I haven't flown long haul in about five months.
Wow.
Still, can't have changed that much in the last few months can it?
So I'm heading to Seoul in South Korea tonight, which at this time of recording this video
is a country that I can't actually gain entry to.
It's a bit of a minor issue, I guess, but I'm sure it will be fine.
I do have a great chance today to try out Korean Air's fantastic Apex Suites, business
class, they've got on board their Airbus A330.
First stop today was the KLM Crown Lounge, used by all Sky Team airlines at Amsterdam.
It is a little basic and no frills, and the seats aren't that comfy, but they do have
beer on tap.
Ah, Seoul.
Gate F4.
Let's go.
So there she is, the Korean Air A330.
It's six years old this one, and it's got their new Apex Suite business class on it,
which I'm looking forward to trying tonight.
Really looking forward to this flight actually.
I've never flown with Korean Air, never been to South Korea before, so it's going to be
quite interesting to see what they're like.
I'm looking forward to it.
We will now begin the boarding process for Korean Air.
Yes, it's okay.
You may proceed please.
Thank you.
Hello.
Hello, sir.
Hi.
[inaudible 00:01:30] assist.
Thank you.
Perfect.
Thank you.
Excuse me.
Hello.
We need to get your temperature.
Yes, absolutely.
Yeah, go for it.
Yes, perfect.
Thank you so much.
Awesome.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
Bye.
Let's roll to Seoul.
Hello.
Hi.
Yes, absolutely.
Thank you.
[inaudible 00:01:53].
Thank you.
It's all right.
Bye.
Nice to meet you.
Thank you.
Korean Air's prestige class is in a two-two-two configuration, but it's not an issue as even
the window seats can get in and out without disturbing the aisle passenger.
Interestingly, first class is exactly the same seat as business class, just for a lot
more money.
So on board the Korean A330 in the Apex Suite, and this is actually quite nice, pretty comfortable.
I like the fact that when you walk into the suite, you can get in and out without climbing
over people.
It's really nice that it's offset from one another, which is really nice.
Quite comfortable.
There's a few bits and pieces dotted around.
We've got an amenity kit, which I will go through in a bit.
A pair of slippers.
It was time to be subjected to the safety video.
Well, should I say five minutes of Korean men prancing around on the screen and stroking
their hair, while occasional messages about emergency exits appeared on the screen.
That is the worst safety video I have ever seen.
Top of the pops over, and it was time to head to the runway for our ride to Seoul.
Our route tonight then took us east out of Amsterdam, across Germany and the Baltic Sea,
and to Russia.
After crossing Russia, we headed across Mongolia and into China, and across the Yellow Sea
to South Korea.
Flight time tonight was 10 hours and eight minutes, at a cruising altitude of 37, 39,
and 41 thousand feet.
So then, airborne out of Amsterdam, and the first thing you're going to notice is I've
not got one mask on anymore.
That's because on Korean Airline, and a lot of airlines in business class, they don't
make you wear masks because, effectively, there's that much more space.
If you just look around me, you're so far away from all of the other passengers, so
it's not so much of a risk up at the front.
One more reason to go for business class, guys.
The seat itself is really comfortable, loads of room.
The thing I really like about it is how private these window seats are.
You've got your own little entrance to the seat, which is down here.
So even if you've got somebody at the side of you, which I don't, you can get in and
out of your seat no trouble at all.
Privacy-wise, look at this.
I now have my own private little cubicle, suite, whatever you want to call it.
Also, these seats are also quite good if you've got somebody at the side of you as well.
If you're traveling with a passenger, say if I was to fly with [Rach 00:05:26] or something,
then she would sit in the seat to the side of me, and presumably she'd put the wall up
anyway so she doesn't have to look at my face, but anyway.
But that's that anyway.
Table pops out here.
We can see it in action later.
Very nice posh mahogany-style table.
Very nice.
Very posh, Korean Air.
And we've got a power plug down here as well.
Three-pin as well, quite a bonus.
Controls for the telly down here, and then we've just got menu storage and stuff down
here.
So that's not a bad seat.
The only criticism I'd probably say, is that there isn't a lot of storage.
In fact, there isn't any storage as far as I can see, which is a little bit of an issue
at the minute.
I've got all my camera gear just kind of sprawled across the floor because I don't have anywhere
to put it.
That would be my only minor niggle, but other than that this is a really nice seat, and
I just can't help but think that so many other airlines could have taken a seat like this.
The fact that you can get in and out around the seat at the side of you is such a good
idea, and it's so incredibly private too.
Excuse me, sir.
Here is your appetizer.
Soon it was time for dinner.
It was shrimp to start, and I took Korean bibimbap for the main course, which was a
little different, but pretty nice all the same.
Gochujang, Korean hot pepper paste.
Rice, seaweed.
So let's see if we can do this now.
While I eat my Korean dinner, I'd like to say a big thanks to this video's sponsor,
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Tell you what, let's see if you can install Pouch before I finish eating my spicy Korean
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How easy was that?
We've been given a form to fill in to make sure we weren't taking in some horrific disease
to South Korea and, interestingly enough, to make sure that we also weren't unconscious.
So then, a couple of hours in, and really enjoying Korean Air so far.
I have to say the seat is really nice, the cabin crew are just so amazing and attentive.
It's just incredible.
So I'm going to start and get ready for bed, and there are eight hours until we arrive
into Seoul, so I'm going to try and get some sleep I think.
So time to get changed.
There we go.
Ready for bed now.
So the bed's not massively long, as kind of expected.
I mean, Asian airlines tend to have slightly shorter beds and things because people who
fly a lot on these airlines aren't six foot four like me.
So I can't really complain too much about that.
It's perfect for most people, I'm just really tall.
The duvet.
Meh, I'm not a massive fan.
It's effectively just a big blanket.
If I was nitpicking, it would have been nice to have had a proper duvet like you get on
BA or something, but that's me nitpicking, and it's still pretty warm, pretty comfy.
And again, it could just be the way that the culture in Korea and places like that, that
they have thinner blankets like this?
I don't know.
Let me know down at the comments.
But what I do know is it's time to get to sleep, so I'll see you in the morning.
Good night.
Good morning.
Not going to lie, not the best night's sleep I ever had.
Woke up quite a few times in pain.
The bed is a bit uncomfortable, and quite as big as I am, it's not massively wide or
long, so you end up in all sorts of funny positions.
[inaudible 00:00:10:56].
I managed to get a few hours, at least.
I've woken up and we are over... let me get this right... we are over China, with about
two hours left to run, in to Seoul.
Breakfast was served as we passed Beijing, which was a nice bacon and potato breakfast.
We flew around North Korean air space, even getting a slight glimpse of the coast on the
horizon, before commencing our descent down into Incheon.
My flight to Seoul cost me 1700 pounds, or 2,200 US dollars, for a flight of 5,300 miles,
giving a cost per mile of 33 pence per mile.
Although the service on Korean Air was good, I found the price pretty expensive for what
you get, considering the competition on the route via the Middle Eastern carriers is often
far superior for a fraction of the cost.
Okay.
So now to see what happens.
I can't actually enter because of the quarantine thing.
To terminal one?
[inaudible 00:12:29].
Quarantine.
Terminal one.
First quarantine.
Oh, okay.
For transfer.
[foreign language 00:12:35]
There was some confusion, as I was almost redirected to an enforced quarantine in some
remote facility, and this scary looking guy ran backwards and forwards to try and figure
out what I had to do.
But eventually he handed me a quarantine certificate and sent me on my way.
What do I do?
[foreign language 00:12:56].
I've got a...
Just take it up here.
Okay.
Terminal one, follow the sign, okay?
Yeah, okay, to T1.
Thank you.
So this is as close as I get to South Korea.
If I go through there, I head for an immediate two week mandatory quarantine, and I don't
think Rachel would be too impressed with that.
But thankfully, they've just give me a certificate to say I've completed everything I need, so
I can go straight through to T1.
[foreign language 00:13:38].
The train will be arriving shortly.
[inaudible 00:13:44] Corona virus infection, and travel safely.
Corona-bot.
Awesome.
So that's that then.
That's the most I get to see of South Korea on this trip.
But that's okay, because my next flight is going to be something incredible.
You're not going to want to miss it.
Make sure you hit that subscribe button so that you don't miss it next time.
It's one that loads of you have been asking for, and I've been super excited to try it
for such a long time.
So make sure that you hit that subscribe button, and then you're not going to miss it.
But in the meantime, from Seoul, thanks so much for watching.
Take care, and I'll see you next time.