting that it was not LPGC as it was not what I recall and not very good.



I didn't even finish it and went straight to G&Ts. The Schoss Gin was quite good. Major demerits for no lemon or lime slices. Ms. Bubbly blamed Covid for not allowing LH to serve lemon or lime, although miracuously lemons and limes showed up later.



Showtime, Lufthansa First style.



Lufthansa's garlic bread and pretzels are always good.



I passed on caviar and went for the starter trio, none of which were very good. The beef pastrami was the best of a bad lot.



The Cream of Asparagus Soup was way too salty and I gave up after a couple of spoons.



On the other hand, my Veal Schnitzel was quite good. Not as good as the First Class Terminal version (when it was open) but enjoyable. And look, a lemon!



By this time, meal service had dragged on for nearly two hours. With little sleep last night, I'd hit the wall, and passed on cheese or dessert and opted for bed... and slept great for more than 4 hours.



About 90 minutes out, my Pulled Turkey Burger was excellent, wiith onion balsamic jam and coleslaw. The Beetroot chips were a little weird though. And what do you know, a beautiful lime wedge.



Nice views of Chicago on approach.





Wrigley Field.



We pulled into M16 some 45 minutes ahead of schedule, with plenty of time to get over to Terminal 1 and our connecting United flights.



Since only 2L was used, we had a chance to see that Business Class cabin on our way out. Yeah, 2-2-2 J seating is really competitive.