NoNames Xmas Vacation 2: Some Things Old + Some Things New

[NoName]

Introductuon


Another Christmas school holidays done and dusted and so too is another NoName family vacation. Having returned from 4.5 weeks in North America and wanting to ensure I don’t receive any infractions for failing to complete the compulsory trip report, the writing has begun. Photos have been compiled and ready to be inserted in appropriate posts with the obvious aim of garnering a bunch of likes and the resulting boost to the cyber ego. All jokes aside, it’s a labour of love and I’m looking forward to reliving it over and over again. Without further ado, I give you…..


NoName’s Xmas Vacation 2: Some Things Old + Some Things New


Unlike last time there are no dramatic stories of covid induced trip delays. This trip was simply born out the amazing time we had galivanting around the Northern winter of 2022/23. We loved the excitement we all had in the cold and snow, even if we had been brutally uncomfortable at times. We’d had the trip of a lifetime with an extremely lucky 9 year old so we thought, why not do it all again…..with an 11 year old. Well not all of it, just some of it, and with a few new locations thrown in.

The basics were planned out in early 2023 almost as soon as we had returned from round 1. We knew we wanted to ski at Whistler again and we knew we wanted to experience the festive season in New York City again. So the basic start and finish were quickly locked in and planning to procure the required airline miles was underway. With this done we proceeded to add the inbetween locations as well. Some we had been to before and some were new to us, so a nice mix. The final itinerary looked like this:

• Sydney – 1 night
• Singapore – 3 nights
• New York City – 6 nights (2x 3 night stays)
• Boston – 3 nights
• Montreal – 4 nights (1x 3 nights + 1x1 night)
• Quebec City – 2 nights
• Vancouver – 4 nights
• Whistler – 6 nights
• Seattle – 2 nights

Since I had booked our flights for the previous trip its fair to say that the award landscape has changed somewhat. And so, finding suitable flights was going to be a much more challenging task than it had previously been. The goal was still to have all long haul travel in J or F, however this time we had come to the realisation that we would have to be open to a level of flexibility that we had not previously seriously considered – taking different flights. Ideally we would prefer to all travel together but when it came time to book, the reality was that it was not going to be possible. Despite having several potential options laid out, I was unable to find 3x J or F awards on any of them. Thankfully we were able to find options with 2 seats. We were going to be split up, but we would still be comfortable. Long hauls were booked and over the coming months the short hauls were too. The final flight itinerary was as follows:

• BNE-SYD – VA J
• SYD-SIN – SQ F – NoName
• SYD-SIN-SQ J – Mrs NoName + NoName Jnr
• SIN-HND-JFK – JL F – NoName
• SIN-FRA-JFK – Mrs NoName + NoName Jnr
• EWR-YUL – UA Y
• YUL-YVR – AC Y
• YVR-SEA – AC Y
• SEA-SIN-BNE – SQ J – Mrs NoName
• SEA-LAX – AS Y – NoName + NoName Jnr
• LAX-BNE – QF J – NoName + NoName Jnr

All flights were award bookings using QFF, VFF or Krisflyer.

The following months proved extremely challenging for the NoName family (a topic for another discussion…..maybe) and so the planning that took place provided welcome relief. As the year progressed the finer details began to take shape. Hotels, activities, other transport options were all booked and the pieces slowly fell into place. The school year rapidly came to a close and before we knew it we were packed and ready to go. The day finally arrived and we were off……..

 

[I love to travel]

Introductuon


Another Christmas school holidays done and dusted and so too is another NoName family vacation. Having returned from 4.5 weeks in North America and wanting to ensure I don’t receive any infractions for failing to complete the compulsory trip report, the writing has begun. Photos have been compiled and ready to be inserted in appropriate posts with the obvious aim of garnering a bunch of likes and the resulting boost to the cyber ego. All jokes aside, it’s a labour of love and I’m looking forward to reliving it over and over again. Without further ado, I give you…..


NoName’s Xmas Vacation 2: Some Things Old + Some Things New


Unlike last time there are no dramatic stories of covid induced trip delays. This trip was simply born out the amazing time we had galivanting around the Northern winter of 2022/23. We loved the excitement we all had in the cold and snow, even if we had been brutally uncomfortable at times. We’d had the trip of a lifetime with an extremely lucky 9 year old so we thought, why not do it all again…..with an 11 year old. Well not all of it, just some of it, and with a few new locations thrown in.

The basics were planned out in early 2023 almost as soon as we had returned from round 1. We knew we wanted to ski at Whistler again and we knew we wanted to experience the festive season in New York City again. So the basic start and finish were quickly locked in and planning to procure the required airline miles was underway. With this done we proceeded to add the inbetween locations as well. Some we had been to before and some were new to us, so a nice mix. The final itinerary looked like this:

• Sydney – 1 night
• Singapore – 3 nights
• New York City – 6 nights (2x 3 night stays)
• Boston – 3 nights
• Montreal – 4 nights (1x 3 nights + 1x1 night)
• Quebec City – 2 nights
• Vancouver – 4 nights
• Whistler – 6 nights
• Seattle – 2 nights

Since I had booked our flights for the previous trip its fair to say that the award landscape has changed somewhat. And so, finding suitable flights was going to be a much more challenging task than it had previously been. The goal was still to have all long haul travel in J or F, however this time we had come to the realisation that we would have to be open to a level of flexibility that we had not previously seriously considered – taking different flights. Ideally we would prefer to all travel together but when it came time to book, the reality was that it was not going to be possible. Despite having several potential options laid out, I was unable to find 3x J or F awards on any of them. Thankfully we were able to find options with 2 seats. We were going to be split up, but we would still be comfortable. Long hauls were booked and over the coming months the short hauls were too. The final flight itinerary was as follows:

• BNE-SYD – VA J
• SYD-SIN – SQ F – NoName
• SYD-SIN-SQ J – Mrs NoName + NoName Jnr
• SIN-HND-JFK – JL F – NoName
• SIN-FRA-JFK – Mrs NoName + NoName Jnr
• EWR-YUL – UA Y
• YUL-YVR – AC Y
• YVR-SEA – AC Y
• SEA-SIN-BNE – SQ J – Mrs NoName
• SEA-LAX – AS Y – NoName + NoName Jnr
• LAX-BNE – QF J – NoName + NoName Jnr

All flights were award bookings using QFF, VFF or Krisflyer.

The following months proved extremely challenging for the NoName family (a topic for another discussion…..maybe) and so the planning that took place provided welcome relief. As the year progressed the finer details began to take shape. Hotels, activities, other transport options were all booked and the pieces slowly fell into place. The school year rapidly came to a close and before we knew it we were packed and ready to go. The day finally arrived and we were off……..

Yes am completing a winter trip to the US so I can use up my points whilst you still can

 

[NoName]

Day 0



Hard to call this day 1 as it only really began at lunch time and was only really position for the main event anyway. So going with day 0. Sure, its technically a day but then this is a trip report, not a maths lesson.

Mrs NoName was still working until lunch time and while I was already done for the year and had the job of taking NoName Jnr to play half a club cricket game, torrential rain meant we ended up just hanging around home pestering her about when she would be done. Eventually 12pm did roll around and we took off. Earlier than originally planned but hey, excitement had gotten the better of us. Into the Aunt NoName express (thanks for the lift!) and 20 minutes later we were out of the car and making our way to the BNE domestic terminal.




Checked the bags quickly then looked to make our way to the VA lounge. As many know the terminal is a disaster zone with construction works wreaking havoc every way you look. After an aborted attempt to avoid the VA-end security check (QF end was just as crazy) we ended up just going the way we should always have gone. Line was short anyway so 10 minutes later we were sitting in the lounge having lunch.



Christmas time!




Have been here several times before but not reviewed it. I would put this in the standard VA lounge class. It’s a pleasant space with nice aesthetics, plenty of room and nice lighting.





There were a fairly small range of food options (standard) including wraps, cous cous, chicken and corn soup etc. Bar options were more than adequate with a few different beers plus the regular cheap domestic J lounge wine. We each had more or less the same sort of things, that being a wrap, some of the soup and some cheese and crackers. Had a couple of apple ciders as wasn’t too keen on beer at this stage and obviously the wine didn’t appeal. NoName Jnr began with what came to be a common beverage choice and had a hot chocolate despite the outside weather conditions.






My thoughts on the lounge are that it is pretty much what you would expect. It’s a pleasant space to spend time before a flight but I’m not rushing to spend hours here. Obviously though its much better than sitting out in the terminal.

We chilled out for a while and soon enough it was time to go to the gate for boarding. Ended up being a delay of about 45 minutes so we did end up getting that “standing around the terminal” experience too but nothing was going to upset us too much at this point. Eventually boarding did happen and on we went.

 

[NoName]

Day 0 – Continued…..



BNE-SYD
VA958
737-800
1A,1C & 1D


Our flights out of SYD had largely fallen in to place by the time the booking window opened for this flight so I snapped these up immediately at T-330-ish days. Was surprised to get J award seats for all three of us (only flight this ended up being possible) so a nice result there. Usually wouldn’t bother with J for a flight of this length however the larger baggage allowance was appealing given what we would be taking on a trip of this length. Cost for 3 PAX was 46,500 VA Pts + $137.49.

We may well have been the very first PAX on board, if not we were certainly close to it. So an idea of our excitement levels. We hopped on, got strapped in, had a forgettable PDB and then it was go time.




I mentioned the delay which was due to the inbound flight also being late and then some issues loading the catering. Original departure time was 3:05pm however we were in the air at 4:00pm. Seems whatever catering issues had come up were resolved because it wasn’t long until the service began. Options were spiced chicken & rice or tomato pesto with sliced chicken. I went for the former and it was ok. Nothing special. Chicken was nice and rice was just ok. A fairly mundane afternoon tea.




Short flight and as soon as we were up it seemed like we were coming down again. Arrived into SYD efficiently, off the plane and down to collect the bags. A tick for VA here as they appeared very quicky. I’d booked the Stamford Plaza Sydney Airport for our overnight accommodation. Price for a room with 2 queen beds was $209.79 which we were happy with.

Hotel is close enough to the domestic terminals to irritate even the nicest cab driver if you were to step into their vehicle, yet far enough away to provoke intense complaints from the other two NoNames. Quite the conundrum for me to be in this early in the trip. We walked. Dragged the three bags the maybe 800m around the streets of SYD but we were there pretty quickly in the end. Checked straight in, up to the room and after a quick snack we were into bed ready for next morning’s early start. The room was good for the price paid. Neat and tidy with enough space. Beds were ok. I would definitely stay here again under similar transit scenarios.

 

[GarrettM]

Photos have been compiled and ready to be inserted in appropriate posts with the obvious aim of garnering a bunch of likes and the resulting boost to the cyber ego.

Joke all you like but if it wasn't for cyber ego I would not have no ego at all.

 

[drron]

I once flew F and Mrsdrron flew J but it was a long time ago. It was the last BA BNE-SIN flight. Mrsdrron was on points and I had a paid J ticket. Ba took it upon themselves to upgrade me to F. Obviously was a no brainer as the Purser informed me only 2 in the F cabin were on paid tickets.
She did politely inform me that in future she would be in the F cabin and I in J.
So I think you have done very well.

 

[NoName]

I once flew F and Mrsdrron flew J but it was a long time ago. It was the last BA BNE-SIN flight. Mrsdrron was on points and I had a paid J ticket. Ba took it upon themselves to upgrade me to F. Obviously was a no brainer as the Purser informed me only 2 in the F cabin were on paid tickets.
She did politely inform me that in future she would be in the F cabin and I in J.
So I think you have done very well.

There was a reason for me being by myself on the way there (and as it turned out ending up in F) which I will explain when I get to that part of the report. But yes, Mrs NoName has since advised similar.

 

[NoName]

Day 1





While yesterday may have started at lunch time, day 1 proper of the trip would begin much much earlier. This was the first of our “split” flights: all of us non-stop SYD-SIN, all of us on SQ, but travelling on two different flights. I was on SQ262 with the 6:45am departure while the other two were on the 10:00am flight SQ212.

These bookings had originally looked like they would pose an issue to get us all on. I wasn’t seeing what we needed in the couple of weeks prior to release and that continued on day of release. No confirmed awards were available so I put in several combinations of waitlists out of BNE, SYD and MEL. As we were eventually heading to JFK I had also waitlisted advantage awards with a SIN stopover for the others and this is where we had our first stroke of luck as within an hour of booking them, the waitlist cleared and I was able to confirm. SYD-SIN in J on SQ212 followed by SIN-FRA-JFK in J on SQ26 – Nice! A few months passed and I remained without a flight to SIN but eventually one of my several waitlists also cleared! I would be flying SYD-SIN on SQ…..in F!


Cost for these two bookings was:

2x J-Advantage SYD-SIN-FRA-JFK: 380,000 KF Miles + $443.34
1x F-Saver SYD-SIN: 93,500 KF Miles + $115.97


3am my alarm goes off and I’m up out of bed. Quick shower and change, trying my best not to make too much noise, grabbed my carry on and walked out the door. Managed to get an Uber pretty quickly to my surprise and at 3:35am I was on my way to SYD T1.




I arrived right as check in was opening and was surprised to see a rather lengthy Y line already. Felt a little sorry for those at the back as I walked straight up to the F desk and walked away with a boarding pass all of 2 minutes later. A short wait for immigration to open at 4am but was through fast enough to allow a quick TRS claim and still get to the SilverKris Lounge right on opening at 4:30am.




First stop was the F lounge. Had a quick look before anyone else arrived. It’s a small intimate space, which makes sense given the small number of people who would visit. It was clean, had a few different seating options and generally looked a nice place to spend some time.








Breakfast time (albeit early) so I grabbed a seat an ordered.





This is where the experience became sub-par. I’d only ordered what I though was a pretty simple, restrained meal – 2 fried eggs on white toast with sides of bacon, sausage, mushroom & tomato. Yet some how this took over half an hour to come out and even when it did, the underside of the eggs were burnt and the sides were lukewarm at best. Got some explanation from the wait staff that the chef was new. Disappointing.

Looks better than it tasted!

 

[NoName]

Day 1 – Continued……..




Had about a 30 minutes until boarding and knowing that a trip report was to follow I decided to have a quick look at the other lounges on offer. SKL J first up and I liked it. A much bigger space that the F lounge, open, plenty of seating.






Buffet looked similar to the F buffet to be honest. Reasonable offerings both food and drinks.






Thoughts here are that in future I would consider eating at the F lounge restaurant before spending further time here as I liked the more spacious lounge. YMMV.

Final stop before boarding was the NZ lounge which is right next door. This is a big area with lots of seating and a good variety of spaces. Feels light and airy which I liked.






Nice bar area




Breakfast spread was certainly reasonable





Like the BNE lounge which I visited last time, I like what NZ have been able to do. Like BNE, I find the SYD lounge to be more open and spacious than the SQ lounge next door. I didn’t eat or drink here beyond a glass of juice but I would be more than happy to do so in the future.

 

[NoName]

Day 1 – Continued……..





The time came for the main event so hopped up and made my way downstairs to the gate. Got there to find that boarding was underway already, probably halfway through. Didn’t see a dedicated F line, just a mixed F/J one so just hopped in and in a few minutes I was walking down the bridge.




SYD-SIN
SQ262
777-300ER
1A


Got to the door and was kindly escorted to my seat. Made myself comfortable and then was offered a glass of champagne. A few weeks prior to the trip SQ had announced they’d be serving Crystal in F on selected routes and with SYD being one of those for December I felt like I had really hit the jackpot. No restrictions on what was offered on the ground like is sometimes seen so was happy to hook in right away. Found it very enjoyable so had another glass prior to take-off.




Amenities kit – I remember receiving a candle last time (albeit back in 2018), what happened?




Perused the menu prior to take off like I had already done two dozen times in the weeks leading up. Yes, the lamb rack was still there. Would usually book the cook but nothing really appealed so I was sticking to the inflight menu this time.












Pushed back from the gate approx. 10 minutes early and I was off. F went out 4/4 and infact the entire flight looked to be full when I had checked on ExpertFlyer a few days prior.

 

[NoName]

Day 1 – Continued……..




Refreshment service was underway fairly soon after takeoff. Went for the lemongrass chicken which came out on a piece of toast. Not sure what the potato chips were doing on the side but still ate them. Chicken was nice and tender and tasty though I wouldn’t have cared if the bread was dispensed with. Pretty basic dish but not too bad. Continued with the Crystal.




The next few hours was spent relaxing, watching that perennial favourite Christmas movie Home Alone and drinking more champagne. Had the bed made up and laid down for a while. Very comfortable. I know some find the SQ beds too hard but that is exactly what I like.





A few hours out from Singapore and it was time for lunch. Couldn’t let the opportunity go by without having a “champagne-off” so asked for a glass of each with the caviar service. For the record, all were very good IMO but if pushed to rank them I would go Crystal, Charles Heidsiek then the Taittinger CdC Rose.




First up for lunch was the caviar which is always enjoyable.




Had the burrata next. Went well with the pear. However it wasn’t soft and gooey like you would expect. Maybe this is just down to the plane environment? Not sure but overall the dish was pretty good.




Lamb for the main and this was the standout. Very nice! Tender, flavourful. Nice flavour in the rice too. Definitely recommend and would go straight for this if it popped up again for me. Had a few glasses of the Bordeaux at this point and this was a good call. A beautiful wine! Absolutely delicious!




Didn’t feel like anything sweet so had the cheese board to finish. I’ve been trying to think how to describe this. It was nice but nothing special so I’m going to go with better than QF but not as good as EK.




Had a couple of glasses of The Bogan for research purposes. We had visited the winery in May but only got a few sips with the tasting so thought it was incumbent on me to have a proper try. Definitely enjoyable but not on the same level as the Bordeaux.

By now the SQ F experience was almost over and pretty soon we began the descent into SIN. Where do I rank this experience? Well, it’s certainly right up there! Comfortable, excellent service, fantastic F&B offerings. It’s hard to beat. Having also reviewed EK F (a couple of times - HERE and HERE) and SQ Suites it is honestly, very hard to split if comparing. Maybe I will just say I love any F experience and leave the rankings for someone else?

Down we came, familiar sights below and before I knew it the plane had touched down and I was off through the terminal.

 

[NoName]

Day 1 – Continued……..





Arriving three hours before the others meant that I had to kill some time and so despite the obvious inconvenience I took one for the team and made my way to T3 for some more lounge time.



Arriving in F meant that I had access to all the SQ lounges (albeit this is unpublished) so made what better thing to do than visit them. With the T3 lounges being located right next to each other what better idea than to go to them all (well almost all).




First stop The Private Room, primarily for another lunch. Because I definitely hadn’t eaten enough yet.

I have been here before however not since the refurbishment of a few years ago so it was more or less a new lounge for me. Walked in and liked what I saw. It is an elegant space, small and intimate. Ultimately though I found the lounge lacks atmosphere due to the small number of visitors. There was only one other person when I was there so essentially empty. Maybe it becomes more lively at times when there are more SQ F pax departing? Not sure.








Grabbed a table in the restaurant section and got set for more food. Pretty good variety of options here with a few Christmas items thrown into the mix. Ordered some satays and the beef burger.




More champagne. This really is a fantastic option to be serving in a lounge!




Satays were very nice as they usually are anywhere in Singapore. Burger was so so. Would probably give this a miss next time.




A quick shower (forgot to get a photo here but the facilities were great) and then I decided to have a quick nap. Plenty of rooms available to I grabbed one and lay down for 45 minutes. Got up ready to go again.

 

[drron]

In the week before you fly as well as BTC you can pre order from the inflight menu if you really want a dish.
It is essential for Mrsdrron as often 3 mains only one of which is not spicy. as she doesn't do spice I pre order the non spicy dish for her. This is in J so a bit more likely the particular dish you want may have gone before you order.