Airline Reviews Reviews United

Airline Review: United Airlines – Polaris Business Class (Boeing 787-9 with Lie Flat Seats) : Los Angeles – London (UA 923)

Flight:  United Airlines flight 923 from Los Angeles to London Duration: 10 hours 30 minutes Equipment: B789(Boeing 787-900) Class: Business Seat: Window Seat Specification: Seat pitch: 78″, Seat width: 20″ MilesPointsTravel Disclaimer: This review is solely the work of Karen. I personally did not fly this segment.  This was my first time flying United Polaris class although my hubby has done it twice (SFO – FRA and LHR – DEN). I had selected a true window seat with arm-rest facing the aisle. This seat provided a lot of privacy. The duck was quite tasty and had good smoky flavor. I forgot …

Airline Reviews Cathay Pacific Reviews

Airline Review: Cathay Pacific – Business Class (Boeing 777-300 ER with Lie Flat Seats) : Los Angeles – Hong Kong (CX 883)

Flight:  Cathay Pacific CX 883 from Los Angeles to Hong Kong Duration: 14 hours 45 minutes Aircraft: B773(Boeing 777-300ER) Class: Business Seat: 16K (Bulkhead Window seat with direct aisle access) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 81.0 “. Seat width: 21 ” I have flown Cathay Pacific Business class on Boeing 777-300ER plenty of times before (and on this exact route nonetheless) so I knew what to expect as far as seating goes. I always opt for the bulkhead window seat if available and this time was no exception. Cathay Pacific allows you to pre-order from an expanded online menu but unfortunately …

Airline Reviews Ethiopian Airlines Reviews

Airline Review: Ethiopian Airlines – Business Class (Boeing 787-9 with Lie Flat Seats) : Addis Ababa – Rome – Chicago (ET 574)

Flight:  Ethiopian Airlines ET 574 from Addis Ababa to Chicago via Rome Duration: 15 hours 45 mins (6 hrs 10 mins + 9 hrs 35 mins) Aircraft: B789(Boeing 787-900) Class: Business Seat: 2D-2H (Middle row aisle) Seat Specification: Collins Super Diamond seats, Flat Bed All our previous Ethiopian Airlines flights were operated at best at 2 x 2 x 2 flat bed configuration and this was the first time we experienced a 1 x 2 x 1 configuration. Ethiopian is notorious in swapping aircrafts at the last minute and even a few days before the flight it showed a 2 …

Airline Reviews Ethiopian Airlines Reviews

Airline Review: Ethiopian Airlines – Business Class (Boeing 787-9 with Lie Flat Seats) : Victoria Falls – Gaborone – Addis Ababa (ET 823)

Flight:  Ethiopian Airlines ET 823 from Victoria Falls to Addis Ababa via Gaborone Duration: 6 hours (1 hr 10 mins + 4 hr 50 mins) Aircraft: B789(Boeing 787-900) Class: Business Seat: 1D-H (Middle rows) Seat Specification: Collins Diamond Parallel Seat, Flat beds Ethiopian operates a variety of configuration on same aircraft. We have experienced good flat beds in 2 x 2 x 2 configuration as well as angled flat 2 x 2 x 2 both in Boeing 787 aircraft before. This one was the better one with flat beds. The flight is short enough that it wouldn’t have mattered that …

Africa Destination Trip Reports

Trip Report: Day Trip to Chobe National Park, Botswana

One of the most popular excursions available from Victoria Falls is a day trip to Chobe National Park in Botswana. Plenty of tour companies offer this all-inclusive service of round-trip pickup/dropoff  in Victoria Falls,  drive to Botswana border where they hand it over to their contracted Botswana tour company that transport you round-trip to Chobe National Park. The game drives occur in 2 parts, one in a vehicle on land and then on boat. Between the 2 we stopped at a resort for lunch. We paid 170$ USD per person for the entire package (which included Park entrance fees). The …

Hotel Reviews Independent/Non-Major Chain Reviews

Hotel Review – Nkosi Guest Lodge, Victoria Falls

Nkosi Guest Lodge, Victoria Falls 504 Acacia Crescent, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe Nkosi Guest Lodge, belonging to Bayete Collection of Hotels , is located just outside the Victoria Falls town, about 21 km from Victoria Falls Airport (VFA). I had read excellent reviews of this property on Tripadvisor as well as booking.com and was very happy at the end to have made this choice. This is an excellent property with amazing customer service and a phenomenal chef!! We arranged transportation from the airport to the hotel through the front desk itself. Our nightly rate included breakfast but we ended up having …

Africa Destination Trip Reports

Trip Report: Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

We were staying in the Zimbabwe side of the Victoria falls town and took a cab (all rides $5) from our hotel to the park entrance. We paid for the entry fee with credit card. After entering the park, we looked at the map and realized that the view points were like an arc that extended along the ridge. There are 2-3 to the left of the entrance and the rest to the right. We spent about 4 hours in the park going from end to end. After our visit, I changed my clothes in the restrooms in the park …

Africa Destination Trip Reports

Trip Report: Victoria Falls, Zambia

We were staying on Zimbabwe side of Victoria Falls town. We took a cab from our resort to the border post (all cab rides $5). After passport stamping, we crossed the border to Zambia side. We walked across the Victoria Falls bridge (about 15 minutes walk) to the Victoria Falls Park entrance. Just a fair warning, there are a lot of touts on the way from the border post to the park and they will pester  you to buy knick-knacks but not that aggressive so it was not much of a concern for us. After paying the entrance fee we …

Hilton HHonors Hotel Reviews Reviews

Hotel Review – Hilton Garden Inn Windhoek

Hilton Garden Inn Windhoek Rev Michael Scott St, Windhoek, Namibia Hilton Garden Inn Windhoek is located 44km from Hosea Kutako International Airport in Windhoek. Its a fairly easy drive and takes about 35 minutes. We stayed here for 1 night each on 2 different stays (at the beginning and the end of our Etosha National Park visit) and paid cash rates for both stays. There are actually 2 Hilton properties here located adjacent to each other, the Hilton Windhoek and the Hilton Garden Inn Windhoek. Check-in was fairly smooth. The front desk notified us that the secure parking garage located …

Africa Destination Trip Reports

Trip Report: Etosha National Park, Namibia – Day 3 & 4

Day 3: We started our day early by leaving Okaukuejo camp. Our plan was to drive eastbound in Etosha park and reach Namutoni camp by evening while stopping at Halali camp for lunch for a couple of hours. After reaching Halali camp for lunch, we stopped by the Halali waterhole and saw a huge herd of elephants come in. The rest of the drive to Namutoni camp was fairly uneventful besides seeing mostly herbivores. What we were mainly hoping to see was some big cats but this was not to be on this trip. Day 4: This was our last …

Hotel Reviews Independent/Non-Major Chain Reviews

Hotel Review – Namutoni Camp, Etosha National Park

Namutoni Camp, Etosha National Park Namutoni Camp is located in the eastern part of the Etosha National park, just 13 km from the Von Lindequist Gate. One thing to remember is distance between Windhoek International Airport and Namutoni Camp is 583km which is about 100km more than the Okaukuejo Camp. We arrived quite late at the camp and it was already dark. By the time we checked in and got our keys, it was pitch dark and there is lack of light inside the perimeter of the camp. We drove in circles for almost 30 minutes to get to our …

Hotel Reviews Independent/Non-Major Chain Reviews

Hotel Review – Okaukuejo Camp, Etosha National Park

Okaukuejo Camp, Etosha National Park RW98+H7W Etosha National Park, Okaukuejo, Namibia Okaukuejo Camp at Etosha National Park is the largest of the 6 camps, and located just 18km from Anderson Gate. To get an idea of how long it takes to arrive at the camp for same day arrivals, its 475km from Windhoek International Airport. We arrived at the airport in late afternoon and that’s why we stayed close to the airport for the night and drove next day to the camp. The camp gates operate at a strict timing and its essential for visitors to be in before the …

Africa Destination Trip Reports

Trip Report: Etosha National Park, Namibia – Day 1 & 2

Day 1: We had arrived in Windhoek the night before and stayed at Hilton Windhoek which is about 40 minutes from the airport. In the morning we started our 415 km drive to Etosha National Park. It took us around 5 hours with breaks. We entered the park through Anderson Gate as we were staying in Okaukuejo Camp for first 2 nights. Right after entering the park we drove towards Okondeka waterhole. After we entered the Okaukuejo Camp where we were staying the first 2 nights, we checked-in at the reception, paid our park fees for the entire stay. We …

Airline Reviews Qatar Airways Reviews

Airline Review: Qatar Airways – Business Class (Airbus 350-900 with flat-bed seats) : Doha – Johannesburg (QR 1363)

Flight:  Qatar Airways QR 1363 from Doha to Johannesburg Duration: 8 hours 10 minutes Equipment: A359(Airbus A350-900) Class: Business Seat: 2E-2F(Middle Aisle seats) Seat Specification: Collins Aerospace Super diamond seats, Seat pitch: 31″, Width: 22″ Qatar Airways flies A350-900 on its Doha – Johannesburg route. Although there are certain Qatar Airways A359s that are equipped with Q-suites, this flight was operated with regular 1-2-1 seat configuration. These seats are comfortable, wide but lack the privacy of Q-suites and the cabin felt very open. Beverage service started just after take-off and I ordered what seemed like a mint-lemonade with warm nuts. The …

Airline Reviews Qatar Airways Reviews

Airline Review: Qatar Airways – Business Class (Boeing 777-300ER) with Qsuites : Seattle – Doha (QR 720)

Flight:  Qatar Airways QR 720 from Seattle to Doha Duration: 12 hours 40 minutes Equipment: B773(Boeing 777-300 ER) Class: Business (Qsuites) Seat: 1E-1F(Middle Aisle rear-facing) Seat Specification: Closed suites (Qsuites) 79″ fully flat bed, Seat width: 21.5″ Of all the business class in 25 airlines we have experienced so far in our travels, Qatar Airways is our favorite so far. This was Karen’s 2nd ever Qsuites experience and my 3rd!! It never gets old I’ll tell you that :). Seattle to Doha is operated on a Boeing 777-300 ER with 42 business class suites arranged in alternate rows of forward …

Africa Destination Trip Reports

June 2024: Namibia and Victoria Falls Trip – Introduction

For our second vacation of 2024, we are going to Africa. We been to this continent thrice before, first time in 2016 for Egypt-Kenya Safari trip, then in 2018 for South Africa trip and finally in 2022 for Seychelles trip. This time we will be visiting the Etosha Park in Namibia for 3 nights and then 3 nights in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. I am also planning to go to Chobe National Park, Botswana for a day trip from Victoria Falls. The trip will have following reviews: Airline Review: Qatar Airways Business class from Seattle to Doha Airline Review: Qatar Airways …

Airline Reviews Korean Air Reviews

Airline Review: Korean Air – Business Class (Airbus 380-800 with Lie Flat Seats): Seoul – Los Angeles (KE 17)

Flight:  Korean Air KE 17 from Seoul to Los Angeles Duration: 11 hours Aircraft: A388(Airbus 380-800) Class: Business (Prestige Class) Seat: 12E(Middle row aisle seat) Seat Specification: Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 74 “. Seat width: 21.6 “ Korean Air flies 3 different types of configuration between Seoul and Los Angeles though Airbus 380 seems to be the primary one. I have flown Boeing 747-800 and Boeing 777-300ER on this route both of which feature my favorite Apex Suites. However, on this flight it was sadly the Airbus 380 with the upper deck featuring all business class seats in 2 x …

Airline Reviews Korean Air Reviews

Airline Review: Korean Air – Business Class (Boeing 777-300 with Lie Flat Seats): Bangkok – Seoul (KE 652)

Flight:  Korean Air KE 652 from Bangkok to Seoul Duration: 5 hours 22 minutes Equipment: B773(Boeing 777-300) Class: Business Seat: 12H(Aisle) Seat Specification: Seat pitch: 74″, Seat width: 21″, Bed length: 6′ Korean Air flies multiple versions of Boeing 777-300 in its routes and the business class seating can range from 2-2-2 full-flat Apex Suites to 2-2-2 Angled-flat seats. I have flown both versions before and was glad to experience the Apex Suites again. Apex Suites are my favorite type of business class seats right behind Qatar Qsuites (and now the Starlux Suites). Even though these seats don’t have doors, they …

Airline Reviews Reviews Starlux

Airline Review: Starlux Airlines – Business Class (Airbus 350-900 with Suites) : San Francisco – Taipei (JX 11)

Flight:  Starlux Airlines JX 11 from San Francisco to Taipei Duration: 13 hours 30 minutes Aircraft: A359(Airbus 350-900) Class: Business Seat: 2K(Window) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Suites. Seat width: 19.6″, Bed length: 6’7″ Starlux is the 3rd Taiwan based carrier that flies to the USA (although it only flies to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle as of now). Starlux flies A350-900 for its USA routes and they feature 26 Collins Aerospace designed suites in 1 x 2 x 1 format. There is no separate first class but the 4 seats in first row are much larger with higher …

Airline Reviews LATAM Reviews

Airline Review: LATAM – Business Class (Boeing 787-8 with Lie Flat Seats) : Santiago – Los Angeles(LA 602)

Flight:  LATAM LA 602 from Santiago to Los Angeles Duration:  10 hours  45 minutes Equipment: B788 (Boeing 787-8) Class: Business Seat: 4D-4H(Aisle) Seat Specification: Lie Flat, Seat pitch: 75″, Seat width: 23″ LATAM flies Boeing 787-8 between Santiago and Los Angeles which unfortunately lacks the new business class product (with 1-2-1 configuration) and instead has the old 2-2-2 seat configuration in Business Class. Since we were flying together, I selected the middle rows and both of us had direct access to aisle. The cabin feels very open and the 2 rows in the forward cabin and 2 rows in rear cabin …