After a wonderful tour of Marrakesh, Morocco, it was time to return to the airport for my Swiss return flight to Geneva, Switzerland.
Returning to Marrakesh airport by the same public bus, and walking towards the airport terminal, the design of the airport building looked impressive.
While inside the terminal, it is spacious and airy, with few passengers around.
Other than Marrakesh airport, I can only think of Cairo airport and Istanbul airport which I have experienced myself. Definitely a bonus for these members !
Fortunately, in the early morning hours, the security queue wasn't too long. After that, I made a long, long walk to the Dnata Marhaba lounge. All the lounges, I think, were located before passport control, which turned out to be not ideal for me.
Once I boarded, the aircraft door closed for departure.
The Kenya Airways B787 business class experience was great, with friendly flight attendants. I have already reviewed the Kenya Airways B787 business class experience on my way to Geneva and the Kenya Airways B737 business class experience on the first leg, so I won't repeat them again.
From my experience on both legs, it seems that the B787 European route is maybe half full while the B737 India route is quite full. However, food and beverage offerings were reasonably good and service on all 4 sectors was friendly. All in all, great flights with Kenya Airways !
Returning to Marrakesh airport by the same public bus, and walking towards the airport terminal, the design of the airport building looked impressive.
While inside the terminal, it is spacious and airy, with few passengers around.
As a Star Alliance Gold member travelling on Swiss, I had access to the priority queue at the check-in counter. And at Marrakesh airport, I noticed that it has dedicated a security and custom facility for passengers travelling on airlines premium class, including Star Alliance Gold members! 😀
So I ended up using this facility. Fortunately, there is no queue at all.
There are airports in the world with such facilities for passengers travelling in premium class, but very rarely for passengers with airline elite status but travelling in economy class.
Other than Marrakesh airport, I can only think of Cairo airport and Istanbul airport which I have experienced myself. Definitely a bonus for these members !
Unfortunately, while Star Alliance Gold members had access to this facility, it doesn't have any lounge at all. I'm not sure whether passengers travelling in Star Alliance premium lounges have lounge access, but definitely not its Gold members. Given the large number of airlines and passengers passing through Marrakesh, and with Morocco as a top travel destination, I thought Star Alliance should maintain a lounge or use a contract lounge.
My Swiss flight to Geneva was once again on the A220 plane, same as the first leg. I have already reviewed it so won't repeat the experience again. It is a really great aircraft to fly in, in my opinion.
It was in the evening when I reached Geneva. The purpose of coming to Geneva again was to position for the return leg of my Kenya Airways business class flight via Nairobi towards Mumbai, India.
I spent the night at the NH Geneva hotel, located close to the airport. The hotel provides a free airport shuttle at regular intervals, so there is no need to book in advance.
The hotel's standard rooms were well-appointed. The bed was comfortable and all basic amenities were provided.
At the time of booking, it was having a promotion, with its advance rates lower than most other hotels and comparable to even hostels in Geneva, as the accommodation in Geneva is generally expensive for tourists. So it was definitely worth a stay.
Early next morning, I took the complimentary hotel shuttle back to the airport. The first shuttle's timing is well suited to my flight time.
After checking in, I tried to access the priority lane at Geneva airport departure since I was traveling in business class. However, for some reason, I couldn't scan my boarding pass at the automated gate. The check-in counter staff confirmed that I couldn't do so. Seems like Kenya Airways probably didn't allow its premium class passengers to access this facility.
Fortunately, in the early morning hours, the security queue wasn't too long. After that, I made a long, long walk to the Dnata Marhaba lounge. All the lounges, I think, were located before passport control, which turned out to be not ideal for me.
Getting into the lounge, it seemed I was the first customer of the day. Haha!
This lounge was quite large, with plenty of seating, compared to Swiss lounge and most other European airport lounges. The breakfast buffet spread was limited in variety.
As with most European airport lounges, this lounge is not equipped with shower facility.
I left the lounge with sufficient time, or so I thought to clear passport control and get to the departure gate. However, there was a long, long queue. By the time I cleared, it was close to my flight departure time. I rushed to the gate area to find all passengers had boarded. Probably because it wasn't a full flight at all.
The same check-in agent was actually waiting for me at the counter. I was the last passenger to board. The staff arranged a van to pick me up and send me to the plane. Not sure whether it's on account of my business class ticket. But yup, a private ride to the plane!
Once I boarded, the aircraft door closed for departure.
The Kenya Airways B787 business class experience was great, with friendly flight attendants. I have already reviewed the Kenya Airways B787 business class experience on my way to Geneva and the Kenya Airways B737 business class experience on the first leg, so I won't repeat them again.
From my experience on both legs, it seems that the B787 European route is maybe half full while the B737 India route is quite full. However, food and beverage offerings were reasonably good and service on all 4 sectors was friendly. All in all, great flights with Kenya Airways !
