A christmas present to myself!
Dec 27, 2016, 10:48 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Bracebridge, ON
Posts: 341
A christmas present to myself!
Hi all, going to try my hand at my first trip report, and to keep motivated I'll keep it semi-live.
As a Christmas present to myself I arranged to travel QF first class for my first time ever. Previously I have flown QF domestic, but this will be my first international trip with them.
Anyone not on this forum thinks I am crazy for the itinerary, but as I consider flying part of my vacation, it works for me.
Trip planning started 355 days ago when I grabbed QF2 in first class with aadvantage miles prior to the devaluation. Luckily a few days later I was able to get a workable QF1 return to London.
At the time this was to be a very quick return for NYE in Sydney, but after a good friend moved to Zurich I decided to tag on a week to visit her as well.
The final itinerary all booked using RBC Avios points converted to Aadvantage points is as follows:
Dec 25 - YYZ - LHR - DUB in BA CW and CE
Dec 27 DUB - LHR - DXB - SYD in BA CE and QF First
Jan 2 SYD - DXB - LHR in QF first
Jan 3 LHR to ZRH in Swiss J
Jan 8 ZRH - LHR - YYZ in BA CE and First
The trip started with my parents driving me to the airport. About a 2 hour drive, and Christmas dinner at a fabulous restaurant in Toronto. For anyone looking to try somewhere different, Bumpkins near Yorkville is great.
Next up was a tour through the YYZ T3 BA lounge. I have previously been to the first lounge, but never the CW. I actually quite prefer the CW lounge as its bigger. I skipped the pre-flight dining, instead grabbing a table by the window and enjoying some champagne. Service was mediocre, with a glass of champagne taking 20+ minutes to arrive.
Pre-flight dining
Bar Area and Snacks
Lounge seating area
The lounge became quite busy prior to departure, but was never over-crowded.
The flight was comfortable, CW has been reported on many times so I will breeze over that part. I managed almost 6 hours sleep on a 7 hour flight so I think it a success!
On arriving in LHR I managed to visit all three T5 Galleries lounges (North, South, T5B). By far my preferred was T5B, although I did have a very concerned welcome when they mentioned my next flight was be out of T5A.
The walk was no issue and times in the tunnel at a leisurely pace were half of what was posted.
As I managed to get moved up 3 hours on my connecting flight free of charge, I missed an interesting meetup in the GF lounge, but valued my sleep in DUB greatly.
My flight from LHR to DUB was rough, so much turbulence they had to cut service short despite trying hard to keep it going.
For the night I stayed at the DUB airport Hilton. Very comfortable, quite, but the shuttle timing was inconvenient and the Maldron would have meant an extra hour of sleep. Something to consider.
The next segment DUB to LHR was uneventful, I spent about an hour in the DUB lounge before wandering the terminal. The lounge was no better than a domestic AA lounge, which is saying something!
Next up, CX and Emirates lounges in LHR, QF2 in First, Beaches, Opera, and Fireworks in Sydney, Skiing in the Alps, and BA First back to Toronto.
As a Christmas present to myself I arranged to travel QF first class for my first time ever. Previously I have flown QF domestic, but this will be my first international trip with them.
Anyone not on this forum thinks I am crazy for the itinerary, but as I consider flying part of my vacation, it works for me.
Trip planning started 355 days ago when I grabbed QF2 in first class with aadvantage miles prior to the devaluation. Luckily a few days later I was able to get a workable QF1 return to London.
At the time this was to be a very quick return for NYE in Sydney, but after a good friend moved to Zurich I decided to tag on a week to visit her as well.
The final itinerary all booked using RBC Avios points converted to Aadvantage points is as follows:
Dec 25 - YYZ - LHR - DUB in BA CW and CE
Dec 27 DUB - LHR - DXB - SYD in BA CE and QF First
Jan 2 SYD - DXB - LHR in QF first
Jan 3 LHR to ZRH in Swiss J
Jan 8 ZRH - LHR - YYZ in BA CE and First
The trip started with my parents driving me to the airport. About a 2 hour drive, and Christmas dinner at a fabulous restaurant in Toronto. For anyone looking to try somewhere different, Bumpkins near Yorkville is great.
Next up was a tour through the YYZ T3 BA lounge. I have previously been to the first lounge, but never the CW. I actually quite prefer the CW lounge as its bigger. I skipped the pre-flight dining, instead grabbing a table by the window and enjoying some champagne. Service was mediocre, with a glass of champagne taking 20+ minutes to arrive.
Pre-flight dining
Bar Area and Snacks
Lounge seating area
The lounge became quite busy prior to departure, but was never over-crowded.
The flight was comfortable, CW has been reported on many times so I will breeze over that part. I managed almost 6 hours sleep on a 7 hour flight so I think it a success!
On arriving in LHR I managed to visit all three T5 Galleries lounges (North, South, T5B). By far my preferred was T5B, although I did have a very concerned welcome when they mentioned my next flight was be out of T5A.
The walk was no issue and times in the tunnel at a leisurely pace were half of what was posted.
As I managed to get moved up 3 hours on my connecting flight free of charge, I missed an interesting meetup in the GF lounge, but valued my sleep in DUB greatly.
My flight from LHR to DUB was rough, so much turbulence they had to cut service short despite trying hard to keep it going.
For the night I stayed at the DUB airport Hilton. Very comfortable, quite, but the shuttle timing was inconvenient and the Maldron would have meant an extra hour of sleep. Something to consider.
The next segment DUB to LHR was uneventful, I spent about an hour in the DUB lounge before wandering the terminal. The lounge was no better than a domestic AA lounge, which is saying something!
Next up, CX and Emirates lounges in LHR, QF2 in First, Beaches, Opera, and Fireworks in Sydney, Skiing in the Alps, and BA First back to Toronto.
^