TravelCommentator

Category: Tips & Advice

Air Travel / Opinion / Tips & Advice

My Latest Economy Class Observations Are Disturbing

Many Economy Class passengers don’t realise they are doing annoying, disgusting and disrespectful things. Here are some beauties I just observed from my little corner of Economy Class on a couple of long-haul flights (out of six I did over a three week period). Just after meal time When the person in front of you reclines their seat before you have finished your meal. That’s happened to me and I made sure the person in front of me understood this. I tapped him on the shoulder and repeated several times not to assume the person behind has finished their meal. Just because you are not eating, it doesn’t mean everyone else has also done so. The right thing to do is to look around...

Air Travel / Opinion / Tips & Advice

Anti-Bacterial Wipes a Necessity in the Cabin, Definitely

Some will be thinking, “I won’t be taking any wipes with me and do the cleaning others should have done for me”. I’ll guarantee you, you will get strange looks from other passengers if you start doing the wiping and cleaning after sitting down in your seat. They do it to make you feel out of place as most won’t bother. But there is no dodging this fact; airline pilots and cabin crew recommend antibacterial wipes. Why? Because they know their workplace and know what goes on. Do I agree with them? Wholeheartedly even though I haven’t asked them specifically. I have always suspected the airplane cabin to be a place that harboured bacteria. I can tell you this through observation. Others should do...

* Review / Tips & Advice / Trains / Transport

Leonardo Express

Another short review about the best way to travel between Rome’s airport at Fiumicino and central Rome at the Roma Termini railway station. I have used this service virtually every time I am in Rome and I cannot fault it. It’s not cheaper than catching one of the bus services that run the same route to Roma Termini. If time is important the Leonardo Express is the best solution as the buses take about twice as long to get to Fiumicino and traffic can be a problem depending on the time of day. Also the buses do not run as frequent. Taxis are expensive and Ubers although more competitive are still prone by those road issues. If your destination is not central Rome or...

Air Travel / Opinion / Tips & Advice

The Risks FAs Take on The Job Deserves Respect

The recent events of severe turbulence on two flights Singapore Airlines SQ 321 (London to Singapore) on the 21st of May and Qatar Airways QR017 (Doha to Dublin) on the 26th of May, has highlighted the dangers of being a Flight Attendant (FA). Yes, passengers did get hurt some severely with one elderly person dying from a heart attack, but cabin crew do this everyday with higher probability of getting injured while making sure passengers are safe. Their job is not all rosy and glamorous as some may think. They work very hard. Passengers need to understand this. Next time you fly please spare a thought for the FAs and what they have to endure while doing their job and the risks they take...

Loyalty / Opinion / Tips & Advice

Hotel Memberships and Newsletters; Their Value

Just recently one of the hotel chains based in South East Asia, Far East Hospitality, sent me an email with a discount voucher. It was a nice surprise. They valued me as a member, even though I haven’t been that loyal. My last stay with them was many years ago. It’s not because of their product, which is good, it’s just that I’ve stayed elsewhere during this time. Just after that stay I signed up to their loyalty programme and newsletter which I receive regularly and keeps me informed of their products, services, promotions and new hotels. This particular email was sent to all their members celebrating “Members’ Day”. A promotion they do every year during the month of May. A nice gesture for...

Air Travel / Loyalty / Tips & Advice

Is Pursuing Status Worth It?

Depends. There are several perspectives to this and it can get complicated. Let me explain. The occasional flyer Those that don’t fly often, mostly people going on holiday once a year (and rarely twice a year), wouldn’t muster enough miles or points to reach a status that allows the best perks, such as: priority listing, priority boarding, extra weight allowance, complimentary seat selection, lounge access, etc. The answer here is pretty straightforward. Not worth it. So what should the occasional flyer do? In my opinion they are better off chasing bargain priced flights and saving their money. If they want, they can purchase some of the perks associated with status, like: better seats, use of lounges and extra baggage allowance. The only perks they...

Air Travel / Tips & Advice

Losing my iPhone at Fiumicino Airport

A moment I never thought would happen to me; losing my iPhone. Something I would dread to experience again… Like many people today we carry our lives on our smartphones. We are so dependent on them for most of our daily tasks: phone calls, messages, email, notifications, banking, air and train travel, identification, etc. To make matters worse most of the world around you requires a smart device to actually get things done. What would we do without them? This is why if your smartphone goes missing you are in a jam. The feeling of helplessness will overcome you, but, there is no place for panicking. A level head is required. As long as the smartphone is missing or lost and not destroyed there...

* Review / Chauffeur & Taxi Services / Tips & Advice / Transport

My first experience with Uber

I don’t usually catch taxis (cabs) on my travels, whether it is going to and from the airport or for general transport between places I visit. I tend to always catch public transport when it is convenient. However with luggage in tow not all public transport is suitable. Trains from airports to central stations are fine. Most places I’ve visited have this well sorted and just to name a few: Athens, Rome, Milan, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Singapore, Hong Kong… I have caught taxis too in the past in Barcelona, Hong Kong, Rome…, but I think unless they are the only option I now have an alternative. One I didn’t really fancy trying before. When travelling between home and the airport and back I was happy...

* Review / Air Travel / Tips & Advice

The Worst Seat Imaginable

Yes, I finally had the opportunity to score the worst seat on a long haul flight. How did this happen? I took a gamble by switching seats before my recent long haul flight from Singapore to Rome with Singapore Airlines. Why did I do this? Well, because I thought if I scored three seats I could lie down and get sleep during the 12.5 hour flight. Knowing those seats were bad also should’ve worked to my advantage. I thought no one with a sound mind would ever select them. I originally was located midway down the tail of the Airbus A350-900. In the aisle seat of the middle row of three. When I booked a couple of months earlier there were a lot of...

Opinion / Tips & Advice

Tipping, When, How and Whom?

When is the right time to tip and how much and who should benefit? I’ve had several experiences with tipping. Not a lot but they were in different situations. Tipping just doesn’t only happen after been given great service. It can also be an incentive to get better service, perhaps even again and again. In the right places tipping can make a difference…

Air Travel / Airlines / Airports / Routes / Tips & Advice

Routes: Adelaide-Singapore / Singapore-Adelaide

My first post in the Routes series and I’ll start it off with the international route I fly the most ADL-SIN/SIN-ADL, in other words, Adelaide International Airport (ADL) to Changi Airport Singapore (SIN) and back. Airlines At present only one airline offers this route in and out of Adelaide, Singapore Airlines. Singapore Airlines is part of the Star Alliance. In Australia Singapore Airlines codeshares with Virgin Australia. The Singapore Airlines flights are designated SQ278 (ADL-SIN) and SQ279 (SIN-ADL) and fly daily, all-year round. A second service runs only in December and January designated SQ276 (ADL-SIN) and SQ277 (SIN-ADL) and fly four times a week (Tue, Thu, Sat, and Sun). Schedule SQ278 Northern Summer: ADL 09:10 – SIN 15:10 Southern Summer: ADL 10:35 – SIN...

Air Travel / Tips & Advice

Empty Seats? Yes please. Then Disappointment

On one flight from Singapore to Milan (Italy) several years ago, I asked at check-in whether the flight was full and was told no, there were seats available. Reason why I asked is when I booked my forward section seat in Economy I had a whole row to myself but then when I checked a day or so before departure someone took the window seat. I had the aisle seat and was hoping to score all three to myself. So I decided to change seats at check-in. By doing this I was wasting the money I spent for the forward section seat. No big deal as an empty row anywhere, even in the tail section, trumps a single forward section seat. The check-in agent...

Hotels & Resorts / Opinion / Tips & Advice

Hotel Etiquette

When staying at someone else’s house, perhaps a relative’s or friend’s place, do you respect the house rules? Do you behave accordingly? As a guest you will follow a few rules. Some are written, others are just commonsense but they are all rules a person with some decency would respect. These are the same kind of rules you would expect at home, so why can’t staying in hotels be the same for a few? We’ve already seen how bad etiquette can impact air travel so I thought let’s explore what is good and bad etiquette while staying at a hotel or other accommodation. Logically we’ll start and finish at the hotel door, checking-in and checking-out. Lobby and Front Desk First contact; where it is...

Opinion / Tips & Advice

Online Travel Agencies Booking Hotels, Yes or No?

Should you book your hotel accommodation with an Online Travel Agency or through a Travel Agent or direct? A question many ask when planning their travels. Here I’ll explain my experiences and what I think is the best way of going about booking accommodation. Save money, get a good deal and be loyal. In my early days of travelling I booked everything through my travel agent (TA); flights, accommodation, cruises, insurance, etc. I was happy to give them the commission for all their hard work. I had faith in their experience and they saved me a lot of time searching and organising. This went on for a few years then I decided to start booking travel myself to see if I could save money....

Tips & Advice

Published and Updated Dates

If you are wondering why some posts have two dates: published and updated. The published date is the date the article, review or commentary was either first written or published on TravelCommentator. Some content may have been published elsewhere before being posted here and the first publish date still applies. Same with content not previously posted, the original date applies and any date after that is an update. The updated date is the date the content was last edited. This could mean a spelling error, punctuation or grammar being corrected or some information in the post has changed or an extra comment has been added to the text. Adding images not previously posted also changes the date. If a new category and/or tag is...

Air Travel / Opinion / Tips & Advice

Air Travel Etiquette: Some Basic Rules

To me etiquette, in the context of air travel, starts way before getting on board the plane. It starts as soon as you enter the airport terminal. Good etiquette alleviates frustration, anger and conflict. Issues that have become more common with air travel. What is etiquette? Etiquette is basically a code of conduct, an unwritten set of rules that govern behaviour and social interactions. Principles such as: respect, kindness and consideration, or the proper and polite way to behave are the mainstay of etiquette, but also decorum, manners and attitude play their part. Applying etiquette to air travel I suppose like in any situation where one has to interact with others in a comunal setting certain rules need to apply. So before stepping into...