QF J BNE-HKG and return + HKG lounge

[v1nce007]

A friend and I recently had a brilliant 10 day hiking trip through the mountains of Northern Vietnam along the Chinese border, with a few days in Hong Kong either side. I will do a seperate review on the hiking trip, however this review will focus on the flights.

I had in the past flown QF J Australia to Asia in the old MKII SkyBeds, however this was my first trip in the new Marc Newson suites. It was also a special trip for me as it got me over the line to qualify for gold for the first time. As a largely self-funded flyer, I was really happy to have achieved this less than 6 months into the renewal cycle

 

[v1nce007]

I booked the flights serveral months in advance, and delighted to see from the seat map that it would be the new Marc Newson suites, immediately selected the forward-most window seat available to me as a PS, which was 5A, however upon further research I noted that the even numbered window seats were more desirable, as they were closer to the window, with the side table and divider between the seat and aisle offering a bit more privacy than the odd numbered seats. Therefore I moved myself back to 6A, and consulted ExpertFlyer.

2A had already been assigned, no doubt to a well deserving WP or WP1, so I used ExpertFlyer to set a seat alert for 4A - a few days before the flight I received notification that 4A was now available, and booked it immediately.

 

[v1nce007]

With a 6am connecting flight from MEL to BNE, and a work function the night before, I cleverly booked myself a room at the Park Royal at MEL. Feeling very dusty at my early morning wake-up call, I headed over to the QF Business lounge for a long black, and then straight onto the flight, Seat 2C. No apple juice available on this flight, and as I don't enjoy orange juice, I stuck with water. The CSM offered "perfectly poached eggs" with bacon for breakfast. And indeed they were perfect, with the yoke running out as soon as I cut into them. However, I couldn't stomach too much as the effects of the night before we're starting to catch up with me. The CSM was very concerned that the eggs were less than perfect, and I had to assure him that the left overs were a direct result of the previous evening's overindulgence.

Arriving at BNE and taking the bus transfer to the Int terminal, I met up with my Brisbane based infrequently flying friend, and guested her into the QF Business lounge. What a dump; I'm glad to know there is a refurbishment planned for this lounge. Anyway, after a drink in the lounge I was feeling much better. My friend was in Y, and I advised her to take her boarding pass to the lounge angles to ask for an aisle seat. She was suitable impressed when they were able to give her a row to herself.

 

[v1nce007]

Utilised priority boarding and was on board quickly with a cheery "welcome to Business" from the FA at the door. Settled into seat 4A and was very happy with the layout of the suite. The car-style over-the-shoulder seat belt surprised me a bit, but wasn't uncomfortable. The table to the side was a good size, various power and USB plugs available, the screen was a good size and well positioned. Pillow and blanket were already waiting on the seat, and I was able to shove them onto the footrest as I knew I would not need them until well after lunch. Champagne was served prior to take off.

Straight after take off the FAs fitted the mattress toppers, and I had a second glass of champagne along with a packet of Brazil nuts and pretzels, which was mainly pretzels with only 2 or 3 nuts. I would have preferred these to be served in a bowl rather than from the packet.

 

[v1nce007]

The J lunch menu



Started with the zucchini soup, absolutely delicious and went so well with the champagne



Followed by the trout, which was pretty nicely cooked, however the standout was the muscle broth, so flavourful and again went beautifully with the champagne. Probably didn't need such an enormous slice of lemon!



To finish, the cheese platter with a beautiful glass of port. A perfect finish to the meal

 

[v1nce007]

After lunch, some beautiful views out of the window as we crossed the top of Australia

 

[v1nce007]

A few more champagnes, then onto the peppermint tea before grabbing a few hours of nap time. Woke up for a cold Heineken and some more "nuts"



I turned down the evening snack, knowing that I was going out for dinner in Hong Kong soon after landing.

Overall, a brilliant flight. It was a beautiful day for flying, the suite was incredible, catering very good, and the usual excellent QF J service.

Coming up... the return flight and the QF HKG lounge.

 

[njba]

Nice TR so far. I agree: it feels a little cheap to serve the nuts in a bag as opposed to a wee little dish. Also, why can't they be warm?

 

[v1nce007]

Just getting around to finishing this TR.

After a brilliant 2 weeks in Northern Vietnam, we arrived back in HKG about midday aboard an unremarkable Jet* flight. With an 8 hour wait for our flight back to Australia, and having to collect our luggage as the flights were booked separately, we jumped on the airport express to the city to grab a quick lunch. I love how quick and easy it is to get around Hong Kong on the train, and the airport express is a great service. We went straight to the In-Town Check-In to drop our bags, and after a quick bite to eat on a sweltering day we were back on the train heading for the comforts of the QF HKG Lounge.

 

[v1nce007]

This was my first visit to the QF Hong Kong lounge, and I was suitably impressed. I've visited the QF SIN lounge before which is similar, but I rate the HKG lounge more highly.

The lounge was almost empty when we arrived, and as we walked through every staff member we passed greeted us with "welcome to the Qantas lounge". The lounge is huge, with a bar, and multiple dining and seating areas. I thought the décor was very slick, all done in shades of grey with lots of concrete. Apologies for a lack of photos but there are plenty to be found on google for anyone interested who hasn't been.

 

[v1nce007]

Looking forward to a few cold beers, we settled in at the bar for a couple of pints of Tsingtao on tap served in very nice pint glasses. We got chatting to the friendly bar tender who told us about the food that would be available later. He also talked me into trying their signature chichi coughtail, which was delicious.

 

[v1nce007]

After some food in the dining area we retired to a quiet seat with our deserts.



Plenty of USB ports are built into the tables so it's easy to charge devices.

The lounge filled up pretty quickly as the afternoon wore on. It was great to see solo travellers taking advantage of the large communal table to meet people while they ate.

 

[v1nce007]

By the time we had left the lounge a large boarding queue had developed, however the premium line was almost empty so I was soon on board. Flying back in 6A, so the same layout as on the way over. Mattresses had already been placed on the seats. I settled in with a glass of champagne pre-takeoff, and was served a second one within a few minutes of the seatbelt sign going off once we were in the air.

My travelling companion (who was sitting in economy), had a mishap on our last night in Vietnam and as a result had a few stiches in her arm. She was fine but a little uncomfortable. When the CSM came around to introduce himself and hand out the express cards for BNE, I let him know about my friend (not really expecting any special service) and he said he'd get the economy supervisor to see if there was anything she needs. When I went to check on her later in the flight she said that the CSS had come over to introduce himself, brought her some ice for her arm, and told her to ask for him personally if there was anything else she needed. She was absolutely mortified ("did you send the manager down to see me?!"), but she appreciated the extra attention, and all the beers she was proactively offered. Great Qantas service.

 

[v1nce007]

It took quite a while for the supper to come out as the J cabin was very full, but the FAs kept topping up drinks in the mean time. I went for the beef which was tasty although a little overdone.



Apologies, I forgot to take a photo of the menu (in fairness, I was at least a bottle and half of champagne in).

After a cheese plate and a glass of port, I went and changed into the PJs. Normally if I was buying PJs I'd get size M. I was given L/XL which actually fit quite well, and since I've washed them they are now the perfect size.

Then it was time for a peppermint tea and then off to sleep for a few hours. I'd pre-ordered a hot breakfast which was delicious, and all too soon it was time to land at BNE. After a quick bus transfer and a coffee at the BNE lounge, I was on my domestic J flight back to MEL, with a hangover starting to kick in

 

[v1nce007]

Have started a separate TR of the Vietnam hiking trip: http://www.australianfrequentflyer..../northern-vietnam-hiking-hong-kong-77652.html

 

[kermatu]

Nice report - thanks for taking the time to post!