OZ-UK VS J, CX F, QF F A380 pics, long
Sep 4, 2011, 2:04 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Programs: UA - 1K, DL - Platinum Medallion, QF - LTS, Hilton - Diamond, Bonvoy - Gold, IHG - Gold
Posts: 112
OZ-UK VS J, CX F, QF F A380 pics, long
Hi All,
Welcome to my second TR for this year, where again, my partner and I find ourselves heading back to the UK. Similar to our last trip in January, (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...lots-pics.html) the key purpose for bringing us back twice in one year was for a close friend’s wedding.
In July last year, my best friend in the UK sent me a message to advise her exciting news, that she was engaged and getting married the following year (2011). Of course my partner (Russ) and I were both thrilled for our friends and thought it would be a great reason to come back to UK having not been for 18 months or so. We didn’t know at that point we’d have completed another trip to the UK/Europe for another friend’s wedding, earlier in the year. Not to worry, if we had to go to the UK again, we decided for once we’d actually have a UK holiday, instead of just flying in and out again.
Our itinerary unfolded after discussion with family and close friends, and we decided to spend a couple of days in the Midlands to see family and friends, then up to Darlington for the wedding, then over to the Lake District for a week of relaxing with some friends.
Given that this trip fell immediately after our 10th anniversary, I decided to make it a memorable one, and got searching for the best flight options. As I had a fairly sizeable miles balance with QF, and some leftovers from VS, I decided to use the VS miles to get us a one-way to HKG in Upper Class, then us QF miles to get us from HKG-LHR on CX in their amazing First Class. This then left just the return portion to secure. After a little bit of research, I managed to find 2 First Class seats on the A380 QF (sold under the BA codeshare) for an absolute steal, so I snapped them up. I had managed to keep the fact that that we were flying in First a surprise until we arrived at check-in for the CX flight. (I like arranging surprises!!)
The itinerary was sorted
SYD-HKG VS J
HKG-LHR CX F
LHR-SIN QF F
SIN-SYD QF F
Then I had to get the hotels sorted out. There was a few to arrange to due overnight stops at HKG, and LHR both ways, plus 3 main destinations enroute. Tripadvisor.com came in very handy for this part. I had already decided on the Langham in HKG as I love it, but as we were looking for more B&B style in the UK, I sought out some recommendations. All of which turned out to be extremely good choices. While I finalised the flights about 5 months in advance, I only finished sorting out the hotels a couple of weeks before departure, and then finally after my usual (painstaking according to my friends) countdown, it was time to go.
On departure day, we woke early, which is normal, but I still get all excited like a kid when I’m going on holiday. I was a little more excited that usual this time, due to all the surprises I had in stall for Russ. Now I’m not someone who normally cuts things too fine, but by 10am that morning (leaving home at 12 midday) I hadn’t even started packing. What? It’s only 2 weeks worth of clothes, plus suits for a wedding. No worries.. Packing was interrupted when our friend cam round to visit so we could duly instruct her of her duties as chief cat/house sitter for the duration of our holiday. Eventually, I did finish packing, and 3 fat suitcases later we were heading out the door. At exactly midday my driver called to say he was outside, and off we went.
Like every time I leave Sydney, it was a gorgeous sunny day, and Russ and I sat back an enjoyed the ride to the airport. 30 Minutes later we were there, and heading to check-in.
It had been a few years since we’d flown VS (I used to work there in the UK), and we were looking forward to being on a beautiful A346 again. This would later turn out to be the flight that turned us of VS forever.
There was no queue for check-in, so we wandered straight up to the counter, where a rather surly young girl checked us in. Not a good start. When I’m going on holiday, I like to be greeted at the airport by someone who can at least smile, as I’m in a good mood, and want to stay that way. We were handed our documents and lounge invite, and headed through to Fast track security. Thank goodness for Fast track as passport control was really busy, but we got through in a jiffy. It’s a long old walk to the Air NZ lounge, but we found it and settled in for a relaxing wait.
The Air New Zealand lounge is a great lounge. Spacious, clean, bright, and a reasonable stock of interesting food and drink. Qantas First it is not, but it beats the pants of the Qantas Business Lounge by a country mile. We indulged in the obligatory pre flight bubbles, and sampled the food on offer. Hot Dogs are yum!!
Two UA 744s waiting their departures to LAX and SFO
Eventually, the flight was called, and we headed down to the gate, which was only a minute or so walk.
13/8/2011
VS201
SYD-HKG
STD 14:25
ATD 14:16
STA 21:55
ATA 21:44
Seats: 12K/14K
Aircraft – A340-600
At the gate, my surly check-in girl was waiting (still without a smile on her face). Upon boarding we were directed to our seats, and settled in.
A crew member came along and asked if we’d like a pre-takeoff drink, we of course opted for Champagne. Looking around the cabin, you can really see that the Upper Class cabin is in need of an upgrade. The product is now over 7 years old, and this aircraft, although one of the newer in the fleet, was looking a bit tired.
Upper Class cabin
Me with my preflight champagne
Russ with his.
Doors closed, and we pushed back early, and started our long taxi to the end of runway 34L. After a long takeoff roll, we lifted into the Sydney sky, and got some great views of the City.
Initially the flight was a little turbulent, and the seatbelt sign stayed on for absolutely ages (over 40 minutes). The poor woman next to us had 3 kids busting for the loo, and was pleading to get up and take them. The crew turned a blind eye in the end rather than have to deal with the kids potentially going in their seats.
After the seatbelt sign went off, the crew started the service, and this is where things started to go wrong. I don’t know what has happened, or if we just had a dud crew, but they appeared to want to be anywhere other than on this flight. Drink orders were eventually taken, but took a while to be delivered, and then ordered were taken for Dinner. The menu actually looked pretty good, and choosing was difficult. I did attempt to enlist the advice of the crew member looking after us, but he was not really interested.
Menu below
We both opted for the pumpkin soup, which was nice, although barely luke warm. The for mains I chose the lasagne, which was bland and Russ had the Dory. Apologies no pics of mains… forgot.. Dessert saw me devour the strawberry cheesecake and Russ had the Chocolate Pie
Table set for diner
Luke warm soup
Dessert
Eventually plates were cleared away, and then the crew basically disappeared. Russ and I went to the bar for a bit to have a quiet drink before a nap, and the bar was not manned. Someone came along and fixed us a drink and then disappeared again.
A little while after we headed back to our seats and Russ began feeling very unwell. The only thing we could think of was the his meal had made him sick. He got worse and worse to the point I was getting worried, the crew were completely disinterested in him. In fact, one of the crew actually suggested to me that he was ill due to too much alcohol!! I found that to be completely inappropriate given the limited consumption both of us had had. Anyway, eventually after ridding his system of the offending food, Russ began to feel better, and we ordered some tea and a sandwich each. It was close to landing now, so I went back to my suite and sat out the end of the flight.
All in all, we were both extremely disappointed with this flight. The product has seen better days, though was still comfortable enough for a 9 hour leg. The crew, however, were unforgivably lazy, and at times downright rude. The food, well I’ve eaten more interesting frozen “Lean Cuisines”!! I’m afraid that is likely to be the last time either of us step foot on VS.
To finish on a positive, at least the baggage came out quickly, and we were on the airport express within 30 mins of landing.
Airport Express in HKG
The ride to our hotel went by in no time, and we arrived at the Langham, and were greeted by that famous Langham scent, and a very friendly receptionist who checked us in and kindly informed us that we’d been upgraded to a suite!.. Sweet ☺ This was a surprise for both of us, as I was not expecting this. The suite was amazing, and really made us wish we were staying longer than 1 night.
The Langham Hong Kong
Due to the late hour of our arrival, we didn’t really get to do too much. A quick wander round Tsim Sha Tsui in the evening, and then to bed
Nathan Road
Continued ………
Welcome to my second TR for this year, where again, my partner and I find ourselves heading back to the UK. Similar to our last trip in January, (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...lots-pics.html) the key purpose for bringing us back twice in one year was for a close friend’s wedding.
In July last year, my best friend in the UK sent me a message to advise her exciting news, that she was engaged and getting married the following year (2011). Of course my partner (Russ) and I were both thrilled for our friends and thought it would be a great reason to come back to UK having not been for 18 months or so. We didn’t know at that point we’d have completed another trip to the UK/Europe for another friend’s wedding, earlier in the year. Not to worry, if we had to go to the UK again, we decided for once we’d actually have a UK holiday, instead of just flying in and out again.
Our itinerary unfolded after discussion with family and close friends, and we decided to spend a couple of days in the Midlands to see family and friends, then up to Darlington for the wedding, then over to the Lake District for a week of relaxing with some friends.
Given that this trip fell immediately after our 10th anniversary, I decided to make it a memorable one, and got searching for the best flight options. As I had a fairly sizeable miles balance with QF, and some leftovers from VS, I decided to use the VS miles to get us a one-way to HKG in Upper Class, then us QF miles to get us from HKG-LHR on CX in their amazing First Class. This then left just the return portion to secure. After a little bit of research, I managed to find 2 First Class seats on the A380 QF (sold under the BA codeshare) for an absolute steal, so I snapped them up. I had managed to keep the fact that that we were flying in First a surprise until we arrived at check-in for the CX flight. (I like arranging surprises!!)
The itinerary was sorted
SYD-HKG VS J
HKG-LHR CX F
LHR-SIN QF F
SIN-SYD QF F
Then I had to get the hotels sorted out. There was a few to arrange to due overnight stops at HKG, and LHR both ways, plus 3 main destinations enroute. Tripadvisor.com came in very handy for this part. I had already decided on the Langham in HKG as I love it, but as we were looking for more B&B style in the UK, I sought out some recommendations. All of which turned out to be extremely good choices. While I finalised the flights about 5 months in advance, I only finished sorting out the hotels a couple of weeks before departure, and then finally after my usual (painstaking according to my friends) countdown, it was time to go.
On departure day, we woke early, which is normal, but I still get all excited like a kid when I’m going on holiday. I was a little more excited that usual this time, due to all the surprises I had in stall for Russ. Now I’m not someone who normally cuts things too fine, but by 10am that morning (leaving home at 12 midday) I hadn’t even started packing. What? It’s only 2 weeks worth of clothes, plus suits for a wedding. No worries.. Packing was interrupted when our friend cam round to visit so we could duly instruct her of her duties as chief cat/house sitter for the duration of our holiday. Eventually, I did finish packing, and 3 fat suitcases later we were heading out the door. At exactly midday my driver called to say he was outside, and off we went.
Like every time I leave Sydney, it was a gorgeous sunny day, and Russ and I sat back an enjoyed the ride to the airport. 30 Minutes later we were there, and heading to check-in.
It had been a few years since we’d flown VS (I used to work there in the UK), and we were looking forward to being on a beautiful A346 again. This would later turn out to be the flight that turned us of VS forever.
There was no queue for check-in, so we wandered straight up to the counter, where a rather surly young girl checked us in. Not a good start. When I’m going on holiday, I like to be greeted at the airport by someone who can at least smile, as I’m in a good mood, and want to stay that way. We were handed our documents and lounge invite, and headed through to Fast track security. Thank goodness for Fast track as passport control was really busy, but we got through in a jiffy. It’s a long old walk to the Air NZ lounge, but we found it and settled in for a relaxing wait.
The Air New Zealand lounge is a great lounge. Spacious, clean, bright, and a reasonable stock of interesting food and drink. Qantas First it is not, but it beats the pants of the Qantas Business Lounge by a country mile. We indulged in the obligatory pre flight bubbles, and sampled the food on offer. Hot Dogs are yum!!
Two UA 744s waiting their departures to LAX and SFO
Eventually, the flight was called, and we headed down to the gate, which was only a minute or so walk.
13/8/2011
VS201
SYD-HKG
STD 14:25
ATD 14:16
STA 21:55
ATA 21:44
Seats: 12K/14K
Aircraft – A340-600
At the gate, my surly check-in girl was waiting (still without a smile on her face). Upon boarding we were directed to our seats, and settled in.
A crew member came along and asked if we’d like a pre-takeoff drink, we of course opted for Champagne. Looking around the cabin, you can really see that the Upper Class cabin is in need of an upgrade. The product is now over 7 years old, and this aircraft, although one of the newer in the fleet, was looking a bit tired.
Upper Class cabin
Me with my preflight champagne
Russ with his.
Doors closed, and we pushed back early, and started our long taxi to the end of runway 34L. After a long takeoff roll, we lifted into the Sydney sky, and got some great views of the City.
Initially the flight was a little turbulent, and the seatbelt sign stayed on for absolutely ages (over 40 minutes). The poor woman next to us had 3 kids busting for the loo, and was pleading to get up and take them. The crew turned a blind eye in the end rather than have to deal with the kids potentially going in their seats.
After the seatbelt sign went off, the crew started the service, and this is where things started to go wrong. I don’t know what has happened, or if we just had a dud crew, but they appeared to want to be anywhere other than on this flight. Drink orders were eventually taken, but took a while to be delivered, and then ordered were taken for Dinner. The menu actually looked pretty good, and choosing was difficult. I did attempt to enlist the advice of the crew member looking after us, but he was not really interested.
Menu below
We both opted for the pumpkin soup, which was nice, although barely luke warm. The for mains I chose the lasagne, which was bland and Russ had the Dory. Apologies no pics of mains… forgot.. Dessert saw me devour the strawberry cheesecake and Russ had the Chocolate Pie
Table set for diner
Luke warm soup
Dessert
Eventually plates were cleared away, and then the crew basically disappeared. Russ and I went to the bar for a bit to have a quiet drink before a nap, and the bar was not manned. Someone came along and fixed us a drink and then disappeared again.
A little while after we headed back to our seats and Russ began feeling very unwell. The only thing we could think of was the his meal had made him sick. He got worse and worse to the point I was getting worried, the crew were completely disinterested in him. In fact, one of the crew actually suggested to me that he was ill due to too much alcohol!! I found that to be completely inappropriate given the limited consumption both of us had had. Anyway, eventually after ridding his system of the offending food, Russ began to feel better, and we ordered some tea and a sandwich each. It was close to landing now, so I went back to my suite and sat out the end of the flight.
All in all, we were both extremely disappointed with this flight. The product has seen better days, though was still comfortable enough for a 9 hour leg. The crew, however, were unforgivably lazy, and at times downright rude. The food, well I’ve eaten more interesting frozen “Lean Cuisines”!! I’m afraid that is likely to be the last time either of us step foot on VS.
To finish on a positive, at least the baggage came out quickly, and we were on the airport express within 30 mins of landing.
Airport Express in HKG
The ride to our hotel went by in no time, and we arrived at the Langham, and were greeted by that famous Langham scent, and a very friendly receptionist who checked us in and kindly informed us that we’d been upgraded to a suite!.. Sweet ☺ This was a surprise for both of us, as I was not expecting this. The suite was amazing, and really made us wish we were staying longer than 1 night.
The Langham Hong Kong
Due to the late hour of our arrival, we didn’t really get to do too much. A quick wander round Tsim Sha Tsui in the evening, and then to bed
Nathan Road
Continued ………
Sep 4, 2011, 2:05 am
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Programs: UA - 1K, DL - Platinum Medallion, QF - LTS, Hilton - Diamond, Bonvoy - Gold, IHG - Gold
Posts: 112
After a very restful sleep in a very comfortable bed, we enjoyed a very leisurely breakfast at the hotel, and took in a quick spot of shopping at the Ocean Terminal and Harbour City shopping centres. We didn’t mean to buy anything, but as we’d found an American Eagle store, it seemed silly not to have a look. Time was now not on our side, so a couple of bags of shopping in tow, we headed back to our room to repack, and check out.
Surprise number one, was that I’d arranged a limo transfer to the airport from The Langham. This was a great way to travel. The driver, and the porters whisked our luggage off our hands, and then another hotel porter came over with a tray of drinks for us to choose from. Nice.
The journey took only 30 mins or so, and we arrived at Hong Kong’s Chek Lap Kok Airport
Inside HKIA
We wandered straight up to the Cathay First Class check-in podiums. Now as QF Platinums, we could have done this regardless of travel, so Russ did not twig at this point. A CX porter came along and took our bags away, while a very friendly check-in hostess process us. She confirmed our pre-allocated seats 1A and 1K, and still Russ didn’t twig. The hostess handed me the boarding cards and I turned to Russ and said, “By the way, I’ve booked us in First Class “. Well then he was excited, and so was I. This was going to be a great flight.
Security was painless, but passport control was typically busy, so we waited a while to go through. Afterwards, we headed straight to The Wing First Class lounge. This is a lovely lounge, but I have to honest, I was a little underwhelmed, as I expected something a lot more akin to the QF First Lounge. Anyway, we had a bite to eat and relaxed for a while with a cuppa. Russ took some great shots for me (I’m not a great photographer, so I need to credit his artistic nature)
Lunch in the First Dining Room
I checked with the lounge hosts, and they advised the gate was 15 minute walk, so we decided to take a slow walk to the gate, even though boarding had not been announced. On arrival at the gate boarding was in full swing, and we wandered straight up to the First Class queue (I love doing that ☺) our passports and boarding cards were checked and we were bid a good flight. (Take note VS – that’s how you deal with passengers)
CX253
HKG-LHR
STD 14:40
ATD 14:39
STA 20:30
ATA 20:24
Seats: 1A/1K
Aircraft – B747-400
At the aircraft door, we were greeted by the Senior Purser, and escorted to our suites. First impressions of the F cabin.. WOW.
View from 1A
Legroom in 1A
Each of the 3 flight attendants looking after the F cabin today (which had only 4 pax) came to introduce themselves to us. Pyjamas and amenity kits were delivered, and pre-takeoff drinks were offered. Of course, champagne was our choice. What? It’s Krug… The FA returned to our seats with 2 empty glasses and said she’d return in a moment with the champagne. Our glasses were then filled, and top ups offered
Enjoying my home for the next 13 hours.
Russ getting cozy
We pushed back, and had a reasonably short taxi to the runway (compared to what I’m used to at HKG). We headed for Runway 25L. Managed to get some good shots on the way (again, thanks Russ)
ANA’s beautiful new 787 on takeoff roll
Takeoff was smooth, but we did have a few bumps climbing out over HKG, though I find that to be fairly normal. After the seatbelt sign went off the crew sprung into action to prepare for the lunch service. I will say at this point, they were simply amazing. Every fine detail was attended to, and they could not have been more engaging, or more helpful. The menu for this flight is below
Surprise number one, was that I’d arranged a limo transfer to the airport from The Langham. This was a great way to travel. The driver, and the porters whisked our luggage off our hands, and then another hotel porter came over with a tray of drinks for us to choose from. Nice.
The journey took only 30 mins or so, and we arrived at Hong Kong’s Chek Lap Kok Airport
Inside HKIA
We wandered straight up to the Cathay First Class check-in podiums. Now as QF Platinums, we could have done this regardless of travel, so Russ did not twig at this point. A CX porter came along and took our bags away, while a very friendly check-in hostess process us. She confirmed our pre-allocated seats 1A and 1K, and still Russ didn’t twig. The hostess handed me the boarding cards and I turned to Russ and said, “By the way, I’ve booked us in First Class “. Well then he was excited, and so was I. This was going to be a great flight.
Security was painless, but passport control was typically busy, so we waited a while to go through. Afterwards, we headed straight to The Wing First Class lounge. This is a lovely lounge, but I have to honest, I was a little underwhelmed, as I expected something a lot more akin to the QF First Lounge. Anyway, we had a bite to eat and relaxed for a while with a cuppa. Russ took some great shots for me (I’m not a great photographer, so I need to credit his artistic nature)
Lunch in the First Dining Room
I checked with the lounge hosts, and they advised the gate was 15 minute walk, so we decided to take a slow walk to the gate, even though boarding had not been announced. On arrival at the gate boarding was in full swing, and we wandered straight up to the First Class queue (I love doing that ☺) our passports and boarding cards were checked and we were bid a good flight. (Take note VS – that’s how you deal with passengers)
CX253
HKG-LHR
STD 14:40
ATD 14:39
STA 20:30
ATA 20:24
Seats: 1A/1K
Aircraft – B747-400
At the aircraft door, we were greeted by the Senior Purser, and escorted to our suites. First impressions of the F cabin.. WOW.
View from 1A
Legroom in 1A
Each of the 3 flight attendants looking after the F cabin today (which had only 4 pax) came to introduce themselves to us. Pyjamas and amenity kits were delivered, and pre-takeoff drinks were offered. Of course, champagne was our choice. What? It’s Krug… The FA returned to our seats with 2 empty glasses and said she’d return in a moment with the champagne. Our glasses were then filled, and top ups offered
Enjoying my home for the next 13 hours.
Russ getting cozy
We pushed back, and had a reasonably short taxi to the runway (compared to what I’m used to at HKG). We headed for Runway 25L. Managed to get some good shots on the way (again, thanks Russ)
ANA’s beautiful new 787 on takeoff roll
Takeoff was smooth, but we did have a few bumps climbing out over HKG, though I find that to be fairly normal. After the seatbelt sign went off the crew sprung into action to prepare for the lunch service. I will say at this point, they were simply amazing. Every fine detail was attended to, and they could not have been more engaging, or more helpful. The menu for this flight is below
Sep 4, 2011, 2:06 am
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Programs: UA - 1K, DL - Platinum Medallion, QF - LTS, Hilton - Diamond, Bonvoy - Gold, IHG - Gold
Posts: 112
I’ll keep word short now, and let the pictures do the talking. All of the food was of restaurant quality, and by the end of lunch, both Russ and I were totally full.
Caviar – I really enjoyed this, even though I didn’t expect to
After such a feast, we were both feeling sleepy, so we changed into our PJs and had a nap.
Very comfy
I fell asleep on top of the covers, and then half awoke to find one of the FAs tucking me in. I felt very special. A few hours of sleep, and I was wide awake, so I started watching “The Inbetweeners”. If you haven’t seen this show, watch it. VERY funny. I was laughing out loud a lot. I was nearly finished watching the series when I was approach by the purser to see if wanted dinner. Amazingly, I was hungry again so I ordered the chicken stir fry, Russ had the pork belly. Another delicious meal, which we both washed down with yet another pot of tea.
The captain announced we’d be landing soon, and the crew started to ready the cabin. Our dinner was cleaned up, and we were asked if there was anything else we needed. We were all good, and thanked the crew members for their wonderful service.
It was still daylight outside, and there was some great views over London
We touched down a few minutes early and headed towards T3. We weren’t able to park on stand immediately as there was another CX bird at the gate, but within a few minutes it was pushing back, and we moved in.
As we disembarked we thanked all of the crew again, and commenced the long walk through to arrivals. T3 arrivals is hideous, always was, and by the look of it always will be. There were queues for mile for both UK/European passports, and Other passports. Despite having a number of E-gates installed, a rather officious immigration officer advised us we couldn’t use them as they were closed, and we had to join the queue. What a lovely welcome it always is coming through immigration in T3. Finally we got through, and collected our bags, and jumped in a taxi to take us to the Sheraton Skyline for our overnight stay.
During the 2 weeks we were away, we took in the Midlands, to see family and friends, headed up to Darlington in the north-east for a wedding, and then finished up with a week in the Lake District. Despite covering over 1100 miles (1770km), it really was a relaxing two weeks, and I still had one more surprise in stall for our trip home.
We overnighted at LHR after the long drive from the Lakes, and stayed at the Sheraton Heathrow, mainly as this was where our rental car came from. Warning, this place is not great. If you’re staying at LHR, and want a Starwood property, use the Skyline up the road. It’s much nicer.
Caviar – I really enjoyed this, even though I didn’t expect to
After such a feast, we were both feeling sleepy, so we changed into our PJs and had a nap.
Very comfy
I fell asleep on top of the covers, and then half awoke to find one of the FAs tucking me in. I felt very special. A few hours of sleep, and I was wide awake, so I started watching “The Inbetweeners”. If you haven’t seen this show, watch it. VERY funny. I was laughing out loud a lot. I was nearly finished watching the series when I was approach by the purser to see if wanted dinner. Amazingly, I was hungry again so I ordered the chicken stir fry, Russ had the pork belly. Another delicious meal, which we both washed down with yet another pot of tea.
The captain announced we’d be landing soon, and the crew started to ready the cabin. Our dinner was cleaned up, and we were asked if there was anything else we needed. We were all good, and thanked the crew members for their wonderful service.
It was still daylight outside, and there was some great views over London
We touched down a few minutes early and headed towards T3. We weren’t able to park on stand immediately as there was another CX bird at the gate, but within a few minutes it was pushing back, and we moved in.
As we disembarked we thanked all of the crew again, and commenced the long walk through to arrivals. T3 arrivals is hideous, always was, and by the look of it always will be. There were queues for mile for both UK/European passports, and Other passports. Despite having a number of E-gates installed, a rather officious immigration officer advised us we couldn’t use them as they were closed, and we had to join the queue. What a lovely welcome it always is coming through immigration in T3. Finally we got through, and collected our bags, and jumped in a taxi to take us to the Sheraton Skyline for our overnight stay.
During the 2 weeks we were away, we took in the Midlands, to see family and friends, headed up to Darlington in the north-east for a wedding, and then finished up with a week in the Lake District. Despite covering over 1100 miles (1770km), it really was a relaxing two weeks, and I still had one more surprise in stall for our trip home.
We overnighted at LHR after the long drive from the Lakes, and stayed at the Sheraton Heathrow, mainly as this was where our rental car came from. Warning, this place is not great. If you’re staying at LHR, and want a Starwood property, use the Skyline up the road. It’s much nicer.
Sep 4, 2011, 2:09 am
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Programs: UA - 1K, DL - Platinum Medallion, QF - LTS, Hilton - Diamond, Bonvoy - Gold, IHG - Gold
Posts: 112
We used the Heathrow Hoppa bus to take us to Terminal 3, and arrived about 8:45am. We headed straight to check-in Zone G.
Check-in was quick and painless, and again, Russ didn’t realise until I handed him his boarding card, that we were flying in First. Damn I’m good at surprises..
A quick trip to Boots the chemist followed, and then we breezed through security.
We did visit the BA Galleries First lounge, and had some breakfast in the dining room. We were also fortunate enough to both book in for a treatment at the Elemis Spa, which was very nice. I didn’t take any pictures of the lounge this time around, as it hadn’t changed since our last visit in January. It really is a great lounge, and a nice way to relax before a flight.
QF32
LHR-SIN
STD 12:05
ATD 12:10
STA 08:05
ATA 08:11
Seats: 2K/3K
Aircraft - A380-800
At 11:25 we headed to the gate where boarding was well under way.
Not a great pic, but this was our ride home. VH-OQJ
We headed through door C and were greeted at the door by a very pleasant crew member who showed us to our seats 2K and 3K.
Almost instantly we were offered pre-takeoff drinks and the delightful crew member returned with the empty glasses, and a bottle of Tattinger. We settled in, and enjoyed our drinks, and got acquainted with some of our fellow F passengers. This is not something I’ve seen happen before, but the 2 gentlemen across the aisle were both quite talkative, so we all chatted for a while until it was time to put our seatbelts on, and pushback.
We pushed back slightly late, and as you can watch the whole thing in Skycam, I noticed the SQ388 next to us pushed back at the same time.
The taxi to Runway 27R wasn’t too long, but the taxiways were congested, and we were about 8th in the queue. I did take a few shots out of the window, apologies for the poor quality
Takeoff was very smooth, and we were airborne and heading home
Qantas First Class service on the A380 was equally as good as that we had experienced on CX a couple of weeks earlier. Before the first drinks, I took a couple of cabin shots
The service starts with drinks and canapés. We both opted for more champagne, and enjoyed the interesting canapés
After this, I moved to Russ’s suite so that we could dine together.
The menu was extensive and made it difficult for us to choose.
Funnily enough, we both ended up choosing the same thing
Soup to start
Beef for mains
Vanilla tart for dessert
Check-in was quick and painless, and again, Russ didn’t realise until I handed him his boarding card, that we were flying in First. Damn I’m good at surprises..
A quick trip to Boots the chemist followed, and then we breezed through security.
We did visit the BA Galleries First lounge, and had some breakfast in the dining room. We were also fortunate enough to both book in for a treatment at the Elemis Spa, which was very nice. I didn’t take any pictures of the lounge this time around, as it hadn’t changed since our last visit in January. It really is a great lounge, and a nice way to relax before a flight.
QF32
LHR-SIN
STD 12:05
ATD 12:10
STA 08:05
ATA 08:11
Seats: 2K/3K
Aircraft - A380-800
At 11:25 we headed to the gate where boarding was well under way.
Not a great pic, but this was our ride home. VH-OQJ
We headed through door C and were greeted at the door by a very pleasant crew member who showed us to our seats 2K and 3K.
Almost instantly we were offered pre-takeoff drinks and the delightful crew member returned with the empty glasses, and a bottle of Tattinger. We settled in, and enjoyed our drinks, and got acquainted with some of our fellow F passengers. This is not something I’ve seen happen before, but the 2 gentlemen across the aisle were both quite talkative, so we all chatted for a while until it was time to put our seatbelts on, and pushback.
We pushed back slightly late, and as you can watch the whole thing in Skycam, I noticed the SQ388 next to us pushed back at the same time.
The taxi to Runway 27R wasn’t too long, but the taxiways were congested, and we were about 8th in the queue. I did take a few shots out of the window, apologies for the poor quality
Takeoff was very smooth, and we were airborne and heading home
Qantas First Class service on the A380 was equally as good as that we had experienced on CX a couple of weeks earlier. Before the first drinks, I took a couple of cabin shots
The service starts with drinks and canapés. We both opted for more champagne, and enjoyed the interesting canapés
After this, I moved to Russ’s suite so that we could dine together.
The menu was extensive and made it difficult for us to choose.
Funnily enough, we both ended up choosing the same thing
Soup to start
Beef for mains
Vanilla tart for dessert
Sep 4, 2011, 2:10 am
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Programs: UA - 1K, DL - Platinum Medallion, QF - LTS, Hilton - Diamond, Bonvoy - Gold, IHG - Gold
Posts: 112
I had made the decision to try and stay awake for the first few hours, then sleep for the latter part of the flight, however, after a very filling, and delicious lunch, I decided to get some shut-eye then, so I asked the crew to make up my bed, and I changed into my PJs
Watching some “Come Fly With Me” before I slept
The beds are extremely comfortable, and a definite step up from the J class product. I only slept for 3 or 4 hours, but I felt well rested when I awoke.
I spent much of the rest of the flight dozing and watching telly in between. About 5 hours out from Singapore, I noticed Russ was awake, and we both ordered a Steak Sandwich and some tea. I don’t know how they do it, but their steak sandwiches are really good, and I’m fussy.
I finished watching Come Fly With Me, and then it was breakfast time. I love QF breakfasts in their premium cabins. I had the omlette, and it was superb, Russ had the full English style breakie. I’d gobbled mine up before I remembered to take a pic (oops)
Not long after breakie, I got up and got changed, and freshened up ready for our brief deplaning at SIN. We touched down a couple of minutes late on Runway 20R, and taxied to the gate. The QF/BA F lounge in SIN is nothing to write home about, we just relaxed for a bit until the flight was called again.
QF32
SIN-SYD
STD 09:40
ATD 10:04
STA 19:20
ATA 19:15
Seats: 2K/3K
Aircraft - A380-800
Upon boarding we were greeted by a fresh new crew, and engaged in a little chit chat with the female FA who would be looking after us. After explaining we come through from London, she explained we could eat whenever we wanted and just to let her know what we wanted to do. She then offered more PJs (we didn’t want to wear them, but I did want to collect more, so duly requested them).
Champagne followed, and I settled in for the 7ish hour flight.
Not looking too bad after 16hours of travelling
Although the plan was to stay awake on this leg, tiredness got the better of both us, so we ended up spending most of it asleep. We did have a very quick brunch, and then were pretty much out for the count.
A little while before landing I woke up hungry, so I ordered a curry. It was delicious.
As we neared final approach, Russ got snap happy and managed to get some good shots of the Skycam
We touched down on Runway 34L and arrived on stand shortly thereafter.
Finally we were home. As we disembarked, we thanked the crew for their service, and headed to arrivals. Immigration was empty, so we were straight through. Bags took a little while, but soon enough we were in a car on our way home.
The whole holiday was awesome, and the flights were the best we’ve experience so far. Both CX and QF have brilliant First Class products, and the cabin crew were all exceptional. Of course the key problem we now have is…. How do we ever go back to J from here???
Thanks for reading.
Watching some “Come Fly With Me” before I slept
The beds are extremely comfortable, and a definite step up from the J class product. I only slept for 3 or 4 hours, but I felt well rested when I awoke.
I spent much of the rest of the flight dozing and watching telly in between. About 5 hours out from Singapore, I noticed Russ was awake, and we both ordered a Steak Sandwich and some tea. I don’t know how they do it, but their steak sandwiches are really good, and I’m fussy.
I finished watching Come Fly With Me, and then it was breakfast time. I love QF breakfasts in their premium cabins. I had the omlette, and it was superb, Russ had the full English style breakie. I’d gobbled mine up before I remembered to take a pic (oops)
Not long after breakie, I got up and got changed, and freshened up ready for our brief deplaning at SIN. We touched down a couple of minutes late on Runway 20R, and taxied to the gate. The QF/BA F lounge in SIN is nothing to write home about, we just relaxed for a bit until the flight was called again.
QF32
SIN-SYD
STD 09:40
ATD 10:04
STA 19:20
ATA 19:15
Seats: 2K/3K
Aircraft - A380-800
Upon boarding we were greeted by a fresh new crew, and engaged in a little chit chat with the female FA who would be looking after us. After explaining we come through from London, she explained we could eat whenever we wanted and just to let her know what we wanted to do. She then offered more PJs (we didn’t want to wear them, but I did want to collect more, so duly requested them).
Champagne followed, and I settled in for the 7ish hour flight.
Not looking too bad after 16hours of travelling
Although the plan was to stay awake on this leg, tiredness got the better of both us, so we ended up spending most of it asleep. We did have a very quick brunch, and then were pretty much out for the count.
A little while before landing I woke up hungry, so I ordered a curry. It was delicious.
As we neared final approach, Russ got snap happy and managed to get some good shots of the Skycam
We touched down on Runway 34L and arrived on stand shortly thereafter.
Finally we were home. As we disembarked, we thanked the crew for their service, and headed to arrivals. Immigration was empty, so we were straight through. Bags took a little while, but soon enough we were in a car on our way home.
The whole holiday was awesome, and the flights were the best we’ve experience so far. Both CX and QF have brilliant First Class products, and the cabin crew were all exceptional. Of course the key problem we now have is…. How do we ever go back to J from here???
Thanks for reading.
Sep 4, 2011, 3:32 am
#7
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Helsinki
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 406
Wonderful - really wonderful trip report!. Thank you for sharing it with us. I do like "the surprise" aspect when travelling with the significant other^
What made this trip report very special to me is that I have something similar ahead of me. I will be travelling with my partner to Hong Kong and Vietnam in November. Instead of taking Finnair direct flight to Hong Kong, we will travel via Amsterdam to experience Cathay First Class AMS-HKG-AMS. I am really excited, because it will be the first time in First for both of us. Counting the days like... well you know
I would have liked to surprise my partner like the way you did, but would not have been able to convince him to travel via Amsterdam to Hong Kong just get us in Cathay Business (and their infamous herringbone seats). There is, after all, a direct Finnair flight from Helsinki to Hong Kong with reasonable business class product. As you said it, my only fear is that we will be forever spoiled after tarvelling in First...
What made this trip report very special to me is that I have something similar ahead of me. I will be travelling with my partner to Hong Kong and Vietnam in November. Instead of taking Finnair direct flight to Hong Kong, we will travel via Amsterdam to experience Cathay First Class AMS-HKG-AMS. I am really excited, because it will be the first time in First for both of us. Counting the days like... well you know
I would have liked to surprise my partner like the way you did, but would not have been able to convince him to travel via Amsterdam to Hong Kong just get us in Cathay Business (and their infamous herringbone seats). There is, after all, a direct Finnair flight from Helsinki to Hong Kong with reasonable business class product. As you said it, my only fear is that we will be forever spoiled after tarvelling in First...
Last edited by teme; Sep 4, 2011 at 3:41 am
Sep 4, 2011, 4:30 am
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Programs: UA - 1K, DL - Platinum Medallion, QF - LTS, Hilton - Diamond, Bonvoy - Gold, IHG - Gold
Posts: 112
Wonderful - really wonderful trip report!. Thank you for sharing it with us. I do like "the surprise" aspect when travelling with the significant other^
What made this trip report very special to me is that I have something similar ahead of me. I will be travelling with my partner to Hong Kong and Vietnam in November. Instead of taking Finnair direct flight to Hong Kong, we will travel via Amsterdam to experience Cathay First Class AMS-HKG-AMS. I am really excited, because it will be the first time in First for both of us. Counting the days like... well you know
I would have liked to surprise my partner like the way you did, but would not have been able to convince him to travel via Amsterdam to Hong Kong just get us in Cathay Business (and their infamous herringbone seats). There is, after all, a direct Finnair flight from Helsinki to Hong Kong with reasonable business class product. As you said it, my only fear is that we will be forever spoiled after tarvelling in First...
What made this trip report very special to me is that I have something similar ahead of me. I will be travelling with my partner to Hong Kong and Vietnam in November. Instead of taking Finnair direct flight to Hong Kong, we will travel via Amsterdam to experience Cathay First Class AMS-HKG-AMS. I am really excited, because it will be the first time in First for both of us. Counting the days like... well you know
I would have liked to surprise my partner like the way you did, but would not have been able to convince him to travel via Amsterdam to Hong Kong just get us in Cathay Business (and their infamous herringbone seats). There is, after all, a direct Finnair flight from Helsinki to Hong Kong with reasonable business class product. As you said it, my only fear is that we will be forever spoiled after tarvelling in First...
Cheers
Ozvirginuk
Sep 4, 2011, 8:43 pm
#12
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: YYC
Posts: 4,035
Great trip report. I've booked my +1 a very, very long journey in CX F next year and by the looks it it she won't be disappointed.
An FYI on the ANA plane, that is one of their 777-300. The 787 only has 4 doors and its engine looks like someone took pinking shears to the back of it.
An FYI on the ANA plane, that is one of their 777-300. The 787 only has 4 doors and its engine looks like someone took pinking shears to the back of it.
Sep 5, 2011, 5:09 pm
#14
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Midwest USA
Programs: BA SIL, WN A, UA SIL, Marriott TIT (LT), Hilton DIA
Posts: 1,969
Great report and photos! Sorry your friend became ill. I know first hand that becoming ill on a long flight is a scary experience. The food on CX looks great. Hope to be able to try it some day.
