Vietnam Airlines HKG-LHR in J
Aug 29, 2017, 3:12 am
#18
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2016
Posts: 380
The Return Flight: LHR-HAN-HKG
I wasn’t going to write about the return trip; however, I thought as the food was so different and as I flew through a different airport, I would write a short one.
I’ll mainly let the pictures do the talking with a few notes.
Route
LHR-HAN - 787-9
HAN-HKG - A321-200
I arrived at Heathrow T4 fairly early, and I quickly headed to the VN check-in desks. There was only one SkyPriority desk but luckily the queue was short. However, it took more than twenty-five minutes to get checked-in as the business check-in desk doubled as the group check-in desk. It would have actually been much quicker to use the economy desks as the queues there were pretty short and there were four desks open.
After finally being checked in, I headed to the priority security check which was painless and then to the Skyteam Lounge. And wow! What a lounge it is. I was directed upstairs as that it where they were serving food.
I greatly enjoyed the breakfast and the waffles were excellent. The lounge wasn’t that busy and quickly emptied after a Saudia flight left.
There was also a generous selection of alcohol available.
As I had a bit of time, I decided to take a shower. The showers are downstairs and when I went there was no queue.
There were also some sleeping cabins/ day rooms available (no pic sorry) that seemed very comfortable and private.
It’s hard to believe this is a Priority Pass lounge as I would rate it very highly.
Next, boarding was called and I headed to the gate.
This flight was busier than the previous with only three empty business seats and economy and premium economy being 100% full.
Next, on to lunch! Again the menus were handed out, I was addressed by name just the once when orders were taken - the same as on the previous flight.
On the menu, several things caught my eye.
But I ended up going for the cod and tomato starter with the beef for mains. Again the food was presented very well and was so good. The starter was slightly fishy for my liking, but the main was absolutely beautiful with the steak cooked medium-well which is fair enough for plane food.
One of the best meals I’ve had on a plane:
After this I had the cheese plate and a very nice coconut ice-cream.
For ‘breakfast’ (as it was dinner time in the UK), I had the chicken with noodles. This dish was also pretty good.
Despite being a day flight, I and most others tried to get a few hours sleep. Again, the seat was incredibly comfortable and can be highly recommended.
Overall 10/10 for catering on this sector.
I also managed to try all of the cocktails and strongly recommend the Saigon Sunlight as it was so good!
\
Soon after breakfast, we began our descent into Hanoi at a very ungodly hour (4.30am). After getting off the plane and waiting for someone to unlock the doors for connecting passengers, I headed to the lounge. The airport was just opening so most shops were closed or in the process of being opened, but the lounge was already open.
In terms of design, it is very similar to the lounge in Saigon. However, the food and beverage options were very different.
(Took this pic when leaving)
In terms of food, Hanoi’s offering is appallingly bad and much worse than Saigon.
In terms of drink, it is comparably good and even at 5am the bar was open and manned! Also, Hanoi’s bar had drink brands that I had heard of unlike in Saigon.
There was a sleeping area, but for some reason is was out in the open and very light and noisy, so instead I went into the massage chair room which was quieter for a nap. Overall, it’s not the best lounge and is not nearly as good as the Skyteam one at Heathrow.
After a long wait in the lounge, boarding was called and I headed to the lounge. The economy cabin was at least 95% full but again only five of the 16 seats in business class were taken.
The menu was exactly the same as the one on my previous flight. It also seems as though all SGN/HAN-HKG flights in July and August had exactly the same menu.
However, the quality of the food on this route was far better than on my HKG-SGN flight. I also confirmed with the cabin crew member that HKG-SGN/HAN flights are indeed catered out of HKG.
On arrival, we were all stuffed on to two buses and it felt extremely uncomfortable and was not the way to treat business passengers. I think VN should send a separate bus for business passengers as this did in SGN.
In conclusion:
Many of my conclusions are the same as my previous flight (HKG-SGN-LHR). The seats on both planes were comfortable and spacious and I love the reverse herringbone seat on the 789. The crew were fairly attentive and food was well presented.
In addition to this, the food on all sectors was good to excellent except for the flight from HKG. I think VN needs to review its catering ex-HKG as the food from there truly is awful. I also feel that the Skyteam lounges are much better than the VN lounges which are in need of some soft product improvement.
Again, I'd have no hesitation flying VN long-haul in business class and I feel that the fares they regularly offer on this route are fantastic value.
I’ll mainly let the pictures do the talking with a few notes.
Route
LHR-HAN - 787-9
HAN-HKG - A321-200
I arrived at Heathrow T4 fairly early, and I quickly headed to the VN check-in desks. There was only one SkyPriority desk but luckily the queue was short. However, it took more than twenty-five minutes to get checked-in as the business check-in desk doubled as the group check-in desk. It would have actually been much quicker to use the economy desks as the queues there were pretty short and there were four desks open.
After finally being checked in, I headed to the priority security check which was painless and then to the Skyteam Lounge. And wow! What a lounge it is. I was directed upstairs as that it where they were serving food.
I greatly enjoyed the breakfast and the waffles were excellent. The lounge wasn’t that busy and quickly emptied after a Saudia flight left.
There was also a generous selection of alcohol available.
As I had a bit of time, I decided to take a shower. The showers are downstairs and when I went there was no queue.
There were also some sleeping cabins/ day rooms available (no pic sorry) that seemed very comfortable and private.
It’s hard to believe this is a Priority Pass lounge as I would rate it very highly.
Next, boarding was called and I headed to the gate.
This flight was busier than the previous with only three empty business seats and economy and premium economy being 100% full.
Next, on to lunch! Again the menus were handed out, I was addressed by name just the once when orders were taken - the same as on the previous flight.
On the menu, several things caught my eye.
But I ended up going for the cod and tomato starter with the beef for mains. Again the food was presented very well and was so good. The starter was slightly fishy for my liking, but the main was absolutely beautiful with the steak cooked medium-well which is fair enough for plane food.
One of the best meals I’ve had on a plane:
After this I had the cheese plate and a very nice coconut ice-cream.
For ‘breakfast’ (as it was dinner time in the UK), I had the chicken with noodles. This dish was also pretty good.
Despite being a day flight, I and most others tried to get a few hours sleep. Again, the seat was incredibly comfortable and can be highly recommended.
Overall 10/10 for catering on this sector.
I also managed to try all of the cocktails and strongly recommend the Saigon Sunlight as it was so good!
\
Soon after breakfast, we began our descent into Hanoi at a very ungodly hour (4.30am). After getting off the plane and waiting for someone to unlock the doors for connecting passengers, I headed to the lounge. The airport was just opening so most shops were closed or in the process of being opened, but the lounge was already open.
In terms of design, it is very similar to the lounge in Saigon. However, the food and beverage options were very different.
(Took this pic when leaving)
In terms of food, Hanoi’s offering is appallingly bad and much worse than Saigon.
In terms of drink, it is comparably good and even at 5am the bar was open and manned! Also, Hanoi’s bar had drink brands that I had heard of unlike in Saigon.
There was a sleeping area, but for some reason is was out in the open and very light and noisy, so instead I went into the massage chair room which was quieter for a nap. Overall, it’s not the best lounge and is not nearly as good as the Skyteam one at Heathrow.
After a long wait in the lounge, boarding was called and I headed to the lounge. The economy cabin was at least 95% full but again only five of the 16 seats in business class were taken.
The menu was exactly the same as the one on my previous flight. It also seems as though all SGN/HAN-HKG flights in July and August had exactly the same menu.
However, the quality of the food on this route was far better than on my HKG-SGN flight. I also confirmed with the cabin crew member that HKG-SGN/HAN flights are indeed catered out of HKG.
On arrival, we were all stuffed on to two buses and it felt extremely uncomfortable and was not the way to treat business passengers. I think VN should send a separate bus for business passengers as this did in SGN.
In conclusion:
Many of my conclusions are the same as my previous flight (HKG-SGN-LHR). The seats on both planes were comfortable and spacious and I love the reverse herringbone seat on the 789. The crew were fairly attentive and food was well presented.
In addition to this, the food on all sectors was good to excellent except for the flight from HKG. I think VN needs to review its catering ex-HKG as the food from there truly is awful. I also feel that the Skyteam lounges are much better than the VN lounges which are in need of some soft product improvement.
Again, I'd have no hesitation flying VN long-haul in business class and I feel that the fares they regularly offer on this route are fantastic value.
Aug 29, 2017, 11:06 pm
#22
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: New York
Posts: 7,347
Thanks for a great review!
I have also heard from another British friend of mine that VN Business class offers great value. Those reverse herringbone suites on the 787s are good.
I guess SGN is a nicer airport to transit through!
Carfield
I have also heard from another British friend of mine that VN Business class offers great value. Those reverse herringbone suites on the 787s are good.
I guess SGN is a nicer airport to transit through!
Carfield
Aug 30, 2017, 12:52 am
#23
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: Indonesia
Programs: GarudaMiles (most active), Asia Miles (most active), Kris Flyer, Flying Blue, Royal Orchid Plus
Posts: 79
Looks like they have a lot of improvements in their premium product in A321, it differs a lot when I took the same product in 2015. I like how the seat looks like in their B787.
Sep 1, 2017, 6:47 am
#24
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2016
Posts: 380
Thanks for all of the comments. I'll try to write another report soon, though I rarely go on interesting trips.
I'd say they were pretty equal to be honest. SGN has advantages in some areas and HAN in others. In terms of food SGN was much better; however, the lounge in Hanoi felt more comfortable and private in general. They are both fairly modern airports and the airside facilties seemed comparable.
I'd say they were pretty equal to be honest. SGN has advantages in some areas and HAN in others. In terms of food SGN was much better; however, the lounge in Hanoi felt more comfortable and private in general. They are both fairly modern airports and the airside facilties seemed comparable.