Last week, I was in Kuwait for a quick trip, and this trip was filled with a lot of confusion. First it was the hotel which claimed to have given me a suite but turning out it was a room and so on, but the best was saved for the end. I’ve been to Kuwait enough number of times to know how the airport functions there. You are supposed to go through a security check at every step with your belongings (check-in, passport control and boarding gates). At the boarding gates, usually my flights usually are from an aerobridge, so there is a big holding area. Since most of the travellers in this region are not frequent flyers, they usually…
Trip Reports
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Clipper Lounge Cochin: the barest lounge ever?
Mumbai Airport Terminal 2 Clipper Lounge, Mumbai Terminal 2 Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, Kochi Airport Air India 682, Cochin – Mumbai, Economy After our three day stay at the Courtyard by Marriott, Kochi Airport, we were dropped off early morning at the Airport in a shuttle car of the hotel. We were already checked-in, and flying Air India. The airport had a Clipper Lounge, however, this was before the security hold area in the Domestic section of the airport. To access, I used my MasterCard and guested my partner using my Priority Pass. It was early morning so the lounge was empty, or maybe that was the way of life here, because it did not seem like this lounge was…
Review: Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, Kochi Airport
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…
Review: Vivanta by Taj – Holiday Village, Goa
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…
Review: Hotel Intercontinental Marine Drive, Mumbai
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…
Review: Pause Lounge, Bangalore Airport (Domestic)
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…
Going RTW: Flight UA343 (LGA-DEN), United Airlines, First Class
Introduction & Trip Index <AC Maple Leaf Lounge, LGA There were only two reasons I was booked to fly United. First, American Airlines’ prices were pretty high when I was trying to book tickets with them between NYC to Colorado Springs, and I’d never flown a turbo prop plane, so I thought I might as well hitch the 40 minute ride flight between Denver & Colorado Springs and get a Dash 8-400 on my list of planes flown. The LGA-DEN segment was upgraded to First ahead of the flight due to my United status. After going past TSA, headed straight to the gate where the plane was already boarding. This was going to be a Boeing 757-200 flight, with the…
Review: Doubletree by Hilton, Goa (Arpora)
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…
Review: American Express Lounge, Mumbai Airport, Terminal 1C
Just this past long weekend, I was headed out to Goa for a vacation. Usually, I am accompanied by people, so I do not end up using the American Express Lounge at Terminal 1C, but the Carnations Lounge instead. However, since I was alone, and I had access to the lounge via my Jet Airways Amex, I decided to give it a go this time around. The lounge is set inside the Carnations Lounge itself (as a separate enclosure), The same lounge also houses Jet Airways & Go Air passengers, Priority Pass, MasterCard & Visa Access, and the recent Diners Club bearing passengers. In short, it is a crowd out there and hence I’d anyday prefer to access the Amex…
Going RTW: Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge, Central Terminal, LaGuardia
Introduction & Trip Index <Holiday Inn, LGA UA 343 (LGA-DEN), United, First> I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this on the blog before, but I’ve actively started to avoid early morning flights. I’ve done my fair share in the past, and maybe I’ll do more, but I try and plan around them as much as I can. However, this was one of those days when flying early morning was unavoidable, and hence I went over to LGA, groggy! After collecting my boarding pass, I walked over to the security check area. I needed a quick coffee and something to start my day,…
Going RTW: Holiday Inn LaGuardia NYC
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…