User review: Lufthansa First Class, Frankfurt - Buenos Aires

Background and introduction This was my first reservation through the Amex Companion Ticket system. I never thought I would land one of these, traveling to Buenos Aires just a couple of weeks before Christmas. But suddenly, all the planets just snapped into line. By chance my family had traveled ahead of me (good luck in finding four O-class seats), by chance I held a revenue reservation that was refundable, and on a whim I checked availability on the ANA site-- and lo and behold-- there it was! One extremely helpful reservation agent in Tallinn (?) walked me through the process. In a matter of 12 minutes the ticket was ready, which set me back 95,000 EB points in addition to "fuel surcharge" (whatever...) of NOK 4700 + other "taxes, fees & charges" (sounds like a country & western trio) of NOK 1400. The regular ticketed price is roughly €10,000. At the airport

My departure location was Bergen BGO, but I went landside in FRA in order to experience the FCT for the first time. The LH staff helping direct people to the right check-in counters in the main departure hall didn't have a clue about the location of the terminal. But I found it. If any of you know Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon, you know that Scandinavians are fairly frugal, puritan, egalitarian ascetics (at least a couple of us.) So watching three ultra-polite German security agents handle your beat-up 40-dollar guitar like it were the Dead Sea Scrolls while your personal assistant awaits you "on the other side" makes you feel slightly embarrassed. Boarding and first impression

I have reached an insight: Being escorted by your personal assistant, only carrying a bathing duck, to a waiting chauffeured Porsche Cayenne does not hurt. I chatted a bit with the impeccably friendly driver during the ordeal of reclining in the back seat while being whizzed about FRA, and it didn't seem to be a over-paid position considering the expenses in a metropolitan area-- around €1000/month for a full-time position. Well. We made a graceful turn and parked by the wing of D-ABYR. Jeeves escorted me upstairs, introduced the staff to me, who then proceeded to take care of my jacket and every need for the subsequent 14 hours. The purser stopped by 2A to wish me welcome aboard.

Of the eight chairs, four were occupied this evening- one Asian gentleman in 1A who went straight into pyjamas mode and were not to be seen until Brazilian airspace, and a British couple in 3DG. The 1A gentleman impressed me- I think I shall never achieve the level of spirituality and serenity required to pass LH First meal service.

The definition of "insomnia" would be me trying to fall asleep, knowing champagne is about to be served, thus requiring total override of my hunter-gatherer/bourgeois striving instincts. No go. Champagne & nuts? Sí, gracias. Everybody found their Rimowa amenity kit along with the Kim-Il-Sung-style pyjamas. The seat and entertainmentsystem

The seat in the "new" LH First cabin is, as many will know, different from the 747-400 version. Whereas the old upstairs config had eight seats each accompanied by a separate bed, the new ground floor config has 8 seats that convert into beds. My proud Wish-Upon-A-Star steward didn't hold that redesign in high regard, as many passengers liked to have access to both chair + bed on trips of this length. Taking a nap in a bed now requires a bit more preparation. On this trip, this was smoothly accomplished simply by assigning each passenger two seats and converting one of those into sleeper mode.

The chair itself to me feels comfortable, the controls are intuitive enough that even I figured it out without having to frown. The leg space should be ample for anybody, perhaps excluding adult male giraffes.

I calculated that my real estate took up the space of at least six economy seats. Each econ seat being responsible for approx. 1,25 metric tons of CO2, my seat had a 10 ton-price tag on it. I have calculated that with my day-to-day transportation habits I will need to keep biking instead of driving until September of 2751 AD in order to compensate for this one flight. Pour the Methuselah elixir.

I am sure the IFE worked fine, I hardly used it. One small gripe-- to me the LH map/positioning info loop contains some silly steps/angles without any informational value. Wifi

The LH FlyNet worked smoothly this time, with good coverage for as long as I needed access. There might have been gaps and areas without contact at some point, but in that case I was offline when it happened. The speed was sufficient for me to hold a video meeting via Skype. Apart from that, I do think that internet when traveling F should be included. €17 for 24 hs is not outrageous, it's just an odd, annoying reminder of the real world while you're inside the total-bliss-and-everything-you-ask-for bubble.

Meals and service

Dios mio. What was served? Which choices? How deep is the ocean?

How high is the sky? There's so many options of what, when and why

There are some snapshots of the menu among the photos. I went for the pumpkin and ginger casserole after enjoying the caviar and munching through the pre-courses. I know there are dissenting opinions on the LH cuisine, but for my taste the overall impression was between good and excellent. (I didn't plan to make a trip report at the time and this is half a year ago, sorry about not having more notes). After cheese and yoghurt & lime mousse I was so full that I, the certified chocolate junkie, didn't have room for more than two pieces along with the espresso. "Oh, I am so full", I apologized. "Good. That was my goal", replied a content Super-Steward Stephan, genie with a bottle.

Next morning: Waking up to a glass of juice and the sound of your eggs being scrambled and feeling the fragrance drift past you nostrils is nice enough on land (I've been told), but to hear the sizzle from what must have been something akin to a functioning frying pan it in the air is special. Well, it was to me, anyway.

Sleep It was a joy wiggling into prepare-to-hibernate position between the sheets. I seldom fall asleep with a foolish giggle, but I suppose I must have done so on this occasion. That will happen to you when traveling F for the first time after logging a four-digit number of non-F-flights (some of those having been distinctly non-F). I am fairly tall, and already feeling like Garfield after the meal service I could also stretch like him without feeling constrained.

Arrival We landed according to schedule after a nice turn over Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (that's F lunfardo for "downtown").

We were met by LH agents bearing signs with our names, and were the first to disembark. I almost ruined everything by continuing straight ahead after entering the jet bridge and down a set of stairs leading to what turned out to be an emergency exit-- like the pied piper leading the rats of Hamelin to their demise. No signs, no barriers. Oh well. Loss of face, U-turn, and a slight loss of pole position at immigration. Cleared migraciones in three minutes nevertheless. Lacking routine and adjusting to real-world mode some minutes too early, I started looking for a functioning baggage cart, until my fellow F travelers pointed out that the LH reception committee had us covered. They were ready with one cart for each passenger, piling our luggage as it appeared.

Not only that. Having been pampered as a baby for many hours I started acting like one, forgetting a bunch of documents in one of the storage spaces on board. There are so many.. Before I reached the conveyer belt, staff were there with my papers. ”Señor, estos son suyo?” Ah, yes, thank you so much. Back to life, back to reality, passing customs. Trying to declare some electronics brought as gifts, and being waved through with a jeez-what-a-rookie resigned friendliness, and out in the bonaerense warm, breezy December morning. Taxi, señor? Taxi? Verdict To me this was maybe a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Many prerequisites incidentally fell into place. All told, I cannot imagine a better use of 95K Eurobonus points than r/t LH510/LH511 in First. The trip will remain a lovely, decadent memory.