My Third Trip

[dewey4350]

hello PL bunch -guys and gals. I know I come and go alot but I do try to keep up here as much as possible. Getting ready to do my third trip. what I am curious about is the route I have taken this time.  Normally I fly from Kansas City to either New York, LA or SanFrancisco. Then to Japan or China. Usually its a 34 hour adventure to Manilla. Three to four airports and you there. This time I will fly to Miami then to Guam and then to Manilla- A 24 hour total flight. Nothing like shaving ten hours off your flight time. Has anyone ever taken this route to Manilla? It was more exspensive by like 180usd's. I did not have the choice of ANA are any of the asain airlines. I am back to United and Delta but hey ten hours shorter I will suffer.....Hey Dave where can I get roast Pork in Davao I have not got a chance to try it yet. I will leave in 17 days and try keep everbody posted.............

[thekfc]

We will be waiting 

Fyi, Cathay Pacific now fly out of Chicago (direct to HK). You can do a Kansas City to Chicago to Hong Kong to Manila:  23 hours total.

[dewey4350]

Hey I am all about saving time and the Asain airlines are like 3 stars better than any american airlines. Just the service and the pretty wemon are worth a extra 100usd's to me......Guam is a pretty island I am told maybe one of these times i will layover there. I have heard the beaches there rival some of the best in the world.......

[thekfc]

Cathay Pacific is an Asian airline. 


There are six 5-star airlines & all of them are Asian based airlines; Cathay Pacific, Asiana, Hainan, Qatar, Singapore & Malaysia Airlines. Hopefully ANA may join the group.  Not only are their airlines soft & hard product great but they also have some of the best home base airport in the world.
Spending that extra money imo, is worth it to fly on these airlines.

[SkyNorth]

I am airport lucky, considering I do not live in LA.  I fly in and out of Atlanta.  I am planing a trip to Cebu for Oct.-Nov. the airfare is $1389 RT with Korean Air just one stop in Seoul Korea and just over 22 hrs in time.
 
So Just Saying if you can get to Atlanta cheap and quick it can be an option.
 
But I'm not sure how good Korean Air is against the elite airlines -- How good is the above airfare???

[thekfc]

Korean Air is a good airline just below Cathay & Asiana but IMO better than any of our domestic ones.

That price of $1389 is kinda high for that time of the year. Maybe because there is no other Asian airlines (other than Korean Air) that flies out of ATL.

I did a dummy booking  (actually I was planning on flying out in Oct. but postponed it)  and got the following:
Prices are directly from the airlines site (not from a search engine) & are for the same date (10/24 - 11/7) flying out of my home base (JFK). 

JFK to Manila - RT
ANA $1000
Asiana Air $1156
Cathay Pacific $1170
Korean Air $1273

JFK to Cebu - RT
Cathay Pacific $1292
Korean Air $1198

[Capstone]

I am airport lucky, considering I do not live in LA.  I fly in and out of Atlanta.  I am planing a trip to Cebu for Oct.-Nov. the airfare is $1389 RT with Korean Air just one stop in Seoul Korea and just over 22 hrs in time.
 
So Just Saying if you can get to Atlanta cheap and quick it can be an option.
 
But I'm not sure how good Korean Air is against the elite airlines -- How good is the above airfare???

I actually prefer Korean Air over Asiana - the food & service on Korean Air is better in my opinion. And the Korean Air lounges in the Incheon airport seemed better than the Asiana ones to me as well. Those 5 star airline rankings are mostly based upon the level of first class service and Asiana may in fact have a slightly better first class product than Korean Air but when it comes to the economy & business class product, I prefer what Korean air has to offer. Of those 5 star airlines, I have flown on Cathay, Asiana, Hainan and Singapore airlines. I rate Korean Air's economy & business class product to be just as good or better than all of those except for Singapore Air - in my opinion Singapore Air is a slight step above the others.

I too always fly out of Atlanta and my last 2 trips have been on Korean Air (Atlanta-Seoul-Xiamen) and for me the route & service can't be beat. As with any other Asian airline be sure and order one of the Asian entrees over the western entrees that are offered during meal time - it makes a big difference. For the first big meal, Korean Air almost always offers a Bibimbap dish, which I highly recommend - the red pepper paste that comes with the dish is very tasty. Just like most other Asian airlines, alcoholic beverages are offered free of charge in economy class on Korean Air - so be sure and suck down a few Hite beers during your flight! 

EDIT: I forgot to give my input on the cost of your airfare. The $1389 seems about right for a flight out of Atlanta to Asia (other than Japan) to me these days. You could probably get a cheaper flight if you fly out of LA or NY but you would end up paying just as much or more in the end by the time you add in your airfare from ATL to LA or NY. The days of sub $1000 airfares to Asia from Atlanta are over. Several years ago, I was able to fly out of ATL to Hong Kong, Shanghai or Beijing for $850-950 but have been paying anywhere from $1100-1500 for the past 2 years now.

Check these guys out and see if they can get you a lower price: http://www.goldentourtravel.com
They are a travel agency located in Atlanta who specialize in Asian (particularly those to China) airfares. I am consistently able to buy tickets to China through them for $100 - 300 less than any other fare that I can find.

[thekfc]

Of the airlines I have flown, I agree that the overall experience in Singapore Air economy is slightly better.
I have flown Cathay's first & business class and they are excellent. I haven't flown the other airline's premium cabin so I cannot make a comparison.


I am not sure about the other markets but the Cathay Pacific's  JFK to HK route now have the new business & economy seats. I haven't flown on the new economy seats yet but I have heard that it is an improvement. One of the other airlines also installed new seats (don't remember which one).


I am not a drinker and always try to eat in the lounge but on my last 2 upgrades to First I had Krug. 


Cap, have you flown on EVA Air? Can you comment on them.


I have read recent positive feedbacks on China Airlines.

[Capstone]

Cap, have you flown on EVA Air? Can you comment on them.

I have read recent positive feedbacks on China Airlines.

No, I have never flown on EVA Air but if I'm not mistaken JM flew on EVA during his last trip to Taiwan and had a good experience.


I have flown on China Airlines several times, although it has been a good number of years since I last did. I haven't flown with them since they had that bad rash of crashes & safety incidents some years ago. Their service was no better or worse than an American carrier when I flew them but they did have some really reasonable airfares back then. I have heard that they have improved their service over the last several years in an attempt to improve their poor safety image that most people have had of them in the past. Because of their name, most people think that they are a Chinese airline, when in fact they are a Taiwanese carrier.

[thekfc]

 Thanks Cap.
 
I would love to try all the Asian (international) airlines, JAL & ANA have been on the top of my list.  If I have enough time, I plan on doing a Leshan side trip next year and may use one of the regional  airlines.
 
 
For some people it's all about just getting to their destination for the cheapest & shortest time possible. Personally, I go for the entire package – hard & soft.
 
Luckily for me, flying out of NYC, I have options to choose from to help me maximize that travel experiences (just about all the Asian airlines fly out of the NYC area).

 And Cathay gives me the best option – 4 daily flights from JFK & 5 connecting flight to Manila; Lounge access (Cathay’s & OneWorld – I was a OneWorld member via AA & BA before I join Cathay’s program);  good opportunity to upgrade to a premium cabin; and good hard products & great service.

[Capstone]

If I have enough time, I plan on doing a Leshan side trip next year and may use one of the regional  airlines.

I am pretty sure that Leshan still does not have an airport - I think that construction has started on one but it will still be a while before it is completed. I guess that Chengdu is probably the closest airport to Leshan. When I visited Chengdu, I flew Xiamen Airlines which is a nice carrier. If you will be coming from Hong Kong, then Dragonair is always a good option - I have always had a good experience with Dragonair which is a subsidiary of Cathay. What time of the year will you be making your trip next year? My family and I will be in Xiamen, Hong Kong & Okinawa next May/June.

[thekfc]

I have a childhood/college friend in Chengdu so that would be a plus.


I have flown Dragonair before on one of my trip to the PI - the JFK to HK part was on Cathay & the HK to Manila section was on Dragonair (their service was great).


Our date is not finalize yet. We are/were waiting to hear the start date for construction at my job (they would partially close down). They told us it is tentatively set to start at the end of March -  that would be ideal as that would means that we could be in the PI for Holy Week.