So, a ‘short’ travel report on the journey home. This is also a kind of HON farewell tour. It all started in Bangkok (BKK) with a flight to Singapore (SIN). Here, I took Thai Airways Business Class (it was cheaper than Singapore and allowed more hand luggage). Checking in was a bit of a challenge for the Thai Airways staff, as for a flight to Singapore, you either need to register your immigration status or have an onward ticket. However, I couldn’t check in online with Singapore. So they checked my booking, which worked. Then I asked if they could issue me the appropriate tickets right away, which was quite a challenge and took a good 15 minutes 🙈. Afterwards, I went via fast-track to the lounge for a small snack (lounge access is available either with the Thai Business ticket or via Star Alliance Gold). Then I flew to Singapore. The food wasn’t that great, but there was a wide reclining seat (later compared to the business class in Europe).
Upon arrival in Singapore, we first made our way through half the airport to Terminal 3 to the Singapore Airlines Private Room (access only with a Singapore First Class ticket). We also exchanged our Thai Airways ticket for a Singapore ticket 😂. Here, we had a good Taittinger (Singapore isn’t allowed to serve Dompi for the next few years because Emirates has an exclusive agreement there 🤷♂️). We also had a salad, lobster, and a waffle with ice cream. It will probably be a while before I stop by again 😔 Then, onto the plane to Zurich (ZHR) in First Class (unfortunately, no A380 😉 ). Here, we were once again able to enjoy top-notch service (even though Lufthansa is getting a new First Class in 2024, they’ll never match the service of a Singapore Airlines). The food was top-notch for an airline, and there were plenty of Krug beer too 😇
So, after arriving in Zurich, I went back to the First Lounge for a shower and a small second breakfast (access via an LH Group First Class ticket or HON). I almost prefer the Swiss lounges to the LH lounges (with the exception of Munich). Everyone is very friendly and a bit more tolerant when it comes to access ;). Then I continued on with Swiss to Stockholm (ARN). This time only in Y (I still don’t understand how the ‘feeder’ appears in Y with a First Class booking. There was also no upgrade for HON, even though Business was practically empty 🤷♂️ (it used to be different, but the LH Group needs to save money). It was also nice that since the plane had an outside seating position, I was brought to the plane by limo. It’s sometimes almost embarrassing when the bus is already there and they have to wait until the HON passengers board the plane first ☺️
That concluded the actual trip, and I continued with the LH booking. This is where the ‘misery’ began. The LH flight from Stockholm (ARN) to Frankfurt (FRA) was delayed. The app indicated that I would miss my connection to Stuttgart and that I should rebook. I then tried to get back on the plane to Zurich at the gate, but both gate agents were somewhat reluctant. Then I contacted the HON service from the lounge. It was a tragedy. He initially had a flight via MUC, but it was suddenly fully booked, and he tried to sell me a train connection (which would have cut my flight time under 3 hours). I politely declined and said I would look into it again in FRA. That’s the HON service with a booking guarantee 🤬 I was actually looking forward to the herring in Stockholm, but unfortunately there weren’t any. Then it was time for the plane to FRA. Here is the comparison to the Thai at the beginning with real business class seats and the ‘normal seating’ in Europe.
Okay, so when I arrived in Frankfurt, the crew told me that my flight to Stuttgart (STR) was also delayed and that I could still go to the lounge, which, considering I’m arriving at B and the lounge at A, and there’s 20 minutes until boarding, is pretty much a joke. So, I arrived at B08 and walked to B10. Then I got a call from HON Service. There was a limo waiting for me at A. I just said I was already at the gate (okay, if I’d known it was an outside position, I probably would have walked to A).
Well, that’s a rather sobering end to four years of HON. When you actually need the ‘service,’ it’s not really there. This confirms my decision not to seek another extension. It’s a shame I couldn’t get into the lounge on my last trip as an HON.