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Airline Reviews Ethiopian Reviews

Airline Review: Ethiopian Airlines – Business Class (Boeing 737-800 with Recliner Seats) : Addis Ababa – Mahe (ET 879)

Flight:  Ethiopian Airlines ET 879 from Addis Ababa to Mahe Duration: 3 hours 55 minutes Equipment: B738(Boeing 737-800) Class: Business Seat: 2C(Aisle) Seat Specification: Recliner Seats, Seat pitch: 48″, Seat width: 20 ” MilesPointsTravel Disclaimer: This review is solely the work of Karen. I personally did not fly this segment.  Ethiopian Airlines alternates between the older 737-800 Boeing and the newer 737 MAX 8 aircrafts. On this trip, it was the former with 4 rows of recliner seats in 2 x 2 configuration in business class. The aircraft interior looked worn out and in need of a refresh. I am not …

Airline Reviews Ethiopian Reviews

Airline Review: Ethiopian Airlines – Business Class (Boeing 787-8 with Angled Flat Seats) : Chicago – Addis Ababa (ET 575)

Flight:  Ethiopian Airlines ET 575 from Chicago to Addis Ababa Duration: 13 hours 30 minutes Equipment: B788(Boeing 787-800) Class: Business Seat: 2D (Middle row) Seat Specification: Angled Flat Seats, Seat pitch: 68″, Seat width: 21 ” MilesPointsTravel Disclaimer: This review is solely the work of Karen. I personally did not fly this segment.  Ethiopian Airlines alternates between Boeing 787-800 and 787-900 between Chicago and Addis Ababa. This outbound segment was operated using the former and featured 4 rows of angled-flat seats in 2-2-2 seating configuration. The cabin felt too open and lacked any sort of privacy. Meal service began soon after …

Trip Summary

May’ 22: Seychelles Trip – Introduction

After about a year from our last international trip (2021 Greece Trip), we went on a quick 7 day vacation to Seychelles. I had been planning on visiting this beautiful island on the Indian Ocean for a while and finally was able to make it happen this year. Seychelles does not require any visas for US passport holders. All visitors however are required to obtain a Travel Authorization before departure. We applied for the travel authorization online about 5 days before the trip and were approved within 2 hours. They require to upload all flight tickets, hotel bookings, passport cover …

Airline Reviews Qatar Reviews

Airline Review: Qatar Airways – Business Class (Airbus 350-1000 Qsuites with Lie Flat Seats) : Doha – Los Angeles (QR 741)

Flight:  Qatar Airways QR 741 from Doha to Los Angeles Duration: 16 hours 15 minutes Equipment: A35K (Airbus 350-1000) Class: Business Seat: 5A (Qsuites with Window seat) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 103″, Seat width: 21.5 “, Closed Suite My all time favorite business class product so far are the Qatar Airways Qsuites. I have experienced them once previously on a Boeing 773 from Doha to JFK in 2018 at the end of our South Africa Trip. This time I was flying Doha to Los Angeles on the latest Qatar Airways A350-1000 Qsuites. There are 46 closed suites on …

Airline Reviews Qatar Reviews

Airline Review: Qatar Airways – Business Class (Airbus 320 with Lie Flat Seats) : Mumbai – Doha (QR 559)

Flight:  Qatar Airways QR 559 from Mumbai to Doha Duration: 3 hours 30 minutes Equipment: A320 (Airbus 320) Class: Business Seat: 1D(Aisle seat) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 45″, Seat width: 21 ” Qatar Airways alternates between an Airbus A320 and Boeing B787 between Mumbai and Doha currently. When I called Qatar Airways to select seats, I had selected middle row of 1 x 2 x 1 configuration on a B787 so I was quite dejected to see A320 at the gate when boarding. Qatar Airways A320 business class only has 3 rows of 2 x 2 business class …

Airline Reviews Emirates Reviews

Airline Review: Emirates – Business Class (Boeing 777-300 with Angled Flat Seats) : Dubai – New Delhi (EK 516)

Flight:  Emirates EK 516 from Dubai to New Delhi Duration: 3 hours 15 minutes Equipment: B77W (Boeing 777-300 ER) Class: Business Seat: 9K(window seat) Seat Specification: Angled Flat seats, Seat pitch: 60″, Seat width: 20.5 ” On Dubai – New Delhi route, Emirates currently operates a Boeing 77W with the dreaded and very outdated 2 x 3 x 2 configuration. I know that they even operate this awful configuration on some long haul routes like DXB – SEA and DXB – SFO. In fact, outside of A380 aircrafts, Emirates business class is not competitive at all and lagging far behind the …

Airline Reviews Emirates Reviews

Airline Review: Emirates – Business Class (Airbus 380-800 with Lie Flat Seats) : Los Angeles – Dubai (EK 216)

Flight:  Emirates EK 216 from Los Angeles to Dubai Duration: 15 hours 30 minutes Equipment: A388 (Airbus 380-800) Class: Business Seat: 23A (Bulkhead window seat in rear cabin) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 48 “, Seat width: 18.5 ” Emirates business class on an Airbus 380 is located entirely on the upper deck behind the First class. The business class section is split into a much smaller rear cabin with only 4 rows of 1 x 2 x 1 configuration with the rest of the rows in a much bigger forward cabin with a total of 76 seats. The …

Hilton Hotel Reviews Reviews

Hotel Review: Hampton Inn Miami Beach – Mid Beach

Hampton Inn Miami Beach – Mid Beach 4000 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140 We used up our 2 free night certificates at the Hilton Bentley and decided to stay at the Hampton Inn Miami Beach – Mid Beach for the remaining 2 nights. The cash rate was pretty reasonable for a memorial day weekend. The hotel is on the other side of Collins Avenue so does not have its own beach access. However, it’s only a 5 minute walk to the beach.  During check-in we were upgraded to a partial ocean view (see picture down below). Thumbs up: Excellent …

Hilton Hotel Reviews Reviews

Hotel Review: Hilton Bentley Miami/South Beach

Hilton Bentley Miami/South Beach 101 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach, Florida, 33139, USA Hilton Bentley Miami Beach is located in South Beach neighborhood about 11 miles from Miami International Airport. It is a short 5 minute walk from South Pointe Park Pier from where you can see the cruise ships departing Miami. We arrived on an early morning flight and the front desk agent notified us that the room wasn’t ready but we could leave our luggage in storage and explore the property and avail pool and beach amenities. We got our room about 3 hours later which was understandable because …

Airline Reviews Lufthansa Reviews

Airline Review: Lufthansa – Business Class (Airbus 350-900 with Lie Flat Seats) : Munich – Los Angeles (LH 452)

Flight:  Lufthansa LH 452 from Munich to Los Angeles Duration: 11 hours 30 minutes Equipment: A359 (Airbus 350-900) Class: Business Seat: 1 D & 1G (Middle row bulkhead seats with direct aisle access) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 64 “, Seat width: 20 ” Lufthansa Business class on Airbus 350-900 consists of 8 rows of 2 x 2 x 2 seats with 6 rows in main Business cabin and 2 rows in rear cabin. Lufthansa Business product definitely lags behind the times with its 2x2x2 configuration while the rest of the industry moves towards business class having all seats …

Hotel Reviews Independent Reviews

Hotel Review: Hotel Fanis, Naxos, Greece

Hotel Fanis, Naxos Agia Anna Beach, Naxos Island, Cyclades, Greece For our 2 night stay in Naxos, we chose Hotel Fanis by Agia Anna Beach. The hotel is right across from the beach. We arrived at the Naxos port from Santorini in the afternoon. The hotel provides complimentary pickup and drop-off service from the airport and Naxos port. The hotel manager (Katerina) and her husband were at the port to pick us up in their van. We got Room #1 which faces the Agia Anna Beach. When we opened the doors to the patio, you could hear the waves from …

Destination Trip Reports Europe

May 2021: Naxos, Greece Trip Report

Day 1: We arrived at Santorini Athinios port (new port) for our SeaJets ferry to Naxos. The ferry ride takes about 3 hours from Santorini to Naxos (depending on which ferry boat you choose). We arrived at Naxos port early afternoon. We were staying at Fanis Hotel close to Agia Anna Beach. The hotel provided complimentary shuttle service to hotel. After freshening up we walked to Lefto’s Souvlaki Kebab House at Agios Prokopios Beach for lunch After lunch, we went to Agia Anna Beach right across from Fanis hotel. The water was still very cold so we shifted to the …

Destination Trip Reports Europe

May 2021: Santorini, Greece Trip Report

Day 1: We arrived at Santorini (Thira) International Airport early afternoon. After picking up our rental car we drove to our hotel (Avant Garde Suites) in Akrotiri. After freshening up we decided to have lunch near Kamari Beach. Greece had just reopened post-covid and many places in Santorini were still closed (or work being done for reopening). We were lucky to find Soul By Splash restaurant open, right on Kamari Beach. It was amazing having wonderful food while hearing waves a few feet away. After lunch, we walked along Kamari Beach but the very cold water along with rough pebbles …

Hotel Reviews Independent Reviews

Hotel Review: Avant Garde Suites, Santorini

Avant Garde Suites, Santorini Akrotiri [Caldera], Thira 847 00, Greece Avant Garde Suites is located in the quiet town of Akrotiri on south-west part of Santorini. Most tourists who want the caldera view in Santorini usually go for towns like Oia and Fira. We found this hotel on Booking.com and after visiting the hotel’s website we fell in love with it. The hotel is located about 11 km from Santorini Airport which didn’t take long as we were renting a car for our stay in Santorini. We were the very first and only guests during our stay since reopening of …

Hotel Reviews Marriott/SPG Reviews

Hotel Review: New Hotel, Athens

New Hotel, Athens 16 Filellinon Street, Syntagma, Athens 10557 Greece New Hotel, Athens (a member of Design Hotels™) is located in the heart of Athens within 5 minute walking distance from Syntagma Square.  The hotel has convenient access to the Athens International airport (Eleftherios Venizelos) via Bus (X95) or Athens Metro Line 3 from Syntagma Square. This hotel is a part of the Marriott program and costs 35,000 points/night for an award night stay. We stayed here for 2 nights at the beginning of our Greece trip and 1 night at the end. The best feature of the hotel is …

Destination Trip Reports Europe

May 2021: Athens, Greece Trip Report

Day 1: We arrived at Athens International Airport (Eleftherios Venizelos) in the afternoon on our flight from London. After a rapid covid-19 swab test at the airport, we were on our way. Athens Metro Line 3 serves the airport and we took the metro  to Syntagma Square (9 Euro/person). Our hotel (New Hotel, Athens) was only 5 minutes walk from Syntagma metro stop. After freshening up, we decided to pick up our combo Acropolis tickets ($30 Euro for 8 sites over 5 days) from Gymnasium of Lykeion. We walked from our hotel to the National Garden. We walked through the …

Airline Reviews British Airways Reviews

Airline Review: British Airways – Business Class (Boeing 787-800 with Lie Flat Seats) : London – Athens (BA 626)

Flight:  British Airways BA 626 from London Heathrow to Athens Duration: 3 hours 50 minutes Equipment: B788 (Boeing 787-800) Class: Business Seat: 1 D & 1E (1D is forward facing & 1E is rear facing both with direct aisle access) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 75 “. Seat width: 20” Normally British Airways Boeing 787-800 aircrafts service long haul destinations.  But due to Covid and full reopening not happening at the time, we lucked out and got it on our short flight from London to Athens. British Airways Boeing 787 has 2 business class cabins, with 3  and 2 …

Airline Reviews American Reviews

Airline Review: American Airlines – Business Class (Boeing 777-300 with Lie Flat Seats) : Dallas – London (AA 50)

Flight:  American Airlines AA 50 from Dallas to London Heathrow Duration: 9 hours 20 minutes Equipment: B777 (Boeing 777-300) Class: Business Seat: 6 D & 6G (Middle row seats with direct aisle access) Seat Specification: True Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 43 “. Seat width: 20.5 ” American Airlines Boeing 777-300 between Dallas to London has 13 rows of Business Class (1 x 2 x 1 configuration) with 2 rows in a forward cabin and remaining in the main cabin. The starter of latin shaved beef with lemon aoli was sub par (mixed reviews as Karen apparently liked it) and salted caramel …

Trip Summary

May 2021: Greece Trip – Introduction

It had been a long time (since Jan 2020) I’ve been on a vacation. Ever since Covid crisis started, we were staying home hoping for it to all blow over. After we got vaccinated in Feb 2020, it gave us the chance to go on our already postponed Greece trip in May 2021. Greece finally opened up to international tourists at end of April and the requirements were fairly simple. For vaccinated tourists, a proof of vaccination was sufficient for entry along with a passenger locator form specifically for Greece that had to be filled out no later than day …

Airline Reviews Korean Air Reviews

Airline Review: Korean Air – Business Class (Airbus 380-800 with Lie Flat Seats): Seoul – Los Angeles (KE 11)

Flight:  Korean Air KE 11 from Seoul to Los Angeles Duration: 11 hours Aircraft: A388(Airbus 380-800) Class: Business (Prestige Class) Seat: 20D (Middle row bulhead seat with direct aisle access in rear cabin) Seat Specification: Flat Bed, Seat pitch: 74 “. Seat width: 21.6 ” Korean Air operates both Airbus 380 and Boeing 777-300ER on Seoul – Los Angeles long-haul route. My flight was operated on a double-decker A380 with 2 x 2 x 2 configuration in business class throughout the upper deck. There are 3 cabins on the upper deck, all business class and I was in the rear …