QF&EK J+F off SIN to cruise Ovation OTS

[mmchow]

Nom.. I'm down for this experience.

 

[sydks]

Finally came time to board and take our place amongst the shiny wood and blingy gold, certainly not understated but very Emirates!

Crew were fabulous and brought the goody bag with the PJs, Bvlgari kit and slippers over and then offered a glass of Moet now or advised that as soon as the door closed which would be in a few minutes she could open the Dom! I opted to wait and 3 minutes later was enjoying the 2006 Dom Perignon!

 

[kermatu]

Great pics so far! Looks like an excellent trip.

Most of my MEL F lounge experiences have been the same (had the place to myself) but the last time I was there it was absolutely full by early evening.

 

[amaroo]

Looking like a beauty - thanks for taking the time to post.

 

[sydks]

Although we had certainly had our fill in the F lounge, we had to sample some of the onboard dinner options! This was the food menu.

 

[sydks]

These were the wine choices

 

[sydks]

The Caviar was a must and was most enjoyable with the Dom, followed up with the salmon and crab parcel and the safron pasta with prawns. Other than the Caviar I can honestly say I find the QF F catering much better, but the dishes were perfectly edible!

Washed down nicely with the Stella Bella Shiraz and a little sticky to finish!

 

[sydks]

After Dinner took a wander back to the bar where a greek soccer team traveling in Business were having a grand time, was certainly a lively spot on this flight!

A very enjoyable change of scenery!

When I returned to my seat I decided to try a glass of the Henessy Paradis (just because it's $950 a bottle at Dam Murphy's) but alas I decided I just don't enjoy Cognac - even the good stuff!

 

[sydks]

After a couple of hours relaxing, (watching Eddie the Eagle) and dozing the time had arrived to have a shower at 40000 feet!

I had booked in my shower spa for 1 hour 30 from landing and when the time came the purser came to collect me from my suite and then the shower attendant explained the procedures, including the 5 minutes of water that you can stop and start as much as you like.

There is an indicator showing how much time you have left and then the water actually turns off when you have 1/4 time left and you need to start the flow again, so you can't really get caught at the end with no water and shampoo still in your hair!

I have to admit I really enjoyed this perk and it was heaven! I always find the lack of humidity onboard leaves you feeling a bit blah at the end of a longish flight but having the shower left me feeling super relaxed and I actually stepped off the plane feeling pretty fresh! Big tick for the shower even though it seems a bit gimmicky.

 

[Pushka]

For me, the shower on the plane was a huge bucket list item for me. The ultimate thing to have on a plane. When I was a newbie on this forum, I think it was the one thing I thought I would never be able to achieve. But I did!

 

[mmchow]

For me, the shower on the plane was a huge bucket list item for me. The ultimate thing to have on a plane. When I was a newbie on this forum, I think it was the one thing I thought I would never be able to achieve. But I did!

I believe it was for all of us. Reading the review bring back memories. Looking forward to November

 

[sydks]

After an all round fabulous flight to Singapore we were from aircraft door to Chauffeur car in about 25 minutes and on our way to the Mandarin Oriental for the night before embarking Ovation the next day.

We love the MO in Singapore because it has a fabulous pool deck with private cabanas (a must for me as I need shade!) together with great service. We have stayed at Marina Bay Sands to experience that breathtaking pool but there is no real service or relaxing ambience due to all the tourists coming to check it out.

Our 2nd choice in Singapore is the Fullerton Bay which also has a great rooftop pool and great service, but no club lounge.

We enjoyed a very relaxing morning in a cabana around the pool, getting very excited about embarking the ship.

 

[sydks]

The time had finally come to embark the Ovation!

Now this isn't the Queen Mary 2 or Seabourn (which we love) but we find if you go into each cruise with the right set of expectations of the experience and service levels etc we can enjoy a wide range of cruise products.

This cruise is just a short 3 night sailing we booked purely for a quick break to have a bit of fun, experience this new type of ship and the things it has introduced including the IFly skydiving simulator and the north star viewing capsule.

 

[sydks]

We were one of the first to embark and we headed straight for the North Star viewing capsule for a ride while we were alongside in Singapore.

It was a smart move as we had the whole capsule to ourselves! The queues just an hour later were huge!

The view was fantastic! We really enjoyed it and made a booking for another trip on the final day while the ship is at sea.

From the highest point we could see the IFly at the back of the ship and if you look closely at the last pic you will see someone flying in it!

 

[sydks]

As well as the IFly the ship also has a flow rider wave machine and rock climbing walls.

As I have no intention of ever jumping out of a perfectly functional aeroplane but love the idea of a skydive the IFly skydiving simulator was a must, so we went and booked it right after the North Star and were glad we did as all the sessions were full before we set sail. Given there are about 4600 passengers only a fraction were able to secure a session on this cruise given how short it was. This led to enormous standby lines of people hoping to secure the spots of any no shows. We were very thankful to secure a booking!

It is free to do and you get a minute flying in the tube (which is longer than the freefall period of an actual skydive apparently). It was one of the most extraordinary experiences I can remember! Entering the tube and immediately experiencing the rush of a freefall was such a sensory overload that for only the 2nd time in my life I actually had to remind myself to keep breathing! (The other time was my first ever scooba dive which was on the great barrier reef).

It was amazing and you definitely walk away with an adrenalin high! I would recommend anyone who wouldn't do an actual skydive to try it at least once in their life!! I don't think it will be my last!

 

[sydks]

Our first dinner was in the specialty restaurant Wonderland. The experience stays with a blank piece of paper and a paintbrush that you have to dip in water and paint the paper to reveal the menu!

It's a multi course degustation type affair and everything is a little unusual but the service was great, the flavours were excellent and it was a wonderful evening.

Here is the menu and our selection of entrees.

 

[sydks]

Our middle courses and mains

 

[sydks]

Our desserts and the restaurant.

 

[Pushka]

Sounds like the ship could just stay berthed and keep people happy.

 

[sydks]

The ship has no main dining room but rather a number of smaller complimentary restaurants with different themes and decors.

Here are some pics of Silk, Americon Icon Grille and The Grande which is the more formal of the included restaurants where we had quite a nice dinner on the 2nd night.