Kenya Airways B787 business class Nairobi to Geneva review and Kenya Airways lounge, Nairobi airport

Kenya Airways uses a fleet of B787 dreamliner aircraft for their long haul routes out of Nairobi, Kenya to Asia, Europe and America. The dreamliner aircraft features a lower cabin pressure that translates into more pleasant flying experience. It is also touted to reduce aircraft turbulence.

In business class nowadays, the trend is towards a 1-2-1 seating configuration with direct aisle access from every seat. However, Kenya Airways opts to install 2-2-2 seating instead. That means window seats do not get aisle access and it can be a hassle to use the aisle midflight.

The legroom is excellent, with each row getting three windows. Upon boarding, each seat comes equipped with a pillow and a thick blanket.

Service begins with a pre-departure drink.

The inflight entertainment consists of a reasonable variety of shows. At the side are two open storage compartments.

Flying to Geneva, Switzerland

Dinner service

Dessert and coffee

 Breakfast

My flight !

I would say the Dreamliner service was great and it was a very comfortable flight in its business class.

However, I felt that Kenya Airways needs to improve its Simba Lounge at its hub in Nairobi Airport. Its food and beverage offerings is underwhelming compared to other hub lounges. It is also smaller in size, so it does get crowded easily. It does offer shower amenities. Also, the lounge has views of the tarmac and some aircrafts, which makes for some great planespotting.

Introduction to the miles game

For the frequent fliers among us, the miles game is a familiar term. Airlines award miles for paid tickets and credit the miles into various frequent flyer programs. It is totally free to create frequent flyer accounts for most, if not all airlines, even if we have no intention to fly with them. 

It is also possible to fly with one airline, then credit the miles flown into another airline's program. Why would we do that? Because for the same flight flown, airlines award different mileage towards their own programs. So naturally, we would usually credit the miles into the programs that award the most miles.

Most airlines websites will have an online miles calculator to determine the number of miles I can earn when flying a particular route in a particular booking class.

wheretocredit.com is another online tool that helps us determine where to credit our miles, based on the airline and the booking class. Of course, the higher the booking class, the more miles awarded. It is also important to note that when flying in economy class, some airlines actually award 0 miles for the lowest booking class (cheapest ticket), while other programs may award a certain percentage of the miles flown. Again, check the online tool before keying in the frequent flyer number when booking air ticket.

For example, Singapore Airlines award 50% for the cheapest economy ticket on an SQ flight, while many other programs award 0 miles. In the past, United Airline used to award 100% for the same ticket. A quick way to gain status. Sadly, they have revised the rules.

It is wise to check even for premium class tickets.

To earn miles, other than flying on airlines, certain credit cards award miles as well. The United States is a huge market where there are a myriad of credit cards that award miles after spending a certain amount. The miles per dollar (mpd) that can be earned is also high.

In Singapore, though such credit cards do exist, they are much lesser in number and the miles awarded smaller as well. This is due to the much smaller size of the Singapore market.

Nevertheless, in this post, I want to share some of the Singapore travel-related credit cards that I use to help me accumulate miles. Still, better late than never. 😀

I learnt about the miles game quite late into my travels, thus missing out on the rewards in many of my previous trips.

Currently, I possess three travel-related credit cards:
1) Amex Ascend krisflyer
2) DBS Altitude
3) UOB krisflyer

Let me break down the various travel related expenses and which card I use:

• Online air ticket for other airlines, hotel booking and travel websites

DBS Altitude card or UOB krisflyer to earn 3 mpd

• Expedia and Kaligo travel websites

Book on dedicated DBS expedia website using DBS Altitude.

• Singapore Airline and Silkair tickets

Book on dedicated DBS travel marketplace website to earn 4 mpd

DBS Altitude card or UOB krisflyer to earn 3 mpd (preferred) or Amex Ascend to earn only 2mpd

• Scoot Airline tickets

Book on the dedicated UOB-flyscoot website as it comes with some complimentary flight benefits:

Convenience fee waiver for credit card payment (common for budget carriers)
One-time flight date/time OR passenger name change
Free standard seat selection
Free priority check-in and boarding

• Overseas spend

Amex earn 2 mpd (June and Dec only) ; DBS altitude (all months)

• Local bus and mrt rides

UOB krisflyer earn 3 mpd

• Grab rides

UOB krisflyer and Amex Ascend earn 3 mpd

• Gojek rides

UOB krisflyer earn 3 mpd

• Local spend (food)

At MacDonald's, Subway, Starbucks, Coffee Bean, food delivery 

Amex Ascend earn 3 mpd

• Local spend (entertainment and pharmacy outlets)

Sistic (entertainment), Watson, Unity 

Amex Ascend earn 3 mpd

• Local spend (dining and online shopping)

UOB krisflyer earn 3 mpd

• Local spend (big monthly expenses such as insurance)

Amex through the cardup website (additional fees involved)

Yup. So these are my usual life expenses. Of course, the miles earned are subject to change from time to time.

Just by having these credit cards, there are benefits too!

For Amex Ascend krisflyer, I get 4 complimentary plaza premium lounge access around the world each year. I also get a complimentary hilton hotel stay each year.

For DBS Altitude, I get complimentary priority pass membership and 2 complimentary lounge access around the world each year.

Both Amex Ascend and UOB krisflyer are SQ-branded cards, so the miles earned are directly placed into my krisflyer account.

DBS Altitude earn DBS points with no expiry. These can be converted into various airlines miles. A transaction fee is involved with each conversion.

These are the travel-related credit cards I have currently. It's great to earn miles from my travel as well as daily expenses.

In my opinion, the best way to use the miles is to redeem various premium classes. Some examples include SQ A380 suites class (with access to the Private Room) and Lufthansa first class from Frankfurt (with access to the First Class Terminal). The paid tickets for these classes are way beyond my budget, so redeeming miles to experience these luxuries are certainly the way to go.

SQ business class and economy class tickets can be redeemed. SQ releases a monthly spontaneous escapades website with discounted miles on certain routes.

Time for me to redeem some luxurious flights haha!

Inaugural flights from Singapore, 2020

There are quite a number of new air links to and from Singapore in 2020. Starting in April, Emirates will begin a fifth freedom flight between Singapore and Penang, Malaysia on its B777-300ER aircraft. It has been years since I travelled on Emirates as their air fares are usually not as cheap as other carriers from Singapore.

I have since booked myself a seat on the inaugural same-day return flight. Fares are quite affordable for the full service carrier on this short haul route. Multiple budget carriers such as AirAsia, Jetstar and Scoot fly this route so prices are kept low. Silkair flies direct as well though at a higher price margin. 

At this point, I'm still not sure whether I'm able to travel since it is on a weekday and it may coincide with my work commitments. Hopefully, I get to travel 😀. In the worst case scenario, I will forgo this flight.

In October, Singapore Airline (SQ) will be launching a new flight from Singapore to Brussels on its A350 aircraft.

On the same day in October, Aeroflot is opening a new air link from Moscow to Singapore on its A350 aircraft.

Although I do hope to try out these two new links, it is just not possible to try both inaugural routes as the dates coincide exactly on a Sunday. Seems like I can only fly on one or the other. Both flights costs in the range of ~$500 with similar flying hours, which added to my dilemma. 

Finally, after days of careful consideration, I have decided to book myself on the SQ inaugural flight. My ticket is based on a two sector routing from Bangkok to Singapore and then onward to Brussels. This turns out to be way cheaper than the direct Singapore to Brussels ticket. I have yet to book the return since it's still months to this flight. Again, I'm not certain whether I'm able to take this flight as the next day is a Monday, a working day. So we shall see.

Recently, I learnt that Jetstar will be launching a new route from Singapore to Colombo, Sri Lanka, starting July 2020. One way fare is very cheap, starting at only S$80 on the first day, and at $60 on some other days. Yup, so I have booked this one-way flight and hoping that I will be able to travel. I have yet to book the return since I haven't thought of my travel plan for this Colombo trip. I will probably stay one night in Colombo before returning the next day. It's still early days so I will give it some time.

To summarise, I'm now looking forward to hopefully flying on these 3 inaugural routes this year:

1) Emirates Airlines Singapore to Penang (and return)
2) Singapore Airlines Singapore to Brussels
3) Jetstar Singapore to Colombo

Here's to hoping more new air links to Singapore !

Kenya Airways B737 business class review

The first sector of my Kenya Airways flight is from Mumbai to Nairobi, Kenya, the hub of Kenya Airways. After a great time at the GVK lounge, it was time to try out Kenya Airways. This is my first flight with the African airline and I'm keen to find out its inflight offerings. 

My flight on this B737 aircraft

Kenya Airways B737 business class is arranged in a 2-2 seating arrangement. Every seat comes with a Kenya Airways branded blanket and pillow. Very comfortable. These are provided on its long haul European flights as well. There is in-seat power at every seat. Impressive for a narrowbody aircraft.

I have selected the bulkhead seat

Service begins with a pre-departure drink

Soon after, an amenity kit was given out.

Inflight entertainment options 

Crossing the Indian Ocean towards Africa ! 

Meanwhile, the table is set for my meal.

A great meal for this short sector.

The rest of the flight is uneventful and soon I landed at Nairobi airport. Looking forward to my next flight on its flagship B787 dreamliner aircraft.

Mumbai airport GVK lounge review

Upon check-in for my Kenya Airways flight from Mumbai to Nairobi, Kenya and onward to Geneva, I was given a lounge access card to the GVK lounge East in the airport.

Mumbai airport has a separate security screening facility for premium passengers boarding their flight and it was a quick process.

 

GVK Lounge East Wing invitation card

The lounge decor and ambiance was great. There were not many passengers in the lounge, making it a pleasant experience.

The lounge has window views of the aircrafts on the tarmac

There was a variety of food and beverage options in the lounge. 

Desserts

Complimentary wifi in the lounge

Mumbai airport decor

There's Singapore !

After some time in the lounge, I made my way to the departure gate for my Kenya Airways flight. The airport terminal in Mumbai was designed beautifully with a green theme and it's not too crowded at that time.

On its B737 aircraft, Kenya Airways actually boards its business class passengers last. So I sat around while waiting for all other passengers to board. I guess the intention is to minimize the queue to get into the aircraft. 

In my subsequent post, I shall detail my great inflight experience on its B737 and B787 aircraft as well as my lounge experience at Nairobi, Kenya airport. 

My Journey through India

I had some time to wander around Kuala Lumpur before my flight to India. At KL Sentral, I took the free Go KL shuttle bus to explore the city. There are four different routes that serve different areas with many stops, though only the red line passes by KL Sentral. Kind of like a hop-on-hop-off bus, except its complimentary!

After which, I proceeded to KLIA2 to check in for my AirAsia flight to Kochi, India.

I had pre-ordered the AirAsia's Santan inflight meal. It is mostly local asian cuisine. Cheap and delicious. Definitely worth it.

After arriving in Kochi Airport, I made my way to the adjacent terminal on foot for an Indigo airline domestic flight to Mumbai. The walkway is covered and felt save to walk through. And the airport is open 24/7. After checking in, I cleared security and went to the gate area, made up of rows and rows of sofas. Talk about being grand !

Getting some snacks from one of the few open cafes in the departure area.

My Indigo airline flight

Indigo airline is a budget carrier so no complimentary food and beverage offerings as expected.

After landing in Mumbai, I remained in the arrival area while waiting for daylight. There are a few food stores offering snacks for purchases. There are limited seating area as well.

Finally, daylight broke and I met my tour guide cum driver at the arrival area once exiting the airport. Thus begins my day tour of Mumbai.

Gateway of India, Mumbai

Taking a boat ride to Elephanta Cave

At the port, either take a short train ride or simply walk to Elephanta Cave

After visiting the Elephanta Cave, I took the same ferry back to the mainland and my guide sent me off to the airport. Fortunately, my Kenya Airways flight was delayed so there was no rush.

A wonderful day spent in Mumbai, India!