Bugger all:-

SYD/MEL - LAX...daily
SYD/MEL - SIN - LHR...daily
SYD-HKG....only a few days a week

Warning - QF 747 F is nothing like the A380

At Long Last
 

Hi all!

So, where in the world have I been? To make a long story short, many things transpired since my last post:

--I went back and forth to Israel to investigate living there (it's that cool); I need to let that idea simmer a bit, but it's on the agenda soon enough
--I flew to Turkey to see Madonna's concert in IST (awesome)
--I flew the above in LH 1st

At the moment, I'm finally back home in NYC and am getting ready to launch a business. While running around the Middle East, dodging immigration officers in BEY and AMM, I realized that I have something to offer to an industry (travel / leisure) that is in desperate need of innovation. So, Camel Air is coming, and will be focused on making once-in-a-lifetime dreams come true: with a focus on round-the-world trips, experiences rather than checklists, and the concept of "slow/fast" travel.

Meanwhile, I'm going to try to respond to you lovely people right now. And then I will post my final report from this trip, and include some photos from my recent F trip: JFK-FRA (A380 on MILES, baby), FRA-TLV, TLV-IST, IST-MUC-JFK.

Ben

Note, flyers, that Qantas has -- from time to time -- subbed out the A380 on these routes. My dear friend was stuck at LAX (mon dieu!!!) for 12 hours while they found her a 747... Poor dear had to fly in an angled business class seat for 15 hours.

Given that the A380 has been addressed, yes I have looked at trips originating ex-US. In fact I took a RTW trip once using OneWorld Business out of Heathrow as it was about 30% cheaper. I booked a flight to LHR using miles, and it was all good; 8 months later, I tried out BA Club World JFK-LHR and got work to pay for my return trip given a sudden need for me in Chicago :)

That said, the currency fluctuations haven't made such a stark difference lately. The one very exceptional difference is Australia: because of so much competition there, you can find some pretty interesting RTW tickets that are far cheaper than the Alliances offer.

Final Report, Final Report, Where is the Final Report?
 

BostonFlyer! I know you are waiting -- you have been so patient:) Guess what: there will be no FINAL report. The adventure has just begun.

However, so that you can feel a sense of closure, I do promise to get the LHR-JFK report done this week. I have a new Mac, and so I'm now trying to learn how to put pictures onto this post. If anybody has a hint for me, I'm all ears, and that will accelerate the report :)

So the ticket was $18,000 plus taxes, making it about $21K total. Priced separately, I'd estimate this ticket would cost about $100,000.

I'm happy to speak to you about how to create this kind of trip. Please email me at [email protected], and we can set up a discussion.

Rounding out the OW First Trip with BA Horses!
 

As promised, let me share a two-month late report with you.

Royal Jordanian

As you can find below, I have already written about the how-tos about going TLV-BEY "direct." It's a perilous journey and not for the faint of heart, especially if you give yourself only an hour between flights :)

As for Royal Jordanian, I have to say that their planes are just top notch. Even the regional jets had a regional business class product that was much better than Cathay's. I flew economy for these portions, given that the flight times were very short (25-40 minutes depending on the specific route), so can't speak to the experience up front. That said, even the back of the plane was enjoyable -- the seats leaned back further than average, and even on a 25 minute flight they made sure to come around with a quick offering of two juices before take-off.

In Amman airport, they also have a separate check-in for Business customers and those with Sapphire or above on OneWorld. This was amazing -- you sit in a very comfy couch-esque chair at a desk, and it's like you've gone back 25 years into an upscale travel agency. More classy than even the First checkins I've seen for Cathay and Lufthansa.

The only odd point, and this may have to do with Israeli law, was that I couldn't make use of a cheap cash upgrade from Y to J on my flight from AMM to TLV. They said that on that route, day-of upgrades were not permitted. I didn't ask too much more, because I didn't care that much about the 25 minute jump.

Regarding the lounge in AMM, it was my favorite lounge ever. For one simple reason: they had about 30 on-demand TVs with super-comfy chairs in front of them and noise-reducing headphones. The fact that the food / drinks were iffy and the service, um, "subdued" didn't matter at all when I could tune out for 2 hours before I headed back to TLV! Royal Jordanian, I'm saying that airline has a good future, especially when they upgrade Queen A's airport.

Journey back in Time

Oh my, the flight from TLV to LHR couldn't possibly have gone worse. Let's start with the cabin images of the First museum, just as a reminder:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-x...0/IMG_0162.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-X...0/IMG_0163.JPG

The cabin was empty other than maybe 5-6 other pax. I looked back at Business Class, and felt JEALOUS. I went to the FA and asked if I could go sit back there. Guess what she said: she said I wouldn't be able to take the tablet they gave me back there, and would have to watch that little TV's random movies on reels. Wow.

Anywho, in terms of food, I would have thought they'd be able to handle a custom order given the # of pax. But, the FA's head almost fell off when I asked for each of the starters. And later, when the other FA came to serve food, she just skipped some of the starters. I was like "what is going on here, I ordered all of them." She brought my lamb back to the kitchen, and commenced with the other starters. The lamb came out later, warmed to death.

Part of the issue I was having with this crew was that it was clear they didn't speak English so well. I was fine with that initially, because I thought "great, they have Israelis working this route -- I can practice Hebrew!" Nope, not the case -- they were FRENCH. I started speaking FRENCH, and that's when we were able to make some progress regarding the food / drink.

Arrival at T5 was unreal. UK Border Control took 4 hours. My Quintessentially "two-week trial" from the Concorde Lounge only told me *after the fact* that they could have whisked me through customs. Ahem, Quintessentially, given that this is an extremely key selling point, and you had my flight details on when I was back in London, you should have gotten that red carpet out if you want me to cough up $10,000 for an annual membership!

Crossing the Pond

Now, I know you guys are just dying to know what happened on the final leg. I'm sorry to say, I was just flat out over BA by this point. And so you'll have to excuse me when I just couldn't be bothered to do much in the way of recording this journey. It was so average, even with the new cabin, that I wished I had taken American Airlines. Think about that: American Airlines. Yes, I would have preferred American Airlines to what BA offered. The Concorde Lounge is fine, but it's got nothing on Qantas First Lounges! So what was I getting -- maybe a couple of cool windows and a celeb shot. Enjoy...

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-B...0/IMG_0153.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-l...0/IMG_0152.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-R...0/IMG_0154.JPG

So, I hope the above gives you a sense for the thud that accompanied my final legs. I will cheer you up with my next post though :)

One More Reason to LOVE QANTAS
 

I know, I know, no pictures of ME in these reports. It should be all about the product. But, I can't resist sharing the absolute best picture of the trip... Being a kid again on QF12!

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-y...0/IMG_0048.JPG

I was on QF12 at the end of May and I also have a similar photo. I was also able to push one of the buttons (APU purge).

The flight crew was absolutely great and gracious humoring me. ^^^:D:D:D

One more point for Qantas! But note the A380 crew were hired special and so not intermingled with the other plane crews

Great TR. The photos were great. The one of you in the cockpit of the QF A380 is great
Thanks for taking the time to write it

Thank for the TR
 

I enjoyed every bit of it, especially the pictures and comparisons among carriers.

I must say this was an amazing trip report! Hopefully your business venture is doing well, or whatever else you may be up to!