Review: Swiss lounge, Geneva airport and Swiss A220 flight

After touring Munich, my plan was to travel to Geneva to position for my flight towards Marrakesh, Morocco the next morning.

So I took a long distance coach from Munich to Zurich, then transferred onto the train to Geneva. There was only a ~10 minute allowance for the coach to train transfer, which I felt was really tight as the bus stop was some distance from the train station. Fortunately, the coach arrived in Zurich punctually and I managed to make it onto the waiting train just in time. It was free seating on this train but the train was quite packed and hardly any vacant seats left.

After a short train ride to Geneva, I transferred onto a waiting public bus to the airport, arriving past midnight. I spent the night at Geneva airport, which is open 24 hours. Quite a number of people spent the night in the airport, so it felt safe.

At the airport landside, there are three storeys accessible for everyone. The lowest level is the arrival area, second level is the departure area, and third level consists of shops and eateries. There is a circular wooden bench without armrest near MacDonald's on the second level, perfect for people to lie down and sleep for the night. Otherwise, there are sufficient seats with armrests within the landside area.

Once dawn came, I checked in for my Swiss flight and proceeded to the lounge. As Swiss belongs to Star Alliance, this means I had access to its lounge due to my Star Alliance Gold status, even when flying economy class. 

There was hardly any one in the lounge in the early morning hours. There were some comfortable sofa seats.

High top seating was available as well.

As with most European lounges in the Schengen zone (flights within Europe), there is no shower amenity. Breakfast options were alright but limited.

Boarding was called. Premium class and star alliance gold status passengers could board first.

The Geneva to Marrakesh flight was operated by a rather new A220 aircraft with a 2-3 economy class configuration.

I believe this is my first time on board this particular aircraft model. Due to its configuration, it does feel somewhat more spacious compared to A320 and B737 narrowbody models with the usual 3-3 seating configuration.

Each economy class seat is equipped with two expandable handphone-sized seat pockets rather than one big pocket, which I thought was refreshing.

In-flight literature is placed near the top of the seatback, in a fixed pocket just thick enough to store paper and thin books.

The windows are larger than most narrowbody aircrafts. Definitely a welcome when taking the window seat.

Finally, the overhead bins are quite large for a narrowbody aircraft, so there isn't a need for passengers to rush on board to store their bags.

Overall, it is a pleasant flight with the A220 aircraft.

Looking forward to a great time in Morocco !

My journey from Prague, Czech Republic to Munich, Germany

What is normally a couple of hours of train ride turns out to be quite an adventure for me!

Prague railway station is conveniently located within walking distance of the old town, perfect for tourists like me!

From here, there are trains connecting Prague to many other European cities. For me, I'm heading to Germany !

There are electronic signboards at the entrance of each train platform indicating the train number and destination.

I'm going to Munich, Germany !

Train literature

Comfortable seats in a 2-2 configuration. So much better than flying economy class in a plane!

Unfortunately, the train broke down a bit into its journey. Everyone has to alight at another station somewhere in Czech Republic. At this point, I wasn't sure how I was supposed to get to Germany and whether I would even make it there. Initially, I was told of a bus transfer, but there was no mention of the bus location. Fortunately, a kind local pointed me in the right direction.

There was quite a crowd waiting for the bus. I transferred onto the bus and soon it went on its way.

Not long after, I arrived at another train station where I followed everyone and alighted here. A train was already waiting at the platform and I boarded. Soon, a train attendant attendant came to me and handed me this slip of paper. Without any German language knowledge and by looking at the timings, I figured these were my adjusted train itinerary, with several transfers as well.

Going from a direct Prague to Munich train, now my itinerary includes a bus and 4 trains. Well, I just took it in my stride. Luckily, I have set aside sufficient buffer time in Munich before my next ride out of Munich.

At the end of the last train carriage

 It was free seating on this train, so I settled in the comfortable, 6-seater compartment.

Along the way, there would be more changes to the itinerary. Finally, if I remembered correctly (this is why I shouldn't post my review so long after my trip 😀), this train would eventually send me to Munich without any more transfers. Thankfully!

Also, I even managed to arrive in Munich around the same time as my original itinerary. Talk about German efficiency!

I arrived in Munich, Germany in the evening and wasted no time exploring the city and old town on foot.

German Christmas market 😀

In conclusion, Munich is a really beautiful German city, with many impressive historical buildings!

A quick tour of Prague, Czech Republic

Cyprus Airways is the national airline of Cyprus based in Larnaca. It is also a budget airline. I purchased the cheapest ticket which surprisingly includes a 10kg check-in bag and a small carry on bag. There are options to purchase extra amenities.

Being a night flight, there are hardly any inflight service. I didn't notice any buy-on-board purchase option. But since it is a short flight, it didn't really matter to me. The flight departed Larnaca late at night and arrived in Prague in the early morning hours.

The famous Charles bridge within the old town of Prague

To save on accommodation, I spent the remainder of the night in the airport landside area as there are some eateries with open seating.

As day starts to break, I boarded the first airport bus outside the arrival terminal into town.

I chose to alight at the railway station as there were luggage lockers available. So I could leave my luggage there while exploring the old town, then pick up my luggage before leaving Prague via train.

Prague's old town is walkable from the train station. Google map came in useful here. It is my first time in the Czech Republic and I was fascinated by its scenery. In my opinion, the old town is one of the most beautiful among the European countries with many interesting architectures from the old times.

 

A unique clock tower

Chocolate museum

Prague is certainly a beautiful city and worth a visit if one is in Europe. After a quick tour of Prague, I picked up my luggage and boarded the train bound for Munich. This train ride turns out to be an adventure in itself ! Find out about it in my next post. 😀

One day in Cyprus

From Jordan, I wanted to get to Europe. So I chanced upon cheap flights from Amman, Jordan through Cyprus to Prague, Czech Republic, one of the few European countries that I would like but yet to visit. This involves taking two flights. On Ryanair from Amman, Jordan to Paphos, Cyprus. Then on Cyprus Airways from Larnaca, Cyprus to Prague.

Flying this route allows me to visit Cyprus, experience Cyprus Airways, and visit Prague. Certainly a good choice !

My Ryanair flight (my umpteenth time flying the airline) into Cyprus was uneventful so I shall not review it.

Alighting the plane at Paphos, Cyprus airport

Ryanair is likely the predominant airline at Paphos airport

From the airport, there are convenient public buses that ferry tourists into the city.

Paphos is easy to get around by foot. It's not a big city

                                               Paphos waterfront

After a quick tour of Paphos, it was time to take the city bus and transfer to the Cyprus long distance bus. The inter-city bus schedule can be found online. However, the bus tickets cannot be purchased online and only through the driver on that day. Even the ticket office doesn't sell it. Fortunately it was a big bus on the Paphos to Larnaca route and there were enough seats for everyone. It was free seating and the seats were reasonably comfortable for the long trip.

The destinations of the buses clearly displayed on the signboard .

At Larnaca waterfront

Opposite its waterfront, there are a number of eateries including fast food restaurants and cafes. So I had an early dinner there. By then, it was turning dark so I took the public bus to Larnaca airport for my next flight.

In conclusion, it was a great whirlwind tour to Cyprus on this trip. Larnaca and Paphos are the main touristic cities in Cyprus and I'm glad my schedule allowed me to explore both cities in one day. Though in my opinion, I felt that there wasn't much to explore in these cities. Still, a good experience !

Royal Jordanian Crown Lounge review

I left my Amman, Jordan airbnb accommodation and got an uber to the airport to catch an early morning Ryanair flight Paphos, Cyprus. Though the flight turns out to be quite full, the check-in desk was surprisingly empty with no Ryanair customers at all.

Soon, I was at the airside of the airport. I had plenty of time before my flight, so decided to check out the Royal Jordanian Crown lounge. This lounge accepts Priority Pass as well, which is how I managed to gain access.

The Royal Jordanian Crown lounge accepts premium passengers from most other airlines as well.

There is a large variety of breakfast food and beverage offerings!

Seating is plentiful at this early hour.

My breakfast !

More seating areas

The lounge is quite big so overcrowding is not an issue. Not at this early morning hour anyway. Unfortunately, the lounge does not have shower though.

Amman airport certainly feels modern and airy. After the duty-free walk-through, I reach the departure gates. The big, empty areas and high ceiling makes the gate area spacious. Recliner seats are available too.

Royal Jordanian lounge offers a large variety of food and beverage, even in the morning. It is a pleasant experience to wait for the flight in this lounge. No shower amenity is available though.

Jordan trip review

For tourists intending to visit Jordan, do note that public transport infrastructure is somewhat limited. Hiring a private transport such as taxi, uber or joining a tour group, though costly, is still the best way to get to the various tourist attractions within Amman as well as between the Jordanian cities.

Jett is a bus company that operates scheduled trips to some tourist attractions such as Petra as well as trips between Jordanian cities such as Amman and Aqaba. Its prices are affordable and offers reliable services.

My first day tour from Amman to Petra is booked via Jett bus. Tickets can be booked via its websites (there seems to be 2 different ones with different prices, so do compare before purchase). 

After my Petra tour, I was convinced that it offers a reliable tour service with reasonable fees. So I proceeded to book my second day tour with Jett as well, on the previous night.

Note that the price only includes the bus trip. Separate entrance fee for Bethany and Mount Nebo is payable. My Jordan Pass does not offer these two attractions so I need to pay separately. Lunch is own expense as well. The tour bus stops at a buffet restaurant and I was ushered to my seat. With no other lunch options available nearby, I had to settle for the buffet. It was limited in variety and overpriced for tourists, in my opinion.

On the second day, I booked another day trip to Madaba, Mount Nebo and Bethany. This time, I boarded the bus at the Jett office, near 7th circle, within walking distance of my airbnb accommodation.

At sea level !

Visiting the Jordan river

The Baptism site 

Getting to Mount Nebo

Great views of the surroundings

Next stop is the small city of Madaba. Though small, there are quite a number of souvenir shops lining the streets compared to Amman.

Another great tour in Jordan !