Treat Yo’ Self Trip Report: Singapore Business Class, BKK-SIN

Posted by Noob Master on Mar 15, 2013 in Business class, Singapore Airlines, Trip Reports, Uncategorized | 0 comments

• Treat Yo’ Self Trip Report Introduction 
• Lufthansa 747-8i – IAD-FRA
• Canceled Flight Leads to Poetic Train Ride
• Lufthansa First Class Lounge in Munich
• Thai Air First Class 747 | MUC-BKK
• Grand Hyatt Bangkok 
• Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa, Phuket
• Thai Air Business Class Lounges in BKK
• Singapore Business, BKK-SIN

Singapore Business Class Lounge – BKK

I got a little bored in the Thai Airways Royal Silk lounges, so I wandered over to the Singapore Airlines lounge. I had access to the lounge because I was departing in business class on Singapore Airlines to Singapore (next up: Suites!).

Anyway, I stopped by the lounge to take a quick glance around and see what I wasn’t missing.

It’s hard to tell here, but the seating was worn and there were dirty dishes left on many of the tables.

Lounge seating

I did like this view of the garden.

Garden view

More seating

It was a ghost town.  I was the only living being in sight, besides the front desk worker. Freaky.

Ghost town

They did have an assortment of food and beverages to choose from. I didn’t partake though, because I was too full from my other lounge visits.

Is she spying on me?

I’m not a fan of eating food under heat lamps. It seemed liked the food had been there for awhile.

Heating lamps

I wasn’t in the mood for franks and beans either.

Frank and beans

Ah-ha. They did have a decent serve-yourself alcohol selection and Haagen Daz ice cream.

Alcohol

I didn’t spend a lot of time in the Singapore lounge and I much preferred the Royal Silk lounges. If you were looking for a quiet place to have to yourself, then this lounge was for you. But it wasn’t kept as clean or had the quality of food that the other Royal Silk lounges had.

The Flight

I was pumped for this flight because it got me one step closer to coming home and flying Singapore Suites. I was flying business class on Singapore Air’s 777-200. Check-in went smoothly and I was escorted to my seat 1b.

The bird

This wasn’t my exact seat, but the row behind me. As you can see the seats were a tad bit outdated, just like the art behind it. The seats reminded me of the first couches I ever had in my college apartment. They were family hand-me-downs and had a lot of wear and tear on them – but they did the job.

Worn down seat

I can’t lie – I went straight to my hand sanitizer after opening my arm rest to get my tray out.

ewww

The seat controls were easy to use and worked properly.

Seat controls

Remote

Size matters when it comes to video screens, but I still enjoyed watching a fim during the flight.

Video screen

Headphones

The chicken and vegetables I ordered for my meal service was pretty tasty. It was the perfect, light meal I was craving.

Dinner is served

Dessert was the highlight of the flight for me. A little coffee and Haagen Daz ice cream is all takes for me to be happy. I’m easy like that.

Good combo

Recap

I wouldn’t go out of my way to visit the Singapore lounge in BKK again, unless I wanted complete solitude. My flight to SIN on the 777-200 was under 3 hours, so I didn’t care about the outdated product.

Singapore’s service on the plane was world class as usual, but I was gearing up for the next few hours. My review of Singapore’s first class and private room lounge areas is next.

— Noob Master

Flight Review: Lufthansa Business Class

Posted by Noob Master on Dec 14, 2012 in Business class, Lufthansa, Miles, Trip Reports, Uncategorized | 2 comments

Jordan and I took this Lufthansa A340 flight FRA-ATL after playing in Europe for a couple of weeks.

Flying on this hardware wasn’t my first choice because this is an older plane and somewhat of an outdated product. I would much rather fly Lufthansa on an Airbus 380-800, 747-800, or 747-400 product. But my hands were tied when booking because I used Dividend miles for my ticket. So, I wouldn’t be able to make any changes once our itinerary started. Boo.

I love redeeming United miles for Star Alliance partner awards, because I’m allowed the flexibility of changing my ticket if seats open up. And premium award seats like to pop up a day or two before the flight. Once an airline sees that the premium ticket probably won’t be sold, they will release it for award availability. This is why the more flexible you are when traveling with an award ticket, the better.

Anywho, I booked this Lufthansa flight in business class because it was the most direct flight, and there was availability.

Frankfurt Business Class Lounge

The business class lounges in Frankfurt are always b u s y and crowded. After spending 5 minutes looking for two seats, we finally found a place where we could unwind for an hour.

Crowded business lounge

I love Lufthansa’s lounges for their German beer selection. This lounge had one of my favorite beers on tap, “Franziskaner.” I fixed us a plate with German hot dogs, but I passed on the sauerkraut. I absolutely despise that mess of a food. I wouldn’t even put any on Jordan’s plate even though she likes it. Something about the smell.

My favorite part of lounges.

The Flight

I boarded before Jordan, because she *ahem* had to go pick some up some preflight supplies. I was quickly handed a glass of champagne, which I always enjoy, and began to unwind. An hour went by and Jordan was nowhere. See video below.

This is how I start my flights!

This is Lufthansa’s older business class product, and I wasn’t too thrilled to be flying it, but I’m not that much of a snob. Or am I? What has this blog done to me? The seat in itself isn’t terrible, but it doesn’t “lie flat!”  I know. I hate this too, and can’t believe I would fly a business class that didn’t have a lie-flat seat.

Seriously, I was kinda bummed it didn’t lie flat, and it really did make it harder to sleep. Who can sleep at an angle?

Lufthansa Business Product

I felt the controls to the seat weren’t very responsive either. I just couldn’t get comfortable, especially my lower leg rest. I could never get that adjusted properly.

Arm rest & controls.

I also could never get the power to work, even with an adapter. I wasn’t planning on surfing the web anyway.

Storage & Plugs

The entertainment on board was sufficient for the amount of time we were on the plane. I was running out of good movies to watch by the time we landed. The screen was adequate in size, but you know, bigger is always better. There was a slight glare on the screen and it fell very short of a high quality picture. Yes, I can be a media snob. Don’t blame me, blame Apple and Samsung.

Entertainment Center

There was plenty of legroom, but it lacked the overall legroom of the newer business class product. Still a helleva lot better than coach.

Legroom

Ok – now, for the food. I think I’ve decided that I’m not going to snap 100 pics of my food while flying. Do you guys really care about every serving? Honestly, I always forget to take pics of the food, and by the time I remember, I’ve already eaten some of it. This has happened numerous times.

Anyway, there was no pretzel bread. That’s the only reason I fly Lufthansa! The wine selections were great, and the main course was good. You will have to take my word for it.

Whatever the appetizer was that I had down below, tasted like wet dog. No – smelled like wet dog. Both, actually.

Where’s the pretzel roll?

Nooberific

Even though I was dreaming of Lufthansa’s new business class, I still enjoyed my time on the older product. The customer service was outstanding, and I felt pampered.

The wines, cheese, and bread were are all top notch. I found the meals lacking, but that’s probably just me (or the wine talking).

Overall, flying Lufthansa’s oldest business is in a lower league compared to their new business class, and especially first class. Also, there are many other airlines that offer better business class options than Lufthansa’s older product, so choose wisely.

Jordan and I actually had a great time on this flight home, though- and there’s no way we could afford the cash price of this ticket. But thanks to miles & points, we were able to redeem 50,000 United or Ultimate Rewards points each for this one way business class ticket. Child’s play.

Even though I can be a diva sometimes – I truly always feel very lucky to be flying in style for a price I can afford.

— Noob Master

New Club Carlson Rewards Cards – 85,000 Sign-Up Offers

Posted by Noob Master on Dec 4, 2012 in Business class, Club Carlson, Credit Cards, Hotels, Uncategorized | 2 comments

US Bank has released a new Club Carlson rewards card with an 85,000 sign-up bonus.

I don’t receive a referral for the Club Carlson rewards cards, but don’t let that stop you from applying for one. 

Club Carlson Visa Rewards Card

Who’s Club Carlson? Club Carlson is a hotel chain that includes Radisson Blu, Radisson, Country Inn, Park Plaza, and Park Inn hotels. You may remember Club Carlson from their Big Night Giveaways that they’ve done the last couple of years. During the Big Night Giveaway, you were given 50,000 Club Carlson points for one paid stay. Essentially, you could buy 50,000 Club Carlson points for $60-$80. Smokinnng.

The New Club Carlson Cards

Club Carlson and US Bank have unleashed 3 new cards: The Club Carlson “Premier” Rewards Visa, the lower-level Club Carlson Visa, and the Business Club Carlson Rewards Visa. I like options. (Thanks to FlyerTalk for breaking this news.) Here are the details for the three cards…

Club Carlson Premier Rewards Visa 

• 10 points per $1 spent in eligible net purchases at participating Carlson Rezidor hotels worldwide
• 5 points per $1 spent in eligible net purchases everywhere else
• 85,000 Bonus Gold Points to start - Receive 50,000 Gold Points after your first purchase.  Plus 35,000 points once you spend $2,500 on your card within the first 90 days
• Bonus Award Night - When you redeem Gold Points for 2 or more consecutive Award Nights, your last night is free. Exclusively for cardmembers!
• Club Carlson Gold Status is yours after you activate and use your card

Club Carlson Rewards Visa 

• 6 points per $1 spent in eligible net purchases at participating Carlson Rezidor hotels worldwide
• 3 points per $1 spent in eligible net purchases everywhere else
• 60,000 Bonus Gold Points to start - Receive 50,000 Gold Points after your first purchase. Plus 10,000 points once you spend $1,500 on your card within the first 90 days
• Bonus Award Night - When you redeem Gold Points for 2 or more consecutive Award Nights, your last night is free. Exclusively for cardmembers!
• Club Carlson Silver Status

Club Carlson Business Rewards Visa 

• 10 points per $1 spent in eligible net purchases at participating Carlson Rezidor hotels worldwide
• 5 points per $1 spent in eligible net purchases everywhere else
• 85,000 Bonus Gold Points to start - Receive 50,000 Gold Points after your first purchase. Plus 35,000 points once you spend $2,500 on your card within the first 90 days
• Bonus Award Night - When you redeem Gold Points for 2 or more consecutive Award Nights, your last night is free.
• Club Carlson Gold Status is yours after you activate and use your card

Sign-up Bonuses

At first glance – your jaw may have dropped when you saw the 85,000 sign-up bonus. Be cool. While the 85,000 sign up bonuses on the Premier Visa and the Business card are good, know that Club Carlson points aren’t as valuable as some other hotel chains.

I only use my Club Carlson points for Radisson Blu locations, and those are mostly internationally. Radisson Blu locations are 44,000- 50,000 Club Carlson points a night, so the sign-up bonuses wouldn’t even be enough for two nights.

Here’s the full award chart for Club Carlson.

Club Carlson Award Chart

I do like how the minimum spending requirements are very manageable. You will receive 50,000 Club Carlson points on first purchase. Then, 35,000 more points after spending $2,500 (in 90 days) with the Premier & Business Visas. Bang Bang.

Club Carlson Gold Status

You will receive Gold Status instantly when you hold the Premier Visa or Business Visa!

I was able to get Gold Status with Club Carlson by sending in an email asking for a status match. 

Gold Status with Club Carlson will give you these benefits:

• 50% Point Bonus
• 2,000 bonus points for online booking
• Late Check-out (based on availability)
• Early Check-in (based on availability)
• Best Available Room in the category booked
• 72- hour availability guarantee
• Special points plus cash offers
• Priority full-service Member Services telephone number

And if you already have Gold Status with Club Carlson, then you’re cool like me. But you will also get 15 qualifying nights towards Elite Concierge Status – the next level of status with Club Carlson. It takes 75 nights to qualify for Elite Concierge, so there.

You will only receive instant Gold Status on the Premier and Business Club Carlson cards.

Bonus Award Night

This is probably the most exciting feature of the Club Carlson cards. When you redeem your Gold Passport points for two consecutive award nights, you get your last night free. That’s just balling.

So, if you were to make two reservations at the Radisson Blu Le Metropolitan in Paris (like I did a couple of months ago), it would cost you 50,000 Club Carlson points a night, or 100,000 total. But, if you held a Club Carlson Visa, you would get your second night FREE. Meaning, you save a s@#$ load of Club Carlson points. 50,000, to be exact. 

Warning

There is a warning that needs to be issued for anyone wanting to apply for a rewards card backed by US Bank. Like Bank of America and Barclays, US Bank will approve you for a “lower-level” card if you don’t meet their particular standards. And sometimes having a good credit score isn’t enough.

US Bank has a history of approving people who have “too many recent inquiries” for a lower-level version of the card. Since I apply for rewards cards regularly, this makes me hesitate on the Club Carlson Visas.

However, if I apply for them first during an app party, I should be ok. I need to decide if the reward is worth the risk. I do love to diversify.

Endings

I love that Club Carlson has launched 3 new rewards cards! When major banks and hotels compete, it’s usually good for the consumer. I still have 100,000 Club Carlson points, so adding another 85,000 is very appealing.

But I think the real win here is the bonus award nights. Cutting the price in half on award stays at a Radisson Blu property is killer.

Below is the link for the Club Carlson Visas. I don’t receive a referral credit for them, but don’t let that stop you from applying.

Club Carlson Visa’s 

— Noob Master