LHR DME LHR in BA F + Moscow - Quick TR
Nov 16, 2014, 2:27 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2013
Programs: GGL/CCR
Posts: 1,899
LHR DME LHR in BA F + Moscow - Quick TR
PICS STILL UPLOADING 
Right... I would love to type you more, but frankly after the return trip fuelled by LPGS and sat at home watching googlebox with some M&S lager hopefully the following will do
We started off many months ago with a large HHA of Avios and a 2-4-1 that got earned far too quickly
We booked it as availability was good and we both wanted to try F soon with minimal outlay - the fact we both wanted to goto Moscow was an added bonus ^
Total outlay - 60k Avios and £100 RFS for two in F return.
3 nights in the Hotel Metropol Moscow - £390
Two Russian Visas - £170
So we had spent just over £650 for a mini break in F.
Alarm went off at 04:10am and the day had begun.... I was still recovering from birthday celebrations on Tuesday night so rather fragile...
Taxi pickup at 5:15am and off to LHR T5 we went..... F check in was a breeze and very friendly and our visa's were checked before being asked if we knew where the CCR was... thanks to FT I did
We wandered into fast track security and were sat at the bar about 90 seconds later
Having flown CW and CE a few times over the last 3 years I was accustomed to GC. The CCR was sublime. Very welcoming and alot less hussle and bussle. I am a drinker as you will see by the rest of the report, so we plotted up at bar
A nice latte and a few rounds of buttered toast and we were ready for the LPGS..the Mrs even tried the BA cocktail which knocked her socks off at 6:45am! A sneeky pic of Seb Coe on the phone, and few more glasses on the terrace and oops the flight was on final call!
We got lucky and managed to nab 1A and 1K outbound so this was it...we were about to walk into F ^
Down the concourse and we were greeted by who turned out to be the CSD who directed one of the FA's to take us to our seats - she was pleasant enough but nothing more than any other BA J flight.
The 744 had NF and we settled into some more LPGS and admiring the hard product - very "modern" in comparison to CW and the space was superb.
The take off was soon after and into the air we went... first time in the nose of the 744 - and my instant observation was the engine noise was very quiet indeed. Much more so than any 777 I have been on.
CSD came round with the iPad and introduced himself and welcomed us to our first time in F ^
The breakfast service then started.... the amuse bouche was nice but not memorable (so don't ask what it was!)
The fry up was so so.... I actually thought the steak was semi decent for a plane and the rest was adequate. To be honest it wasn't the be all and end all as we were enjoying the F cabin and the LPGS
Mrs TD needed her IFE reset twice to work and we needed a visit from the CSD to get our first choices of the salmon starter. It was all dealt with well though ^
Out first off the plane and through passport control in minutes....bag was off quickly too.
Walked out and found our taxi quickly and into Moscow we went... taxi was pre booked and cost 2990 RUB for an exec car (was only a Toyota Camry in the end!)
90 minutes later and we pulled up in front of the Metropol - a seemingly huge hotel, but the lobby was very charming and the staff welcoming - we headed to the room, hung up our clothes and got the handy man up to turn the heating off! Hotel delivered a complimentary bottle of fizz for my birthday which was a nice touch ^
We headed into the bar for a beer and asked concierge to book us a table at the O2 longue for drinks and dinner...
We settled down for a beer and vodka and were told it was shut for refurb and they had arranged a table for us in the Hyatt opposite -
http://moscow.park.hyatt.com/en/hote...ngeandBar.html
Signed the bill for the beer and vodka tonic in the hotel - 1000RUB and walked over the road to the Hyatt.
We had both been told many times about Moscow being funny money, so I was prepared to skimp if needed... wine in the Hyatt was crazy money, but 4 beers, some vodka a few prosseco's and two small mains were had for £85 - fair money in my eyes given the location.
Note the very neat small binoculars on all window tables - a nice touch.
Day 2 arrived the next morning and breakfast in the hotel was included - a great buffet selection of everything inc. champagne and vodka for bloody mary's Dinning room was stunning too.
I wont bore you with a walking guide of our day, but here are the photo's
We saw -
The Kremlin
The tomb of the unknown soilder
The GUM
St Basils Cathedral
Bolshoi Theatre
And then enjoyed some traditional russian lunch for about £25 with a few beers.
Got to about 3pm and we both needed to rest so headed towards the hotel. Got them to book us a table at Cafe Pushkin - http://www.cafe-pushkin.ru/
We had high hopes for this so headed to the room to rest and change before our booking at 7pm.
tbc.....
We are both heavy uber users in London, so to find they have launched in Moscow was a great find
They have two levels their - X (prius etc) and Black (S,E,5 series etc)
We used them for short trips around that would have cost over a tenner in London, for under £5 in an S class - win.
We got to Pushkin after battling with the Moscow traffic and wow - what a setting and what a restaurant. If you goto Moscow, go their.
3 courses, drinks and cocktails and two and a tip - a smidge under £120 - bargain for the quality ^
We then headed to the city space bar in the swissotel - http://cityspacebar.com/
We didn't have a reservation but were warmly greeted and showed to two seats at the bar - perfect! Fantastic view and had a nice ice water with ginger slice put in front of me without asking whilst the staff were busy mixing cocktails
The service was impeccable.. The drinks were amazing...The staff were so friendly and helpful... and the free tequila and sangrita was awesome
Top marks - another one to visit if you can - we left at about 1:30am!
Day 3 and breakfast again before heading out - plan for the day - the moscow metro and victory tower
Both stunning.... a day well spent and we found a gem for lunch off the beaten track ^
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaur...al_Russia.html
Back to the hotel and a quick google at lunch we decided on the white rabbit for dinner -
http://www.whiterabbitmoscow.com/
The hotel were very helpful and sorted an amazing window table for us and off we went after a quick tipple in the hotel bar ^
Pushkin was amazing...classical and elegant...this was stunning....modern and clean - another great choice
The food was superb and well worth the £150 for 3 courses and many drinks!
A quick stroll over the road after dinner and we were sat at the bar in Kalina on top of the Lotte Hotel -
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaur...al_Russia.html
Great drinks and atmosphere - left at 4am - but I would def. go back
Then came Sunday
Breakfast before a nap due to the very late night and we checked out at 1:30pm - the hotel didn't mind at all and were very accommodating
Uber to the airport and we were at DME...
No queue for the F line (odd as we were the only people in F) and then through security we went.
Mrs TD wanted some duty free but took longer than normal as they didn't take Amex and she couldn't remember her VISA pin (good girl!)
Off to the Navigator lounge we went.
Impressions - big, roomy, far to warm (as most places in Moscow!) and fairly basic but "clean"
Nice view too....
The 747 had been subbed for a 777-200 and I was worried having not flown in F on it before....
Beer was fine in the fridges but wine / fizz was lacking and the food was "ok" - the hot food was tasty but luke warm. Our flight got called and down to gate 17 we went - I had noticed the 777 already on a remote stand so was ready for a bus!
We handed over our BP's and were ushered to a russian man in a high vis with a VIP sign - onto a private minibus we went and 60 seconds later we were climbing the stairs
The welcome was very warm and two FA's showed us to 1E and 1F - wow.... the 777 F cabin is a thing of beauty. Roomy and smart. LOVED IT ^
We were the only people.......
The service was exceptional. We were served perfectly in unison and all the food was top notch for an aircraft. The LPGS was never ending....the Vodka with the caviar was a good 100ml and very smooth, and the port and cheese was the icing on the cake
Food pics....
Caviar and vodka
A huge portion of parsnip and nutmeg soup
Chicken kiev with tomato and vodka sauce
Banoffee desserts
Thoughts and comments in the next post tomorrow but needless to say - J just doesn't do anymore
Right... I would love to type you more, but frankly after the return trip fuelled by LPGS and sat at home watching googlebox with some M&S lager hopefully the following will do
We started off many months ago with a large HHA of Avios and a 2-4-1 that got earned far too quickly
We booked it as availability was good and we both wanted to try F soon with minimal outlay - the fact we both wanted to goto Moscow was an added bonus ^
Total outlay - 60k Avios and £100 RFS for two in F return.
3 nights in the Hotel Metropol Moscow - £390
Two Russian Visas - £170
So we had spent just over £650 for a mini break in F.
Alarm went off at 04:10am and the day had begun.... I was still recovering from birthday celebrations on Tuesday night so rather fragile...
Taxi pickup at 5:15am and off to LHR T5 we went..... F check in was a breeze and very friendly and our visa's were checked before being asked if we knew where the CCR was... thanks to FT I did
We wandered into fast track security and were sat at the bar about 90 seconds later
Having flown CW and CE a few times over the last 3 years I was accustomed to GC. The CCR was sublime. Very welcoming and alot less hussle and bussle. I am a drinker as you will see by the rest of the report, so we plotted up at bar
A nice latte and a few rounds of buttered toast and we were ready for the LPGS..the Mrs even tried the BA cocktail which knocked her socks off at 6:45am! A sneeky pic of Seb Coe on the phone, and few more glasses on the terrace and oops the flight was on final call!We got lucky and managed to nab 1A and 1K outbound so this was it...we were about to walk into F ^
Down the concourse and we were greeted by who turned out to be the CSD who directed one of the FA's to take us to our seats - she was pleasant enough but nothing more than any other BA J flight.
The 744 had NF and we settled into some more LPGS and admiring the hard product - very "modern" in comparison to CW and the space was superb.
The take off was soon after and into the air we went... first time in the nose of the 744 - and my instant observation was the engine noise was very quiet indeed. Much more so than any 777 I have been on.
CSD came round with the iPad and introduced himself and welcomed us to our first time in F ^
The breakfast service then started.... the amuse bouche was nice but not memorable (so don't ask what it was!
) The fry up was so so.... I actually thought the steak was semi decent for a plane and the rest was adequate. To be honest it wasn't the be all and end all as we were enjoying the F cabin and the LPGS
Mrs TD needed her IFE reset twice to work and we needed a visit from the CSD to get our first choices of the salmon starter. It was all dealt with well though ^
Out first off the plane and through passport control in minutes....bag was off quickly too.
Walked out and found our taxi quickly and into Moscow we went... taxi was pre booked and cost 2990 RUB for an exec car (was only a Toyota Camry in the end!)
90 minutes later and we pulled up in front of the Metropol - a seemingly huge hotel, but the lobby was very charming and the staff welcoming - we headed to the room, hung up our clothes and got the handy man up to turn the heating off! Hotel delivered a complimentary bottle of fizz for my birthday which was a nice touch ^
We headed into the bar for a beer and asked concierge to book us a table at the O2 longue for drinks and dinner...
We settled down for a beer and vodka and were told it was shut for refurb and they had arranged a table for us in the Hyatt opposite -
http://moscow.park.hyatt.com/en/hote...ngeandBar.html
Signed the bill for the beer and vodka tonic in the hotel - 1000RUB and walked over the road to the Hyatt.
We had both been told many times about Moscow being funny money, so I was prepared to skimp if needed... wine in the Hyatt was crazy money, but 4 beers, some vodka a few prosseco's and two small mains were had for £85 - fair money in my eyes given the location.
Note the very neat small binoculars on all window tables - a nice touch.
Day 2 arrived the next morning and breakfast in the hotel was included - a great buffet selection of everything inc. champagne and vodka for bloody mary's
Dinning room was stunning too.I wont bore you with a walking guide of our day, but here are the photo's
We saw -
The Kremlin
The tomb of the unknown soilder
The GUM
St Basils Cathedral
Bolshoi Theatre
And then enjoyed some traditional russian lunch for about £25 with a few beers.
Got to about 3pm and we both needed to rest so headed towards the hotel. Got them to book us a table at Cafe Pushkin - http://www.cafe-pushkin.ru/
We had high hopes for this so headed to the room to rest and change before our booking at 7pm.
tbc.....
We are both heavy uber users in London, so to find they have launched in Moscow was a great find
They have two levels their - X (prius etc) and Black (S,E,5 series etc)
We used them for short trips around that would have cost over a tenner in London, for under £5 in an S class - win.
We got to Pushkin after battling with the Moscow traffic and wow - what a setting and what a restaurant. If you goto Moscow, go their.
3 courses, drinks and cocktails and two and a tip - a smidge under £120 - bargain for the quality ^
We then headed to the city space bar in the swissotel - http://cityspacebar.com/
We didn't have a reservation but were warmly greeted and showed to two seats at the bar - perfect! Fantastic view and had a nice ice water with ginger slice put in front of me without asking whilst the staff were busy mixing cocktails
The service was impeccable.. The drinks were amazing...The staff were so friendly and helpful... and the free tequila and sangrita was awesome
Top marks - another one to visit if you can - we left at about 1:30am!
Day 3 and breakfast again before heading out - plan for the day - the moscow metro and victory tower
Both stunning.... a day well spent and we found a gem for lunch off the beaten track ^
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaur...al_Russia.html
Back to the hotel and a quick google at lunch we decided on the white rabbit for dinner -
http://www.whiterabbitmoscow.com/
The hotel were very helpful and sorted an amazing window table for us and off we went after a quick tipple in the hotel bar ^
Pushkin was amazing...classical and elegant...this was stunning....modern and clean - another great choice
The food was superb and well worth the £150 for 3 courses and many drinks!
A quick stroll over the road after dinner and we were sat at the bar in Kalina on top of the Lotte Hotel -
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaur...al_Russia.html
Great drinks and atmosphere - left at 4am - but I would def. go back
Then came Sunday
Breakfast before a nap due to the very late night and we checked out at 1:30pm - the hotel didn't mind at all and were very accommodating
Uber to the airport and we were at DME...
No queue for the F line (odd as we were the only people in F
) and then through security we went.Mrs TD wanted some duty free but took longer than normal as they didn't take Amex and she couldn't remember her VISA pin (good girl!)
Off to the Navigator lounge we went.
Impressions - big, roomy, far to warm (as most places in Moscow!) and fairly basic but "clean"
Nice view too....
The 747 had been subbed for a 777-200 and I was worried having not flown in F on it before....
Beer was fine in the fridges but wine / fizz was lacking and the food was "ok" - the hot food was tasty but luke warm. Our flight got called and down to gate 17 we went - I had noticed the 777 already on a remote stand so was ready for a bus!
We handed over our BP's and were ushered to a russian man in a high vis with a VIP sign - onto a private minibus we went and 60 seconds later we were climbing the stairs
The welcome was very warm and two FA's showed us to 1E and 1F - wow.... the 777 F cabin is a thing of beauty. Roomy and smart. LOVED IT ^
We were the only people.......
The service was exceptional. We were served perfectly in unison and all the food was top notch for an aircraft. The LPGS was never ending....the Vodka with the caviar was a good 100ml and very smooth, and the port and cheese was the icing on the cake
Food pics....
Caviar and vodka
A huge portion of parsnip and nutmeg soup
Chicken kiev with tomato and vodka sauce
Banoffee desserts
Thoughts and comments in the next post tomorrow but needless to say - J just doesn't do anymore
Last edited by teledude; Nov 16, 2014 at 3:36 pm
Nov 16, 2014, 2:50 pm
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2013
Programs: GGL/CCR
Posts: 1,899
Reserved -
Flight out comments -
CCR was a great longue and the service was good - LPGS is lush too at anytime of day!
747 was comfortable but the choice of meal outbound is questionable - IFE is noticeably old too in comparison to the 777.
DME -
It's an airport and it does that fine.
Immigration is bizarre and could potentially take time if your not first off the plane.
Dont get a taxi from a tout in the airport - most are unlicensed.
Longue is fine but hot food is not hot. Good view of the runway and apron though.
Moscow -
As long as you drink local and don't pick caviar with every meal, its really not as expensive as people make out.
I work and go out in Mayfair, so maybe my judgement is clouded but when your having 3 courses and drinks for 2 for under £150 you can't complain imo
Taxi's are dirt cheap - we used Uber exclusively as its easy, linked to Amex and gets quad MR ^
Metro is easy to navigate and cheap too - 40RUB for a single journey until you leave the metro - you can get off at many stations to look around for this price.
Having a central hotel was a must imo - the Metropol offered good value but with a nice feeling. Pillows were awful though
If you go in winter, wrap up. It's cold!
You will have to point at your menu in some places - don't be alarmed!
Flight back -
777 F cabin just for two of us - win ^
Service was very good as was the food.
Bag was on the belt as we got to baggage reclaim after a 5min wait at security.
Any questions feel free to ask / PM me.
Overall a great way to experience a new city and F ^
Flight out comments -
CCR was a great longue and the service was good - LPGS is lush too at anytime of day!
747 was comfortable but the choice of meal outbound is questionable - IFE is noticeably old too in comparison to the 777.
DME -
It's an airport and it does that fine.
Immigration is bizarre and could potentially take time if your not first off the plane.
Dont get a taxi from a tout in the airport - most are unlicensed.
Longue is fine but hot food is not hot. Good view of the runway and apron though.
Moscow -
As long as you drink local and don't pick caviar with every meal, its really not as expensive as people make out.
I work and go out in Mayfair, so maybe my judgement is clouded but when your having 3 courses and drinks for 2 for under £150 you can't complain imo
Taxi's are dirt cheap - we used Uber exclusively as its easy, linked to Amex and gets quad MR ^
Metro is easy to navigate and cheap too - 40RUB for a single journey until you leave the metro - you can get off at many stations to look around for this price.
Having a central hotel was a must imo - the Metropol offered good value but with a nice feeling. Pillows were awful though
If you go in winter, wrap up. It's cold!
You will have to point at your menu in some places - don't be alarmed!
Flight back -
777 F cabin just for two of us - win ^
Service was very good as was the food.
Bag was on the belt as we got to baggage reclaim after a 5min wait at security.
Any questions feel free to ask / PM me.
Overall a great way to experience a new city and F ^
Last edited by teledude; Nov 17, 2014 at 2:21 am
Nov 16, 2014, 4:57 pm
#9
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Moscow / Aylesbury / Leeds
Programs: BA-GGL, SU-G Agean, G,, Hhonours D, Starwood G, IHG G,
Posts: 1,531
White Rabbit is a great restaurant, always liked the place and great views. Not so keen on Pushkin as it is too touristy for me. On the other side of the road from Pushin are another couple to try next time. Nedelny Vostok (Seafood n Steak) and Palatzio Ducalle, my favourite Italian in Moscow and behind Pushkin on a side street is a great and inexpensive Georgian Restaurant Djinkali.
Nov 17, 2014, 2:04 am
#12
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: In the air
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Bonvoy LT Plat, Hilton Gold, GHA Tit, BA Gold, Turkish Elite
Posts: 8,720
Looks like you had a great time.
When I had that chicken Kiev (loaded from DME, I assume) it was just breaded chicken - did you get the same?
When I had that chicken Kiev (loaded from DME, I assume) it was just breaded chicken - did you get the same?
Nov 17, 2014, 2:09 am
#13
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2013
Programs: GGL/CCR
Posts: 1,899
Nov 17, 2014, 2:51 am
#14
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Sevenoaks
Programs: CX Gold, SPG Plat, PC Plat, TAP Gold
Posts: 1,080
I flew F to and from DME a week or so before you and the food on the return was vastly superior to on the way out.
The mixed grill was terrible. Egg way overcooked, hockey puck steak.
The amouse bouche was a stewed fig or something like that.
Service was superb though.
And the metro in Moscow is far quicker than cabs (apart from very short journeys).
The mixed grill was terrible. Egg way overcooked, hockey puck steak.
The amouse bouche was a stewed fig or something like that.
Service was superb though.
And the metro in Moscow is far quicker than cabs (apart from very short journeys).