This past January I took a mileage run on United to Tokyo and stayed at the Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport for one night. The online rate I booked was shockingly low at only 8,000 yen (about $85) for a fully cancelable standard Hilton Queen room. The non-refundable advance purchase rate was only 1,000 yen less, for what it’s worth.

The hotel offers free shuttle service from the airport at various times throughout the day, typically in 20- or 30-minute intervals (except mid-day when it’s hourly). I had just missed one shuttle and out of laziness and a desire to take a nap as soon as possible, I grabbed a cab for the short ride (about $17).

As a Diamond HHonors member, I was upgraded to a Deluxe Plus room, which the only difference I can ascertain from the website description is 108 additional square feet of space.

The bed was very comfortable and a bit softer than what’s found in many U.S. locations. And there was plenty of desk space and drawers.

Deluxe Plus Queen Room

My welcome amenity included two bottles of water and a couple of hazelnut biscuit crackers. Also included with my status came complimentary health club admission and “American Breakfast,” which turned out to be access to the full buffet.

Welcome Amenities

The nightstand next to the bed controlled the room lights and temperature, and also included a digital alarm clock. Inside the closet a safe large enough for my 15” MacBook Pro was present along with robes and slippers.

I was expecting a super-small bathroom, but was pleasantly surprised by an average sized one similar to what you’d find at say a La Quinta or Holiday Inn – not necessarily a U.S. Hilton. And yes, the toilet featured all the bells and whistles that the Japanese love. The Peter Thomas Roth amenities, standard for Hilton, were slightly larger than what you’d find in the U.S., but still TSA friendly.

Service was excellent at the hotel and everyone spoke English quite well, which you’d expect for a worldwide brand at an airport location. I didn’t snap photos of the breakfast buffet the next morning, but it was fantastic. Everything from typical Western dishes to Japanese and other fare was available.

While the hotel is rather isolated for walking to much of anything, it’s ideal for a quick night before catching a flight the next day. Oh, and if you’re coming in from the city on the train, the hotel also offers free shuttle service to/from Narita Station.

Related posts:

Flight Review: United Airlines Global First Class, San Francisco to Tokyo

Lounge Review: United Global First, Tokyo Narita Airport

Lounge Review: ANA Suite Lounge, Tokyo Narita Airport

After a brief visit to the ANA Suite Lounge at Tokyo Narita Airport last month, I headed over to the more spacious and serene United Global First Class lounge.

Entry to the lounge is via an elevator just inside the reception area to the United Club in Terminal 1. After an agent checked my boarding pass upon exiting the elevator, I situated myself alongside the windows.

Global First Lounge Seating

Global First Lounge Seating

The lounge hasn’t been updated in years, but aside from the well-worn leather chairs, I think it’s still a pretty comfortable lounge – except for the temperature. It always seems to be too warm and although electronic screens are lowered as the sun beats through the windows, it rarely cools down.

The buffet area doesn’t offer anything spectacular in terms of food with only marginally better nibbles than the club downstairs, including sushi and pork dim sum. All beverages are self-serve with chilled glasses available in the refrigerator.

Dining and Buffet Area

Buffet

Buffet and Beverages

A selection of newspapers and magazines are available in the hallway near the bathrooms, and around the corner are business center cubicles, massage chairs and Panasonic Note stations.

Hallway

Massage Chairs

Massage Chair

Panasonic Note Station

The shower rooms are also rather warm, but thankfully include multi-speed fans. Individual bottles of Plegaria shampoo, conditioner, body wash and lotion are provided. (Read more: United Airlines Global First Shower Room Amenities)

Shower Room Key

Shower Room

Shower Room

The main reason I like this lounge is because it rarely fills up and it remains very quiet. And when the runway parallel to the windows is in use, it affords pretty decent #avgeek views.

Departures Monitor

Singapore Airlines A380

The Global First lounge in San Francisco remains my favorite, followed by Los Angeles, Hong Kong (primarily for the food) and Tokyo. My best advice is to hit the ANA Suite Lounge for the food, then relax in the Global First lounge before heading to your United flight.

Related posts:

Lounge Review: ANA Suite Lounge Tokyo Narita Airport – Terminal 1, Satellite 4

Flight Review: United Airlines Global First Class, San Francisco to Tokyo Narita

United Airlines Global First Class Lounge Shower Room Amenities

The Reality Check That Is United Airlines Global First Class

I flew an eight-segment mileage run last month that included a roundtrip from Boston to Tokyo via San Francisco. And due to an unadvertised promotional first class fare (about $3,000) out of select U.S. origins to Tokyo (or Beijing), I was able to fly in comfort and nabbed my favorite seat onboard any United aircraft – 2K on a Boeing 747-400.

My Boeing 747-400, N174UA

My flight into San Francisco from Boston arrived just about on schedule, leaving me with enough time for a quick visit to the Global First lounge to catch up on emails. At the check-in desk when I was welcomed as “Mr. Booth,” the person next to me asked, “Darren Booth?” Turns out he reads my blog – what a small world. It was nice to meet you, Sean!

I headed to the gate ahead of boarding time to… well… be a “gate louse” and position myself near the front of the Premier Access lane. Why? Because those darn 747s have such limited overhead space in first class that I didn’t want to stow my bags in business class, which often happens. I was about the 10^th person on and I settled into my seat (and yes, got my coveted overhead bin space). Oh, and for those unfamiliar with United, there’s absolutely no priority given to Global First passengers over business class (or many elites).

Seat 2K

View Forward at Seat 2K

The menu, pillows and blanket were awaiting me at my seat, and the amenity kit and slippers were already stowed in the side console compartment. Pre-departure beverage service was slow as the lead flight attendant in Global First spent an inordinate amount of time gabbing with a couple of passengers. And I noted some friction between the lead and purser, which I wrote about in my “The Reality Check That Is United Airlines Global First Class” post.

Newspapers were offered and positioned on the console across from my seat. We pushed nearly on-time and were airborne within about 15 minutes.

View

The lead noticed my camera and said, “You’d better get your pictures in quick before we take the left turn toward Japan!” I chuckled and said “Thanks,” but little did she know my main intent was to capture the meals. Hot towels, warmed nuts and beverages started the lunch service. Check out the turbulence in that water glass.

Warmed Nuts and Water

Here’s the menu:

And the separate wine & bar service list:

Meal service began shortly after the seat belt sign came off with linens, silverware and bread presented first.

Table Setup

The warm appetizer and sushi were served nearly in tandem. I did quite like the beef empanada and pastry, but didn’t touch the sushi as I’m not a fan.

Sushi

Beef Empanada and Veggie & Mushroom Pastry

Besides a warm vs. cold appetizer, the only other noticeable difference from Global First to BusinessFirst meals is the addition of a soup course. It was only lukewarm and required a bit of salt to make it tastier.

Shrimp and Roasted Corn Chowder

A rather basic salad followed and I went with the Parmesan-pepper dressing.

Salad

For my main course, I chose the Tenderloin of Beef. It was very tender and delicious, the latter likely due to the Delmonico’s steak sauce. I have had decent green beans in-flight before, but these were rubbery and tasteless. And the potatoes cooled off very quickly and were equally bland. More salt.

Tenderloin of Beef

By this point, I was ready for a nap having been awake since very early Boston time to catch the 6:00 a.m. flight. And so I skipped the cheese and ice cream sundae. Here’s the remainder of the menu:

There was absolutely no mention of the “new” turn-down service for Global First passengers where flight attendants will lower your seat into bed mode and spread the sleeping cushion over the seat. And on the return flight with the same crew, the lead was very vocal how she felt about it saying, “What are we a hotel?!”

The crew spruced up the lavatory as best they could.

Lavatory Amenities

A cart was setup near the galley with the assorted sandwiches and nibbles from the “mid-flight snack” menu appearing above. They looked identical to what’s offered in BusinessFirst and not particularly appealing.

About 1.5 hours before arrival, breakfast was served although it was 2:00 p.m. local time in Tokyo. Other airlines flying this timeslot will serve a more time-appropriate meal. I went with the herbed scrambled eggs, ham, turkey sausage and potato gratin… err… tater tots.

Breakfast at 2 p.m.

While each flight attendant was friendly in their own way, there was certainly nothing exceptional about their service. It was just a typical United flight and I suppose worth what I paid. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to pay full-fare for United’s Global First.

Related posts:

The Reality That Is United Airlines Global First Class

United Global First Amenity Kit Review

Lounge Review: ANA Suite Lounge Tokyo Narita

I’m Off on a Weeklong Mileage Run

First class airline lounges, particularly those of non-U.S. airlines, are generally something to savor and behold. Perhaps I’m holding them all to the near incomparable standard that is the Lufthansa First Class Terminal in Frankfurt or the Thai Royal First Lounge in Bangkok. But the ANA Suite Lounge at Tokyo’s Narita Airport I visited a couple of weeks ago was rather underwhelming.

ANA Suite Lounge Entrance

Don’t get me wrong – it’s a nice lounge with decent amenities, but it didn’t quite have that air of exclusivity that others offer. I’d put it on par with very good business class lounges I’ve visited in the past.

The greeting I received after walking through the doors was exceptional and very first class with the three agents behind the counter straightening their posture and even bowing. I was welcomed into the lounge after a quick check of my United Airlines Global First boarding pass to San Francisco and made my way to the only available seat next to a window.

Yet another agent promptly welcomed me with a hot towel as I took a seat and asked if she could bring me a beverage. As I wanted to peruse the buffet, I declined mentioning I’d take a look at everything on offer.

The lounge was packed during my visit with very little opportunity to capture a few discrete pictures beyond these of the buffet and work station area:

ANA Suite Lounge Buffet

ANA Suite Lounge Buffet

ANA Suite Lounge Business Center Cubicles

There was a generous spread of nibbles, both hot and cold, and I went with a little sampling of noodles and a couple of sandwich wedges together with Perrier. The Noodle Bar (a restaurant of sorts) also offers additional full-service items (PDF menu). Having enjoyed a big buffet breakfast at my hotel, I didn’t partake.

The view out to the apron was quite nice, especially when compared to the not as active side the United Club occupies in the same satellite.

ANA Suite Lounge Apron View

Singapore Airlines A380

Additional amenities inside the lounge include shower rooms, a business center and apparently a “Refresh Salon by Raffine,” which I never came across, though I thought I explored every corner and turn.

There wasn’t anything terrible about the lounge, but the cramped quarters, simple food offering and general lack of anything particularly unique found me wanting to head to the United Global First lounge. I had plenty of time had I decided to visit the other ANA Suite Lounge in Satellite 5, but I figured it wouldn’t be anything different. Not to sound elitist (okay, I am), I was expecting to be “wowed” a bit more.

Related posts:

First Look: United Club Redesign, O’Hare Terminal 2 Location Opening

Review: American Airlines Flagship Check-in, Lounge at LAX

Lounge Review: Virgin Australia Domestic Lounge Sydney

Lounge Review: Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt (Near B43)

I visited United’s Global First Class lounges in Tokyo and San Francisco on my mileage run last week and I took advantage of the shower rooms offered in each in hopes of adding to my amenity kit collection.

Truth be told, I had freshly showered at my hotel in Tokyo before arriving at the airport, but I was keen to see if the former Murad kits had been swapped out for newer ones since my last visit in 2010. Sadly, there was no wrapped kit, but instead individual bottles of Plegaria shampoo, conditioner, body wash and lotion, along with a toothbrush, toothpaste and comb.

United Airlines Global First Shower Room Amenities in Tokyo

I did end up taking a shower (why not?!), but didn’t use the delicious smelling Plegaria products as I wanted to save them for my collection. And my Google search skills must be failing as I can’t seem to find Plegaria products online. The English part of the blurb on the bottles note they’re made in Thailand. I’d love to order retail-size versions.

On my arrival in San Francisco, I skipped the Arrivals Lounge that’s on the lower level after exiting customs having been there before and being unimpressed with the food offerings. In retrospect, I should have visited just to see if anything had changed, as well as pick up more amenities. Ah well… I’m a bad blogger. Instead, I re-cleared security immediately and headed to the Global First lounge.

Here, I definitely wanted a shower and after a quick nosh, I asked to use one of the two shower rooms available to passengers. Towels and an amenity kit were promptly provided.

United Airlines Global First Lounge Shower Amenity Kit SFO

The zipper bag itself isn’t really anything special or luxe, but I’m happy to have received one. Inside an internal plastic pouch are small tubes of conditioning shampoo, body wash, facial cleanser, shaving cream, body lotion and facial moisturizer. They’re not branded, but are remarkably similar in appearance and scent of the previous Murad offerings.

United Global First Lounge Shower Kit Contents

Also included with the kit: a small circular stick of deodorant, razor, Colgate toothpaste, toothbrush (identical to the one found in the Global First amenity kit) and a folding brush/comb. I do quite like the individual amenities as opposed to mass-use versions found in other shower rooms, usually in business class lounges.

I’ll have a detailed lounge review of the Tokyo location coming up shortly here on Frequently Flying, as well as a look at the ANA Suite Lounge and a San Francisco to Tokyo flight review in Global First.

Related posts:

The Reality Check That Is United Airlines Global First Class

I’m Off on a Weeklong Mileage Run… In Style

Amenity Kit Reviews

I’ll post my full flight review in the coming days, but I feel compelled to dedicate a post on the less than international first class service I received and observed in United Global First last week.

It’s no secret that United is remarkably inconsistent when it comes to in-flight service and I think it’s most evident when flying internationally. Last year, I had a terrific experience in United BusinessFirst from Los Angeles to Sydney with attentive and professional flight attendants who were sincere in their desire to provide exceptional service. My return from Sydney was the exact opposite with indifferent, stoic flight attendants who seemed to treat service as a chore.

I was optimistic for my San Francisco-Tokyo Narita-San Francisco flights in Global First knowing that in the past, flights to/from Japan were a particular quality control focus. While the crew I had (the same on both flights) wasn’t stoic or indifferent, the service they provided wasn’t what you’d expect for international first class. I know, I know… not really a shocker for a U.S. airline when compared to foreign carriers. But here are a few unique observations from my flights.

On the ground, the reaction by two Global First passengers arriving in the gate room in Tokyo and being told to queue in the already huge 75+ passenger Group 1 boarding lane was priceless. They were visibly shocked there wasn’t priority given over business class (or even coach passengers with elite status).

Onboard, the dislike between the purser and lead flight attendant serving Global First was palpable, something unprofessional to visibly allow and express in view of the cabin.

When a passenger couldn’t immediately find storage space for his carry-on (a problem on the 747-400), a flight attendant who wasn’t working in First told him he’d have to put it in business class and to “write to the company to complain” without offering assistance. Fortunately, the purser was more proactive and found space for him in first class.

In many cases, the menu, amenity kit and slippers are presented to you after you’re seated in first class. On both of my flights, the menus were nicely displayed on the console, though the amenity kits and slippers were stored away in the seat compartments. Not a huge deal, but there’s just something about the presentation of them personally that adds a touch of class.

United introduced turndown service in Global First? Absolutely no mention of it was made on the outbound. And on the return, I overhead the lead flight attendant say, “What are we… a hotel?!” when telling another passenger about it after he found the seat cover in his compartment. She even went on to say that flight attendants love to take them to their crew bunks for use. Sigh.

Now I should mention that the flight attendants were each friendly in their own way (particularly when I reappeared on their return flight the next day), but service elements and overall cabin management on my flights certainly weren’t worth what a normally priced Global First ticket would run.

I was hoping for a stellar experience, but I drew the short stick on these United flights. I know there are flight attendants at United who pride themselves on delivering exceptional service. It’s just a shame that the amount who don’t or won’t step up will prevent United from ever being on par with their global counterparts.

Related posts:

I’m Off on a Weeklong Mileage Run… In Style!

Amenity Kit Review: United Airlines Global First

Flight Review: United Airlines BusinessFirst Los Angeles to Sydney

Flight Review: United Boeing 787 Dreamliner Inaugural

Both American and United came out with new bonus mile offers today. Well… the United one wasn’t officially announced, but the registration page is up. More on that in a moment.

American Airlines is offering double AAdvantage miles (redeemable, not elite) on a batch of select Alaska Airlines flights. Registration is required and the travel window is from today, April 16, to June 30, 2012. The promotion code is ASD12 and double miles can be accrued in the following nonstop markets:

Burbank (BUR) – Portland (PDX)

Honolulu (HNL) – Oakland (OAK)

Honolulu (HNL) – San Jose (SJC)

Kansas City (MCI) – Seattle (SEA)

Los Angeles (LAX) – Mammoth Lakes (XXX)

Oakland (OAK) – Portland (PDX)

Ontario (ONT) – Portland (PDX)

Portland (PDX) – San Francisco (SFO)

With a hat tip to Wandering Aramean, United Airlines appears to be offering bonus MileagePlus miles (both redeemable and Premier Qualifying Miles) for trips between Boston and Tokyo Narita. It’s based on the fare purchased and offers either a 25% or 50% bonus as follows:

Ticketing and travel for this promotion is from April 1 to August 31, 2012. As Seth noted, the terms are a bit tricky. As United doesn’t have a nonstop in the market, the language of the offer reads, “Itineraries with connecting flights into or out of Boston and Narita are eligible for this promotion; however the bonus award miles only apply for segments between Boston and Narita.”

The boldface is my emphasis and appears to mean that so long as you’re on some type of ticket between Boston and Narita – no matter the connection point – you’ll receive the bonus. Your mileage may vary, as always. The promo code on the United registration page is TB3M67.

Related post: New American and United bonus mile opportunities