A pre-wedding Honeymoon? (21 days around Asia)

[HirafuHeartAttack]

Day 6 (Part 2):

After finishing the champagne we decided it was time for lunch number 1 so we headed to the dining room. En route I enquired about the possibility of a complimentary massage however the next availability was not for 4 hours, well after our flight departed. I had heard that this service was becoming more difficult to utilise, even on standard 3 or so hour visits, and this interaction obviously confirmed that.

Dining room seating, however, was not an issue and we were immediately at a table with menus in had and more drinks on the way!






I started with a glass of the rose champagne and my fiance had an aperol spritz which I'm pleased to report was more than up to her standards. We then ordered a bunch of different things to shared and enjoyed all of them!




We started with the caprese salad and spicy dumplings (from the Mott 32 collab menu) for starters. While the caprese isn't really my thing it received very positive feedback. The dumplings were unreal and we ended up ordering more - highly recommend. (We also didnt order the beef from this menu but did hear very good things from the tables on either side of us).



We followed those up with more dumplings and the garlic prawns. It was quite good to see how high quality the Pier food remains when it comes to both western and eastern options.



Finally we split a wonton noodle soup and wagyu burger for mains. Both delicious although not the best burger I've had in a lounge, that title stays with Emirates for now.

After finishing the above and another round of drinks we decided to decamp and head towards our gate and a new development in the CX lounge netwrok, that being the deck in its new first class offering.

Obviously those who have been to the pier before will understand this but a word of warning to those who don't... This is a LONG walk. The people moving trains only move in one direction on the departures side so it turns into several hundred metre (if not 1km+) walk back towards the terminal entrance to arrive at the precinct housing the QF lounge and the CX deck (as well as the wing where most JAL and QF flights depart from).

On our way we got our first glimpse of our 777 for todays ride.



At this stage our walk to the deck also took us past our gate so I stopped by to ask about the F seats. They said they had no note on our reservation regarding it but would make one now. They did mention the same as the check in agent about them being held for JAL diamond members but they didn't rule out the possibility that as OW Emerald I would be given priority if they were not full, something the check in agent said made no difference... I also had more faith that a note made by the actual JAL staff would be made, unlike at check in where it seemed to be lip service.

Despite all this and knowing the realities of air travel we were still resigned (though nonetheless content) to being in an Apex suite for this flight. Better than economy, don't get me wrong, just not the experience we were anticipating.

 

[HirafuHeartAttack]

Day 6 (Part 3):

We arrived at the very far end of the terminal and headed up the escalator to The Deck. For those familiar with the QF lounge this is located right behind the exit/entry further away from the terminal entrance.

The lounge design is consistent with all of the Studio Ilse designed counterparts. The staff were friendly and the space is actually much larger than I anticipated. As you enter there is a seating area with a more cosy indoor feel, as well as the dining room to the left, while on the right is the bar which occupies its own room (along with some self serve coffee machines and pastries/quiches). Directly in front is the cold drinks and chilled buffet section.






While there isn't a whole heap in the way of hot buffet items, the noodle bar is still a central staple of this lounge with its assortment of soups and dumplings. We took a seat out on the terrace, while we awaited some dumplings. Here we were also presented with a menu as below, and there was another menu in the lounge for their iteration of the Mott 32 collab.




The dumplings, particularly the pan fried chive ones, were among the best we've had in a lounge. They were once again washed down with some more champagne.




As boarding was due to commence we decided it was time to make the short walk down the gate.

For those interested in utilising this lounge I think there are 2 examples where it makes sense. That is, if you don't have the time to head to the pier, and aren't eligible (as we weren't) for the temporary Bridge First section then I would head here, which makes sense as the Wing undergoes renovation. The other scenario is as we did where you have time for the Pier but prefer to wait a little closer to your gate.

Now the bigger question is whether I'd take this over the QF lounge and the answer is probably no... I think the QF lounge is a better space with on par, if not better dining, and certainly more options at the buffet. The only thing it's missing is champagne (for plats at least).

 

[HirafuHeartAttack]

Day 6 (Part 4):

During the short walk from the lounge we noticed that boarding was already well underway. However before we even got to the front of the line a JAL staff member pulled us aside with some very welcome news. We were told there was 2 no shows and handed 2 new boarding passes for seats 1D and 1G! We profusely thanked the senior JAL staff member who had made this possible and cheerfully headed through the biometric scanners to board.





Once on board I was stoked! This was way better than the sky suite 3 initially booked, let alone that apex suites nonsense. (It may be clear by now that I do not like those seats...)

Once settled we were offered champagne or water as a PDB while we checked out the menus to make our selections. We both ended up going with the Japanese option.



A surprisingly short taxi and prompt departure meant we were in the air a couple minutes after leaving the gate. Japanese airlines tend to leave the seatbelt sign on a little longer than most in our experience but it wasn't long before it was off and another glass of champagne and some nuts was offered.



I got up to stretch my legs and check out the restroom. It certainly wasn't suites sized but the forward F toilet was much larger than your standard offering, and equipped with the all important bidet.



About 35 minutes into the flight lunch was served. Given the sector length, and remembering that despite the seats this was for all intents and purposes business class, everything came on 1 tray.



It was also quite tasty with the halibut and prawns the standouts, as well as a very hearty miso soup. After lunch I reclined to watch some episodes of DIRT, a huckberry series (primarily made for youtube) that I highly recommend if you have even a passing interest in snowboarding, surfing or cuisine. I enjoyed that with some umeshu and ice cream.



The rest of the flight passed without much incident and before long we were making our descent into Tokyo.

 

[elanshin]

Nice trip report. We're doing something similar as a pre-honeymoon trip in November to Europe. Might burn those Accor suite night upgrades and points and hilton points on the trip.