puppysparkes
Established Member
- Joined
- Sep 29, 2011
- Posts
- 1,567
Two years ago my partner and I travelled to Vietnam on a thrifty expedia.br booking. It was amazing but one day shy of a month was not enough time to enjoy ourselves. Subsequently we decided to return again. However two years on the .br method was a tumbleweed through the internet archive. This trip would cost a tad more.
The check in experience at Brisbane International Airport was excellent. On hearing Siem Reap was on our itinerary, the agent raved about a restaurant called the blue pumpkin. We might just pay it a visit. The Qantas lounge was at capacity with flights to Papua New Guinea, America, Japan and Hong Kong. Nothing new there.
Flight QF 51 out of Brisbane to Singapore was roughly an hour late getting away and had been scheduled for an 18:30 arrival. It meant a little extra lounge time which is always good. However it caused us some excitement as our QF codeshare on Jetstar 3K was due to board at 19:20. Singapore - Tân Sơn Nhất Airport, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. It was the last flight to SGN that night. We didn’t mind because we thought a free night in SIN wouldn’t be so bad. We were put at ease by a cabin announcement advising us that we would arrive on time in to Singapore. In the end we were roughly ten minutes late (19:40) on an otherwise uneventful flight. Our Jetstar flight was also uneventful. As was our 9pm clearance through customs at SGN.
I booked a deluxe room at the Pullman Saigon in district 1 and a limousine transfer. At 80AUD it is expensive however I prefer no fuss and certainty at that time of night. On arrival I handed over my Accor card to the friendly reception staff. The manager appeared again and apologised as ‘our system shows you as a classic member’. We were escorted to the executive lounge and it was explained along the way that platinum members are upgraded to the next available room type. That moment was like hearing the boarding scanner beep and being asked to step to the side for a J boarding pass. We were offered drinks on arrival and we wearily requested champagne which did not last long. While a next room upgrade is the norm we were triple upgraded to the Signature suite! Pay for a deluxe room and receive a suite, I see how that works…From my previous research on FT I knew what this meant but Ms Sparkes did not! The list of platinum benefits were explained and handed to me in paper form. I was ecstatic on the inside and held it in as we headed to the 28th floor with champagne in hand. Our bags arrived soon after and we were given a tour of the suite and told to dial zero if we needed anything. At the time, I was channeling Mr Burns from the Simpsons mumbling ‘excellent’ as I walked around the suite. The room phone rang, it was the manager enquiring if the room was suitable. To date this has been the best upgrade experience I have had in my time with Accor. All I can say is the struggle is real…
As you’d expect it is kitted out with everything. There are ample power points, high speed internet access, sound dock, espresso machine, Co Bigelow toiletries, robes, slippers, ironing board, wine glasses, safe and a phone in the toilet just incase you like being interrupted or you’re a brilliant multi-tasker, I don’t judge.
The check in experience at Brisbane International Airport was excellent. On hearing Siem Reap was on our itinerary, the agent raved about a restaurant called the blue pumpkin. We might just pay it a visit. The Qantas lounge was at capacity with flights to Papua New Guinea, America, Japan and Hong Kong. Nothing new there.
Flight QF 51 out of Brisbane to Singapore was roughly an hour late getting away and had been scheduled for an 18:30 arrival. It meant a little extra lounge time which is always good. However it caused us some excitement as our QF codeshare on Jetstar 3K was due to board at 19:20. Singapore - Tân Sơn Nhất Airport, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. It was the last flight to SGN that night. We didn’t mind because we thought a free night in SIN wouldn’t be so bad. We were put at ease by a cabin announcement advising us that we would arrive on time in to Singapore. In the end we were roughly ten minutes late (19:40) on an otherwise uneventful flight. Our Jetstar flight was also uneventful. As was our 9pm clearance through customs at SGN.
I booked a deluxe room at the Pullman Saigon in district 1 and a limousine transfer. At 80AUD it is expensive however I prefer no fuss and certainty at that time of night. On arrival I handed over my Accor card to the friendly reception staff. The manager appeared again and apologised as ‘our system shows you as a classic member’. We were escorted to the executive lounge and it was explained along the way that platinum members are upgraded to the next available room type. That moment was like hearing the boarding scanner beep and being asked to step to the side for a J boarding pass. We were offered drinks on arrival and we wearily requested champagne which did not last long. While a next room upgrade is the norm we were triple upgraded to the Signature suite! Pay for a deluxe room and receive a suite, I see how that works…From my previous research on FT I knew what this meant but Ms Sparkes did not! The list of platinum benefits were explained and handed to me in paper form. I was ecstatic on the inside and held it in as we headed to the 28th floor with champagne in hand. Our bags arrived soon after and we were given a tour of the suite and told to dial zero if we needed anything. At the time, I was channeling Mr Burns from the Simpsons mumbling ‘excellent’ as I walked around the suite. The room phone rang, it was the manager enquiring if the room was suitable. To date this has been the best upgrade experience I have had in my time with Accor. All I can say is the struggle is real…
As you’d expect it is kitted out with everything. There are ample power points, high speed internet access, sound dock, espresso machine, Co Bigelow toiletries, robes, slippers, ironing board, wine glasses, safe and a phone in the toilet just incase you like being interrupted or you’re a brilliant multi-tasker, I don’t judge.
Last edited:
. What a great start (with the upgrade)!
