This situation is so crazy it warrants the third person!

I’m supposed to fly back to the US from Singapore tomorrow, and booked Singapore to Hong Kong to Chicago in Cathay Pacific first class the entire way for 67,500 American miles, which is one of the best award values out there, in my opinion.

I don’t think there’s a more consistent first class product than Cathay Pacific — the food, service, and entertainment are among the best out there, in my opinion. But I’ve reviewed Cathay Pacific extensively in the past, including here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

My goal with the blog is to continue to deliver new content, and one thing I’ve heard over and over from you guys is “Lucky, please try new products.” While I have no problem revisiting airlines, the Cathay Pacific experience really hasn’t changed over the past several years (which, with the way the industry is headed, is definitely a good thing). And while I’m sure I would have loved the in-flight experience and would have watched “The Big Bang Theory” and “Abduction” on repeat the entire way to Chicago, I realize that probably doesn’t excite you guys much (I had dinner with a friend yesterday that said “Abduction” wasn’t the best movie ever… what’s wrong with some of you?!).

So instead I did what was entirely irrational from a “value” perspective, but what will allow me to experience two new products.

I won’t be revealing the routing just yet, but here are some clues:

a) I had to book two separate awards to be able to do this
b) I’m flying two airlines I’ve flown before, though in new products I’ve yet to experience
c) The airlines are in different alliances
d) I’ll be departing on both airlines from their largest hubs

If anyone can guess the routing I’d be mighty impressed.

NOT the product I’m flying (but I felt like at least having a picture of something)

A couple of days ago I shared my thoughts on the increasing value of American miles, both in absolute and relative terms.

The funny thing about American’s award routing rules is that they’re simultaneously the most generous and least generous of just about any airline.

They’re the most generous because American lets you exceed the MPM (maximum permitted mileage) for a city pair by 25%. For those of you that have no clue what an MPM is, for many international fares airlines publish the maximum permitted mileage between a city pair, which is often roughly 10% over the direct distance, accounting for the fact that connections are often necessary. On partner awards American lets you exceed that by an additional 25%, which is incredibly generous.

Take, for example, Hong Kong to Los Angeles. Cathay Pacific publishes an MPM of 8,698 miles, meaning American will let you fly a total of 10,872 miles to get from Hong Kong to Los Angeles.

In practice that means you can fly from Hong Kong to Los Angeles via New York, which is pretty awesome given that American allows stopovers at the North American gateway city (meaning you could stop in New York for as long as you wanted).

The next most generous airline is United, which lets you exceed the MPM by 15%. Actually, I guess I should really say that US Airways is the most generous, since they let you do whatever the hell you want, not intentionally, but out of incompetence. But that’s neither here nor there.

But that’s the end of my American love fest, in this instance. While American lets you go 25% over the MPM, they’re total c%&*blockers beyond that, given that they’ll do just about anything to prevent you from maximizing your routing.

This is because American has two rather silly restrictions on award tickets:

1) The transoceanic airline has to publish a fare for the city pair you’re flying. This has to be the silliest rule of all. With American you can only fly between a city pair if the airline you’re flying on your transoceanic flight publishes a fare between the two cities. Say, for example, you want to fly from Los Angeles to the Maldives on Etihad Airways via New York and then Abu Dhabi. It’s about as direct as routings get to the Maldives, but the award can’t be booked.

Why? Because Etihad doesn’t publish a fare between Los Angeles and the Maldives. Using ExpertFlyer I searched for Etihad fares between Los Angeles and the Maldives:

And unfortunately it returned no results:

So this means there’s no way to book an Etihad award between Los Angeles and the Maldives using American miles on a single award. You could however book Los Angeles to New York on one award, and then New York to the Maldives on a separate award, given that Etihad does publish a fare for that city pair.

2) With few exceptions, you can’t transit a third region. Per this FlyerTalk post, you can’t transit a third region when booked on an American partner award with the following exceptions:

To/From Via
North America to/from Indian Sub Continent/Middle East can connect in:Europe
North America to/from Africa can connect in:Europe
North America to/from Asia 2 can connect in:Asia 1

Central/South America to/from Indian Sub Continent/Middle East can connect in:Europe
Central/South America to/from Africa can connect in:Europe
Central/South America to/from South Pacific can connect in:S. America 2

South America 2 to/from Indian Sub Continent/Middle East can connect in:Europe

Indian Sub Continent/Middle East to/from Asia 1 can connect in:Asia 2
Indian Sub Continent/Middle East to/from South Pacific can connect in:Asia 2

Africa to/from Asia 1 can connect in:Asia 2

Asia 1 to/from Europe can connect in:Asia 2
Asia 1 to/from South Pacific can connect in:Asia 2

Let me put this in terms of an example. Say you want to fly from San Francisco to Delhi. Using OneWorld carriers, the most direct routing would be to fly from San Francisco to Delhi via Hong Kong, the distance of which is 9,257 miles. The problem is that Hong Kong is in “Asia 2″ region while India is in “Indian Sub Continent/Middle East” region, and you can’t transit another region on a partner award. The only exception for travel to India is as follows (per the chart above): “North America to/from Indian Sub Continent/Middle East can connect in:Europe.”

So in other words you can fly from San Francisco to Delhi via London, the distance of which is 9,558 miles, while you can’t take the more direct routing via Hong Kong without paying for two separate award tickets (one between the US and Asia 2, and one between Asia 2 and India).

The irony of it all? The MPM between San Francisco and Delhi is 11,922 miles, and American will let you exceed that by 25%, meaning you could fly 14,902 miles. Despite the fact that the routing via Hong Kong is over 5,000 miles under the MPM, it’s still not allowed.

It’s worth noting that the above applies to American’s partner award chart, and not to American’s distance based award chart, which can be used to your advantage to get around some of the above restrictions.

Introduction
United Global First Lounge San Francisco
Lufthansa First Class San Francisco to Munich
Le Meridien Munich
Lufthansa First Class Lounge Munich, Swiss Business Class Munich to Zurich
Swiss First Class Lounge Zurich, Swiss First Class Zurich to Bangkok
St. Regis Bangkok
Thai Airways First Class Lounge & Spa Bangkok
Thai Airways First Class Bangkok to Hong Kong
Ritz Carlton Hong Kong
Exploring Hong Kong
United Club Hong Kong and Thai Airways Royal Orchid Lounge Hong Kong
Asiana Business Class Hong Kong to Seoul Incheon
Hyatt Regency Incheon Airport
Asiana First Class Lounge Seoul Incheon
Asiana First Class Seoul Incheon to Frankfurt
Sheraton Frankfurt Airport
Lufthansa First Class Terminal Frankfurt, Lufthansa First Class Frankfurt to Seattle
Four Seasons Seattle

---

I can’t say I’m a huge fan of Lufthansa’s Frankfurt to Seattle flight, though because my friend lives there and it’s one of the longer transatlantic flights, I don’t mind taking it. The reason I’m not a huge fan of the flight is twofold. First, it’s one of the earliest transatlantic departures, leaving Frankfurt before 10AM. One of my favorite things about Lufthansa first class is enjoying lunch or dinner in the First Class Terminal prior to the flight, and that’s not possible for such an early departure. Second of all, the flight lands in Seattle at around 11AM, which just sucks in terms of getting over jetlag. I far prefer flights that leave Europe in the late afternoon and arrive in the evening, allowing one to get a good night of sleep upon landing and waking up relatively “adjusted” the following morning.

Of course in the world of first class travel I really have no right to complain, but just figured I’d share those two observations if you ever have the choice between a morning and an afternoon flight out of Europe.

We left the Sheraton at around 8:30AM and took the walkway to the terminal. From there we had to walk on the outside roadway to the First Class Terminal, which is maybe a 10 minute walk. It was a beautiful morning, so I quite enjoyed getting some fresh air. I’ve taken this exact flight before, so feel free to check out my previous report, which can be found here.

Lufthansa First Class Terminal Frankfurt

Once in the terminal we were welcomed by our personal assistant, who escorted us through security. For me the highlight of the First Class Terminal is that you can go from entering the terminal to sitting in the lounge area in less than a minute, an experience no other airline can provide.

We decided to have breakfast right away, since we hadn’t eaten at the hotel.

First Class Terminal seating

First Class Terminal restaurant

The buffet is pretty extensive and consists of just about anything you could want. I still far prefer their lunch or dinner offerings, but that’s probably more of a function of me preferring lunch and dinner over breakfast.

Menu

Breakfast spread

Breakfast spread

Breakfast spread

When breakfast was done we headed back to the lounge area, where I caught up on email for about 20 minutes. At around 9:30AM our personal assistant approached us to let us know our flight was ready for boarding. We were brought down to the lower level for our departure, where we were introduced to our driver, who drove us to our plane in a Mercedes S class.

Frankfurt Airport is the one place where I hope that the gate is as far from the terminal as possible. Unfortunately in today’s case our departure gate was just about the closest to the terminal, so our car ride was less than five minutes. I jokingly asked if the driver could make another round, so he did a little loop on the tarmac for us right next to the plane. Awesome!

Driving to our plane

Our ride

The driver took us up the elevator to the jet bridge, where he walked us all the way aboard and introduced us to the crew, who took over from there.

Our plane to Seattle

Our plane to Seattle

Lufthansa 490
Frankfurt (FRA) – Seattle (SEA)
Sunday, March 25
Depart: 9:50AM
Arrive: 11:15AM
Duration: 10hr25min
Aircraft: Airbus A330-300
Seat: 2G (First Class)

Once onboard we settled into 2D & 2G. Only one other seat was taken (1A), so it was a fairly empty flight upfront, while business and coach were packed.

Seats 2D & 2G

View from seats 2D & 2G

Cabin view from 2G

In this instance we had one senior flight attendant and one junior flight attendant (I assume a trainee) working first class. Lufthansa seems to often have trainees working first class on the Seattle route. While I find just about all Lufthansa flight attendant attendants to be great, I find the trainees to be especially good in first class, since they’re usually enthusiastic about having the opportunity.

In this instance the trainee was working the cabin while the senior flight attendant was working the galley. The trainee was friendly and polished, though lacked the excitement and sincere smile that many of Lufthansa’s trainees seem to have when they get to work first class.

We were almost immediately offered pre-departure beverages, and I ordered a glass of champagne, which was served with the usual macadamia nuts.

Pre-departure service

Moments later I was offered slippers, an amenity kit, and a long sleeved shirt, which are the usual amenities on a daytime Lufthansa flight. I’ve never found the shirt to be especially useful, as I far prefer pajamas on such a long flight. So I immediately changed into my Swiss pajamas, which are among my favorite.

Amenities

Before pushback the captain came on the PA to advise us of our flight time of 10 hours, anticipating an on-time arrival in Seattle.

After a quick pushback and taxi to the runway we were airborne in a matter of minutes.

As we climbed through 10,000 feet the seatbelt sign was turned off and crew began their service, starting with setting up the bar in the front of the first class cabin.

Bar setup

While the first class flight attendants did that, the purser introduced herself and passed out menus for the flight.

Menus

The lunch menu read as follows:

Shortly thereafter the flight attendant passed through the cabin with hot towels, followed by the amuse bouche, which was some sort of feta cheese with fig and sorbet, if I recall correctly.

Hot towel

Amuse bouche

After that the tables were set and drinks were offered, which was followed by the appetizer cart.

Table setup

Appetizer cart

I just had the smoked tuna and caviar, as the other options didn’t interest me. Both were delicious.

Smoked tuna and caviar

I also love how Lufthansa even has a first class logo on their butter.

Gotta love the butter!

The next course was a salad with macadamia nut dressing.

Salad

And then a rather interesting herb cream soup.

Soup

For the main course I selected the potato and sauerkraut crepe. As far as Lufthansa’s catering out of Germany goes, I thought it was quite good.

Potato and sauerkraut crepe

Then I had a pretty interesting coffee dessert.

Dessert

Lastly I ordered a glass of Baileys, which was served with a couple of pralines.

Baileys and pralines

One of the nice things about the flight from Frankfurt to Seattle is how far North it flies, since you fly right over Greenland.

View from the window

View from the window

I wasn’t especially tired after lunch so decided to watch a movie. I had seen almost all the movies, so ended up deciding on Happy Feet Two. It was unbearable, so about halfway through I decided to turn it off and watch Abduction for the second time in two days. Slightly more pleasant of a movie!

Happy Feet Two

During the movie I decided to order some iced coffee, which the flight attendant prepared rather creatively, in my opinion, so kudos to her.

Iced coffee

After that we had about five hours to go till landing in Seattle, so I decided to take a nap. I woke up about 90 minutes out of Seattle, over Northern Canada, at which point the pre-arrival meal service began.

Airshow

The pre-arrival menu read as follows:

I really do like Lufthansa’s pre-arrival meals thanks to the variety of options they offer in a “buffet” format.

Pre-arrival meal

For dessert was a slice of white brownie cake.

Dessert

About 30 minutes out of Seattle I changed back into jeans and a t-shirt, and restowed all my carry-ons. After flying past the airport we turned around and landed into the North.

View on approach

We taxied past the Icelandair 757 and parked next to a Delta 767.

Icelandair 757

Delta 767

Thanks to Global Entry queues at immigration were non-existent, and my last Aeroplan round-the-world ticket came to an end.

Stay tuned, as there’s one more bonus installment.

Last week I posted about the fact that flights originating in Brazil don’t have fuel surcharges due to government regulations. This is especially interesting on award tickets for travel on airlines like British Airways and Singapore Airlines, which usually impose fuel surcharges on award redemptions.

Well, as a reader kindly pointed out to me on that post (“you’ve royally cocked this one up”), British Airways’ website now seems to impose fuel surcharges for award flights originating in Brazil. For example, take this September 16 flight from Sao Paulo to London:

When you price it out, the taxes and fees show as being $337:

As opposed to the previous total of $36:

Yet oddly when you price out a revenue ticket there are still no fuel surcharges:

And when you price the same award through American there are no fuel surcharges either (even though they usually impose them on British Airways redemptions):

Like I said, this wasn’t some loophole, but due to government regulations. So I’m curious to see how British Airways explains this one. Or maybe it’s a conveniently timed IT glitch? Can anyone come up with a plausible explanation?

A while back American promised they’d add the functionality to book partner award space on their website, and they’re slowly following through on that promise.

They already added the ability to search Alaska Airlines award space on aa.com several months ago, and now they added the ability to search and book British Airways and Hawaiian Airlines award space on aa.com as well.

This is awesome for a few reasons, including:

• It’s now possible to avoid the $25 American phone ticketing fee for reservations on these partner airlines
• American’s search tool (as I’ll explain below) is much easier to use than British Airways’ and Hawaiian’s
• American imposes hefty fuel surcharges for award travel on British Airways, so being able to know the total taxes and fees upfront is awesome

Let’s break it down by airline:

British Airways

British Airways has a downright awful award search tool, so I’ll be using American’s website first every chance I get. When you start your award search, just be sure that the box reading “AA + AAdvantage Participating Airlines” is checked, assuming you want to see award space for Alaska, British Airways, and Hawaiian.

On the next page you can search by preferred cabin, but the other cool option is that you can select your number of stops by selecting either “No Preference” or “Non-stop only.” For routes that are only served by British Airways and not American, you know all your results will be British Airways if you choose the “Non-stop only” option, so if you’re flexible with dates that may be the way to go.

And as you’ll see, award space on British Airways is very good (not as good as it used to be, but still very good). It’s interesting to note that while American imposes hefty fuel surcharges for travel on American, they’re not quite as bad as what British Airways charges directly. For example, taking the same flight from Newark to London, here are the costs when booking through American:

And here are the costs when booking through British Airways:

So as you can see, they are still a bit less. As a reminder, British Airways’ USA destinations include Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington.

Hawaiian Airlines

I’ve always wanted to fly Hawaiian Airlines since they seem to be a cut above the competition when it comes to their service on routes to Hawaii, so being able to search their availability on aa.com is great as well.

The same trick above applies regarding searching for nonstop flights. For example, if you live in Portland and know you want to fly Hawaiian nonstop to Honolulu, just select “Non-stop only” in the dropdown menu.

And as you can see, the first option will be a Hawaiian Airlines option nonstop:

Hawaiian Airlines’ lower-48 destinations include Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Las Vegas, New York, Portland, and Seattle.

I’m also quite intrigued by how American is pricing some of these awards, like this one:

For this much:

Hmm….

Introduction
United Global First Lounge San Francisco
Lufthansa First Class San Francisco to Munich
Le Meridien Munich
Lufthansa First Class Lounge Munich, Swiss Business Class Munich to Zurich
Swiss First Class Lounge Zurich, Swiss First Class Zurich to Bangkok
St. Regis Bangkok
Thai Airways First Class Lounge & Spa Bangkok
Thai Airways First Class Bangkok to Hong Kong
Ritz Carlton Hong Kong
Exploring Hong Kong
United Club Hong Kong and Thai Airways Royal Orchid Lounge Hong Kong
Asiana Business Class Hong Kong to Seoul Incheon
Hyatt Regency Incheon Airport
Asiana First Class Lounge Seoul Incheon
Asiana First Class Seoul Incheon to Frankfurt
Sheraton Frankfurt Airport
Lufthansa First Class Terminal Frankfurt, Lufthansa First Class Frankfurt to Seattle
Four Seasons Seattle

---

Before I even start with the report, I should mention that I flew exactly the same flight from Seoul to Frankfurt a couple of years ago, and you can find my review from then here. The major difference was that the flight was operated by a 777 then, as opposed to the 747 that operates it now.

Asiana 541
Seoul (ICN) – Frankfurt (FRA)
Saturday, March 24
Depart: 12:50PM
Arrive: 4:35PM
Duration: 11hr45min
Aircraft: Boeing 747-400
Seat: 1A (First Class)

Our escort brought us all the way to the door of the plane, at which point she introduced us to the assistant purser, who directed us to our seats in row four. The nose of the 747 is configured with four rows of one seat on each side, and then a row in the center with two seats. We had selected the two center seats, 4E & 4F.

First class cabin

My seat, 4E

First class cabin from 4E

As soon as we were seated, though, we noticed just how cramped the center seats felt. The “suites” along the side of the aircraft are rather large, but you don’t get that same feeling in the center seats. Furthermore, the actual ottoman was smaller, so we inquired as to whether the other two unoccupied first class seats would remain open.

The crew gladly informed us they would, so they assisted me with my move to seat 1A, which felt much more spacious.

Waiting at my seat was a day blanket and pillow. Within a minute of settling in one of the lovely flight attendants approached me to offer pajamas. They run small, so I went with the XLs.

Pajamas

My fashionable pajamas

I was also offered an amenity kit, slippers, and Bose Quiet Comfort 3 headphones.

Amenity kit, slippers, and headphones

Quiet Comfort 3 headphones

The amenity kit consists of Bulgari amenities, which immediately makes it one of my favorites:

Amenity kit contents

The seats themselves are plenty spacious, though far from the most modern out there. The only aspect of their product that’s appalling (in my opinion) is the color scheme.

Ottoman

Seat controls

Entertainment controls

View of bulkhead from my seat

Best part of the seat — air nozzles, which are far too rare on foreign carriers

Anyway, what sets Asiana apart isn’t the seat or painful color scheme, but rather the service and food, in that order.

Once I was settled in the flight attendant asked if I might like a pre-departure beverage. I ordered a glass of champagne, which was poured at my seat. The flight attendant also brought an empty ramekin and large bowl of nuts, from which she scooped at my seat. Now that’s what I call personalized nut service! The only downside was that she gave me the smallest portion of nuts I’ve ever seen, though both champagne and nut refills were plentiful.

What sets a great airline apart from a good airline? They refill your glass of champagne before you even have the opportunity to refuse. And this was a great flight, since I rarely drink, but I was at glass four or five by departure time. Let’s just say I thought the safety video was the most interesting in-flight entertainment of the trip.

Pre-departure champagne and my paltry nuts

As departure time rolled around the captain came on the PA to advise us of our flight time of 11 hours, anticipating an on-time arrival in Frankfurt.

After pushback we had only about a five minute taxi to the runway (and trust me, Asiana pilots don’t taxi at takeoff speed like the folks at Southwest), at which point we had a long takeoff roll before being airborne.

Pushing back

Airborne

About 10 minutes after takeoff the seatbelt sign was turned off, and I immediately changed into the pajamas. I did so before the curtains were closed, at which point I noticed that right behind first class is coach, as business class is only on the upper deck. Boy, the evil glares I got will scar me for life.

When I got back to my seat hot towels were distributed, followed quickly by the menus.

Hot towel

Menus

The lunch menu read as follows:

The only complaint I could possibly have about service on Asiana is that they distribute the menus, take meal orders three minutes later, and then immediately collect the menus. Ideally I like to keep the menus, but at the very least I like to be able to reference them while having an eight course meal so I have an idea of what I’m eating.

Other than that, the service was truly beyond spectacular on the flight. While Asiana flight attendants don’t speak flawless English (admittedly my Korean could use just a bit of fine tuning) their sincerity, warmth, and smiles make the airline, in my opinion.

The meal service began with drinks and a prosciutto with baked pear starter, which was delicious.

Prosciutto and Baked Pear with Balsamic Vinaigrette

After that the service really kicked into full gear, with caviar and a rose. Asiana serves full, sealed “tins” of caviar, unlike most other airlines which plate it for you. The breadbasket was offered along with it.

Caviar

Caviar

The next course was a seafood salad, which was equally delicious.

Seafood Salad with Curry and Saffron Sauce

As was the cauliflower soup.

Cauliflower Veloute with Parmesan Chip

The next course was a chicken schnitzel. Again, it was very good.

Parmesan Chicken Schnitzel and Potato with Creamy Mustard Sauce

The main course was a sirloin. One of my favorite aspects of the Asiana meal service is that they ask you how you want your steak cooked. Not many airlines do that, so it’s a real treat when you can have a steak cooked to your liking on an airplane.

Grilled Wagyu Sirloin

After the main course I was offered a cheese plate with grapes and veggies.

Cheese Selections with Apricot and Raisin Chutney

And to finish off the meal was a green tea cake, which was also very good, and I’m rarely a fan of green tea desserts. I accompanied it with a cup of coffee.

Green tea torte with caramel sauce

Not only was the food phenomenal, but the service was even better. Seriously, I can’t say enough positive things about Asiana flight attendants. They were constantly smiling, incredibly attentive, and very detail oriented. For me the service is what makes a flight memorable, and the crew on this leg really shined.

For example, every time I went to the lav one of the flight attendants opened the door for me, and every time I exited they asked if there was anything they could get me.

As lunch finished up I requested turndown service, which was immediately provided.

Seat in sleep mode

I was rather exhausted after such a whirlwind trip, so slept like a baby for about five hours, waking up with about four hours to go to Frankfurt. I figured I’d take a peak at the snack menu, which read as follows:

I ultimately decided on the soup, which took about 10 minutes to prepare.

Soup

After that I was rather awake, so decided to watch a movie. I typically only like comedies. I never understood the point of fictional dramas. There’s enough sad stuff going in the world, why watch a movie about something sad that’s made up? Asiana’s in-flight entertainment options are pretty lame with virtually no sitcoms, so I decided to watch “Abduction,” a movie I had been putting off seeing for a long time.

And perhaps I shouldn’t admit it, but it was a damn good movie, and I actually thought the acting was pretty good. I was about to kick someone’s ass by the end of it, and I thought the plot was pretty exciting too. Anyone agree? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

By the end of the movie we were about two hours out of Frankfurt, and it was time for the pre-arrival meal.

Airshow

The pre-arrival menu read as follows:

Service began with a variety of juices, so I went with orange juice.

Orange juice

The first course was salmon with tomato and avocado.

Salmon with Tomato and Avocado

I was a bit torn on the main course. I didn’t want to go with the Korean option (if it’s spicy by their standards, I’ll be in tears by the end of it), and the goose liver pushed me away from the chicken, so I went with the steak. Yeah, I would have rather not had two steaks on one flight, but both were excellent, and in both instances I was asked how I wanted them cooked, so…

Rossini Beef Tenderloin

Then for dessert was a light but tasty fruit tart, with which I ordered some tea.

Yogurt Mousse with Fresh Fruits

About 30 minutes before landing the purser came around with gifts. Asiana is the only airline I know of that offers their first class passengers gifts, and I think it’s a really nice touch. The options were an iPhone 4S case, a CD, or an Asiana duffel bag. I went with the iPhone case, as I actually don’t have one. I mean, let’s be honest, my iPhone is now totally cooler than everyone else’s, given that it has the Asiana logo on it.

iPhone case

iPhone case

The seatbelt sign came on about 15 minutes prior to landing, and it was proving to be a beautiful afternoon in Frankfurt as we descended over the city.

On approach

On approach

On approach

Short final

After a beautiful touch down and 20 minute taxi to the gate another lovely flight on Asiana was coming to an end.

Taxiing in

It took a few minutes for the jet bridge driver to open the door, so I snapped just a few pictures of the first class cabin.

First class cabin

First class cabin

First class cabin

TAM 777

Our plane

The walk to immigration and baggage claim took about 10 minutes, at which point my friend’s bag was the first off the belt, all wrapped up.

First class baggage “wrapping”

So as usual my flight on Asiana was spectacular. Like I said, they don’t have the best in-flight entertainment or hard product, though the service and food are among the best in the sky.

I’ll leave you guys with one question, though, because I’m torn on this one — do you consider the bag “wrapping” to be a benefit or inconvenience, given that you have to unwrap a ~60 pound bag the second it comes off the belt at your destination after a longhaul flight?

Given that I spend all day booking award tickets, ExpertFlyer.com is one of the most useful websites for me. ExpertFlyer is a paid subscription service which costs $99.99 per year for the “premium” version, which is what I use, though they also have monthly plans available.

Ultimately just about all the information they display can be found publicly, though ExpertFlyer saves me time since it puts everything into one, easy to search place, from seatmaps, to flight availability, to fare rules, to award availability on select airlines.

But what I think makes ExpertFlyer worth it even for those that don’t spend hours a day searching for award availability is that they let you set up availability alerts for the following airlines:

Aegean Airlines, Aer Lingus, Aerflot, Aerolineas Argentinas, Air Canada, Air Europa, Air France, Air New Zealand, Air Tahiti Nui, Alaska Airlines, Alitalia, American Airlines, AVIANCA, British Midland, Brussels Airlines, China Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, CSA Czech Airlines, Delta, El Al, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Finnair, Frontier Airlines, GOL, Hainan Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Iberia, Icelandair, KLM, Korean Air, LOT, Malaysian Airlines, Martinair, OpenSkies, Qantas Airways, Shanghai Airlines, Swiss, TAM, Tarom, Turkish Airlines, and United Airlines.

While you can set up availability alerts for revenue tickets (for example, if a flight is sold out and you want a seat on it, you could set an alert so that you would be emailed when space opens up), the most practical application for me is for award tickets. As a premium member I can set up 30 availability alerts at a time.

What does that mean? Say you want to fly Qantas first class to Australia in Decemer. Yes, that’s nearly impossible. What you could do is set up an alert for up to 30 individual flights whereby you specify the fare class, and if the space opens up ExpertFlyer will email you.

To set up an availability alert, log into your ExpertFlyer account and click on”Create New Flight Alert” towards the bottom of the sidebar.

The next page will give you a form you have to fill out in order to set up the alert.

I think for the most part it’s pretty self explanatory. Just enter an alert name (usually I’ll enter the origin and destination cities and date, like “Dec1LAXSYD”), the departing airport, the arriving airport, the date, the airline, and the flight number. The only part that’s potentially complicated is the “Class Code.” There you have to enter the right fare bucket. The good news is that they have a convenient chart with the fare classes for each type of fare.

In this instance I want Qantas first class award space, so after referencing the chart I see that it’s the “P” fare class I want, so I enter that.

Once you have that, the last thing you have to specify is how many seats you want to monitor for, and then click “Verify and Create.” If there are any issues (like the flight number not operating on that date) you’ll get an error message at that point. If space opens up you’ll receive an email, which is awesome.

So what are the most practical uses?

• If you book a business or first class award ticket, and one or two segments is only available in coach at the time of booking. You can set an alert for a higher cabin, and if the space opens up ExpertFlyer will let you know.
• If you’re currently booked on an itinerary with a connection but want a nonstop flight instead.
• If you’re shooting for an aspirational award and nothing is available, it can’t hurt to set up an alert to see if space opens up. You might just be surprised.

I wish, however, that ExpertFlyer would:

• Track more airlines than they display award availability for, like ANA, Asiana, Cathay Pacific, Lufthansa, etc.
• Allow you to set up more than one alert at a time. In other words, I’d love to be able to set an alert for first class award space on any nonstop American flight between San Francisco and Chicago for a certain date. At the very least I wish that after you submit the form it would save it if you want to set up a similar alert, because it can be cumbersome entering the information over and over.

Anyway, it’s a feature that I think a lot of people don’t know about but would get a lot of value out of, and more than justifies the annual fee for me. And in case there was any question, I’m not being compensated by ExpertFlyer for this post in any way. Hell, I don’t even know anyone at ExpertFlyer. I just happened to remember how awesome this is when availability opened up for a flight I was monitoring yesterday, and ExpertFlyer let me know.

Introduction
United Global First Lounge San Francisco
Lufthansa First Class San Francisco to Munich
Le Meridien Munich
Lufthansa First Class Lounge Munich, Swiss Business Class Munich to Zurich
Swiss First Class Lounge Zurich, Swiss First Class Zurich to Bangkok
St. Regis Bangkok
Thai Airways First Class Lounge & Spa Bangkok
Thai Airways First Class Bangkok to Hong Kong
Ritz Carlton Hong Kong
Exploring Hong Kong
United Club Hong Kong and Thai Airways Royal Orchid Lounge Hong Kong
Asiana Business Class Hong Kong to Seoul Incheon
Hyatt Regency Incheon Airport
Asiana First Class Lounge Seoul Incheon
Asiana First Class Seoul Incheon to Frankfurt
Sheraton Frankfurt Airport
Lufthansa First Class Terminal Frankfurt, Lufthansa First Class Frankfurt to Seattle
Four Seasons Seattle

---

We took the shuttle from the Hyatt Regency Incheon to the airport at around 10AM, and arrived at the airport a few minutes later. Asiana first class check-in is located at the far end of the terminal with two “guards” stationed at the front of the line, despite the fact that no one was in it.

Incheon terminal

First class check-in

First class check-in

The agent efficiently processed our check-in, and my friend decided to check a bag. What I had never noticed before is that Asiana places first class checked bags in a plastic bag, I assume to avoid any damage. On one hand I think it’s a great service, though at the same time it’s a bit of a pain, since you also have to remove the bag from the plastic covering at baggage claim upon landing, and with a heavy bag that’s no easy task.

Bag being wrapped

The agent then escorted us to the security checkpoint. The service is also rather interesting given that they literally just walk you to the security checkpoint and then let you make your own way to the lounge.

Escort to security

Security and immigration was quick, and we found ourselves in one of the world’s most highly rated terminals. We took a right turn and headed straight for the first class lounge, which is only a couple hundred feet away.

Incheon terminal

First class lounge entrance

At the entrance both agents bowed as we entered and welcomed us into the lounge.

The Asiana first class lounge is quite nice, though by no means the Lufthansa First Class Terminal in Frankfurt or Thai First Class Lounge in Bangkok.

The lounge is beautifully decorated, though, and I love the fact that the lounge is almost always empty. Part of the enjoyment of a premium lounge is being able to get some work done in relative peace, and the Asiana first class lounge certainly delivers in that regard.

Lounge seating

Lounge seating

In addition to plenty of seating, the lounge also has a dining room of sorts right by the buffet.

Buffet

The food spread is also quite good, with a handful of hot dishes (dim sum and the like), as well as several cold dishes, including salad, salmon, cheese, fruit, etc.

Buffet

Buffet

Buffet

After hanging around for about an hour the lounge attendant found us and informed us it was time to head to the gate. We were escorted there at a snail’s pace (unlike our escort, I try not to wear heels at airports), and made it to the plane right as boarding was finishing up.

Escort to the plane

Our plane

Our plane

Like any Asiana first class experience, the highlight was waiting for us aboard.

Last week I posted about the opportunity to fly Aer Lingus business class roundtrip from Boston to Dublin for just 50,000 British Airways Avios points with no fuel surcharges (or just 25,000 Avios points in economy).

One day after I posted about the offer, award availability was spectacular. And I mean really, really spectacular. Unfortunately in the meantime availability has continued to dwindle, and there’s no accurate way to search for award space online anymore. While ExpertFlyer shows Aer Lingus award space, it doesn’t display a single date as being available in business class, which isn’t the case. At the same time United’s website also displays Aer Lingus award space, though in their case virtually every date shows as being available, which isn’t the case with British Airways anymore either. The truth is somewhere in the middle.

So there really is no point in looking online, since it’s in no way an indicator of what British Airways has access to. Out of Boston availability is still decent, though not great. Maybe every few days has a couple of seats available, though not every flight has availability anymore like before.

Stupidly I only got around to booking tickets yesterday, and as usual it was like pulling teeth. I’m pretty sure the performance of British Airways Executive Club agents is based on how quickly they can get you off the phone, because they almost always get impatient after just a few minutes. Therefore it’s a real pain to book these Aer Lingus seats, since there’s no way to know in advance what’s available, and British Airways doesn’t allow award holds of any sort.

In the end I snagged two seats in business class for 50,000 Avios points and $156.28 in taxes (including the $25 ticketing fee) per person on the following flights:

Aer Lingus 136 Boston to Dublin departing at 6:25PM and arriving at 5:20AM (+1 day)
Aer Lingus 137 Dublin to Boston departing at 2:15PM and arriving at 4:15PM

For anyone that’s interested, the breakdown of taxes is as follows (which doesn’t reflect the $25 ticketing fee):

Of course booking the ticket was like pulling teeth, as usual. First I started by explaining to the agent I was completely flexible with dates starting June 20. He said “that’s not going to work, I need specific dates.” Happy he appreciates my flexibility! I guess he was hoping I just had specific dates in mind, and when they weren’t available he thought I’d hang up. For the next few minutes the agent let out grunts until he finally had some options.

Once we started processing the ticket, he warned me repeatedly that there would be “taxation” on the ticket. When he told me the total due (after using the word “taxation” at least five times) I responded with “wow, that’s a lot of taxation without any representation.” He didn’t even chuckle. And I’m pretty sure he also wanted to be a cop when he was younger, since he read me the ticketing rules as if I was under arrest, and then finished with “do you understand your rights?” Oy, these British Airways folks in Jacksonville are something alright…

All that being said, I can’t even say how excited I am. I’ve always wanted to visit Ireland, and I’m especially excited to visit in the summer. No, there’s no glamorous world class first class product, but I actually get to stay in one place for a week, rent a car, and enjoy nature, which is even more fun!

With that in mind, I figured I’d share my observations thus far, and also ask some questions for those of you that have been in Ireland. I’m sure we can all help each other out if we all contribute in the comments section, since I doubt I’m the only one heading to Ireland over the coming months.

Once I get enough feedback my plan is to create an updated post with all of the suggestions consolidated, which will hopefully be a good starting point for those of us heading to Ireland.

Let’s start with the basics. Again, I’ve never been to Ireland so I’m just sharing my research thus far, and hope that others can chime in as well, whether you’re an Ireland pro or just in the planning stages of your trip as well.

Dublin Hotels

Westin Dublin

There’s a Westin in Dublin, though rates seem insanely high. The hotel is a category five Starwood property, so if you’re redeeming free nights it will cost you 12,000-16,000 points per night (with the fifth night free, if you choose to stay that long). Unfortunately cash & points seems to almost never be available. It’s worth noting that this hotel belongs to American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts, so if you’re booking a paid stay and have an American Express Platinum credit card you can get some extra amenities, including a room upgrade upon availability, complimentary continental breakfast, 4PM late check-out, and free afternoon tea once during your stay. It’s worth noting, however, that this requires booking the flexible rate. Furthermore, the hotel is offering a complimentary fourth night when booking through Fine Hotels & Resorts for stays through August 31, 2012.

Four Seasons Dublin

The deal at the Four Seasons Dublin is probably the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen, so this is where I’m staying for substantially less than $200USD per night. The Four Seasons Dublin belongs to both American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts and Virtuoso (and by connection of course Four Seasons Preferred Partner). The benefits are as follows:

American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts:

• One category room upgrade upon availability
• Complimentary continental breakfast
• Guaranteed 4PM late check-out
• Complimentary afternoon tea once during your stay
• Third night free for stays through August 28, 2012

On the other hand, if you book via a Four Seasons Preferred Partner, you get the following benefits:

• One category room upgrade upon availability
• Complimentary full American breakfast either in-room or in the restaurant
• $100USD food and beverage credit per stay
• Third night free for stays through August 28, 2012

So the rates here are actually really good as well. They start at 210 Euros per night ($275USD). So I’m paying $550 for two nights with the third night free. That means for ~$180USD per night I’m getting a room at the Four Seasons with complimentary full breakfast and a $100 food and beverage credit. Amazing!

So in the end I decided to spend three nights in Dublin, and then the other nights roaming the countryside.

Where I (we?) need help

I plan on spending three nights in Ireland outside of Dublin. I realize there’s a lot to see from castles to cliffs to beautiful countryside. Any thoughts as to the best way to structure it? Does it make sense to pick one centrally located hotel for all three nights (is there such a thing?), switch hotels every night in different parts of the country, or something else? If anyone has a basic three day itinerary to hit all the highlights in Ireland outside of Dublin, I’d be eternally grateful.

Also, secretly I’ve always wanted to stay in a castle hotel. Can anyone recommend one?

Lastly, is it worth renting a car for the entire stay, or only while roaming the countryside? In other words, is transportation around Dublin and to/from the airport pretty good, or does it make sense to have a car?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, whether it’s a detailed itinerary, quick tip, or link to trip report that covers a similar trip. And I’m sure I’m not the only one that would be appreciative!

While the British Midland takeover is quickly becoming an episode of Maury (“In the case of 47 year old British Midland, British Airways, you are NOT the father”), more details are emerging as to when British Midland will end their participation in Star Alliance. Last week I posted about British Midland’s announcement that they would begin the process of leaving the Star Alliance as of April 20, though we now have more firm dates.

First of all, today is the last day to use British Midland miles for travel on any Lufthansa group airline (which includes Austrian, Swiss, LOT, Brussels Airlines, etc.). Actually, if you’re reading this now it’s already too late. While their call center closes at 8PM BST, apparently hold times are over an hour, if you can even get through.

Anyway, according to a memo posted by Ghetto IFE, the customer benefit end date of British Midland’s participation in Star Alliance is May 31, 2012, so you should still be able to earn and redeem miles for travel on Star Alliance carriers that don’t belong to the Lufthansa group through then. Per my earlier post, I’m still trying to decide between redeeming those miles for travel on Singapore Airlines with fuel surcharges or on US Airways without fuel surcharges.