Bali and Beijing Trip Report Wrapup

Here’s a guide to all of the posts from my recent trip to Bali and Beijing in Lufthansa First Class and Thai Airways First Class. Hope it’s been a useful and enjoyable read.

• Lufthansa First Class: Washington-Dulles to Frankfurt

• A Complimentary Day Room at Frankfurt: Kempinski Hotel Gravenbruch Frankfurt

• Lufthansa’s First Class Terminal in Frankfurt

• Lufthansa First Class, Frankfurt to Singapore

• Singapore Airlines Short-haul Business Class: Singapore – Denpasar (Bali)

• Intercontinental Bali Resort & Spa – Jimbaran Bay

• Bali – Central Mountain Tour

• Bali – Dinner at Mozaic

• Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay Balinese Cooking Class

• Thai Airways Business Class: Denpasar, Bali to Bangkok

• Bangkok Overnight at the Airport Novotel

• Thai Airways First Class, Bangkok to Beijing

• Westin Beijing Financial Street

• One Day to Tour Beijing

• Beijing’s New Teminal 3

• Lufthansa First Class – Beijing to Frankfurt

• Sheraton Frankfurt Hotel & Towers

• A Second Trip Through Lufthansa’s First Class Terminal in Frankfurt

• Final Flight: Frankfurt Back to Dulles

Some final thoughts:

According to Great Circle Mapper, we traveled 24,329 miles in the course of our 7 flight segments. I certainly feel we got our miles’ worth of flying.

There’s nothing like a full Thai massage, in a proper spa environment, prior to a flight to relax in advance of travel. Thai’s First Class departure services ex-BKK actually are “Smooth as Silk”

I’d rate Lufthansa First Class above BA for sure and better than North American First Class products (United/American), at least until the new First Class (both hard and soft product) is widely available on United. But Lufthansa First pales in comparison to the First products offered by major Asian and Middle Eastern carriers. The food is good, though somewhat inconsistent. The seats really need an update – which supposedly is coming. And service is heavily crew-dependent.

The First Class Terminal in Frankfurt is awesome, especially the drama of the Mercedes or Porsche to the plane. But I actually rate the Thai Airways First Class Bangkok departure experience above the Lufthansa First Clas Frankfurt departure experience.

And Lufthansa service – while good compared to what I’m used to on United – is not in any way at the level of Star Alliance partners Singapore, ANA, or Asiana. (Or this trip, compared to Thai, but that’s been the exception in my limited experience).