Planes, Trains and Automobiles

[Deleted member 26544]

Having reached the lofty heights of Platinum with Qantas the task has become holding onto it in forward years. Lurking on AFF meant I had read plenty about the potential value of a DONE4 in attaining/retaining status. Playing with the Oneworld planning tool I was struggling to get a decent SC yield until I came across a route I think Serfty had worked out.

Putting forward my case to the +1 for Reg 9 and Reg 10 approval (public servants should understand this) entailed modifying the route slightly but I received approval. We decided to add in a couple of side trips, one to visit cycling friends we met during the Tour de France last year and the other to spend time in Scotland. The side trips would be booked in Y using a combination of cash fares and a Classic award. We decided to book the repositioning flights at the start and end of the trip as JASAs to round out the J experience so in the end the route is:

CBR-SYD-NRT-DEL-NRT-HNL-DFW-SEA-DFW-JAX|MCO-MIA-DFW-LGA-DFW-LAX-LHR-DXB-LHR-GLA-LHR-MEL-CBR

What is missing from above are the last two sectors of the DONE4 ticket which are MEL-CNS-MEL.The dates for these sectors were changed a few months after the ticket was booked so that I could spend my birthday in CNS.

The airlines we will be flying with are Qantas, Japan Airlines, American Airlines and British Airways. The operating aircraft at this stage are (with Y sectors noted):

Qantas
737-400
747-400
A380 (new config)

Japan Airlines
787
767

American Airlines
737-800
MD-80 (Y)
757 (Y)
767

British Airways
747-400
777
767 (Y)
A319 (Y)

Having Hilton HHonors Diamond status courtesy of the Velocity status match meant I am looking to requalify as well as make use of the benefits during the trip. The accommodation is:

Hilton Tokyo Bay
Hilton New Delhi Janakpuri
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport
Doubletree Alana Waikiki
Hilton Seattle
Hilton Garden Inn Jacksonville Downtown
Doubletree Orlando Airport
Doubletree Dallas Market Centre
Hilton Manhattan East
Hampton Inn LaGuardia Airport
Hilton Dubai Jumeirah
Hilton Edinburgh Grosvenor
Hilton Glasgow

Activities planned include visits to the Boeing Factory, Kennedy Space Centre, Museum of Flight and afternoon tea at the Burj Al Arab. The fun kicks off on Sunday 9 September.

 

[here2go]

In layman's terms (or at least SAP Centric terms):
FMA Reg 9 = Purchase Requisition Approval
FMA Reg 10 = Purchase Order Approval

If we used the same language as everybody else in the world the Public Service would not be the mysterious place that it is.

 

[Fantic125]

You haven't lived until you've read the Ford Motor Company acronym manual........

 

[here2go]

There are many TLAs in an ARE. (Three Letter Acronyms) (Acronym Rich Environment)

 

[jazza1971]

Looking forward to this TR RG1!

 

[Major]

Looking forward to this TR RG1!

Also looking forward to the TR. More importantly have you worked out the SC's and points ?

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Also looking forward to the TR. More importantly have you worked out the SC's and points ?

The SCs for this trip should be 1,975. This is split across two membership years (30 September anniversary) with 840 in the 2011-12 year and 1,135 in 2012-13.

Estimated point earn for the flights is 115,291 excluding loyalty bonuses.

 

[RWJ777]

The SCs for this trip should be 1,975. This is split across two membership years (30 September anniversary) with 840 in the 2011-12 year and 1,135 in 2012-13.

Estimated point earn for the flights is 115,291 excluding loyalty bonuses.

If you're travelling on APS business, surely you won't get any points as no points accrue to public servants.

 

[Deleted member 26544]

If you're travelling on APS business, surely you won't get any points as no points accrue to public servants.

Thankfully not travelling on APS business, I threw in the Reg 9 & Reg 10 reference because the +1 and I are both public servants.

 

[RWJ777]

Thankfully not travelling on APS business, I threw in the Reg 9 & Reg 10 reference because the +1 and I are both public servants.

Ah I see! When I saw your program I couldn't imagine how it could be on business -- but anything's possible in service of Her Most Gracious Majesty!

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Sunday 9 September
QF 704 CBR-SYD
SYD First Lounge

In the weeks and days leading up to the trip I was worried that there would be another volcano type event as our trip last year had been disrupted slightly by the eruption in Chile. So far so good, weather is perfect in SYD and at NRT.

We checked in online for the CBR-SYD and SYD-NRT flights the night before. A friend dropped us at CBR around 08:50. After getting boarding passes for both legs printed along with departure cards and express passes from the service desk landside we proceeded through security and up the escalator to the J lounge. Unfortunately the pancake machine was displaying an error message so I had a yoghurt with burnt fig and something for breakfast.

Boarding was called at 09:35 and we made our way to gate 11 where there was hardly a queue, not surprising for a mid morning flight on a Sunday. Settling into seats 1A and 1C on a 737-400 that was showing its age a bit we were offered a pre-departure glass of orange juice or water. Boarding was completed reasonably quickly and we pushed back a few minutes early. After a smooth takeoff to the north service commenced. The meal was a cold beef salad with what looked like a butterfly cake for dessert. This was followed quickly by coffee or tea. After a flying time of around 25 minutes we commenced descent into SYD landing towards the bay. A slow taxi and we deplaned at gate 1.

Transfer to T1 was quick and I always enjoy seeing the various QF aircraft up close. A quick trip through immigration, security and the duty free maze has us in the Qantas First lounge. Both +1 and I were able to snag appointments for a facial. For lunch I had the warm duck salad while +1 had the minute steak and we shared a salt and pepper squid. For dessert I had the angel cake with berries and cream, the +1 had the cheese plate and both were delicious. After a very relaxing facial I settled back in to while away the hours until dinner.

I forgot to mention in the earlier post that we are both traveling with hand luggage only. I have a Red Oxx AirBoss in red and the +1 has one in blue. I'll post photos once I get the hang of uploading them from my camera to the iPad.

 

[RWJ777]

Sunday 9 September
QF 704 CBR-SYD
SYD First Lounge

In the weeks and days leading up to the trip I was worried that there would be another volcano type event as our trip last year had been disrupted slightly by the eruption in Chile. So far so good, weather is perfect in SYD and at NRT.

We checked in online for the CBR-SYD and SYD-NRT flights the night before.

I forgot to mention in the earlier post that we are both traveling with hand luggage only. I have a Red Oxx AirBoss in red and the +1 has one in blue. I'll post photos once I get the hang of uploading them from my camera to the iPad.

Gosh, you are a very efficient packer to travel to Japan with only hand luggage each!

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Sunday 9 September
SYD First Lounge
QF21 SYD-NRT
Monday 10 September
NRT Arrival

After some hours relaxing in the first lounge it was time for dinner. For entree I had the buffalo mozzarella while +1 had the duck salad. Both were delicious and I like how they tweak the accompaniments for the mozzarella to suit the season. Main course was the asparagus and mushroom risotto for moi and the noodles with pork for +1. The risotto was quite filling so we skipped dessert.

After dinner we relaxed for a few hours until boarding was called at 8:50pm. We made our way to gate 10 where there was only a few people ahead of us in the J/W line. Boarding the plane through door we made our way upstairs and settled in to seats 16A and 16B. Juice, water or champagne was offered and we went with champagne. Having drunk Delamotte for most of the day I found the on board fizz a little tart but it was okay. The menus, breakfast order cards and amenity kits were then offered.

Boarding was completed on time and we pushed back and took off. After takeoff pajamas were distributed and I changed into mine. I then put the seat into bed mode and settled down as I was keen to get as much sleep as possible knowing that the next day would likely be full on. I managed to get around 6 hours of broken sleep on the Mark1 skybed. It is certainly a step up from trying to sleep stuck in a window seat in economy but sleeping on my front (how I usually sleep) was not feasible.

I woke up as they were serving breakfast and shortly one of the crew came along with my meal. I had ordered the orange pancakes with blueberries, cream and slivered almonds along with earl grey tea and an orange juice. The pancakes were delicious and sufficiently filling. The +1 had the pancakes as well but with an energizer smoothie instead of juice.

Our trays were cleared and not long after we commenced descent. We changed back into our clothes and stashed the pajamas in our bags. Landing in Narita was smooth although followed by a lengthy taxi to the terminal. We deplaned and were through immigration and customs reasonably quickly. We found our way down to the train station where we purchased a Narita Express and Suica (IC card, similar to London's Oyster card) package and descended further to the platform to await the next train.

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Here are some initial photos of the trip

The duck salad

The angel food cake with vanilla berries and cream

The selection of cheeses

Buffalo mozzarella

New season asparagus and wild mushroom risotto with truffled pecorino and crispy sage

The noodles with breaded pork

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Having navigated Tokyo station and made our way to Maihama station we boarded the Disney Resort Line monorail and rode the two stops to Bayside Station. A short walk across to the Hilton Tokyo Bay where we were assisted by a friendly agent who explained our room wasn't ready yet. We left our bags and made our way via monorail to Tokyo Disney Sea where we caught a bus to Tokyo Skytree.

After some hours in and around the Skytree we returned to the hotel where we were advised we had been upgraded although I didn't catch what to. We were also advised we could have a late checkout until 3pm. The room was reasonably spacious and looked out over the theme parks. Feeling somewhat exhausted we opted to have a room service dinner. A table was set up in our room, I had the spaghetti bolognese, +1 had a Japanese beef curry. The spaghetti bolognese was better than I had expected and the curry I'm told was delicious.

We then went to bed at 9pm on the somewhat firm mattress and slept until about 6:30, ready to start the next days adventure. Breakfast is served in the Square on 1F and is a fairly extensive buffet with Asian and western dishes. I noticed they had a priority seating line for HHonors guests with no one in it and we were assisted promptly. After breakfast we set out for the day.

After a full day in the city we returned to the hotel around 8pm and on entering our room noticed there were mats either side of the bed that said goodnight with slippers placed to one side.

 

[Simo]

You missed photo's of the salt and pepper squid

 

[Deleted member 26544]

You missed photo's of the salt and pepper squid

+1 was responsible for taking that photo and I didn't discover until later that he wasn't fully pressing the shutter button.

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Here are some more photos of the trip.

The Boeing 747-400 that would be taking us to Tokyo

Leg room in 16A

The menu for the flight

Orange pancakes with toasted almonds, mascarpone cream and fresh blueberries

The Tokyo Skytree as seen from the Narita Express

The room at the Hilton Tokyo Bay

Dinner in room at HTB

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Wednesday 12 September
Hilton Tokyo Bay

Friday 14 September
Hilton Tokyo Bay checkout
NRT airport
JL749 NRT-DEL
Hilton New Delhi/Janakpuri

Wednesday night we opted to have the buffet dinner at the hotel. It was a mix of Japanese, Chinese, thai and Indian cuisine. I tried a number of dishes and found a few that weren't to my liking. The points addict in me thought of the base points this would earn in my quest to retain diamond.

Friday morning we had a quick breakfast in the hotel before checking out. Checkout was quick and the agent wished us a pleasant day. We caught the Disney Monorail and a JR train to get to Tokyo station where we boarded the Narita Express to Terminal 2. It was certainly a relief to be on an air conditioned train after the packed JR train to Tokyo station and the walk to the Narita Express platform.

After a journey of around one hour the NEX arrived at Narita Terminal 2. We passed through a passport check just outside the station and proceeded upstairs to the departure level. The area for first class checkin was right in front of us and we were helped within a minute. The checkin agent advised us we would be boarding at gate 61 and invited us to visit the JL first lounge. We were directed through the south security screening point and after it plus immigration we were standing in front of the entrance to the business and first lounges. After having boarded passes scanned we proceeded into the lounge and managed to find a pair of seats. The food selection at the time we were there was decent and could perhaps be compared with the SYD Int J lounge. We had a glass of Ayla(?) champagne and some light snacks. I managed to get a photo of the Dreamliner that would be taking us to Delhi as they were loading cargo.

Boarding was called around midday and we walked the relatively short distance to our gate. Orderly queues had formed for economy and business class and after checking our boarding passes a gate agent ushered us to the business class queue. Around 5 minutes later they started boarding.

I have to say it felt special to walk on board this plane. The first thing I noticed was the higher ceiling and the feeling of space around head height. We settled into seats 2H & K which are in the forward section of business class, the aft section separated by lavatories and a bar area. The seat pitch didn't look or feel terribly generous although I had no problem with the seat width (for reference I'm 185cm and 74kg).

Departure was delayed a few minutes by late boarding passengers. After the doors were closed the safety video began playing, which I found interesting as it was done using cgi compared to Qantas (we flew out apparently on the last day Qantas were playing the Olympic version). It was a lengthy taxi to the runway where we had to wait for two planes to land before we could takeoff.

After the seat belt sign had been turned off the crew sprang into action. We were offered a glass of champagne then menus and pajamas were distributed although I didn't take a set of pjs since it was a daytime flight. The senior flight attendant in charge of the flight came by and introduced herself as did one of the other attendants.

Meal and drink orders were taken and I went with the French cuisine with a glass of Chateau Le Monteil-d'Arsac Haut-Medoc 2006. Hot towels were then offered from a wicker basket and then our drinks were brought out along with some rice crackers.

A little later the meal service began with attendants placing cloths on the tray table and then each meal was brought out from the galley. I found the beef to be quite delicious and came apart without much effort. I skipped the salmon part of the meal (I generally don't eat seafood) but found the rest to be quite tasty.

My tray was cleared within a few minutes of finishing the meal and I was then offered dessert which, although small, was very nice. More wine was offered and I declined, opting to stick with water for the rest of the flight so I didn't feel coughpy on arrival.

Throughout the meal I was watching Prometheus on the decently sized touch screen. The screen was reasonably responsive to both touch and the tethered controller. Passengers seated in row 1 have a smaller screen in their arm rest.

After the meal service was concluded an attendant came around with a basket containing eye shades, dental kits and other things one might find in an amenity kit.

The seat was definitely more comfortable than the QF Skybed Mk1 we had from SYD to NRT and the position controls reasonably responsive. It is still an angled bed though which will make the trip from DEL back to NRT interesting as it is a night flight and I tend to sleep on my front. It is also important to note that the plane doesn't have window shades but instead the windows darken electronically.

Around 1.5 hours prior to landing the second meal service started with drink orders being taken and I ordered a G&T. The meal was penne pasta with beef cheek and vegetables, warm bread and sliced fruit. The pasta and beef wasn't as nice as the first meal although the G&T and sliced fruit made up for it. We were offered further drinks as the trays were cleared and I declined as I wanted to maintain a clear head not knowing what the entry process would be like at the airport.

Around half an hour before landing we were asked to fasten our seatbelts as they were expecting turbulence. Around 10 minutes later it started getting real bumpy and the plane dropped a bit, it felt like a roller coaster.

We landed 5 minutes behind schedule and sat on the tarmac for 10 minutes as our gate was occupied. Once parked we disembarked and made our way to immigration where they had a separate queue for business/first class passengers, I guess similar to Express Path. The immigration officer spent a couple of minutes looking at my passport before stamping it. Passing through the green channel for customs we were greeted by a Hilton representative who escorted us to the car that would take us to the hotel. After an interesting ride through Delhi traffic we arrived at the hotel next to Janakpuri West metro station where security guards ran a mirror underneath the vehicle before opening the gate. After passing through airport style security at the entrance we were in the spacious lobby and were informed as a diamond guest checkin would be completed in the lounge. The lounge agent was friendly and explained the benefits while checking us in. We had booked a King Suite and received same, not that I was disappointed since it was the highest category available.

There were chocolates and a selection of fruit waiting in the room along with a welcome letter signed by the GM.

The next morning we had breakfast in the lounge. On offer were the usual cereals, breads cold cuts and hot options included bacon, scrambled eggs, chicken sausages and a variety of Indian items. Service throughout the hotel was friendly and the staff were eager to make sure our stay was pleasant. One morning we commented to staff how nice the welcome chocolates in our room had been, after we returned from a few hours by the pool there were extra chocolates waiting for us.

 

[Deleted member 26544]

Here are some more photos, I'm sorry they're not quite keeping up with report installments. It's interesting working solely with an iPad.

The Boeing 787 taking us to Delhi

Leg room shot in seat 2K

Post takeoff glass of champagne

The western menu for the flight to Delhi

The view out the window looking back slightly to that gorgeous wing

The contemporary French meal

Dessert

The second meal which I found wasn't as good as the first