headingwest

For those of you who just look at pictures, I've summarised my experience here:

Club World - the soft product was very good, but the cabin was knackered. I would consider flying CW again, but only as a treat and only at a good price!

Club World London City - not for me thank you very much.

American Airlines First - much better than Club Europe in terms of comfort. Food and service are a little bit inconsistent.

Quotes of the trip:

''Are you checking in any bags today sir?'' - asked by the check-in agent at HNL after my bag had been missing for a week.

''Ladies and gentlemen would you please calm down'' - announced on the Ryanair flight LBA-DUB

''Oh you're joking?'' - comment by lady doing survey at LCY when I told her how much I'd saved doing ex-DUB. She'd just spent a grand on an economy booking to JFK.

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For those of you who like to read everything, here are the details:

Well where do I start? This trip to Honolulu certainly turned out to be memorable but not all for good reasons. Planned during the ex-DUB sale, it was my first trip ever in longhaul business class to enable me to reach Executive Club Gold status. Timed right at the beginning of my Tier Point year, this plus a couple of short weekend breaks will mean that I shall have status for 3 whole years (provided the soft landing stays).

The positioning flights to and from DUB were almost Tier Point runs in themselves meaning that this entire trip would involve fifteen flights in total. The full itinerary went as follows:



The cost of flights was as follows:

flights 1-3 cost €146.99 EUR
flight 4 €31.00 EUR
flights 5-13 €1479.44 EUR
flights 14-15 €153.59

TOTAL COST OF FLIGHTS €1811.02, earning 58,722 Avios and 1360 Tier Points.

Part One - the positioning flights and Dublin

The first four flights, all in economy went like clockwork - nothing unusual or exceptional to report. I could have booked VIE-LHR-DUB but it turned out that I could get a ticket for VIE-DUS-LHR-LBA issued by airberlin a good €100 cheaper. A Ryanair flight would plug the gap between LBA-DUS for a mere €31. It was a riskier option but if booked for 2 days before the main Tier Point run, it would allow me to also see Dublin for the first time, plus it would give me a good safety net for any complications with the AB ticket.

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airberlin's exclusive waiting area, Vienna Airport. I didn't have time for the Air Lounge but this area was just next to the gate, so I was able to avoid the crowds and enjoy a coffee while watching the gate.












NIKI Complimentary muffin and drinks, early morning flight VIE-DUS




Dusselfdorf


The Hugo Junkers Lounge at Dusseldorf is quite spacious and comfortable. The food on offer was very basic but adequate enough for a short connection time.









A short hop from DUS-LHR with BA. A small snack and drinks were offered (and accepted!)




A quick change of planes in London for the flight to Leeds Bradford




BA complimentary snack and drink, LHR-LBA


Approach on Leeds Bradford






Upon arrival at Leeds Bradford the luggage was very quickly delivered to baggage reclaim and I went straight through security to wait for the Ryanair flight to Dublin. I was pleasantly surprised by the whole LBA experience - friendly and jovial staff, quick security, and a terminal waiting area which was much quieter than the Galleries Club Lounge at Heathrow 2 hours earlier.

The flight, however, was...well...Ryanair! Lots of announcements on the PA, a boisterous crowd and a lady with a toddler who insisted on getting on my lap! It was kind of that old feeling I used to get when the family had a get together for Christmas...you knew it wasn't going to last all night so you had to smile and tolerate it.

Then it was 2 nights in Dublin at a bed and breakfast quite near the centre. Here are a few pictures from my time there.









A good value B&B in the centre of the town, 128 EUR for 2 nights.






















I really liked Dublin, but I'm afraid that I've become acclimatised to hot Central European summers. The cloud and showers were quite annoying at times. Also it's clear to see in some parts of the city that Ireland has fallen upon bad times. The people, however, were all very friendly and cheerful.

headingwest

Part Two - the main outward journey









How quaint! A stroll from the terminal building straight to the plane


The short hop from Dublin to Heathrow went without any problems. At check in I was told that my one suitcase would be checked through to HNL, although I'd have to collect at arrival in the US at MIA and then return it to the baggage system once I had passed US customs. This I already knew as I'd flown into VPS via MIA before. I didn't bother with the lounge as the reviews I had seen didn't leave me with a desire to visit. The Dublin flight departed a little late but not enough so as to cause concern. The service was pleasant and sufficient for this short flight.





BA Club Europe meal DUB-LHR




Before my flight to Miami I skipped the lounge as there really wasn't any point (I was already fed and watered with my batteries recharged - metaphorically and non-metaphorically!).





So this was it! My first ever flight in longhaul business class at the grand old age of 43. I'd managed to bag seat 64K on the 747 upper deck. My first impression upon boarding was that the cabin and seats were well and truly knackered. Surfaces were well worn with built up dirt (not in a cleaning issue sense, but more that the dirt had built up in hard to reach places where there were joints in the fittings), also a lot of marks and scrapes had been touched up. The was a serious issue of colour fading of parts and I also noticed lots of loose fittings that showed the cabin's age. My first thoughts were that I can't believe people pay some of the prices they do for Club World and that the window blinds must be down to try and mask the condition of the cabin!

Everything worked! The seat itself functioned as it should and it was very comfortable. The crew on the upper deck were very proactive and their professionalism showed. I did find the male member a little offish at first but I sensed that this may have been due to the general 'business clientele' or awkward passengers that they have to deal with, although I sensed that he warmed to me in time! I particularly liked the little touches like having my tray table put down for me and the regular topping up of drinks.

64K, looking around the cabin, I have to say that this seat must be the best and most private












I'd be seeing a lot of these! I experienced problems at security on the return at DUB and MAD. It took a bit of smooth talking to get them to wave me through.














Severn and Wye cured Scottish smoked salmon with caper berries, horseradish cream cheese and pea shoots, and a fresh seasonal salad. The garlic bread was lovely.


Roasted corn-fed chicken with Madeira sauce, soft herb mashed potatoes and baby vegetables.


Mango and raspberry cream torte with raspberry compote. Yummy!




Yes folks, it's afternoon tea in a mug! Sandwiches came wrapped of course.


Tiffin slice, banana cake and passion-fruit & coconut slice.


I was only addressed by name once and there was no mention of the fact that this was my first flight in Club World.

I visited the Club Kitchen a couple of times, which was very well stocked and a crew member there was very chatty and happy to pass a bit of time talking to me. We discussed what type of customers are the most awkward and demanding - some interesting names were mentioned!

A selection of goodies that I grabbed from the Club Kitchen during the flight.




Welcome to rainy Miami


When we arrived at MIA the was immediately a problem. After landing we had to wait about 30 minutes before we could get to a gate. That afternoon there had been some bad storms in the US and many flights had been delayed and cancelled. Once inside the terminal building the queues were horrendous - I eventually cleared immigration some 2 hours later. That was followed by another hour in the baggage hall, as it appeared that my suitcase hadn't been loaded onto the flight. The BA agent informed me that there had been another baggage system failure at LHR and that only a small number of bags had been loaded. I was told that it would possibly make it on the next flight out of LHR, and that I should make a missing baggage claim at LAX. Why LAX? Well it appeared that the checking in agent at Dublin tagged my bag through to LAX - or possibly another destination. So there was nothing I could do but just hope that it would turn up, which unfortunately it didn't!

No sign of HNL on the tag


It wasn't the end of the world, but the missing bag made things quite awkward. I didn't have much clothes in my hand baggage, although I had packed essential things to last about 2 days. The biggest problem was that I didn't know when or if the bag would turn up, so I didn't want to go out and spend a lot of money on clothes and stuff. Also, as I was only in Hawaii for 3 days I also didn't want to spend time looking for clothes in shops. I only had the shoes that I travelled in (which are not good walking shoes), so I ended up with blisters on my feet on the last day. I also experienced slight sunburn to my neck and face because I didn't have my cap. I couldn't buy any souvenirs as I didn't have any means to carry them back with me. And I certainly didn't want to buy a new suitcase in case the other one turned up (I only had a one bag allowance with my final IB flights in economy). I wasn't going to let this all ruin the trip, but it was very inconvenient to say the least.

The next morning I flew to LAX and then on to HNL. This was another first for me - First Class with american Airlines. The main thing that I noticed on the 4 AA/US flights was that the cabin is private and extremely comfortable for domestic flights. The food and service are a little bit inconsistent though. Sometimes you get offered the hot towels, sometimes you don't. Sometimes you get just the main meal, sometimes you get offered little treats such as warm nuts, crisps, ice cream sundaes, or fancy biscuits/cakes. All the cabins were borderline freezing, as are most of the airport terminals in the US (they really love their air conditioning, don't they!?). All in all, I felt that AA First is better than the current Club Europe offering, quite simply because you feel like you're in a different cabin as the seats and spaces are much more comfortable.

Admirals Club Lounge, Miami


Breakfast, what a joke




A nice glimpse of the Florida coastline.


AA Breakfast, MIA-LAX, Turkey Bacon Quiche. The purser on this flight made a mean Gin & Tonic!




A nice sweet selection, which I think they forgot as it was served about an hour before arrival at LAX.







The only really bad thing that I experienced was on the LAX-HNL flight where there was a young stewardess and an older (done the years) dragon. The dragon was a spitting image of an old Social Studies teacher that I had when I went to an American school, she was mean! Unfortunately, whilst the younger member was giving the safety briefing the dragon lept in to tell her off for forgetting some details, ''you need to go back to safety school, etc.''. You could hear it all on the PA system which was quite shocking!



AA Lunch, LAX-HNL, Grilled Teriyaki beef Filet with Maui rice. Very tasty.






I managed to snap this great shot of Waikiki.

headingwest

Part Three - Hawaii

I won't mention all the details of the Hawaii stay, as there are plenty of excellent Trip Reports already giving lots of information about the Islands. Being a tight git I don't like paying much money on accommodation. I found a hotel apartment at the Kuhio Banyan Hotel for $209 for 3 nights. This was perfectly fine for me as a lone traveller and it was located in the centre of Waikiki, which was excellent.





I did enjoy my time in Honolulu, it definitely feels like somewhere special. I particularly liked the warm pleasant breeze, and the scent of flowers which was also noticeable at times. Waikiki is a very nice place to stay and there is a definite luxury feeling about the area. I was, however, quite surprised at the number on tramps, and 'beach bums' on the island, particularly when you go off the beaten track. It seems that Hawaii is perhaps not quite the heaven that I been told it is.























Yeah, I guess this is selfie time.


Throughout my stay I only used public transport, which I thought was cheap ($2.50 per journey, you can also transfer to another bus), but there were a few odd characters about.






I saw the iStore display for the iWatch and couldn't resist taking some photos of the lights. A few standers by were baffled why somebody would take a photo of a shop display, but I think the result was worth it!


















The life of a beach bum, eh.










































Honolulu airport has lots of walkways and buildings that are open to the elements, which I really liked with that pleasant breeze. Japan Airlines' Sakura Lounge is a notch up, in my opinion, from the Admirals Club lounges. It was nice that they had soup and sandwiches, and that you could pour your own drinks.

headingwest

Part Four - the return home

The flight from HNL to PHX went very quickly as I managed to dose off for about an hour. The seats were massive and so comfortable, which is exactly what business class should be! Breakfast was served on both my flight into PHX and the following flight out to JFK. Both were with US Airways (US branded airplanes) but almost everything else was branded American Airlines...only a couple of months to go before the merger is complete.



Goodbye Hawaii


AA/US Breakfast, HNL-PHX




Landings into Phoenix always seem to make great photos.




Pre-flight drink on the PHX-JFK flight. The only one out of 4 flights. The senior cabin crew member was excellent, she was probably one of the best I've ever seen in the US. When she took the food and drink order she even remembered that I didn't want ice in my orange juice, a rarity in the US indeed! Before we landed she made a little speech and thanked us all for flying with AA/US.


AA/US Breakfast, PHX-JFK




JFK approach


JFK approach


I was pleasantly surprised with the BA lounge at JFK. It was certainly much larger than I thought and the food was quite nice. Unfortunately, I only had about 15 minutes to grab something quickly before the flight was called. It would have been nice to explore the lounge a little more, but there's always next time!



Had to grab a bite to eat quickly! I did take some photos of the lounge but there are too many faces, so I haven't posted here.






Probably the biggest let down of the whole trip was the Babybus, BA's Airbus 318 business service between JFK and London City Airport in the heart of London. From the moment I walked on the plane I sensed a really 'stuffy' atmosphere. My seat was 1A and my neighbour was already settled in his seat with his feet up. When I indicated to him that I was in the next seat he just looked at me as if I'd just crawled in from off the street (granted that I had jeans a crumpled shirt and I was carrying a plastic bag full of dirty clothes!). I selected 1A months ago, and I got the feeling that I'd 'stolen' this guy's favourite seat (needless to say that he didn't say a word to me the whole flight). Shortly after a few of his 'clicky' friends arrived, all further down the cabin. One of them said that they didn't know he would be on the flight tonight, so I assume these are all regulars.

1A - is this the seat that everybody wants!?


The crew were whispering to each other that somebody was on the flight tonight, obviously a 'VIP' of some sort. I was quite surprised that they were acting in such an excited way. This was all setting the tone of the evening for me, I felt like I'd gatecrashed the Babybus party!

The crew were obviously well trained, although they seemed to slightly lack experience as they were very young. Shortly after take-off my new best friend slid out of vision, having told the purser that he didn't want supper or to be woken for breakfast (made my day!). This was my first sleeper service flight and I immediately experienced problems in communication - obviously because the crew have been trained to keep noise to the minimum for their 'special' guests. When the drinks trolley was carted out I asked (speaking quietly) for a Kir Royale, only to be given a glass of white wine. I sighed, but resigned to the fact that it wasn't so bad - I could try again later. The purser handed me the menu and then continued throughout the cabin.

Over the next 45 minutes the crew trotted back and forth, first towards the back of the cabin, then to 1J and 1K, and then to the middle. I sat up thinking how nice the glass of white wine looks on the spotlit table...for a long time. At this point it started to dawn on me that I was obviously deemed to be less important to the crew as there was absolutely no urgency to take my order. 1J had at this point finished supper and was snuggled down in his bed, and 1K was tucking into his dessert. The purser eventually appears to ask if I'd like another drink, to which I replied in a clearly agitated tone that something to eat would be nice! He immediately apologised, but when I said that I felt that "I was the last one to dine this evening" he realised that I was quite annoyed. Again he apologised and took my order. Shortly afterwards his colleague appeared to also apologise and offer me another drink. I said that it's OK, but that the trip hadn't been that successful with the lost luggage. She returned with my drink and said that the purser would like to speak to me later about some service recovery for the bag. I said that there wasn't much that could be done as it was in American Airlines' hands. She said that she was sure that he could do something.

Now by this time I was thoroughly peed off, all passengers in sight were wrapped up like corpses and I was sitting hungry in the dark 1 hour and 45 minutes into the flight. I still had my spotlight on and when the food arrived I really couldn't see it very well. It was all beautifully presented, very tasty but I'd really lost a lot of my enjoyment of the whole flight by this time. To be frank, I couldn't wait to get off. Maybe much of this feeling was caused by the characteristics of the sleeper service that I'm not used to, but I think it was made worse by the fact that I felt like a second class business passenger. As Ronnie Corbett said 'I know my place'!

The light was poor and by this point I was thoroughly cheesed off anyway!


Crab meat and avocado roll on Bloody Mary jelly with wasabi creme fraiche and chive oil. The Salad of Mediterranean vegetables with a lemon olive oil vinaigrette never materialised.


Braised Austrailian lamb shank on a herbed barley risotto with oven-roasted Mediterranean vegetables. Very tasty but difficult to see what I was eating in the dark (the light from the spotlight was blocked as I moved towards the plate!).


Crispy chocolate fondant with salted caramel sauce. Quite boring really.


I got my head down for about 3 and a half hours and although the bed was very comfortable I couldn't sleep. The engine noise is always a problem for me as I'm a very light sleeper. I'm sure the seat/bed for others is perfectly adequate for sleeping.

Breakfast was served about an hour before landing (I didn't bother with photos). Again I experienced the communication problem as the crew member had asked very quietly what I would like for breakfast, somewhere in the conversation we got our lines crossed and I ended up with a very boring (but healthy!) plate of fruit.

So for the last 20 minutes my best friend returns to the upright position and I make preparations to grab my bag of dirty washing and make a run for it as soon as I can. We landed at about 6.50 am at a very murky London City with visibility down to 600 meters in places.







I had a 2 hour wait for LCY-MAD flight, but I didn't want to chance going to the Radisson for the arrivals service. I went straight through security and waited in the terminal. A lady appeared to ask questions about my journey and my thoughts on the facilities at LCY. During the conversation she was surprised that I'd taken so many flights. I explained to her that I'd gone ex-DUB to get a better price, and then we had a lengthy conversation about how it ex-EU fares are much cheaper. This she didn't know, and was keen to find out as much as she could, as she'd recently booked a trip to New York in economy for Ł1000. Once I showed her how to use Google Flights and we found flights on the same dates for Ł600 she was pretty gobsmacked! So we spent another 10 minutes chatting, which was nice for me as it passed the time.

Deplaning before my flight


The flight to Madrid was very pleasant, with a really friendly, very capable purser. Breakfast was the standard Club Europe offering, but with the addition of waffles that I'd never seen before on BA.



BA Club Europe (Cityflyer) Breakfast, LCY-MAD, very enjoyable.




Another long wait for my final flight of the main HNL itinerary, this time in the Iberia Dali Lounge. The flight was operated by Iberia Express. I managed to select seat 1A, so I had quite enough leg room. The crew was very young and I felt that they were a little inexperienced. It was visible that they were all a little nervous and there was a lot of reading from scripts/manuals. The food was fine, but not up to BA standards.





Iberia Express Business Class Dinner, MAD-DUB, described as 'pasta!'




Upon arrival in Dublin I headed straight for the Dublin City University summer accommodation. This was quite cheap (49 EUR) and not too far from the airport, so it was ideal for an overnight stop. The room was basic with a shower and toilet, but I've seen worse rooms at Travelodge! I was given a voucher for breakfast (which was very good!) upon check-in.







Lucky students!


The next day I headed to the airport in the knowledge that I would be travelling economy, and even worse - economy with Iberia! Needless to say that I took advantage of the Executive Lounge before the flight. When I arrived at the gate there was a massive queue of passengers waiting for the flight to Madrid and also a Vueling flight to Barcelona. I don't really know what the problem was, but it was chaos. Just before boarding my name was called on the PA system and I was asked to go to the desk. To my surprise I was given my first ever upgrade to business class - so I was quite pleased!



Executive Lounge, Dublin Airport




The crew on this Iberia Express flight were a bit more experienced than those on the previous flight and the food was much of the same standard. It was a pleasant flight but nothing special.

So thanks to my first ever upgrade it was to be the front row again!






Iberia Express Business Class dinner DUB-MAD, lovingly described as 'hamburger'.


The terminal at Madrid was like a ghost town when we arrived but it was good for taking photos.




I stayed overnight at the Pullman Madrid Airport, which as a special offer - one Euro cheaper than the university accommodation in Dublin! The room was very comfortable and breakfast was great.







My final flight back to Vienna was the following evening. I arrived at the airport quite early as I thought that I'd be able to take advantage of the lounge. Unfortunately, I was unable to check in online and when I tried to check in at the Iberia desk they informed me that I would have to go to the airberlin desk as it was a NIKI operated flight. They, however, were keeping to strict checking in order, and were only checking in for the Berlin and Dusseldorf flights. I waited in the terminal about 1 hour and a half before I built up courage to ask one of the priority service lanes if they could check me in for the later Vienna flight. Although the agent didn't look very impressed and told me that it was priority only for the DUS/TXL fligths, she eventually agreed to print my boarding pass. I was very grateful indeed! With that I skuttled through security, and into the Dali Lounge for about 2 hours. The flight to Vienna was uneventful and we were served the usual sandwich and the drinks service 2 times.





Finally a dash for the bus to Bratislava, but having missed it by 5 minutes I had to wait almost another hour for the next one. Then to bed!



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Now that the trip is over I discovered that my luggage turned up in HNL the day after I left. They tried to deliver it to the hotel where I was staying but, luckily, the staff were on the ball and refused to accept it. HNL Baggage Services then contacted me and returned the bag via HNL-DFW-LHR-PRG-BTS (do I get Tier Points for that!?). It was delivered to my flat the day after I got home!

As a service recovery gesture I received 5,000 Avios for being left out of the meal service on BA2 JFK-LCY.

All TPs/Avios were credited incorrectly (at the new rates), but after contacting customer services they were amended and I got them at the pre-28th April rates (as previously promised!).

Still not Gold anyway, I'm 20 Tier Points short until a trip to Lisbon for New Year's.

thejohn

Thanks for your TR a very good read headingwest sorry to hear about your baggage issues when we did our TPR we did HBO so missed your excitement. As for the Baby bus I think you were very unlucky to get poor service from the crew I have been on it twice and both times had the best of service, as for seat mates my first trip I had one of those don't talk to me types on the way out and on the way back but that didn't impact on me. the second time was with my wife and on the way back we had the same crew member and he remembered us and said the usual Kir Royal Mrs Thejohn when we boarded.
John

Flip42

Thanks for the trip report. I enjoyed reading it a lot.

TyneTraveller

A fascinating read and very informative. As someone who has never visited HNL before, I can see a future plan for myself formulating in my head directly off the back of this report.

I also agree with your recapitulation of the AA domestic first product. The few times I have used it on the 757's (albeit never longer than 2:30hrs), I have found it to be an extremely comforting experience in comparison with the coach equivalent.

stu1985

Great report - enjoyed reading it. Got me excited about my trip to Hawaii this weekend! Pity about the Babybus flight - not good at all.

headingwest

Thanks thejohn.

I originally wanted to go HBO but as the whole trip was for 11 days I needed a few more things. I'm hoping that AA or BA will cough up the money for the clothes and stuff that I had to buy due to their failure.

Regarding the Babybus, perhaps I'd travel on a day flight going the other way but I'd only go with a friend. That said, I don't feel that it would be better than a CW flight out of Heathrow as the lounge is also part of the experience for me. I'm glad I tried BA2 earning 210 Tier Points, that makes it worthwhile I suppose.

happeemonkee

Great trip report headingwest

Having done a couple of TP runs now to HNL, the pictures brought back some happy memories.

Shame about your missing bag and the experience on the Babybus. Have you complained to BA (about both)?
.

Geordie405

I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed reading this TR - thanks for posting! I would agree with the comments about travelling F in the USA. I fly a lot with US and AA and I have had some exceptionally good domestic flights. It is certainly way better than CE, you're right!

DaveNCL

I enjoyed reading this, although not good news on your luggage or babybus flight experience.

Nice photos throughout, especially those of HNL.

jacobitetraveller

great trip report

very sad to read about your JFK-LCY service----I will not make any excuses for what happened but would suggest that like me,you are not really into sleeper services

I don't mind overnight flights but know I wont sleep the whole journey, just 2-3 hours so I want some decent service the rest of the time rather than feeling that I am a nuisance because the focus is on those who sleep the whole flight

the CC it would appear were not as top notch as is normally the case on this route and your seat mate sounds like a complete ******

hopefully if you get over your disappointment you might try LCY-JFK

thanks again for a great read

mikeyfly

Great report & snaps - thanks for taking the time. Off to HNL next week so excitement levels rising!

Kgmm77

Very enjoyable and balanced report with some great photos.