Questions and Answers

Thanks to this blog I was able to fly international first class for my second and third time. Below is a trip summary. Feel free to ask any questions.

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[*]SFO to HKG on CX in F (AA miles pre-devaluation)
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[*]Best flight I’ve ever had. The 14 hours flew by. Their caviar was mediocre FWIW.
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[*]Grand Hyatt Hong Kong (Points + Cash)
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[*]Solid hotel. Didn’t blow me away, but I had nothing to complain about either. They give you a free phone that you can tether to for Wi-Fi. Great water pressure in the shower.
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[*]HKG to KIX on CX in J (BA Avios)
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[*]Decent regional business class on a 777. Was in a 2-3-2 configuration.
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[*]Ritz Carlton Kyoto (Credit Card Certificate)
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[*]Gorgeous hotel. Pictures don’t do it justice. Incredible staff. Fast Wi-Fi. I was sad to leave this hotel. While the Ritz Carlton Breakfast was rather expensive ($45 USD pp), we thought it was worth it. It was like a buffet, but they bring the food to your table on carts. I booked it using the Ritz Carlton card free night certificates before they changed the hotel from Tier 4 to 5. No lounge.
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[*]Andaz Tokyo (Points + Cash)
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[*]Solid hotel in a business district. Close to several subway stations.
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[*]HND to OKA on JL in Y (BA Avios)
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[*]Since our flight had an equipment swap (or as the check-in agent called it, a ship change ;)), they wouldn’t let us check-in. It was kind of bizarre. They finally opened up check-in an hour before departure. They moved from a 777 to 767.
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[*]Ritz Carlton Okinawa (Cash)
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[*]Nice property. Not quite a resort. Very isolated for better and for worse. Food was ridiculously expensive. $15 USD for a tea. $9 for a Coke. Set dinner at one of the restaurants STARTED at $180 USD. The staff were all very nice, but service in the restaurants was slow. No lounge. I’m glad we came here to take a vacation from our vacation, but I probably wouldn’t return. That’s a function of the location and the hotel. I would rather spend more time in Kyoto or Tokyo.
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[*]OKA to HND on JL in Y (BA Avios)
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[*]Uneventful.
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[*]HND to SFO on JL in F (BA Avios)
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[*]It was a short flight, so they only offered a la carte dining. I had caviar, which was better than Cathay Pacific’s, and Champagne before going to bed for the whole flight. I woke up 90 min prior to landing. Very comfortable bed. Of course the crew was awesome; they didn’t offer me pajamas before takeoff though. I had to ask for them once we were in the air. Is this normal?
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Nicely done, looks like a fantastic trip!!

I think for HND-SFO, they don’t default to offering PJs given the flight time. They do it automatically the other direction, so it’s a bit odd.