Around the world in NZ/LH/LX/SA J (and LA/UX/BA/TP/U2/KL Y) - including Chornobyl

[HeavyElectricity]

I'm just about to start heading off on my 3-month round-the-world trip.

This trip is mostly focused around Europe, where my family are based. I haven't been back to the UK to visit them since Christmas of 2010.

I'm taking the long-way to get to Europe, flying out via Argentina. On the return leg, I'm coming back via South Africa.

European destinations will include Spain, UK, Ukraine (including a much anticipated visit to Chornobyl), Portugal, Netherlands, and Switzerland.





I haven't been great with my planning, but at least I have flights and accommodation organised for most places. I figure that as long as I have somewhere to head to after landing, I can plan what I'm going to do and see after I check-in . South Africa is the big question mark where I feel like I should have a plan and some excursions organised - and despite reading some great trip reports here I'm still unsure where to even begin - but I'll now have to research that after I start travelling.

I've always appreciated those who post their travel stories here. I'm going to try and sort my photos and update here as I travel, but I may well get side-tracked often, so apologies in advance. There will likely be a period of a few weeks where I have nothing to post.

I've just arrived at Perth airport, for my first leg PER-AKL. This will be my first trip report, so go easy on me!


Index of Trip Report

Flights
PER-AKL, NZ Business, 787-9, September 2016
AKL-EZE, NZ Business, 777-200ER, September 2016
AEP-BRC, LA (4M) Economy, A320-200, September 2016
ARC-AEP, LA (4M) Economy, A320-200, September 2016
EZE-FRA, LH Business, 747-8i, September 2016
FRA-MAD, LH Business, A321-200, September 2016
MAD-LGW, UX Economy, E190, September 2016
LHR-KBP, BA Economy, A320, October 2016
KBP-LHR, BA Economy, A320, October 2016
LHR-LIS, TP Economy, A320, October 2016
OPO-LGW, U2 Economy, A320, October 2016
SOU-AMS, KL (WA) Economy, F70, November 2016
AMS-SOU, KL (WA) Economy, F70, November 2016
LHR-LIS, TP Economy, A320, November 2016
LIS-ZRH, LX Business, A320, November 2016
ZRH-JNB, LX Business, A340-300, November 2016
JNB-CPT, SA Economy, 737-800, November 2016
CPT-HDS, SA (XZ) Economy, CRJ-200, December 2016
HDS-JNB, SA (XZ) Economy, Dash 8-Q400, December 2016
JNB-PER, SA Business, A340-300, December 2016

Destinations
Auckland, New Zealand, September 2016
Buenos Aires (Part 1), Argentina, September 2016
Bariloche, Argentina, September 2016
Buenos Aires (Part 2), Argentina, September 2016
Madrid, Spain, September 2016
New Forest, United Kingdom, September/October 2016
Chornobyl Exclusion Zone, Ukraine, October 2016
Kyiv, Ukraine, October 2016
Tomar, Portugal, October 2016
Aveiro / Porto, Portugal, October 2016
Amsterdam, Netherlands, November 2016
London, United Kingdom, November 2016
Lisbon, Portugal, November 2016
Zürich, Switzerland, November 2016
Cape Town, South Africa, November 2016
Kruger National Park, South Africa, December 2016

 

[TomVexille]

Sounds like a great way to spend 3 months!

I'm looking forward to following along

 

[deka2]

Subscribed

Looking forward to Chornobyl

 

[mmchow]

Indeed a long way to travel but hey, that's the beauty of this site. Why fly direct when you can go the long way. Looking forward to your trip report but most importantly, enjoy the 3 months journey.

 

[24601]

Definitely on board for this one, looking forward to reading all about it.

 

[VPS]

subscribed - can't beat a good trip report with a glass of wine when I get home (one day I'll write my own)

 

[HeavyElectricity]

PER-AKL

Flight: NZ176
Aircraft: 787-9
Seat: 3A (J)
Departed: PER 05/09/2016 19:30 AWST
Arrived: AKL 06/09/2016 05:29 NZST (16mins early)
Duration: 5h 59m


I arrived at Perth airport fairly early for my 19:30 flight, being dropped off just before 16:30. There were already long queues at the unmanned check-in desks, with the premium queue already spilling beyond the marked queuing area.

When check-in opened about 15mins later, only a couple of desks served people from the premium queue, meaning that it seemed to move slower than all the other queues. There also seemed to be a lot of people with sports equipment (The UCI Gran Fondo World Championships was held in Perth over the weekend) - meaning every other person was checking in oversize luggage.

Departure control and security was pretty much empty, and I got through incredibly quickly - although was subjected to the full body scanner.

This was my first time inside the Perth Qantas Business Lounge, and although it did have the vibe of a windowless box, it was fine. It was too busy for me to feel comfortable taking photos though. 'Lamb' casserole (chickpeas, peas, and one piece of lamb), and chocolate profiteroles were on offer. The public international airport departure area is pretty bad in general - especially when compared to the new Virgin domestic terminal next door, so any form of lounge is nice to have.

I was one of the first to board. Maybe I've been spoiled by my many coast-to-coast trips recently in Virgin's 'The Business', but my first impression of the Business Premier seats was that they were a little narrow and a bit claustrophobic. I'm a tall (and wide :/) guy, and there weren't really any armrests. Having to reach behind your shoulder for the coughtail drinks ledge is strange too. I'm not a fan of facing in to the aisle, but row 'A' is definitely the one to grab if travelling solo, as you're not facing in to other people at least.



Sparkling wine was served whilst boarding was being completed. This was my first flight on a 787, and couldn't believe how quiet the engines were during take off.

Once we had taken off, the seat actually became a lot more comfortable (and seemingly more spacious) after it was reclined a little. The ottoman however was too short for me - I could only get one leg on it comfortably at a time. The table works very well and has a wide range of positions, but the TV-on-an-arm less so.

Hot towels and arrival cards were distributed, and a gin and tonic and some nuts were served as a pre-dinner refreshment. Dinner followed not long after.





I chose the lemongrass chicken as my starter, but was given the artichoke (sorry, no photo). This was accompanied with a choice of roll or garlic bread. I then went with the braised short-rib. Both were quite tasty. For desert, I chose the ice cream, and declined the offer of desert wine. Service was efficient but not terribly friendly.



After dinner service, the FA offered to make up my bed. I found the bed slightly too short again. Even with the pillows right up against the window and over the vent which said 'Do Not Cover', I could not lie on my back with my legs straight and have them fit in the ottoman. Side-sleeping it had to be (usually I prefer this anyway). The bed itself was quite comfy.

I had a very strange dream - I dreamt the plane landed whilst the seat was still in fully-flat mode, and that the pilot joked we landed in Perth when we'd arrived at Auckland. Then I woke up to the mood-lighting being turned up, and a light breakfast of a coffee and pastry being served.



No hot towels prior to landing was a bit surprising, you'd think that after having a sleep it would be better to provide them for landing rather than after take off.

Immigration and customs was quick and painless. As it was raining, I used Uber to get me directly to my hotel in the city, rather than going with my original plan of SkyBus + walk. The Uber driver was very friendly, and provided lots of helpful tips and suggestions on what I might do whilst I'm here.

 

[RooFlyer]

Subscribed

Looking forward to Chernobyl

Me too.

extra letters

 

[bismarck]

Re: Per-akl

Boarding pass scanned.

 

[bPeteb]

Re: Per-akl

Looking forward to this sludge. I'm sure that I read that the 787 J seats are narrower than those on the 777s? We're average size and height and length of seat was ok for us as a bed. I could imagine if you were tall your feet would be poking out into the aisle. It'll be interesting to see if you like the 777 seats better although you will be kind of facing someone.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Auckland

The weather in Auckland has been quite variable! I've been caught in quite a few light showers, but the sun has come out a few times too.

I've been staying at the Sofitel Auckland Viaduct Harbour, and I have to say it's fantastic. I booked during an Accor Plus private members sale (50% off) and although I arrived at around 6:30am I was assigned an upgraded room straight away, given a voucher for 2 drinks at the bar, and was granted a late-checkout of 4pm on Friday (my flight to EZE isn't until the evening). Some macaroons were delivered to my room along with a thank you note, and the daily turn-down service provides a bottle of water and a chocolate. The rain shower in the bathroom is great, and the room modern and spacious. The hotel is situated in Viaduct Harbour, close to restaurants and bars, and 5-10mins walk from the city centre.



On my last (brief) trip to Auckland in 2008 I visited the Sky Tower, and took a ferry to Rangitoto Island - which was a great day trip, but didn't feel the need to repeat those activities this time round.

On Tuesday, I spent my time wandering around Silo Park, Wynyard Quarter, Viaduct Harbour, and Queen Street.





On Wednesday, I explored Auckland Domain, then on to Newmarket, had some lunch, and came back via Parnell.

On Thursday I was planning to go to one of the many islands in Waitematā Harbour, but because of the poor weather I instead took a ferry across to Devonport (logic being there would be places to take shelter, and if necessary plenty of frequent ferries to jump back on). I walked up Mount Victoria, had some lunch, and then walked North Head, and down/along Cheltenham Beach. It cleared up quite nicely by the afternoon.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

AKL-EZE

Flight: NZ30
Aircraft: 777-200ER
Seat: 5K (J)
Departed: AKL 09/09/2016 21:23 NZST (78mins late)
Arrived: AKL 09/09/2016 17:52 ART (67mins late)
Duration: 11h 29m


The trip from the city to Auckland airport took forever. I had heard that traffic was likely to be bad, and that it could take up to an hour to get to the airport. Therefore I attempted to order using the cheaptaxi website (at a fixed rate of NZ$35), but received an email shortly after booking saying that my booking had been cancelled as they were fully booked. I ended up taking an Uber, leaving the hotel just after 4pm. The trip ended up taking 1h 24m, but I had plenty of time, so wasn't too much of a drama.

I'd received a notification in the morning that NZ30 would depart 70mins late, but as I had to check out of the hotel at 4pm anyway, I decided I'd still head to the airport and relax in the Air New Zealand lounge. The airport check-in area was pretty busy, but I headed straight for the separate 'Premium' area, and was directed to the additional section towards the rear for business passengers. I was very impressed with this check-in area, and although I've never flown first class, it felt like the kind of first class experience I've read about on here - I was immediately greeted and escorted to a desk/booth, my check-in processed, and baggage offloaded. After completing the departure card, I was shown to a dedicated lift which takes you straight to the fast-track departure border and security checks. It was all exceptionally quick and efficient.

When I first stepped in to the lounge however, it was absolutely heaving. I had to do two laps to just find an empty chair. After about an hour, and the flights to Houston (delayed), Los Angeles (delayed), San Francisco, Brisbane, and Sydney all departed within about 20mins of each other, it quietened down a bit (still busy, but some free seats) and it was possible to relax . The lounge is quite smart, and had plentiful food options. Infinitely better than the Qantas lounge at Perth International. I had a salmon and potato hash made by the chef, which was delicious. There were other hot options, quite a few decent salads, sandwiches and cakes. I grabbed a g&t from the bar too.

Although there was a little wait at the gate before boarding got under way, I was quickly on board after it had started. And what a difference in seat compared to the 787-9! Although looking the same at a glance, the seat on the 777-200ER was so much more comfortable. Wider, arm rests, a TV that didn't bash in to you when swinging it out on its arm, a coughtail table that could be reached while seated, and windows that could be looked out of without breaking your neck. I was very happy with it for the 11h flight. I forgot to take a photo however!

The in flight service was great too. Boarding drinks and post take off drinks were served before the dinner service commenced. I chose the prawns as a starter, and the lamb shank for main. Desert was a rhubarb tart. All quite tasty.







I managed to get some sleep, and woke up properly just under 3 hours from landing. My breakfast included fruit salad with yogurt, a croissant, and waffles with apricots.



EZE was (and apparently quite unusually) a breeze to get through. My luggage didn't come out for a while, but otherwise no queueing at all.

My friends in Buenos Aires had booked me a taxi, so I just had to find my name at the desk and pre-pay the fare. Was quite a smooth journey in to Buenos Aires City, with the traffic in the opposite direction being very congested.

 

[JohnM]

Re: Akl-eze

BP scanned.

 

[Major]

Re: Akl-eze

I am along for the ride as well

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Buenos Aires

For the the first part of my visit to Buenos Aires, I was mostly based around Recoleta and Palermo.


After arriving at my friend's apartment in Recoleta on Friday evening, we headed out for a nice steak dinner in Palermo. A great arrival activity to help get settled in!


Saturday included a morning of walking around Recoleta, including a brief re-visit to Recoleta Cemetery (interesting to see how it has changed since 2006 and the new crypts), and a look at 'Floralis Genérica' (metal flower sculpture). In the afternoon, it was back to Palermo for a coffee, followed by a fantastic wine tasting evening at 'Pain et Vin', dinner at Peruvian restaurant 'Pacifica Bar de Mar' (great food), and then finishing the night with a couple of coughtails at Verne Club.




On Sunday we made a trip to 'Feria de Mataderos' - an area of the city originally known for its slaughterhouses, but now for its fair. Impressive street food, markets, dancing, and Gauchos (someone who works in cattle ranches). In the evening we went to a gig back in the city centre.








Monday was a rainy day, and a big food day. It was 'Food Week' in Buenos Aires, and quite a few restaurants provide set menu meals at a very decent price. We ended up going to a participating restaurant for both lunch (I had fish main, and churro desert) and dinner (empanada, steak, and tiramisu). Was absolutely stuffed after dinner! We also visited 'El Ateneo Grand Splendid' (which the Guardian rates as the second best bookshop in the world) before lunch.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

AEP-BRC

Flight: LA4344
Aircraft: A320-200
Seat: 4C (Y)
Departed: AEP 13/09/2016 12:05 ART (20mins late)
Arrived: BRC 13/09/2016 14:23 ART (13mins late)
Duration: 2h 18m


Quick check-in at one end of the airport with no queue, but then quite a long walk to departures which was at the opposite end of the entire airport.
Bit of a queue at security, and then gate 16 was back down the end of the airport I'd just come from (but post-security).
The flight departed 20mins late, and the delay was never displayed/announced before boarding (despite boarding late), and only was mentioned once we were seated onboard.

Great seat - loads of leg room, best in economy I've ever had (except exit rows). The only reason I could think of is that maybe the row is for when the premium cabin is extended - there was a moveable curtain, euro-business style, but called the much more sensible name of 'premium economy' or 'space+' depending on if the middle seat gets blocked. I couldn't determine if other rows were the same, but I can't imagine every row would have this much leg room. Also had an empty middle seat, so I was happy!



No one was sat in the premium cabin rows 1-3, and the people that tried to relocate there after take-off were denied. Same with use of the forward toilet. The flight had a light load, probably only around 50% full.

Refreshments served soon after take-off. Friendly service - was provided a snack pack, a hot drink, and cold drink. Another drinks service followed shortly afterwards.



A bumpy and wobbly descent towards The Andes, with lovely views, followed by an incredibly smooth landing.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Bariloche

I stayed at 'Alma del Lago Suites & Spa', located just outside the main centre of Bariloche town.

The view from my hotel room balcony was fantastic view, and as I was provided a nice 'lake view' room.




On Wednesday I had a late breakfast at the hotel as it was surprisingly foggy and cold (-4) in the morning. It had cleared and warmed up by midday, and I took (the very crowded) Bus 50 to Los Cohiues/Lago Gutiérrez. The bus didn't go the expected route however, and luckily I was watching on my phone's map. I jumped off at the stop immediately after where I thought the bus would turn. A hike to to Cascada De Duendea ("Waterfall of the elves" - humorously mistranslated to me by the hotel receptionist as "Waterfall of the trolls"). It wasn't a great waterfall, but the walk around the lake was fantastic. I then walked up to "Mirador de Lago Guitérrez" for some more viewpoints.




On Thursday I took Bus 20 to Llao Llao, to hike the three trails nearby. Lovely walks with absolutely stunning views, and fantastic weather.



Ended the walks up Cerro Llao Llao:


Bariloche civic centre:



Some more thoughts about the hotel: There were no tea/coffee making facilities in the room. Very poor Wi-Fi coverage. Friendly and helpful staff at check-in. The swimming pool was quite busy, and a little small so was put off from going for a swim (a shame as the pool was one of the reasons I chose this hotel). Breakfast was good. Bar food wasn't up to much, but the local beer was great.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

BRC-AEP

Flight: LA4341
Aircraft: A320-200
Seat: 12C (Y)
Departed: BRC 17/09/2016 12:39 ART (9mins late)
Arrived: AEP 17/09/2016 14:28 ART (1min early)
Duration: 1h 49m


Upon arriving at BRC, I saw that the line for Austral/Aerolineas check-in was insane. I had seen on news there had been a pilot strike, and all flights the previous day had been cancelled.

LATAM had a empty queue, and walked straight up to a check-in desk. I had seen on the seat map that it would be a much busier flight this time. I asked (in my poorly attempted Spanish) for and was granted an exit row aisle seat. I was told that it is not normally granted as it is considered a premium seat, but because of the high load they were permitted to do it.

BRC airport has no departure area. Looks like some construction work is going on - not sure if this is related. The gate entry area was combined with the security checkpoint, and people weren't allowed to enter until announced. I didn't even find a general waiting area elsewhere landside. Only a large cafe with signs stating tables/seating for customers only. I sat down and ordered a coffee .

A call to proceed to the gate was made an hour before departure time. Metal detectors were beeping at 90% of people, resulting in pat-downs for pretty much everyone, including myself. Once at the gate area (for gates 1&2) it was standing room only.

Aerolineas boarding at the adjacent gate was a huge semi-circle mess of people pushing to board, where as LATAM seemed highly organised, and created split queues based on row number, and patrolled the queues checking documents before boarding began. People seated at the rear of the aircraft were boarded first.

Although full, the flight was much similar to my previous one. A quick and efficient snack and drink services immediately followed by another drinks service. Bring-your-own-device entertainment was available, and there was also the 'Just for Laughs Gags' show on the overhead drop-down monitors.

Side note: for some reason LATAM flight numbers were shown with the prefix '4M' rather than 'LA' on departure boards. LATAM announcements were made in Spanish and English, but I noticed that the Aerolineas flights had Spanish announcements only.

For some reason the baggage took ages to arrive at the carousel at AEP. But eventually it got going. All radio taxis were booked out with a 60min wait, so I ended up getting a taxi from the curb instead.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Buenos Aires

I spent the following day in Buenos Aires centre, having a walk around the main monuments, Puerto Madero, and San Telmo. I stayed at Novotel Buenos Aires, which was quite smart and modern, and provided a good breakfast.


Obelisco:


Puente De La Mujer in Puerto Madero:


Music in Feria de San Telmo:

 

[HeavyElectricity]

EZE-FRA

Flight: LH511
Aircraft: 747-8i
Seat: 5G (J)
Departed: EZE 19/09/2016 16:49 ART (6mins early)
Arrived: FRA 20/09/2016 11:17 CEST (7mins late)
Duration: 13h 28m


On arriving at the airport, I was quickly called over and processed at the first-class check-in counter (business counter was already dealing with someone). Security and departure checkpoints were quick, and without queues. This was another pleasant surprise, as I was expecting delays.

The Star Alliance lounge has quite a nice ambience. It wasn't very big, but it didn't get at all crowded. Although there wasn't a large food selection, the food that was available was of a good quality, and complemented the wine well.




Boarding was managed well, and commenced on time. Seat was good. I was glad I chose the middle seat on the lower floor - the foot-well area was much larger, and there was more space between my seat and my neighbours compared with the window seat pairs. Service was great.






Drink of sparking wine was provided as soon as I was at my seat. And a gin and tonic with some nuts after take off. Dinner service commenced soon after. I had the prawns to start, the tenderloin as a main, and a tart for desert. Prawns and tenderloin were fine, tart was delicious.




The seat's bed mode wasn't too comfortable - slightly too hard. Again, like the Air New Zealand bed, the curved foot-well meant I could only have one leg straight (directed to the deepest part of the curve) if lying on my back. Managed to dose on/off for a good 6+ hours though, and the flight went quickly.

I woke up a little before the cabin lights were turned on for breakfast service. I had fruit, cold-cuts, a herb omelette, and a croissant. Was pretty tasty, and the coffee was welcome.




This aircraft had both Wi-Fi internet and a GSM provider available. I tried to connect my phone to the GSM network, but I guess Vodafone Australia don't have a roaming agreement with 'AeroMobile'. Wi-Fi internet access was €9/hour, €14/4 hours, or €17/24 hours. I would have given it a go, but I never got bored enough to try .