Norwegian Airlines

I had an inter-European flight recently and the flights I could find in Australia were too expensive for my budget and the departure times too early in the morning to be convenient. I browsed the net and came across this airline on one of Expedia international sites. The company also sells tickets directly through their website. I searched forums because, truly, the last thing I want is to expend my money on a flight with an unreliable airline, but the reviews were good. So, I dived in and flew with them.  

My experience with NA was good taking into account that his is a low-cost airline. It was a 4-hour flight, and the plane was as good as those I have frequently taken with Suiss or Luftansa, tiny space even in Business Class, therefore, nothing anybody in Australia would get excited about.

The flight was punctual regarding departure and arrival.

Like Jetstar they don't give you anything free, not food or water, but they sell some hot and cold snacks and drinks. They are dreadful and very expensive, so avoid. On the bright side of things, they allow you to take your own water and food aboard, so you don't need to buy anything unless you really want.

Some of the staff were really helpful and friendly, while others did their best not to interact with customers and, when they did, they were like robots and unhelpful. So I experienced both sides of the Norwegian coin.  

The only in-flight entertainment was shown in those TVs that hang from the plane's ceiling -- a mix of cartoons and funny videos. Thank Gosh for my tablet.

Overall, Norwegian Airlines is good value for money. I would have paid way more for the same flight with a normal airline, get similar or identical seats, get (at best) a free snack and service would vary as well. So it was worth flying with Norwegian Airlines, despite some of the unfriendly staff being aboard with us humans. I will certainly fly with them again if the occasion arises.

Norwegian Airlines specializes in flights to/from Scandinavia, with regular inter-European flights and with some destinations in the USA as well. 

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Cathay Pacific Airways

7/10
I had never flown with CP until recently, but I was excited because a friend of mine has had a great experience with this airline. 

To be fair, my flight was an overnight flight, and most airlines have the dreadful practice of downgrading the service for overnight flights, so my first experience with CP might be affected by this practice. 

The plane looked modern, and it was pretty and clean, but the space in Economy Class was just tiny. First Class looked really as a million-dollar-buck First Class, but most people seat elsewhere. 

I thought the staff were friendly, ready to attend any request and help. However, I also witnessed some abruptness, like staff asking customers to let them pass when there was no need for them to ask that as they weren't passing with a trolley nor there was any turbulence. 

Other airlines have the staff running the aisles all night with trays with water and juice, while others have trays prepared in the crew area for you go and pick up a glass without having to ask for anything. Neither of this happened with my CP, flight until we were very close to destination, so you have to go and ask for a glass of water when you want one.

Food was surprisingly good, that always excites me when flying, although meals were not as bulky or complex as in other airlines, Qantas for example. 

The in-built entertainment program had very good digital screens and a good selection of Western and Asian movies. However, it was behind Qantas and other Asian airlines regarding volume and currency of the movies shown. 

Their duty free shopping catalogue is, perhaps, the best I have ever seen. I have flown with many airlines, and these days all of them seem to sell the same products, at the same prices. Corporations selling their thing. CP distinguishes themselves by selling luxury, really innovative expensive products, at prices that can be 1000+ bucks. Nothing I would or could buy, but at least they know what they want to sell and the products in their magazine are really amazing. 

CP is a decent good-priced airline, just not comparable to Qantas, Thai or Singapore Airlines in the quality of the service. Things might be different for day flights, so I will report back when I happen to take a day flight with them.

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Amaysim

Amaysim is a budget phone and mobile Internet carrier that uses the Optus network at a fraction of the price, and has a fabulous coverage within Australia (second best after Telstra) some remotes areas of Australia included. Amasym offers good-priced call+data plans and data-only packages. You can use your phone for just calls, just data, or in a combo, for 3G and 4G. Suit yourself.

I used Amasym for my tablet's data for almost 3 years and had an extra SIM card for emergencies in my phone until last year. I was most impressed with the national coverage, quality of the data transfer, pricing of prepaid data packages and online service. They are especially good, the best I would say, for packages of 2.5 and 4 GB (in the 3G network). 

Any Amaysim SIM can be used for data in mobiles, tablets and in your laptop if you have an unlocked dongle. I loved this, as gave me the possibility of using the SIM in different devices if necessary. Also, I always want to have an extra phone/Internet provider on the side just in case my main phone and data carriers had a massive outage. In fact, before leaving the company, there was a major Dodo's outage and Amasym kept me online until Dodo fixed the problem.

Everything you need to know about the configuration settings is online. DIY. I barely had the need to contact Customer Service. I contacted them once by email, as they advice you to do that, and it took them ages to reply, so I'd  rather grab the phone and call them or use their online chat.

The main downside of the data packages is that, once expired, they can't be renewed immediately unless you are upgrading, and you have to wait until your renewal date is due (they follow natural months). This is utterly stupid, hello hello, because they lose money from customers who would be renewing right on the spot, and also, that sort of customer wouldn't be interesting in upgrading or joining a post-paid plan. 

Managing everything from My Amaysim gives customers lots of freedom. One can switch on and off the auto-renewal payments, roaming and recharge options to their liking. The company usually sends an email or SMS reminding how much data one has used, first when it is 50% used, and then 80%. If the auto-renewal button is ticked on, you will receive an email with a receipt when the package is renewed and another informing of the renewal having taken place. Mind that the auto-renewal is set by default both in phone and data packages; you better tick it off if you don't want that.

Before I quit the company, they were already offering 4G data plans, which are way less generous in data and more expensive. Yet, they wanted to push customers into them. If you join, be careful which things you tick on/off so you don't end with a 4G plan when you will perfectly do with a 3G. Truly, unless you use your phone Internet for business purposes 3G works wonders in most parts of Australia.

Amaysim has one of the cheapest prepaid rates for phone calls in Australia. However, their rates exclude calls to 1300 and 1800 numbers, which is a way of ripping-off customers with a smile; most utilities companies in Australia have 1300 numbers and you might expend 30 minutes on the phone dealing with PO Australia, your bank, power co., or Internet co. and get a humongous bill from Amaysim. Amazing, really. Also, their International rates are very expensive for calls overseas and extremely expensive for roaming.

Generally speaking, I was a very happy prepaid customer for data-only packages. It was convenient having an extra SIM for emergency calls and/or PC Internet usage. but I always had a cheaper phone calls and mobile Internet with other companies.

If you are traveller visiting Australia, Amaysim is really convenient for everyday use, especially if you don't need to call utilities or corporate companies. 

COOL
> At least when I joined, they offered the possibility of choosing a phone number that was good for you. They offered an option of few for you to select. If you didn't liked them, you could change again. That is great if you are looking for a "catchy" number. 
> Purporting my previous phone number was done and carried out easily. 
> They have online chat help, something I always appreciate because calling Amaysim on the phone, even if free, can be a waste of time.

MIND
> Although you can use your Internet packages on their own, your SIM needs to have a minimum amount of money for calls. You can recharge 10 bucks and leave them for ages, as the expire date is very long. You can also use that money to pay your next data pack. When the date of renewal of your phone balance is due, you will receive an email or SMS advising you to recharge. 
> If you don't use your SIM for a few months, you will receive emails and SMS from the company informing you that your number will be cancelled if you don't renew. 
 

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Sullivans Hotel (Perth WA)

Sullivans Hotel
166 Mounts Bay Road, Perth CBD, 6000 Perth, Australia 
+61 8 9321 8022
F: +61 8 9481 6762

The Sullivans seemed the perfect budget hotel in Perth, raving reviews and such a nice photos, medium range prices, and a rating of 8+. 

However, the Sullivans is an average overrated overpriced hotel, that will do if you are going to spend a night and need a clean, decent hotel in a quiet location, especially if you are visiting with your partner. If you are visiting alone, for business or just want to spend some days visiting Perth, personally, I would go elsewhere. This hotel is a rip-off for solo visitors because the hotel and the normal rooms aren't worth the money, and I think I would be willing to pay about 80 bucks for this room and hotel maximum if I were on my own. The pricing for couples is actually quite cheap as it would be about 60 bucks each, which is a price that reflects the sort of room you get. 

The reception  and the café-bar area is very pleasant overall, and the nicest area  in the hotel. It is quite small, but cosy and comfortable, very luminous with bunches of fresh flowers, nice classy furniture and lovely coloured glass feature panels. Herewith a wrap-up of the rest. 

GOOD
+ Some of the staff.
+ Mostly very clean common areas and rooms.
+ The hard bed and very soft linen. The way I like it.  I never take this for granted, so thank you.
+ The large flat TV with a selection of local and internationals channels.
+ Quiet surroundings. There is lots of traffic at rush hour, but nothing else will disturb you during the night as there are no bars or restaurants nearby. No ambulance sirens could be heard either. 
+ WI-FI worked  greatly in the room and cafeteria, not the fastest Internet but good enough to email, chat and send a bunch of photos to any cloud storage place comfortably and without disruptions.
+ Complimentary coffee/tea in the room with milk capsules and a kettle. I always love this sort of kit. 
+ Complimentary tap water bottle in the mini-fridge.
+ Air-con in the room. 

+ Wake up call service worked sharply.
+ Good if you are couple and are on a budget.
+ Good if you have a family member in the hospital and you don't live in Perth.  
+ You can book some tours from the desk.
+  Free bike loan on request.

OK
> Most of the staff.
> The styling of the rooms and corridors.
> The views from the room (facing a hospital ward, beds of the same visible.)
> Domestic-house sized pool, still nice.
> Complimentary mint chocolates, not to everybody's liking. I think normal chocolates would make most humans happy, mint you :P.
> Officially in the heart of the city, in reality is not in the heart of anything, it is very close to the CBD. About 12 minutes walking distance, and you get to the end of Barrack St and a few more minutes more to the city centre.
> The continental breakfast (18 bucks) consisted of fresh fruit, cereals, muesli and nuts. If this is what you have for breakfast it will do. It was certainly better than my cooked breakfast.
> Coffee is American style, which I like if it has some flavour in it, but it didn't. However, there is a good selection of teas, scones and  jams on offer that made up for it.
> Very basic minimal toiletries. Enough for a night and if you aren't fussy or bringing your own. 
> Plenty of 65+ age group. 

"NOT HAPPY JAN" 
  > The common area of the floor was a forked corridor with three different staircases without a sign on view about which direction the rooms are or where the stairs lead to. I consider that sort of think basic in any hotel with a forked corridor. The only sign on view was the emergency exit in one of them. 
> No inner lock in the room. The only security was an Australian knob-lock instead. I love those, but not in a hotel, please.
> No Safe Box in the room. 
> Not enough room in the wardrobe for a couple to put their stuff if they stay for a few days. I tend to fill one of those myself! 
> Bathroom backpacker style.
> The shower's tapware needs of replacement, as is dated and one of the taps seemed to be "retarded", and the shower and the toilet floors are at the same level so water might puddle the adjoining area. 
> Some patchy dirty spots in the room's power switches (see photo), which I don't expect to see in a decent hotel. Perhaps in a backpacker hotel.

> The air-con is really noisy and next door's could also also be heard.
> They charge you 2% for anything you pay with a card, PayWave included, and also another 2% if you booked with a Visa. 
> There are no cafés or restaurants in the immediate surroundings, the closest one is in the hospital building. You better go to the city centre if you have the time or a  car. 

> Mediocre rip off cooked breakfast for 23$. You can order the eggs your way, but the poached eggs on my plate were as hard as hard-boiled eggs! (see photo). The cook doesn't know how to cook, doesn't care, or might be busy with other things and didn't have the time to mind the food. Besides, I asked the waiter to remove the sausage from my breaky and replace it with a veggie of any sort, anything; the waiter repeated a-la-robot that the ingredients of the dish were those in the menu description, and that they would remove the sausage. I guess they added something, but unless it was one slice of bacon, there wasn't anything out of the ordinary in my plate, just the sausage out. Of course, they will charge you full price. At least in Maccas or Hungry Jacks you get what you pay for, you have to respect that. 

> The closest convenience store is also close to the hospital.  
> No taxi line nearby.  

> Very small parking area

> The attitude of the morning staff. The guy seemed nice and courteous. However, he bothered to ask every person checking before and after me if they had enjoyed their stay; that is certainly a way to let customers know that you don't like them for no reason. He was requested to call a cab to  go to a transport hub in the city; he did but just mention the suburb, not the transport hub, so it took the taxi 10+ minutes to come. If you know Perth, you are aware of how difficult can be to get a cab at rush hour, which matter if you have to catch a coach, train or plane. The taxi driver commented that he was surprised that Reception hadn't mentioned destination and that he hoped we would have time enough because there was already a jam in the area as it was rush hour. Really, how much does it cost to do things properly and treat all customers well? 
> Not good for solo visitors, as they will pay a lot of money for an average hotel.   

Next! 

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THAI Airways

My first flight ever was with Thai, an inter-European one, and I was impressed. I thought that this would be the standard of all airlines. I felt from Cloud 9 in my next flight. Thai had just started operating in Europe, and doing small well-known routes and offered first-class service and excellent prices. I was mesmerised by the colour scheme of the upholstery and design of the aircraft, the little orchid on each seat, the hot towels before take-off, the nice meal, the classy beautiful flight attendants.

Since then I have flown quite a bit with Thai, for continental and intercontinental flights. They still have good comfortable planes, good meals, a good entertainment program, the usual gods and goddesses as flight attendants, and a good customer service overall.

I have never ever had a problem with them regarding delays, lost luggage or missed connections. Service is not as good as used to be for Economy, the attention to detail perhaps gone, but they are still a good airline and one of my favourite to fly. 

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Red Bus Tour and Online Booking Centre (Johannesburg, South Africa)

Website

Tickets

Johannesburg (or Jazi as the locals call it) is a city full life, with many interesting spots to visit. On the other hand, the city, or parts of the city, has a name for being dangerous for foreigners unless you know where you are going and know the city well. So, the Hop on-Hop off Red Bus is a great alternative to walking on you own and touring the main areas in the CBD safely, still capturing the vibrancy of urban life, colourful characters, and interesting corners. There is always something happening in the streets of central Johburg! We even witnessed one of the massive demonstrations of the metal workers, who had been striking for weeks for a raise of salary. 
 
The bus route is not as good as in Cape Town, due to the constrictions of the city centre for  buses of this size, but it is good enough and you can experience a mix of culture, entertainment, fun and history.

There is a little mini-tour through Soweto scheduled at set times if you buy the ticket that includes it. The entry to Mandela's house or any sight in Soweto is not included. You should take it, just a suggestion. Even if it is just 3 hours or so, it will be a good teaser to make you want to return. A couple of young  Sowetans will drive you there and show you around, and transmit to you the passion they have for this very special place. Although there are a lot of people selling souvenirs around some of the landmarks there, they are very easy going, not invasive at all. To me, visiting Soweto was a dream come true. A place that has been so pivotal in the fight against Apartheid, a subject very dear to my heart when I was at University. Today's Sowetans are the nicest people in South Africa. Source: me. I would certainly love the Soweto tour expanded or just a separate Soweto tour offered by the same company.

The recorded program you hear in the bus (available in 15 languages) is very engaging, with a mix of local music and a narration that mixes historical events, sight description and curious facts about the life in the city. Nothing boring or too long. 

The tour is very well organised, punctual, and the drivers and staff are top notch people. They are friendly, welcoming, warm, caring and they put a face to the city we all see passing by. I haven't found people more enthusiastic about a foreign visiting their home city than these guys. If they see you twice, they will be elated.  

BUS STOPS

1- City Sightseeing Office at Gautrain Park Station. I love the Gautrain. But you can always end the tour here and go directly to the airport. Or vice versa.
 2- Carlton Centre, the tallest building in Africa. You are guided there by one of the guys of the company. The shopping mall is mostly for working class locals, or that was my impression, and a inner elevator leads you to the top, where there are several popular cafes as well. They don't let you go unescorted there.
3- James Hall Museum of Transport. For car nuts.
4- Gold Reef City Casino and city park. I decided to enter and visit... the toilet. I was so comfy that I let the bus go :D. They don't let you take photos and there is an electronic control at the gate, but it is worth visiting. 'Shocking' in away. Wonderful front fountains and sculptures, lovely surroundings, ample parking, beautiful building (a hotel actually), lovely  flashy interior, many eateries, many pokies, bling bling. Worth a visit, even if anthropological.

5- The Apartheid Museum. This is a MUST. A fantastic comprehensive museum on the history of Apartheid and how affected the lives of the "Bantus". It is also huge, very well documented and structured, but exhausting to visit all at once, saddening and very confronting as well. I would recommend structuring your visit in at least two days. 
6- Mining District Walk. I would not go there on Sundays or public holidays or when there is not many people around. Not alone for sure. 
7- Newtown precint, with plenty of cafes, music bars, night clubs, museums, and art galleries. Very arty place.
8- Newtown Junction Mall.
9- Origins Centre at Wits. If you have the time I would recommend going to the Craddle of the Humankind, which is an UNESCO's world heritage, and blew my mind. However, if you don't have the time, this will do. 
10- The Grove, Graamfontein. A groovy area with lovely street art. A TV ad was being shot here the day we visited!
11- Constitution Hill. A MUST. I wasn't sure whether to visit, but it is my favourite part in the tour. Really! The area is a bit secluded, quiet and peaceful, with lovely sculptural pieces and paintings of the Fathers of the Country, and a magic ghostly light before sunset. The place has a special energy, the one that always gives me the goosebumps in places embedded with horrible suffering inflicted by twisted souls. Here, you have a short guided visit through what is left of the old political prison at no. 4, and you are told of the brutalities committed against black prisoners; you can see the remains of the jail, some of them in quite a good state. Gandhi, whose personal story is intricately linked to South Africa, was briefly in this prison as well and there is a room devoted to him. Next door is a new building, the Constitutional Court, which was built using part of the demolished prison. I was blown away by it. The engraved huge wooden doors, the collection of artwork inside (free to visit) and, most importantly, the narration of our lovely rastafarian young guide. I was amazed at how good the Court has been for human rights in South Africa, and about how it has been used by simple 'nobodies' to obtain benefits for the general of the population. If you want, you can take with you a copy of the Constitution, free of charge. So much of the history and of the heart of the country is on that hill, the worst imaginable and the best possible.  

Moreover, the bus stops are also close to many other landmarks or places of interest, and the recorded program will tell you. Among those I wanted to visit, was one of the museums that exhibits contemporary South-African Artists, which unfortunately closes on Mondays.  

THE ONLINE SITE

I did all my bookings online while in Johannesburg, and it was really easy and convenient. The website has changed since I visited, and now is more polished and easier to browse. The site is very informative, and you can easily check the itineraries offered, get general information about each stop in the route, and information about the different kinds of tickets available. Of course you can buy your tickets through the website, the most economic being the Sunday Pass (but... it ends earlier and the city is not its usual self either) or the two-day combo tickets. At least when I visited, the used tickets gave you an 5% discount on any purchase of a Red Bus ticket anywhere in the world if you mentioned the number of your ticket. In fact, I used mine to get a discount on my Cape Town tickets.

***

If you want to see everything in the itinerary, you will need at least three days, unless you want to run like an emu in the Nullarbor. You don't. You can't. You shouldn't.

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Swiss Air

Swissair, Switzerland's national airline, ceased operations in 2002. Swiss Air or Swiss, is an unrelated company that shares much of the philosophy of the former airline. As they say:

 The national airline embodies Swiss values such as "personal service", "in-depth quality" and "typical Swiss hospitality". 

It sounds great...  

Swiss reminds me of Lufthansa in many things.  Ha!

I have been traveling with them quite a lot recently because they offer great prices and flexibility for multiple-stopover trips (without the need of buying an around-the-world ticket). They have good planes, a good entertainment system, but the rest is all a happy medium regarding comfort, meals and service on board for intercontinental travelers, and an average for inter-European short ones. 

My first flight with Swissair was an inter-European one to Switzerland, and I had a very good experience; I was lucky enough to enjoy views with the tops of high mountains almost at my fingertips. Utterly beautiful and an awesome experience.  

My trips with Swiss Air have been carried by the carrier itself or by other Star Alliance members, mostly Thai and Singapore Airlines from/to Australia. However, I have found that the partnership, at least with South African Airlines was not good, and the conditions of the trip were those of the latter and not those of Swiss, even though the ticket was purchased with and issued by Swiss. 

I have never had any trouble with the airline, so I don't know how they behave when customers experience lost luggage or delayed planes or missed connections. 

Overall, I am happy to flight with them, but I am never excited to do so, because there are other airlines doing better job than they do, but they get me because they are usually cheaper. Another ha!  

 

 

NOV 2022 UPDATE - GONE DOWNHILL

I traveled with the airline recently as part of a multi-airline intercontinental trip. I don't know if this is the after-effect of COVID, but the airline has gone downhill in all fronts. Poor customer service. Average entertainment system. Poor food. I was unfriendly unhelpful flight attendants. Not comfortable flights. Some of the European segments had flights delayed and no reason or apology given to customers. I had a very small computer trolley bag pack, way smaller than the average cabin suitcase. I was targeted at the Zurich airport as not being able to take it into the cabin as I was also carrying a small handbag. Nobody else was addressed. There were people carrying double the size and two items on to the cabin without a problem. addressed in publish in a form that had the whole customer seating area focusing on me, that is, without tact or elegance. Really rude and unfriendly staff, who won't help you with anything and don't know what smile means. If the airline represent the country, I feel bad for the Swiss, because the airline gives a really sub-par 3rd-world country impression. Not enough flight attendants to attend a long-haul flight. Terrible experience and I will avoid them from now on, as much as possible. Yes, they have cheaper flights than most European companies, but you understand why when you travel with them. There are small European airlines providing better service than they do. 

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