Africa 5: Swiss First Class, Dar es Salaam-Nairobi-Zurich

Hello, and welcome to Part 5 of my African series. Sorry about the delay between this and Part 4 – the day after I got back from Africa, I had to go straight off to Ireland, and have only just got home. Part 4 left off after my arrival back in Dar es Salaam after my short flight on Fly540 from Zanzibar.

This report covers my return flight from Africa (Dar es Salaam) to Europe (Zurich) in First Class on Swiss International Airlines. Of all the flights, I was looking forward to these two sectors the most. I’ve flown First Class a couple of times before, but they were either when I was very young, or were short sectors. This would be my first longhual First flight as an adult. Once again, the booking was made thanks to BD miles thus saving me the potential $4,187 cash one way fare.


To start from the very beginning though, you’ll have to check out Part 1 which explains what I’m doing, and flights from London to Brussels via Casablanca and Lisbon.

Part 2, covering my Brussels/South African Airlines business class flights from Brussels to Burundi and Rwanda is here

Part 3, covering my excellent Ethiopian flights from Kigali to Zanzibar via Entebbe, Addis Ababa and Dar es Salaam in Business Class

The full map:


The next parts:

Africa 6
Swiss, Zurich-Athens, Business A320
Aegean, Athens-Larnaca, Business A320

Africa 7
British Airways, Larnaca-London, Business B767

I was dropped back at DAR 2 hours 25 minutes before departure. I went to find my bags, then headed through the security check to the check in desk.


First stop was the document check woman, who did not smile or speak. Not a very warm welcome.


There was one F, on C and one Y desk. There was no one working at the F desk, and one person being served at J, so I headed to the Y desk (so much for using my F benefits!). as soon as they realised I was in F, the station manager drifted over to supervise. I asked for one bag to be sent to ZRH, and the other to ATH. After a lot of conferring, I was told that it was impossible. I reasoned that CA did it in PVG, and ET did it in KGL. I asked for them to try again, but the final answer was “no”. Never mind! I was given my two boarding passes (DAR-ZRH, and ZRH-ATH, which will be in the next part), and then asked a question I’d never been asked at check in before: “Would you like to board first or last”. Ooh, what a choice! “First please”. I was given a lounge pass, and headed off.


There was no queue for immigration, but the officer on duty was obviously on a “go slow”, so it took a while before I was able to proceed through security (fairly fast) and on to the departures lounge. Ours was the only flight departing for the next two hours. Two hours after us a KL flight from JRO to AMS would be passing through.



There is just one lounge in DAR, the Tanzanite Lounge. Unfortunately it was a mediocre C lounge at best – there wasn’t even a token roped off area for F pax, so I just joined everyone else.



In an effort to make the most of the catering onboard, I stuck to sparkling water only. It looked like there was a reasonable selection of food and drink, although the layout/design was a bit too school cafeteriaish for my liking.


There was some European football match being placyed on all the TVs (with sound). As the lounge was actually on tarmac level, there were a lot of ramp staff peering in through the lace curtains, hollering at the TV. Nice décor:


After an hour in the lounge, I was fairly bored, so went for a walk around the poorly lit terminal. The duty free options were no great, so I just headed for the holding pen. I managed one bad photo before boarding commenced.


Judging from the number of people waiting in the departure lounge, this leg would have around 60 pax.

February 2012
Dar es Salaam (DAR) – Nairobi (NBO)
Swiss LX 293
Scheduled: 2210-2330 (1h20m)
Actual: 2209-2306 (0h57m)
Airbus A330-300
HB-JHK “Herisau” (the newest A330 in the fleet, having only been delivered some 20-odd days before my flight. It’s also the first aircraft to have the new revised colour scheme)
First Class



I was a little disappointed that there was no priority boarding announcement in the holding lounge (just a generic “flight 293 to Zurich is now boarding”) – perhaps if I had stayed in the dingy Tanzanite Lounge someone would have collected me, but then again, then might not have, and left me running to the gate.


After I snapped this picture, the guy behind asked “does the plane look ok?”. My reply of “well, it’s got 2 wings” brought a chuckle from him, although, of course, I had no way of telling it did actually have 2 wings from this shot. Luckily it did. It turns out him and his wife were (unfortunately) also in First Class this flight, so a grand total of 3 out of 8 seats taken, shattering my dream of having a cabin to myself.


First impressions of the cabin were excellent. Spacious, yet warm and cozy.







Moving map here in DAR


The classic legroom shot


Amenity kit – had everything you could want, although the eyeshade was not great (I fear airlines have stopped making decent ones – my NZ Premium Economy one is still the best one in my collection)


Later in the flight I requested a metal business class one as well – shame it was an RJ one, not an A330 – the contents were rather meagre


View out the window – not much happening tonight. Sorry about the reflection – those lamps were very nice, but didn’t aid photos!


Boarding was all done via door 1L, so there was a constant stream of passengers walking by eliciting comments like “oooh, looks very nice”, and “I think this is where we should be sitting”.

A welcome glass of champagne. I’m not a champagne connoisseur by any means, but this glass was absolutely delicious putting every other champagne I’ve tried into the shade. For the record, it was Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle, and retails at around GBP100 a bottle. Truly decadent, and wins the prize of the best tasting thing of the holiday. Oh yes, also had a glass of sparkling water, which was also nice, but not quite as pricey.


A nice big pillow, and my pyjamas


There were plenty of controls to fiddle with – the suite can be modified in any number of ways







The handy side pocket


An oshibori, as they say in Japan


Safety demo


We pushed back ontime, and headed off to Nairobi




Catering on this leg consisted of more expensive champagne and water, together with some little sandwiches. The tray table is only half open here – the full sized thing is really quite large – plenty of room for two to dine spaciously.



I had a quick look at the AVOD selection – seems like a nice system


Menus were handed out after out snack service – time for another top up


Nearly in Nairobi


Approach






Nairobi was a lot busier than DAR was, with plenty of action from Europeans (BA/SN etc) and from the incumbent Kenya Airways. Thankfully any new passengers boarded via door 2L, so the F cabin was quite peaceful. I took the opportunity to change into my pjs in the very nice, but cramped toilet area. There is a nice folding leather seat in there.



Once changed, there was an FA waiting outside with a hanger to hang my clothes up – never had that happen on a plane before!


In my cosy pyjamas and slippers, I headed back to my area. I took the opportunity of having a nice wide seat to snuggle up cross legged with the blanket and a magazine, with the soft glow of the dimmable lamp creating some atmosphere. Wonderful! The cockpit crew changed here (they operate ZRH-NBO, NBO-DAR-NBO, NBO-ZRH with hotel stops in NBO, whilst the cabin crew do ZRH-NBO-DAR,DAR-NBO-ZRH with just a hotel stop in DAR), so there was quite a lot of handover activity ahead. We got a female first officer on this leg. Thankfully no one joined us in First, so they’d be plenty of space on the longhual leg. No idea about loads of C or Y, sorry.

The Maître de Cabine came around during the stop to say hello, and give some details on the flight, which was nice.

During the stop the PTVs weren’t usable, but there were lots of scenes from the Antarctic


Before departure there was a canapé service.


Oh yes, two big fat lumps of lobster in seafood sauce with asparagus and some warm cheese sticks. Yum!


My headphones, and what’s this?


Eugh, a bloody tissue that the cleaners missed down the side of the seat


For tomorrow morning’s temperature, you can add a “-“ sign in front of the 17C.



February 2012
Nairobi (NBO) – Zurich (ZRH)
Swiss LX 293
Scheduled: 0020-0625 (8h05m)
Actual: 0019-0610 (7h51m)
Airbus A330-300
HB-JHK
First



Some blurry scene of NBO




The Bundesrepublik A319


BA beat us to the runway, but we eneded up taking off first







The lovely bedside lamp. I started off in seat 1A, but after take off moved back to 2A so the American couple could have row 1 to themselves. For those of you interested, they were connecting to CLT via MUC.


They’ve even updated the livery on the IFE






About fifteen minutes after take off, I was asked if I wanted dinner (of course), and my table was set up


Over dinner I watched some thriller about something to do with time….wasn’t great and fell asleep before it ended


More “pound a sip” champagne please


Lovey table setting


Lots of bread


Lets have a look at the menu


Plenty of choice for dinner


For starters, you can choose as much as you like from the list – there’s no “either/or” here.


I had heard great things about the balik salmon, so went for that to start. As expected for a salmon lover, it was excellent. I could have eaten this all evening.


The soup also sounded very nice, so I got some of that too. The plate was nice and hot. Again, very tasty.


Mains


I was also offered a speciality dish from the Berne region which sounded good, so I went with that. It was nice, but didn’t seem particularly special



Half way though, the lovely FA came through with more vegetables


I’m not a big cheese eater, but I’d also heard good things about the cheese course, so thought I’d try a little


And some blueberry ice cream for dessert – very tasty. By this time I was so full I couldn’t even finish the ice cream. I have never eaten so much food on a plane before.


Time for some peppermint tea before bed

The FA came up whilst I was sipping on my tea with a very nice looking box of Sprüngli chocolates. They looked wonderful, but I was on the verge of exploding, so only took one. The FA stood there, stern faced, and shook the box at me. I took another. She didn’t move at all, her face passive until she shook the box for the third time. Ok, ok, I’ll take another. We both burst out laughing as she finally smiled, and walked off. Very amusing, and a great example of the excellent level of service, anticipation of needs, and interaction between crew and customers. I was a bit miffed to see the rest of the box of chocolates delivered to the table of the American couple, but then quickly remembered by own incredibly indulgent dinner, and settled down to enjoy the three I already had.
Plenty of toothpicks


Obviously I was taking a lot of photos throughout the flight. The wonderful FA asked if I wanted a photo taken, which of course I said yes to – sorry it’s not on here though!

Wine, champagne and drinks


A feast of the senses indeed


With the feast over, it was time for bed. During my dessert, I was asked if I wanted my bed made up after dinner. I asked for 2D for be made up instead, which was met with “excellent idea”.


As you can see, there are no centralised luggage lockers, giving the cabin a very spacious feel to it.


How welcoming is that? The privacy screens between seats, and to the aisle are both extended.




My slippers on the floor


I must say it felt VERY good to slide under the duvet. The bed was soft and comfortable. Unfortunately I paid the price for my gluttony, and was feeling a bit sick after the excesses of dinner. I powered through though, and managed to get some sleep.

I woke up just after leaving the coast of Egypt. The cabin was dark, but with some atmospheric plane lighting from the seat belt signs. It felt very cosy staring at the ceiling, whilst wrapped up in a proper bed whilst on a plane. I pondered doing a lap of the plane to check out the other cabins, but decided instead to take a short talk to the bathroom (too much vintage champagne). One of the FAs was sitting in the galley doing Sudoku. She gave me an indulgent smile as I walked past, the kind reserved for you by your favourite aunt.

Posted 2012-02-22 01:48:03 and read 14839 times.

After another few hours of sleep I woke up over the Adriatic.



I was slightly alarmed to see that we only had 52 minutes left of the flight.




I needed have worried about the time. Everything was very relaxed, whilst also being terribly efficient. Breakfast menu


Arrivals lounge info


A glass of fresh OJ


I was still feeling incredibly full after dinner so would have been happy to skip everything for breakfast, but the food looked good, and I needed something for my trip report! The FA came around with a tray of various breakfast choices, and I just picked what I fancied. I went with a plate of charcuterie and bread. It wasn’t my normal breakfast, but at the time it made sense. I have a long running history of picking odd things on planes for breakfast. I got a mug of hot chocolate too.



Over the Alps



A hot towel before landing


The Maître de Cabine came back for a final chat as the breakfast things were cleared away. She warned me that the ground temperature was around -20C, and to take care when disembarking. She also said that due to the temperature that my onward flight to ATH might be delayed due to deicing and the need to warm up the planes before letting pax on. I explained that I had 6 hours between flights, so a delay wouldn’t be an issue. She asked my plans and baulked when I said I planned on taking a quick walk around downtown ZRH. “Wrap up warm! And go and have a hot chocolate in Café Sprungli”.

As we approached ZRH I took a few more photos for the report


Last night’s hotel!











You can’t tell in this photo at all, but that is the moon. With the morning glow of the city, and a full moon, and some atmospheric cloud, the view was really beautiful. Shame I couldn’t get a photo.








I collected up my things, bid adieu to the wonderful crew, and headed up the incredibly cold airbridge into the terminal.




Goodbye ‘Herisau’, that was without doubt the best flight I’ve ever had.



This was my first time in the ‘E’ part of the ZRH, and I got a little lost but eventually found my way to security, then immigration, and the finally to meet “infodesk” at her desk. After a quick chat, I headed off to the First Class Lounge for a very welcome shower.


As dinner had finally moved on, I had some space for more indulgent food in the form of Nutella and smoked salmon




Cripes, it’s cold outside. As I finished my beer yesterday evening in the Kempinski in Dar it was a lovely 32C. Dropping 50C overnight is not recommended.


A few photos of the F lounge. It was nice, but not amazing. It was also quite small for the number of people using it.











With the F lounge sightseeing done, I headed down to check out the arrivals lounge. I was greeted by a chirpy lady with “I’m sure you know your way around”. I didn’t, but it wasn’t hard to locate the breakfast bar.



After a rather brief stop, it was on through to the station. I was stopped (along with quite a few other people) at customs. I’m awful at looking innocent! I always make eye contact, then look away, looking as guilty as a diamond smuggler (to paraphrase my favourite book). I was asked about my travel plans. I played them down a bit so I didn’t sound quite so suspicious/odd, and was let into the winter wonderland of Switzerland. I bought a very expensive ticket for the (delayed) train to the Zürich hauptbahnhof.







Zurich station


I picked up a map from the tourist information office in the station, and headed off on my short walk.




Zurich is terribly pretty in the sun. The sub zero temperatures made the walk hard going, so I diverted to a café for a drink.


Zurich lake steaming in the sun



Some frozen fountains




This sort of energy wasting activity incurred a lot of wrath in Japan after the earthquake, when air conditioned shops like this kept their doors open in the summer heat whilst the rest of the country was desperately trying to save energy.


I’ll leave this report here for now, and continue with my flight to Athens and on to Larnaca in the next few days. I hope you enjoyed reading about it as much as I enjoyed experiencing it! I’m already formulating a plan to get back in seat 1A on another LX flight in the future. The flight was pretty much faultless. The crew were fantastic – friendly and efficient. I guess it was fairly easy for them with only 3 pax (and 2 crew). It’d be interesting to see how they’d cope with a full cabin of demanding executives. I was slightly surprised (although not disappointed) that at no stage was I called by name (in fact, it only happened ONCE in the entire trip – on ET). The catering was out of this world – so tasty, and with an enormous selection. The seat was excellent, both in seat and bed form. It’s a shame the flight wasn’t a few hours longer as sleep quality was pretty good. Dar es Salaam airport could do with a massive makeover, but was clean and functional. ZRH was fine, but not amazing. Zurich itself was nice, if not a tad cold. One reservation that I had about the flight (well, not so much this flight in particular, but First Class in general) is the huge amount of waste generated. There was so much food on offer, only a fraction of it could have been consumed, even with all the crew pitching in! Still, with the price tag as high as it is, that’s what customers demand, so that’s what airlines have to offer.

All comments and questions welcome!

***Addendum***

Nearly exactly a month after my flight from Brussels to Bujumbura on the rather scraggly ex-Swiss plane, I got a response from Brussels Airlines customer services:

“We acknowledge receipt of your letter and sincerely regret that certain aspects of the services offered by our company did not meet your expectations.
Your comments regarding flight SN453 from Brussels to Bujumbura of 22 January, 2012, are gratefully received. Brussels Airlines consistently strives to deliver a comfortable and efficient service to all our customers and without comments such as yours, we would be unable to correct any shortfalls in our service. We can assure you the relevant departments were notified and any necessary action will be taken.
Please allow us to inform you that your flight was operated by an Airbus from Swiss that recently joint our long-haul fleet.
We have the pleasure to inform you that the seats both in Business and Economy Class on board of all our long-haul aircraft will be replaced starting February, 2012, and ending in December, 2012.
We would like to take this opportunity to apologize most sincerely for the unfavourable impression we may have given you on this occasion.
Despite this, we sincerely hope that you will continue to fly Brussels Airlines.”

Not the most helpful of responses. I would have hoped if it took them a month to write a reply, they would actually have something constructive to say. Repeating what I already said to them (i.e. that it was an ex-Swiss plane, etc) isn’t terribly useful. I’m afraid it’s a thumbs down to SN customer services dept. Still, I’m glad that the purser actually handed my letter in – I had assumed that he had just binned it.

Some of my other TRs:

Africa Part 4: Fly 540 DAR-ZNZ in Y
Africa Part 3: ET KGL-EBB-ADD-DAR-ZNZ, A to Z with Ethiopian Airlines in C
Africa Part 2: SN BRU-BJM, SA BJM-KGL, Business to Burundi and Rwanda
Africa Part 1: BD LHR-CMN, TP CMN-LIS, SN LIS-BRU in Y and C
A.net meeting in snowy Tallinn. U2/FR STN-TLL-LTN
easyJet and bmi up to Aberdeen, LTN-ABZ-LHR
The Costa del Sol with British Airways. LGW-AGP-LCY
Mysterious Moldova (and Transnistria). Lufthansa LHR-MUC-KIV
BA to the Austrian Alps. LHR-MUC, INN-LGW
I can't get no Jetisfaction: LH LGW-FRA inaugural
Colombia Part 4: Colombia to London via FRA/MUC/HEL on LH & BA
Colombia Part 3: Colombia with Avianca (AV). SMR-BOG-MDE-BOG
Colombia Part 2: Colombia with Avianca (AV). BOG-MDE-CTG
Colombia Part 1: London to Colombia via ARN/MUC/FRA on BA & LH
USA and Mexico Part 4, British Airways Mexico City – London, World Traveller Plus
USA and Mexico Part 3: Around Mexico with Aereo Calafia Cessna 208B & Viva Aerobus B733
USA and Mexico Part 2: Sightseeing tour of San Diego Airport, and American Airlines San Diego - LA – Dallas - San Jose Cabo
USA and Mexico Part 1: easyJet Luton to Paris, and BA Paris to San Diego via LHR in World Traveller Plus
British Airways to Scandinavia (LHR-CPH,GOT-LHR)
Where’s my bag? British Airways, Milan to London
What airline am I flying again? Bmi/Lufthansa Italia LHR-MXP
Albania and Macedonia: Austrian LHR-VIE-TIA, Macedonian Airlines SKP-ZRH, Swiss ZRH-LCY
Part 1, Lufthansa London-Munich-Frankfurt-Nanjing, Economy Class A321 and A343
Part 2, Cathay Pacific Shanghai to Tokyo via Hong Kong, Business Class A330 and B747-400
Part 3, ANA Boeing B767 Tokyo to Shanghai, & Air China Airbus A340 Shanghai to Beijing, Business Class
Part 4: Chinese domestics, inc. Joy Air Xi’an MA60, Tianjin Airlines ERJ, and China Express Airways CRJ
Part 5: Lufthansa Beijing-Frankfurt-London City, Economy Class A388 and E90
5 Countries, 5 Flights, 5 Days, with Ryanair (FR)
bmiFriday: Welcome to Sunny Norway, London to Bergen, A319)
Royal Jordanian, London to Aqaba via Amman. A330 and A320
Royal Jordanian, Amman to London, A330
London City to Antwerp with Cityjet and the Fokker 50
Croatian Airlines, LHR-ZAG,PUY-ZAD-ZAG-LHR, A319 and Dash 8
British Airways, Iberia & Binter to Tenerife and Gran Canaria, LHR-MAD-TFN-LPA-MAD-LHR, A320,ATR, A321
British Airways, London To Amsterdam, LGW-AMS-LHR, B737 & A321
British Airways up to a snowy Glasgow, with a change of flights and delay, LHR-GLA-LCY A321 and E90
Turkish Airlines Business Class from London to Istanbul. From Terrible To Fantastic
Turkish Airlines Business Class from Istanbul to Batumi (Georgia). Not again!
bmi Business Class, Tbilisi to London via Azerbaijan
Tallinn to London, with Estonian Air and BA, via ARN
Cuba! BA/IB London-Madrid-Havana, Business Class
Aerocarribean, Baracoa to Havana
Asia Trip, Pt 1: Qatar Airways Business Class (LHR-DOH-ICN)
Asia Trip, Pt 2: China Southern and Hainan Airlines (A321/A346)
Asia Trip, Pt 3: Malaysia Airlines, Hong Kong to Penang
Asia Trip, Pt 4: Qatar Airways Economy (HKG-DOH-LHR)
A weekend in Transylvania with Blue Air (LTN-SBZ)
Helsinki for the weekend on BA and KF
Easter in Ukraine with Austrian
UAE and Oman with BA and Air Arabia. Y & Y+
HKG-LHR-HKG Air New Zealand, Premium Economy and Economy
US Airways LGW-DCA-MSP-LGA-LGW
London Heathrow - Zurich - Venice on Swiss Business for the weekend
Chasing the Eclipse on China Eastern
Taiwan: EVA Air (HKG-TPE rtn), UNI Airways (TSA-HCN), Daily Air (TTT-KYD rtn)
UA HKG-SIN-HKG Y Class, SQ KUL-SIN C Class
Bangkok to Beijing, Egyptair Business Class
Air China Beijing to Harbin, B777 Economy outbound, A330 First Class return
Tiger Airways, Singapore to Darwin return
A selection of Chinese Domestics; China Eastern, Air China and Shenzhen Airlines
Hong Kong to London on Singapore Airlines (744/380/77W)
Qatar Airways Beijing-Doha-London Heathrow (A330/A340)
Air China First Class. Beijing-Guilin via Xi’an
Round Asia Trip. URC-HTN,OSS-FRU,ALA-URC-LHW-KMG-JHG-KMG-SYX,HAK-NKG-PEK-NRT-LHR,
Hainan Airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, Lucky Air, ANA, Economy and Business Class.
SAS and Lufthansa Business Class, LHR-OSL-FRA-FRA, B73G and B744

[Edited 2012-02-22 01:56:10]

Sorry, was just editing a few bits, so if you clicked on it just after I posted, you might want to refresh if you didn't see the breakfast photos.

Gaby once again a warm tks !

My review is mixed. The catering seemed to me poor and not on par with my previous LX experiences..

Why you did not change the meal ?

See you !

Thomas

Quoting milesaddict (Reply 3): Gaby once again a warm tks !

No problem

Quoting milesaddict (Reply 3): My review is mixed. The catering seemed to me poor and not on par with my previous LX experiences.. Why you did not change the meal ?

I was happy enough with the meal. it also seemed relatively healthy with the boiled veg, so thought it was a good choice. The rest of the catering I thought was really good, although I know you fly F quite a bit so know what to look for!

I forgot to reply to :

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 2): Not the most helpful of responses. I would have hoped if it took them a month to write a reply, they would actually have something constructive to say. Repeating what I already said to them (i.e. that it was an ex-Swiss plane, etc) isn’t terribly useful. I’m afraid it’s a thumbs down to SN customer services dept. Still, I’m glad that the purser actually handed my letter in – I had assumed that he had just binned it.

Actually, no matter the carrier they are all failing to give the right answer to the pax. I tend to congrat the crew or the staff more than sending complain letters, however it's useful for the airline to improve the service or anything else.
Yep, feel lucky enough the purser gave your letter. When I complain on board and give the draft I always get a copy. Why ? In case the purser do not send the letter... AF got me once years back, hence my behavior.

BTW did you use your miles for the entire trip, if yes, what's your FFP ?

Tks

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 4): I know you fly F quite a bit so know what to look for!

I have four legs with LX in F next week, I let you know ! (It's crazy the thing we do for miles and status)

Take care

Quoting milesaddict (Reply 5): Actually, no matter the carrier they are all failing to give the right answer to the pax. I tend to congrat the crew or the staff more than sending complain letters, however it's useful for the airline to improve the service or anything else.

Well, if the service is good, I'm very quick to fill in a compliments form and give it to the crew onboard.

Quoting milesaddict (Reply 5): BTW did you use your miles for the entire trip, if yes, what's your FFP ?

Yes, all paid for via BD Diamond Clucb, who are still up and running, but not sure for how much longer.

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 6): Well, if the service is good, I'm very quick to fill in a compliments form and give it to the crew onboard.

I'm the same, but few out there thank you. In November I had one of the best Crew with TG. a month latter I got this :

S4/00092227-SB-tt


Dear Mr. xxx,

Thank you for your letter written during your flight on board TG932 from Bangkok to Paris on November 13, 2011.

We are delighted that we have had the pleasure of your flying with us and pleased too that you found the service quite satisfactory. We do try to make each flight a memorable experience with the deliberate intention of persuading you to fly with us again.

Your commendation ofour service is much appreciated and will be a great encouragement to them. We know that they will wish to join us in thanking you for your kindness and in saying that it was our pleasure to have had you on board.

We look forward to welcoming you again on board THAI's Airways International's Royal Orchid Service. Meanwhile, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and wonderful New Year 2012.



Yours sincerely,



Chonticha Santisevi
Director
Customer Relations Department



I love that !

Have you figured out your next FFP ?

Quoting milesaddict (Reply 7): I love that !

Nice reply!

Quoting milesaddict (Reply 7): Have you figured out your next FFP ?

Well I've got quite a few miles in LH and BA, and a few thousand in AF and MU so I think I have my bases covered, although none as generous (or as incompetant) as BD. I was thinking about Aegean with their easy *G, but after the collapse of Spanair and Malev I think I'll stick to the larger airlines for my miles savings!

Hi Gabriel,

very nice report about your LX F Class experience. The cabin product seems to be excellent, but I'm a bit surprised about that simple main course you got.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Once again, the booking was made thanks to BD miles thus saving me the potential $4,187 cash one way fare.

That's what I call a good deal.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I asked for one bag to be sent to ZRH, and the other to ATH. After a lot of conferring, I was told that it was impossible.

I cannot believe it actually worked on other carriers.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): It turns out him and his wife were (unfortunately) also in First Class this flight, so a grand total of 3 out of 8 seats taken, shattering my dream of having a cabin to myself.

Didn't you expect a bit too much?  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Later in the flight I requested a metal business class one as well – shame it was an RJ one, not an A330 – the contents were rather meagre

I'm wondering why boxes with short-haul motives have been produced after all.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Eugh, a bloody tissue that the cleaners missed down the side of the seat

Awful!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): They’ve even updated the livery on the IFE

No, it's still the old one.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I was also offered a speciality dish from the Berne region which sounded good, so I went with that. It was nice, but didn’t seem particularly special

That looks really plain and simple.

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 4): it also seemed relatively healthy with the boiled veg, so thought it was a good choice.

Who cares about a healthy meal when flying F Class?  


PH

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 9): very nice report about your LX F Class experience. The cabin product seems to be excellent, but I'm a bit surprised about that simple main course you got.

It was excellent. The main was a little simple, but it was only one course of 5!

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 9): Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Once again, the booking was made thanks to BD miles thus saving me the potential $4,187 cash one way fare. That's what I call a good deal.

What I didn't put before was that ex-ZRH prices are a LOT higher...one way ZRH-DAR is US$15,004!!!! (GBP9,559/EUR 11,344)

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 9): I cannot believe it actually worked on other carriers.

I don't see why it's such a big deal. If you can print 2 tags for ATH or 2 tags for ZRH, why is it so difficult to have one of each?

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 9): Didn't you expect a bit too much?

Always hope for the best, but expect the worst!

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 9): No, it's still the old one.

The red cube is missing after the SWISS, so it's the new one

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 9): Who cares about a healthy meal when flying F Class?

Well, most of it was pretty calorie-intensive, so haveing one healthy thing was a good change!

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 10): What I didn't put before was that ex-ZRH prices are a LOT higher...one way ZRH-DAR is US$15,004!!!! (GBP9,559/EUR 11,344)

Amazing!

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 10): The red cube is missing after the SWISS, so it's the new one

The SWISS titles are still the small ones and they are still located above the windows. And you still find cube logos on the engines. So it's the old livery.


PH

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 11): Amazing!

Shocking more like!

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 11): The SWISS titles are still the small ones and they are still located above the windows. And you still find cube logos on the engines. So it's the old livery.

Indeed

Hello Gabriel,

Nice and interesting report! I’m glad you had an excellent flight back to the European continent. Swiss really seems to deliver ‘service extraordinaire’! Do you think you’ll be willing to cough up the amount of cash (no miles!) for this flight and service if you knew it would be that good?

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I had to go straight off to Ireland, and have only just got home.

Are you ever ever @ home I wonder  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): so it took a while before I was able to proceed through security (fairly fast) and on to the departures lounge.

That’s quite a contradiction.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): shattering my dream of having a cabin to myself.

So next time maybe you charter the whole cabin paying with miles   

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): For the record, it was Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle,

Oh, THAT one...  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): In my cosy pyjamas and slippers

The public demands pics!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Very amusing, and a great example of the excellent level of service, anticipation of needs, and interaction between crew and customers

That’s a good summary of how you want it to be.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): One reservation that I had about the flight (well, not so much this flight in particular, but First Class in general) is the huge amount of waste generated. There was so much food on offer, only a fraction of it could have been consumed, even with all the crew pitching in! Still, with the price tag as high as it is, that’s what customers demand, so that’s what airlines have to offer

I’m glad you are still able to see through all this luxury and pampering and see things in perspective   

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Not the most helpful of responses.

I think most other airlines will provide you with the same kind of automated response, no? Still, SN should be able to do better!

Sultanils

Wow, that was incredible! The food looked so delicious! The first class cabin looked delicious! If I were ever to try the first class product, I would make sure to fly as far as possible to have more time onboard.

Thank you so much for sharing! Swiss seems to have one of the best first class services out there.

Thanks for the comments!

Quoting sultanils (Reply 13): Nice and interesting report!

THanks!

Quoting sultanils (Reply 13): Do you think you’ll be willing to cough up the amount of cash (no miles!) for this flight and service if you knew it would be that good?

Well $4K is quite a lot for 10 hours, so no! (well, not until I'm a millionaire anyway)

Quoting sultanils (Reply 13): Are you ever ever @ home I wonder

Well, i'm at home now!

Quoting sultanils (Reply 13): That’s quite a contradiction.

Well, immigration was slow, but security was fast

Quoting sultanils (Reply 13): The public demands pics!

Maybe on facebook!

Quoting AirPacific747 (Reply 14): Wow, that was incredible! The food looked so delicious! The first class cabin looked delicious!

Yes, it was a delicious flight!

Quoting AirPacific747 (Reply 14): If I were ever to try the first class product, I would make sure to fly as far as possible to have more time onboard.

I'm glad I happened to get on one of the few LX flights with a stopover

Quoting AirPacific747 (Reply 14): Thank you so much for sharing! Swiss seems to have one of the best first class services out there.

Yes, I think they are consistently very good in F

Quoting sultanils (Reply 13): Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): One reservation that I had about the flight (well, not so much this flight in particular, but First Class in general) is the huge amount of waste generated. There was so much food on offer, only a fraction of it could have been consumed, even with all the crew pitching in! Still, with the price tag as high as it is, that’s what customers demand, so that’s what airlines have to offer I’m glad you are still able to see through all this luxury and pampering and see things in perspective

Still, Let should carry less food on board.

It's such a shame to waste that amount of food... I'm sure pax will understand the point. We shoud care about the natural resources..

I also want you to show us with PJ on... don't be shy !

Hola Gabriel!

I have been following your Africa trip, well, Africa with some diversions let's say and I have been very impressed by all your comments. Really nice trip, a wonderful way of travelling around Africa.

This last trip report has certainly impressed me... the quality of LX F class is always something to feel impressed.. it is a true experience in itself. I had the pleasure of flying them last summer and I was really happy to spend my miles with them, although the cabin was full on both flights, ZRH-SFO-ZRH, their service and attention was a step above I could have imagined.

Really lucky to fly the new F class which looks amazing, excellent. The quality of the food and the attention to small details, like the idea of giving you the option between olive oil and butter is really amazing. Your main course though does not look very F class, but it is good to try new things, I would have opted for that as well.

Certainly the amount of food and drink is something to write home about it... need some extra exercise at the gym after, and that's excluding all the chocolates affair... which are simply irresistible.

Thanks for sharing and happy to read your new trip reports.

Salut!

Roger

Quoting milesaddict (Reply 16): I also want you to show us with PJ on... don't be shy !

Well check facebook when I finally load the rest of the photos!

Quoting ROGERBCN (Reply 17): I have been following your Africa trip, well, Africa with some diversions let's say and I have been very impressed by all your comments. Really nice trip, a wonderful way of travelling around Africa.

Thanks!

Quoting ROGERBCN (Reply 17): Really lucky to fly the new F class which looks amazing, excellent.

Yeah, it was very nice. After flying the new one I'd be worried about the old one - it looks a lot less private

Quoting ROGERBCN (Reply 17): Your main course though does not look very F class, but it is good to try new things, I would have opted for that as well.

Yeah, it was a bit of a let down, but by then I'd already had sandwiches, canapes, salmon and soup, so I wan't too bothered!

Quoting ROGERBCN (Reply 17): Thanks for sharing and happy to read your new trip reports.

No problem Roger

Hi Gab,

Thank you for another great installment of your big trip. I'm so glad that you such an unforgettable flight in Swiss F. You were certainly well looked after. Interesting that you got the very plane with the new logo on the side - I really don't like it and think looks nowhere near as classy.

You also packed a lot into your sightseeing in Zurich by the looks of it!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Amenity kit – had everything you could want, although the eyeshade was not great (I fear airlines have stopped making decent ones – my NZ Premium Economy one is still the best one in my collection)

The F amenity kit looks a little disappointing. I'm not an expert on them, but when you look at some of the stylish ones BA have done in the past, the bag seems very plain in comparison.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Later in the flight I requested a metal business class one as well – shame it was an RJ one, not an A330 – the contents were rather meagre

Seems strange to even offer an amenity kit with the RJ pictured on it.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Eugh, a bloody tissue that the cleaners missed down the side of the seat

Quite disgusting.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): By this time I was so full I couldn’t even finish the ice cream. I have never eaten so much food on a plane before.

Now, didn't I hear Roger say that too after his flight in F?!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I got a mug of hot chocolate too.

What was it like? The hot chocolate I've had on planes has always been horrible (but then again, I wasn't sitting in First  )

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Cripes, it’s cold outside. As I finished my beer yesterday evening in the Kempinski in Dar it was a lovely 32C. Dropping 50C overnight is not recommended.

Thank goodness that cold spell is over now!!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I’m awful at looking innocent! I always make eye contact, then look away, looking as guilty as a diamond smuggler (to paraphrase my favourite book).

I'm glad you wrote that! I'm the same with customs. Even though I know I have nothing to hide, I never quite know where to look.

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 10): What I didn't put before was that ex-ZRH prices are a LOT higher...one way ZRH-DAR is US$15,004!!!! (GBP9,559/EUR 11,344)

Try pricing the same flights ex ZRH then MXP, shocking differences!

It was really nice to have met you, if only briefly.

Happy flying
Infodesk   

Wow Gabriel,

What a pure indulgence on board of LX First Class and that by burning your miles!  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): then asked a question I’d never been asked at check in before: “Would you like to board first or last”. Ooh, what a choice! “First please”

Too bad, it did not materialize.  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): For the record, it was Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle

We got served the same champagne on board of QR First Class two years ago.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): BA beat us to the runway, but we eneded up taking off first

How did you feel being the winner?

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): wasn’t great and fell asleep before it ended

Not during dinnertime, I hope.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): For starters, you can choose as much as you like from the list – there’s no “either/or” here.

Cool! I would stick to the starters in that case.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I have never eaten so much food on a plane before.

Some many choices for three people. Not surprising.   

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 1): “Wrap up warm! And go and have a hot chocolate in Café Sprungli”.

What a good advice!

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 1): so I diverted to a café for a drink.

Mojito? By the way, were you at Café Sprungli?


Thank you for sharing. I can hardly wait to fly again myself.


Greetings,
Suryo

Hi Gabriel!

Great report as usual. It seems like you had a great flight in LX First, would love to try it myself some day.  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): HB-JHK %u201CHerisau%u201D (the newest A330 in the fleet, having only been delivered some 20-odd days before my flight. It%u2019s also the first aircraft to have the new revised colour scheme)

Nice to get such a new aircraft, but I don't like their new livery, the old one was way better.

Martin

SWISS First Class is lovely - thanks for sharing.

Well at least you got a reply from SN - I'm still waiting after contacting them about 3-4 weeks ago. So much for 'due-diligence'.

Thanks everyone for your comments!

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): Thank you for another great installment of your big trip

No problem!

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): Interesting that you got the very plane with the new logo on the side - I really don't like it and think looks nowhere near as classy.

I agree - nice to get a brand new plane though

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): You also packed a lot into your sightseeing in Zurich by the looks of it!

Not as much as i'd have liked

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): Seems strange to even offer an amenity kit with the RJ pictured on it.

Yeah, odd choice

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): Now, didn't I hear Roger say that too after his flight in F?!

I bet everyone says it!

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): What was it like? The hot chocolate I've had on planes has always been horrible (but then again, I wasn't sitting in First )

IIRC it was quite nice. Only have HC once before on a plane and that was ZRH-VCE with LX, and it was also quite good. Tasted like it was made from milk

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): I'm glad you wrote that! I'm the same with customs. Even though I know I have nothing to hide, I never quite know where to look.

Glad I'm not the only one!

Quoting infodesk (Reply 19): It was really nice to have met you, if only briefly.

You too!

Quoting akhmad (Reply 20): What a pure indulgence on board of LX First Class and that by burning your miles!

Yes, pure indulgence!

Quoting akhmad (Reply 20): We got served the same champagne on board of QR First Class two years ago.

Tasty isn't it!

Quoting akhmad (Reply 20): How did you feel being the winner?

Great!

Quoting akhmad (Reply 20): Not during dinnertime, I hope.

No, after dinner

Quoting akhmad (Reply 20): Mojito? By the way, were you at Café Sprungli?

Mojito!? No, mint tea, and at a cheaper cafe!

Quoting deltamartin (Reply 21): Great report as usual. It seems like you had a great flight in LX First, would love to try it myself some day.

Save up your miles - it's worth it!

Quoting SInGAPORE_AIR (Reply 22): SWISS First Class is lovely - thanks for sharing.

Thanks!

Quoting jwhite9185 (Reply 23): Well at least you got a reply from SN - I'm still waiting after contacting them about 3-4 weeks ago. So much for 'due-diligence'.

Well it took 30 days for me so any day now!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Not the most helpful of responses. I would have hoped if it took them a month to write a reply, they would actually have something constructive to say. Repeating what I already said to them (i.e. that it was an ex-Swiss plane, etc) isn’t terribly useful. I’m afraid it’s a thumbs down to SN customer services dept. Still, I’m glad that the purser actually handed my letter in – I had assumed that he had just binned it.

Just out of curiosity, what kind of response would satisfy you??

Quoting TurkishWings (Reply 25): Just out of curiosity, what kind of response would satisfy you??

One that adequately addressed the issues raised in my letter to them.

Thanks for continuing reporting about this fabolous trip  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): There is just one lounge in DAR, the Tanzanite Lounge. Unfortunately it was a mediocre C lounge at best – there wasn’t even a token roped off area for F pax, so I just joined everyone else.

Wow this looks like a night club in some downscale mediterreanean holiday destination...  

Quoting reifel (Reply 27): Thanks for continuing reporting about this fabolous trip

No problem, glad you liked it!

Quoting reifel (Reply 27): Wow this looks like a night club in some downscale mediterreanean holiday destination...

Yeah, interesting decor down in the cellar!

Great report, but there is something I feel is so important a really good camera when travelling up front!! Nevertheless the photos delivered the ambiance!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): First stop was the document check woman, who did not smile or speak. Not a very warm welcome.

Did you need to actually pay for the flight to get a smile lol

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I asked for one bag to be sent to ZRH, and the other to ATH. After a lot of conferring, I was told that it was impossible. I reasoned that CA did it in PVG, and ET did it in KGL. I asked for them to try again, but the final answer was “no”.

Is this even possible? It must be as you say but don't bags usually follow whatever the ticket routing is?

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): hen asked a question I’d never been asked at check in before: “Would you like to board first or last”. Ooh, what a choice! “First please”. I was given a lounge pass, and headed off.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I was a little disappointed that there was no priority boarding announcement in the holding lounge (just a generic “flight 293 to Zurich is now boarding”) – perhaps if I had stayed in the dingy Tanzanite Lounge someone would have collected me, but then again, then might not have, and left me running to the gate.

Looks like that comment was only good at the counter.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): The cockpit crew changed here (they operate ZRH-NBO, NBO-DAR-NBO, NBO-ZRH with hotel stops in NBO, whilst the cabin crew do ZRH-NBO-DAR,DAR-NBO-ZRH with just a hotel stop in DAR), so there was quite a lot of handover activity ahead. We got a female first officer on this leg

Looks like you already had a female first office on board on your DAR-NBO sector. Interesting to know that the cabin crew fly with two different sets of cockpit crews

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Oh yes, two big fat lumps of lobster in seafood sauce with asparagus and some warm cheese sticks. Yum!

Yum, indeed. I could eat seafood all day long....lobsters well that's another story, another fantasy hmmm!!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Eugh, a bloody tissue that the cleaners missed down the side of the seat

As indicated by others Ewww indeed. It was nice of you not to say anything about it. Here it would have caused an uproar especially with if flying first!!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): The FA came up whilst I was sipping on my tea with a very nice looking box of Sprüngli chocolates. They looked wonderful, but I was on the verge of exploding, so only took one. The FA stood there, stern faced, and shook the box at me. I took another. She didn’t move at all, her face passive until she shook the box for the third time. Ok, ok, I’ll take another. We both burst out laughing as she finally smiled, and walked off. Very amusing, and a great example of the excellent level of service, anticipation of needs, and interaction between crew and customers

This is exactly what makes great cabin crew. And from the reports on here, it is only Swiss that seems to get it right.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): They’ve even updated the livery on the IFE

The new SWISS does not have those red blocks on the engines.

another great report!

would love to fly Swiss First one day... but two comments regarding the food, also the salmon looks very good I am missing caviar on a European first class carrier, should be same as on LH for example!

Also these tradicional special meals seems not really good, remembering the TR some weeks ago YUL-ZRH and the BRATWURST...

Cheers
Avianca

Gabriel,

FANTASTIC trip report!

I've been following your adventures with keen interest!!

Why did they ask you if you wanted to board first or last and then just have a generic boarding call with no priority? What a silly thing to do!

Swiss F looks truly outstanding. One thing about living in Australia is that we just don't have the wide variety of carriers to try as you do in your part of the world.  
Out of all the Euro-carriers, Swiss, Turkish and Lufty (in that order) would be the ones I'd like to try up the pointy end!

Sorry to sound ignorant, but what's the difference between the old and new colour scheme for Swiss? Not seeing them in Australia, I am not familiar with the old and new schemes, and I can't see a huge amount of difference!

I take it you were allowed to stay on the aircraft at NBO. Great if you're in the premium classes - who would want to get off? Feel sorry for Y class pax if they're held on the plane, however.

The food looked WONDERFUL! Restaurant quality presentation! I'm really impressed they offered you breakfast 52 minutes out of Zurich. Even though you just had bakery items, would they have served the hot breakfast to you this close to arrival if you wanted it?

Thanks for taking the time to write this up.

P.S. Reply from Brussels Airlines - total fob off!!! I'd write back saying "unacceptable!"

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 29): Great report

Thanks!

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 29): but there is something I feel is so important a really good camera when travelling up front!! Nevertheless the photos delivered the ambiance!

I am investigating new cameras at the moment - can you reccomend something?

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 29): Did you need to actually pay for the flight to get a smile lol

Ha, maybe

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 29): Is this even possible? It must be as you say but don't bags usually follow whatever the ticket routing is?

Well I was going to both ATH and ZRH so the bags are following me directly. I just don't understamd the big issue here.

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 29): Looks like you already had a female first office on board on your DAR-NBO sector. Interesting to know that the cabin crew fly with two different sets of cockpit crews

I actually took the cabin photos on the gound in NBO, so was a male crew DAR-NBO.

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 29): The new SWISS does not have those red blocks on the engines.

Quoting Thai744 (Reply 31): Sorry to sound ignorant, but what's the difference between the old and new colour scheme for Swiss? Not seeing them in Australia, I am not familiar with the old and new schemes, and I can't see a huge amount of difference!

Yes, the differences are quite small. When I didn't see the cube behind the Swiss typeface I assumed it was a the new one, but as the red cubes are still on the engines, it's not.

Quoting Avianca (Reply 30): another great report!

Thanks!

Quoting Avianca (Reply 30): would love to fly Swiss First one day... but two comments regarding the food, also the salmon looks very good I am missing caviar on a European first class carrier, should be same as on LH for example!

I'm not a big fan of caviar (but I am of salmon) so suited me fine

Quoting Thai744 (Reply 31): FANTASTIC trip report!

Thanks!

Quoting Thai744 (Reply 31): Out of all the Euro-carriers, Swiss, Turkish and Lufty (in that order) would be the ones I'd like to try up the pointy end!

I have a feeling TK will be in Oz soon

Quoting Thai744 (Reply 31): I take it you were allowed to stay on the aircraft at NBO. Great if you're in the premium classes - who would want to get off? Feel sorry for Y class pax if they're held on the plane, however.

Well, the DAR-NBO flight is less than an hour, so it's not like they've have to endure too much so far.

Quoting Thai744 (Reply 31): The food looked WONDERFUL! Restaurant quality presentation! I'm really impressed they offered you breakfast 52 minutes out of Zurich. Even though you just had bakery items, would they have served the hot breakfast to you this close to arrival if you wanted it?

They came around with a hot egg dish (can't remember what it was), so I could have picked that.

Quoting Thai744 (Reply 31): P.S. Reply from Brussels Airlines - total fob off!!! I'd write back saying "unacceptable!"

I did reply so will be itneresting to see if there is a further response!

Hello Gabriel,

Thanks for sharing, another great read. Looking forward to the next part!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Boarding was all done via door 1L, so there was a constant stream of passengers walking by eliciting comments like %u201Coooh, looks very nice%u201D, and %u201CI think this is where we should be sitting%u201D.

I'm always envious too, when I get on board trough door L1 and head towards my Y seat  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): They%u2019ve even updated the livery on the IFE

That's attention to detail!

Quoting roberts87 (Reply 33): I'm always envious too, when I get on board trough door L1 and head towards my Y seat

Yes, is always nice when you fly at the front!

Quoting roberts87 (Reply 33): That's attention to detail!

Well, discussions above means i may have to retract that sentence. I think it's only 1/2 the new livery

Quoting roberts87 (Reply 33): Thanks for sharing, another great read. Looking forward to the next part!

No problem, glad you liked it

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 34): Quoting roberts87 (Reply 33): That's attention to detail! Well, discussions above means i may have to retract that sentence. I think it's only 1/2 the new livery

Is it? I guess you can tell I only read the report and not the other 30+ comments  

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 26): One that adequately addressed the issues raised in my letter to them.

So can you please write me an answer on SN's behalf? An answer that would satisfy you I mean... Because frankly, the reply you got seems pretty adequate to me...

Quoting TurkishWings (Reply 36): So can you please write me an answer on SN's behalf? An answer that would satisfy you I mean... Because frankly, the reply you got seems pretty adequate to me...

Hmm, you see to be taking my dissatisfaction at SN very personally - do you work for them? I'll entertain your question though:
1) A letter that doesn't reiterate the points I already obviously (given my original letter) know about the fleet renewal programme
2) An explanation as to why not a single member of staff at the home base knew that 17% of the long-haul fleet have substandard seating in C
3) Why staff lied about something they clearly didn’t know about. “Of course it has the new seating sir”
4) Why the timetable specifically lies about the availability of the new seating in C when at the same time it mentions that some flights are operated by LX aircraft (although not my specific flight)
5) Why catering decided that instead of loading the meals to offer the choice advertised, they decided to only load half the starters. Putting one starter on half the trays, and the other on the other half doesn't seem like rocket science.

I would have thought that if you are going to take a month to write to a customer, you would actually have some content that would be useful to them. No response is better than a useless/computer generated one. I fear points 1-5 would be covered in “Public Relations 101”.

Quoting roberts87 (Reply 35): Is it? I guess you can tell I only read the report and not the other 30+ comments

Yeah, the picture in question is quite small, so plenty of room for dissagreement! As the OP, everyone should just take me word for it!  

Great report Gabrielchew!

SWISS First Class is very high on my list. LX is still one of the few European Airlines left, that not only offers a quality First Class, but is still a 'fully-frilled' airline overall!

Given that, every little aspect and detail about your First Class experience was as you said, absolutely faultless! I am not sure why you weren't addressed by name though, when i think i have read previous TRs where this was done on SWISS Business. But who cares if everything else is perfect anyways  

Thank you for sharing this with us. Now i think my SWISS experience needs to be happen sooner  

Cheers,
Roni

Hi Gabriel,

thanks for the read, as for the rest of your TR it was extremely interesting and lively. I guess my feelings now are the same as yours as you landed in Zurich, i.e. "Too bad it's already over".

The Swiss First class is precisely the kind of super-premium cabin I'd order if I were Bill Gates... For as much as I like BA I think the new prime is, with those funky blue lights, a little bit too "West Endish" if you know what I mean, whereas Swiss first is bang on from start to finish, well done to the guys north of the border.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I was a little disappointed that there was no priority boarding announcement in the holding lounge (just a generic “flight 293 to Zurich is now boarding”) – perhaps if I had stayed in the dingy Tanzanite Lounge someone would have collected me, but then again, then might not have, and left me running to the gate.

So much for your "Do you want to board first or last"! Was the ground crew part of Swiss itself or were they contractors? Because if they were Swiss employees I guess there's quite a big lack of consistency within the company.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): A welcome glass of champagne. I’m not a champagne connoisseur by any means, but this glass was absolutely delicious putting every other champagne I’ve tried into the shade. For the record, it was Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle, and retails at around GBP100 a bottle. Truly decadent, and wins the prize of the best tasting thing of the holiday. Oh yes, also had a glass of sparkling water, which was also nice, but not quite as pricey.

Well, everyone deserves a treat every now and then, isn't it? Hope you considered your duty to end up the bottle!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I was also offered a speciality dish from the Berne region which sounded good, so I went with that. It was nice, but didn’t seem particularly special

It doesn't seem to special at all for me as well... I mean, the slice below the first one looks like a pale cotechino (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotechino)

Now, I really enjoyed your African adventure, hope you'll embark yourself in similar trips in the future!

Fabrizio

Hi Gab,

The eagerly awaited episode "F" (as in "First" and "Fifth") is here! Very nice and a good idea to devote one part of your mega report just for the Swiss First experience to give it proper justice. No doubt a fine flight, but somehow it doesn't seem to justify the obscene prices they ask for First to me... Sure the bed looks excellent and there's a genuine culinary feast, but still shelling out five grand or more for this... Not really worth it, unless of course money has no meaning for you (or you are using miles  ).

But your pictures and description of the whole experience are top notch, of course. Zürich looks quite pretty in winter.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): as soon as they realised I was in F, the station manager drifted over to supervise.

Heh, now you're talking and being treated the way you should be!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): There is just one lounge in DAR, the Tanzanite Lounge. Unfortunately it was a mediocre C lounge at best – there wasn’t even a token roped off area for F pax, so I just joined everyone else.

That neon sign looks so ghetto!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): First impressions of the cabin were excellent. Spacious, yet warm and cozy.

isode of

Looks excellent, cozy and very welcoming.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): During the stop the PTVs weren’t usable, but there were lots of scenes from the Antarctic

No doubt to prepare you for the temperatures in Zürich.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Eugh, a bloody tissue that the cleaners missed down the side of the seat

Now that's disgusting and very bad, especially in First class!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): More “pound a sip” champagne please

So did you keep tally how many pounds you managed to "save"?

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I was also offered a speciality dish from the Berne region which sounded good, so I went with that. It was nice, but didn’t seem particularly special

That IMHO looks horrible! That ham and whatever thingy doesn't look worthy of an economy meal, let alone first class!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): And some blueberry ice cream for dessert – very tasty. By this time I was so full I couldn’t even finish the ice cream. I have never eaten so much food on a plane before.

Hmm really? To me it doesn't really look like there was that much food that you'd get stuffed. Well of course if you eat the whole basket of bread and so on, but still the portions look quite normal to me. I've also heard this same statement for LH First and didn't understand it either - maybe the plates are larget than they look on the photos, or maybe it is all those bubbles filling your stomach...  

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): How welcoming is that? The privacy screens between seats, and to the aisle are both extended.

Looks very comfortable.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Goodbye ‘Herisau’, that was without doubt the best flight I’ve ever had.

Good for you. May I ask what on your opinion made it the best?

I mean as I said earlier sure everything probably was impeccable, but somehow the whole experience seems to lack some character or just some sort of special point which would make it memorable or something like that.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): Nearly exactly a month after my flight from Brussels to Bujumbura on the rather scraggly ex-Swiss plane, I got a response from Brussels Airlines customer services:

Ouch, that's soooo lame. Okay it's nice that they bothered to come up with a reply, but still they could've done something a bit more than just stating the obvious...

Oh Bravo Grabriel! Bravo!

That was a great read - with consciously or not, there was a bit more subtle humour in it too, which I enjoyed greatly.

Not much to say except it looks scandalously decadent, and the crew sounded brilliant.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I was dropped back at DAR 2 hours 25 minutes before departure. I went to find my bags, then headed through the security check to the check in desk.

Yes. What a hellhole DAR is. For that matter, the majority of East African Airports. I don't think it is acceptable for Kenya / Tanzania given the volume of international tourists and flights. You would have thought they would sort their act out. Dim, dirty, scruffy, cluttered....ergh. Not good.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): %u201Coooh, looks very nice%u201D, and %u201CI think this is where we should be sitting%u201D.

Yes, well, this is most commonly where people proudly crack a joke. My father does it every-time 'All right, this looks like us'...

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): More “pound a sip” champagne please

You have reached an elevated status - congratulations. You think you got through as much as two bottles on the whole flight? Suppose they would have to dispose of any remainders on the second if the other pax were not drinking.

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 1): I’m awful at looking innocent! I always make eye contact, then look away, looking as guilty as a diamond smuggler

we're all guilty. Same when I drive past police officers. Not sure where to look!

Great Gabriel, well done!

Luke

Hi Gabriel!

Thanks for a very nice report with very nice pictures !

Service on LX F is as expected but I think you chose the wrong meal.....The beef with peppercorn sauce would have been better in my opinion.

As for the bags; that's usually not allowed due to either security or hidden city ticketing. Like you said, Fares from ZRH are much higher than from some other cities in Europe, probably LHR is much less. So to avoid people buying a LHR-ZRH-DAR r/t, they will not allow you to check a bag DAR-ZRH instead of DAR-LHR since you may not take the last flight and therefore save a lot of money.

Looking forward to the rest of the reports in this series although flying wise, this was probably the highlight.

The777Man

Quoting ronerone (Reply 39): Great report Gabrielchew!

Thanks Roni!

Quoting ronerone (Reply 39): SWISS First Class is very high on my list. LX is still one of the few European Airlines left, that not only offers a quality First Class, but is still a 'fully-frilled' airline overall!

Yes, LX are one of a dying breed

Quoting ronerone (Reply 39): I am not sure why you weren't addressed by name though, when i think i have read previous TRs where this was done on SWISS Business. But who cares if everything else is perfect anyways

I was surpirsed I wasn't called by name, but it was hardly a deal breaker

Quoting ronerone (Reply 39): Thank you for sharing this with us.

No problem

Quoting JL418 (Reply 40): thanks for the read, as for the rest of your TR it was extremely interesting and lively.

No problem, glad you enjoyed it

Quoting JL418 (Reply 40): So much for your "Do you want to board first or last"! Was the ground crew part of Swiss itself or were they contractors? Because if they were Swiss employees I guess there's quite a big lack of consistency within the company.

They were Swissport staff.

Quoting FlyingFinn76 (Reply 41): No doubt a fine flight, but somehow it doesn't seem to justify the obscene prices they ask for First to me... Sure the bed looks excellent and there's a genuine culinary feast, but still shelling out five grand or more for this... Not really worth it, unless of course money has no meaning for you (or you are using miles ).

No, the fares are quite ridiculous. I mean $15,000 for a one way ZRH-DAR is just crazy. Still, if people pay, then well done LX! I enjoyed the experience though!

Quoting FlyingFinn76 (Reply 41): But your pictures and description of the whole experience are top notch, of course

Thanks!

Quoting FlyingFinn76 (Reply 41): No doubt to prepare you for the temperatures in Zürich.

Ha, didn't think of that!

Quoting FlyingFinn76 (Reply 41): So did you keep tally how many pounds you managed to "save"?

Quite a few! Triple figures I'm sure

Quoting FlyingFinn76 (Reply 41): Hmm really? To me it doesn't really look like there was that much food that you'd get stuffed. Well of course if you eat the whole basket of bread and so on, but still the portions look quite normal to me. I've also heard this same statement for LH First and didn't understand it either - maybe the plates are larget than they look on the photos, or maybe it is all those bubbles filling your stomach...

Well, there were the sandwiches, canapes, salmon, soup and bread before I got to the main course, plus cheese and dessert - quite a lot? On small plates it doesn't look that much. On one big plate I'm sure it would!

Quoting FlyingFinn76 (Reply 41): Good for you. May I ask what on your opinion made it the best?

Excellent crew, best seat I've ever had, very tasty food, and a nice bed in an empty cabin. What more, may I ask, could one want? (other than a longer flight?)

Quoting lukeyboy95 (Reply 42): Oh Bravo Grabriel! Bravo!

Thanks Luke!

Quoting lukeyboy95 (Reply 42): Not much to say except it looks scandalously decadent, and the crew sounded brilliant.

Vey decadent! Loved it!

Quoting lukeyboy95 (Reply 42): Yes. What a hellhole DAR is. For that matter, the majority of East African Airports. I don't think it is acceptable for Kenya / Tanzania given the volume of international tourists and flights. You would have thought they would sort their act out. Dim, dirty, scruffy, cluttered....ergh. Not good.

Yeah, the terminal isn't great. Lucky mine was the only flight departing at that time so only 60 odd pax in the temrinal.

Quoting lukeyboy95 (Reply 42): You have reached an elevated status - congratulations. You think you got through as much as two bottles on the whole flight? Suppose they would have to dispose of any remainders on the second if the other pax were not drinking.

The other pax were also drinking some, but I had morte than them I think

Quoting The777Man (Reply 43): Thanks for a very nice report with very nice pictures !

Thanks!

Quoting The777Man (Reply 43): Service on LX F is as expected but I think you chose the wrong meal.....The beef with peppercorn sauce would have been better in my opinion.

Yeah, maybe I should have gone for something else... I wasn't overly dissapointed though

Quoting The777Man (Reply 43): As for the bags; that's usually not allowed due to either security or hidden city ticketing. Like you said, Fares from ZRH are much higher than from some other cities in Europe, probably LHR is much less. So to avoid people buying a LHR-ZRH-DAR r/t, they will not allow you to check a bag DAR-ZRH instead of DAR-LHR since you may not take the last flight and therefore save a lot of money.

Well, I was offered the chance to do everything to either ZRH or ATH, just not one of each so the hidden city thing wouldn't be the reason. "Security" (whatever that means) possibly might play a factor.

Quoting The777Man (Reply 43): Looking forward to the rest of the reports in this series although flying wise, this was probably the highlight.

Yeah, this was probably the highlight

Hi Gabriel,

excellent conclusion to your African adventure here. Flying first on Swiss on longhaul certainly is something special. And even though your experiences at DAR wasn't quite first-class-like I am glad you had a great time on board. The food looked indeed excellent and the service overall was pretty good as well. But then you don't expect anything less from Swiss.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): but the food looked good, and I needed something for my trip report!

That's the true spirit, well done   ...

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): the form of Nutella and smoked salmon

Hmm, interesting combination, got to try that as well one day   ...

Thanks again for writing this up, was a great read.

CaptainRed

Quoting CaptainRed (Reply 45): excellent conclusion to your African adventure here

Well, there are another 2 parts to the series!

Quoting CaptainRed (Reply 45): The food looked indeed excellent and the service overall was pretty good as well. But then you don't expect anything less from Swiss.

Yeah, the food was great

Quoting CaptainRed (Reply 45): Hmm, interesting combination, got to try that as well one day ...

Ha, yes, but not together!

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 46): Well, there are another 2 parts to the series!

I don't count a flight to ATH as an African adventure, even though it might be another adventure these days  

Hi, Gabriel,

thats for sure a great story. Really well done work.
Destination wise and also the flights on LX First. Looks like fantastic.
Lets go with the next part now.

Greetings,
Markus(FLIEGER67)

Quoting CaptainRed (Reply 47): I don't count a flight to ATH as an African adventure, even though it might be another adventure these days

True, ATH isn't African, but it's part of the series....sorry!

Quoting FLIEGER67 (Reply 48): thats for sure a great story. Really well done work.

Thanks!

Quoting FLIEGER67 (Reply 48): Destination wise and also the flights on LX First. Looks like fantastic.

Yeah, the flgihts were great

Hi Gab

Finally had time to reply! Great one!
LX F looks just fine. DAR a bit poor, but did not expect more!
Food looks pretty good as well
Hope the -50 degrees temperature change did not do you to bad!

Greetings
Marc

Quoting MSS658 (Reply 50): Finally had time to reply! Great one!

Thanks Marc

Quoting MSS658 (Reply 50): LX F looks just fine.

It was more than fine, it was great!

Quoting MSS658 (Reply 50): DAR a bit poor, but did not expect more!

No, DAR lived up to expectations!

Quoting MSS658 (Reply 50): Hope the -50 degrees temperature change did not do you to bad!

Well, it was quite unplesant, but I managed! Lucky I was only in ZRH for 6 hours

Hi Gabriel,

nice to read of perhaps the best part of your series. First is something a lot of us can only dream of   Swiss certainly took good care of you, it looks like everything (bar the local cleaners' missing the tissue) was perfect. And a (brief) A.net meeting at ZRH as well!

Thanks again

signol

Quoting signol (Reply 52): nice to read of perhaps the best part of your series

Thanks!

Quoting signol (Reply 52): First is something a lot of us can only dream of

It did feel a bit like a dream, especially once I was walking up the frozen jetty in ZRH

Quoting signol (Reply 52): Swiss certainly took good care of you, it looks like everything (bar the local cleaners' missing the tissue) was perfect

Yup, was a pretty perfect flight- just wish it could have been a little longer

Quoting signol (Reply 52): And a (brief) A.net meeting at ZRH as well!

Indeed, always nice to meet a friendly face when travelling.

Good read GC, enjoyed, glad I finally got around to it!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): then asked a question I’d never been asked at check in before: “Would you like to board first or last”. Ooh, what a choice!

- That's a new one on me.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): First impressions of the cabin were excellent. Spacious, yet warm and cozy.

- Indeed, my Swiss F experience has been with the old cabin, that was decent enough, looks great now.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): A welcome glass of champagne. I’m not a champagne connoisseur by any means, but this glass was absolutely delicious putting every other champagne I’ve tried into the shade. For the record, it was Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle, and retails at around GBP100 a bottle

- LP is one of my favorite brands, love their champagne.

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): I was also offered a speciality dish from the Berne region which sounded good, so I went with that. It was nice, but didn’t seem particularly special

- Hmm, I'd have taken the beef!

Quoting gabrielchew (Thread starter): he FA came up whilst I was sipping on my tea with a very nice looking box of Sprüngli chocolates. They looked wonderful, but I was on the verge of exploding, so only took one. The FA stood there, stern faced, and shook the box at me. I took another. She didn’t move at all, her face passive until she shook the box for the third time. Ok, ok, I’ll take another.

- They used to leave you with the entire box, times have changed.

Cheers

Mark

Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 54): Good read GC, enjoyed, glad I finally got around to it!

Thanks Mark, glad you liked it

Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 54): - Indeed, my Swiss F experience has been with the old cabin, that was decent enough, looks great now.

Yeah, I think the new cabin is a great improvement

Quoting ba319-131 (Reply 54): - They used to leave you with the entire box, times have changed.

The box was left with the couple. Later I saw it barely touched in the galley snackbar