TR of my First TP run to HNL
 

This is a Trip Report for my first ever TP run to HNL.

I booked it in the flash sale after looking at going to New York for new year at the bargain price of £1,005. Decided I would see how much it would be to tag on a quick jaunt to HNL. This reduced the price to £953 so I then decided HNL it was and elected to pay the extra £100 for a domestic NCL-LHR return instead of getting the train to LHR. Upon doing this the price again dropped to £853.01 so I was a very happy bunny and booked it there and then!

So the trip was booked and I then found out by the forum that griep would be on the same NCL-LHR and PHX-HNL flight as me although he was only going to have a few hours in HNL before heading back to BRU.

I arrived into NCL to see a long queue to check-in (OLCI wasn't working) and the Fast-track check-in closed, alas I stood in the line anyway and the check-in agent stopped another gentleman in the normal queue from going to check-in and called me forward....good start. Got to the lounge about 45 minutes later than expected due to traffic on the A1(M) (completely forgot about it being the 27th and sales on at the metro centre) and spotted who I thought was griep straight away and thankfully it was him!

We had a good chat over soup, sandwiches and I introduced him to the delights of pimms and lemonade :D Not 100% sure he enjoyed it as much as I do.

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We boarded the aircraft and I was seated in 12C emergency exit row, the flight was very full. Pushed on time and a prompt arrival into LHR T5.

At this point I asked griep whether he would like to go to GC South or North, his response was "I'll follow you" so we headed for GC South. It wasn't too busy and I think griep was quite impressed with the lounge. A few sandwiches and more pimms for me and I then got the lovely feeling of wisdom toothache coming through so a quick trip to WHSmith for some Panadol Extra Advance. On the way back I noticed that my flight was delayed 15 minutes which went to 25 minutes and then 45 minutes. Grieps flight was on time so instead of letting him try find his own way to the gate in satellite B I offered to show him. We arrived quickly and said our goodbyes as he headed off to his gate whilst I headed upstairs to the T5B lounge, first time ever in there and I think I'll head there every time should I be flying out of T5B again, lovely lounge and nice and quiet.

I went out to see the lounge angel who advised me the flight was delayed due to the aircraft late in being towed over from maintenance, oh well...another pimms and lemonade?

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She found me about 15 minutes later and advised me they were now ready to board First/Club passengers and I could head to the gate at my leisure. With this being my first ever CW flight I wanted to spend as much time on board as possible. This is where things got a bit silly/childish from the G4s guard. I walked up to the boarding point where he stopped me and advised me there were only boarding First/Club and executive club pax only, I politely told him I know, I'm flying club and EC Silver, he huffed and walked over to the bit where they scan your BP and he advised me I had been 'randomly' selected for secondary screening where he personally escorted me to the secondary screening point. I just smiled and got on with it knowing that within 10 minutes I'd be enjoying a champagne sat in my CW seat on the UD :D:D:D

I was made to feel very welcome and was guided to my seat by the crew member. He immediately asked if I would like a champagne and offered to take a picture as I think it was obvious from the beaming smile it was my first time in Club. 63A was my seat and I had just put all my stuff away when the other member of the crew sorting out upstairs asked me if I was set on having a window seat. I noticed a couple had been split up and had no problem with swapping seats which paid dividends later on for me! I travel alone a lot of the time so really don't mind giving up my seat as long as I get an equivelant.

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I was moved to 64J? My seat partner was a nice chap and we had a long chat all through dinner before he got his head down for 3 hours then as soon as he woke up we chatted again until we landed and de-planed. During the flight I'd asked the CC to stop calling me Mr Robson or Sir and just call me Jamie. Each time my champagne glass was getting low it was topped up and more Heineken was brought including several glasses of water!

I was also first to be asked what I would like for my meal, I think it was a thanks for moving seats without blinking an eye and they could tell how much fun I was having. The prawns were awesome and the steak was cooked as good as you could expect for an aircraft! The dessert was also amazing but it didn't last long enough for me to get a picture! I wandered down the back a few times to stretch my legs and chat with the 2 guys running the cabin who were so friendly!

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Before I knew it we were an hour out and afternoon tea was brought round, unlike what some people have made out I thought it was perfectly adequate considering the meal we had and the amount I had drank. Then we had landed in JFK and the crew allowed me up to the pointy end to have a quick gander.

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Waited about 20 minutes at immigration, swaying slightly after what was worked out to be about 1 1/2 bottles of Tattinger and 10 cans on Heineken. Made my way across to T7 or T8 I can't remember but then chilled for a few hours and slept a little before heading to the admirals lounge. Promptly boarded the aircraft at 0600 and we were away by 0625.

The seats were fine for the almost 6 hour trip to PHX and I managed to drink all 8 cans of Heineken on the aircraft. The FA offered to bring me another type of drink but I figured it was time to give it a rest so I could at least be in some kind of fit state for HNL. The breakfast on the flight was delicious and the 1 FA running the cabin was very active constantly bringing me fresh drinks.

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Arriving at PHX I went looking for griep and after 10 minutes of searching found him and we went for a quick 10 minutes in the lounge, very basic but good enough for a quick toilet break and orange juice.

Boarding of the flight started promptly 45 minutes before departure and we made our way to row 1, miracolously we had managed to book seats 1A & 1C before knowing we were on the same flights. More Heineken followed before a smooth departure and an amazing Steak dinner with a side salad and some other meat thing?

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After the meal I fell asleep and slept like a log on the seats that almost went fully flat, woke up for about 15 seconds and realised we had turbulence before falling asleep again until just before we were landing. Managed to spot Air Force 1 on approach (I know it's not AF1 unless the president is on board but hey ho) and named all the other military aircraft that were lined up. The approach into HNL is absolutely stunning may I add!

We were quickly out and into a taxi heading for the hotel I was sharing with JMS87.

Arrived at the hotel and checked in. The room was very basic and after a quick chat with James and Griep a quick brushing of teeth and contacts putting in we were off to Waikiki beach! This place really is beautiful and I can't wait to come back. Disregarding the TP & Avios earned this will now be my choice of TP run simply as I could quite easily spend a day or 2 here then fly back home!

After walking along the beach we found a bar with a good band on and joined in with the locals and party animals, we only stayed for 2 drinks before moving on as Griep didn't have a lot of time here. The sun was setting as we made our way to find another pub.

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On our way back we made a mental note of a subway and decided we would be back later for food, on the way back to the hotel we found a bar that had pints from $4 so made a bee-line. The beer we chose was Long Board, a locally brewed hawaiian beer costing $5. It was nice but a bit on the sweet side however after 3 of them it was going down well. This is where Griep had to leave us and upon enquiring where our hotel was we found out the bar backed directly onto the hotel! WINNER!

Griep was waved off so me and James headed off to subway to get a snack. What we found was a travesty! Subway was closed! We set off to try find somewhere else to eat but somehow wound up back in the bar having not eaten! Oh well liquid food it was! More pints followed, James went onto vodka and coke which entailed me trying to keep up with him! We got chatting to some Americans and Aussies and then came my downfall, tequilla slammers, whiskey, morgans spice & coke, plus whatever else was put in front of me. All of these were subsequently drank and before we knew it 2am had come and it was time to leave.

The aussies led us to this other bar where we smelt the sweet smell of HOT DOGS. Now to me a hot dog is a sausage in a bun and you put sauce on it. This one was a sausage in a bun, I put sauce on it and I took one beautiful bite, chew chew chew and swallow, at which point my tongue started burning, followed by my gums, my lips and anything else that could burn! It lived up to its name as a HOT dog however I would have renamed it SPICE dog. Alas defeated I put the last 1/4 into the bin and headed inside for a rescue pint which was dispatched of fairly quickly. More pints and shots followed before it was 0430 and we were being turfed out. We bid farewell to our friends and headed home using the satnav on James' phone. The length of time it took us to get home was definitely longer than the time taken to find that bar, however it did lead us past a McDonalds which was very welcome. By the time we got back to the hotel it was 0500 and time for sleep.

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Somehow having got to sleep at 0500 we woke around 0830-0900 and quickly got showered and ready whilst drinking plenty of water. We decided the best thing to do would be to check out, hand our bags to reception and go exploring as we only had about 12 hours left before heading to the airport. James wanted to go to the BOSE store and after finding out where it was we elected to go to it en-route to the airport later. On closing the door we found out how poor the hotel really was when the door handle came off in James' hand.

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We headed for the beach and found a little bar on the front to have a few glasses of water and the waiter kindly gave us several pieces of pineapple to eat. Along the beach to the opposite end of the Hilton complex there is a nice little burger bar which we made our pit stop at. Suitably fed and watered we went wandering.

The sea front at Waikiki is really great, the water is so clear we both said several times we wish we had more time to spend there instead of just 36 hours! There is also several catamarans that you can go on.

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We wandered down towards the Hilton complex and had a walk round. Whilst it does look great and has its own little private kind of man made lagoon it was too busy with people, whilst Waikiki front was busy, this area was heaving with people and families and felt very confined. I would much rather stay further up towards Waikiki.

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At this point we decided to walk back and visit some shops James' fancied, we set off and accidentally ended up in McDonalds again. From there we visited several shops and realised how much cheaper it is in the USA than it is in the UK. We had arranged to meet up with some of the americans from the previous evening so before we headed off to the airport we went and had a few beers with them. They were a friendly bunch and ex US forces so I got along swimmingly with them, however like the night before I don't think James could understand how crass we were about certain things. At this point we said goodbye to them and thanked them for their hospitality and being so friendly towards us. We got a group photo before we headed off. Oh and they also commented on our travel plans and that we are 'Crazy'.

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Jumping into a taxi we stopped at the BOSE shop which is probably the quickest I'd ever seen James move, in and out within 3 minutes! We then cracked on and I checked in for my flight as James had managed to do it on the App I hadn't. After that we finally found our way to the Sakura lounge and met up with PaulN who had done a Griep and only had a few hours on the Island. A few minutes before James left in walked El_Duderito who was also heading home. 4 FTers meeting up in one lounge heading out on 3 different flights. After that we went our seperate ways for the long slog home to be back in time for New Years celebrations.

Next up the trip home and some unexpected goings on.

Reserved for the HNL-PHX-JFK-LHR-NCL sector.

Great TR!
Gutted that I didn't take up the opportunity to make it to gold and see HNL. Then again there's always the next sale :D

Fantastic write-up Jamie and I am glad you are really enjoying the experience! I will be heading out there at the beginning of July myself so let us know where you stayed and what it was like.

Bye for now,

James

Nice report so far and great to hear you enjoyed the trip.

I love going on those sort of runs and am already excited about the ones Ive got coming up this year.

Pub crawl at 30,000 feet. :-)

Can't knock that price. I'd be tempted to do something similar myself if I had the time to spare.

Very good enthusiastic TR - do you have shares in Heineken by any chance? ;)

Brilliant stuff. You look like you have having soooo much fun.
Looking forward to next installment. Need to know what will be your beverage(s) of choice in HNL.

Good start by the OP!

A couple of requests, though:

jamier45 ... Please resize pictures to 800pix wide. It really makes it hard to read when they're oversized.

And scallywag72, please don't quote the entire post when replying. What's the point? Would you be kind enough to edit that out of your comment.

I thought it was easier to view larger pics once one gets to a certain age, Uncle T? :D (am being partially cheeky as I would have no idea how to change the size of pics).

+1 re not 'quoting' pics.

Nice TR there!

I had the same menu on my LHR-JFK flight - the dessert was one of the best desserts I've had! (I also cheekily asked if I could have a spare cheese plate as well which was no problem!).

It looks like US have improved the PHX-HNL flights - caught up with Calchas last night and he said he also had an international configured 757 for his flight. Unfortunately that wasn't the case for my PHX-HNL-PHX flights in August. They were the domestic F recliners that had atrocious seat pitch and weren't comfortable at all. It may be 70 TPs less, but I'm looking forwards to sleeping on my LAX-JFK flight tomorrow morning.

I agree with chris1979 - these TP runs are definitely good fun!

Thoroughly enjoyed part 1

Awaiting report on your antics in HNL with avid intrepidation!

Typical Geordies on tour - drink the plane dry :)

Great report. Always good to see someone having fun and enjoying themselves. Looking forward to the next instalment!

Dividends because nearest the toilet? - with all that Heineken, etc I would have been up & down all flight!

Possibly but unlikely...when you get asked does not usually determine what position you are in case choices are over-selected. Status and CIV determine who misses out if a particular selection is popular - at least that is what I am led to believe from elsewhere on BA FT.

Also looking forward to the return TR - hope you do not / did not(?) get weather impacted through NY