Star Alliance Archives - Benjamin J Travel

Trip Report: TAP Portugal Lie-Flat Business Class | A330-200 | Lisbon to Boston Blog Review

Trip Report: TAP Portugal Lie-Flat Business Class | A330-200 | Lisbon to Boston

22 July, 2018 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Making the journey back home from Oslo, my transatlantic segment would be aboard an A330 in TAP Portugal Lie-Flat Business Class. In its long haul fleet, TAP Portugal operates A330s and A340s with their Business Class cabin current undergoing an retrofit. I selected my particular itinerary so that I could experience TAP Portugal’s new Business Class cabin on the A330 featuring it’s new lie flat seats. I left my Airbnb extra earlier to have a bit of time to hang out…

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Trip Report: TAP Portugal Intra-Europe Business Class | A320 | Oslo to Lisbon - Blog Review - Airbus - tap portugal a320 seat map

Trip Report: TAP Portugal Intra-Europe Business Class | A320 | Oslo to Lisbon

16 April, 2018 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Beginning my extended journey home from Oslo, the first leg of my journey would be in TAP Portugal Intra-Europe Business Class aboard an Airbus A320 from Oslo to Lisbon. Scheduled for an 6:55 PM departure, our flight time would be at 4 hours from gate to gate. Tap Portugal refers to their Business Class cabin as “Executive Class”. Boarding was slightly delayed and the gate area was packed but ultimately the boarding process was orderly with Business Class and Star…

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Lounge Review: Polonez LOT Business Lounge | Warsaw - Blog Review WAW

Lounge Review: Polonez LOT Business Lounge | Warsaw

11 April, 2018 Benjamin J Travel Comments 2 comments

Arriving from Brussels and awaiting my flight to Chicago, I found myself with a long layover in Warsaw. I ultimately had time to visit two different lounges, both the LOT Business Lounge (also referred to as the “Polonez” lounge) lounge and the Bolero lounge. The Bolero Lounge is located on the non-Schengen side of Terminal A, while the the LOT Business Lounge is on the Schengen side. The LOT Business Lounge is a LOT Polish operated lounge, serving LOT Polish…

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Travel Gear Essentials - New! Earn United MileagePlus Miles When on Fuel at BP

New! Earn United MileagePlus Miles When You Fuel up at BP

28 March, 2018 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

United and BP announced today a new rewards partnerships where United MileagePlus members can earn miles when the purchase gas at BP fuel stations. Per the email campaign from United & BP: When BP Driver Rewards and MileagePlus members sign up for this new program, they can earn 200 bonus award miles after joining and making their first fuel purchase with a linked debit or credit card.* Members can multiply their earnings through the following options: One award mile for…

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American Express Platinum Members Now Can Enjoy Lufthansa Lounge Access in Munich

American Express Platinum Members can now Enjoy Lufthansa Lounge Access in Munich

19 November, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Adding to their American Express Global Lounge Collection, American Express Platinum card holders can now enjoy Lufthansa Lounge access in Munich. Lufthansa’s Senator lounges generally offer a solid lounge expedience. Cardholders can access the following Lufthansa lounges in the Munich Airport, all located in Terminal 2: Lufthansa Senator Lounge (Non-Schengen) Lufthansa Senator Lounge (Schengen) Lufthansa Business Lounge (Schengen) Lufthansa Business Lounge (Non-Schengen) I’d certainly says these are welcome additions to the American Express Global Lounge Collection. Previously, the only lounges available…

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Trip Report: SAS GO Economy Class | London Heathrow to Stavanger to Oslo | 737-800 Transit Time in Stavanger Blog Review Go Light SAS

Trip Report: SAS Go Economy Class | London Heathrow to Stavanger to Oslo | 737-800

29 October, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Making my way to London to Oslo after my flight from Dallas, I had snagged a cheap ticket on SAS in SAS Go Economy Class with a connection in Stavanger. While I would have preferred a nonstop, the cheapest nonstop that worked for my departure time was over $400 USD. The SAS Go ticket was only $100 USD. That major price difference make my decision for me. Plus, it’d be a chance to fly through a new airport I’d never…

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Lounge Review: TAP Portugal Premium Lounge | Lisbon Terminal 1 Star Alliance Blog Review

Lounge Review: TAP Portugal Premium Lounge | Lisbon

26 October, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Located in Lisbon Airport’s Terminal 1, the TAP Portugal Premium Lounge serves TAP Portugal’s premium cabin customers, Victoria elite guests, and Star Alliance flyers. The TAP Portugal Premium Lounge is located on the sixth floor, above the main concourse of Terminal 1, just past security control and up the escalator. The lounge staff at the front desk was friendly and polite. Check-in was a prompt after a quick scan of my boarding pass. Access to the TAP Portugal Premium Lounge is…

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Trip Report: LOT Polish Business Class | 787 | Warsaw to Chicago Airline Blog Review

Trip Report: LOT Polish Business Class | 787 | Warsaw to Chicago

17 September, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Making my way from Warsaw to Chicago, LOT Polish Business Class on the 787 would be my ride across the Atlantic. After a nice flight from Brussels to Warsaw on LOT Polish, I was looking forward to my firs long-haul flight with LOT Polish. I’d spent some time in the Polonez and Bolero Business Class lounges before heading to the boarding gate. The boarding process was a bit delayed and boarding commenced about 20 minutes late after the scheduled time….

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Trip Report: LOT Polish Business Class | E190 | Brussels to Warsaw Embraer Airline Blog Review

Trip Report: LOT Polish Business Class | E195 | Brussels to Warsaw

26 August, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Continuing my journey home from the Côte d’Azur, my second segment would be aboard LOT Polish Business Class on an Embraer 195 regional jet. This would be my second time flying aboard LOT Polish after a trip to Krakow, Poland last year. The entire cabin of the E195 is in a 2-2 layout with a curtain separating the Business Class cabin from Economy. The first four rows were designated as Business Class but the seats in Economy Class are identical to…

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Trip Report: Brussels Airlines Business Class | A319 | Marseille to Brussels Airline Blog Review

Trip Report: Brussels Airlines Business Class | A319 | Marseille to Brussels

24 August, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Starting a very nontraditional routing home from Marseille to Dallas on Star Alliance carriers, my travels would begin in Brussels Airlines Business Class aboard the A319 from Marseille to Brussels. This would be my first time aboard Brussels Airlines and my second time at the Brussels Airport. As much as I hate early flights, my itinerary left me with little choice but a 6:40 AM departure from Marseille. I took an Uber from my Airbnb rental in Aix-en-Provence and arrived…

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Lounge Review: Star Alliance Business Class Lounge LAX Los Angeles TBIT Blog Review

Lounge Review: Star Alliance Business Class Lounge LAX

18 August, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 2 comments

Arriving earlier at LAX for my Swiss Business Class flight to Zurich, I’d have plenty of time to check out the Star Alliance Business Class Lounge at in LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT). Positioned near the other premium lounges on the 6th floor of TBIT, I headed up the escalators to the lounge entrance. Access is permitted to Star Alliance Gold passengers and those traveling in a premium cabin on a Star Alliance carrier. Check-in was quick and friendly…

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Making my way to Nice for a week in Provence, my the final leg of my outbound journey would be in aboard Swiss A320 Business Class. After a nice journey aboard Swiss' 777-300ER in Business Class from Los Angeles to Zurich, I was looking forward to another Swiss flight. My connection in Zurich was just under two hours so I spent most of my time in the SWISS Business Lounge in Terminal A. About 15 minutes before scheduled boarding time, I headed over to Terminal A and to our boarding gate, A81. Boarding started right on time and I boarded with the Priority group for Hon Circle, Miles & More Senator, Business Class, Miles & More Frequent Traveller, and Star Alliance Gold passengers. Boarding was orderly and I was the first passneger to board so I had a chance to snap a couple of quick photos of the cabin. Swiss' Business Class cabin on the A320 is standard for European Business Class cabins with a 3-3 layout just like the Economy Class cabin. However, for extra comfort, the middle seat is blocked in Business Class. The curtain between Economy and Business can be moved to adjust the size of Business Class depending on demand. On Swiss, the middle seat is not blocked with an extra tray table like it is on British Airways in Club Europe. We were served a light afternoon lunch for this short 90 minute flight. To be honest, I did't know exactly what I was eating as there were no menus distributed. It appeared there was an egg quiche, a pate with fish eggs, and a tiramisu style dessert. The food was a tasty but it also helped that I was quite hungry. Our final approach offered a lovely view of the Nice and the surrounding Côte d'Azur.

Trip Report: Swiss A320 Business Class | Zurich to Nice

29 July, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Making my way to Nice for a week in Provence, my the final leg of my outbound journey would be in Swiss A320 Business Class. After a nice journey aboard Swiss’ 777-300ER in Business Class from Los Angeles to Zurich, I was looking forward to another Swiss flight. My connection in Zurich was just under two hours so I spent most of my time in the SWISS Business Lounge in Terminal A. About 15 minutes before scheduled boarding time, I headed…

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Trip Report: Trip Report: Swiss 777-300ER Business Class | Los Angeles to Zurich Blog Airline Review777-300ER Business Class | Los Angeles to Zurich Blog Airline Review

Trip Report: Swiss 777-300ER Business Class | Los Angeles to Zurich

17 July, 2017 Benjamin J Travel Comments 8 comments

Making my way to the the Cote d’Azur for a week long holiday, my outbound journey would be in Swiss 777-300ER Business Class. I booked an award journey on Star Alliance carriers via Aeroplan, Air Canada’s reward program. Aeroplan represents a great value for transatlantic premium cabin bookings with roundtrip Business Class bookings from North America to Western Europe for 110,000 Aeroplan miles. After spending the day in Los Angeles, I arrived at the Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT) at…

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Lounge Review: Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt | Concourse Z

Lounge Review: Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt | Concourse Z

19 October, 2016 Benjamin J Travel Comments 2 comments

While the First Class lounges and the dedicated First Class Terminal get all the attention at Frankfurt Airport, I think the Lufthansa Business Class Senator Lounge in Frankfurt is worth more than just an honorable mention. After connecting from my BA CitFlyer flight from London City, I had about 2 hours to transfer terminals and explore the lounge. Fortunately, I avoided checking a bag at London City with British Airways to make the transfer at FRA relatively painless. I had arrived at Terminal 2…

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Lufthansa 747-8 Business Class

Trip Report: Lufthansa 747-8 Business Class | Frankfurt to Washington

9 September, 2016 Benjamin J Travel Comments 2 comments

I’ve long been longing to fly aboard the 747-8 as well as Lufthansa Business Class. I’m not as acquainted to as many product so some fancier bloggers so I have some catching up to do! Most of all, I was was looking forward to being onboard the upper deck of the 747-8, the most modern version of the Queen of the Skies! I had booked an award ticket with United MileagePlus to burn some miles that had been sitting around…

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Air New Zealand OneUp Premium Economy

My Experience Upgrade Bidding with Air New Zealand OneUp

4 September, 2016 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

Like many airlines nowadays, Air New Zealand offers the option to bid on the next class of service or on one of their Skycouch seats via their Air New Zealand OneUp program. The Air New Zealand OneUp program allows passengers to upgrade one class on most international flights. I had purchase a very cheap one-way Economy ticket from LAX to London on Air New Zealand but I wanted to try their Premium Economy product. Air New Zealand has one of the most attractive Premium…

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Air New Zealand 777-300ER Economy Class

Trip Report: Air New Zealand 777-300 Economy Class | Los Angeles to London

1 September, 2016 Benjamin J Travel Comments 9 comments

Taking the unconventional routing from Dallas to London via LAX, I was excited for my first flight aboard Air New Zealand, even if it’s in Economy! I had snagged a pretty cheap flight for under $400 USD one-way from LAX to London Heathrow. This route is “fifth-freedom” route for Air New Zealand, and a popular one! I had arrived on a separate American Airlines flight from Dallas so I used my Priority Pass membership to access the KAL Lounge in…

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Vienna Airport Tarmac

Trip Report: Austrian Airlines Economy Class | Krakow to Vienna & Vienna to Budapest

5 July, 2016 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

In one trip we managed to experience every airline alliance. OneWorld: British Airways. SkyTeam: Czech Airlines. Star Alliance: LOT Polish and Austrian Airlines. It was quite the camping of experience. We flew a mixture of Business Class and Economy Class. Towards the end of trip, it was time to experience Austrian Airlines. Our two segments that day included Krakow to Vienna aboard a Bombardier Q400 and Vienna to Budapest board a Fokker 100, all in Economy. We had to check…

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eBags with Amex Offers

Business Class Deal: Toronto to Istanbul for under $2,000 USD Roundtrip!

10 May, 2016 Benjamin J Travel Comments 0 Comment

This great deal in Business Class courtesy of the weak Canadian Dollar! This deal is pricing out around $2,500 CAD which is about $1,950 USD at today’s exchange rate. We’ve seen lots of deals originating in Canada lately so if you can easily drive or position a flight to Toronto, here’s a great deal. Flights are operated by LOT Polish and Turkish Airlines, operated on the 787 Dreamliner! Availability is wide open June 2016 all the way through January 2017!…

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