1st Class Lounge

[flychrisfly]

Stop it you lot, still 40 days until my first ever Sydney F lounge experience. Went the early flight out of Perth to allow 4 hours.

40 days isn't bad, I have to wait until Boxing Day! Though I have arranged for the chauffeur to drop me off nice and early to maximise by lounging experience.

Does anyone know if they limit the number of spa treatments? I'll be a paying F customer and I like having all my bits rubbed and oiled (no, not like that!)

 

[Flying mermaid]

40 days isn't bad, I have to wait until Boxing Day! Though I have arranged for the chauffeur to drop me off nice and early to maximise by lounging experience.

Does anyone know if they limit the number of spa treatments? I'll be a paying F customer and I like having all my bits rubbed and oiled (no, not like that!)

Don't know I have only ever asked for 1 when doing the pre book - they used to have a nice 50 minute massage, but rumour has it that the 50 minute ones are no more - I will check it out when there on the 25th and let you know.

 

[Paddy55]

Don't know I have only ever asked for 1 when doing the pre book - they used to have a nice 50 minute massage, but rumour has it that the 50 minute ones are no more - I will check it out when there on the 25th and let you know.

I believe with productivity "enhancements" it is now done in 30 minutes :shock:

 

[GoldCanyon340]

Does anyone know if they limit the number of spa treatments? I'll be a paying F customer and I like having all my bits rubbed and oiled (no, not like that!)

Mrs 340 was offered, and accepted, a second treatment in MEL F during a quiet time in the lounge. Actually I think that's happened twice now I think about it.

 

[Flying mermaid]

Don't know I have only ever asked for 1 when doing the pre book - they used to have a nice 50 minute massage, but rumour has it that the 50 minute ones are no more - I will check it out when there on the 25th and let you know.

Booked our spa treatments for tomorrow and asked about 50 minute ones and they said that because it was so busy they were only offering 30 minutes - I would thus assume you could only book one if at a busy time. We were able to book at 8am, so no rush to get it done before boarding. They also said we could order breakfast before going for the treatment and it would be ready for us when we came out. I'll see what time we get there tomorrow - maybe a quick snack before the treatment and then something afterwards They also said because the lounge was so crowded they were serving the full menu throughout the lounge, not just in the dining area.

 

[Hvr]

<snip>

Does anyone know if they limit the number of spa treatments? I'll be a paying F customer and I like having all my bits rubbed and oiled (no, not like that!)

Hopefully you'll be able to find out soon enough. Do let us know if there's a happy ending to your request.

 

[Flying mermaid]

I now have a copy of the spa menu which I will scan and post when I get back home in a week. 50 minute treatments do still exist but only when not busy. The lady running the Spa is a wee bit grim, so I can see why Anna would have felt a bit alienated. However the attendants are just lovely. The dining area I think is bigger than when we were in last year and the lounge is quite crowded now (at 8:30), but wasn't when we arrived at 7:15. Staying at the airport hotel makes life very easy. I had a breakfast of fruit, followed by a poached egg, smoked Salmon and Tomato - enough to feed 3 people.....One glass of Bollinger so far and thinking of another, although Mr FM has already taken a photo of me drinking my first glass and sent it to Miss FM in an attempt to keep me on the straight and narrow......

 

[kamchatsky]

I am looking for my first ever QF F lounge experience in 2 weeks time.

I am BA Gold (OWE) and my better half is BA Silver (OWS), we will be travelling with our 1 * 8 months infant on CX110 SYD-HKG J (departing 07:40am!!) to HKG then to TPE. Looking at the rules, I should (?) be able to get all of us in QF F lounge, right?

The challenge is, we live at Hills district so we have to wake up REALLY EARLY to travel to SYD for checkin (say arrive there at 5am). Just wondering, is the QF F lounge very busy at that time? Also what can I expect given that it is so early in the morning? I assume that the spa won't open at that time? Now I don't think I will be drinking alcohol that early in the morning, would the service be similar to the QF J lounge?

I know it is better to travel in afternoon/night services to maximise F lounge, but given our ticket are AA award I guess I cannot be choosers this time around.

I have been a number of lounges around Asia but this is first time in F lounge. I hope I won't be disappointed.

 

[Princess Fiona]

You will definitely all get into the lounge, don't think the spa is open that early.
If it were me, I'd squeeze in a little glass of Taittinger with the Eggs Benedict

And the service is above and beyond the J Lounge.

 

[kamchatsky]

You will definitely all get into the lounge, don't think the spa is open that early.
If it were me, I'd squeeze in a little glass of Taittinger with the Eggs Benedict

And the service is above and beyond the J Lounge.

Thanks for the tip. I will try the Taittinger. Not sure if Mrs Edison will think it is a good idea. But she does love egg benedict (if there is salmon on it)!

We actually never tried the QF international J lounge before. The J lounges we tried we all SQ/TG/NH/NZ/OZ/CA (ie *A lounges) and VS. Obviously I didn't travel OW enough previously. So I am keen to see the difference in OW lounges compared to *A lounges.

We will also try out The Wing/The Pier (for first time as well) when in HKG on the same day (about 3-5:30pm) as well on our way to TPE. Can anyone say whether SYD QF F lounge is better than the F section of The Wing/The Pier? How does that compare to SQ The Private Room at SIN (will try that for the first time there also on my way back)?

 

[Princess Fiona]

Thanks for the tip. I will try the Taittinger. Not sure if Mrs Edison will think it is a good idea. But she does love egg benedict (if there is salmon on it)!


We will also try out The Wing/The Pier (for first time as well) when in HKG on the same day (about 3-5:30pm) as well on our way to TPE. Can anyone say whether SYD QF F lounge is better than the F section of The Wing/The Pier? How does that compare to SQ The Private Room at SIN (will try that for the first time there also on my way back)?

I much prefer the SYD F Lounge to the HKG Wing F. It's lighter, brighter with better views, and better champagne.
The Cabanas in the CX F Lounge are glorious though so recommend you try to get one on arrival to freshen up.

Not been in any SQ Lounge so will leave that to others

 

[Flying mermaid]

I am looking for my first ever QF F lounge experience in 2 weeks time.

I am BA Gold (OWE) and my better half is BA Silver (OWS), we will be travelling with our 1 * 8 months infant on CX110 SYD-HKG J (departing 07:40am!!) to HKG then to TPE. Looking at the rules, I should (?) be able to get all of us in QF F lounge, right?

The challenge is, we live at Hills district so we have to wake up REALLY EARLY to travel to SYD for checkin (say arrive there at 5am). Just wondering, is the QF F lounge very busy at that time? Also what can I expect given that it is so early in the morning? I assume that the spa won't open at that time? Now I don't think I will be drinking alcohol that early in the morning, would the service be similar to the QF J lounge?

I know it is better to travel in afternoon/night services to maximise F lounge, but given our ticket are AA award I guess I cannot be choosers this time around.

I have been a number of lounges around Asia but this is first time in F lounge. I hope I won't be disappointed.

Spa opens at 8 - we had 8am appointments and the doors were still locked at 7:55 and opened pretty much dead on 8am. We were in the lounge at around 7:15 this morning and while I wouldn't have called it quiet, it certainly got much busier as the morning wore on - I would think it would be fairly quiet at your time . Had you thought of overnighting at the airport - we stayed at the new Rydges last night and it was very pleasant - not particularly expensive and if you join their club (free) you get an extra discount. It is literally across the road from the international terminal, so you could get more sleep? You won't be disappointed - it is a beautiful lounge.

 

[Kangol]

Just wondering, is the QF F lounge very busy at that time?
...
I assume that the spa won't open at that time?

Many reports have indicated that the SYD F lounge gets busy in the morning. Apparently re-timed Asia flights to have earlier departures have had some effect. I thought it was pretty busy when I got there (~7.45am), there was one free table in the restaurant at that time.

It won't be open when you arrive, I was there last week and the spa opened at 8am. First morning visit to the F Lounge and first time I wasn't able to get a spa booking there. Oh well, that's life.

 

[kamchatsky]

I much prefer the SYD F Lounge to the HKG Wing F. It's lighter, brighter with better views, and better champagne.
The Cabanas in the CX F Lounge are glorious though so recommend you try to get one on arrival to freshen up.

Not been in any SQ Lounge so will leave that to others

I know The Cabanas are limited and hard to get but I will see if I can get one when I get there. It sound like QF F Lounge is REALLY GOOD ..... Maybe I should not have too much expectations!? :mrgreen:

 

[kamchatsky]

Spa opens at 8 - we had 8am appointments and the doors were still locked at 7:55 and opened pretty much dead on 8am. We were in the lounge at around 7:15 this morning and while I wouldn't have called it quiet, it certainly got much busier as the morning wore on - I would think it would be fairly quiet at your time . Had you thought of overnighting at the airport - we stayed at the new Rydges last night and it was very pleasant - not particularly expensive and if you join their club (free) you get an extra discount. It is literally across the road from the international terminal, so you could get more sleep? You won't be disappointed - it is a beautiful lounge.

I thought and discussed with my better half about it earlier but it is a pain to travel with infant, where the night before you have to unpack all those infant clothes, bottle, sterilisers, food etc etc etc only to then next day morning having to repack them all. Worked out it is way too much effort for overnight stay. We will try to sleep very early and wake up at OMG hour like 3:30am. I really wish CX162 or CX138 J award was available ....

 

[MEL_Traveller]

the sydney F lounge (and Melbourne) are visually spectacular.

the sydney lounge can now be extraordinarily busy... and service standards have dropped accordingly. I wrote previously that as an F pax I could not even have a menu or place an order from my seat... I was told to 'go over there' (pointing to the restaurant) if I wanted anything.

the food is ok. it's tasty. it's good bistro style. it's not fine dining by any stretch of the imagination.

the wing in Hong Kong seems more refined. it's a fairly dull lounge (even the new one) but I find service is good and I appreciate the peace and quiet. cabanas are great and I've never had a problem getting one. I think it's more of a true F lounge than SYD which is packed with status members.

the qf F lounge in Hong Kong is also ok... there's just absolutely nothing remarkable about it!

the private room in Singapore? probably one of the most boring lounges I ever been to! nice, but boring. you can order food off a menu which is probably the way to go... only because the main restaurant is very quiet and so the pre-cooked food tends to be cold and a bit tired (just no turnover of the food).

as for the qantas business lounges... they are fantastic lounges!! for economy class passengers, which I would hazard by and large are the main clients. for premium pax they are not even worth going to. I'd compare them (sydney, melbourne and hong kong) to the air New Zealand lounge in sydney... packed to the rafters and nothing out of the ordinary in terms of food and drink.

 

[Flying mermaid]

I thought and discussed with my better half about it earlier but it is a pain to travel with infant, where the night before you have to unpack all those infant clothes, bottle, sterilisers, food etc etc etc only to then next day morning having to repack them all. Worked out it is way too much effort for overnight stay. We will try to sleep very early and wake up at OMG hour like 3:30am. I really wish CX162 or CX138 J award was available ....

yes of course - always hard with a young one! Hope you really enjoy the experience to make up for it - I had smoked salmon with my poached egg this morning so something for your partner to look forward to!

 

[Paddy55]

I much prefer the SYD F Lounge to the HKG Wing F. It's lighter, brighter with better views, and better champagne.
The Cabanas in the CX F Lounge are glorious though so recommend you try to get one on arrival to freshen up.

Not been in any SQ Lounge so will leave that to others

Mrs Paddy and I had the use of a Cabana late June followed by lovely breakfast in the Restaurant - fantastic experience.
For me it's between the Wing and the Syd F Lounge - with the spa in the SYD Flounge tipping it over the line

 

[knightman7]

The Wing F lounge is the pick of all the lounges in HKG by a long way IMO. The QF lounges in HKG aren't really that good and don't hold a candle to SYD or MEL. I've never been denied a cabana either, even when the lounge was full.

 

[Limewood]

Our flight to HKG is 10.50am on Sat. what is earliest we can get in to 1st lounge?.

Like Flying mermaid Mrs. Lime n self trying out new Rydges at Int. night before.