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Airline Amenity Review: WiFi on United – Surfing United WiFi Inflight Services

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UA Airbus A320 with WifiEarlier this week in Newark-Liberty International Airport, I spotted an Airbus A320 with a big dome on its fuselage near the tail. I instagrammed a picture hinting that it must have WiFi and sure enough it did. I figured at some point I’d get to fly a United Wifi equipped airplane.

UA Airbus A319 with Wifi SignAs I boarded an Airbus A319 on Thursday morning as UA795 from Atlanta to Houston, I was even more excited to see that the side of the airplane had the word “WiFi” on it. “This was going to be a great flight,” I mused.

I said hello to the flight attendants at the entry door adding that I’m told there’s complimentary Wifi on this flight. She added that there is United WiFi, but its not complimentary, smiling as she did so.

Gogo InfightI went to my seat, got settled in and opened up my laptop. I looked for the signal, but instead, I got the gogo wifi from the Delta airplanes nearby. United Wifi info in the Hemisphere magazineI looked in the Hemisphere magazine, but got no additional information.

We pushed back and headed for the runway and was airborne in what seemed like forever. Apparently, it was busy time in ATL, but being the aviation geek, I loved it! As soon as we hit 10,000′, I opened up the computer and saw the United WiFi and connected to it; yeah! The flight attendant said that we could turn on our electronic equipment, but place them in airplane mode which was funny to hear since in that mode I could not use the Wifi feature. I guess they need to modify the announcement just slightly.

Logged in Screenshot of United WiFiIt took a while to connect, about 11.5 minutes, but finally I connected and saw that it was $6.99 for standard speed and $10.99 for 3x the standard speed. I chose the cheaper option and after a few tries was charged and connected.

I was asked to sign in using my MileagePlus number or create a guest account, but I was disappointed that I still had to enter a new credit card when I already have one in My MileagePlus Account. I hope these two systems are integrated in the future so that when you sign in using your MileagePlus number, you are able to use more than one device by just signing in again.

I started communicating with my friends on Facebook and checking e-mail, but it was all so slow. The lady across the aisle was having issues logging in with her iPad, so I gave her a hand. She was already connected, but there was no start screen, so I brought up a Safari window and typed in cnn.com and then the United WiFi home page came up. Now she was all sorted out. I then explained how it worked to her and the Flight Attendant who was passing by at the moment and had been attentive to our needs throughout the entire process of signing in.

The service allows you to see united.com for free as well as see where you are, and how fast you were going; a nice touch.

Speed of United WiFiOne of my facebook friends as me to run a speed test, so I obliged. After two tries, I got it to work. Apparently my connection was not very fast. At the same moment, another friend was flying on American and sent me his speed test (25mb download and 6mb upload). It was much faster than my connection. It was funny as other friends were also sending their Internet networks’ speed test results as well.

As advertised, I was able to sign into another device. I signed into my iPad, which immediately signed me out of my MacBook. I was able to use the iPad without any issues. As I was running out of power on the MacBook, I could not sign back in. I think in-seat power should be added to these planes when they do the Wifi installation.

My flight time was 2:02, but between takeoff and climb, connecting and the descent, I may have had only about an hour of surfing time if that much. Not sure if that was worth my $6.99 considering that the speed was so slow and I got very little accomplished, except to test the service.

Have you tried the new Wifi from United? What are your thoughts? Please leave a comment below.

The post Airline Amenity Review: WiFi on United – Surfing United WiFi Inflight Services appeared first on Travel Tips.


Airline Service Review: Flydubai From Dubai, UAE (DXB) To Muscat, Oman (MCT)

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flydubai FZ 043 boarding signI had never been to Muscat, Oman (MCT), so I jumped at the opportunity to make the visit. I checked and realized that flydubai (FZ) flies there using Boeing 737-800s from its base in Dubai, UAE (DXB). So I partnered with them to make this trip happen.

For my 7:00a flight this morning, I journeyed over to their Terminal 2 operations via my hotel shuttle which had made a stop at Terminal 3 first. The journey between terminals seems like it lasted forever, but at that hour it was only about six minutes.

From the Dubai International Airport Terminal 2, flydubai currently serves more than sixty destinations. This include countries such as Afghanistan, Armenia, Iraq, Russia, The Maldives, Pakistan and Tajikistan to name a few. In my quest to visit every country in the world, Dubai maybe an excellent gateway in which to do so. You can find a full list here.

Check-in

flydubai check-in kioskflydubai hand baggage signThe day before, I had received an email advising that I was eligible for check-in; great. Online check-in is only open to select destinations at the moment. But when I clicked on the link and entered my confirmation number it told me I could not. At the airport it worked like a charm. It was a simple process; I was also able to change my seat as well. I had 2F, but wanted to sit in the back for this leg.

I had only carry-on luggage so there was no need to stand on the check-in queues.

flydubai fids at check-inThe airport was busier than I expected at that hour of the morning. One look at the departure board showed me why. There were several flights to neighboring countries; most by flydubai.

Airport Security/Immigration

Smooth despite the line length. Immigration had a long line, but they quickly opened up two additional counters. Security was also long, but it went very smooth and I did not have to take off my shoes. I did have to take out the computer though, but no issues at all. I was a bit worried when I saw a slew of people arrive. I think they came from another Terminal. No worries as they went into a special line just for them, so we were O.K.

flydubai B738s in DXBflydubai boardingBoarding

flydubai Boeing 737-800 Interior Open BinsThe boarding area was packed as there were about 8 or so flights leaving within minutes of each other. I did not hear a boarding announcement, but saw people moving on the queue and the “Boarding” light flashing.

I got on the queue and was the third person to miss the current bus. No worries as I wanted to take a picture of the flight information board. I asked, the agent who said “No,” but I explained that I needed it for my blog post, so he agreed. We waited for a few minutes while I chatted with this lady who is American and working in Oman. It was great chatting with her while we waited. The bus then came and we went for a very long ride to the end of the airport. It had to be at least 15 minutes! considering the flight from pushback to touchdown lasts one hour, this was a long time. Finally, we got to our plane which was waiting with about five other airplanes next to it; I wondered where they were headed? We all got out of the bus and made our way up the stairs. I was hoping for rear stairs, but no go today. I made my way to 32F which I and changed at the kiosk from 2F. As it turns out 2F has extra legroom.

Takeoff

flydubai Safety Video Dubai to MuscatWe pushed back and then headed for the runway in the misty morning. You could not really see much at all. As we taxied out, the safety video ran us through its information. It’s actually an animated video. Soon, it was time to take to the skies which we did effortlessly.

In-flight Service

flydubai Boeing 737-800 InteriorAs the time was rather quick, the flight attendants started the service immediately. I had to try it all or as much as I could given the timeframe. I had a spicy chicken sandwich (15 AED) plus a bottle of water (5 AED) for a total of 20 AED, using a credit card to pay.

flydubai Entertainment Choices Plansflydubai Boeing 737-800 Seatback Videos MoviesEntertainment

There are in-seat screens which offer audio/video on demand. For this flight it was all free due to the short duration, but typically, there are three levels which gives you different amounts of entertainment. TV Shows, Movies, Games and Audio.

flydubai B737-800s in DXBLanding

It was soon time to land. We passed the Muscat International Airport below, made it down to the town of Muscat itself, then made a two-minute right turn and headed back towards the airport. It was great to see the coastline as well as the city below. Almost every building was white and against the desert color it looked really beautiful despite the haze.

flydubai Boeing 737-800 in Muscat, Omanflydubai Welcome To Muscat International AirportOnce we landed, we taxied into the airport and deplaned at a hard stand. The airport is building a new terminal on the other side of the runway so I can’t wait to come back in a year or so to check it out. We then boarded a bus to take the short walk to the terminal. Once inside, I had to pay the 10-day visa fee of 5 Omani Rial, got cleared through Immigration, then Customs and voila, I am in Oman.

Summary I enjoyed flying flydubai. I left ontime and arrived ontime, the staff was courteous, airplane was clean, so no worries here at all. Have you ever flown flydubai? Please leave a comment below. Or maybe you want to fly to one of their many destinations such as Bangladesh, Moldova, Sudan or Ukraine. Let me know what are your thoughts below.

Note: This trip was sponsored by flydubai, however, this did not influence my review.

The post Airline Service Review: Flydubai From Dubai, UAE (DXB) To Muscat, Oman (MCT) appeared first on Travel Tips.

Airline Service Review: SriLankan Airlines (UL564) From Paris-Charles de Gaulle, France (CDG) to Colombo, Sri Lanka (CMB)

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Airline Service Review: SriLankan Airlines UL564/12 NOV 2014UL564/12NOV2014
Paris-Charles de Gaulle, France (CDG) to Colombo, Sri Lanka (CMB)
4R-ALD | Airbus A330-200
SriLankan.com | twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

Preamble

This trip is coordinated and sponsored by Cinnamon Hotels and SriLankan Airlines (UL) is providing the air transportation so we can start our Sri Lankan experience on the right foot. This trip would be a trifecta for me; new airline, new country and a new airport. In airline geekdom, this does not happen very often, but today it is.

SriLankan is based in Colombo, Sri Lanka and flies to destinations in Europe and Asia. They are a oneworld Alliance partner (May 2014), so if you are in the U.S. and want to head to Sri Lanka on Sri Lankan, you can accrue miles on AA/US domestically for your trip and of course you can redeem miles on their routings. In addition, you can take airberlin (AB), American Airlines (AA), British Airways (BA), Cathay Pacific (CX), Finnair (AY) and Qatar (QR) to SriLankan’s various gateways around the world. This way you keep your mileage earnings on the oneworld Alliance.

There are no domestic Sri Lanka flights operated by SriLankan, instead, they do codeshare with CinnamonAir which flies amphibian airplanes around the country.

Sri Lankan is in the process of acquiring new Airbus A330-300 with new interiors as well as new AVOD systems. They currently have one aircraft with another on the way later this month (December 2014) and five coming in 2015. You’d be glad to know that the Airbus A350-900s are coming in 2016 as they have 8 on order.

Sri Lankan has two cabins of service, Business Class and Economy Class. As such, Sri Lankan has a program where you can bid for an upgrade. I did get the email, made my bid but was unsuccessful; perhaps as I only bid the bare minimum of $400; they use a sliding scale. The process is really a good one though and well though out. I was given the opportunity, did so on their Website, got a confirmation email and then if I wanted to I could change the bid within a certain timeframe and then 24 hours out, I got my acceptance or rejection.

So enough of all this rambling, let’s talk about my SriLankan experience.

SriLankan Airlines Airbus A330-300 At Gate in Paris-Charles de Gaulle, France (CDG)
SriLankan Airlines Airbus A330-300 At Gate in Paris-Charles de Gaulle, France (CDG)

Arriving in Paris, France

As I landed in Paris-Charles de Gaulle, France (CDG) on a British Airways (BA) Airbus A320 (320) from London-Heathrow, England (LHR) and taxied by Terminal 1, I noticed my next ride; an Airbus A330-300 (333) in the SriLankan (UL) livery. This would be my first time flying on SriLankan, so I was super psyched. Even more so as its one of their newest planes, I would later find out.

We taxied forever and eventually made it over to Terminal 2 and got a hardstand. Most travelers hate a hardstand, but I love it as I get a chance to see the planes a little more closer than usual. Plus I love walking down the stairs and onto the tarmac.

Eventually, we made it to the Immigration Hall, I was the only one doing a connecting in Paris as everyone else headed for Baggage Claim. It took forever and a day to make it through security and long hallways and queues then on a bus and finally I made it to Terminal 1. I just did not want to change Terminals by entering the country as its even more pain to do so.

Through all this, I realized that I was not checked in. I had downloaded the SriLankan App on my phone, but it wanted me to sign in with a frequent flyer number which I did not have (I’m American Airlines (AA) Platinum), so I gave up on the App.

Being familiar with this airport, I headed to the Lounge area in Terminal 1 with another passenger in tow who had overheard me telling the security guard that I was going to Sri Lanka. He’s a frequent visitor to the country and had even stayed at the Cinnamon Red and was telling me how much he loved it.

He was looking for the right Lounge, but gave up as the signage was not very good. I pressed on though and found it, but could not gain access as I was not checked in just yet. Also, as my name was incorrect on my reservation, the agent could not find me and cross reference my frequent flyer card so I can get access to the Lounge that allowed oneworld Sapphire members. Geez…

Using the complimentary WiFi from the airport, I checked in on SriLankan.com. It was painful as I had to enter my passport details which is always necessary, but annoying. International check-in are never fun online as they ask for so much information.

Yeah, now I’m checked in without a printed boarding pass or electronic one since the web site check-in does not deliver one. With airlines unless you use their App you don’t have a boarding pass to show on your phone; grr… Sometimes, I really hate technology. Once that was done, I was granted access with the agent making one more phone call to ensure that I was eligible to use the Lounge.

SriLankan Airlines oneworld Lounge in Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG)
SriLankan Airlines oneworld Lounge in Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG)

I decided to head over to the gate to tell the other guy that I found the Lounge. When I got there he said he would not come back with me, so I returned by myself. I enjoyed the Lounge for a bit checking emails and having a bite to eat and a drink before leaving for the gate.

At the gate, I was asked for a boarding pass and I told the guy I don’t have one and that I’d get it from the agent; he then let me by. Once inside, I saw my friends who were also taking this trip with me and greeted them and chatted for a bit until the agents returned to the desk.

I gave the agent my confirmation number and told her about the name issue, but still she said she can’t find me in the system; well yes its ‘cause you are using my correct name; next time listen to your customer. These are not SriLankan employees, they are handling agents. Eventually, I did get a boarding pass, but no name change.

Boarding was not so good as it is a very small area and over 200 people. I’ve flown other airlines from this terminal and its always the same issue. Of course no one listens for their row numbers or category in order to board. I had to make my way to the front and show my Elite card in order to get on board before the main crowd.

One of my friends actually got turned back as it was not his turn; but in his defense, you could not hear what rows were being called as it was very unclear.

As I made it to the airplane door, finally I get some Sri Lankan hospitality. There were two flight attendants who greeted me with Ayboyan and putting their hands together in a prayer fashion just below their chins. That meant welcome on board.

I showed them my boarding pass and they ushered me to stay on the right hand side of the plane heading back and that I had a window seat.

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Seats Aisle and Window
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Seats Aisle and Window

I was chit chatting with my friend and when I returned to my seat the aisle was already taken by a lady who looked uneasy; not a good sign. I said hello and excuse me and attempted to sit down. As I did so, this French gentleman asked me if I could move from my window seat to his seat so that he could sit with his wife. I asked him what he had to trade and he indicated a middle seat, so I said no and sat down. But then it bothered me and so I gave in and gave him my window seat.

For the record, I’m not happy about this. People, choose your seats seat early. You really should not ask your fellow passenger to be unhappy so that you can be happy. It really does not work that way. I’m sorry, but that’s the world and its just unfair for you to do that.

Get your act together.

<rant off>

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Middle Seats
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Middle Seats

Anyway, I went to my middle seat and the lady at the aisle refused to get up and let me in. The flight attendant had to come over and tell her to move. Really?

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Middle Seat View
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Middle Seat View

The Captain then came on the PA and announced that the flying time would be 10:20 today. Nice and long in a middle seat; yay. Oh, I did notice that I had a place to hang my jacket on the seatback in front of me. I had a jacket, but it was already tucked away in my bag, so I did not bother using it.

Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class Coat Hangar
Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class Coat Hangar

Just before pushback, we received a packet towelette so we can be refreshed. It was 2:28p (departure time is 2:20p) when we pushed back, started the safety demo and taxied out to the runway. During the demo, I noticed that when they showed the airplane’s emergency exits, they used an A340 instead of the A330 that we were flying; oops… Sorry airline geek here.

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Blanket
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Blanket And Moist Towelette

It took us a little while to get out there and off the runway, but it was a very steep takeoff. Pity I did not have my window seat to enjoy it :-). So this is all you get to see.

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Screen Taking Off
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Screen Taking Off

After takeoff and once we were at cruise, the flight attendants handed out headsets, then a menu followed by landing cards for those staying in Sri Lanka.

The menu is combination of the flight pair of Paris to Colombo and return. Today, I could look forward to a coleslaw salad, and a choice of Roast chicken with vegetable paella, mixed vegetables and yellow rice or Braised beef in stew sauce with Broccoli Florets & Pearl Carrots with Potatoes down “Schupf Noodle” or chickpea & Spinach Masala plus tempered potato with braised rice.

Dessert would be caramel and raisin cake. This would be followed by Freshly brewed Ceylon Tea & Coffee. Ceylon Tea is pretty major in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class Menu
Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class Menu – Colombo to Paris; I don’t really have a close up of the Paris to Colombo menu :-)

But on the way back it would be a Lebanese salad, then for the main dish Chicken Filet with Creamy Mustard Sauce, Beans with Onion and Mashed Potato. Or I could have the Filet of Salmon & Cod with Pepper Butter sauce with green vegetables and a lemon Risotto. and if I hated any of those two and how could I, there was the penne Pasta with Wild Mushroom sauce. A little bit of everything for everyone.

For Dessert, there would be Fresh fruit, followed by Freshly brewed Ceylon Tea & Coffee. I did notice that the menu showed a soursop green tea which was available on request, so I’ll be sure and request it when its time.

On the Bar front, there’s the usual suspects but Kailua instead of Baileys though. There was also EGB, which is a local ginger Beer for which Sri Lanka is famous.

Speaking of Bar, here comes the drink cart with full sized bottles of alcohol hanging off. I had some water and white wine.

Drinks were followed by the meal which was quite a delight; I had the Roast Chicken. I did also try the soursop tea which was good although the soursop taste was a bit distant :). Just so you know, soursop is not really sour :-). The good thing about sitting closer to the front of the plane is that the chances of getting your choice of meal are much higher!

Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class First Meal
Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class First Meal

As I had dinner, I played around with the entertainment system which is touch screen; I also had a USB port for my phone, which could also charge my GoPro camera.

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Entertainment System
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Entertainment System

I found that the recline was also decent and did not seem to encroach too much on the passenger behind me. Still not a peep from my neighbor to the right. I figured if I needed to get out, I’d either wait for her to take bathroom breaks or bug the couple to my left. Speaking of bathrooms, here are two photos:

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Toilet
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Toilet
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Toilet Mouthwash
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Toilet Mouthwash

I don’t know when I fell asleep, but I think I was asleep for about five hours. I awoke, waited for a bit and eventually the couple on the left got up and I went for a walk and a much needed toilet break. I found out that there were sandwiches in the rear galley so I grabbed a few as well as some water and headed back to my seat. Most airlines do have these in-flight snacks. They sometimes don’t announce it, but its either noted in the menu or you see it when you wander around.

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Mid Flight Snacks
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Mid Flight Snacks (sorry about the terrible photo)

I always love seeing the cabin at night and watching what others are doing. As humans were are quite interesting. Some people read, watch the movies and many watch the Map of where we are and where we’re going. I must admit that is my favorite channel. What’s yours?

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class At Night
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class At Night

I started watching some TV on the AVOD (Audio/Video On Demand) system, can’t remember what was on as I had so many choices. But eventually I stopped one of the flight attendants walking by and got some EGB, which is the local Ginger Beer. This stuff is really good and if you ever feel ill to the stomach, it will work wonders for you.

Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class Ginger Beer (EGB)
Sri Lankan Airlines Economy Class Ginger Beer (EGB)

 Soon, it was time for breakfast. The lights came on, people awoke and it was time to eat. Here’s a photo of what we had to eat. Airline meal times are always interesting. As much as they can, they try to get our circadian rhythms back in line, so they try to give you a meal that you’d be eating in your arrival city. Regardless of the fact that you’d be having dinner back home :-); its tough.

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Second Meal
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Second Meal

The service was followed by tea; I had the Ceylon, which was fine. Then it was clean up time and people rushing for the toilets. Its the same on every flight. The lady to my right never budged though and still never said a word and I know she knows English as the she did speak to the crew in English. She had actually gotten up during the flight maybe once or twice but I was too groggy from sleeping to seize the opportunity to get up as well.

As we prepared for the scheduled 5:21a (Nov. 13 2014)  landing, the Purser asked for the headsets and blankets; what? I was still a bit sleepy and a bit cold so I asked the flight attendant if I could keep my blanket and he said yes. I had to give up the headsets though :-(. I understand why they do that, but I think its not necessary. Besides, the entertainment system is still playing and you know its always the best part of the movie that comes on landing :-).

Oh, I started reading this code of conduct brochure since there was not much else to do at this moment. I think all airlines need one and it should be mandatory that all passengers read it :-). BTW, SriLankan, I love the graphics used.

SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Code of Conduct
SriLankan Airlines Economy Class Code of Conduct

We landed smoothly (always amazing and thankful) and taxied to the gate by 5:12a arriving early. I bade my goodbyes and said thank you to the crew and exited re-joining my friends at the Immigration Area/Baggage Claim Area.

All in all, it was a good flight and despite my middle seat, I enjoyed it. When I fly standby, I’m usually in a middle seat anyways, so this was fine.

Have you flown Sri Lankan? How was your experience? Please leave a comment below.

Note: This flight was compliments of SriLankan Airlines. As always, the views expressed as you can see are my own.

The post Airline Service Review: SriLankan Airlines (UL564) From Paris-Charles de Gaulle, France (CDG) to Colombo, Sri Lanka (CMB) appeared first on Travel Tips.

Airline Service Review: United Airlines (UA369) New York-LaGuardia (LGA) to Houston-Intercontinental, TX (IAH)

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UA369/29Jan2015
New York-LaGuardia (LGA) to Houston-Intercontinental, TX (IAH)
N???UA | Airbus A320-200

United.com | twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

Earlier this month, United sent me an email saying they had a sale to a few destinations out of Houston, TX (IAH). One other reason to subscribe to the emails from airlines. I checked around and saw that I could get a $211.00 fare from Houston to New York-LaGuardia, so I booked it right away as I needed to attend a conference and also see some friends as well.

The afternoon before the flight, I realized that I wanted to change to an earlier flight, which due to my Premier Gold Elite status, I was able to change with ease and at no charge. I could do this on their Web site as well as on the mobile App. I opted for the iPad version of the mobile App. I did notice that there were two open seats in First Class and that to would cost me $199 to pay for an upgrade if I wished and there was also two persons on the First Class Upgrade Standby list and I was the first one. Great I stood a good chance unless some other elites with better status were also on the flight or two people bought those seats. Let’s see what happens.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Upgrade Cost
UA369 LGA to IAH – Upgrade Cost

I was up at 5:25a, even before my alarm went off. I wanted to get an early start as it would be a long day. I felt like I was alone on the streets, but by the time I got on the bus and the subway that changed somewhat although the platform seemed like a ghost town.

UA369 LGA to IAH - 225th Street Subway Platform
UA369 LGA to IAH – 225th Street Subway Platform

After navigating the New York City Transportation system, I arrived at the airport at 7:45a and stupidly got off the bus at the Delta Air Lines Terminal. I’m not sure why I did that as I’ve taken this M60 many times. Anyways, I then made my way to the Central Terminal C Concourse after a 10 minute walk in the frigid weather. Maybe its ’cause LaGuardia Airport has more than one Terminal C; I mean really. other airports such as say Houston has Terminals A-D and yes they are housed in different buildings. It’s perhaps time LaGuardia re-lettered it all and while they are at it, try to connect the Terminals too on the air side. Actually, I’d just be happy to connect them on the non-air side, but I digress.

Once I made it to the Central Terminal (yup, the sign actually says that) I then checked in again at the kiosk just in front of the Premier Access area. I was playing around with the machine and noticed that it offered me connecting options for flights tomorrow a.m.; intriguing I thought :). I could even do connecting flights. You can read all the rules here at your leisure.

I declined any more changes as I did not find any other that would suit my needs and settled on my 8;45a departure. I then printed my boarding pass and a receipt and headed for the United Club, just around the corner and up the stairs. Oh, the cool thing is that as a Premier Gold member, I could change my flight adnauseum all day long at no extra charge as long there’s a seat available. Loyalty does have its privileges.

The agents I’ve encountered here at the Club are always pleasant; they greeted me and ushered me in just using my boarding pass since it contained my MileagePlus number which is associated with my Club membership.. For the United Club, you can either be a member via many methods (I’m a member due to my Presidential Plus credit card) or gain access when traveling internationally by being a Premier Gold or above member. Premier Gold members are Star Alliance Gold members who have access to the Lounges as long as they have a same day international boarding pass.

It was looking good for the complimentary elite upgrade, so I did not get anything for breakfast. I had a choice of bagels, donut holes, cereal, fruits (bananas or apples) and tea or coffee.

I got to the gate and noticed that I was upgraded to 1F as shown on the monitor near the gate. I stood by the podium waiting to pull up my boarding pass and the agent asked me if I was Mr. McKenzie. I told here yes, she said she had paged me and then handed me a boarding pass advising that she did not want me to wait any longer for the upgrade since they had two open seats. I thanked her, scanned my boarding pass and boarded.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Airbus A320 At Gate in LGA
UA369 LGA to IAH – Airbus A320 At Gate in LGA

I greeted the crew onboard and settled into my window bulkhead seat. I’m not usually a fan of this seat as I can’t stretch out my legs fully and I have to put my bag in the overhead. But I was just happy for the upgrade, so I sucked it up and put my bag in the overhead bin just above my seat. Seat 1E was still empty. United gives a blanket in First class on domestic flights or in all cabins if the flight is a red eye flight. Blankets are not distributed on domestic flights.

UA369 LGA to IAH - First Class Airbus A320 Seat
UA369 LGA to IAH – First Class Airbus A320 Seat

I was asked if I wanted something to drink by the flight attendant to which I answered, tea with lemon please. I was also asked if I’d like my jacket to be hanged and I indicated yes and thank you. My hot tea arrived soon after and was very welcome due to the very cold weather.

The door soon closed and we pushed back a few minutes before the departure time doing the manual safety demo as we did. As usual, hardly anyone paid any attention; sigh…

Later, the flight attendant came by and asked me my name and if I upgraded at the last minute. I spelt it for her and also said yes about the upgrade. So my guess is that the final report was not printed since I got upgraded. She then wrote my name down and went across the aisle and called the other passenger by name and asked her what she wanted for breakfast. She quizzed the almost the entire cabin, then came back to me. I had a choice of an omelet or cheerios, I chose the omelet and added that I’ll have some tea with lemon.

It was not until 9:24a though that we left the ground bound for Houston. The air traffic was just terrible this morning. I did not mind though as I had a chance to take some photos of the Manhattan skyline and the departing airplanes. Plus Donald Trump’s Boeing 757 with winglets was parked near the Marine Air Terminal.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Departing AA Boeing 737-800
UA369 LGA to IAH – Departing AA Boeing 737-800
UA369 LGA to IAH - Departing ERJ-145
UA369 LGA to IAH – Departing ERJ-145

Once cleared, we were airborne in a snap climbing into the cold air above Queens and Manhattan. I tried to stay awake after takeoff, but kept dosing off. As soon as we leveled off, the flight attendant started her work in the galley.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Queens on Takeoff
UA369 LGA to IAH – Queens on Takeoff

The Meal

The service started with a hot towel. It’s sometimes hit and miss with these towels depending on where the one you got was in the tray. Basically, the towels are placed on a tray and hot water poured on them. So if you get one that had a good helping of water, you are good otherwise… I was in the otherwise category today so mine was not thoroughly wet. When you’ve flown First/Business Class a few times you know what to expect.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Hot Towel
UA369 LGA to IAH – Hot Towel

My tea arrived shortly with a plastic cup with which to dispose of the tea bag; well done. One of my flying pet peeves is when I get tea on a plane and I have nothing in which to dispose of the tea bag. Soon after the main meal arrived. The following from United’s Web site fits the description of what I had:

Breakfast may include a Southwestern Houston Skillet entree with cage-free scrambled eggs, pepper jack cheese, sauteed pepper mix, sliced New Mexico sausage, potato gratin and fire-roasted pepper sauce served with fresh fruit and warmed biscuits or croissants.

You can read more about all the dining options for domestic flights here.

UA369 LGA to IAH Hot Tea Service
UA369 LGA to IAH Hot Tea Service

The meal was actually quite good; the croissant or cinnamon roll choice followed shortly after the delivery of the meal. I opted for the croissant and was delighted. This meal is really the arrival BusinessFirst breakfast on the flights to Europe, but with a little less fanfare.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Breakfast
UA369 LGA to IAH – Breakfast

 

UA369 LGA to IAH - Croissant
UA369 LGA to IAH – Croissant

The flight attendant was actually quite pleasant and did a good job with the service. She was quite attentive and cleared the trays rather efficiently. She asked if I wanted anything else, so I had some Baileys on the rocks. Another flight attendant delivered this while she cleared more tables.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Baileys
UA369 LGA to IAH – Baileys

Inflight Entertainment

This particular aircraft is equipped with Wifi. Now on United they have different vendors providing the service so the offerings are quite different depending on the airplane you’re flying and the duration of your trip. This was the service that had $8.99, plus you had a host of complimentary movies to watch, courtesy of the Chase Explorer credit card. There are some flights where it cost $1.99 for email access and $3.99 for Internet and you may or may not have free movies to watch on your mobile device or computer. In all cases, you don’t have to pay for Wifi to watch the free movies. I’ve also flown a flight where all I had was movies available on my device; no Internet.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Internet Pricing
UA369 LGA to IAH – Internet Pricing

It’s hard to keep track, but when Wifi is available, you’ll see a Wifi icon on the side of the plane as you board or if you use the mobile App, you will see the Wifi logo when you check the flight status. In all cases, you won’t know how you’ll pay until you are at 10,000′ and the system is activated.

I decided against activating the Wifi on this flight as its too short for the cost and as I’d woken up so early, I knew I’d not be awake for much. Plus, there was nothing pressing that I needed to do today.

I did peruse and watch some of the entertainment choices though using my my iPad as well as listened to a podcast, before falling asleep while sipping my Baileys. A fun way to pass the time on a flight.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Entertainment Options
UA369 LGA to IAH – Entertainment Options

I awoke later to a bit of turbulence only to find a fresh glass of ice and more Baileys waiting; how cool is that?

Soon, it was time to land in Houston so time to clear up all the inflight goodies, stow that chair table and bring the seat upright. A good flight all in all. We ended up pulling into the gate at 11:41a twenty-five minutes earlier than scheduled at 12:07a. All the time I could use the Flight Information portion of the entertainment system to track my position.

UA369 LGA to IAH - Entertainment System
UA369 LGA to IAH – Entertainment System

Have you enjoyed United’s First class service on a domestic U.S. flight? Leave a comment below and let me know. Or maybe you want to find out how you too can attain airline Elite status and be eligible to be upgraded on a flight. Drop me a line here.

The post Airline Service Review: United Airlines (UA369) New York-LaGuardia (LGA) to Houston-Intercontinental, TX (IAH) appeared first on Travel Tips.

Airline Service Review: Singapore Airlines (SQ61) Houston-Intercontinental, TX (IAH) to Moscow-Domodedovo, Russia (DME)

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SQ61/30Aug2015
Houston-Intercontinental, TX (IAH) to Moscow-Domodedovo, Moscow, Russia (DME)
9V-SWF | Boeing 777-300ER

Singapore Airlines.com | twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

A friend of mine has some work in Moscow and he asked me to come over and hang with him for a bit. I had some other commitments and an unexpected turn of life events so I could not leave until Sunday, 20 August.

I was also delinquent in getting a visa together, but in the end it all worked out and I boarded Singapore Airlines 61 at Houston-George Bush Intercontinental airport (IAH) bound for Moscow (DME).

As soon as I knew my visa would be going through, I got a ticket from Singapore Airlines. I had looked at other ways of making the journey using my own tips that’s written here, but the cheapest and the simplest came from Singapore Airlines with nonstop service from Houston to Moscow.

Singapore Airlines Google Flights Search: IAH to DME
Singapore Airlines Google Flights Search: IAH to DME

My disappointment though was that the cheapest fare earned me 50% miles on Singapore Airlines zero on United (it is booked in N class) and the next cheapest fare would only earn me 50% if I used my United MileagePlus account but 100% if I used my KrisFlyer account (booked in W class). Torn, I booked in W class so I can get my United mileage credit. Neither fares are eligible for KrisFlyer mileage upgrades.

 Singapore Airlines IAH to DME - 826.39. 50% credit on Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and 0% credit in United Airlines MileagePlus program.
Singapore Airlines IAH to DME – 826.39. 50% credit on Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and 0% credit in United Airlines MileagePlus program.

 

 

Singapore Airlines IAH to DME - 968.39
Singapore Airlines IAH to DME – 968.39. 100% credit on Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and 50% credit in United Airlines MileagePlus program.

 

Singapore Airlines United Airlines Mileage Chart
Singapore Airlines United Airlines Mileage Chart

So although both airlines are in Star Alliance and are actually founding members, the mileage earnings is not the same :-(. So when you are buying your airline tickets, ensure that you will get the appropriate credit by checking the earnings for the bucket you are purchasing. I had a similar issue with Cathay Pacific and American Airlines recently, where I flew from Hong Kong to Taipei, Taiwan and I got zero credit as it was a discounted bucket and I was not paying attention.

Now, I’d been to Moscow before, but just to the Sheremetyevo (SVO) airport on my way to  Hamburg, Germany (HAM) earlier this year. So it was time to get out of the airport and explore the city.

Day Before Departure

The day before departure, I received an email about my check-in information. I then downloaded the Singapore Airlines App (Android | IOS) and started my check-in. I used my United MileagePlus number to get credit, but noticed that they still had Copa Airlines and United under the same dropdown. I believe that Copa now has their own program which is called ConnectMiles.

I saw a window seat with the middle and aisle, available in the 30s and changed to that seat from my seat in the 50s. When I had booked the entire 50 row on the A side was open and now the middle and aisle were occupied. So I figured if I was going to sit next to someone, I might as well sit closer to the front of the plane. I got all the way to the end of the check-in process and was advised that I could only collect my boarding pass at the airport. I assumed that was due to the fact that they had to check my visa.

Departure Day

With all the ticket and visa items cleared, I was ready to head to the airport. I got there a little early so I could get a photo of the aircraft landing. Of course it landed on the other runway, so the photo is a long distance one.

Singapore Airlines (SQ) Boeing 777-300ER landing at IAH
Singapore Airlines (SQ) Boeing 777-300ER landing at IAH

Airport Experience

I dropped off my Avis rental car and took the bus back to Terminal D. As I entered the terminal, there’s an area for First, Business class and Economy class. Star Alliance Gold members can use the First and Business class area (I’m sadly currently Silver; long story). Don’t think I would have any special treatment as I have to be Gold to get and to get anything special with Star Alliance or any of the Alliances for that matter.

Singapore Airlines (SQ) Check-in at IAH
Singapore Airlines (SQ) Check-in at IAH

I approached the lady standing next to the scale. She inquired where is my luggage and I pointed to my backpacks. She gaped, but remained calm and tagged my larger backpack with a bright colored tag that said cabin baggage or something similar.

She them ushered me to the counter where check-in was a breeze as there was no one waiting. The Emirates A380 line to my right was brimming with excitement and many people weighing bags. The First and Business class lines for Singapore Airlines to my left were empty except for two passengers at the counter.

The agent took my passport and after a few pleasantries, I was checked in. I asked if the seats next to me were empty and he said “Yes.” I was a bit confused as they showed occupied online. I guess they were initially blocked in case someone was booking all the way through to Singapore which is the final destination for SQ61; Moscow is an interim stop. So on day of departure they just open them all up so anyone can take them. Yeah, I thought, let’s hope they stay that way.

I asked the agent about an upgrade and he told me to talk tot he Singapore people. Ah, he’s a contractor. I decided not to ask the Singapore Airlines agents as they seemed busy. I then headed to security a little bummed that I did not get TSA Pre since Singapore Airlines does not participate in the program the agent said.

TSA

I had to join the regular queue which I’d not done in I don’t know how long :-(. At least they had a thing that said if you are here it will take you x time. For me, it would be about 20 minutes. I actually have a meeting in 15 minutes, so there goes that timing; I’ll be late for it.

I trugged along and eventually I got the agent who was kind of a drill sergeant shouting at everyone to “next person step forward” or something like that. Why can’t they be civilized with people? Is that asking too much?

Anyway, I went through security and had to use the machine where I have to take all from my pockets. Once through, I put everything back and could not find my passport :-(. I searched everywhere and I had placed it in my backpocket; how silly.

Airport Club

Annoyed and a bit embarrassed I headed to the United Club, since Singapore uses that Club in Houston. There is an Executive Club in Terminal D (used by Air China, Emirates, EVAAir, Lufthansa, SAS, Qatar) closer to the airplane, well kind of, but being a Star Alliance member, it makes sense to use the United Club as that’s what the whole Alliance thing is all about. Although, Star Alliance partners Eva Air, Lufthansa and SAS both uses the Executive Club; not sure what’s the deal there?

Executive Club at IAH
Executive Club at IAH

I presented my boarding pass, expecting to gain admittance without showing my United Club card and was denied. If I was United Premier Gold, then I would be Star Alliance Gold and all would have been well. But as I’m silver it rejected me. But all it had to do was just put my MileagePlus number into the system and used that instead. I guess that’s not coded. So I told the agent to enter my number, which worked since I have United Club membership and my MileagePlus number is the account number, and then I had to produce my passport as an ID. Voila, I’m in. For some reason the agent wanted to print me a new boarding pass, but the other agent told her she can’t do that as its a Singapore ticket. I don’t even know why the agent though that would fix the issue?

Boarding

I found a seat in the crowded Club; it usually is at this hour, it was about 3:30p. Got some eats (vegetable soup and some mixed nuts) and a glass of house white and had my meeting via Skype. At 4:45p I left for the gates as boarding had started at 4:40p. I was way at D1, which was quite the walk from the Terminal E United Club. I should have really used the Club in C which was closer.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER at gate in IAH
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER at gate in IAH

When I got there they had already boarded my rows (I’m in Group 6), so I just breezed by the others that were row 40 and beyond.

Singapore Airlines Boarding Gate at IAH
Singapore Airlines Boarding Gate at IAH

After final security checks and boarding pass scans and passport checks, I walked down the jetway after passing the Immigration checks canine and all.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER at the gate in IAH
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER at the gate in IAH

Onboard

I greeted the two gentlemen at the door and they told me to go right and pass the Business class seats (1-2-1 configuration) to my Economy class seat (3-3-3 configuration). To the left were the First class seats. This airplane does not have the new enhancements promised by Singapore Airlines just yet. Hopefully on the way back, I’ll be so lucky.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Business Class Seats
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Business Class Seats

 

My Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Economy Class Seats
My Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Economy Class Seats

Before takeoff, we had a hot towel service; awesome! Followed by headsets distribution and then a menu.

I mean how cool is that. I was immediately blown away and knew that the rest of the flight would be totally worth it and…

We pushed back about five minutes early and I had a clear view of the Qatar Boeing 777-200LR to my left as well as a Air China’s Boeing 777-300ER.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER and Air China Boeing 777-300ER and Qatar Airways Boeing 777-200LR at the gates
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER and Air China Boeing 777-300ER and Qatar Airways Boeing 777-200LR at the gates

We then headed for the runway and without delays were airborne behind an American Airlines Airbus 319. I’m still amazed at the amount of power generated at takeoff from these two engines! 90,000 lbs of thrust I believe.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Taking Off at IAH
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Taking Off at IAH Behind An American Airlines Airbus A319

As soon as we leveled off and the seatbelt signs went off, it was time to start the service; first, we got an amenity kit which contained a cream colored sock, toothpaste and toothbrush.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Amenity Kit
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Amenity Kit

The Meal Service

First the flight attendants came by with drinks. Proper wines from proper glass bottles! I was thrilled. Of course I could have whatever alcohol I wanted including the famous Singapore Sling, which sadly I forgot to order, but will do so on the way back. It’s the only place in the sky where you can get one of these drinks.

I opted for both the Chardonnay and the Reisling, well I had to check them out :-). This was served with peanuts. Then they ladies came back with more drinks as they cleaned up.

Singapore Airlines Meal Start
Singapore Airlines Meal Start

The meal arrived and it was not served with style. One of the flight attendants stooped down and asked me what do I want and it was not just “pork or fish” it was an explanation of what came with both dishes. She did this for each passenger who had not heard her before and smiled each time. How cool is that? I took the fish and although a little salty for my taste, I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Singapore Airlines First Meal
Singapore Airlines First Meal

Here’s what’s on the menu:

Appetizer

 Norwegian Shrimp with Potato Salad

Main Course

 Braised Fillet of Fish

 with oriental black peppercorn sauce, vegetables and friend rice

 Roasted Smoked Pork Shoulder in Chipotle Sauce

 with sautéed vegetables and buttered rice

Dessert

 ice cream

From The Bakery

 Bread roll and spread

Hot Beverages

 Coffee – Tea

After the main meal service came ice cream as a dessert, followed by coffee, tea and more drinks so I had some Baileys and tea with lemon.

Singapore Airlines Vanilla ice cream
Singapore Airlines Vanilla ice cream

 

Singapore Airlines Baileys and tea with lemon
Singapore Airlines Baileys and tea with lemon

After that I was totally stuff and soon fell asleep while watching a movie. Speaking of movies.

Inflight Entertainment

I had more movies to watch that the flight time I had which was 10:40. I settled on “I Kissed A Girl” which was quite funny. It’s about a gay guy who slept with a girl and what happens next. It’s a French movie with English subtitles, so you have to pay attention. Worth watching. It’s one of the things about flying other airlines is that you get a lot of different movies. This one was in the European category of the listings.

Singapore Airlines does not make it easy at all; there are 295 movies, 470 TV shows, 872 CDs and 6 radio channels to choose from. I’d have to be living onboard for a few months to consume it all.

The Service Continues

After I awoke; I think I was asleep for about three hours, I went to the middle of the plane to get some eats. There was food there, but I wanted to speak to the flight attendants so I headed for the rear galley. The cabin was dark and almost everyone was asleep amid the glow of the screens. In the rear galley, I made a restroom visit in one of the two restrooms nearby, then popped my head into the galley.

I asked for some apple juice and one of the flight attendants obliged asking me if I wanted some snacks; yes I replied. She then produced a basket (I did not have the camera with me) full of goodies; bananas, chips, biscoff, chocolate and sandwiches wrapped in plastic. My eyes bulged as I took a turkey sandwich, a banana and a biscoff.

Singapore Airlines Mid Flight Snacks
Singapore Airlines Mid Flight Snacks

Off to my seat I went to finish watching my movie. This is what’s on the menu for inflight snacks:

delectables

 sandwiches

  cold vegetarian sandwich

  cold savory sandwich

 snacks

  assorted nuts

  chocolate bar

  potato chips

  assorted biscuits

  fresh fruit

I worked on my computer that was plugged into the power socket on the armrest. My phone was being charged via the USB port next to the screen in front of me. The only missing item was Wifi. I asked, but the flight attendant advised that this aircraft was not equipped.

I continued working and was pleasantly interrupted by water and juice services a few times; well done.

Breakfast

With about two hours to go and 37,000’ over Ostersund, Sweden, we were served breakfast. (2:47a in Houston). I choose the noodles and was impressed by how much it was! I was stuffed by the time I was done. I could not have it all. Tea followed. Yes you can have coffee if you wished. Or whatever beverage you’d like.

Singapore Airlines Breakfast
Singapore Airlines Breakfast

breakfast

 Fruit

  seasonal fruits

 Main Course

  braised egg noodle with chicken

  mushroom and Chinese greens

  Cheese Chive Omelette

   with pan-fried veal sausage, cherry tomato and potatoes

 From The Bakery

  Bread Roll and Spread

Hot Beverages

 Coffee – Tea

Landing

Soon, it was time to prepare for landing in Domodedovo (DME). Window shades open are mandatory (yeah!), chair tables up, unplug stuff and get ready. Oh, the recline is decent, with the seat sliding forward and there is also a footrest plus a pretty big pillow and thick blanket.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Seat Backs and Recline USB Port
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Seat Backs and Recline USB Port

After putting stuff away, I was ready for Moscow.

We landed safely in a clear day and taxied into the runway passing old and new planes as we did so. Saw a few Transaero Boeing 747-400 and Boeing 747-300, plus a Turkmanestan Boeing 777 as well. Also a number of S7 airplanes as well. There seem to be a small airplane graveyard across the way as well.

Singapore Airlines Transaero Boeing 747-300
Singapore Airlines Transaero Boeing 747-300

We got a gate and waited until the First and Business class passengers had disembarked then it was our turn. This took about 10 minutes or so to accomplish.

I disembarked and then headed for Immigration and Customs. The lines were not yet long, but as I waited, they became longer. The lady directing traffic thought I was in transit to Singapore but I told her I was not and she pointed me in the right direction.

The Immigration agent took a little while to sort me out as she was not too impressed by the sewing and the tapes used to secure the new pages. She must have checked 10 times and finally she stamped me in without a word.

I then cleared Customs and headed out into the arrivals area, walked around for a bit and hen found the train into the city, boarded it and relaxed.

Singapore Airlines Aeroexpress from Domodedovo Airport to Moscow
Singapore Airlines Aeroexpress from Domodedovo Airport to Moscow

Thanks Singapore Airlines for a wonderful trip from Houston to Moscow.

Have you taken this routing on Singapore Airlines? How was your trip? Please leave a comment below.

The post Airline Service Review: Singapore Airlines (SQ61) Houston-Intercontinental, TX (IAH) to Moscow-Domodedovo, Russia (DME) appeared first on Travel Tips.

Airline Service Review: EOS Airlines (EO1) London-Stansted, England (STN) to New York-JFK, Queens NY (JFK)

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EO1/23Oct2005
London-Stansted, England (STN) to New York-JFK, Queens NY (JFK)
N926JS | Boeing 757-200ER

 

London, England

I was up at the crack of dawn (well not quite as the sun came up about 7:15 a.m. or so) so that I could head out to Liverpool Street Station. I had no idea what time was the train, but I figured that if I got there for about 8 a.m. there should be a train within 15 minutes. I arrived at the station about 7:51 a.m. just in time to buy a 14.20 GBP ticket for the 8:00 a.m. train to Stansted airport.

This train is an Express service, although it makes three stops before arriving there in about 45 minutes time.

London-Stansted, England (STN)

I took a leisurely walk upstairs to the terminal and located my flight on the board. I was in check-in area K at the end of the terminal. I walked over and checked in with the other passengers that had arrived as well.

Check-in was smooth and a very pleasant experience. I was given an invitation to the EOS Lounge that overlooked the departure gate. With my Lounge invitation, I had access to the Fast Track lane and boy did I need it as the lines were quite long. Within minutes I was through security and on my way to the Lounge at gate 7.

Once near the gate, I saw signs point to the EOS Lounge.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Walkway to Lounge
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Walkway to Lounge

 

I was greeted by a hostess who ushered me in and told me that boarding would start at about 9:45 a.m. I took a seat and put away my stuff. I was immediately approached by a server who offered me breakfast treats which included coffee, tea, pastry, juices and fruits. The lounge is very nice and I do like the colors and the layout, it also had some current magazines and brochures on EOS.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Entrance to Lounge
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Entrance to Lounge

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Poster outside Lounge
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Poster outside Lounge
EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Lounge Food
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Lounge Food

 

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Inside the Lounge
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Inside the Lounge

 

The Plane

The airplane was already at the gate and of course I too the opportunity to take some photos.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - The airplane at the gate
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – The airplane at the gate

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - The airplane at the gate
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – The airplane at the gate

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - The airplane at the gate
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – The airplane at the gate

 

Boarding

As I boarded, I was greeted and shown to my seat and had offers to assist me with my luggage (I had my backpack and a computer bag) as well as to take my jacket. Being ushered to my seat and waited on is quite good and I felt special. I’ve only been ushered to my seat once; I was flying Korean Airlines from Seoul to Manila and scored the First Class upgrade.

I was offered a choice of three pre-departure cocktails with a packet of almonds wrapped in plastic with a bow. The drink choices included the Maserati as the menu stated; I chose the Maserati and was not disappointed.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Pre-departure drink in Stanstead
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Pre-departure drink in Stanstead

The cabin is a 2-2 configuration with only 48 seats; I was in row 7. The aircraft is one that has no Exit rows over the wing, so no seat space was lost. I like the configuration and I did not feel claustrophobic at all for a single aisle airplane. I think the colors have a lot to do with that. There is ample space to walk in the aisle.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Cabin
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Cabin

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Cabin
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Cabin

I was offered an amenity kit as well as slippers; my black EOS-logoed kit had a toothbrush, Rembrandt toothpaste, ear plugs, L’Occitane en Provence lip balm, L’Occitane en Provence hand cream, hair brush, le Brumisateur evian eau Minerale Naturelle, tissue and smints. Shaving cream and a razor was available on request from the flight attendants.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Slipper and amenity kit
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Slipper and amenity kit

I had a window seat, so I passed by the aisle seat without having to pass by anyone. This is a huge plus not having to step over anyone to get out of your window seat. Not having to sit backwards is another plus; sitting backwards on a plane just seems weird.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Cabin
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Cabin

The seat is a lie-flat seat with controls to adjust the back and the foot rest. Include in the seat is also an Empower plug that takes your regular plug without an adapter. There is also a reading light on the back of your seat.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Lie flat seet
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Lie flat seat

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Lie flat seet
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Lie flat seat

In front of your seat is an ottoman; this is actually the seat for your dinner guest as well as the rest of your bed when you extend the seat fully. The table folds out into a double table so that you can accommodate your dinner guest. The little stool is quite cute (if you can call a stool cute). I did try it out and my flight attendant thought I was having too much fun. I do think legs may get entangles though, but maybe passengers may want that :-).

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - View from the Ottoman
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – View from the Ottoman

I was also presented a menu with the day’s offering; I chose the seafood plate along with a glass of wine for after takeoff. I was asked what time I wanted to eat and I said right after takeoff as I knew I’d want to go to sleep. This is similar to Virgin Atlantic’s Freedom service so I was quite tickled.

Main Menu

Apertif
Champagne Cocktail
Canapees varies

Dinner
Appetizer
Italian Mixed Antipasti
Grilled Vegetables with Goat Cheese

Main Course
Fillet of Beef
Served with grilled polenta and green beans rolled in bacon

Skipped DO & CO
Fillet of Salmon, Fillet of Sole, Prawn

Asparagus Risotto
With homemade Parmesan Cracker

Cheese & Dessert
Selection of Cheeses

Chocolate Praline Soufflé
Served with hot chocolate sauce and Vanilla Parfait

Coffee Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta

Afternoon Tea Service
Served 90 minutes before landing

Champagne
Lanson Black Label Brut

Teas
English Breakfast Tea
Earl Grey
Decaf

Assorted Tea Sandwiches
Cheese Cake
Fresh Fruit Bowl
Scones
Strawberry Jam
Clotted Cream

Upon Request
Snack Service

Mini bagels with cream cheese & Salmon

Assorted open face sandwiches (New York bound flights only)

Midnight Snack
(London Bound only)

Tea sandwiches
Selection of wraps

It was departure time soon, and we departed after our security demo by the crew. We had no delays for takeoff and were airborne in no time. Of course, like almost all U.K. airports there were spotters along the length of the runway; always nice to see.

After takeoff, we were offered an in-flight entertainment system, which is really built around a personal computer. You are in total control with this touch screen system. You may also use controls on the keyboard part of the unit. This was accompanied by a Bosé noise cancelling headset. There is a plethora of entertainment choices.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Entertainment System and Bose Headphones
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Entertainment System and Bose Headphones

 

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Entertainment System
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Entertainment System

New Release Movies
Monster-in-Law
A lot of Like Love
The Interpreter
The Longest Yard
Mr. and Mrs. Smith

In Tribute to Anne Bancroft
The Producers
The Graduates
84 Charing Cross Road

In Tribute to Ishmael Merchant
Jefferson in Paris
Remains of the Day

A Tribeca Tribute
Shakespeare in Love
Bullets Over Broadway
Play It Again, Sam

A Notting Hill Tribute
About a Boy
Notting Hill
Four Weddings & a Funeral

NYTV
The Honeymooners – TV or not TV
Taxi – Like Father Like Daughter
CSI New York – Blink
Everybody Loves Raymond

Sherlocks, Shamuses, & Sleuths
Sherlock Holms: A Scandal in Bohemia
Poirot: The Adventure of Captain Cook
Inspector Morse: The Wolvercote Tongue
Agatha Christie’s Marple: The Body in the Library
Fallen Angels: Love and Blood
Fallen Angels: Tomorrow I Die
Fallen Angels: Good Housekeeping
Fallen Angels: Red Wing

Additional Television Selections
The Office: Diversity Day
Friends: Hot Girl
Cheers – Thanksgiving
Cheers – Christmas

Music
HitPix – 22 selections
Memory Lane – 21 selections
Latin Beat – 11 selections
In the Club – 5 selections
Blue Notes – 11 selections
Mellow Mood – 16 selections
Classical – 11 selections
Big Country – 11 selections

Music Videos
Pop
American Baby – Dave Matthews Band
Sometimes – U2
Since You’ve Been Gone – Kelly Clarkson
Giving You Up – Kyle Minogue
Into Everything – Telopopmusik
Rock
Why Do You Love Me – Garbage
Holiday – Green Day
Hollaback Girl – Gwen Stefani
Jazz/Blues/R&B
Just A Lil Bit – 50 Cent
Don’t Phunk With My Heart – Black eyed Peas
Games
Casino
Blackjack
Broke Banker’s Video Poker
Puzzle
Block Brain Teaser
Jungle Toe (Tic-Tac-Toe)
Sports
Mini Golf
Action
Turkey Dinner
Space Fighter
Far West

Survey

My lunch service started with the appetizer, followed by the main course; I skipped the cheese and crackers service and went straight to the dessert; nice. All the time I had offers of bread and more drinks than I could consume.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Appetizer
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Appetizer

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Canapé and white whine
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Canapé and white wine

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Eaten dinner
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Eaten dinner

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Dessert
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Dessert

Of course I was tired now and my flight attendant came by and asked me if I wanted her to make my bed. I was a little taken back, but then said yes. This was the highlight of my trip; I had never flown a lie-flat seat before, so I have nothing to compare EOS’. With that being said though, I slept well; for the first time since flying, I slept on my side, I’ve always slept on my back (as that position is the most comfortable) when flying. I am a stomach sleeper normally.

I awoke about 3.5 hours later feeling really rested and in time for my arrival snack of scones, sandwiches and more drinks including afternoon tea.

Unfortunately, I did sleep through the mid-flight meal, but I saw them preparing it and it looked quite good.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - Arrival Snack
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – Arrival Snack

The crew was quite good and very attentive.

Soon, we started to our descent and landed on the runway next to the cargo facility. We arrived ontime at Terminal 4. The arrival time of 1:30 p.m. is great as our flight was the only one using the facility at the time. At the gates were Air Jamaica’s A340, Aer Lingus’ A330 and El Al Boeing 747-400.

 

EOS Flight 1 - 23 Oct 2005 - in JFK
EOS Flight 1 – 23 Oct 2005 – in JFK

All in all, this was a great flight and I’d definitely fly them again.

 

 

 

The post Airline Service Review: EOS Airlines (EO1) London-Stansted, England (STN) to New York-JFK, Queens NY (JFK) appeared first on Travel Tips.

Airline Service Review: Thomas Cook Airlines (MT) Manchester, United Kingdom (MAN) to Tenerife, Canary Islands Spain (TFS)

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MT1996/19Jan2017
Manchester, United Kingdom (MAN) to Tenerife South, Canary Islands (TFS)
Airbus A321 | G-TCDA

Thomas Cook Airlines.com | twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - At the gate in Tenerife (TFS)
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – At the gate in Tenerife (TFS)

Most of you reading may not even know about Thomas Cook Airlines, but they’ve been around for quite some time now. You may buy charter packages and just shopped by price and when you get to the airport the airline is Thomas Cook. Others of you may actually go to www.ThomasCook.com and book a flight, hotel or package deal.

I wanted to experience their service so I talked them into working with me to accomplish just that and share the information with you. I had pretty much carte blanche on what I could do and where I could go as long as it was a short haul flight, so not having visited the Canary Islands, I opted for Tenerife after checking schedules, etc.

It also worked out well since Singapore Airlines (SQ) was launching their Airbus A350 flights from Houston to Manchester and onto to Singapore, so I was able to take that flight. But I digress.

Booking the Flights

Initially, I tried to book a vacation package; i.e. flight and hotel for one price, but when I went to pay for it, I got a message saying that I had to be in the EU in order to pay for it. Bummer, so then I decided to book separately. I started with the flights first.

Thomas Cook Airlines - Flight Booking
Thomas Cook Airlines – Flight Booking

I was actually impressed that the fares were so low; I wanted to spend two nights in the warmth of the Atlantic Ocean, but the flight timings did not make that possible. So after looking at a few places such as Lanzarotte, Canary Islands, I settled on just heading to Tenerife for an overnighter.

Thomas Cook Airlines Flight Booking - Outbound
Thomas Cook Airlines Flight Booking – Outbound
Thomas Cook Airlines - Flight Booking Return
Thomas Cook Airlines – Flight Booking Return

My final price for the outbound and the return flight before adding any extras was £93.98, which included £36.80 in taxes and fees. Not bad for a 4 hour plus flight round trip.

Thomas Cook Airlines - Flight Booking Email Receipt
Thomas Cook Airlines – Flight Booking Email Receipt

I did add some extras ( one way, Seat Assignment; checked bags both ways and a meal), but the system erred so they were not added. Instead, I sent a Direct message with all the details two days later to Thomas Cook’s Cares twitter account. They could not help but told me the following:

Give them a call on 01733 224 330. They are open 8am-10pm every day.

I advised that I’m in the U.S. and it would be an expensive call, so they gave me a link for a Chat at https://www.thomascook.com/customer-services/. After a long chat I was told that I could not get the £38 deal. So I went online pulled up my reservation and was able to add the extras I wanted without any issues and also got the £38 deal for a bag, a meal and a seat assignment.

The base fares are pretty cheap most times depending on where you want to go and the time of year. Then you add all the extras. This is typical of these carriers in the Europe; here’s a breakdown:

  • Seat Assignment -£13.00
  • XL Seat (extra legroom) -£20.00
  • Checked Luggage (the price varies as the bag gets heavier) – paid online – 25.00
  • Checked Luggage – paid at the airport -£50.00
  • Onboard Meal -£10.00
  • Sports Equipment -£45.00
  • Insurance
  • Credit Card Fee – 2% of transaction

I opted for a pre-checked bag on both flights, a seat assignment on the return and a meal on the return. I figured I’d see what kind of seat I got on the outbound without paying for it, buy a meal onboard. I did not want to pay the £50 baggage fee though; hence pre-paying for the checked bag which weighted in at 11kg.

Departure Day

As I was staying by the airport, it was an easy commute to the airport. Manchester has three terminals and Thomas Cook uses Terminal 1. Once dropped off, I headed inside to check-in since I’d not done that before.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Airport Check-in
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Airport Check-in

It was a bit confusing as there was a guy marshalling people based on what category they fit in:

  1. Check-in online and had a bag to drop
  2. Checked-in online and had no bag to drop
  3. Have not yet checked-in at all
  4. and me, clueless :-); I was just having a slow morning.

The check your bags in line was really long and getting longer, so I tried to see if I could check myself in online so I could just use the shorter bag drop kiosks. My Internet signal was pretty bad, so that totally failed. And then I decided to join the longer “I’ve not checked in online, but should have and now I have to join the longer queue” queue.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Economy Class Check-in
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Economy Class Check-in

It was actually a very efficient queue despite its length. I looked around and people have way too many bags. I’m assuming that the average person is going away for a week. Come on people, you don’t need that much stuff. Anyways, when it was my turn, I said good morning to the agent and placed my bag on the conveyor belt. It weighed in at 11kg, so I was good to go for the 20kg limit. As its a backpack, I ensured that the straps were corralled as good as possible to avoid being caught on the belt later and ripping it to shreds.

She took my passport and proceeded to check me in. She actually asked me to place my carry-on on the belt; strict I thought; nothing is getting pass this lady today. I weight in at 6kg exactly and I was given instructions to not add anything else to my bag from the airport stores or I’d be over. I kept thinking that my bag would be weighed again once I got to the gate :-). She also placed a carry-on bag paper tag on my bag as well.

Next, my checked bag was tagged and since I had already paid the 25 GBP online, I was good to go. I was looking around to see if anyone had not and was paying the 50 GBP, but apparently they were as smart as I was. The agent then gave me my boarding pass with a seat assignment. Since I’d not paid for a specific seat, the system assigned me one at no charge. Luckily, it was a window. I thought I would have been given the chance of a window or aisle if one was available, but this was not the case. It may have been just this one agent though, who knows.

She then instructed me to head over to the oversized luggage and drop off my bag. “Oversized?” I asked, cine it was a small backpack. She then explained that since it was a backpack and it had straps they use the Oversized area to avoid the straps from getting caught.

I headed over there with other passengers in tow as well with similar items. That agent without speaking, took my passport and boarding pass, did something with his computer and once my luggage had disappeared behind the black rubber curtains and a few minutes passed, he gave me back my documents and I was on my way.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Oversized Dropoff
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Oversized Dropoff

Airport Security

This is always fun in the U.K. as they are very, very strict. As I was not a premium passenger, I did not get picked for the Fast Lane :-(, so I had to slum it with the regular people.

Since I did not have my usual backpack with me, it would be an easier experience. I typically have them re-check my bag as their machines always see something it can’t decipher.

There was one lady shouting flight departure times in order to move people through if they were in jeopardy of missing their flight. Someone it seemed inefficient due to the cutoff periods she had.

It did serve to be entertaining and made the wait go quickly.

As much as I tried, my bag went into secondary, where the agent took her sweet time and removed most of the items and ran it through again. In the UK, you can’t talk to the agent or offer any help, so I was rebuffed constantly.

Eventually it was all over and I headed into the departure terminal through the Duty Free area. I lingered a bit so I could watch a Jet2.com Boeing 737 push back; always fun to see.

Gate Experience

I made my way over to my gate eventually and waited for the flight to board.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Gate 23
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Gate 23

Airport Club

I did not qualify for any Airport Clubs here.

Boarding

When it was time to board, it was quite quick and did not have any particular order, so I boarded among the first. They did board anyone who needed a bit of time to board first though.

Thomas Cook Airlines - Boarding
Thomas Cook Airlines – Boarding

The aircraft is an Airbus A321 with a 3-3 configuration all in a single class; a dense configuration. I love the golden hearts on every headrest; adds a loving touch I think.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Interior
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Interior

Here’s the safety card for my aviation geek friends :-).

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Safety Card
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Safety Card

I found my seat and slipped in and was joined by an older wife and husband seat mates later. Very nice couple who has family in Tenerife, so that makes it easy and cheap to have a quick vacation.

Thomas Cook Airlines - Window Seat
Thomas Cook Airlines – Window Seat
Thomas Cook Airlines - 3-3 Configuration
Thomas Cook Airlines – 3-3 Configuration

The tray table just about fits my 13″ MacBook Pro as you can see below Legroom is tight for a 6′ 1″ frame, but if you are below that it works fine.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Tray Table
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Tray Table

The Inflight Service

We were a bit delayed in our departure; doors closed at 9:26a although boarding was complete at 9:14a; our departure time is 9:15a. Just before the safety demo started, an announcement was made that they had two extra legroom seats available for £20 each. It did not take long for a couple to claim them and moved forward.

We pushed back at 9:30a as the manual safety demo was being done. Ironically, I saw a Singapore Airlines Airbus A350 arriving from Houston as we departed; the same flight I had taken the day before.

Soon, it was our time to depart the runway and we took to the cloudy skies at 9:45a.

Shortly after takeoff, the lead flight attendant came on the PA and explained how it all would work for our flight. They would sever the meal, then take a break, the serve Duty Free, then do a second and final drink service. She also noted that no drinks would be served in between service. I thought this was odd; why not serve drinks when needed; oh well.

For those who ordered a meal, they were served first, followed by another service with choices from the onboard menu and there were also some left over breakfast choices.

Thomas Cook Airlines - Cafe Cloud Menu
Thomas Cook Airlines – Cafe Cloud Menu

 

I was able to get one of the English Breakfast since they had extras and I topped it off with a glass of wine although it was breakfast time; but my reasoning was that I’d have it later since the flight attendants said they may run out during the second service and I can’t get something when I want, so I have to store it. It totally came in handy later.

Thomas Cook Airlines - Cafe Cloud Menu - English Breakfast
Thomas Cook Airlines – Cafe Cloud Menu – English Breakfast

 

 

Thomas Cook Airlines - Cafe Cloud Menu - Breakfast orange juice, muffin and yoghurt
Thomas Cook Airlines – Cafe Cloud Menu – Breakfast orange juice, muffin and yoghurt

 

 

Thomas Cook Airlines - Cafe Cloud Menu - English Breakfast
Thomas Cook Airlines – Cafe Cloud Menu – English Breakfast

My seat mates actually brought their own meals which looked like the specials from the airport. They also had nuts too.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Seatmate food
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Seatmate food

Inflight Entertainment

The aircraft is equipped with overhead monitors, so about two hours into the flight they did play some shorts or you could listen to music. Headsets were not provided so you had to use your own. The TV could be heard on channel 1 and channel 11 had some music. The Nanny was one of the shows being shown.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Entertainment
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Entertainment

After the meal, I was able to do some work, but not to much as I did not have any power source and the airplane did not have Wifi available. Once I ran out of power, I had a nap. I also took an inflight selfie and the guy behind me photo bombed me :-).

The crew did also come through with an offer for 3 bingo cards for 2 or 1 per card.  Some of the money goes to charity they mentioned. Also about 3 hours in, Duty Free sales started.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Selfie
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Selfie

Landing

Before long, we had to prepare for landing. The flight crew came by and picked up the rubbish as the British calls it and ensured that all were buckled in for landing.

I looked out my window and saw the photo below. I was pretty stoked now. We made a right turn and came in for a smooth landing. Umm…, no clap; I guess the British don’t do that, its just Caribbean people :-).

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Tenerife
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Tenerife

We taxied into our gate and all disembarked; next stop would be Immigration, then Customs and Baggage Claim. I snapped a photo of my plane as I walked up the glass jetway.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - At the gate in Tenerife (TFS)
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – At the gate in Tenerife (TFS)

The Immigration waved all the British citizens in and then he came to me. Of course he had to stop, scan in my passport and then search for a place to stamp. This totally irritated the folks behind me. What’s the hurry anyways, we still have to wait for our bags :-). I think I was the only non British/EU person on that flight :-).

I had a brief wait for my bag to show all intact. I then looked around a bit and walked through the nothing to declare line.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Baggage Belt
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Baggage Belt

Once outside, I figured out the bus for my destination and waited at the bus stop with a few other people. All in all a great trip; no incidents and all went well. Thanks Thomas Cook!

Have you flown Thomas Cook on this or any other routes? Leave a note below and let me know how it was.

Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 - Arrival Area
Thomas Cook Airlines Manchester to Tenerife Airbus A321 – Arrival Area

The post Airline Service Review: Thomas Cook Airlines (MT) Manchester, United Kingdom (MAN) to Tenerife, Canary Islands Spain (TFS) appeared first on Travel Tips.

Flying The World’s Longest Flight in 2004 – SQ21/June 30 – July 5, 2004

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July 12, 2004
Trip Date: June 30 – July 5, 2004

THIS WEEK’S EDITION

Well, I’m not sure if you know, but for the longest while the three longest distance nonstop commercial airline routes in the world were Atlanta, Georgia (ATL) to Cape Town, South Africa (CPT) – 8,127 flown by South African Airlines (SA); Newark, New Jersey (EWR) to Hong Kong (HKG) – 8,047 flown by Continental Airlines (CO) and now also Cathay Pacific Airways (CX) from New York’s (JFK); Los Angeles, California (LAX) to Melbourne, Australia (MEL) – 7, 922 flown by Qantas (QF) and United Airlines (UA).

Back on February 3 of this year, Singapore Airlines (SQ) changed that by flying nonstop using an Airbus A340-500 from LAX to Singapore (SIN) – 8,758 miles. Until June 28, 2004, this routing was the record, then, Singapore Airlines flew from Singapore to Newark and broke their own record by flying 9,524 nonstop miles to now hold the record for the longest distance commercial airline flight in the world. They also have the record for the longest flight as well on the same route.

I have flown the LAX to MEL route on United, the Hong Kong to Newark route on Continental, wanted to do the LAX to Singapore route but could not make it work, so I decided to waste no time and go for the new Newark to Singapore route. Here is what happened beginning on June 30, 2004.

I departed work on Wednesday at about noon and headed for the post office. I had received a package slip from the post office which stated that I had a package waiting and wanted to get it before I headed for the airport. I also needed to pay my rent since I would not be around when it became due.

Of course, there was a line there and the wait lasted about 10 minutes, but it seemed like a few hours for some reason. I guess when you are in a rush; everything seems to take so long.

Soon, all that was over and I was on my way to the airport. I-45 was crowded as usual, so I headed for I-10 and then to I-59, to the Hardy Toll Road, paid my $1.25 toll and was at the airport by 12:50 p.m. All these years and I’ve never bought the EZ-Pass. I parked and then a bus showed up soon. In about 10 minutes, I was at Terminal C.

 

Newark Liberty International, Newark New Jersey (EWR)

As I landed, I could see the Singapore Airlines (SQ) A340-500 waiting at the gate (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/ewr/sqa345g20040630ewr.htm). It was being catered at the moment. There was also a Virgin Atlantic Airways (VS) Boeing 747-400 at gate 65. In addition to the last British Airways (BA) Boeing 777-200 destined for London, England. Moments later, another British Airways Boeing 777-200 arrived. This would be the day flight the next morning to London and finally, an Air India Boeing 747-400 and a Swiss Airbus A330. Oh, off in the distance, by Terminal A, was a Hooters Air Boeing 757-200. You can see them all here:http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/ewr/planes.htm.

My flight made its way to gate 115A where I disembarked. I headed for the gate 75 area so that I could shoot some closer shots of the A340-500 in Terminal B. After taking a bunch of photos, I headed to the Presidents Club near that gate. I had to send some e-mails and make some last minute transactions before I headed out. At about 9:05 p.m., I left and headed for Terminal B.

As the weather was good and I did not feel like walking up the stairs to the AirTrain, I decided to just walk to Terminal B. As I arrived in Terminal B, there was no line for the flight. They had two sections for check-in that matched the two classes of service on the flight (Raffles and Executive Economy). I stood on the Executive Economy line, and was called over to the Raffles section when a space became available.

As I was being checked in, I noticed a sheet of paper on the desk that offered the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse before security or the Star Alliance Lounge after security and near the gate as choices for a Lounge; I was wondering what they were going to do for a lounge and there you have it.

The agent checked me in and advised that it was a bit touch and go today as the flight was overbooked, adding that the next day looked much better. As it turned out, this was the return flight for many of the passengers who had come over on the inaugural two days ago.

I cleared security which was quite a chore. The TSA agent was only allowing three customers at a time to approach the machines, not sure why. Meanwhile, the line was building behind us. Eventually, it was my turn. I cleared and then headed for the gate area. I need to charge my batteries so I searched for a plug and was able to find one not too far from the gate. This as quite a chore for some reason.
At about 10:40 p.m., I was paged by the agent in charge. He had a seat for me in Executive Economy Class; this was the last available seat. There were still a few seats available in Raffles Class, I later found out. I made a quick stop in the men’s room and then boarded the flight.

SQ21/30JUN04
Airbus A340-500 (9V-SGB)
Newark Liberty International, Newark New Jersey (EWR) to Singapore Changi International, Singapore (SIN)

As I boarded, I could see that the configuration in Raffles Class was 2-2-2 and in the split Executive Economy cabin (Raffles is a split cabin as well), it was 2-3-2 tapering to 2-2-2 in the last two rows. You can see the configuration athttp://img.singaporeair.com/images/english/AboutSia/FleetInformation/CabinLayouts/A345-500.gif.

Singapore Airlines’ Web site has this to say about Raffles Class:

The Raffles (business) Class cabin has 64 of SIA’s renowned SpaceBeds. Arranged in a 2-2-2 configuration, the seats have a generous pitch of 64 inches, bed width of 26 inches, bed length of 78 inches, adjustable head rest, leg rest and lumbar support, a 10.4 inch personal video monitor, AC power supply outlet and a DVD port.

The interior colors were very soothing, making me feel immediately at home as I walked to my middle seat close to the back of the plane. There is ample leg room (37 inches seat pitch), butt room (Singapore Airlines says they have the widest Economy seat (20 inches) in the world) and feet and leg room. Each seat has its own laptop power outlet (accepts Australian, European (except UK), US and Japanese plugs) and its own in-seat 9 inch video monitor with Audio and Video On Demand entertainment. This included 60 movies, 83 TV programs, 205 CDs, 12 Audio Channels, 33 Nintendo Games, 20 PC Games and 3 Multi-player games! The only other airline that I’ve flown with such an extensive programming is Emirates (EK) from London/ Gatwick (LGW) to Dubai, United Arab Emirates (DXB) on their A340-500 with 500 channels and also video on demand.

I settled in, said hello to my seat mates and delved in the reading material. Once everyone was boarded, the flight attendants came by with hot towels; these are white wash rag-sized towels complete with the Singapore Airlines logo. I was convinced then that this flight would be exceptional. I told the lady (returning home from a business trip) sitting to my left to slap me if I start getting too excited. She then turned to the guy on my right (a freshman Engineering college student from Northwestern University who was returning home for the summer) and said jokingly; “Will you be my witness?” Yes, this was going to be a good flight.

Menus (with pictures of red whole and cut apples on the cover) and amenity kits (containing a pair of light bluish gray socks, toothbrush and toothpaste) were handed out just before the safety video commenced; both nice touches.

In terms of food, here is what we had on tap for our journey:

SUPPER MENU

Tasty Beginnings
Ham with mesclun salad and mustard sauce, chicken

The Main Event

A choice of:
Chicken in natural jus with potato puree, sauerkraut with bacon and pear (Exclusively created by Alfred Portale of Gotham Bar & Grill, New York)
or
Braised fillet of fish with spicy hoisin sauce, seasonal vegetables and steamed rice

The Cheese Corner
Cheese and crackers

Sweet Overtones
Ice Cream bar

From The Bakery
Roll and butter

Choice Brews
Coffee
Tea
Chinese tea

BETWEEN MEALS MENU

Light Bites
An assortment of snacks will be offered

Choice Brews
Coffee
Tea
Chinese tea

BREAKFAST MENU

A Tantalising Note
Fresh fruits with champagne syrup

Tasty Beginnings
Fruit yoghurt

The Main Event
A choice of:
Ah Yat’s braised beef brisket in live spice with Chinese greens and egg noodles (Exclusively created by Mr. Yeung Koon Hat, Hong Kong)
or
Cheese omelette with chicken sausage, grilled tomato and potatoes

From The Bakery
Assorted breakfast rolls, butter and fruit preserve

Choice Brews
Coffee
Tea
Chinese tea

REFRESHING BEVERAGES
Typically, you name it; you can perhaps get it on board, including of course a Singapore Sling.

The safety video commenced and as it continued, we commenced the push back at three minutes shy of 11 p.m. The taxi to the runway was short and we were airborne at 10 after the hour. Our flying time was booked at 17:50 tonight; yes we had a crazy tailwind most of the way. Also, we would not go over the North Pole, but head north to Boston, then across the Atlantic Ocean, head for England, then across Europe then the Middle East and head south over Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, cross the Bay of Bengal and then onto Singapore (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/onboard/P7010020.htm).

Of course immediately after takeoff, I started to play with the entertainment system. The system was actually activated while on the ground. Here is an overview:

There are six main sections:

Wisemen (SQ’s trademark) Audio & Video

Video and Audio on Demand Movies and TV Shows; movie trailers are also included
There were 60 choices including:

Pleasantville
The Replacements
Independence Day
The Full Monty
Agent Cody Banks 2
Torque
Starsky & Hutch
50 First Dates
Anita & Me
Walking Tall
Man on Fire
News & Info

Live Text News

Satellite news in various categories; this is a text service that is up to the minute
Flight Path
Destination Info
What’s the Buzz
Gizmos
Games

A number of Nintendo, Multiplayer, PC Games and Brain Teasers
Learn A language

A cool application that teaches you words in other languages, based on the language you speak
Just for Kids

Games, Video and Audio on Demand for the Kids
Communications

KrisFone

Has information on how to use the in-seat phone as well as a list of country codes
Feedback

A survey on what you think of the flight (thumbs up for me!)

After checking out the system, I initially settled on “Agent Cody Banks 2” and fast forwarded it to the part where I had left off on my last flight. Don’t you just love Video On Demand? As it turns out, I never actually watched any movie in its entirety as there was just too much stuff to do all flight long.

As the service started, the flight attendants came by with an offering of champagne and orange juice, water or whatever you wanted. Most others took the champagne offering and so did I. I had to place the glass on my chair table as it was too small for the cup holder. The cup holder is really designed for the normal sized cups. Soon after that, dinner with more drinks was served from the front of the cabin backwards (breakfast was served from the rear forward).

One thing about sitting in the middle seat is that you get served by whom ever gets to either side first, so there is a plus to sitting in the middle seat after all.

Dinner was quite delicious. As stated, there was a choice of chicken or fish, so I had the fish (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/onboard/sqa345execonmeal20040702sin.htm). I complemented it all with some white wine which was poured into an accompanying glass with the Executive Economy logo (an “e”) on the bottom (another nice touch).

The new seat has a pretty decent recline (8 inches), a foot rest, head wings to keep your head from drooping when asleep and a leg rest. As I started to use the new seat, I noticed an ergonomic oddity: in order to plug in your computer, you have to feel for the insertion position of the plug; after a few futile minutes, I gave up, got on my knees (my seatmate on the left was away in the back socializing), figured it out and plugged in my computer. There is a chart that talks about it, but how hard could it be to plug in your computer, I thought J. The plus is that you don’t need an adapter, just your normal plug from home. The flight attendants as well as the literature did advise that you should remove your computer’s batteries before plugging in, not sure why this was a stipulation. Apart from this idiosyncrasy, these seats are awesome and here is why.

The person in front of you can recline and you can still get out of your seat without too much fuss
You can recline and not interrupt the person’s dinner behind you
No matter how far you or the person in front of you reclines, you can still watch the big in seat video screen as it tilts really well.
While you can see what others who are sitting in front of you are watching, you cannot see what the persons next to you are watching, unless you purposely lean over.
The leg rest and footrest combination works very well and are both adjustable
I can still use my computer when the person in front of me reclines, even with my feet on the foot rest. I cannot do this on any other carrier I’ve flown, and I’ve flown many with footrests.
The overhead light is soft and fades on and off, so it does not disturb the passengers around you
It has a coat hook and a compartment for knick knacks
And one subjective reason; the colors are soothing

After dinner, I headed to the lounge area in the back to check it out. It is an area just behind the last row on the left with about three or so windows. There is a place to place your drinks or eats and you can just stand there and talk. There is also a walkway to get from one side of the plane to the next without walking through the galley. Further back just in front of the galley was the snack area. There was a fruit basket, snacks galore, juices and if you wanted alcohol, all you had to do was ask. The crew is just superb. There are also areas next to the exit doors that are out of the way of the crew which can be used for standing and stretching.

There were a few other passengers standing in the “hang out area”; a guy who had flown over on the inaugural flight on 28 June. He had brought his daughter over for summer camp and was now returning. His wife would make the return trip to pick her up. There was also another lady who was returning home and thought that the trip’s timing would work for her. She was timing her arrival with her husband’s arrival from his business trip on the p.m. of 2 July.

We all chatted for maybe about 2 hours or so as we watched the sun rise over the North Atlantic Ocean. It was a beautiful thing. I had always wanted to experience that, but since I always need to be sleeping as I cross the Atlantic (need to be up when I arrived in Europe), I never did.

I made sure I put my order in for Duty Free as if you bought the 1/400th scale model of the A340-500, you get a complimentary signed certificate from the Captain saying you took the world’s longest flight, so of course I did!

This “hang out area” is a great idea and quite worth it I think. At one point it was full; there are no seats, but it promotes conversation. All they need now is some music and a disco ball J.

With about 13.5 hours to go, I said “see ya later” to my new friends and headed to my seat for a nap. We had been flying for fours hours and it did not seem that way. Before napping, I waded through the channels and found that they had the best of the Commodores CD. I dialed that in and went to sleep. Five hours later, I awoke; I got some fluid and then took another hour worth of sleep. I am sure I will take another nap before we get there.

As we passed over Lahore, Pakistan you could see the city lights below. By now the rest of the world was seeing daylight and we were into night once again. For this journey, we started at night, flew into the morning, seeing the sun rise, then flew all day, saw the sun set and will see the sun rise again when we arrive in Singapore at 4:55 a.m. or so local time. Wow, is an understatement. Picture this: since I departed Newark, you’ve gone to bed, woken up, had breakfast, gone to work, then head home and at that point I arrive in Singapore. As I write this we have 5:14 to go and we are just north of Delhi, India on a southerly heading.

One thing to note is that the flight attendants were very good about being by all the time with water and juice. This coupled with the snacks in the back (they also brought them through the cabin) made the flight so much nicer.

I had made another trip back to the “hang out area” and met some more new people; one guy who came over on Singapore’s one-stop flight via Frankfurt on the 28th, just wanted to go back on this new flight. He had left Singapore on 27 June. Another guy from Ohio was returning home to Malaysia for a visit and decided to connect in Singapore as opposed to Dubai (DXB) using Malaysia Airlines (MH) so that he could take the long flight. Still another guy who was also going to Malaysia after having worked in New York for a major electronics manufacturer was along for the longest flight claim as well. See, there are other strange people in the world J.

We ate and chatted for another hour or so and then I returned to my seat. I came back a few minutes later as I finally read the menu and noticed that I could get a Singapore Sling, so of course I ordered one, well two, as they are quite good. I will have to ensure that I get the official thing when I get to Singapore at the Long Bar in the Raffles Hotel (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/singapore/the%20longbar120040702sin.htm). While having my Sling and some roasted peanuts, I chatted for a bit again in the “hang out area.” Then I retired to my seat once again.

I was looking through the electronic catalog on the entertainment system and saw that they had “Pleasantville” with Tobey McGuire and Reese Witherspoon. It was fun to watch this movie with these two young actors before they became big time stars. I never finished it as I fell asleep about 45 minutes or so into it, just when they started to change Pleasantville due to their presence.

I awoke as there was movement in the cabin and the lights were on. It was three hours to go so we were given hot towels in preparation for breakfast. At that moment though, I was not stressed at all; I had eaten, slept, socialized, watched some TV and was in a generally good mood along with the rest of the passengers. There is something to be said about this more space thing I think.

Breakfast was orange juice, yoghurt, a choice of an omelet or beef noodles (I opted for that), a muffin and a fruit salad with a roll (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/onboard/sqa345execonmeal220040702sin.htm).

After all that was over, they announced Duty Free sales. I continued to watch the entertainment system as well as listening to music, reading, talking to my seat mates and writing this story.

At about 200 miles out of Singapore, the Captain said his good morning, announced that Singapore was 28 degrees Celsius and that our arrival was set at 5 a.m. He signed off with saying thank you for taking the historic nonstop flight to Singapore. I was just too giddy with excitement.

At 4:29 a.m. local, we started our descent, touching down at 4:55 a.m. on Friday morning (having lost Thursday, July 1, 2004). Never lost a day heading East before, but there is always a first time. You see, we never crossed the International Date Line. The landing had a little bounce, but a perfect end to what was indeed a perfect flight.

Singapore Changi International, Singapore (SIN) – 2 July 2004

Once we got to the gate (it was still dark out), I grabbed my stuff, said goodbye to my seat mates and headed for the Exit door. I paused to take a photo of both cabins (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/onboard/sqa345execon20040702sin.htm) and also to watch some ladies who were in Executive Economy try out the Raffles Class seats (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/onboard/sqa345raffles20040702sin.htm).

In the jetway, I had a chance to talk with one of the Captains that flew us over (there were four flight crew members on board, they take turns flying in groups of two). He told me that the winds over the Atlantic were favorable (I did notice that we had quite the tail wind almost all the way), so they decided to take the shortest route; much to my dismay (http://www.cruisinaltitude.com/images/longest_flight/onboard/P7010029.htm). This is the second time I’ve attempted to go over the poles and did not make it; I will try yet a third time. The first was doing Hong Kong to Newark; we came the regular way by going from Hong Kong to Tokyo, then skirting the Russian Coast, crossing the Bearing Straight into Alaska, crossing Northern Canada and then coming down into the Newark area.

After stopping to check my e-mail at the free Internet kiosks all over the Terminal, I followed the signs to the Transit Hotel (Ambassador Transit Hotel) and on inquiring, found out that it was not practical. This hotel works if you want to stay in the transit area, not if you want to get into the city and do anything. The primary reason why it did not work for me this time is that the rates are based on a 6-hour stay; I have about a 17-hour stay, so by the time you do the two 6-hour rates, plus the hourly rate, it is more expensive than a hotel in the city even when you add transportation (http://www.airport-hotel.com.sg/).

I had not booked a hotel prior to my arrival as I was not sure of what I would be doing once I got here. In addition, I knew the flight was not looking too good, so I decided to play it by ear. I did take a look at a few and the best rate was the Swissotel for 120 SGD (http://www.wotif.com).

With the new found hotel price knowledge, I entered the country and then cleared customs without any incidents (last time I was here, my passport was within 6 months of expiring and I heard about it J). I headed to the Hotel Reservations desk where the agent showed me a long list of hotels and rates. The price range was from about 60 to 650 SGD (The Raffles Hotel), the exchange rate is about 1.72 to the USD. After the agent made a few calls to the hotels, I settled on the Peninsular Excelsior as it had rooms available and would be able to make one available by 8 a.m. or so.

There was a 10 SGD deposit (but no charge for the service) and as I had no local currency, I went to a nearby ATM. While there, I did notice that it was now pouring rain outside, I hope that this would not keep up all day. Once back at the hotel reservations desk, I gave the agent a fifty dollar bill, but as she had no change, I headed to the currency exchange across the hallway, where I was able to get five tens, I then returned to the desk.

I paid the 10 SGD deposit to the agent, then I reserved a space on the next shuttle to the city (the 6:40 a.m.). The cost was 7 SGD. A family of three and another single guy also got rooms at the Peninsular Excelsior and we all headed out ontime on the same shuttle.

Singapore

In about 25 minutes, we were deposited at the hotel door. We all boarded the elevator and headed towards the lobby which is actually on the 6th floor.

I was first to be checked in and the check-in agent advised me that normal check in is at 2 p.m. but they would be able to accommodate me as soon as they had some rooms cleaned. Although they were fully booked last night, it would take about two hours or so to clean the rooms as guests had already checked out. [There are several early flights out of Singapore Changi to the rest of Asia, Europe and North America]. The agent at the airport had already advised me of this situation.

The only drawback with early a.m. check-in is that you cannot really get a choice room, but what the heck, I’m only here till 7 p.m. or so and I won’t be in the room for any length of time so who cares.

The desk clerk even offered me a welcome drink (fruit punch) while I waited, noting that the bar only opened at 8 a.m. She said I could wait around here, leave my bags and come back. I opted to wait there as I really had nothing better to do.

The unique thing about this hotel is its pool. It has one glass side.

As I waited, I noticed that they paged two guests and I was not called. When I inquired, I was told that they had requested smoking rooms and there were no non-smoking rooms cleaned as yet. I told her that I’d like to go and smell the smoking room and see if it would suffice (I was just tired of waiting). At that moment, she checked her computer again and found a room with two beds that had just come available. She asked me if I wanted that one and of course I said yes. She then informed me that she had upgraded me to a better room. Well, I’m in luck I guess.

I finished up my writing and then headed for the room. The room did not look like an upgraded room to me at all, I wondered what the regular room would have looked like…

I took the time to just relax a bit, after all, I had just flown half way across the world in 17:50 minutes… I got myself together after a bit and headed downstairs. It was time to see a bit of Singapore.

The post Flying The World’s Longest Flight in 2004 – SQ21/June 30 – July 5, 2004 appeared first on Travel Tips.


Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines (WN) Las Vegas, NV (LAS) to Houston-Hobby, TX (HOU)

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Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines (WN) Las Vegas, NV (LAS) to Houston-Hobby, TX (HOU)




WN3085/13Jan2018
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA (LAS) to Houston-Hobby, Texas (HOU)
Boeing 737 MAX 8 | N

Southwest Airlines.com | twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

I was heading to Las Vegas, Nevada for CES, the world’s largest consumer electronics show. I was searching for inexpensive flights using my own flight search tips and came across fares on Frontier and Spirit. However, when I looked at other fares on United and Southwest, by the time I added the extras of bags and timings, the flight offered by Southwest Airlines worked out the best. I was this close to flying on Spirit, but waited too long and the fare skyrocketed; I was even willing to pay for my bag to avoid any hassles. So here is my airline service review: Southwest Airlines (WN) Las Vegas, NV (LAS) to Houston-Hobby, TX (HOU) on the Boeing 737 MAX 8.

You can watch the video of the journey here as well as read this post to find out how it all went. By the way, I did not know it was the MAX 8 until I got to the airport so I was pleasantly surprised.

 

Booking the Flights

I started my search using Momondo.com as well as Google Flights. This gave me an idea of the airlines that serve the market (Las Vegas to Houston) and their flight times. I then settled on Southwest Airlines and booked from their Web site. I booked the ticket on December 29, 2017, which for me is early as I usually book closer to my departure date. My flight date was January 13, 2018.

What I found is that a lot of these carriers have a low fare, but when you add up all the extras, paying for a seat assignment, paying to board ahead of others, upgrading to First Class, transportation to the airports they serve, it all adds up. So its not just about the low fare you see when you book.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) - Frontier Airlines Seat Cost
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) – Frontier Airlines Seat Cost

The airlines also want to upsell you to many things as the cost of the ticket alone cannot cover their cost for providing the service, such as hotels, car rentals and travel insurance. I actually highly recommend purchasing insurance for your trip by the way as you never know and you can be covered for a variety of issues. I now use Allianz for all my trips. Check them out here.

It’s a very complex process and you MUST read all the details of everything before you buy. The good thing is that you have 24 hours to cancel and get a full refund. But read, read and then read some more. This is the best advice I can give you.

My final price for the one-way trip was $109.88, and I was allowed to check two bags free of charge.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU)
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU)




The Wanna Get Away Fare gave me the following services:

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) - Wanna Get Away Fare Details
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) – Wanna Get Away Fare Details

I was already a member of the Rapid Rewards program so I’ll get credit for this trip to my account. A win. I wold have preferred mileage credit to my KrisFlyer account with Singapore Airlines, but the United (United is a Star Alliance partner so I can earn KrisFlyer miles by flying United) fare was cost prohibitive for this leg of the journey.

I did receive a receipt right away which detailed what I bought and broke down all the fare rules as well as the details of the fare I purchased.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) - Email Receipt with Fare Rules
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) – Email Receipt with Fare Rules

These were the same options that were detailed to me during the purchase process. I was still within my 24 hour window so if I did not like it, I could cancel without any issues. The email also had links to other offers related to my trip.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) - Email Receipt
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) – Email Receipt

 

On the 31st, I received an email with some trip information and offers to add car rental, hotels, etc. And on the 6th of January, I got an email offering car rentals in Houston. Thenon the 9th, I got an email recapping my flight details with options to do car, hotel, etc. as well as reminding me that I can check-in 24 hours before my flight. This is a good reminder as there are no seat assignments so its based on check-in time or if you bought any of the fare upgrade options.

Of course I got busing in Vegas and did not check-in until the morning of my flight.

Departure Day

I slept in for a bit and forgot about checking in, so when I finally did, I got position C23, which meant there’s be about 140+ people ahead of me, uugh… a middle seat for sure I’m thinking at this moment.

I got myself together and then got a Lyft car service ride to the airport. It was shaping up to be a great day to fly. I also wanted to get to the airport earlier so I could check out the American Express Centurion Lounge in Terminal D.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) - Leaving Las Vegas
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) – Leaving Las Vegas

Airport Check-In

At the airport, check-in was a breeze using the kiosk, although I had already checked in on the App. I wanted to see what the experience was like.

There were airport kiosks as well as kiosk provided by Southwest Airlines. I could have also tagged my own bag if I had one or ask an agent to help. I did neither and headed to the airport security area for Gate C.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Check-in Screen
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Check-in Screen

Airport Security

I did not get TSA Pre, but despite that airport security was a breeze; not too many people I guess. I don’t think I had an option to enter my Global Entry number into my reservations during booking or check-in is the reason I think.



Airport Club

I headed for Terminal D, so I could check out the American Express Centurion Lounge as its a perk of the American Express Platinum Card. The Lounge was a bit crowded, but served me well for breakfast. Plus it had create views of the airport operations as well.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - American Express Centurion Lounge
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – American Express Centurion Lounge

I’m a huge fan of Airport Lounges as I do a lot of work in airports and I do a lot of travel, so it saves me a lot of money. Some Lounges even has a space to catch a nap so that’s always a plus. Drinks, food, atmosphere, free stronger wifi does it for me.

If you don’t have an American Express Platinum card, there are other options such as the Priority Pass which gives you access to several lounges worldwide. Airlines also have Lounge access based on the ticket you purchase, your destination and your elite level.

Some credit cards also gives you access to Lounges and of course some Lounges have a pay as you need it entrance fee. So many options for you.

Gate Experience

After the visit and breakfast, I headed over to the Gate at C7. I of course went to see the airplane and noticed that it looked like a Boeing 737 MAX 8. From my vantage point it was hard to tell though. SO I asked the agent at the counter; she said for me to check with the agent at the gate. I did and she said no it was not. Not convinced, I found another vantage point, saw the registration number, searched online and voila! It is a MAX 8! I was of course elated.

I then walked back to the counter and then the agent at the gate told me that it is as she had actually gone to check, how cool.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boeing 737 MAX 8
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boeing 737 MAX 8

The agent at the counter had a sign saying that you can upgrade to positions A1-A15 and people actually did. I had also received the same solicitation at the kiosk, but declined.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Counter
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Counter

Boarding

Soon, it was time to board. First the 60 persons in Group A, then another 60 in B and then my Group in C. you line up by Groups of 30 and in order. It’s fun to see people actually ask each other what number they have so they are in order. I actually had to tell a lady to move further up as she had C8.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boarding
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boarding

I scanned my boarding pass which the agent kept as its open seating. First come first serve. I said hello to the flight attendant as I boarded who was quite cordial. The aircraft was in a blue color as the flight attendants can change the color of the interior depending on the mood they want.

The aircraft has a 3-3 single class configuration; although there is a Business Select option which just gives you more amenities included in the pricing. I think the seats are the same though.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boeing 737 MAX 8 Interior
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boeing 737 MAX 8 Interior

Here’s the safety card for my aviation geek friends :-).

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boeing 737 MAX 8 Safety Card
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boeing 737 MAX 8 Safety Card

I walked to the back as I know that it would be emptier and indeed it was and I was able to snag an aisle seat next to a nice couple. I would have preferred a window seat, but I guess I should have checked in when I got the check-in email ;).




I settled in and watched as others boarded, came to the back seeing that its full and has to make their way back to the front to make their way to a middle seat.

Pushback was effortless and on-time and takeoff was smooth. I asked the guy at the window to take a photo for me and he took this one;

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boeing 737 MAX 8 Wing
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boeing 737 MAX 8 Wing

The Inflight Service

 

Soon after takeoff, the inflight service began. The flight attendants came and asked what we wanted, wrote them down and then delivered the orders. I did ask for a second cup of Ginger Ales and received it. I think I heard people asking for the cans and did receive them.

They also provided Wheat Thins and of course peanuts for which they are famous. I did notice though that the peanut packs were about 1/3 of the size they used to be. Cost cutting I guess.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Meal
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Meal

Inflight Entertainment

You can use your computer or your mobile device to connect to the inflight entertainment. You can watch Live TV or stored movies and TV shows plus arrival and connection information.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Entertainment
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Entertainment

 

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Entertainment Movies
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Entertainment Movies

 

 

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Entertainment Connecting Flights
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Entertainment Connecting Flights

And my all time favorite, flight tracking so I can tell where we are and flight information.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Entertainment Flight Status
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Entertainment Flight Status

 

There’s also Wifi available for $8. I did purchase it, but it did not work so well; actually it did not work at all. I forgot to ask for a refund, so need to do that. oops…

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) - Wifi
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas (LAS) to Houston-Hobby (HOU) – Wifi

Landing

 

Soon, it was time to land and we started our descent. Landing was smooth and we had a short taxi to the gate. I snapped a few shots on exit, you can see them here and in the video as well. Also, the flight attendants and the cleaning crew was already reading the plane for the next leg. The Birmingham passengers of which there were only a few were told to stay onboard as this was a quick layover.

AirlineServiceReviewSouthwestAirlinesLasVegastoHoustonHobbyBoeing737MAX8SeatsaAirline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boeing 737 MAX 8 at gate seats
AirlineServiceReviewSouthwestAirlinesLasVegastoHoustonHobbyBoeing737MAX8SeatsaAirline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boeing 737 MAX 8 at gate seats

I had a quick chat with the pilot on exit and he said he enjoyed flying the new plane.

All in all, it was a great flight and except for the Wifi, it went well.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boeing 737 MAX 8 at gate in HOU exiting plane
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boeing 737 MAX 8 at gate in HOU exiting plane

Have you flown this aircraft as yet? Have you flown Southwest, how was your experience? Leave a note below and let me know how it was.

Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby - Boeing 737 MAX 8 at gate in Hobby
Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines Las Vegas to Houston-Hobby – Boeing 737 MAX 8 at gate in Hobby

The post Airline Service Review: Southwest Airlines (WN) Las Vegas, NV (LAS) to Houston-Hobby, TX (HOU) appeared first on Travel Tips.

Airline Service Review: FlyOne (5F) Chisinau, Moldova (KIV) to Dublin, Ireland (DUB)

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Airline Service Review: FlyOne Chisinau, Moldova (KIV) to Dublin, Ireland (DUB)





5F711/25Jun2017
Chisinau, Moldova (KIV) to Dublin, Ireland (DUB)
Airbus A320 | EK32008

FlyOne | twitter | Facebook

 

I was at the end of a trip with JayWay Travel after exploring some cities in Romania as well as Moldova. It was time to get back and they booked me on FlyOne from Chisinau to Dublin, Ireland (DUB).

I was excited as this would be my first time flying this airline.

You can watch the video of the journey here as well as read this post to find out how it all went.

 

Booking the Flights

My flight was booked by JayWay Travel, but you can start by using Momondo.com as well as Google Flights.

Their Web site is available in English, Russian and Romanian.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Home page of web site
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Home page of web site

Like all low cost carriers, you have to pay for what they call the “Extras,” checked bags, seats, meal, sports equipment.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Extras
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Extras

You may also pay for a check-in fee (I paid this at the airport) as well as take trip insurance. I always take Trip Insurance; I have my own from Allianz who has  several options for you. Check them out here.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Trip Insurance and Check-in Fee
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Trip Insurance and Check-in Fee

Meal On Board

You can purchase a meal before your flight. They have a few choices for you.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Meal On Board
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Meal On Board

Seat Map

You can pick your seats before the flight for a charge of 3 to 10 Euros.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland SeatMaps
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland SeatMaps

There is also a transaction fee of 2.56 EUR to use a credit card.



 

Departure Day

I got picked up by transportation that was arranged by JayWay Travel. The guy was cool and also stopped by an old church, the Muzeul Satului. He says they move it around from time to time. An amazing place.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Muzeul Satului
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Muzeul Satului

On the way to the airport they have an old airplane, a Tupolve TU-134 with “Moldova” written on the side of it. Very cool to see.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Antonov TU-134
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Antonov TU-134

 

Airport Check-In

Check-in was simple as there was no one there. However, I was not able to check-in online so I had to pay a fee when I got to the airport. The kicker though is that the fee had to be paid in local currency of which I had none. So I had to get some change, grr… To add insult to injury, I misunderstood the amount needed and changed out too much.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Check-in Desk
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Check-in Desk

Once that was over, I wandered around a bit and then headed through security which was a breeze.

Airport Security

This was quite easy and there were no issues.



Airport Club

There is actually a Business Lounge right next to Gate 1, no Priority Pass Lounges were available.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Business Lounge
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Business Lounge

Gate Experience

Once at the gate, I just waited around and explored the are a bit. It’s big enough, but this is a smaller airport. There if course is a Duty Free area and plenty of seats.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Gate Area
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Gate Area

 

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Gates
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Gates

Boarding

Boarding was at Gate 1 via a bus to the plane.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Boarding at Gate 1
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Boarding at Gate 1

 

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airside
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airside

The bus took us to the airplane which was not too far away. We then alighted and boarded by both the front and rear stairs. Although I had a seat at the front, which is unusual for me, but that was the only window available, I boarded at the rear so I could one, use the rear stairs and two check out the plane a bit more.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 On Ramp
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 On Ramp

I made my way to my seat, hoping to have a middle empty seat, but that was not the case. The couple seemed nice, but never said a word to me the entire flight.

The airplane is configured in a 3-3 layout.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Interior
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Interior

 

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Interior
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Interior

 

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Window Seat
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Window Seat

Legroom

There’s not much legroom on this airplane; it is all Economy class and they packed us in.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Legroom
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Legroom

Now I did notice that this airplane is owned by Atlantis European Airways as denoted by the seatmap.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Atlantis European Airways
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Boarding Atlantis European Airways



Takeoff

This airport only has one active runway, so after pushback, we had to take the runway as a taxiway and then turn around and use it as a runway.

 

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Runway 26 KIV
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Runway 26 KIV

I did notice they were building a taxiway though, so by the time you read this, it may be completed.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 new taxiway
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 new taxiway

It was an absolutely beautiful day so I could see for miles.

v\FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Takeoff
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Takeoff

The Inflight Service

Soon after takeoff, the flight attendants started their service of water, drinks and a sandwich; all complimentary.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Inflight
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Inflight
FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 In-flight Sandwich
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 In-flight Sandwich
FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 In-flight Drinks
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 In-flight Drinks
FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Inflight service
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Inflight service

Inflight Entertainment

There is no inflight entertainment on this flight, you just had to enjoy the view outside or read a book.

 

Landing

Soon, it was time for landing as we approached the Irish coast. It was a picture perfect day and a great end to the flight.

FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Irish Coast
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Irish Coast
FlyOne - Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Dublin Airport Area
FlyOne – Airline Service Review of Chisinau, Moldova to Dublin, Ireland Airbus A320 Dublin Airport Area

It was also great to see the airplanes at Dublin International when we landed.

 

Final Thoughts

Great flight and great service. Thanks.

Have you flown FlyOne? What do you think?

The post Airline Service Review: FlyOne (5F) Chisinau, Moldova (KIV) to Dublin, Ireland (DUB) appeared first on Travel Tips.

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