JFK-AMS KL in Y
 

There have been some great trip reports posted in this forum...but this will not be one of them. I just wanted to share a few comments on my recent flights.

As I hadn't flown internationally for 6 months, I was beginning to feel the drudgery of the great city of New York, so jumped on the $298 fare(including taxes!) JFK-AMS on KLM I found. It was a quick trip. Not really a mileage run since I spent the night. (I know you true MR gunners out there just rolled your eyes and called me a newbie for spending one entire night in Europe, but forgive me…I actually wanted to see the city!) Anyway, it was to be my first experience with KLM, so was rather curious to see what they had to offer.

Friday, June 20nd
JFK-AMS
KL 642, MD-11
ETD 6:05 pm
ETA 7:15 am +1
Seat 29D, Y

Since I’m saving my pennies(and at this moment, pennies is all I’ve got) for some extravagant F/C flights in the fall, I decided to take the $13 bus from New York’s Port Authority on 42nd and 8th Ave to JFK. For those of you in NYC who haven’t explored this option, it is not entirely repulsive. In fact, I was rather impressed with its efficiency and convenience. It also helps that I live one block away. I arrived at JFK way too early, but was able to walk right up to the ticket counter. As I’m sure no one is surprised, the check-in agent was far from pleasant. It’s my fault though. I interrupted his conversation with his co-worker, even though he had waived me over. It was a simple check-in. I had no luggage, a pre-assigned seat. All I needed was to change my NWA worldperks number to my CO Onepass(since I just received FREE silver status…see CO forum…gotta love America). Throughout this entire process, I might as well have been invisible. There was no direct communication with me. Very unprofessional. Anyway, was given my boarding pass and went on my way.

Boarding was standard. My CO status entitled me to pre-board, which was a nice little perk. Normally, I wait to board last, but since I had a carry-on this time, I wanted to make sure it would be in the overhead bin and not at my legs for this flight. My legs barely fit in the one cubit foot of room provided, let alone my bag. As I approached the aircraft, newspapers had been placed on trolleys for all customers, not just worldbusiness class. Nice touch. The KLM crew were friendly, attractive(maybe not pc to say, but they were) and professional in actually assisting pax. Crazy, I know. Seating was standard economy. Not really that bad. But I did make a mental note that I could not fly economy again until I lost 20 pounds.

Now, this is where KLM really impressed. The onboard service was exemplary! Within minutes of leveling off, the economy cabin was SWARMED with flight attendants serving drinks. There were at least 4 different drink trolleys in operation. The entire cabin was probably served within 15 minutes or less. The attitude was friendly, sincere and generous. I was seated next to a group of boisterous Russians, who were never refused a vodka. (please don’t hate me for the stereotype…that’s really what they were drinking). Minutes after the beverage service, dinner began. Entrée choices were chicken or pasta…I chose the pasta which was quite tasty. Hot rolls were offered, as well as additional drinks. Trays were quickly cleared, and, get this, we were offered after dinner drinks! I haven’t even seen this in many business class cabins. I was quite content to have my usual Bailey’s on the rocks and settled in for the short flight of only 6 hours and 15 minutes.

Not long after dinner had been served and the movie(something forgettable…since I have forgotten which)….breakfast was served. A nice continental breakfast with HOT puff pastries, a muffin and yoghurt. Mind you, we had just finished eating dinner just 2 hours prior.

Landing was uneventful…which I guess is assumed since I’m able to type out this report and not in the opening scenes of Six Feet Under. Immigration and customs was a breeze and was quickly on my way to Amsterdam’s Central Station.

AMSTERDAM
The Grand Hotel Amsterdam—Sofitel

For anyone visiting this city, I highly recommend this hotel. It is ideally located in the heart of the city, near DAM square, but is one block away from all of the craziness so is nice and quiet. It’s a very elegant hotel. It’s a 5 star. You may be wondering what I was doing there. I unfortunately have first class tastes but a welfare budget. But not to fret. My keen internet skills found a special at this hotel for a superior room, not one of those trashy classic rooms, for about 1/3 of the price. Not bad at all. And since I was only staying for one night, it wasn’t going to break the bank.

Great city. The Anne Frank house made me cry. The Van Gogh moving was moving. The overall quaintness and charm of the canals and shops and the architecture made me want to vomit….in a good way.

Sunday, June 20th
AMS-JFK
Flt. 641, 747-300 Combi
ETD 2:05 pm
ETA 4:15 pm
Seat 22H, Y

Can I just say how much I enjoyed Schipol airport? It was convenient to get to by public transportation and offered many shops. Being an airline enthusiast, it was such a treat to see a shop at an airport actually sell airline models and other trinkets that we spend our money on that our friends and family laugh at us for. More exciting, there was actually an observation deck! So many airports either don’t have one or have closed them for security reasons. Schipol’s is expansive, offers great views, and has a couple of restaurants located on it. Very impressive.

So, check-in. Very impressive. Very, very impressive. I had no luggage to check so was able to use the self-service kiosks, even though I had a paper ticket! The entire process was flawless. In inserted my credit card, it found my reservation, was then able to choose a seat and was able to change my ff# from NWA to KL(which, by the way, the check-in agent at JFK did not do…but since I had this hunch asked the gate-agents to check), then inserted my passport for APIS collection, received my boarding pass and was on my way. Excellent. I cannot say enough about this process.

Not to bore you with more redundant details, the outbound flight was as enjoyable as the inbound. Service was great. Due to the slightly longer flying time of 7 hours and 15 minutes, we were served a nice little tub of ice cream during the movie and a pizza instead of breakfast. Oh, and this I thought was a nice touch. You know those safety movies shown prior to departure? Well, following that was our purser, our actual purser, on the video giving some pre-recorded info. Very nice touch.

Flight was without incident until I decided that I just could not sit in that economy seat any longer. You know those little jumpseats that the flight attendants use during take-off and landing, with the unlimited legroom? Well, that became my seat for about 20 minutes. And it was heaven. The flight attendants and purser didn’t seem to care, since they walked by me continuously. Until a male flight attendant came by, and scolded me for sitting there. His attitude was very unfortunate. A simple, “I’m sorry, but you can’t sit there would have sufficed”, but instead he was a bit nasty. Oh well. I think he was just jealous of my beauty and intellect.

Flight landed 30 minutes ahead of schedule…got off right after WorldBusiness pax, breezed through immigration and customs (kinda worried, though, since I had bought 5 bottles of liquor duty-free when you’re only allowed 2) and was on the bus pack to Manhattan in minutes.

Great little trip. Great little airline.

P.S. Sorry for the length of the report. Had not anticipated such verbosity.

Not to worry -- it was a wonderful read. Thank you.

Nice little report. It's nice to know I'm not going mad, and that other people appreciate KLM for the same things I do.

One reason I avoid KLM is exactly because of the uncomfortable seats and minimal 31 inch seat pitch. On my last trip AMS to JFK I nearly went mad. BA also have 31" pitch but the adjustable headrests make it more bearable. KLM seems to have become more generous in their catering than 5 years ago. Another thing is they have no individual videos.

Did you know that if you buy a roundtrip bus ticket from JFK you pay only $11 per trip ($22 R/T)?

The new KLM Y seats have adjustable headrests, but I still like the old ones better.Pitch is mediocre, but elite members can get the Select Seating and Exit Row seats via phone 90 days prior to departure.

Thanks for the great report.KLM is still a very good airline up in the air, both in Y and C.The breakfast box in Y is a great concept, good to read that it is still served.

It was good to see that you had a nice "Y" experience on KL. I recently flew them ORD-AMS-TLX and return in WBC. The food was not any better than domestic first, and in some cases worse <who the he** actually likes turnips?>. However, the did feed us a lot.
I need to do a trip report if I ever get off my lazy butt.
Overall, it was nice flight.

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I am not real smart, but I can lift heavy things.
It is not the car you drive that is important, it is the size of the arm hanging out the window!

Thanks for the report. You could have saved even more by taking the A train to Howard Beach/JKF for $2.00 and hopping on the free transfer bus to the terminals.

Well, it's a short-term gain. The amount you pay out in chiropractor fees after sitting in A train plastic seats for 90 minutes is far more than the fare difference here...

thanks for the nice replies everyone.

KL offers a solid product in Y that I would definitely recommend. Yes, the seat pitch isn't great, but it is not that different from any other Y seat across the pond. My flights didn't have the new seats with the headrests, so can't comment on them.

Brettee---You're right. Buying the roundtrip bus ticket saves you $4. I have a fear of commitment though, and wanted to keep my options open for the return. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

AAPlatinum---I shied away from the subway just because I've heard that sometimes you can wait forever for the connecting bus. Regardless, it's still the cheapest way to get to JFK. I'll probably try it next time.

I agree with you. It took KLM long enough to jump on the "e-bandwagon" but they do indeed offer a superior product. I used it about 3 weeks ago, and I was also very impressed.

Warning! Do not try the subway. I tried it once. It is a disaster. Recommend it only to your worst enemies.

I took KL in Y from NRT to AMS and back in January, and loved the Baileys after lunch as well. I was amazed at how efficient and pleasant the FAs were.

I quite enjoyed the mini cabin in the front of the Y cabin of the the combi 747 aircraft. It was much quieter, possibly because it was full of elites.

Based on those two long haul flights, I would definitely fly KL in Y again.

[This message has been edited by KezzaKawasaki (edited 06-26-2003).]

Exactly my feelings!

Thanx a lot!

Thanks for the excellent report. AMS is a wonderful city and I highly recommend the SOFITEL too. It's close to the Central Station and offers a quiet and elegant ambience.

By the way, did you receive any printed menus in Y? I know they did give those out a couple of years ago but don't know if the practice has been stopped due to cost cutting.

aw-thanks. unfortunately, no printed menus in Y.

I can't wait to try KL in WorldBusiness. I've found some cheap fares ex-CAI, and around the holidays there should be some ex-USA.