Red-hot rooming, writing, reading, relaxing and roaming in rainy Thailand.

[Quickstatus]

Oscar Wilde,

His other memorable associations with hotels were that he was arrested in one and he died in another

 

[Cycha]

Thank you for the TR! You’ve put this on my radar and I’d love to visit someday.

 

[VPS]

Thanks @RooFlyer . Next is getting through Term 4 at school with exams and reporting. Though I do also have the AFF Gathering in Adelaide to look forward to!

Over the summer my planned next trip is a cycling safari through rural India. I will of course do a TR for that so stay tuned!

Another well written interesting TR

Thanks

 

[Flyfrequently]

PG274 (Bangkok Airways Economy, coughet to Bangkok)

PG used to have J seating, similar to Euro biz and excellent service 2 years ago, all but a few flights now @Human

This is a delightful little lounge. I grade it a B plus. The reason the grade isn’t higher is that you need to leave the lounge to go to the toilets outside (which are spotlessly clean).

Same deal with the toilets if you were using the Coral Lounge

And there’s no alcohol,

which is why we chose the Coral

You can purchase coughtails and spirits but wine was free in the Coral Lounge.

You kept your glass and took it back if you wanted a refill

 

[Ade]

Pleasant Surprise #3: There’s two brand new Plaza Premium Lounges open at BKK. My AmEx Platinum gets me free entry to the “normal” Plaza Premium Lounge. But there’s also a new First lounge, which advertises entry at 2400 Baht (just over AUD 100) for two hours. I wasn’t inclined to pay that much, given that I already had access to other lounges. But I wondered … maybe my AmEx Platinum card would give me discounted entry into the First lounge?
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I rocked up to the Plaza Premium entry, showed my Platinum card and asked whether I could have discounted entry to the First Lounge. She immediately said that I could access the First Lounge for THB 800 – about A$33! I didn’t hesitate.

I walked into the First Lounge. It was almost empty. In fact for the two-and-a-bit hours I was there, I was the only person using the Lounge for about half of that time.
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There was a small selection of buffet food available, but most of the menu was a la carte. Service, as you can imagine, was extremely attentive and proactive.
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And the food and drink! Oh My Goodness! I couldn’t help it – I went to town in the First Lounge in a way that I don’t think I’ve ever gone to town in an airport lounge before. But heck, I was about to fly on a Jetstar redeye. Cut me some slack!

I had something called Khao Soi – a deliciously spicy, laksa-like soup.
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The coughtail is called a “Holiday Mood”. No idea what’s in it, but it was great. (I should mention at this point that the lounge has a fully-serviced bar).
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For dessert(s), I had a “Thai Tea-ramisu” and baklava…
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And a Thai iced tea.
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To show that I am a Good Boy, I finished with some fruit.
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Afterwards I waddled over and had a shower. The attendant here proactively came up to me and said that showers were about to get busy and there might be a queue if I waited any longer, so he suggested I have one now. That’s service!
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Is the Plaza Premium First Lounge worth paying THB 2400 for? On reflection, maybe yes, if you don’t have access to another quality lounge. I’ve spent enough time at BKK now to know that there are some very good lounges there. But there are also some absolute shockers.

If you have an AmEx Platinum, the equation becomes much easier: for THB 800, this is a no-brainer. If you already have access to another high quality lounge at BKK (I’m looking at you, Qatar Lounge), then it’s probably not worth it. For everybody else: do yourself a favour.

I’ve been to four First Class lounges around the world (and the Oneworld Emerald Lounge at JFK) – this is absolutely up there with the very best of them and it surpasses some of them. But there are two downsides – first, there’s no sleep/bedroom areas, which the very best First lounges now seem to have. And second, the toilets and showers are shared with the normal Plaza Premium Lounge. And they're nice, but they’re not quite of the size and quality you’d expect in a First Class lounge. So I’ll give this lounge a straight A rather than an A Plus. But it’s arguably the best lounge at BKK.

And, it goes without saying, a lovely little indulgence before a Jetstar redeye!

I spent a few hours at the PP First at PHN/KTI and was very pleasantly surprised at the offering - soft, hard, service - everything was top notch. I had access to PP F as OW-E. The staff also recognised when I returned (in two weeks' time) and also remembered that I like to shower before I eat - so organised a shower as soon as I entered the lounge. Very attentive & memorable service.

 

[Ade]

I'm like @Ade and ask for extra chilli.

The only way I know to spruce up any savory dish - a generous serve of fresh chilli

 

[Ade]

No doubt there are others

@Human

 

[Ade]

I might just post some of the more complicated content on AFF as the musings of wheelchair ron. The AFF critics can have a field day.
A couple of the topics will be - The day I met King Charles.
The PM who thought I was a good guy
A weekend hosting Russia’s 4 top diplomats in Australia
Mrsdrron becomes the go to driver for a NSW premier in the Hunter.

Very much looking forward to this @drron ... looking for my reading glasses and a nice cup of earl grey tea to get me settled for the read.