First TR: SQ SIN-LAX via NRT RT (J) with California / Nevada / Arizona Road Trip
May 31, 2016, 2:27 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 654
First TR: SQ SIN-LAX via NRT RT (J) with California / Nevada / Arizona Road Trip
First TR: SQ SIN-LAX via NRT RT (J) with California / Nevada / Arizona Road Trip.
My first trip report so please be gentle as no doubt this won't be anywhere near as exciting as some of the other reports on here. I have always been tempted to post previous trips in the past but nerves always got the better of me.
What's different about this one you ask? As many of you are from stateside, I figured it might be nice to read about what a group of tourists get up to when they travel to US for a 2 week trip. So here's my itinerary that began on 14th May -
Day 1: 14th May SIN-LAX via NRT in J class on SQ12 departing 9:25am arriving 1:25pm local time.
Days 1-3: San Diego
Day 4: Drive from San Diego to San Francisco
Days 5-6: San Francisco
Day 7: Drive from San Francisco to Las Vegas
Day 8: Las Vegas
Day 9: Grand Canyon South Rim
Days 10 and 11: Las Vegas
Day 12: Drive to Los Angeles
Day 13: Santa Monica
Day 14: 27th May LAX-SIN via NRT in J Class on SQ11 departing 3:45pm local time arriving 3am on the 29th May Singapore time.
Will post more photos and commentary later but to begin with here are some shots from pre-security Changi Airport. Hope you enjoy the report.
Changi Terminal 3 has a separate check-in row for SQ Business Class. Didn't have to wait to check-in but with this being early on a Saturday morning, all rows including economy were quiet from what I could see.
SQ are currently displaying their premium economy seat in the terminal. It looked quite reasonable but I know others have mentioned in the forum that the quality is not as good as what it is made out to be pricewise. I think I will still be tempted to give these a shot in the future.
Departure area, not busy at all compared to early weekday mornings...
After this it will be a quick visit to the SK lounge and then join me for the long flight to LA. Hope you enjoy following my trip report.
My first trip report so please be gentle as no doubt this won't be anywhere near as exciting as some of the other reports on here. I have always been tempted to post previous trips in the past but nerves always got the better of me.
What's different about this one you ask? As many of you are from stateside, I figured it might be nice to read about what a group of tourists get up to when they travel to US for a 2 week trip. So here's my itinerary that began on 14th May -
Day 1: 14th May SIN-LAX via NRT in J class on SQ12 departing 9:25am arriving 1:25pm local time.
Days 1-3: San Diego
Day 4: Drive from San Diego to San Francisco
Days 5-6: San Francisco
Day 7: Drive from San Francisco to Las Vegas
Day 8: Las Vegas
Day 9: Grand Canyon South Rim
Days 10 and 11: Las Vegas
Day 12: Drive to Los Angeles
Day 13: Santa Monica
Day 14: 27th May LAX-SIN via NRT in J Class on SQ11 departing 3:45pm local time arriving 3am on the 29th May Singapore time.
Will post more photos and commentary later but to begin with here are some shots from pre-security Changi Airport. Hope you enjoy the report.
Changi Terminal 3 has a separate check-in row for SQ Business Class. Didn't have to wait to check-in but with this being early on a Saturday morning, all rows including economy were quiet from what I could see.
SQ are currently displaying their premium economy seat in the terminal. It looked quite reasonable but I know others have mentioned in the forum that the quality is not as good as what it is made out to be pricewise. I think I will still be tempted to give these a shot in the future.
Departure area, not busy at all compared to early weekday mornings...
After this it will be a quick visit to the SK lounge and then join me for the long flight to LA. Hope you enjoy following my trip report.
Last edited by Mlee888; Jul 30, 2016 at 9:43 am
May 31, 2016, 2:00 pm
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 654
It was a great experience, albeit a little exhausting. To me it was one of those that we had to experience at least once in our lifetime. Hope you have a great journey.
May 31, 2016, 4:41 pm
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 654
After a quick check-in process and provided with my Row 96 all upper deck A380 J boarding pass, it would be time to hit the lounge. Immigration is mostly always smooth for those that are citizens / residents here in Singapore. I make my way to the Silverkris Lounge to grab something to eat before making my way to gate B4.
SKL is quite a big lounge but IME, this is where SQ probably falls slightly in their quest to be the worlds all-round greatest airline. The ambience was dark and for some reason I didn't feel like I wanted to be in there anymore. I decide to take a couple of shots of the food area and after a quick bite I make my way to the gate area 30 mins before boarding.
With this being 8am, food choices were mainly a selection of dim sum and western choices.
The siew mai which you can see on the right were actually very nice. I forgot to take a picture of this sadly.
Breakfast shot....
A brisk 5 minute walk from the lounge to Gate B4 shows a collective lounge area for those departing from B1-B4. Other flights departing around the same time include an SQ flight from SIN-LHR. Entering the area took around 10-15 mins due to congestion of other travellers. Everyone except those requiring assistance have the same status regardless of travel class when entering security here. Other airlines at Changi however do have separate channels for priority checks, notably Skyteam. SQ seems to fall on this sadly.
B4 appeared to be quite busy and with 5 mins before boarding, I was surprised to see no one queueing up yet. There are separate channels for status as expected.
The location of the waiting area made this difficult to take a picture of our beautiful whale.
Boarding was announced and after suites, it was business class. I made my way to what would be home for the next 17 hours.
The seat itself appears to be older with this being the former generation of J but it's still very comfortable. I chose row 96 due to others on the forum mentioning the privacy of this seat does make this row feel like a mini cabin making it a unique travel experience, sure why not? I have been fortunate to experience rows 11, 21, 23, and 25 on SQ before and loved each time. In fairness, we are lucky whatever row we sit in when travelling in J.
Before taking this next photo, a gentleman took the seat next to me and I thought I had a close-ish neighbour for the journey, until Tokyo at least. An FA asked to see his boarding pass and somehow he made his way to the upper deck as his seat was actually downstairs in Y.
A quick look at the entertainment screen. In row 96 it is slightly further away from you than the other seats but there is slightly more leg space.
Captain announced all doors were closed and there I was the only pax in row 96. Any downsides to this row? Not really except the close proximity to the galley behind and a toilet which was rarely used.
In the back cabin, load was 8/24. We had 3 flight attendants covering us and I have to admit the lighter load really did make a huge difference in the level of service. SQ service was truly magnificent, I compare this with the full load on my return journey which was a full cabin and although staff were more rushed here, they still provided an outstanding job not far off from the level of service I received here.
A quick look at the in-flight menu....
Japanese lunch option from SIN-NRT
Western option
Dinner option from NRT-LAX. Unfortunately I didn't take a photo of the Japanese option. For some reason I seem to have missed this.
Breakfast options...we had an option to wake up 2.5 hours before landing for a full service or sleep longer and have a light breakfast 90 mins before landing. I actually woke 4 hours before landing and didn't fancy either of the breakfast options so I went for the beef sandwich instead.
Breakfast options.
My drink options for the flight....
Most drinks are standard on most airlines so I took this shot of the champagne offerings only.
Plane was ready to depart and off we go....not sure what the runways are called so I name this the runway that requires the plane to cross over main road before taking off. Before heading over the bridge, I spot a couple of SQ planes in *A livery.
Here we are crossing the bridge...
And take-off.....
Shortly after take off the FA provides me with my goodies that consists of slippers (which are comfortable mind you), socks and sleeping mask. Oh and my glass of champagne......
Toothbrushes and lotions etc. can be found in the bathrooms if required. I didn't take any pictures of the bathroom this time round but the one by seat 11a at the front of the plane in upper deck is huge!!!! If i remember correctly it's about 2-3x bigger than the ones at the back.
A quick look at the internet wifi service.
30MB at $12.99 just seems a bit too expensive for me.
I took this later in the flight as I know some have asked if you can use the same wifi purchase on a different sector of the flight. This confirms you are not able to do this so in my case, I wouldn't have been able to use any remaining data from the first leg on my second. Shame they don't have the unlimited usage providers like they do on some of the newer planes as thats a much cheaper option than this.
After an hour the food service began. I wasn't that hungry and skipped the satay knowing it will also be available on the second leg.
I asked for my main course and dessert only. For my main, I requested the classic lobster dish via book the cook.
This was absolutely delicous. The sauce wasn't overpowering and the saffron rice complemented this very well. The lobster was cooked perfectly and it wasn't too salty.
Dessert was Macadamia Ice Cream with Banana in Caramel. It was also very nice. As I didn't have starter or appetiser, the FA's did ask if I wanted seconds and thirds which I kindly declined.
The rest of the flight was uneventful with me watching The Revenant. Great film!
Approaching NRT.
Arriving 45 mins before schedule in Narita was brilliant. However we were stuck on the runway near our gate for about 25 minutes due to another plane delayed in departing taking our spot. We eventually deboard around 20 mins before schedule. In Narita, those carrying onto LAX still have to come off the plane and go through security in Japan. This allows time for the aircraft to be cleaned and my guess also to ensure those that are supposed to get off the plane here do so.
Plane spotting at NRT....
Air Canada....
Of course an ANA plane...
At NRT, clearing security took 20 minutes. It's a quick process where after 2 minutes walk you enter security and are then back at the gate area. J class has access to ANA lounges and there's one conveniently located by the gate here.
I went in briefly but only to grab a quick drink so sadly no photos here other than the following.
Food options were not many but didn't concern me as I knew dinner would be served on the flight within an hours time.
I returned back to the gate area and people were queueing up for the flight already.
After 5 mins I was welcomed back on board by lead flight supervisor Shirley who had a team of 3 (including her) to once again serve a load of 8/24 pax in the back cabin. Although saying this I am not sure if they help out in the middle or front cabins also.
I had a really nice conversation with the crew on this flight. One of them told me that the flight crew for SIN-LAX round trip took them away from their homes for a week. After the first leg they stay over fpr one night in NRT before proceeding to take over the NRT-LAX route. They remain in LA for 2 nights before returning back to NRT and then onto SIN the following day.
One more photo of another plane before settling back for take-off.
Another glass of bubbly followed by the start of dinner service of satay. I also asked for a glass of vodka and coke and did warn them not to serve me too much alcohol as I had to drive once arriving in LA. The crew were excellent, they only served me juice or water after this.
The satay.
The ham starter with SQ's famous garlic bread. The garlic bread is delicious.
For my dinner, I ordered book the cook again and requested for the beef fillet with pesto. The beef was cooked medium and was quite juicy. Very nice meal overall. The pasta was so so but at this stage I didn't care as all I wanted to do was sleep after this.
The night before, due to the early start I managed 4 hours sleep only. I forced myself to stay awake for the first leg knowing that a good sleep on the evening flight would leave me in good stead for west coast USA with this being 15 hours behind Singapore time (during daylight saving).
As I skipped dessert due to tiredness, Shirley kindly offered to make up a bed for me in another seat on the plane as she was worried the noise from the galley may wake me. I kindly declined again and she insisted on making up the bed for me in the seat next to me (96D). She also gave me some ear plugs. Watching Deadpool on this flight helped me sleep well also. I didn't enjoy it unfortunately.
With the whole back row to myself, it really did feel like a private mini cabin.
My wife was already in the US on vacation and she also previously sat in this row the week before and warned me that it got pretty cold there. It really does get cold but getting cold is better than getting too hot. The quilt does keep you relatively warm and I managed to get a good 4-5 hours sleep.
I woke up around 3.5 hours to departure and didn't fancy any of the breakfast on offer. I asked for one of the snacks which was a beef sandwich with onions. It looked and tasted great!
This was about 45 mins to landing, cabin shades open and along came my first views of California.
Landing at LAX can be hit and miss. On this occassion it was a miss for me as I had to queue 2 hours at immigration. By the time I got out, the luggage from our flight had already been removed from the conveyor belt and placed on the side for collection. Priority luggage on this case didn't help.
A friend of mine landed an hour after me at Terminal 2 or 3 via Virgin Atlantic and arrived to meet me at Tom Bradley 10 mins after I came out. His immigration experience was less than 30 minutes. A second friend arriving 3 hours after me at Tom Bradley took only 20 mins to get through. I guess 1pm is peak period with so many flights arriving from across the pacific and atlantic at the same time.
I end this chapter with a final photo of 5 different airlines in 1 shot at Tom Bradley. Hope you have enjoyed this so far and I look forward to sharing the next leg of my journey in the near future.
SKL is quite a big lounge but IME, this is where SQ probably falls slightly in their quest to be the worlds all-round greatest airline. The ambience was dark and for some reason I didn't feel like I wanted to be in there anymore. I decide to take a couple of shots of the food area and after a quick bite I make my way to the gate area 30 mins before boarding.
With this being 8am, food choices were mainly a selection of dim sum and western choices.
The siew mai which you can see on the right were actually very nice. I forgot to take a picture of this sadly.
Breakfast shot....
A brisk 5 minute walk from the lounge to Gate B4 shows a collective lounge area for those departing from B1-B4. Other flights departing around the same time include an SQ flight from SIN-LHR. Entering the area took around 10-15 mins due to congestion of other travellers. Everyone except those requiring assistance have the same status regardless of travel class when entering security here. Other airlines at Changi however do have separate channels for priority checks, notably Skyteam. SQ seems to fall on this sadly.
B4 appeared to be quite busy and with 5 mins before boarding, I was surprised to see no one queueing up yet. There are separate channels for status as expected.
The location of the waiting area made this difficult to take a picture of our beautiful whale.
Boarding was announced and after suites, it was business class. I made my way to what would be home for the next 17 hours.
The seat itself appears to be older with this being the former generation of J but it's still very comfortable. I chose row 96 due to others on the forum mentioning the privacy of this seat does make this row feel like a mini cabin making it a unique travel experience, sure why not? I have been fortunate to experience rows 11, 21, 23, and 25 on SQ before and loved each time. In fairness, we are lucky whatever row we sit in when travelling in J.
Before taking this next photo, a gentleman took the seat next to me and I thought I had a close-ish neighbour for the journey, until Tokyo at least. An FA asked to see his boarding pass and somehow he made his way to the upper deck as his seat was actually downstairs in Y.
A quick look at the entertainment screen. In row 96 it is slightly further away from you than the other seats but there is slightly more leg space.
Captain announced all doors were closed and there I was the only pax in row 96. Any downsides to this row? Not really except the close proximity to the galley behind and a toilet which was rarely used.
In the back cabin, load was 8/24. We had 3 flight attendants covering us and I have to admit the lighter load really did make a huge difference in the level of service. SQ service was truly magnificent, I compare this with the full load on my return journey which was a full cabin and although staff were more rushed here, they still provided an outstanding job not far off from the level of service I received here.
A quick look at the in-flight menu....
Japanese lunch option from SIN-NRT
Western option
Dinner option from NRT-LAX. Unfortunately I didn't take a photo of the Japanese option. For some reason I seem to have missed this.
Breakfast options...we had an option to wake up 2.5 hours before landing for a full service or sleep longer and have a light breakfast 90 mins before landing. I actually woke 4 hours before landing and didn't fancy either of the breakfast options so I went for the beef sandwich instead.
Breakfast options.
My drink options for the flight....
Most drinks are standard on most airlines so I took this shot of the champagne offerings only.
Plane was ready to depart and off we go....not sure what the runways are called so I name this the runway that requires the plane to cross over main road before taking off. Before heading over the bridge, I spot a couple of SQ planes in *A livery.
Here we are crossing the bridge...
And take-off.....
Shortly after take off the FA provides me with my goodies that consists of slippers (which are comfortable mind you), socks and sleeping mask. Oh and my glass of champagne......
Toothbrushes and lotions etc. can be found in the bathrooms if required. I didn't take any pictures of the bathroom this time round but the one by seat 11a at the front of the plane in upper deck is huge!!!! If i remember correctly it's about 2-3x bigger than the ones at the back.
A quick look at the internet wifi service.
30MB at $12.99 just seems a bit too expensive for me.
I took this later in the flight as I know some have asked if you can use the same wifi purchase on a different sector of the flight. This confirms you are not able to do this so in my case, I wouldn't have been able to use any remaining data from the first leg on my second. Shame they don't have the unlimited usage providers like they do on some of the newer planes as thats a much cheaper option than this.
After an hour the food service began. I wasn't that hungry and skipped the satay knowing it will also be available on the second leg.
I asked for my main course and dessert only. For my main, I requested the classic lobster dish via book the cook.
This was absolutely delicous. The sauce wasn't overpowering and the saffron rice complemented this very well. The lobster was cooked perfectly and it wasn't too salty.
Dessert was Macadamia Ice Cream with Banana in Caramel. It was also very nice. As I didn't have starter or appetiser, the FA's did ask if I wanted seconds and thirds which I kindly declined.
The rest of the flight was uneventful with me watching The Revenant. Great film!
Approaching NRT.
Arriving 45 mins before schedule in Narita was brilliant. However we were stuck on the runway near our gate for about 25 minutes due to another plane delayed in departing taking our spot. We eventually deboard around 20 mins before schedule. In Narita, those carrying onto LAX still have to come off the plane and go through security in Japan. This allows time for the aircraft to be cleaned and my guess also to ensure those that are supposed to get off the plane here do so.
Plane spotting at NRT....
Air Canada....
Of course an ANA plane...
At NRT, clearing security took 20 minutes. It's a quick process where after 2 minutes walk you enter security and are then back at the gate area. J class has access to ANA lounges and there's one conveniently located by the gate here.
I went in briefly but only to grab a quick drink so sadly no photos here other than the following.
Food options were not many but didn't concern me as I knew dinner would be served on the flight within an hours time.
I returned back to the gate area and people were queueing up for the flight already.
After 5 mins I was welcomed back on board by lead flight supervisor Shirley who had a team of 3 (including her) to once again serve a load of 8/24 pax in the back cabin. Although saying this I am not sure if they help out in the middle or front cabins also.
I had a really nice conversation with the crew on this flight. One of them told me that the flight crew for SIN-LAX round trip took them away from their homes for a week. After the first leg they stay over fpr one night in NRT before proceeding to take over the NRT-LAX route. They remain in LA for 2 nights before returning back to NRT and then onto SIN the following day.
One more photo of another plane before settling back for take-off.
Another glass of bubbly followed by the start of dinner service of satay. I also asked for a glass of vodka and coke and did warn them not to serve me too much alcohol as I had to drive once arriving in LA. The crew were excellent, they only served me juice or water after this.
The satay.
The ham starter with SQ's famous garlic bread. The garlic bread is delicious.
For my dinner, I ordered book the cook again and requested for the beef fillet with pesto. The beef was cooked medium and was quite juicy. Very nice meal overall. The pasta was so so but at this stage I didn't care as all I wanted to do was sleep after this.
The night before, due to the early start I managed 4 hours sleep only. I forced myself to stay awake for the first leg knowing that a good sleep on the evening flight would leave me in good stead for west coast USA with this being 15 hours behind Singapore time (during daylight saving).
As I skipped dessert due to tiredness, Shirley kindly offered to make up a bed for me in another seat on the plane as she was worried the noise from the galley may wake me. I kindly declined again and she insisted on making up the bed for me in the seat next to me (96D). She also gave me some ear plugs. Watching Deadpool on this flight helped me sleep well also. I didn't enjoy it unfortunately.
With the whole back row to myself, it really did feel like a private mini cabin.
My wife was already in the US on vacation and she also previously sat in this row the week before and warned me that it got pretty cold there. It really does get cold but getting cold is better than getting too hot. The quilt does keep you relatively warm and I managed to get a good 4-5 hours sleep.
I woke up around 3.5 hours to departure and didn't fancy any of the breakfast on offer. I asked for one of the snacks which was a beef sandwich with onions. It looked and tasted great!
This was about 45 mins to landing, cabin shades open and along came my first views of California.
Landing at LAX can be hit and miss. On this occassion it was a miss for me as I had to queue 2 hours at immigration. By the time I got out, the luggage from our flight had already been removed from the conveyor belt and placed on the side for collection. Priority luggage on this case didn't help.
A friend of mine landed an hour after me at Terminal 2 or 3 via Virgin Atlantic and arrived to meet me at Tom Bradley 10 mins after I came out. His immigration experience was less than 30 minutes. A second friend arriving 3 hours after me at Tom Bradley took only 20 mins to get through. I guess 1pm is peak period with so many flights arriving from across the pacific and atlantic at the same time.
I end this chapter with a final photo of 5 different airlines in 1 shot at Tom Bradley. Hope you have enjoyed this so far and I look forward to sharing the next leg of my journey in the near future.
May 31, 2016, 4:49 pm
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 654
Jun 4, 2016, 3:54 am
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 654
Day 2 - Seaworld San Diego
Day 2 - Seaworld San Diego
After a short wait to collect our hire car (Dodge Caravan) from Alamo LAX, we proceeded to purchase prepaid sims from the nearby AT&T store. Around 7pm we were eventually on our way to San Diego with our journey taking us down the i5.
Our first place of residence would be a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom suite at the Homewood Suites by Hilton at Liberty Station San Diego. One room contained a king size bed and the other a queen bed. There was also a sofa bed that can fit 2 persons (1 adult or 2 small persons), overall the space is big enough to fit 5-6 adults. It's not a 5 star hotel but it did the trick perfectly for us to get sufficient rest to combat jet lag.
We arrived in San Diego pretty late in the end, so sadly no photos from inside our first hotel. By the following morning the whole suite was ransacked by luggage so it didn't look as homely by then. I did take a short walk however and was surprised to see how scenic the local surroundings were.
This is Courtyard by Marriott which was next door to Homewood Suites.
Near the waterfront.
The staff member that checked us in did give me a slight chuckle, I asked where the best place to start a morning run would be and he mentioned to start over this man made bridge.
Aren't all bridges man made?
The hotel staff including the check-in guy were all great, couldn't fault them in any way. They were friendly, polite and extremely knowledgeable of the local area. In fact their attitudes was one reason why our vacation got off to the perfect start.
The hotel comes with free breakfast, it's basic but it does the trick to get your day off to a nice start. Apologies for no photos as I didn't carry my phone or camera down to breakfast each morning but it consisted of a couple of hot items (sausages, hash browns etc.) and had your usual cereal / waffle start ups.
Our first outing of the trip began with Seaworld. We purchased our tickets online which included entry, front of line / reserved seating and unlimited food for the day. The cost was $109 per ticket IIRC.
Before I proceed further, I want to add that being raised and living in the countries I am from, I know very little or understand the delicate issues that surround the animal issues at Seaworld. Due to this I am not too sure how or what I should feel. My visit however did make me feel relatively sad that the animals are not in their natural habitat (similar to zoos around the world), but at the same time convinced that they were all looked after extremely well.
Seaworld is a very patriotic place which I thought was very nice. It was noticeable at the shows where the announcers always asked for those that have served or are still serving the country to stand so they could be thanked and applauded. I felt honoured to witness this.
I also noticed a lot of this man cave stuff which I didn't quite understand why it would be here.
Seaworld has lot of these game stands where you pay an amount and have a chance to win a prize, mostly which are soft toys.
This is Mrs Mlee888 having a go at getting a score of 12+ to win the giant pink Shamu.
The only way to do this due to the 3 disks is to get 2 into 5 points and then 1 into 3.
I won't embarrass her but she did get 13 points in the end so we ended up with having to head back to the car to place the huge stuffed toy so we wouldn't end up carrying it for the whole day.
After the games we had missed the first Shamu show so with the next starting at 2:30pm, we had a bit of time to take a look around at what else was on offer.
Walking past the seals, we see a show about to begin and think "oh this might be fun" and make our way to the sea lion show.
Entertaining, yes.....but it's not something I would watch again.
Before the Shamu show begins, we have time for one more thing.
This was the only ride we went on in the end. We had the front of line passes which helped us skip maybe 20 minutes of queue time. It was child friendly and I certainly never came off with any vertigo.
We walk past some Flamingoes along the way to the Shamu show.
So the main event of the attraction...
It began with a video explaining what Seaworld does for the animals, what the breeding program is about and what care they provide them. I'm not sure if this has always been a part of the show or if it is something added recently due to the sensitivity issues that took place in the last few years.
Some shots from the Shamu show from the reserved seating area.
I found the show quite entertaining but I don't think I will return to Seaworld again. There is a part of me that believes that Seaworld ending the breeding program with the Whales is the right thing to do.
The unlimited food was a good deal. On it's own it costs $35 so to make the most of this, you need to take at least 3 meals as each meal averages $12-$15. with our package this worked out to be $20. There are a number of choices available around the park and for each visit you get a main, side / dessert and drink. You can only use it once an hour to prevent you from getting food for other people.
We had a tasty burger in the morning and for afternoon lunch we went for the Pizza and Pasta option.
My meatballs and pasta wasn't the greatest but I have to admit the chocolate fudge cake was very good. Highly recommend this and also the California Flavors restaurant there that does a magnificent burger.
After lunch we have a final visit to a Dolphin show. Another entertaining show.
We spent the last few hours at the park playing more games trying to see who could win the most soft-toys.
Without considering how they would all fit into our suitcases, lots of the prizes ended up being given to Mrs Mlee88 family members that resided in San Diego.
After leaving the park, we made our way to the evening family meal at a restaurant called Phil's BBQ. I cannot say enough how good this restaurant was.
I ordered a boneless chicken and rib dinner and it was so huge it was big enough to feed 3 persons. The taste and quality was perfect. When I return again to San Diego, this will be the first restaurant on my list to go to.
The whole menu can be found here.
https://www.philsbbq.net/bbq-menu.html
The meal was a great way to end our first full day in US. It wasn't the greatest fun day out at Seaworld but it was a nice start to get things going. Jet lag arriving from Asia usually takes 2-3 days to get over properly in US so this and our next day at USS Midway would be a nice way to help us out.
Look out for more future posts from our trip stateside.
After a short wait to collect our hire car (Dodge Caravan) from Alamo LAX, we proceeded to purchase prepaid sims from the nearby AT&T store. Around 7pm we were eventually on our way to San Diego with our journey taking us down the i5.
Our first place of residence would be a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom suite at the Homewood Suites by Hilton at Liberty Station San Diego. One room contained a king size bed and the other a queen bed. There was also a sofa bed that can fit 2 persons (1 adult or 2 small persons), overall the space is big enough to fit 5-6 adults. It's not a 5 star hotel but it did the trick perfectly for us to get sufficient rest to combat jet lag.
We arrived in San Diego pretty late in the end, so sadly no photos from inside our first hotel. By the following morning the whole suite was ransacked by luggage so it didn't look as homely by then. I did take a short walk however and was surprised to see how scenic the local surroundings were.
This is Courtyard by Marriott which was next door to Homewood Suites.
Near the waterfront.
The staff member that checked us in did give me a slight chuckle, I asked where the best place to start a morning run would be and he mentioned to start over this man made bridge.
Aren't all bridges man made?
The hotel staff including the check-in guy were all great, couldn't fault them in any way. They were friendly, polite and extremely knowledgeable of the local area. In fact their attitudes was one reason why our vacation got off to the perfect start.
The hotel comes with free breakfast, it's basic but it does the trick to get your day off to a nice start. Apologies for no photos as I didn't carry my phone or camera down to breakfast each morning but it consisted of a couple of hot items (sausages, hash browns etc.) and had your usual cereal / waffle start ups.
Our first outing of the trip began with Seaworld. We purchased our tickets online which included entry, front of line / reserved seating and unlimited food for the day. The cost was $109 per ticket IIRC.
Before I proceed further, I want to add that being raised and living in the countries I am from, I know very little or understand the delicate issues that surround the animal issues at Seaworld. Due to this I am not too sure how or what I should feel. My visit however did make me feel relatively sad that the animals are not in their natural habitat (similar to zoos around the world), but at the same time convinced that they were all looked after extremely well.
Seaworld is a very patriotic place which I thought was very nice. It was noticeable at the shows where the announcers always asked for those that have served or are still serving the country to stand so they could be thanked and applauded. I felt honoured to witness this.
I also noticed a lot of this man cave stuff which I didn't quite understand why it would be here.
Seaworld has lot of these game stands where you pay an amount and have a chance to win a prize, mostly which are soft toys.
This is Mrs Mlee888 having a go at getting a score of 12+ to win the giant pink Shamu.
The only way to do this due to the 3 disks is to get 2 into 5 points and then 1 into 3.
I won't embarrass her but she did get 13 points in the end so we ended up with having to head back to the car to place the huge stuffed toy so we wouldn't end up carrying it for the whole day.
After the games we had missed the first Shamu show so with the next starting at 2:30pm, we had a bit of time to take a look around at what else was on offer.
Walking past the seals, we see a show about to begin and think "oh this might be fun" and make our way to the sea lion show.
Entertaining, yes.....but it's not something I would watch again.
Before the Shamu show begins, we have time for one more thing.
This was the only ride we went on in the end. We had the front of line passes which helped us skip maybe 20 minutes of queue time. It was child friendly and I certainly never came off with any vertigo.
We walk past some Flamingoes along the way to the Shamu show.
So the main event of the attraction...
It began with a video explaining what Seaworld does for the animals, what the breeding program is about and what care they provide them. I'm not sure if this has always been a part of the show or if it is something added recently due to the sensitivity issues that took place in the last few years.
Some shots from the Shamu show from the reserved seating area.
I found the show quite entertaining but I don't think I will return to Seaworld again. There is a part of me that believes that Seaworld ending the breeding program with the Whales is the right thing to do.
The unlimited food was a good deal. On it's own it costs $35 so to make the most of this, you need to take at least 3 meals as each meal averages $12-$15. with our package this worked out to be $20. There are a number of choices available around the park and for each visit you get a main, side / dessert and drink. You can only use it once an hour to prevent you from getting food for other people.
We had a tasty burger in the morning and for afternoon lunch we went for the Pizza and Pasta option.
My meatballs and pasta wasn't the greatest but I have to admit the chocolate fudge cake was very good. Highly recommend this and also the California Flavors restaurant there that does a magnificent burger.
After lunch we have a final visit to a Dolphin show. Another entertaining show.
We spent the last few hours at the park playing more games trying to see who could win the most soft-toys.
Without considering how they would all fit into our suitcases, lots of the prizes ended up being given to Mrs Mlee88 family members that resided in San Diego.
After leaving the park, we made our way to the evening family meal at a restaurant called Phil's BBQ. I cannot say enough how good this restaurant was.
I ordered a boneless chicken and rib dinner and it was so huge it was big enough to feed 3 persons. The taste and quality was perfect. When I return again to San Diego, this will be the first restaurant on my list to go to.
The whole menu can be found here.
https://www.philsbbq.net/bbq-menu.html
The meal was a great way to end our first full day in US. It wasn't the greatest fun day out at Seaworld but it was a nice start to get things going. Jet lag arriving from Asia usually takes 2-3 days to get over properly in US so this and our next day at USS Midway would be a nice way to help us out.
Look out for more future posts from our trip stateside.
Jun 11, 2016, 3:46 am
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 654
Day 3 - San Diego USS Midway Museum
Day 3 - San Diego USS Midway Museum
The 3rd day of our US trip was a nice stress free easy day, a day much needed to help get over our initial jet lag with only 4 hours sleep for the first 2 nights. This day would begin with a tour to the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier now museum.
We arrived at the magnificent USS Midway just before midday. Parking at the attraction was around $10, although I know on the roads outside nearby are much cheaper. These however are hourly metered whereas the attraction itself was stay as long as you need.
The entry price...
Audio tours came in 6 different languages with the US flag representing English.
After collecting our headsets you come to this part of the ship.
I was in complete awe. The aircraft on show, the stories of the missions before the carrier was decommissioned, the history, and the overall structure of the carrier. It was a complete new world I was entering.
This is just a small insight into the lives of those on the sea fighting for the freedom of their country.
Living quarters on board show that each officer was entitled to one locker and a bed approx 6 foot long.
Sleeping quarters were also found in corridors.
Some photos from the crew on board on show.
Aircraft on show...
The outside deck where more aircraft and helicopters were on display was my favourite part of the tour. Being able to sit in and experience this was something I never expected to enjoy.
Final one of the control deck.
The whole tour took around 2 hours at a medium speed. I know some have mentioned the tour can take 3 to 4 hours but at the same time others have taken less than 1.
After this our group decided to go to Las Americas Premium Outlet which was close to the Mexico border. Unfortunately no photos here, but definitely a great place to pick up some bargains.
A nice easy simple day before we prepare for day 4 which would be a long drive from San Diego to San Francisco. To be continued....
The 3rd day of our US trip was a nice stress free easy day, a day much needed to help get over our initial jet lag with only 4 hours sleep for the first 2 nights. This day would begin with a tour to the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier now museum.
We arrived at the magnificent USS Midway just before midday. Parking at the attraction was around $10, although I know on the roads outside nearby are much cheaper. These however are hourly metered whereas the attraction itself was stay as long as you need.
The entry price...
Audio tours came in 6 different languages with the US flag representing English.
After collecting our headsets you come to this part of the ship.
I was in complete awe. The aircraft on show, the stories of the missions before the carrier was decommissioned, the history, and the overall structure of the carrier. It was a complete new world I was entering.
This is just a small insight into the lives of those on the sea fighting for the freedom of their country.
Living quarters on board show that each officer was entitled to one locker and a bed approx 6 foot long.
Sleeping quarters were also found in corridors.
Some photos from the crew on board on show.
Aircraft on show...
The outside deck where more aircraft and helicopters were on display was my favourite part of the tour. Being able to sit in and experience this was something I never expected to enjoy.
Final one of the control deck.
The whole tour took around 2 hours at a medium speed. I know some have mentioned the tour can take 3 to 4 hours but at the same time others have taken less than 1.
After this our group decided to go to Las Americas Premium Outlet which was close to the Mexico border. Unfortunately no photos here, but definitely a great place to pick up some bargains.
A nice easy simple day before we prepare for day 4 which would be a long drive from San Diego to San Francisco. To be continued....
Jun 14, 2016, 10:59 am
#13
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: 6km East of EPAYE
Programs: UA Silver, AA Platinum, AS & DL GM Marriott TE, Hilton Gold
Posts: 9,582
evening family meal at a restaurant called Phil's BBQ
Looking forward to the rest of your TR ^
Jun 14, 2016, 8:19 pm
#14
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Chicago, IL
Programs: AA EXP (LT Plat 2MM), Marriott Plat, IHG Plat, HHonors Diamond, Hyatt Plat, SPG Plat75, UA1K
Posts: 1,248
What a small world - we were on SQ12 on May 14th too! We managed to score two award seats in Suites Class. Simply incredible!