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Our big trip to Australia with a few fun stopovers
As my moniker suggests, I first set up this account on FlyerTalk to help me plan my honeymoon. The hints and tips that I have learnt on here (and, being UK based, on Head for Points) allowed us to put together a trip that we would not otherwise have been able to do so I thought it only right and fair to share it with you, fellow travelers! Please skip to the photo trip reports if you're not interested in the booking process, but if you are... read on...
My wife (it still feels weird saying that) grew up in Australia so a big trip down-under had always been on the to do list and what better occasion to tick it off than our long-awaited honeymoon. Having always fantasised about flying in premium cabins but balking at the price tag, I started collecting Avios a few years ago in the hope that it would one day get me somewhere in British Airways in Club World or even First. And now it has. Redemption seat availability from London to Sydney is infamously tricky to find, and we wanted to go to Perth anyway, so we (well, I) started to think creatively. We love all things Asia, so if we could get BA to take us as close to Australia as possible and pick us back up from somewhere else for the return leg then we were free to connect the dots up ourselves. Easy, right? At T-355 days I logged on my BA account at midnight exactly to book our outbound flights. We ideally wanted to go to Singapore but knew that Kuala Lumpur would work equally well logistically, so I planned to book whichever route showed First availability. It so happened that 2x First seats for KL were released, so I snapped them up very happily. First to Kuala Lumpur or Club to Singapore, what would you have done? Three and a half weeks later it was time to book our inbound and we'd settled on Tokyo as our first choice. I loaded £5 credit on to Skype and called BA's Japan office, again at midnight on the dot to secure our return as it got released. Not too much hassle later and we were booked into Club World (for non-BA followers this is business class) for our return. We had the bones of the trip in place for the sum of 209,000 Avios, about £1100 in taxes and surcharges, and a companion voucher. I checked the BA app daily for any openings in First to upgrade our return and - lo and behold - one day they came up. A quick call to BA to amend, an extra 30,000 Avios and £35 per person change fee and we were now booked in First both ways. Great! I proceeded to connect up the dots by booking one-ways in the most premium way I could engineer and ended up with 8 flights encompassing four countries, 26000 miles, 8 hotels, 2 self catering apartments and 2 hire cars. The route looked like this: London Heathrow - Kuala Lumpur on British Airways, First Kuala Lumpur - Bali on Air Asia X, Premium Flatbed Bali - Perth on Batik Air, Business Perth - Sydney on Qantas, Economy Sydney - Hamilton Island on Jetstar, Economy Hamilton Island - Cairns on QantasLink, Economy Cairns - Tokyo Narita on Jetstar, Business Tokyo Haneda - London Heathrow on British Aiways, First Flight 1: BA 33 London Heathrow - Kuala Lumpur on British Airways, First Boeing 787-9 We made sure to arrive at T5 a full 3hrs early to make use of the Concorde Room and our pre-booked Elemis Spa appointments. We enjoyed the First Wing experience - I thought it sets the scene nicely for a premium experience. Please forgive the poor photography - we're not massively gifted in this area and in any case we try to be discrete when taking photos so as not to disturb other customers. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...e308c0492a.jpg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1becff9426.jpg Our lounge visit got off to a good start when the first staff member we saw was pouring a choice of rose (Jeeper Grand Rose) or brut (Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle) champagne for us to take upon entry with no fuss. For those unfamiliar with the Concorde Room, it's BA's flagship lounge offering reserved for First travelers and the most elite frequent flyers (Gold Guest List and above, I think). It gets a bit of a hard time on the BA board having fallen victim to BA's widely seen war on costs, but we found it very nice and certainly found little expense spared on the drinks. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...79f5e24db.jpeg https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5c6f97ae8e.jpg The Concorde Room offers a la carte dining in your choice of compact and quite private booths or more open high tables closer the bar. The menu wasn't massive but had a few tasty options:https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...8f27e2eea9.jpg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...888c01db44.jpg Food was decent if not incredible. We wanted to enjoy dinner on our flight so tried not to fill up too much. We shared the tortellini and the jackfruit noodles followed by the chocolate dome. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...0572d6116e.jpg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6609b30ad7.jpg https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...82c43f108e.jpg All was pleasant enough but for us was really a snack to have with the very good drinks menu: https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...af0efbfa9.jpeg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...02398b2ed.jpeg Again, we wanted to enjoy food and drinks on the flight so tried not to drink too much in the lounge. Around 90 mins prior to departure we went for our pre-booked spa appointments where we both had a 15 minute back and shoulder massage. Whilst a 15 minute massage is not massively market leading for a First class ground experience it was a bit of fun that was a nice feature to make use of. Incidentally it was a very good massage and set us up nicely for a final quick drink before heading over to the B gates to board. Boarding had nearly completed by the time we got there so we didn't see the priority boarding in action, though we did use the Group 1 lane to bypass what was left of the presumably economy pax still boarding. Upon boarding at door 2L we were greeted by the lead cabin crew member (for BA followers, was he the CSD or CSM as this was a Mixed Fleet route?) and his colleague working in First personally directed us to our seats. I mean, we were perfectly capable of finding seats 1E & 1F all by ourselves, but this was a nice touch that added to the personal feeling. First Class in BA's 787-9 consists of 8 seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. At first glance this looks like a reverse herringbone layout used in many market leading business class seats but really they are an awful lot more generous than those. There is no cubby hole for your feet, leg room is virtually unlimited, you have a personal wardrobe at seat and two further storage bins. Middle seats are best for couples with the divider lowered to allow you to see your seat partner, but if this is raised then it is just fine for solo travelers too. At-seat privacy is excellent and I found everything very comfortable and well designed with premium materials and good lighting. Despite it being one of the newest planes in BA's fleet there was already a fair bit of scuffing and good use and whilst it was at least clean it did not feel new. I was expecting this so it did not dampen our mood which improved further still when we were warmly greeted by the cabin crew and quickly served a glass of champagne (more LPGS). We are also provided with our pyjamas, slippers and amenity kits. We both changed into the PJs straight away to maximise comfort and preserve our clothes for the other end. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...2e927c0245.jpg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...511d6bdd1b.jpg We pushed back on time and once airborne were offered a drink from the bar (more champagne please) which was served with warm nuts. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...042aec543.jpeg Service was on-point from the outset and we were enjoying it. We decided to have dinner relatively promptly so as to maximise our sleeping time. I particularly appreciated how the crew gave a most encouraging response when I inquired if I had time for 'a quick G&T' before the starter was served. We started with the amuse bouche of prawn and something (sorry I didn't write it down) with some nice focaccia. https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...c7efacf02.jpeg Starters of scallops and corn bread for me and baked camembert for Mrs HoneymoonFlyer were pretty good. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...464ca2ed4.jpeg https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...0413796a9e.jpg We had pre-ordered the main course so as to avoid the widely reported shortage of first choices due to BA's apparent under-catering. I chose the beef and requested for it not to be too well done as is almost always the way on planes. The crew member completely understood and did his very best to take it out of the oven as early as possible. Despite best efforts it still ended up well done but the taste was good and it wasn't too dry, so disaster averted. If this is the least they can cook it then what does a normal BA steak end up like? https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...917ea4582.jpeg https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...362aa43cf.jpeg Mrs HF had the stone bass, which was apparently not that great. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f07cf95713.jpg I was completely stuffed so settled for a liquid desert of another glass of bordeaux, though Mrs HF took one for the team and attempted what I think was a sticky toffee pudding: https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...37bc055dcb.jpg It's worth noting that despite the food being relatively average (not bad, but not amazing) the service was impeccable to the point that the two crew teamed up to serve us each course synchronised to the very second. This was impressively done with the perfect balance of professionalism and low-key friendliness and we have sent feedback to BA to this effect. Unsurprisingly after gorging like this we didn't stay awake much longer. The crew pro-actively offered to make our beds for us at appropriate moments. We found the bedding immensely comfortable with thick mattress/duvets and pillows. So much so that we slept for 8 hours and awoke in time for breakfast. The fruit and pastries were fresh and tasty. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...4e582fed8.jpeg The same cannot be said for the hot smoked salmon muffin with 'poached eggs', asparagus and hollandaise. This was a bit grim. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...252c6b003.jpeg Mrs HF's traditional English breakfast was reported to be better: https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...69db626b6a.jpg This concluded our 12 hours of eating, drinking and sleeping. To cap it all off the crew presented us with a very nice card to congratulate us on our marriage and even offered a couple of small gifts (I won't say what they are so as not to set a precedent of expectations!). This was really a lovely way to end the flight and encapsulated what we enjoyed most about it. The crew really made it. The product is often knocked and disparagingly labelled 'the best business class in the sky', which I think is a bit unfair because no business class has a 4:1 crew/passenger ratio, champagne costing £100+ per bottle (Eva Air excepted) and this much at-seat space and storage in such an exclusive and quiet cabin. There's no denying however that this is not a market leading First product which on our occasion was bailed out by an outstanding crew - BA would do well to be grateful for this! We were certainly grateful for it and loved every minute. We de-planed in Kuala Lumpur absolutely satisfied (having managed our expectations about the hard product) and ready to start our honeymoon. More posts to follow when I can, but please let me know what you think so far! |
Am definately looking forward to reading this report
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Excellent. TR... thanks so much and CONGRATULATIONS!!...
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Great trip report! Congrat on your marriage and looking forward to more of the report!
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Congratulations, and a great start to you TR. Looking forward to more.
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Great start. The main meals do both look unworthy of FC, and the salmon breakfast as well
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This is a great start... Looking forward to the rest... and unfortunately the food looks underwhelming.
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Great start, look forward to the rest.
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Nice start and nice touch with the EVA champagne comment to avoid all the posts that would have come after lol:D
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Great start and signed up to read more!
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Looks to be a great TR!
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Thanks guys!
Unfortunately I may have showed my best hand first as my photography takes a significantly downward step in subsequent flights. Let's see how these turn out. We arrived in KL around 4pm and enjoyed some advantage in disembarking first. Priority tags on our checked luggage worked well and we were off to our hotel, the Grand Hyatt in KL. I understand that Grand is not quite the pinnacle of the Hyatt portfolio but I struggled to see how this hotel could be much better. Views from the room and around the hotel were great, breakfast among the best I've had and it had a nice pool to cool off in. We enjoyed two nights in KL to eat as much satay and other pan-Asian delights as we could. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...3f01667909.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...48fc288aad.jpg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...ce6f63ed4a.jpg Views from a rooftop bar called Helibar were unbeatable: https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...9f89c29052.jpg And before we knew it it was time to head to Bali. AirAsia has a hub at KLIA 2, which is more of a separate terminal than a completely independent airport. This makes KL a great stopover destination as you can arrange you own onward travel using cheap one-way fares. Flight 2: D7798 KLIA2 - Denpasar, Bali on Air Asia X, Premium Flatbed Airbus A330-300 Whilst AirAsia exclusively operates Airbus A320 short haul aircraft, its subsidiary AirAsia X flies A330 widebodies even in some cases on competing routes. The group offers several flights a day to Bali, one of which is on the A330 with AirAsia X. Unusually AirAsia X has configured its A330 economy cabin in a 3-3-3 layout which can't be much fun, but it has a small cabin at the front with 'flat bed' seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. Flat they may be, though horizontal they are not. Still - flying nearly flat beds for not much more than £100 per person per way is not to be dismissed. The 'premium flatbed' bundle includes a checked suitcase, separate check in, lounge access (in KL only), priority boarding, an onboard meal and... well... the premium flatbed. Dedicated check in was a welcome way to avoid some of the queues, though we still seemed to have to print and attach our own luggage tags (not very rock and roll). The lounge was more of a room with a coffee machine and some cereal, but we didn't expect anything too premium from an unashamedly focused low cost carrier. I'm sorry to say that I didn't take any photos so I attach one from another blog - this image is not my own: https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...708fda1709.jpg On board service was more economy-plus than anything else but was perfectly adequate. The flight was comfortably uneventful (which is exactly what I'd paid for) and we made it to Bali well rested and ready to go. In the planning process we'd spent many hours trying to identify the very best hotel and room for us to stay in. After much deliberation we settled on the Sayan Villa at Four Seasons Sayan and we certainly feel like we made the right choice. In fact while we were there a 'proper' travel blogger - the Luxury Travel Expert - uploaded an extensive review of the room we were at the time in. This felt a bit weird! The room had an amazing private pool and a high vantage point for complete seclusion. Three very happy days of not doing much were over all too quickly and we made our way back to Ngurah Rai International Airport, Denpasar, Bali for our flight to Perth. Flight 3: BTK6005 Bali - Perth on Batik Air, Business Boeing 737-900 I had never heard of Batik Air before planning this trip. It turns out that the're part of the Lion Air group, which is not blessed with the best safety record. Still, unfazed, I proceeded to book 2x one-ways Bali-Perth as the lure of a proper short haul business class was too tempting to resist. The ground experience was amusingly mixed. The Business class check in lane again helped us avoid some of the queues but no fast-track security/immigration was offered or even seemed to exist. Nor did the Business ticket come with lounge access! Luckily I had 2x free entries to the T/G Loungewith my Lounge Club membership courtesy of the Amex Preferred Rewards Gold Card. The lounge was reasonable with several seating areas including a quiet room, separate toilets, half-decent food offerings including a live station (transitioned from breakfast eggs to lunch noodles as we were there) and drinks including alcohol with finite vouchers issued by the front desk. From memory this offered 3 drinks per person, though for once I didn't sample any. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...500675413.jpeg https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a1faa5a75.jpeg https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...47c213e08.jpeg The time came and we made our way to the gate. No priority boarding was called and despite it all being quite orderly we were dismayed to see buses for the transfer to the plane. Upon having our boarding passes checked by the gate agent she excitedly yelled "business class?!" to which we nodded politely, somewhat pleased to be acknowledged but embarrassed to be singled out. We were not-so-subtly ushered to one side and escorted to a private mini-bus for the two of us. How cool is this? After that fun we were the first to board so got a good look at the business class cabin, which occupies the front three rows in a 2-2 configuration for a total of 12 seats. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...2faace33a.jpeg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a1d9f4fc5.jpeg https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...85c52edb4.jpeg Business class on short haul routes doesn't really exist in Europe, so I thought this was great. Service started with hot towels and a (non alcoholic) welcome drink. https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...2bf0aa8c1.jpeg And once airborne we were quickly offered our meals. We were offered a choice of 'meatballs or noodles' and for some reason I said meatballs. Yes, it tastes how it looks. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...8acf6fa09.jpeg Still, the fact that it was only passable as opposed to downright poor left me feeling relatively satisfied and I amused myself for the next couple of hours until landing. I couldn't find much on the IFE of interest, but again I offer some kudos for even having proper IFE on such a route. We landed without much eventfulness and after the apparently customary Pom-searching at Australian border control we were ready to start our Australia holiday. Stay tuned... |
We loved our time in Perth and the surrounding area. We spent a couple of days in each of Cottesloe (posh seaside suburb), Margaret River (wine country) and Sorento (other posh seaside suburb).
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...da2606988.jpeg Nice beaches with local wildlife https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...2eda0f8ae.jpeg Nice picnics with local delicacies https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...e43aa6b5a.jpeg More local delicacies at Amelia Park, Margaret River And before we knew it we'd spent our six nights in Perth and Western Australia and it was time to head to Sydney. Flight 3: QF568 Perth - Sydney on Qantas, Economy Airbus A330-200 This is the one that got away. No matter how I tried - cash, points, upgrades at any point - I couldn't find any remotely reasonably priced Business fares. Which is a shame as the A330s feature the new Qantas Business suites which look close to market leading. But it wasn't to be so we slummed it in economy. The fact that this was a widebody in a 2-4-2 configuration offered some comfort, but 4hrs in economy on the overnight flight (midnight departure) wasn't much fun. I didn't take any photos because there was nothing noteworthy to report - we even declined the complimentary light snack and drinks in an attempt to sleep. Sorry. Things took a turn for the better in Sydney when we checked in to the Intercontinental right near Circular Quay. The hotel was just OK but massively saved by the excellent Club Lounge on the top floor. This had a couple of things to like: https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a33f8e51d.jpeg Complimentary coffees and snacks through the day https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5ecbe2f6f.jpeg https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...c30d8dad7.jpeg Complimentary drinks in the evening After two days of Sydney it was time for the bit that we were really excited about: Hamilton Island. Flight 5: JQ 846 Sydney - Hamilton Island on Jetstar, Economy Airbus A320 Nothing noteworthy about the flight other than the 1hr delay as Sydney Airport was shut with an electrical storm. Still, it could be worse, and we made it to a very curious little airport on Hamilton Island - more on that later. It's an interesting concept - the island itself is owned by the Oatley family with the various hotels, accommodations, restaurants and other businesses all owned and managed by the family too. Cars and vans are limited to official/professional use only, so everyone uses electric buggies (Qualia guests have one included in their room rate). So the 'town' looks like this: https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...00c4369491.jpg Marina promenade, Hamilton Island We checked in to Qualia, which is without doubt the most premium place I have ever stayed. The resort's situation at the end of the island offers is 270* views of the stunning Whitsunday Islands. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...05a31cb51b.jpg The welcome glass of Charles Heidsick champagne, Qualia https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...34399e58a3.jpg View from the Long Pavilion terrace, Qualia It's a very special place that delivered on offering a consistently premium experience from start to finish. We opted for a four night package that included a helicopter tour to Whitehaven beach - this was quite something. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...74e14a245.jpeg The Qualia helipad. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6af76fa523.jpg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...afb4a6fb9d.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a97d0bbc1.jpeg On the sand at Whitehaven After the immensely fun flight we were left on the beach to amuse ourselves with a little picnic for 90 mins or so. Plenty enough time to enjoy the powder sand that felt like moon dust (which I think broke my iPhone) and the luckily shark-free sea. The return flight offered yet more great views. That was an experience! We occupied the rest of our time at Qualia by chilling out, driving around the island in our buggy and making use of the complimentary watersports (including sailing lessons). It was over all too soon and we departed back to the airport with lighter wallets but very satisfied. Next stop, Cairns. |
Flight 6: QF2504 Hamilton Island - Cairns on QantasLink, Economy
Bombardier Dash 8 Q-400 We got to the airport 50 mins before departure. Virtually no one was there, bar one Qantas check in agent (who later doubled as the gate agent) and two other passengers. This was a fun little place. Over the next 20 mins or so a handful of other passengers arrived, but it can't have been more than about 20 in total for our flight to Cairns. This is the smallest airport that I've visited and I quite enjoyed it! https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...e8f411cf4.jpeg Golf buggies parked outside the terminal https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...400385693.jpeg The check-in hall https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...4e707afbe.jpeg Departure lounge and gates https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...14598f49d.jpeg Our ride today, the QantasLink Bombardier Dash 8 Q-400 https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...bff9f916f.jpeg Terminal view from the stand https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f4d33fd18.jpeg Hamilton Island Airport (HTI), aerial view The quirky airport, light load factor and amazing views combined to make this a fun little flight. A little over an hour later and we were in Cairns! |
Great report including info and pics. Qualia sounds nice and the pics from the helicopter were awesome.
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Wow at Hamilton Island! :o
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Great TR!
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Thanks very much for the nice comments guys. I’ll finish this off soon as I get the time. Turns out these TRs take quite a while to put together! |
Great report so far HoneymoonFlyer - many congratulations on your nuptials! Looks like you have had a great time so far. Well done for joining FT and taking advantage of the wealth of information here. Looking forward to the rest!
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Great TR! Love that aerial photo of Hamilton Island.
Congrats on the marriage! |
Finally getting round to the final installment!
From Cairns airport we drove inland to the Atherton tablelands which felt surprisingly like the deep South in America. We thought it'd be a good idea to stay in more basic accommodation after our hyper-luxury at Qualia so we spent two nights in a treehouse style retreat near Yungaburra. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1f8f7a0aa7.jpg The driveway of Mount Quincan Crater Retreat, Atherton Tablelands Whilst this was suitably different so offered good variation, it was a bit too close to the local wildlife for our liking. We did our best to relax (despite constant interruption from bush turkeys, wallabies and possums) and were quite relieved when our two days were up and it was time to head to Port Douglas. This was much more 'us' - a great beach and a surprisingly small town with dozens of restaurants, bars and cafes as well as a pleasant marina for boat based excursions. We took a speedboat snorkelling trip to the outer reef - lots of fish! All too soon it was time for our next flight to our final destination; Tokyo. Flight 7: JQ25 Cairns - Tokyo Narita on Jetstar, Business Boeing 787-800 Like the AirAsia X flight upthread, the Jetstar flight to Narita allowed us to travel to Tokyo in a premium cabin without the need to book a return flight as you would with most legacy carriers. The ticket cost around £420 each and included a checked bag, priority check in & boarding and seating in a premium-economy style 2-3-2 configuration. No lounge access was included. Priority boarding worked well and we were onboard before the legion of Japanese school children who were presumably on their way home. Whilst the hard product onboard fell short of lie-flat business, it was perfectly comfortable for the 7hr daytime flight. What really impressed me though was the soft product which was up to international business class standards. Service began with a hot towel and a glass of Australian sparkling wine. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6cd53d26d.jpeg I'd read somewhere that row 1 wasn't good for some reason so we'd book row 2. In hindsight this was a misjudgement - row 1 looked very comfortable: https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...0edfcab7d.jpeg At every seat was a blanket, headphones and an amenity kit which was pretty good considering it wasn't a particularly long flight. https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5a85c3b83.jpeg Amenity kit contents https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...8a1a48be4.jpeg Jetstar headphones - not bad And menus: https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...de298b13c.jpeg https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...e76a286e1.jpeg https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5a4caabdf.jpeg https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...148770064.jpeg Once airborne the crew did a drinks run. https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...2ee241d18.jpeg Penfolds Max's Chardonnay and pretzels And lunch followed. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...897a7bf5c.jpeg Barramundi soy and ginger https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...9d8224566.jpeg Braised beef rib Starters and mains were presented together. Food was decent, though not outstanding. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...7ad0c9541.jpeg Cheese plate & Ringbolt Margeret River Cabernet Sauvignon The crew were very good at drinks runs and I did indulge a little as the wines were very pleasant. I liked that the crew hand poured top ups at-seat and I was in no danger of going thirsty. The IFE worked well and though the choice wasn't expansive it was adequate - I chilled out watching the Lion King for the first time in years so no complaints from me. Once I was a bit wined out I moved on to a G&T and did my best to keep Mrs HF's mitts off of it. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...c95c2c7a9.jpeg Beefeater gin & tonic After a couple of those and a brief rest it wasn't long until the pre-landing snack. I thought a coffee was probably a good idea after the boozy indulgence earlier. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...d6b242536.jpeg Aloo tikka pattie with a very generous serving of chocolate cake for dessert Unpictured (sorry) is Mrs HF's chicken croquette - both this and my pattie were tasty and left us feeling satisfied at the end of a pleasant flight. I think the product offered excellent value and was very comfortable for a daytime flight where a flat bed wasn't really necessary. Thanks Jetstar! Despite de-planing almost first we got unlucky with our queue and ended up last through immigration. Priority baggage didn't work too well on this occasion so we waited a little for our suitcases before making our way through a short and friendly customs check (more a brief chat than a search). We were staying in Shibuya (more on that later) which didn't look too easy to get to on the train with our heavy bags. We could have got the 'limousine bus' directly to our hotel, but we opted for a private car. This was expensive at £175 vs the £40 that the bus would have cost the two of us, but we thought it'd be more straightforward. In hindsight I would probably do the bus as I don't think it saved much time having the car - anyone having any experience here? Next up: the final installment - Tokyo and the flight home! |
We had three nights in Tokyo to stuff ourselves with as much sushi, ramen, tempura, wagyu and sake as we could. We stayed at the Cerulean Tower hotel which was a bit soulless but very convenient for Shibuya and big enough to be easy to find either on foot or by taxi. Though unashamedly tacky we loved the lights, busyness and general happenings of Shibuya.
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...4031179625.jpg Shibuya crossing A highlight was Tsukiji fish market which despite having moved the inner (commercial) market to a new location was still going very strong in the outer (retail) market with amazing fish produce, street food and sushi bars. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...30ff97ec13.jpg Tsukiji fish market sushi counter - one of dozens We also loved that you could get amazing food at the most basic kiosk type restaurants in the maze of walkways within the big stations. https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...190096270.jpeg A typical commuter snack-stop I'm not such a fan of ramen at home but when in Japan, do as the Japanese do. I thoroughly enjoyed these efforts: https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5ea2a34b20.jpg https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...ab39995841.jpg Hot (top) and cold (bottom) noodle soups We found Shibuya a good place to stay and would recommend it to other first timers. There's enough there that you can spend an evening with all the variety there, but it's so well connected that you can explore the rest of the city easily too. A word of warning though - the city is enormous and makes London feel like a sleepy regional centre in comparison. Leaving the hotel in the morning would not see us return until early evening - highly unusual for slow-paced travelers like us! Great fun though with endless things to see (and eat) so it was with some regret that we ran out of time after three nights and only two full days there. Flight 8: BA08 Tokyo Haneda - London Heathrow on British Airways, First Boeing 777-300 Choosing which return flight to book was a toss up between the morning Haneda flight on the 777 or the slightly later Narita flight on the 787. I would have preferred the 787 experience for the smaller and more modern cabin, but the convenience of and cheaper taxi ride to Haneda swung it for us. Cerulean Tower to Haneda was only a 35 min taxi. Priority check-in was done without much fanfair but did at least mean no queuing, in contrast to the economy queue. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...889ffceae.jpeg First check-in counters tacked onto the rest of the bank Fast-track security was probably included but was not made very clear even on questioning. Luckily we found the regular security area right by the BA check-in counters super efficient so no issue there and we were quickly through. BA use the Japan Airlines lounges in Tokyo as OneWorld partners, so we made our way to the JAL First Lounge. We expected this to be nice and it didn't disappoint. The lounge is interestingly laid out and portioned into three distinct areas. The dining room in the middle had the buffet selection, live station (pancakes at our time of day) and selection of table and bench seating with good runway views. To one side was a lounge type room which also had good runway views but we found too quiet to be comfortable. We like quiet places so for us to feel like that it must be quite a thing - it was dead silent in there! Finally at the far end of the lounge was the 'red suite', which seemingly no one had discovered. This had the coolest champagne fridge and self serve station that I've ever been invited to use (it'd be rude not to) and reminded me of the 'Bolly fridge' in Absolutely Fabulous. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6837f4577.jpeg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...11a8678dd.jpeg Laurent Perrier fridge and self-pour counter https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...7bcd913e2.jpeg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a9bfa3c4f.jpeg Self-pour Laurent Perrier https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...b4f708624.jpeg Sake - if champagne is't your thing! It was a bit early even for us (about 7:30am) but we did manage a glass or two of the Laurent Perrier, and very nice it was too. Despite knowing that we'd be having the Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle onboard this was too tempting to resist. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...11d156dc6.jpeg The deserted Red Suite Oncesuitably topped up we helped ourselves to some breakfast from the buffet. Whilst pleasant this was not quite as impressive as the drink selection, though I did enjoy a beef curry and Mrs HF sampled the live-cooked pancakes. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...179afceba.jpeg Beef curry and Laurent Perrier - is that a thing? https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...dc072f729.jpeg Pancakes probably more appropriate for the time of day! https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f9cb36c0b.jpeg Nice apron and runway views As with our outbound, we wanted to enjoy the service onboard especially as this was a long daytime flight. I did my best to not eat too much and given the time of day found it quite easy to not drink too much. We enjoyed around 1hr of lounge time and though very pleasant we would not put this on the same level as the Concorde Room at Heathrow. Boarding was called a mere 35 mins before scheduled departure which I appreciated and the process at the gate was run efficiently with Group 1 of First passengers and Gold status holders invited to board fist. The one jetbridge split into two to service both doors 1L and 2L at the same time. Whilst this did mean that First travelers had direct access to the cabin it did also invite a small amount of footfall from Club passengers who avoided the greater congestion from economy and premium economy passengers boarding at 2L. Talk about first world problems! https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...067eedd5b.jpeg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...bf5a898de.jpeg Cabin shots of the First cabin on the 777-300 The cabin was noticeably more dated than the 787 one that we experienced on the outbound. Still, the basic layout was the same with perhaps slightly more at-seat space, though with a little less privacy from the dividers and with fewer storage cubbies. As on the outbound we immediately changed into our complimentary pyjamas and settled into our pre departure drinks of Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a77ac9d49.jpeg I've mixed feelings about the amenity kits: https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...3e0ba6cae.jpeg BA First male amenity kit The Liberty bag itself is very nice and we re-use it regularly. The toiletries are mainly from The Refinery, a brand of Aromatherapy Associates, which I think is reasonably expensive. The moisturiser is pleasant but very heavily scented - too much so for every day use. The lip balm is not as good as the Elemis one that they used to give out in Club World, so a bit of a backward step there. Shave gel and razor - does anyone actually shave on planes? The toothbrush and toothpaste were of good quality though. There's also a mini roll-on deoderant which I suppose could be handy, a pen and a very nice eye mask which I have re-used on other non-First flights (like a true DYKWIA). A comb and a pair of pretty useless earplugs complete the offering. Boarding completed remarkably quickly and we pushed back promptly. Ascent offered amazing views of Mount Fuji on the port side, so I recommend the A seats for Haneda departures. This as a morning flight but luckily offered a full lunch service, so we decided to chill out with a couple more glasses of champagne before starting our meal service (BA offers dine on demand in First). A flick through the drinks list:https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...2db451879.jpeg https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1df05965b.jpeg And the food menu, starting with lunch and later a lighter pre-landing meal. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...9283d398a.jpeg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...3a97e794a.jpeg Lunch menus https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...c3f31c822.jpeg Pre-landing light meal menus We toyed with the idea of buddy dining, where two dine together by making use of the ottoman as a seat, but we decided it was more comfortable as we were. The crew were most encouraging though and commented that a couple behind us were doing just that. After an hour or so of champagne aided chat we ordered our lunch. In the same way as on the outbound I requested a 'quick G&T' post champagne but pre-white wine with the starter. The amuse bouche offered just the window! https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...4064be2e9.jpeg Duck wraps amuse bouche I did my best to make the G&T as quick as possible as I wanted a glass of Chablis with my starter of assorted Japanese appetisers. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5b47294e1.jpeg Japanese appetisers of minced duck with egg, simmered prawn, green gingko nut, chestnut pouch, salmon, red salmon roe and marinated radish Catering ex-Japan was in many ways better than ex-London. This was a bit of a shock to eat something so varied on a plane (and on BA!) so I didn't know what to make it. I'm not sure I liked most of it, but it was fun to have something so local to the departure location. As with the most authentic Japanese food, it's good and weird in equal measure - this was no exception. After nibbling on that and having a good attempt at enjoying it I was quite looking forward to my big plate of beef for main course. Not before a mention to Mrs HF's starter though: https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...4ef2123b0.jpeg Steamed asparagus with quail eggs and truffle cream This was reported to be very good with nicely cooked asparagus and a seriously truffley cream. Mains followed, but not without some more refreshment. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...45cd59d10.jpeg Chateau Prieure-Lichine 2011, Margaux I quite enjoyed this and did my best to deprive the rest of the cabin of it. Main courses followed. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...7d8521e73.jpeg Sukiyaki Wagyu beef We both had the beef as it sounded too good to turn down, especially as it was catered out of Tokyo. It was cut into thin strips as opposed to being in steak form and tasted good. The dressing was a little bit teriyaki-ish, which didn't go that well with the wine, but it didn't last long enough in front of me to be too much of a problem. It came with a great clear-soup. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...284b3dd5c.jpeg Lunch was going well, if equally because of novelty value and intrigue than particularly amazing taste. Regrettably we were too stuffed to eat dessert, but instead chose to relax with the cheese plate. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6860ea978.jpeg The cheese was very pleasant once it had enough time to come up to temperature (no problem when lounging with a film on a 13hr daytime flight). Observant readers may note that the Margaux has morphed into something more ruby in colour. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...c7003c7c0.jpeg I put a good tent in the bottle as I slowly grazed on the cheese plate even after other passengers had turned in for a nap or to watch a film. The main three First crew were on their rest so were covered by the purser and and another crew member from Club who responded to my call bell top-up requests in literally seconds, each time with great encouragement and seemingly genuine happiness to be called upon. Once I got a bit ported out I thought a good idea to try a JW Blue - even though I hate whisky. This confirmed that I hate whisky, but seemed like an appropriate place to check. https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...fad45f659.jpeg I appreciated being pro-actively offered a cashew based snack to help with the whisky, but it wasn't working out so I took the opportunity to take a mid flight nap. Again I found the bed very comfortable with good bedding and dozed in more of a booze-nap than a proper sleep as it was properly daytime by my body clock. With a couple of hours until landing passengers started their second meal so I thought a good idea to join them. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...abaaab027.jpeg A half decent cappuccino revived some semblance of sobriety before the food came. https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...887faa591.jpeg The octopus and prawn salad continued the locally-catered theme. It was light and tasty and not in any way breakfast like so as not to confuse the body clock further. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...97fe195eb.jpeg The braised pork was a bit standard BA, and Mrs HF's wild mushroom risotto was more of a cheese rice, which to me sounds quite nice. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a3a1b3ee9.jpeg I'm slightly ashamed to admit that we were back on the LPGS by this point. If the crew felt anything amiss about this then they didn't show it - top ups flowed liberally. https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...cee38f841.jpeg I squeezed in a fresh fig tart before landing. It was nice. Unfortunately Mrs HF ran out of time before landing for dessert, which is perhaps the only negative comment I'd make about the service set-up. It's dine on demand so passengers are expected to ask when they want something, while she instead waited politely for her pre-landing meal service to start. This could perhaps have been better explained by the crew who only realised late-on that she did indeed want more service before the end of the flight. Obviously not a biggie, but for those like us less familiar with First etiquette a bit more hand-holding might be a good idea. To cap off a very enjoyable flight and a beyond incredible honeymoon we were invited to visit the flightdeck once we were on-stand. This was a great privilege (as if sitting in Row 1 wasn't enough) and was a great honeymoon gesture for the crew to make. Again, BA's crew were on point from start to finish. We both really enjoyed our return flight and have very similar conclusions to our outbound. Yes, it is not the most premium First product in the sky but comparisons with Business class are slightly misguided in my opinion. At the right price we would consider paying for the product and as a redemption I think it's one of the best investments of time you can make to learn all the necessary tricks to make it happen. I hope you've enjoyed reading my musings and welcome your thoughts on the product and my reports themselves. Over and out! https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...93a1854ac6.jpg |
Great report, thanks for sharing!
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I enjoyed that. Thanks for making the effort to post. Some great memories for you both in that trip.
AO |
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