I went on my first ever status run last weekend, doing the common SYD-BNE-TSV return trip in J. It was pretty uneventful; the TSV lounge guy knew exactly what I was doing. I had to do a bit of convincing before the lounge lady at BNE would let me in though; understandably most travelling in J class are SG or WP, not NB. Got told they're phasing out the availability of Appletizer on the way home, which was disappointing - it was my goto non-alcoholic drink on QF flights. And finally, experienced my first go-around arriving back in SYD - certainly got the cabin talking.
Surprisingly (or unsurprisingly I guess if many don't actually leave the terminal), there wasn't much on here about things to do in TSV during a status run. I was scheduled to be there for about 3 hours, and had spent way too much time in lounges already, so I decided to venture out into the city.
The trip to Townsville City (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Townsville+City+QLD+4810/@-19.261112,146.8169143,15z/) by taxi costs about $22 and takes about 15 minutes. There's a shopping centre there called Northtown if you need a landmark. From there I took a walk along the Strand - there's a memorial park, baths and a beach. The Townsville Aquarium and Museum of Tropical Queensland is in that area (look out for the big spider web above the traffic lights). Back in town, there's a number of cafes/restaurants, including Coffee Dominion (corner of Stoke and Ogden Streets, facing the Victoria Bridge), which seems to be recommended here a bit, and the Townsville Brewery. There are a few more cafes/bars/restaurants across Victoria Bridge.
That was enough to fill in the time for me. There's a few more things to do in this post - http://www.australianfrequentflyer....a-change-and-double-scs-57193.html#post973940
Hope this helps others pursuing this 'silly' hobby
P.S. what do people do for towels in the lounge showers? Or was that shower just missing towels?
Surprisingly (or unsurprisingly I guess if many don't actually leave the terminal), there wasn't much on here about things to do in TSV during a status run. I was scheduled to be there for about 3 hours, and had spent way too much time in lounges already, so I decided to venture out into the city.
The trip to Townsville City (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Townsville+City+QLD+4810/@-19.261112,146.8169143,15z/) by taxi costs about $22 and takes about 15 minutes. There's a shopping centre there called Northtown if you need a landmark. From there I took a walk along the Strand - there's a memorial park, baths and a beach. The Townsville Aquarium and Museum of Tropical Queensland is in that area (look out for the big spider web above the traffic lights). Back in town, there's a number of cafes/restaurants, including Coffee Dominion (corner of Stoke and Ogden Streets, facing the Victoria Bridge), which seems to be recommended here a bit, and the Townsville Brewery. There are a few more cafes/bars/restaurants across Victoria Bridge.
That was enough to fill in the time for me. There's a few more things to do in this post - http://www.australianfrequentflyer....a-change-and-double-scs-57193.html#post973940
Hope this helps others pursuing this 'silly' hobby
P.S. what do people do for towels in the lounge showers? Or was that shower just missing towels?