Good J prices: EY MNL-Europe rtn

[WGBoy]

I promise, I will

An update on the MNL-GVA trip.

Boarding pass had my VA status - Red as I recently registered for VFF, but no VFF number.

MNL- AUH leg was on the 777-300LR, which is OK, but when compared to 787-9 on the AUH-GVA its a day night difference. 777 was worn out, some of the IFE controls were not working. Had a good sleep for around 6 hrs. My return leg will be on the same and I will not complain.

Etihad posted my points & SC's to VFF (AUH-GVA) and it appeared in my velocity account.

So far so good.

 

[SeanExile]

I flew MNL-AUH-CPH two weeks ago.
The 777 between MNL-AUH is very work and they have a different product v the 787 I used to Europe. From/to MNL you dont get slippers, the amenity kit is the old limited one and the menu and winelist is limited. I asked for the slippers on my AUH-MNL and were told that they don't offer that to Philippines or Indonesia. Not a big deal at all, I was just curious. Still fantastic value for money and the lounge in Abu Dhabi is great.

EY inflight crews are hit and miss. On 4 legs I had 2 good crews, one ok and one that didnt know what they were doing.
On my MNL-AUH leg, my FA didnt know her job. She forgot to serve water, left my empty glasses standing for hours, didnt introduce herself or the lead attendant etc etc. Even basics like knowing the menu, she failed. I ordered the steak and asked her whether it came with rice or mash etc and she said tomato. When the food arrived it came with potato...
Not that I cared, I slept happily, but that was probably the least professional FA I have come across in 20 years or flying.

 

[WGBoy]

I flew MNL-AUH-CPH two weeks ago.
The 777 between MNL-AUH is very work and they have a different product v the 787 I used to Europe. From/to MNL you dont get slippers, the amenity kit is the old limited one and the menu and winelist is limited. I asked for the slippers on my AUH-MNL and were told that they don't offer that to Philippines or Indonesia. Not a big deal at all, I was just curious. Still fantastic value for money and the lounge in Abu Dhabi is great.

EY inflight crews are hit and miss. On 4 legs I had 2 good crews, one ok and one that didnt know what they were doing.
On my MNL-AUH leg, my FA didnt know her job. She forgot to serve water, left my empty glasses standing for hours, didnt introduce herself or the lead attendant etc etc. Even basics like knowing the menu, she failed. I ordered the steak and asked her whether it came with rice or mash etc and she said tomato. When the food arrived it came with potato...
Not that I cared, I slept happily, but that was probably the least professional FA I have come across in 20 years or flying.

I was offered slippers in both the legs. New amenity kit on both legs only difference is AUH-GVA didnt have dental kit.

 

[JoshuaL1997]

Hey everyone,

Interesting thread! I've just booked MNL-AUH-MUC and returning GVA-AUH-MNL in J with Etihad for $2600 in December. I chose the shorter layovers in AUH and therefore the flights between MNL to AUH are both on the 777 with the old J seats but for the price I really can't complain much. The AUH-MUC flight will be in the brand new 787 with suites which I haven't heard or read much about which I'm excited for.

It will be my first time flying in and out of MNL and I've done a bit of reading to get my expectations right. Seems like Manila is navigable but not extremely efficient or fun, can anyone tell me if Manila has fast tracked security and immigration options for premium passangers? And what has your experience been in terms of time it takes to clear immigration and security on either end of your flights in and out of MNL?

 

[Duffa]

Hey everyone,

Interesting thread! I've just booked MNL-AUH-MUC and returning GVA-AUH-MNL in J with Etihad for $2600 in December. I chose the shorter layovers in AUH and therefore the flights between MNL to AUH are both on the 777 with the old J seats but for the price I really can't complain much. The AUH-MUC flight will be in the brand new 787 with suites which I haven't heard or read much about which I'm excited for.

It will be my first time flying in and out of MNL and I've done a bit of reading to get my expectations right. Seems like Manila is navigable but not extremely efficient or fun, can anyone tell me if Manila has fast tracked security and immigration options for premium passangers? And what has your experience been in terms of time it takes to clear immigration and security on either end of your flights in and out of MNL?

MNL is indeed fun...........
You will be first to exit the aircraft so you should get to the passport gates first - clearly marked with "FOREIGNER", the immigration process is straightforward.
I didn't have the courage to ignore my TA advice to not fill in a travel declaration for each journey but was NEVER asked to show it.
Here is the link in case you are as authority-respecting as me. eTravel
Airport transfer:
GRAB is the Uber of Manila
You can walk up to the GRAB stand, directly outside the terminal and book a ride with cash (plenty of bank ATM in arrival hall) or you can download the app and hail a ride that way. Warning - the free airport wifi does not carry to the Grab lanes so you will lose connection while waiting and won't know when your ride arrives - it is all a bit chaotic as you'd expect. Of course, if you have mobile roaming then no worries.
Our hotel was a $14 GRAB ride from the airport. The airport limo was $100 and was super luxurious.

 

[CMA222]

Hey everyone,

Interesting thread! I've just booked MNL-AUH-MUC and returning GVA-AUH-MNL in J with Etihad for $2600 in December. I chose the shorter layovers in AUH and therefore the flights between MNL to AUH are both on the 777 with the old J seats but for the price I really can't complain much. The AUH-MUC flight will be in the brand new 787 with suites which I haven't heard or read much about which I'm excited for.

It will be my first time flying in and out of MNL and I've done a bit of reading to get my expectations right. Seems like Manila is navigable but not extremely efficient or fun, can anyone tell me if Manila has fast tracked security and immigration options for premium passengers? And what has your experience been in terms of time it takes to clear immigration and security on either end of your flights in and out of MNL?

Which airline are you using to arrive into Manila ? Qantas or PAL ?
If QF then you are arriving into Terminal 3, which is where both Qantas and Etihad operate from. PAL operates from Terminal 1.
The immigration and security has priority services for diplomats, officials, APEC card holders and I think some military, but otherwise everyone is lumped into together with no status or travel class priority provided. It can be a very slow process in-bound, if several flights arrive around the same time, like when QF 19 arrives.
It looks like you will be staying in Manila overnight, or are you planning on being there for a longer period ?

 

[JoshuaL1997]

Which airline are you using to arrive into Manila ? Qantas or PAL ?
If QF then you are arriving into Terminal 3, which is where both Qantas and Etihad operate from. PAL operates from Terminal 1.
The immigration and security has priority services for diplomats, officials, APEC card holders and I think some military, but otherwise everyone is lumped into together with no status or travel class priority provided. It can be a very slow process in-bound, if several flights arrive around the same time, like when QF 19 arrives.
It looks like you will be staying in Manila overnight, or are you planning on being there for a longer period ?

Flying in with QF 97 from Brisbane at the ungodly time of 1am... and staying two nights so not very worried about that leg. On my return I'm arriving at 3pm on EY440 and have about 4 and a half hours to get onto QF20. All in J so check in closes an hour before departure, I know most people suggest staying over night for safety but there just wasn't any award availability pre-christmas so I'm risking it.

 

[jase05]

Flying in with QF 97 from Brisbane at the ungodly time of 1am... and staying two nights so not very worried about that leg. On my return I'm arriving at 3pm on EY440 and have about 4 and a half hours to get onto QF20. All in J so check in closes an hour before departure, I know most people suggest staying over night for safety but there just wasn't any award availability pre-christmas so I'm risking it.

MNL is bizarre as there is no rhyme or reason why there is no consistency. We have got through at times straight away and the next trip on the same times and flights we have been held up for 4-5hrs. I don’t have the hate for MNL that others do but on seperate tickets I stay a night at least just to be safe

 

[CMA222]

Flying in with QF 97 from Brisbane at the ungodly time of 1am... and staying two nights so not very worried about that leg. On my return I'm arriving at 3pm on EY440 and have about 4 and a half hours to get onto QF20. All in J so check in closes an hour before departure, I know most people suggest staying over night for safety but there just wasn't any award availability pre-christmas so I'm risking it.

OK I am unsure what it is like to arrive at 1.00am so you may be OK at that hour. Report back for others information.
Staying 2 nights and arriving at 1.00am means that you may want to get accommodation nearby so I recommend my usual hotel, a short walk over the pedestrian bridge from upstairs in T3. After exiting arrivals, turn to the right and walk past Burger King then go up in the lift, at the rear of the ground (arrival) floor. Turn left after getting out of the lift then through the restaurants to the bridge. The hotel is The Belmont Hotel { Savor The Moment } which is very reasonably priced and the advantage is no need for a taxi or Grab, as it is literally at the end of the pedestrian bridge. Very convenient when you return to T3 for your departure. Easy to get the hotel to organise a taxi or Grab into the city during your leisure time. Although, there is the casino, 3 floors of shops and a heap of good restaurants 5 minutes walk away, in the Casino building opposite the Hilton.
Be aware that when you depart and want to enter the departure (check-in) area of the terminal you will be asked for a hard or electronic copy of your ticket to prove your are departing. This stops the locals taking their whole families into the check- in area.

 

[JoshuaL1997]

MNL is indeed fun...........
You will be first to exit the aircraft so you should get to the passport gates first - clearly marked with "FOREIGNER", the immigration process is straightforward.
I didn't have the courage to ignore my TA advice to not fill in a travel declaration for each journey but was NEVER asked to show it.
Here is the link in case you are as authority-respecting as me. eTravel
Airport transfer:
GRAB is the Uber of Manila
You can walk up to the GRAB stand, directly outside the terminal and book a ride with cash (plenty of bank ATM in arrival hall) or you can download the app and hail a ride that way. Warning - the free airport wifi does not carry to the Grab lanes so you will lose connection while waiting and won't know when your ride arrives - it is all a bit chaotic as you'd expect. Of course, if you have mobile roaming then no worries.
Our hotel was a $14 GRAB ride from the airport. The airport limo was $100 and was super luxurious.

Ok so clearly no dodeling on the way to immigration! Yeah I'm a rule follower, thank you for the link and the wifi tip!

MNL is bizarre as there is no rhyme or reason why there is no consistency. We have got through at times straight away and the next trip on the same times and flights we have been held up for 4-5hrs. I don’t have the hate for MNL that others do but on seperate tickets I stay a night at least just to be safe

I've had a look at the arrivals schedule and it looks like no international arrivals prior to mine for about an hour so I'm assuming immigration won't be too bad but loads of domestic flights so luggage will probably be a bigger wait.

OK I am unsure what it is like to arrive at 1.00am so you may be OK at that hour. Report back for others information.
Staying 2 nights and arriving at 1.00am means that you may want to get accommodation nearby so I recommend my usual hotel, a short walk over the pedestrian bridge from upstairs in T3. After exiting arrivals, turn to the right and walk past Burger King then go up in the lift, at the rear of the ground (arrival) floor. Turn left after getting out of the lift then through the restaurants to the bridge. The hotel is The Belmont Hotel { Savor The Moment } which is very reasonably priced and the advantage is no need for a taxi or Grab, as it is literally at the end of the pedestrian bridge. Very convenient when you return to T3 for your departure. Easy to get the hotel to organise a taxi or Grab into the city during your leisure time. Although, there is the casino, 3 floors of shops and a heap of good restaurants 5 minutes walk away, in the Casino building opposite the Hilton.
Be aware that when you depart and want to enter the departure (check-in) area of the terminal you will be asked for a hard or electronic copy of your ticket to prove your are departing. This stops the locals taking their whole families into the check- in area.

Thanks for the hotel tip, I'm staying at the Savoy in Newport city, got a really good rate on a runway suite. Happy to catch a grab, I'm taking a fair bit of luggage so I think it might be easier than walking over the bridge etc in the middle of the night but great tip for next time.

Is there much to do in Newport city? I don't gamble but trying to figure out what to do in Manila in my two days other than airplane spotting from my room.

 

[jase05]

I've had a look at the arrivals schedule and it looks like no international arrivals prior to mine for about an hour so I'm assuming immigration won't be too bad

Which sadly doesn’t always mean much.
Filipino officials are known to all go on break when they feel like it and the time you land could be the time they are all having smoko

but trying to figure out what to do in Manila in my two days other than airplane spotting from my room

Depend what you like doing/seeing.
Plenty of shopping which my wife loves but personally I love spending time at Intramuros which is the old walled city and has a stack of Spanish era remnants and some pretty cool tours to check it out or just wander it yourself. Fort Santiago is pretty amazing and a stack of sights if you are a history buff. Take at least one Jeepney ride too

 

[CMA222]

Thanks for the hotel tip, I'm staying at the Savoy in Newport city, got a really good rate on a runway suite. Happy to catch a grab, I'm taking a fair bit of luggage so I think it might be easier than walking over the bridge etc in the middle of the night but great tip for next time.

Savoy is cheaper then the Belmont. I have never tried it so please leave a review after your trip. You cannot easily walk there from the airport or the casino entertainment area, so you probably make up for the cheaper hotel rate by paying for several transfers.

 

[I love to travel]

Is there a good link or narrative here on how to transit Manila successfully, Friend is arriving on MH but leaving on PAL all on one ticket though. TIA

 

[WGBoy]

Back home today Morning, enjoyed this trip to the fullest as its lie-flat in all the segments.

Positioned Cebu Pacific SYD-MNL-SYD to take up MNL-GVA-MNL with a night's stay in Belmont on the return.

Cebu pacific was 30 mins late in SYD and by the time we reached EY desk in MNL, checkin has already commenced. So roughly we had spent around 2 hrs in immigration/customs in PH as its evening peak arrival in MNL. We planned for 6 hrs buffer in MNL to catch EY.

On the return leg, we spent around 30-40 mins in immigration/customs in PH and were able to check-in in Belmont by 10:45pm. We had 2 check-in & 2 carry-on bags.

No fast track/priority queue for business class.

I was able to check the Lufthansa Business Lounge in Munich using my Amex Plat with a Y ticket in Air Dolomiti

 

[jason_c]

Back home today Morning, enjoyed this trip to the fullest as its lie-flat in all the segments.

Positioned Cebu Pacific SYD-MNL-SYD to take up MNL-GVA-MNL with a night's stay in Belmont on the return.

Cebu pacific was 30 mins late in SYD and by the time we reached EY desk in MNL, checkin has already commenced. So roughly we had spent around 2 hrs in immigration/customs in PH as its evening peak arrival in MNL. We planned for 6 hrs buffer in MNL to catch EY.

On the return leg, we spent around 30-40 mins in immigration/customs in PH and were able to check-in in Belmont by 10:45pm. We had 2 check-in & 2 carry-on bags.

No fast track/priority queue for business class.

I was able to check the Lufthansa Business Lounge in Munich using my Amex Plat with a Y ticket in Air Dolomiti

Can I ask how Cebu Pacific was? Economy?

 

[WGBoy]

Can I ask how Cebu Pacific was? Economy?

Cebu Pacific has only Economy class, around 360 seats. New flight (A330) on both legs.

Pay for seat selection around $80, you should be good to go.

 

[WGBoy]

This airfare still works.

https://loyaltylobby.com/2024/06/18/airfare-of-the-day-business-class-etihad-manila-to-istanbul-from-1661/

Booked for Easter holidays.

 

[clifford]

OK, so not EY, but I've just booked QR MNL-FRA return in J for $US1848.10. It's P class, so no Al Mourjan, but as OWE there will be a half decent lounge for my 4 hour layover each way. The CX loungwe at MNL isn't too bad either (well, compared with the alternatives).

Pretty good fare at the moment.

 

[Ansett Nostalgic]

OK, so not EY, but I've just booked QR MNL-FRA return in J for $US1848.10. It's P class, so no Al Mourjan, but as OWE there will be a half decent lounge for my 4 hour layover each way. The CX loungwe at MNL isn't too bad either (well, compared with the alternatives).

Pretty good fare at the moment.

The noodle bar is very nice!

 

[clifford]

The noodle bar is very nice!

Yes, I know, I was there last week and it's slightly more than a noodle bar. The wantons were very nice, but the cheap Aussie shiraz wasn't.