Flying with the Princess of Thailand in THAI First Class, Tokyo-Bangkok

THAI B747 First Class, Tokyo Haneda to Bangkok


Trip to Sydney and Flying with the Princess of Thailand in THAI First Class

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Video from my YouTube Channel 📺

Flight: TG661
Departure time in Tokyo Haneda (HND): 00:20 changed to 00:10
Arrival time in Bangkok (BKK): 05:25
Aircraft: Boeing 747-400
Seat: 1A to 1K to 3F
Duration: 7h 05m
Date of flight: February 28, 2018
*This is an award travel, First Class flight #47

A Visit to the Ramen Museum

Video from my YouTube Channel 📺

I had about 12 hours lay over in Tokyo (from 12pm to 12am) so I decided to go to the Ramen Museum. There's a direct bus that leaves Haneda Airport every 30 minutes and the cost is 840 Yen. I took the bus at 1:15pm which made two stops (at Terminal 2 and then at Terminal 1) and by 2:05pm, I was already at the Shin-Yokohama Railway Station. From there, the Ramen Museum is a few minutes walk.

Moving Signboard, Ramen Museum

As per their website, this is the world's first food theme park.

There's a section about Ramen and it's history on the upper level ...

... and this cool "Town of Ramen and Sunset" in the lower level 😉

Reminiscing the old neighborhood of Japan 😉

Of the nine shops from the different regions of Japan, I went to "Sumire" and tried their Soy Sauce Ramen for 900 Yen.

My Soy Sauce Ramen was soooo good 😋😋

It was definitely fun visiting the Ramen Museum and I would highly recommend it to other tourists having a long lay-over in Tokyo.

Tokyo Haneda Airport International Terminal

Some art display at Tokyo Haneda Airport

I was back at the airport around 4:15pm and as I already had my mobile boarding pass (and the THAI check-in counters was still closed anyway), I headed directly to Security and Passport control.

Fast Track

List of Airlines/Cards eligible for Priority Lane

There were two Priority Lanes at Haneda Airport (lanes 2 and 9) although only one was being used when I came. Still, everything went smoothly and I was done in a few minutes.

ANA Suite Lounge, Gate 110

Upon arriving at the ANA Suite Lounge, I thought I'd take a shower and immediately booked one of the available shower suites from the lounge agent. I was given a key and got Suite Number 1. One of the things I love about the ANA Suite Lounges are the Shiseido bath amenities they provide in their shower suites 😍

After a refreshing shower, I headed to the buffet, grabbed some food and settled into one of their productivity pods. The staff were very friendly always checking on me from time to time if I needed a towel and to clear the used plates/glasses. I remember I was in this lounge exactly a year ago when I took the day flight to Bangkok on THAI although I did not have the chance to visit the Ala Carte Dining Restaurant since it only opens from 7pm so I was looking forward to checking it out this time around 😉

ANA Suite Lounge Dining Restaurant

The restaurant was really busy when I came around 7:30pm and I had to wait for 10-15 minutes.

Menu card

Menu card

I had intended to order the "Hokkaido" Domestic Beef Sirloin Steak but when I finally got a seat, I was immediately told that the Sirloin Steak was no longer available.

Although I had to settle for the "Hokkaido" Scallops and Whelk and Potato Salad with Antiboise Sauce, it turned out to be a very good choice as it was phenomenal 😋

Back to my productivity pod, I noticed from the Departures Monitor that our flight had a "New Time". Instead of departing at 12:20am, it showed 12:10am as the new departure time which was 10 minutes earlier. I thought it was strange that we would be leaving early although in the end, we actually departed even later than the scheduled time.

Boarding, Gate 105

Boarding was scheduled at 11:40pm from Gate 105 so I left the lounge around 11:20pm and was at the gate before 11:30pm.

Empty boarding queue for THAI Royal First passengers

When I booked my seat on the THAI website months before departure, there was only one seat taken (seat 3K) so I immediately chose seat 1A since it is the most popular seat when flying on the B747 😉 While doing on-line check in the day before, I was assigned seat 1K and seat 1A was no longer available. A bit strange but still seat 1K is okay.

My mobile boarding pass with my seat 1K

Around 11:40pm, while waiting in the First Class boarding queue, I was approached by one of the gate agents who first checked my mobile boarding pass and upon confirming I was the one seated in 1K, told me that I had been transferred to another seat. The first thought that came to my mind was "Oh my God, am I being downgraded to Business Class?" But even before all other worries came, he continued on, saying that my new seat is 3K because the Royal Family is on the flight, and then gave me my boarding pass with my new seat.

My boarding pass with my new seat, 3K

The gate agent was actually very apologetic but honestly he didn't have to, as long as I'm still sitting in the first class cabin. And who wouldn't want to fly with Princess Pa of Thailand 😍 (I actually did not know which princess was on the flight as I did not ask the crew although the crew on the Bangkok to Sydney flight confirmed it was Princess Pa as she flew to Tokyo days before to join the Tokyo Marathon. Moments later, boarding commenced.

Aircraft, Boeing 747 (74N)

THAI Boeing 747 bound for Bangkok

Cabin, First Class

This Boeing 747 version is the newer version with only 9 seats in first class, and are almost fully enclosed. The older version has 10 seats and which I was able to fly with from Bangkok to Tokyo last year although they are not very nice and are more like business class seats.

Seats 3E and 3F

Seat, 3K

As I boarded, I was welcomed by one of the crew and directed to my seat.

My seat 3K

Moments after settling in, I was asked the usual "Would you like to have a glass of champagne" although I declined and settled for a glass of water which was served with a hot towel. The Cabin Chief also came to my seat to introduce himself and welcome me, and informed of our flight time of 6 hours and 30 minutes.

Seat and light controller

Seat and light controller

IFE system controller

Inflight magazines, Duty Free catalogue, Safety Instruction card

The personal screen was huge although the resolution is not be the best among first class screens. As usual, there was a beautiful orchid to the right of the screen. From the movie selection, I ended up watching "Birth of the Dragon" which I thought was a very nice film. The one thing I thought the personal screen was lacking is the "current flight time" although the IFE controllers was showing it so I was looking at it every time I need to see how far we are to Bangkok.

Already waiting at my seat was the headphones. They were not BOSE but still of good quality 😉

There was also the first class amenity kit with the Rimowa case although I had to comment to the flight attendant that they had changed the contents from my last year's flight them. She told me that they actually try to improve the contents every year 😉

The new contents included a 1.7fl.oz. Evian facial spray, 30ml Clarins moisture rich body lotion, 3ml Clarins moisture replenishing lip balm and 5ml Fluocaril breath freshener. The rest like dental kit, comb, socks and eyeshades were unchanged.

There's also a pair of slippers.

Minutes after taking pictures of my seat, I was offered a pair of pyjamas and I chose the M size. I was also asked for my drinks order and I asked for a cup of green tea. My "Lobster Thermidor" order was also confirmed and which was suggested I take before landing, and which I agreed to. I then asked for the Udon to be served after take off since I was feeling hungry and would love to have something before going to sleep. Newspapers were also offered although I declined.

Since passengers were still boarding, I decided I'd change into pyjamas and went to the lavatory located behind seat 3F. There's another lavatory which is located behind seat 3E. As soon as I entered, I was shocked to see that it was decorated so beautifully (with gold and rich purple colors), which was the first time I've seen on any THAI first class lavatories 😍 It then occurred to me that it was meant for the Princess of Thailand so I immediately came out and used the other lavatory.

A few minutes after returning to my seat, the Cabin Chief went to each and every passenger to inform us that the Princess would be using the right lavatory and asked us to use the left one instead. Around 12:20am, Princess Pa arrived and was seated to her seat, 1A. The Princess was with a guy (I'm not sure if it was her bodyguard) who sat in 1K. By this time, 7 of the 9 first class seats were occupied with seats 2A and 2E being vacant. Moments later, the "Boarding Completed" announcement was made.

Airshow

Airshow enroute to Bangkok

Inflight Safety Video

Around 12:27am, the inflight safety video started to play and we pushed back at the same time. Take off around 12:48am and moments later we were airborne.

Dining

The menu card and wine list inside a beautiful folder.

THAI first class menu card and wine list

Haneda to Bangkok menu

All Day Dine

Beverage list

The champagne on board was Dom Perignon Vintage 2006.

White and red wines

Around 1am, the flight attendant came to serve my green tea and a bottle of Acqua Panna mineral water. My table was also set up.

Then, it was time for my Shrimp Tempura Udon which was good but lacking a bit of taste. Hot towel and praline was also offered.

Turn Down Service

After my light meal, the flight attendant offered to do the turn down service. I slept for a few hours and around 3:50am, the flight attendant woke me up for breakfast.

Breakfast

First, I was offered a hot towel. He didn't have to ask for my drink order as he already knew I would have a cup of green tea 😉 A plate with sliced fruits was first served together with a bread basket, some jams and butter.

I also had some muesli which was very good 😋

For my main course, I had pre-ordered the Lobster Thermidor from their website. The other choices include Prawn Ginger, Fish Boiled Rice, John Dory Fish and Grilled Chicken.

THAI First class pre-order meal choices

As my lobster was served, I was also offered a spoon (which is what I normally use when I eat rice at home). My Lobster Thermidor was actually very good and not rubbery at all, contrary to other's experience.

After my breakfast, I asked the Cabin Chief (when he came to my seat to check if everything was alright) if I could take a picture of the lavatory Princess Pa was using. I told him I accidentally saw it when I was about to change into pyjamas and it was so beautiful. He told me that he'd ask permission first. It was the same time that the guy seated in 1K was returning to his seat from the lavatory so the Cabin Chief with the help of a lady flight attendant asked him if it was possible to take a picture of the lavatory but unfortunately, it was denied due to privacy reason.

Moments later, the guy flight attendant came to my seat and asked if I could fill up a comment form, and which I did. Moments later, he was back with a local dessert 😉

Minutes before landing, the cabin chief came to our seats to thank us for flying with THAI, as they normally do on every first class flight.

Lavatory

The left lavatory which the other 6 passengers used was always kept clean.

It offered dental kits, lotion ...

... and a cologne spray.

Lavatory

Seat of the Princess of Thailand

I have to say that there weren't "unnecessary" announcements made as Princess Pa was asleep almost the whole flight. Around 5am, the cabin lights were turned on and one of the flight attendants came to the Princess to offer her some drinks (I think it was orange juice and water).

A flight attendant attending to the Princess of Thailand.

The Princess then used the lavatory (passing by my seat) and moments later, the seatbelt sign was turned on. Around 5:05am, the captain came on the PA with his usual "Ready For Landing" line.

Landing at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport

We landed in Bangkok Airport around 5:11am and reached the gate 8 minutes later. The Princess was the first one to disembark together with the guy seated in 1K, joined by three elderly persons who sat in business class. To give some space (to the Princess and her entourage), we stayed on the plane for a minute or so, after which we started disembarking as well.

As a first class passenger, I was met by an agent holding a card with my name on it. As usual, there was a golf cart waiting to drive me to the security controls in Concourse D.

CONCLUSION

There are a lot of things I loved about this flight although the best part of it was no doubt having flown with the Princess of Thailand on the way to Bangkok 😉 As usual, the service was very friendly and the food especially the Lobster Thermidor was fantastic. The lie flat seats were comfortable and I was able to sleep for a few hours. The new contents of the amenity kit was also a big plus and I hope they could improve it even more next year. Overall, it was a very nice and unforgettable flight, just like my Emirates flight in business class from Dubai to Stockholm where I got to fly with the King of Sweden 😍