Round-the-world for snow (Banff, Innsbruck and Lucerne)

[WilsonM]

When I first started planning this trip, I definitely didn't think it would end up like this, that's for sure.

It all came about thanks to a post on FlyerTalk (reposted dutifully by Gold Member on AFF) for an error fare on United. It wasn't the best deal in the world, but the fare did allow me to work in a stopover in SYD on QF.

I kinda didn't know where to actually go from there - thoughts were towards checking out Nashville, or perhaps going back to Washington DC and New York.

Instead, I settled on going skiing, and with the US prohibitively expensive (Vail is currently charging USD458 for a two day pass...), what better excuse do I need to escape to the soon-to-be 51st state, Canada?

So the plan is as follows:

Calgary (for Banff) - Vienna (for Innsbruck), then Zurich/Lucerne (because I really like Switzerland, and also Engelberg).

I'll detail the flights, including how I booked, as I go along. But in true AFF fashion, I may have slightly over-engineered it (if anyone wants my spreadsheet, I'm happy to compare sizes notes). The flight map looks like this:



Also, thanks to the pain of getting a US media visa (and myself not wanting to commit to a lifetime of never being allowed entry to the USA - it's a bit early for me), I won't formally review any of the flights to/from the USA on AFF. So instead, I'll review them here - it definitely won't be to the same standard, but oh well.

I start this while on my first flight, UA100 from Sydney - Houston. This feels like an OMAAT blog post already, oh nooo.

 

[I love to travel]

When you said I will review them here - where did you mean if you weren't doing it on AFF?
Thanks for the effort of doing a TR too.

 

[craven morehead]

Following along

 

[WilsonM]

I realised I didn't outline how I booked, and what airlines/hotels I'd be using. So below is my flights:



The points column at the end is the points used (if applicable), while cost is either cash or points.

The hotels as follows:



I'll also get some buses and trains in the mix as well.

When you said I will review them here - where did you mean if you weren't doing it on AFF?
Thanks for the effort of doing a TR too.

Bit niche, but I meant that I wouldn't be writing any articles on AFF about the specific flights due to the US problem. But will probably do a review of Finnair Premium Economy as an article, rather than here

Report on UA100 coming soon

 

[WilsonM]

Flight 1:

UA100 08/02/2025 Sydney (SYD) - Houston (IAH)
Class: Business Class (United Polaris)
Departs: 11:50am
Arrives: 10:25am
Seat: 3L

As previously mentioned, this was booked due to this mistake fare: United - AKL-EWR - 3505 NZD Return Business

My flights were priced higher due to forcing a stopover in Sydney on the outbound from Auckland. It was actually surprisingly easy to do on the United website, thankfully, as the first rule of "sale" fares is, don't talk about the fares, and especially not to call centre agents.

So I booked the following:

QF4 18/11/2024 Auckland (AKL) - Sydney (SYD)
UA100 08/02/2025 Sydney (SYD) - Houston (IAH)
UA1168 08/02/2025 Houston (IAH) - Chicago (ORD)
UA793 08/02/2025 Chicago (ORD) - Dallas (DFW)

Yep, the UA website allowed this routing - giving me a nice 320 VA status credits before the enhancement/devaluation.

I caught the train straight to Sydney International - I slept in this morning, meaning I got to Museum train station around 2 hours prior to departure. Cutting it a little close for my taste. But thankfully, check-in was easy, and security at SYD is at its normal, good, speed.

I now realise that I forgot to take any photos of both available lounges - the SQ lounge and the AirNZ lounge. I also don't want to write 1,000 words in recompense, so you'll have to use your imagination.

I didn't have much time anyway, and I was boarding at Gate 26 (bus gates, excellent...) so I got a bit of fitness in, going from security to the 2 lounges, then back in about 40 minutes. Grabbed a quick coffee at the AirNZ lounge (great), and some har gao in the SQ lounge (meh).

I would say that UA's hard product is the 2nd best on the TPAC market (behind Delta One) - there's no door, but the seat feels very private.


Their bedding is also great - pictured is a standard pillow, memory foam pillow, mattress pad and a very comfy blanket from Saks Fifth Avenue.

The amenity kit is also solid, and they provide slippers and pyjamas:



The entertainment screen was modern and crisp, with a great set of TV shows and movies available. Wi-Fi was also available, at USD20 for a full flight pass. It reached 4Mbps download speeds as we approached Mexico, but through most of the flight it was slower, although good enough to refresh the Guardian's OBO for Australia v Sri Lanka.

Overall, was very happy with the seat and goodies.

There was only water offered for a pre-departure beverage, but flight attendants did come around to take meal orders. The menus are below:








I got a pre-dinner beverage of Coke and a sparkling water, with warmed nuts. For the appetizer, I chose the Buffalo Mozzarella, which came with bread and salad:


For the main, I went with the Tasmanian salmon with hollandaise and Israeli couscous:


And for dessert, there was no going past the icecream sundae. Because there isn't enough sugar in ice-cream, I added caramel and whipped cream



The meal was... good I guess? The appetizer was pretty meh (just tasteless), but the main at least had some flavour with the hollandaise, and the salmon was cooked well. And it's a sundae - if you mess that up I'd be pretty surprised.

There wasn't a whole lot of service though - not once was I asked if I wanted a drink re-fill. It felt like the flight attendant looking after my aisle was going through the motions - in her defence, she had just a 27 hour turnaround, which would leave me pretty done as well.

The meal service finished about 2.5 hours in, after which I settled in with some movies and downloaded Netflix.

I did manage to get a few hours of sleep in the flight - the bed, once made up, was extremely comfortable. I was surprised how breathable the blanket was - it was heavy, but it didn't make me sweat in the pyjamas.

I woke 3.5 hours prior to landing, and felt hungry, so I did grab a serving of the soba noodles. This wasn't worth taking a photo of - it's simply a bowl the size of the sundae, with some salad vegetables over cold soba noodles.

Breakfast was 2.5 hours before, with one of two options. I've only ever had 1 good egg dish on a place - Qatar Airways Business Class - so instead I went the ricotta pancakes.


Well, this was pretty ordinary. The fruit also was mush - it felt like it was catered on the outbound from Houston. Breads/croissants were also served, although the croissant I picked was very dry.

If you like sweet, rich food - United might be for you. But for those on a plane who don't want to feel like rolling off, it's perhaps not the greatest.

The service was also pretty average. It wasn't proactive, and any ask did feel like a chore of some of the flight attendants. The purser was lovely though, and my interactions with her were great.

At least we landed on time, which gave me about 1.5 hours to get through the lovely US immigration process before my next flight closed.

Overall ranking:

Airport experience: 4/5
Hard product: 4.5/5
Soft product: 3.5/5
Overall: 4/5

TLDR: Seat and amenities were great. Lounges were good. Service and food were only okay.