offerendum

limeyx

As in Lewis Hamilton ? If so, then YES !! If it's some arcane flying term I am not familiar with then carry on

chongl

Thanks for reading as usual benjahman

Not for everyone, nor for me since I'm much more introverted, but I figured some free canapes outweighed the downsides of socializing

Sure thing

Yes, LH44 as in Lewis Hamilton. Was a good race this weekend...maybe things would've gone a bit better if he hadn't switched back to slicks and damaged his aero mid-race Thanks for reading, limeyx

limeyx

Welcome .. just two more race wins to wrap this thing up right ? Been a fan of LH since the day he set foot in F1 (had never heard of him before that)

chongl

Not quite...they still haven't hit their summer break, which will be after the race this weekend, so there's still a good amount of racing left

lagunas2k

Thanks for the awesome trip report.

For the St. Regis, any comments on the activities at the kids club? About to head there in a few days and curious which ones are more worthwhile than others.

chongl

I know there are activities, just not sure what since my son is too young to participate. A coworker who went a month before me said they are very good with kids. On a side note, we were there before they opened that last morning while they were having a meeting (by accident) and they accommodated us anyway.

AirlineofTheYearAwards

What an amazing lifestyle you have!
Hats off to you. BTW the Maldives pic is amazing.

chongl

The second to last night, a storm rolled through and we woke up to the sound of the wind and waves flowing by our villa. I went outside for a few minutes just to observe and saw some flashes of lightning. It was about 4:30AM, but we opened up all the blinds and enjoyed the show of nature in the sky until things subsided. You can see the gloomy skies as we walked to breakfast, and the damp wood on the pathway to the villas





Of course, it was breakfast as expected





After which we went to the kid's club inside The Vommuli House, something we had wanted to do but kept putting off. Inside was a large area perfect for our toddler to run around and entertain himself. The other side has the fitness center for those who want to get their workout in





Missed focus, but oh well









Yoga room



Outdoor playground



Once we tired out our son, we head towards the library. It's located near The Whale Bar and just to the right of the main pool







Nice interior, but I don't see many people hanging out here, especially since it was quite warm inside







Main pool



A view from the observation deck of the boutique





Heading back down the stairs



Mangosteen for the wife and some strawberries for our son (with a special note from one of the security managers we met at the reception)



The rest of the afternoon, we started packing our bags as we would be leaving paradise the next morning. Dinner was at Orientale again during the first seating



Amuse bouche







Complimentary dessert



Unfortunately, there was another screw up during meal service. The food was fully cooked this time, but I was brought a lamb biryani rather than the chicken that I ordered. After the first bite or 2, I noticed the gamey taste and sent it back. Having my son more acclimated to the time, we were able to wait for the replacement dish to come out, but my impression was already marred by the issues experienced both times we dined there. After dinner was finished, our butler came to pick us up and drive us back to our villa where the final bill was settled. We were given the schedule for the sea plane in the morning, and the early departure meant we wouldn't have time to eat at the breakfast buffet. However, we were given a room service menu to order from, and while we didn't order that much food, a large spread accompanied what we selected (or maybe they just gave us extra to eat)





In the morning, right on schedule, someone came by to pick up our luggage, followed by delivery of breakfast. Our butler arrived about 30 minutes later to drive us to the sea plane terminal, where we said our goodbyes and took a few last pictures







Sea plane to take us back to Male







Landed at Male and walking towards the van to take us to the main airport



Back into the nice van with a/c blasting



Jordan retired and went to the Maldives



Unlike the Conrad, we were instructed to stay in the van until the other van with the luggage arrived. This way we could stay cool in the comfort of a climate controlled environment. Once the bags arrived, we identified them and were even led through the initial airport screening to the check-in counters. They were there every step of the way, and were there as we shuffled items from one luggage to another due to a weight issue. It wasn't until we had to show our boarding passes to get to the upstairs immigration area that the St. Regis person bid us farewell. Another thing we noticed was that we did not have to keep the immigration slip and turn it in upon departure as we did in our previous trip. All these minor changes made the experience feel smoother than ever. Once through security, there seemed to be some major changes: the airport has been spruced up since the last time we were there, with more duty free shopping, restaurants, and even a small kids play area by some of the gates



We had access to the Leeli Lounge there, which had some basic food offerings







Small buffet







With impeccable timing, our son had just fallen asleep upon calls for boarding. There were hordes of people itching to leave paradise, blocking what should have been a relatively short line for pre-boarding and business class. After squeezing through to the gate agent, we stepped onto the tarmac, and luckily not a bus, since the plane was immediately adjacent to the gate. I'm sure that my son would've been woken by some clueless stranger accidentally slamming his bag into baby ChongL as we got crammed in otherwise.



The interesting couple that managed to drop a phone into a small crevice, and were incredulous that they would have to wait until after the flight to retrieve it



IFE screen and controls





Storage below



Seat controls



Unoccupied window seat



Storage cubbies and plugs







Still on the ground



Some nuts and whisky to start



Tray table extended for lunch





Today's menu

















The mushroom soup was phenomenal



Crab cake was so-so



Chicken breast was decent, though slightly dry



Dessert



I love that curved wingtip!



The front portion of the business cabin was not full by any means. The entire right side of the plane was empty. The entire rear portion of the business cabin was empty as well, giving me the perfect opportunity for some more pictures

Bulkhead of sorts where the lavatories are, separating the rear half of the cabin



Empty seat



And again closer to landing with the mood lighting off



As we approached Doha, I switched to the front camera for landing





And finally on the ground



From there, we proceeded through customs, grabbed our luggage, and exited to find a St. Regis representative awaiting for our private car transfer to the hotel



Next up: St. Regis Doha and exploring in the unrelenting heat

chongl

We had a brief wait in the arrivals area of the airport while the St. Regis representative phoned the driver. Within a few minutes, we exited the airport into the scorching desert heat and met our ride curbside. We were pleasantly surprised to see an upgrade to a BMW 7-series, versus the 5-series that we had booked.







It was about a 30 minute ride to the hotel, but we passed the time quickly conversing with our driver









As we arrived, no less than 10 people greeted us between getting out of the car and stepping into the lobby...talk about over the top. In another surprise, we had to get small bags scanned as well as walk through a metal detector. I figured Doha is relatively safe, but that experience lowered my comfort level a bit. Later on from the room, I saw the underside of cars being checked with a giant mirror, presumably for explosives?

Lobby





Bronze Ferrari



We were guided up to our room for check in. I burned 2 suite night upgrades and confirmed into the Caroline Astor Suite. I'll let the pictures do the talking

Entrance



Half bath by the door







Some sweets



Bedroom





Bathroom



Rain shower



Mediocre internet speeds



Our room was assigned two butlers, neither of which we saw again. Like the Maldives, there was a way to contact the butler service via WhatsApp. The difference here was that this was not a direct line, but a generic desk that fielded requests from guests. I inquired about whether this particular location performed the champagne sabering ceremony. They quickly replied they would look into it, and I never had a follow up response to my question. Let's just say I was utterly unimpressed with the "butler service" here. We had some issues later on as well, which I'll cover in a bit. We took some time to debate whether or not to brave the heat...the answer turned out to be a negative so we took a nap instead. Dinner was at a steakhouse in the lobby



Ceiling



Bread



Ribeyes





Sides





We scrambled back to our room after dinner and watched the sun disappear under the horizon coupled with the sound of jetskis as the locals zoomed across the harbor. It didn't take much to fall asleep



An impressive breakfast spread the next morning







































Afterwards, we decided to head to the Souq Waqif, a marketplace that dates back at least 100 years. It was late morning, and we were warned that most people didn't roam around until late evening when the temperature were milder. We didn't want to waste away most of the day since we were leaving the next day. Understandably, the majority of places were closed, so we didn't get a true feel of the environment (other than the heat!)



























Then...



And now...







Waiting for an Uber for the 1/2 mile trek to the museum of Islamic art. The heat was too oppressive for that short of a walk without cover. In the short time we were at Souq Waqif, we exhausted multiple bottles of water, my camera was hot to the touch, and my son's cheeks were completely flushed...better safe than sorry





This sets me up for my next fail where the museum wasn't open until 1:30 PM on Fridays. I read the hours the night before and thought it would be open at 9 AM like other days. Although a bit disappointed, I snapped a few pictures, and we called an Uber to head back to the St. Regis









The wife had a desire to visit The Pearl, a man-made island with absolutely no redeeming qualities. But she wanted to see it, so come evening time we ventured back out for our last night. Somehow, we ended up at an Italian place for dinner, even though we were heading to Rome (???)









We had to go to Fat Burger to get our son some fried chicken tenders and fries since he did not eat enough pasta at the first restaurant. How ironic that the chain started in Los Angeles and we were sitting in one halfway around the world. Once we finished, we went back to the hotel and finished packing since we had an early departure. The next morning, our airport transfer was waiting as scheduled by the time we got downstairs for checkout. To jump forward a little bit, when we got back from our trip, the pre-authorization of 1,500 Qatari Rials ended up posting to my credit card. After contacting the hotel, they mentioned they had asked the bank to release the funds, even after I had specifically mentioned it was no longer a pending transaction. After a few emails and no action over the course of a week, I had to file a charge back. As great as things started off at the St. Regis Doha, things went downhill and I wasn't too impressed with my stay there

Some more sightseeing from the comfort of the car on the way to DOH







We were dropped off right in front of the premium check-in area and were directed towards the right side





Sitting down for check-in similar to SQ's dedicated first class check-in. And our lovely hats from the St. Regis Maldives





Through security and immigration, it was out into the open





Obligatory bear



Next up: Al Safwa F Lounge, Qatar F to Frankfurt, and beyond

offerendum

The breakfast at St. Regis looks impressive!

Parterre

I do hope the lucky little guy knows how good he has it!

chongl

I was as well. The spice route Bloody Mary was very good, but it was just outside the doors of the breakfast buffet so I didn't see it until we were leaving

I certainly hope so. We'll make sure he knows as he gets older that economy is the standard, not what he sees here

chongl

On the way to the Al Safwa First Class Lounge





Entrance



Clean lines and beautiful decor









Business area



Over to the restaurant for breakfast









Breakfast menu







Smaller dining area with a view of the planes where I was able to spot our ride to Frankfurt







Roaming the rest of the lounge



Even though I had missed out on the Museum of Islamic Art, there were some beautiful pieces on display here











We head towards the gate about 10 minutes before departure





After our boarding passes got scanned, we head to an upstairs waiting area that was meant for boarding J and F passengers. It was a short wait since as I sat down, they announced boarding. I was particularly excited for this flight since it was the last of the ME3 carriers' A380 for us to sample, but things didn't start quite well as we stepped aboard our 2nd A380 of the trip. The air conditioning wasn't working due to an issue with the APU. Although it was early, the outside temperature had already breached the triple digit barrier and warmed up the cabin very quickly. The cabin crew did their best to replenish our cold towels and an auxiliary APU was hooked up that didn't do very much. We ended up delayed about an hour before we were cleared by maintenance to push back. The other occurrence that worked in our favor was the gentleman in 1A saw our son and immediately demanded that he be moved, citing that there was a baby on board. I understand the sentiment, but to not even give him a chance didn't seem quite fair. Funny thing was, as he moved to 2A and got situated, I heard some crying from J so he ended up being closer to that baby instead. But as I said, it worked out since we now had a seat next to my wife that ended up being the lie flat bed for our son











Seat and IFE controls









Today's menu





Some Krug? Yes please!





Bric's amenity kits weren't anything special



Large bathrooms up front







Snacks and refreshments for grabs



Ready for takeoff



Free WiFi was intermittent



In the air



Warm nuts and a massive pour of whisky



Our son fell asleep before takeoff, and the FAs immediately made the bed as soon as they were able to. Thank you, stranger formerly in 1A





We opted to skip breakfast since we ate in the lounge. I went with the sliders, and the wife, well, she's a sucker for afternoon tea





Once our son woke up, we decided to head to the bar to hang out for a bit



Deep in thought



Cruising



Roses



Behind the bar



...this time with FA in tow



The rest of the flight time passed by quickly, and we were on final into FRA before we knew it



Once we cleared immigration, we met up with our friends (more difficult than it should have been), and head towards the car rental counters. The weather in Frankfurt was wonderfully cool, a welcome change from the intense heat from previous days





E-class wagon for me





Heading towards the Nurburgring



First stop was the gift shop before they closed









We went to a restaurant up the road for dinner



Beers for all, and schnitzel for all





Checking into our hotel that was right next to the GP track









The next morning, we had breakfast in the hotel, which had a surprisingly good spread. On top of the variety, the food itself was very good



















Next up: Nurburgring and exploring Rome

Jgp777

Very nice review! Thank you for sharing!
I took my child when he was 4 months on QR F A380 from BKK-DOH. He was fine through the whole flight, except while on descent, he began crying. There was another passenger who made a huge fuss of the situation. Luckily the crew told us not to worry because we were landing and our child was sleeping throughout, plus kids are allowed on F on QR.

For me apart from the seat and maybe service, the whole F experience is very underwhelming. The menu looks exactly the same as in J on a daytime flight. The only difference is probably the Krug. Additionally the amenity kit looks pretty similar to J. Earlier they gave the older version of the Brics amenity kit which was much larger for first class and with a few more extra products.