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Category Archives for India.

Flight AI 682: Cochin – Mumbai, Air India, Economy

by Ajay 2 Comments

a plane with a ladder and people on it

Mumbai Airport Terminal 2 Clipper Lounge, Mumbai Terminal 2 Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, Kochi Airport Clipper Lounge Cochin If I haven’t mentioned this before, the Cochin Airport is made to look more like arriving at a red-brick palace than arriving at an airport. Here is what it looked from outside. We spent a brief moment pre-security at the dead Clipper Lounge, and then proceeded to clear security check, where I realised my palatial analogy was going to fit even better. This airport missed anything that was modern, and was full of wooden chairs (more like side pieces from couches) from another generation. My first time there and I sure was surprised. The wait was prolonged, because like it always happens,…

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Review: Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, Kochi Airport

by Ajay 3 Comments

a swimming pool with chairs and a deck

Mumbai Airport Terminal 2 Clipper Lounge, Mumbai Terminal 2 Clipper Lounge Cochin Air India 682, Cochin – Mumbai, Economy My flight from Mumbai to Cochin was uneventful, and on a very very old Air India plane, still painted in Indian Airlines livery. I did not want to write a separate review for both legs so I will cover it later on my return leg. Once I arrived at Cochin Airport, I spotted a shuttle car from the hotel to bring us over to the hotel. The hotel is less than a kilometre away from the airport, and complimentary shuttle service is provided. The decision to stay at the Courtyard by Marriott, closer to the airport and outside of town by…

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Clipper Lounge, Mumbai Terminal 2

by Ajay 41 Comments

Mumbai Airport Terminal 2 Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, Kochi Airport Clipper Lounge Cochin Air India 682, Cochin – Mumbai, Economy Like I mentioned last week, I’d taken a short getaway out of town last week, and I booked a trip out on Air India, partly to check out the new Terminal 2 at Mumbai Airport, which has been built recently. Air India is the only airline which offers domestic segments out of the international section of the airport as well, so, I thought of them. My first thoughts about the Terminal 2, Mumbai Airport are here, while here are some pictures of the airport lounge which is being used by the airlines. Apart from the airline lounges, there is also…

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Review: Vivanta by Taj – Holiday Village, Goa

by Ajay Leave A Comment

A couple of months back, I found myself on the plane to have a working weekend in Goa, and the destination turned out to be the Vivanta by Taj Holiday Village, which is one of the three Taj Hotel properties in Goa, and perhaps one of the best ones out there. My flight into Goa was a little late, which meant I was going to be using the shuttle service from the hotel rather than car that we had on disposal. The hotel is a good one hour ride away from Goa’s airport, in the north end of Goa, so I was looking forward to getting moving quickly and join the rest of my colleagues who were already at the…

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Review: Hotel Intercontinental Marine Drive, Mumbai

by Ajay 4 Comments

a building with many windows

Last weekend was an overwhelming one, mostly for reasons that a strenuous travel schedule for this year was coming to an end, and it was the birthday of my partner and I’d decided to surprise her. I was just off a 9-hour flight less than 12 hours ago, and while I don’t get jetlagged, I was running on 2 hours of sleep. So, I thought checking into a hotel was going to be a better bet than staying home or going out, also to give vent to some of my own intentions, that I never get to stay in a hotel in Mumbai! Coming to the hotel, I missed the mark with catching the 7-day out rate, and got inside…

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Review: Pause Lounge, Bangalore Airport (Domestic)

by Ajay 7 Comments

a plate of food with a fork and a sandwich

One of my many gripes with Bangalore’s Airport in Devanahalli, apart from the distance, has been the lack of a lounge for the longest time for Jet Airways elites. Hey, they used to give you food coupons to eat in the Food Court, not appreciating that the lounge was not about the food but about the environment. This got fixed last year when Kingfisher evacuated from Bangalore Airport, and this place was made the Pause Lounge, accessible via select credit cards and for 9W elites & Business class travellers. I haven’t been able to sample this lounge for my few trips to Bangalore all this year, so this was my first time when I actually built in time into my…

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Review: Doubletree by Hilton, Goa (Arpora)

by Ajay 6 Comments

a living room with couches and chairs

For the recently gone Independence Day long weekend, I decided that it would be a nice idea to go back to Goa during the rains. Usually, my preference is to go to South Goa and the Park Hyatt is one of my favourite resorts there. However, this time the brother and I decided to head to North Goa, since I found out that the Hilton now had a property there. This Hilton was actually an independent property, which was reflagged as the Doubletree only in 2012. Too bad, my brother could not make it at the last minute due to other commitments, however I decided to proceed with the trip regardless. After arriving on an uneventful flight from Mumbai, I…

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Indigo offers a 10% base fare discount to registered members

by Ajay 9 Comments

Indigo is promoting a new way to get users to register with them for effective targeting and marketing. I’ve usually been booking my Indigo tickets without logging into my Indigo account, however, I heard that they’re offering a new 10% off base fare coupon code to members who log-in and book tickets. This promo code popped up when I logged into my account yesterday, and it offers a 10% discount on the base fare of Indigo Airlines on any route. Take note, base fare means just the base fare, not the base fare & fuel surcharges, as it is demonstrated by this example below, random date search of fares, without the promocode. The fare is INR 6,882 + INR 100…

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Going RTW: Holiday Inn LaGuardia NYC

by Ajay Leave A Comment

Introduction & Trip Index <EY 101 (AUH-JFK), Etihad, First                         AC Maples Club Lounge, LGA> After my long wait in the queues for passport control, I was kind of tired. So I asked the chauffer to drive me to the hotel and dozed off for 20-30 minutes in the car itself. On arrival, I found myself in a small little cute hotel, which was good enough to spend one full jet-lagged night before heading on for Colorado Springs. Surprisingly, while the redemption rates for this one were 25,000 IHG Club points per night, those for a Holiday Inn Express nearby were 30,000 IHG Club points per night. I did not…

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Using Air India Flying Returns to get 10 Kgs extra baggage allowance free

by Ajay 74 Comments

I truly think that Air India Flying Returns is not a great loyalty program and I’ve said it before. However, in the wake of Air India, Jet Airways, Go Air and Indigo dropping their free baggage allowance to 15 Kgs, it seems to have become an inconvenience to some travellers who still feel the need for more baggage allowance. Baggage allowance seems to be going at Rs. 250 (~$4) per Kg above the allowance, and it pinches pockets to pay. SpiceJet is the only Indian carrier offering 20 Kgs at the time of writing this. Anyhow, there is a simple trick for the heavy travellers who choose to book with Air India. Most airlines with a loyalty program offer their…

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Going RTW: Flight EY101 (AUH-JFK), Etihad, Diamond First

by Ajay 6 Comments

a seat in an airplane

Introduction & Trip Index <Etihad First Class Lounge, Abu Dhabi              Holiday Inn, LaGuardia Airport> Like I earlier mentioned, by the time I went through the secondary check gates (for US-bound flights), and reached the gates, boarding was already underway and I queued through a bunch of economy passengers to get through to the jetbridge. However, this was a good time to say hello to the A340. Abu Dhabi (AUH) – New York (JFK) Thursday, May 9 2013 Depart: 10:13AM Arrive: 04:41PM Duration: 14hr28min Distance flown: 6897 miles Aircraft: Airbus A340-600 Seat: 3A (First) Meal Service: Lunch, Snacks Once on board, however, everything was okay. at the gate, the purser greeted me, and asked one of…

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