Riding the roo to Africa

[tgh]

Just a few short notes about my recent roo experience.
I was able to secure an award booking to Syd/Joberg Y+outbound and Y inbound.
Having been a bit spoiled of late, I was curious to see how the flight worked out in this class of travel.
The 14hr+ flight in Y+ was pleasant enough, but any comparison to mainstream International J is very optimistic.
I found the seats a bit hard ,far more upright than I expected, and sleeping difficult.
Service and meals met my expectations ( which were not very high) but the 12 hour gap in the meal schedule was quite inexplicable.
Preparation for the 11+ hours return to 'Oz in Y involved spending a few hours in the Shongolo Lounge at Joberg.
Forty US for 1>2 Hours is the going rate, and although the atmosphere is ok .. the grazing is pretty simple.
Well primed with Alcohol and an antihistamine, I failed to enjoy my meal or the privations of Y (.. I was already pretty stuffed ) and so slept for 8 hours straight.
Choosing a window seat way back in the boonies worked well with heaps of stretch room along the floor between the fuselage and the next seat.
Overall the roo experience in these classes of travel was quite OK and I would be happy to use this carrier again.

I did also fly Joberg> Nairobi with Kenya Airways.
This carrier was quite organised and efficient, and I would also cheerfully use it again.

 

[flyingfan]

How did you find the JNB experience for arrivals and clearing, was it okay at the time?

And did seat selection for Kenya Airways become available during online checkin? I will do this flight later this year but in the other direction to what you did.

 

[tgh]

No Problems with jnb.. new airport and first class service from my experience
Seat Selection was theoretically available with on line check in but I didn't bother.
I did check in at jnb via a similar machine to "Oz roo set up , and selected my seat in that process.
I thought I might be travelling with uncle and aunty mary , their whole extended family and all the domestic animals as well...
There was a rush when boarding was called at jnb .. and I was even more fearful.
Turns out to be less than half full, service was good and the passengers all quiet and polite.. so much for racist preconceptions...
Return flight was full but again no less a chore than a full qf cityflyer....
Nairobi airport is small , tired , and very busy.
Manual check in ,was not offered seat selection tho I didn't ask......

A final note ..If you don't already know , Nairobi Traffic is virtually gridlocked during peak.. caveat emptor

 

[flyingfan]

I didn't know specifically about the traffic but thanks for the warning, I don't want to miss my flight.