Showing posts with label Lufthansa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lufthansa. Show all posts

September 4, 2016

Review: Lufthansa Business Class Lounge JFK

Introduction
Introduction Part Two
Planning & Booking
Sheraton JFK Airport
Lufthansa Business Class Lounge JFK
Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Business Class New York (JFK) to Istanbul
Turkish Airlines Istanbul Arrivals Lounge
St. Regis Istanbul
Turkish Airlines CIP Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines A330-300 Business Class Istanbul to Male
Transfer from Male to Conrad Maldives
Conrad Maldives
Transfer from Conrad Maldives to Male
Singapore Airlines 777-200 Business Class Male to Singapore
Crowne Plaza Changi Airport Singapore
Singapore Airlines SilverKris Business Class Lounge to Singapore
Singapore Airlines 777-300ER Business Class Singapore to Tokyo (HND)
Andaz Tokyo
ANA Suite Lounge Tokyo (NRT)
ANA 777-300ER First Class Tokyo (NRT) to San Francisco

We took the 9AM shuttle from the Sheraton JFK to the JFK airport arriving at Terminal 1 around 9:15 for our 12:05PM departure.

JFK Terminal 1
Check-in desks were right in front of us as we entered the terminal. There was a bit of confusion after we asked to check our bags to Istanbul vs. our final destination of Male but that was cleared up in a few minutes after speaking with a supervisor.  Boarding passes in hand, we waited in the security line given the lack of pre-check on international airlines (although that is about to change).

May 15, 2016

Award Availability on Lufthansa's Denver to Munich Service

I've written several posts on Lufthansa's brand new (started this week) service from Denver to Munich.  While the route won't have first class forever, availability is quite good at the moment.  

New routes are often great places to look for award availability especially "lower tier" routes like this one.  For those of us living in Denver, having another nonstop option to Europe is awesome.

Keep in mind that Lufthansa only makes first class award seats through partners (i.e. United) available 15 days in advance.  So if you want to fly first class (before it goes away) on this route, you'll have to wait until the last minute.

Here is what first class looks like this month:



As you can see, 8 of the next 15 days have a seat available in first class on the nonstop flight.  This will cost you 110,000 United MileagePlus miles and $55.60 in taxes and fees (one-way).  Close-in business class availability is also quite good at 70,000 miles and $55.60 each way.  

Beyond that, there are only a handful of days this summer with availability in economy or business class.  Hopefully that opens up over time.  I am looking forward to trying the new service out in first class before it's removed next year!

May 1, 2016

Lufthansa Removing First Class from A330s

Last year, Lufthansa announced that they would be bringing back direct service from Denver to Munich with A330 four class service (including first class) starting in May of 2016.  Our first and only Lufthansa first flight was on the A330 in November of 2013.

Well service is still going to start this week but the first class configuration will only be around for 10 months.  After removing first class from their 747-400 fleet, (which provides the Denver to Frankfurt service) Lufthansa is going to be removing first class from their A330 fleet.

Via Lufthansa Flyer, first class is no longer bookable for this sector after March 26, 2017.  While this is certainly a disappointment, you can't really blame Lufthansa.  There are thirteen other destinations impacted by the reconfiguration.

Lufthansa has historically had a very large first class fleet and are following the trend (as is Singapore Airlines) of reducing their first class capacity.  Unfortunately (unlike Singapore Airlines) they have a sub par new business class seat.

Lufthansa only makes first class awards available to partners within 15 days of departure.  That said, there seems to be plenty of availability on the Denver route.  For example, there are award seats for May 13th and 14th (Friday and Saturday).



I think I am going to have to find a long weekend to spend in Munich before March of 2017!

March 12, 2016

Review: Washington Dulles Lounge Hopping

Introduction
Planning & Booking
Planning & Booking II
Washington Dulles (IAD) Lounge Hopping
United Airlines 777-200 Global First Washington to London
United Arrivals Lounge London
Andaz London Liverpool Street
Etihad Airways First & Business Class Lounge London
Etihad Airways A380 First Class Apartment London to Abu Dhabi
Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi
Etihad Airways Premium Lounge Abu Dhabi
Etihad Airways A380 First Class Apartment Abu Dhabi to New York
American Express Centurion Lounge LGA

After an easy flight from Denver, we landed at Washington's Dulles airport around 4:30PM.  Our flight to London was scheduled to boarded around 9:15 so we had nearly 5 hours to work/eat/drink/shower before boarding.  We deplaned and took the train over to the B concourse and the Lufthansa Senator lounge.  I lived in the DC area for a few years before moving to Denver and this was my first time on the IAD train.  While I still enjoy the people movers, the train is so much more efficient.  The walk from the train stop to the Lufthansa lounge took maybe 5 minutes. 


IAD train
Boarding passes were scanned and we entered the lounge.  Lufthansa actually has two lounges at this location - a Senator lounge and a Business Class lounge.  


Lufthansa IAD lounge entrance

October 31, 2015

Lufthansa's Denver to Munich Service is Back!

Denver International Airport (my home airport) has been on a tear of late.  United's service to Panama City was announced last year although has since been scaled back to a seasonal route.  British Airways upgraded their service from a 3 class 777 to a 4 class 747.  We had an opportunity to fly the route in May and it was pretty awesome to take a long haul flight from our home airport.

Lufthansa A330 First Class

And now Lufthansa is set to bring back direct service (previously cancelled in 2008) from Denver to Munich (in addition to current service to Frankfurt) on a 4 class A330.  We flew the aircraft in first to Frankfurt in 2013 and were wowed by the entire Lufthansa experience.  The service will start in May of 2016 - I look forward to a long weekend in Munich at somepoint in the future.

DIA's been working hard to expand international service for both tourism and business purposes.  This is pretty phenomenal route in that it opens up direct service to Munich and yet another option for 2-stop service to a number of locations in Europe.

February 22, 2014

My 5 Favorite Airport Lounges

One of the best perks of international premium travel are the lounges.  What's better than relaxing in a comfortable chair while drinking champagne and eating great food?

We're Star Alliance flyers (both United Gold for 2014) and several of these lounges allow access for Star Gold members even when traveling in Economy.  But for the most part, the ticket to these lounges is a First Class ticket.  The great news is that you can receive access (hasn't always been the case) to premium first class lounges even on an award ticket!

We've been fortunate to relax in some of the best lounges in the world so it was tough to narrow down the list.

Here are my top five favorite lounges:

1)  Lufthansa First Class Terminal at FRA

The First Class Terminal as a lounge within a dedicated terminal located down the street from the main terminal buildings at Germany's Frankfurt International Airport.  We visited the First Class Terminal after our first class flight on Lufthansa from Dallas to Frankfurt.  The terminal includes private security, a cigar room, a bar with over 100 premium whiskey's, a sit-down restaurant, amazing shower rooms complete with the famous "rubber ducky" and chauffeur service to the plane in a premium German automobile.

Frankfurt Lufthansa FCT

January 19, 2014

Lufthansa First Class Terminal Review

Lufthansa's Frankfurt First Class Terminal is often regarded as one of the nicest lounges in the world.  It's not really a lounge as it's in a separate building from the terminal.  The terminal has everything you could possibly want during a layover or before a longhaul flight including shower suites, jacuzzi suites, a sit down restaurant, a full bar with a ridiculous selection, a water bar, areas to relax, day rooms to sleep, and a cigar bar!

Lufthansa First Class Terminal (FCT)

But the best part is that they will drive you to the plane.  Yep...they will drive you from the terminal through the airfield zig-zagging between 747s and A380s and take you right up to your aircraft.  We were lucky enough to experience all of the above during our recent trip to Istanbul and Dubai (read this post first if you haven't already).  So sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride...

January 14, 2014

Review: Lufthansa A330 First Class Dallas to Frankfurt

We spent Thanksgiving traveling to Istanbul and Dubai.  We were originally scheduled to fly from Denver to Houston on United and then direct to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines.  About a week prior to our scheduled departure, a couple of first class seats opened up on Lufthansa (new first class configuration) from Dallas to Frankfurt.  So I called United and changed our flights to route from Denver to Dallas to Frankfurt to Istanbul. We ended up with a three hour layover in Dallas which was plenty of time to explore the newly opened Centurion Lounge which we were able to access with my American Express Platinum Card.  After arriving in Frankfurt the next morning, we would have a few hours to enjoy the Lufthansa First Class Terminal (post on this coming soon) before a short three hour flight to Istanbul on Lufthansa.  After a few days, we'd fly Turkish Airlines from Istanbul to Dubai.  On our way home, we were set to fly Turkish from Dubai to Istanbul and then Istanbul to Houston.  Our final segment was in United First from Houston to Denver the following morning.  Here's a visual of the itinerary:


In total, the itinerary cost 127,500 miles and $70 per person in taxes and fees.  Not a bad deal considering the cash price for each ticket was selling over $12,000!