sfoactuary

Introduction

This trip report details my recent bachelor party where we spent a week and a half in SE Asia, with the majority of the time in Bali and brief 36-hour stopover in Bangkok. As much as we tried, the trip came nothing close to a 'Hangover 2'-caliber party, although we still had a blast eating, drinking, and diving our way through Bali. Although Bali has more of a honeymoon-type reputation, I that there is such a variety of styles of travel that work there (backpacking, adventure, luxury) that it's a great option for anyone looking for a SE Asian getaway.

This was also my first time using miles on a return award ticket (had previously only booked one-way SQ F last year during the system conversion), and actually found this part of the trip-planning process really fun. I got around to booking my award ticket only three months in advance, meaning that I was left with a sub-optimal initial routing:

Outbound: SFO-ICN (UA F), ICN-BKK (TG C)
Stopover: BKK-DPS (TG C)
Return: DPS-BKK (TG C), BKK-ICN (OZ C), ICN-SFO (UA F)

So while I wasn't thrilled with my routing, I knew that better routings almost always open up closer to departure, so starting a couple weeks out each morning I'd wake up and check the stock market, followed by various award routing sites (united.com, Expertflyer, etc.) to see if any new award space had opened up. If I had a couple minutes between meetings, I'd pop over to check again. It became a fun little game to continually try to optimize the routing. By the end of it all and after a handful of changes, I was quite pleased with my final routing since I had reduced the number of United flights to just one, and was able to secure first class seats on all flights that offered it. My final routing was:

Outbound: SFO-NRT (NH F), NRT-BKK (TG F)
Stopover: BKK-DPS (TG C)
Return: DPS-BKK (TG C), BKK-NRT (TG F), NRT-SFO (UA F)

Below is an index of posts in the report that I'm posting on Flyertalk, feel free to stop over to my blog for additional photos and posts from the trip:

1. ANA First Class SFO-NRT
2. Thai Airways First Class NRT-BKK
3. Royal Orchid Sheraton Bangkok
4. Bali Part I: Kuta, Padangbai
5. Bali Part II: Gili-T, Seminyak
6. Thai Airways BKK First Class Lounge and Spa
7. Thai Airways First Class BKK-NRT, United First CLass NRT-SFO

sfoactuary

ANA Flight NH7
SFO-NRT
Seat: 2K

Normally it's a struggle to get myself out of bed for work when my alarm clock goes off at 8am each morning, but today I was wide awake by 7am and ready to go. Saying that I was excited to embark on the trip would be a huge understatement. We left the house around 9am and arrived at SFO around 9:30am. Normally, my international flights from SFO leave in the very late evening, and the security line isn't too bad. But at this time of the day, the international security line was a complete zoo. So I actually used the reverse of the trick I usually use when flying domestic, where I'll go through the international terminal security and then walk back to Terminal 3. Today the reverse worked quite well, as the domestic Terminal 3 premier line was very efficient and I was able to walk back to the International Terminal afterwards.

I was excited to visit the United Global First lounge for the first time and planned to spend a couple hours there before my flight. Overall, the lounge is certainly much better than any of the standard domestic United Clubs in the system, but is basically on par with a standard international business class lounge. Since there were a handful of flight around this time, the lounge was also relatively crowded. I knew that I'd be eating a lot on my flight so I didn't gorge too much, but the lounge did have a nice breakfast/brunch spread including sushi, smoked duck, cocktail shrimp, and smoked salmon.

Due to the rainy and foggy weather, my flight was delayed by a half hour. On top of that we had to wait another half hour on the tarmac for Air Force One. This is the 2nd time in the past year that Mr. President has caused my flight to be delayed, who does he think he is?!

Boarding was very efficient and I was one of the first on the plane. The first class cabin has a capacity of 8 seats, but only 3 were filled on the flight. Immediately after boarding, the flight attendant asked if I wanted to change into pajamas (which I did) and offered me a glass of champagne. I took a bit of time to explore the seat - many people feel like the cubes are a bit industrial-feeling, and I would have to agree. It's not as welcoming or luxurious as the Singapore seats, but I think it has a similar feel to the Thai and Korean Air first class seats, but does offer more privacy. There are a lot of little cabinets and nooks around the seat and it took a while to figure out where everything was and how it all worked. I did find the touch screen for the IFE to be quite slick, although it's not easily reachable when sitting down. The amenity kit was waiting for me at my seat, and while I had read that ANA recently upgraded to Rimowa kits for flights arriving in NRT, I was disappointed to find the old Samsonite. The flight attendant also came by with additional toiletries to add to the ones provided already inside the kit.











About an hour after takeoff, the meal service started. I was really looking forward to this and had read up quite a bit about what to expect. I already knew that I wanted to try the Kaiseki menu, but would supplement with caviar and some of the western desserts. I've been wanting to try a Kaiseki menu in general for a long time, and it's funny that it would finally happen on a flight. After trying all the dishes, I would recommend that people only go for it if you're somewhat of an adventurous eater. There are definitely a few things in there with some interesting textures and flavors, so if you're a meat and potatoes kind of person, might be best to stick with the steak. As I was eating, I was thinking to myself that I would be really hungry afterwards since the individual portions are small, but all the little things do add up and at the end I was quite full. I was really impressed with all the dishes, and honestly the sushi and fish were among the best that I've had at Japanese restaurants anywhere.

















At the conclusion of the meal service I requested turndown service and the flight attendant made the bed, and I found the thin tempurpedic-like mattress to be quite comfortable. After a relatively brief Krug-induced nap, I woke up and ordered a snack of fish cakes and chicken and vegetables with rice, along with an iced coffee. There was another light meal service before arrival and gave me the opportunity to try even more Japanese dishes. Not sure that I've ever eaten that much fish in a 9-hour period before in my life.





Overall, I had a great flight on ANA. While the seat itself wasn't necessarily much better than some of the other airlines, I felt like the service was extremely good and efficient throughout the flight. On top of it all, I think the food that they serve as part of the Kaiseki menu is very different and unique compared to what other airlines offer and that alone would make me prioritize ANA as an option in the future.

sfoactuary

After arriving in NRT, because of the ground delays at SFO my layover was cut down from 2 hours to about 45 minutes. I had arranged to meet my friend in front of the United lounge and this turned out to work very well and was easy to find and in a central location. We walked over to our gate at the end of the terminal for our next flight, and spent about 15-20 minutes in the ANA Suites lounge near gate 46. Overall the food selection there was just ok and on par with other business class lounges. I had been stuffing myself crazy on my ANA flight for the past 9 hours, but still managed to sneak in a few bites of sushi and a serving of Haagan Dazs to provide fuel for my 30 second walk to the gate.

Thai Airways Flight TG677
NRT-BKK
Seat: 3E

I had actually flown Thai Airways first class two previous times both between Bangkok and Hong Kong which is just a short 2+ hour flight, so this would be my first opportunity at a longer-haul flight. Boarding was very efficient and we were able to head to the jet bridge that led directly to the first class cabin. We settled in to our seats and were offered welcome drinks and asked for champagne. I actually like the design of the middle seats in the Thai A380 cabins and think it works well if you're traveling together with someone else since there is an entire partition that can be raised and lowered, as compared to the sliding hatch on the ANA cabin which only provides a small rectangle to look through between the middle seats.

Also waiting for me in the seat was the Rimowa amenity kit that I thought I'd be getting on the ANA flight. Now honestly, I'm definitely no die-hard Rimowa fan but was certainly excited to get my hands on one of these purely because of some of the hype around these that I had read about on Flyertalk. After playing around with it, while this might be considered blasphemy to some, I realized that while the kit certainly felt sturdy, it was almost too rigid and I had a hard time opening it wide enough to easily access the contents. In a lot of ways I actually preferred the Samsonite one I got on the ANA flight, but nonetheless was more than happy to be able to add another type of amenity kit to the collection.













After takeoff, the meal service began. The previous two times I flew Thai I hadn't really been all that impressed with the food, and I'd say that my impression for this flight was about the same. The amuse bouche and appetizer were just ok, but the carrot soup was delicious and probably the highlight for me. I had pre-booked the lobster thermidor and while I'm certainly not complaining about being served lobster on a flight, it wasn't nearly as good as the one I'd had on Singapore Air.











After the meal service we had about 5 hours left before arriving in Bangkok, and I was able to squeeze in a few minutes of shuteye on and off. I didn't find the bed particularly comfortable, and also the cabin temperature was kept extremely warm. Or at least it felt that way to me, which could have been a function of the copious amounts of meat and booze consumed over the past 24 hours. Once we arrived in Bangkok, we were escorted via buggy to the fast-track immigration line and were out of the airport in a matter of minutes.

sfoactuary

We headed to the taxi stand after clearing customs and arrived at the Royal Orchid Sheraton after a 30-40 minute cab ride. There was a bit of a "lost in translation" moment between us and the cab driver since there are a couple of Sheratons in Bangkok, so would recommend that you bring a copy of your itinerary with the address to provide to the driver.

Since we were arriving so late at night check-in was a breeze and we were upgraded to a suite by way of my friend's SPG Platinum status. We joked that for 3,000 SPG points a night this hotel was a steal, since that typically will only get you a Four Points Sheraton near an airport back at home.

Overall I thought that the hotel was very good, with the only real drawback being the location. There isn't a lot to do in the immediate vicinity, which means that you'll probably be taking taxis many places. This had a couple drawbacks, the first being the time it took to get to other areas (e.g. up to an hour to Sukhumvit during rush hour) and also having to deal with the haggling process with taxi drivers. We were quick to learn to not be afraid to jump out of taxis and find another if they aren't willing to use the meter or negotiate a reasonable price.

sfoactuary

After arriving in Bali we caught a cab over to our hotel which was the Sheraton Kuta. Even though it's not very long in terms of distance, it took about 30 minutes since the traffic was quite bad during that time of the day. After arriving, we checked-in and were upgraded to a suite with an ocean view. We quickly settled in and then met up with the rest of our friends that had arrived the previous night. The room was quite nice and spacious and it was clear that it had recently been remodeled. The location is great as its right along the beach and next to a huge shopping mall so there was plenty to see and do. It's also just a 5-10 minute walk from many of the restaurants and bars in Kuta. The beach area around the hotel actually is quite crowded and honestly wasn't that great which is certainly a drawback. But overall we found the hotel great for our quick 1-night stay in Kuta before heading out to other parts of Bali.












Before leaving Kuta the next morning we had a couple things to get done. The first was to chow down at Naughty Nuri's which is one of our friends favorite restaurants in all of Bali. He was the only one of us that had been to Bali before so it made things easy to have a recommendation on where to eat the first night. We hopped in a cab from our hotel and after about a 20-minute ride (which only cost about $4-5) we arrived. We were able to snag one of the last tables before the dinner rush started and ordered up a feast. The ribs here are fantastic and some of the best I've had anywhere. For Bali standards, a rack is pretty pricey at 90,000 Rupiahs (~$9), but in my mind was definitely worth it, especially when you compare it to the $20+ cost for ribs at the Tony Romas next to our hotel. We liked it so much that we even came back one more time a few days later after traveling to other parts of Bali.





Next stop on our list was to go to the tailor to get the groomsman's suits made for my wedding. I had considered a few options including renting or buying back at home, but getting the suits custom made in Bali while everybody was there to get measured and fitted ended up being the best choice. I would have preferred to get them made in Thailand as that's something that I had done previously but my 36-hour layover was just too short. Based on reviews from TripAdvisor we decided to go with Anika Tailor which is located near the airport in a small alleyway. As we were driving over to Anika I noticed a few tailors along the way and actually was feeling quite nervous since the quality of the suits those tailors had out in the windows were pretty terrible. For some reason, the Riddler's suit from Batman seemed to be a popular design.

After arriving at Anika, my fears were alleviated as they had a proper storefront with many quality suit samples in the window. We were shown to a private room where we were able to look through the library of fabrics and then settled on a price. As is the case with most things in Asia, don't be afraid to haggle and in the end I think that we were able to negotiate a fair price. The process from here was very easy as everyone got measured for the initial fitting, and then we came back in two more times for fittings before picking up with finished product. I will admit that my expectations were relatively low in that I wasn't sure if we'd get something as good as what we could have gotten in Thailand or Vietnam, but after seeing the finished product I will admit that I'm extremely pleased with the end result. I would highly recommend Anika Tailor to anyone that is looking to get clothes made in Bali.

While we had booked a chain hotel for the first night of the trip, for the rest of the trip we decided to try out private rentals through a combination of private websites and airbnb.com. Overall this worked out very well and I would highly recommend this approach for anyone traveling in a group to Bali. The next stop for us was Padangbai which is a small town about an hour drive from Kuta. It is an extremely laid back place that's known for its fishing and scuba diving. It's also one of the main ports to catch the fast boat to Gili.

We stayed two nights here and primarily spent our time diving during the day, and just relaxing at night. The first two dives we did were just a few minutes off the shore and were great refresher dives for me since it had been a while since I'd gone. There is a ton to see when diving here and the reefs were full of bright and colorful tropical fish. The next two dives we took were an hour and a half car ride from Padangbai at the site of the USS Liberty shipwreck at Tulamben. It was my first shipwreck dive and found it to be pretty cool, especially since the marine life here was great and we were able to see some interesting things including turtles, lion fish, and stingrays.











The night life here primarily consists of grabbing drinks and listening to live music at the local bars where it's not crowded at all and a nice breath of fresh air from the scene at Kuta. One of the popular drinks here is Arak which is a local home-brewed liquor and actually tastes quite good and sweet. However, be a little cautious and make sure you get it from a reputable place as there have been some recent deaths/injuries from people consuming bad Arak. Overall, we really enjoyed the laid-back beach party scene here and a relaxing stop compared to the hectic Kuta.

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The next stop was the Gili Islands where we had booked a villa on Gili-Trawangan or Gili-T as most people call it for our 2 night stay. The fast boat took off from Padangbai and took about an hour and a half. It was a very comfortable, air-conditioned ride and was definitely worth the price over the ferry which would have taken over 5 hours. The Gili Islands are a great place to unplug since there are no vehicles allowed, so the primary modes of transport are walking, biking, or donkey cart. The first day we spent here we primarily explored and enjoyed some relaxation and swimming at our villa and at the beach. The beaches on Gili-T were probably the best that we found across our trip through Bali, but with one major problem. Everyone on the beach is in ridiculously good shape, like something out of a MTV music video. So for us fatty Americans, we were definitely feeling a bit self-conscious until we eventually learned to embrace the fact that we probably had the biggest stomachs on the entire island.

We stayed at the Gili Villas which is a compound with four 2-BR villas, and our villa easily accommodated our group of 5. Each villa has 2 bungalows with a bedroom and en-suite bathroom. There's also a huge living room area with TV and DVD player and a good sized private pool. They also provide a full kitchen, although we didn't use it and was only used by the staff that came to cook breakfast each morning which is included in the price. The price for the villa is much more than what you'd pay at a local hostel/homestay, but for us it was worth it for the level of comfort and privacy it provided.













On our second day we decided to do one last dive at Hans Reef and saw some interesting sea life including more turtles, lion fish, and eels. The current during our dive happened to be extremely strong so we weren't able to spend much time at the reef before getting blown away. There are a lot of dive shops on Gili-T, but just pick the one that appeals to you most since there is no need to negotiate or shop around for prices as all the dive stores on the island have agreed-upon prices for diving.

Below are a couple sample pictures from our dive - all photos and video shot using GoPro Hero3 camera.








After enjoying our 2+days in Gili-T we were sad to go, but were excited to head back to Seminyak for the last there days of our trip. We decided that trying the donkey cart was a must, and used it to carry our luggage to the boat dock. The fast boat back to Padangbai took a bit longer this time (almost 2 hours) and after an hour+ car ride we arrived back in Seminyak. We had used airbnb.com to rent a 5-BR villa and it worked out quite well. I would recommend using this type of approach especially when traveling with a group that wants to all stay in one place.

During the last few days in Seminyak we focused on relaxing before heading back home. If shopping is your thing, there are a ton of shops in the area that sell clothing, artwork, and arts & crafts. Massages are also much cheaper than back home and would recommend getting as many as you can while there. We considered doing a day trip to Ubud but got lazy and ended up mostly hanging out in Kuta and Seminyak, but we heard that the monkey forest and zoo are both interesting and worth seeing if you go. We also had a chance to check out Ku De Ta and Potato Head which are two of the cool hangout spots in the area. Overall, we enjoyed Potato Head much more and thought that the scene and vibe there was much better.

farbster

Very nice TR. How many points did this take?

Also, I believe in the picture where you are diving and giving two thumbs up, you are actually indicating that you want to surface. The proper signal for "i'm awesome", as far as I know, is the "a-ok" sign made by touching the tip of your forefinger and thumb together making a circle and extending out the remaining three fingers. Alternatively, you can make a shaka (at least we did in Hawaii).

Since you used points for a great bachelor party, where did your fiance go on her bachelorette party?

roadwarriorafrica

Where are the real pictures Great report so far.

mtkeller

It's rare that a TR is as well-timed for me as this one. I just booked NH F ORD-NRT for February yesterday and was having a hard time finding recent TRs. Thanks for posting!

DC777Fan

Great pics ... Did the tailor simply measure you every which way or did you actually come back for several fittings?

EDIT: Also on BKK-DPS which side of the aircraft had better views on approach to DPS?

UA1kMFR

excellent TR. Great pictures.

dave209

I have to say all your meal photo's looked horrible until you go to Naughty Nuri's which is one of my favorite places to eat when I'm in Bali (I have a place there and usually go twice a year) as far as the Sheraton Kuta being recently remodeled, the hotel has been opened only about 6 months and is brand new construction. I agree Kuta beach isn't that great, and I hate the wall that was constructed along the beach about three years back. The traffic in that area is some of the worst in Bali because Kuta still remains to be the main tourist draw in Bali. Next time try Seminyak.

dat4life

Your friends are quite lucky to have you to plan such a wonderful trip!

The last time I went to an out of town bachelor's party was in Vegas. We happened to do while some country music award show was on, and we happened to stay at the MGM Grand where most of the stars were staying. Long story short, mental faculties of a friend and I may been reduced for one reason or another, and we ran around the top floors of the hotel trying find Carrie Und... Nevermind, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

Anyways, great TR! Looking forward to the rest.

maxim730

Yeah.. so where are the REAL pictures!?

Awesome report! Great job.

sfoactuary

good observation, glad the dive master didn't see or else the dive would have ended prematurely and I would have gotten endless flak from my friends. I'll need to practice my "I'm awesome" sign for next time

trip was booked with 140,000 UA miles and 16,000 SPG points for the 2 nights in bangkok and 1 night in Kuta. She's going to Miami for her's in a couple weeks from now - maybe I'll utilize that free weekend to do some MR-ing to replenish my spent miles


thanks for the all the comments! these are the real pictures, that's my story and i'm sticking to it

glad I could be of help, you'll have a fantastic flight on ANA

the tailor did a full measurement on the initial visit, but my impression was that they made everything purposefully bigger than necessary with the intention of refining during the fittings. we came in for the first fitting a few days later, after which about half of the suits were perfect. the other half required a 2nd fitting before they were good to go. I would only recommend getting clothes made if you definitely have time for at least 1 fitting

we were on the right-hand side of the plane in the J/K biz class seats and that side definitely had the better views on approach to DPS

thanks for the tip!

what happens in Bali stays in Bali as well! I'm the first of the group to get married so there has been a lot of pent-up excitement for the 1st bachelor party, but we definitely felt lucky to take such a great trip