Jumpseat18

This trip report is overdue and I actually wrote half of it about 9 months ago, but, as so many of you know, once a little one enters your life, priorities tend to change! I hope you enjoy!

Mrs. Jumpseat and I found out in early October 2013 that our first was cooking in the oven and estimated to arrive in early June. This knowledge, combined with the announcement of United’s mileage devaluation, the fact that my travel forecast reflected the old MileagePlus account would cross over the 200,000 mark at the end of 2013, and my longing desire to fly in premium class cabins on foreign carriers (we’re based out of WAS) resulted in only one question, “Where do you want to go honey?”

Mrs. Jumpseat has always had her eye on Greece and in particular, the island of Santorini. I thought, great, I’ve never been and this would make a wonderful carefree trip before we have a little one to look after. Scheduling conflicts and Mrs. Jumpseat’s quickly approaching EDC (Estimated Date of Confinement – love this medical term) drove the dates of the trip, which would turn out to be mid-March. I’d read up on traveling to Santorini and other Greek isles during the month of March and learned that weather can be hit or miss and thus keeps many of the tourists and the island’s seasonal inhabitants away, providing the feeling of an island all to one’s self. Having comfortable weather in Istanbul on the same dates the year prior (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...break-fun.html), we decided to chance it and make Santorini our first destination followed by Athens and Rome.

Knowing Mrs. Jumpseat would be approaching her 7th month of pregnancy at the time of travel and, as I must admit, for my own selfish enjoyment, finding saver awards in Business class with fully lie-flat seats was a must, even if it resulted in added connections. With the devaluation only mildly increasing United’s Business class redemption rate I wanted to burn the miles on European carriers before their Business class redemption rates increased dramatically through the MileagePlus program (from 50k to 70k each way, IIRC). For the dates needed and originating from IAD this led me to Austrian, Lufthansa or Turkish. Seeing as how Turkish frequently and unpredictably utilizes aircraft on the IAD-IST route with angled lie-flat seats, they were eliminated (though we would later visit IST anyways).

I was able to find availability on the dates needed in both directions on Austrian’s (OS) 763 and Lufthansa’s (LH) 748i. I opted for the OS 763 on the outbound with the hopes of getting a little extra sleep due to the extra hour in scheduled flight time to VIE compared to the IAD-FRA barely 7 hour route. I booked the LH 748i for the return, opting for the connection in FRA to try the new jumbo with new Business class hard product in lieu of UA’s BF 763 (bleh) FCO-IAD direct. I could make all the desired destinations and connections work individually on United’s website, but not all together. So, I called the Premier Priority Desk and a helpful agent had all the desired destinations and connections confirmed on one itinerary within an hour and, as the agent detected I was having trouble making the routing work online, he waived the telephone booking fee (with literally no coercing)^. This resulted in our routing of IAD-VIE-ATH-JTR-ATH-IST-FCO-FRA-IAD, with the open-jaw being in JTR. I booked a one-way ticket for each of us JTR-ATH in Y on Aegean for 54 euro, or roughly $75, total, for both. Not a steep price to pay to pick up the rest of the itinerary, IMO. The total price of both tickets for the main itinerary was 200,000 United miles and $411.60 in taxes in fees.

There are few ways to get from downtown DC to Dulles affordably for a long trip. The 5A bus picks up at L’Enfant Plaza on D and 7th Street SW just outside the entrance to the metro station and costs $6.00 per person each way. The trip is scheduled to take right at an hour, making two stops along the way in Rosslyn and at the Herndon-Monroe Park & Ride. It runs every half hour during the week and every hour on the weekends in both directions.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The load was heavy today and after leaving some folks still waiting to board in Rosslyn, the driver radioed in for back-up, shut the door and pulled away. This is the downside to the bus and why I would recommend leaving considerable time to arrive at the airport if taking the 5A; I have no idea when those folks left at the Rosslyn stop made it to Dulles or if they just had to wait for the next scheduled bus to arrive (approx. 45 mins later).
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

After one more stop our 12:30PM departure bus was right on schedule arriving at Dulles at 1:30PM (as a data point, on the return we would take a cab home from Dulles; it was $65 and a 45 minute ride…We should’ve taken the bus).

No line at the Austrian Business class check-in counter and since our outbound IAD-VIE-ATH-JTR itinerary included an Olympic Airlines (OA) flight ATH-JTR, we decided not to roll the dice by not checking any bags outbound. We just carried on our one TravelPro Crew 7 and a backpack. Although our TravelPro was right at the carry-on limits (maybe even over), we didn’t get any pushback from any Austrian crew. This made for easy check-in and within a couple minutes of furnishing our passports we had our passports for IAD-VIE-ATH (I’d already checked us in online and printed our boarding passes for ATH-JTR on OA). Onward to the Lufthansa Senator Lounge!

…But wait, one more roadblock before the real party begins. Dulles security can be a pain in the neck sometimes. We used the Business class fast track to avoid some of the line, but it was still a 10 minute wait get to the TSA boarding pass and ID checker, who just wanted to chat (part of the screening?!), and then another 15 minutes to get to the nude vision screeners and bag scanners.

Finally, onward!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The IAD LH Senator Lounge is the best domestic lounge Mrs. Jumpseat and I have visited.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Our bird
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

And our return chariot parked next door
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Boarding straight from the Senator Lounge was a very nice touch

IAD-VIE
OS 94
Boeing 767-300
Business Class (I)
5:50PM - 8:45AM

I found these seats to be pretty enjoyable.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Mrs. Jumpseat catching a few ZZZ's...
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Breakfast looked decent
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

But the eggs were pretty overcooked. Coffee was good though as they have a gourmet coffee menu.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A smooth sunrise touchdown at VIE ended a most pleasant 7:52 wheels-up time. My only complaint about the flight, other than the overcooked eggs, is that I felt the Austrian crew was just a little cold in their service. Not offering refills on drinks, "please, thank you", etc. However, anytime I asked for refills or anything else, I was provided it, so I really can't complain too much.

A shot of our bird at VIE
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Pleasant *G lounge at VIE
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A sea of narrow body Airbus
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

VIE-ATH
OS 801
A320
Business Class (I)
10:20AM-1:30PM

Our bird
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Typical Intra-Europe Business Class
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Breakfast
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A short time at the Aegean lounge in ATH (sorry for the blurry pic)
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Nice spread inside, sorry for the lack of pictures, though Mrs. Jumpseat made a face at the smell due to the smoking area contained within the lounge

After she justifiably said "I'm done with the smoke lounge" we headed down to our gate (which had nothing interesting to note about it) to kill time and wait for our puddle jump to Santorini.

ATH-JTR
Olympic Air (OA) 6352
de Havilland Dash-8-400
Economy (X)
3:30PM-4:20PM

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Mrs. Jumpseat and I were pretty beat at this point in our travels so not many pictures on this flight, but a nice approach into JTR
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Next up a cold 3 nights in deserted Santorini...

Jumpseat18

Mrs. Jumpseat and I picked up our rental at Hertz and headed for our hotel, the 160 Thea.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Now, I was drawn to the 160 Thea for the gorgeous views and the fact that every single room came with its own hot tub. The fact that it was about 50* and gusting to 30mph made the hot tub all the more important. Due to hotel construction there were only 4 rooms in the entire hotel available and 3 of the 4 had functioning hot tubs. We were assigned the room with the broken hot tub. I brought it up to the hotel attendant (who was filling in for the regular person who was out of pocket due to a family emergency) immediately upon check in. He inspected and said that I could use any of the other tubs on either side of our room as no one would be checking in to those rooms during our stay. Okay, cool. The first night, no problem I used the other tub. The second day, all rooms were checked into by mid-morning, leaving us with just our own cold tub. On top of that, the power went out in our room that evening around 7PM for the remainder of the evening, with no staff present to report to and no phone to call out. Obviously disgruntled, the next morning, I was all but threatening over the lack of amenities I paid for. By the time we returned in the evening the hotel attendant had moved us to the suite room with functioning tub for the night and given us a fresh bottle of wine. OK, doesn't quite make up for the inconvenience and lost chill time, but I'm cool with that. The below pictures are a mix of the suite and our first room.

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The Suite
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Hotel Security
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Hotel construction workers
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

On to some touring in the chilly weather, it was really quite pleasant to have the island nearly all to ourselves - I can only imagine how overrun it is in the summer!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Lunch
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Stairway to Heaven?
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Highly recommend grabbing a bite to eat at Salt and Pepper in Fira, one of the best meals on our trip.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

On our last fully day in Santorini we decided to splurge on a sailboat tour of the caldera. What a treat! The tour was on a beautiful 46 foot catamaran run through Spiridakos Yacht Cruises which is typically occupied by 8-12 guests. Well, being March, Mrs. Jumpseat and I were the only two guests. For 120 euro per head, a private driver provided round trip transportation from our hotel to our now private yacht 5 hour cruise. When we arrived at the harbor, the pampering began and never stopped. We were outnumbered by our crew 3 to 2 and, oh yeah, I forgot to mention all you can eat all you can drink was included. With Mrs. Jumpseat on the DL with a baby in the oven, the crew kept my glass full the entire trip. This was a highlight of the entire trip.

Immaculate condition
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Very friendly Italian crew
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Luckily we had some of the best weather of our stay in Santorini that day, though when sailing into the wind it was still pretty chilly.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

One of the best meals of our trip grilled fresh right on the boat by the crew
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Fantastic
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

With the winds at our stern and gusting to 30, we were making 7 knots with just the jib!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

After chilling in the Suite at 160 Thea on the final night, we rose in the morning to head back to Athens for a couple days. As JTR was the open jaw I paid for JTR-ATH at 27 euro per person on Aegean Air.

JTR-ATH
A 3355
A320
Economy (P)
11:15AM - 12:00PM

Pleasant flight with mints being handed out prior to departure and beverage service on this 28 minute wheels-up flight, unlike most NA carriers that phone it in due to "short duration"
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Ship watching on approach to ATH
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Greeting representative at ATH
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A little thin though..
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

After an uneventful light rail ride downtown we checked into the Hilton Athens and explored for a couple nights...

Mrtrash757

very nice TR so far! food looks delicious and cannot wait to see the rest!

Jumpseat18

The Hilton Athens is quite pleasant, with a great executive lounge affording views of the Acropolis at sunset. Though, the main sign could use a little work...
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

With just a day and a half in Athens (which was really the appropriate amount of time to just see the highlights) we dropped our bags and headed out for some touring.

The running man right outside the Hilton, supposedly a relic from the '04 Olympics
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Tomb of the unknown soldier
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Pretty heavy police presence during our visit
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A nice lunch
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Watching a show
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Back at the Hilton Exec lounge, we took in some hors d'oeuvres and drinks while watching the sunset.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

We then went out for a delicious dinner and some night walking.

Can't get enough Greek salad, peppers, and whatever the fried cheese with honey is called.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The dogs really seem to rule the streets around here..
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The next day we did a little bit more touring before taking the light rail back to ATH.

The national gardens were very pretty
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

We loved all the Athens dogs.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Just waiting to cross...
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

One of our favorite things to do in any destination is sample the street food and Athens doesn't disappoint. These delicious gyros were only 2 euro each sold from a whole in the wall near the market.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Next up, Turkish A320 Business Class, my favorite *G lounge, and on to Rome...

bmrisko

Great TR so far...Santorini has always been on the SO's list as well...maybe next year!

PS. Those gyros look amazing!

mike&co

Santorini is simply stunning, one of our stops on a 12 night cruise from Rome last year.

Great trip report 👍

Jumpseat18

Back at ATH after an easy light rail ride from downtown we made our way to security and this time visited the Senator lounge in lieu of the smoky Aegean lounge.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Our A320 pulling unto the gate
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Now, as some *A folks may point out, Aegean offers nonstop flights from Athens to Rome, but I chose to fly Turkish for two reasons. 1) I was able to visit the *G lounge in IST the previous year and just had a blast eating and drinking for nearly two hours straight; and 2) I wanted to chance getting an A320 that had actual business class seats instead of the typical intra-europe middle seat blocked out business just to try it and lone behold our ATH-IST flight did not disappoint.

ATH-IST
TK 1850
A320
Business Class (I)
2:50PM - 4:15PM

Our Captain, with an excellent mustache
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Much more space than typical NA domestic First
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

With significant recline
Untitled by
jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A shot of economy
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Nice PDB in actual glass
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Beautiful short flight
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Menu and meal service on a wheels-up 55 minute flight?!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A very pleasant flight put us in IST on time and Mrs. Jumpseat and I made a bee line for our favorite *G lounge
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

What a treat this place is and they'd expanded significantly from just a year prior, opening up a whole new lower level.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Live flight tracking on the big screen
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

You can work on your swing...
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Or, my personal favorite, work on your electric racing skills...
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

And did I even mention the food?!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

OK, maybe I indulged a little too much?....Nahhhh
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

There's even a spot for the kids
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Okay, after enough fun in the lounge we headed down to our bus gate for our flight to Rome.

IST-FCO
TK 1361
A320
Business Class (I)
9:15PM - 10:50PM

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

As soon as we boarded though I realized we were 1 for 2 on real business class today as this A320 had the typical intra-europe configuration. Bummer. Oh well, 1 for 2 beats 0 for 2.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Still better than average legroom with a fold down footrest under the seat in front.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Again, nice PDB
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Some more Raki
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A very friendly crew kept the drinks coming
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A couple of really pleasant flights and an excellent stay in the Turkish lounge had me really glad that we spent the extra time traveling that day. Sometimes its just about the journey..

Upon arrival at FCO our prearranged driver quickly greeted us and transported us to the Albergo del Sole Al Pantheon Rome. Though, our chariot wasn't quite the Mercedes advertised...
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Next up, Rome.

TyphoonRuby

Thsnks for sharing and congrsts on the baby

MatthewLAX

I love your wife's boots!

Okay, great TR too.

Jumpseat18

We arrived at Sole al Pantheon around midnight, yet the front desk was expecting us and escorted us to our very spacious room, located in the hotel's auxiliary building.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Classic European elevator
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Great location and view
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The next morning we started our exploring
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A seriously short bus
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Bouncer at a local boutique
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Our hotel was right in the heart of things just set off of the Pantheon square. We frequently got coffee or dessert and just people watched.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Great dinner
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Heading back from the Colosseum there were protests surrounding the annexation of Crimea
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The Vatican
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Mrs. Jumpseat at Mass
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Stunning artwork
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Can't even stay away from the statues of dogs..
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

When we asked the concierge for a nice dinner recommendation it turned out there was an excellent restaurant directly next door to our hotel, I wish I could remember the name of it, a great recommendation indeed!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

More nighttime wandering after dinner
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The best gelato spot we found
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr


One final nighttime picture of the Pantheon to wrap up our time in Rome
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A very early wake-up call for our 6:20AM flight to FRA had our driver at the hotel around 330AM

At least it was a Benz this time!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Literally no line for *G and Business Class
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

But for everyone else?
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

We hung out in the contract lounge the Lufthansa check-in agent provided passes for, which was bare bones, sorry for no pictures. But at this hour, I wasn't much in the mood for pampering anyways, just wanted a seat to close my eyes.

FCO-FRA
LH 243
A 321
Business Class (I)
6:20AM - 8:25AM

Our bird
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Typical intra-Europe Business class, Mrs. Jumpseat and I were lucky enough to have the bulkhead ^.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Standard breakfast
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Easy morning flight to FRA and a smooth touchdown
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

We headed for the Senator lounge to kill time, which did not disappoint as they typically have great offerings and today was no exception.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The always great plane spotting at FRA
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

I was elated to see the 748 at our gate as LH has been randomly utilizing 744s even when the 748 was scheduled to run and I definitely wanted to test out the new LH business class with full lie-flats!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Jumpseat18

FRA-IAD
LH 418
Boeing 747-800i
Business Class (I)
12:25PM - 4:20PM

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Main floor Business Cabin
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

I opted for the upper deck just for the fun of it even though I'd read the downstairs is typically quieter due to the position in the fuselage.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

We took 83 K & H, just in front of the exit door, which were very nice seats.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Great storage
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Rollout on 25 Center
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Nice live views from the IFE
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

I have to mention the folks across the aisle who, must have either been on their first flight or were total boneheads. They kept the crew busy nearly the entire flight with requests from operating their seat, to working the IFE, to tasting every wine on the menu and selecting none, to asking to see the cockpit because they wanted to understand how the pilot flies the thing?!?! But wait for it... here's the best one...The gentleman, after using the bathroom, was convinced there was something wrong with the toilet, and thus the safety of the aircraft, he told the crew "the toilet made a very strange noise that was not normal and I know what normal sounds like!" ...Alright dude, you're starting to piss me off, sit down and shut up. The crew did a great job of calming the man down and treating the couple with respect throughout the flight. I'd pay to see the reaction of a typical UA crew in a similar situation.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Capt. Phillips time
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Why yes, I'll start with a beer
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

This beef was less than sensational, but I suppose its a typical J class meal
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Tasty dessert with some cognac the attendant insisted I try...Pull my arm..
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

The only time of the flight our seat mates across the aisle quieted down
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

I went snooping
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A very smooth flight bright us to a snow covered Dulles as a late winter storm shut down the government just the day prior. A truly pleasant flight with a great J hard product and what I felt to be a much warmer crew than that of Austrian. LH was great all around and I would definitely fly this business product again given the choice.

A row on our exit
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

Our bird at IAD
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

And catching a shot of where our journey began just 10 days prior..
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

These people movers are ridiculous, I really hope they get rid of them soon..
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

After a long wait in customs we found that our single checked bag had somehow ended up in Munich instead of Frankfurt...After stopping by to see the baggage representative she let us know they would deliver as soon as they could..

Thinking that we wouldn't want to deal with the bus on our way home we opted for the Washington Flyer cab. This turned out to be a stupid move as it was only marginally faster and $50 more expensive.
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

To our surprise the LH baggage agent was true to her word and our bag was delivered to our door that night, undamaged!
Untitled by jumpseat18, on Flickr

A great ending to a great Babymoon! I hope you've enjoyed reading!

krazykanuck

Looks like a great trip, and seems like you're a lucky a guy! A baby, and what I'm assuming is a gorgeous wife (behind the blur of course ).

injian

Congrats on the baby and thanks for the TR :-)

Jumpseat18

Thanks!

Thanks! And those gyros still make me salivate...

Thanks! We had a blast in Santorini, though we promised ourselves we'd come back in the summer as the off to shoulder season is pretty dead around there. Mostly just folks doing renovations for the prime team season. Which sort of gave a more authentic feel of what the islanders are really like before being overrun by tourists.

Thanks!

Haha, thanks!

Haha, thank you. And, yes, I am a lucky guy and she is beautiful behind the blur!

Thanks!

grandgourmand

Congrats on the baby. Very nice trip report. Good to see some offseason pictures as I might make a similar trip later this year.