During my Japan Sakura trip in March, I stayed at the Conrad Osaka. It was a hotel I was looking forward to trying, having been lured in by the promise of stunning city views and large, modern rooms. While I had been pleasantly satisfied by the Hilton Osaka on my first trip to a reopened…
All style, no substance: Review of the new Pan Pacific Orchard
I went into this stay with fairly low expectations. Firstly, I checked-in on the second day after the hotel’s opening; hotels don’t tend to be operationally at their best so quickly. Secondly after my last experience at the sister Pan Pacific Singapore, I don’t have a high opinion of the brand. Around its opening, the…
Bring long pants: Review of the Pan Pacific Singapore
Last month, I had one of those I-want-to-get-out-of-the-house weekends. I had heard good things about the Pan Pacific Singapore’s Pacific Club lounge, and having found a somewhat decent rate for it, I decided do a quick one-night stay to check out the property. While the Pacific Club turned out to pretty good offerings wise, it…
Shiny new, sparkling service: Review of the Hilton Hiroshima
In March, I made a trip to Japan for Sakura season. It was pretty crazy, given it was the first post-Covid sakura season with tourists allowed into Japan. I planned most elements of the trip well in advance, locking in hotels as far back as July 2022. One element which was booked a little later…
Review: Hilton Singapore Orchard (King Corner Suite)
Introduction I first stayed at the then recently-opened Hilton Singapore Orchard in April 2022. A reflag of the Mandarin Orchard, the the Hilton Singapore Orchard opened in late February 2022 after an extensive renovation. This property is the largest Hilton hotel in Asia with 1,080 rooms, and replaced the dump that was the original Hilton…
Review: TAP Air Portugal A330-900 Business Class (JFK-LIS)
Note: This flight was taken in February 2022. Certain travel restrictions and service protocols described in this review may not be reflective of the current state of travel. I’ve shared the background of why I took this trip in an earlier post Introduction: The Three Year Chase. I do recommend reading that, to understand the…
Review: Jetblue A321neo Mint Suite (LAX-JFK)
Note: This flight was taken in February 2022. Certain travel restrictions and service protocols described in this review may not be reflective of the current state of travel. Introduction I’ve shared the background of why I took this trip in an earlier post Introduction: The Three Year Chase. I do recommend reading that, to understand…
Review: ANA 777-300ER ‘The Suite’ First Class (NRT-SFO)
Note: This flight was taken in February 2022. Certain travel restrictions and service protocols described in this review may not be reflective of the current state of travel. In the previous instalment of this trip, I reviewed my ANA Business class flight on the 787-9 from Singapore to Tokyo. This is the second leg of…
Review: ANA 787-9 Business Class (SIN-NRT)
Note: This flight was taken in February 2022. Certain travel restrictions and service protocols described in this review may not be reflective of the current state of travel. To kick off my round-the-world, end-of-three-year-chase trip, was an early morning flight to Tokyo-Narita. I’ve shared the background of why I took this trip in an earlier…
Introduction: The Three Year Chase
Note: This flight was taken in February 2022. Certain travel restrictions and service protocols described in this review may not be reflective of the current state of travel. Introduction This is the introduction to a round-the-world trip I took in early 2022. Yes, this trip report is a year overdue. I apologise for the tardiness…