JAL 787 Dreamliner Flight JL001 SFO-HND, and a Run across the Golden Gate Bridge

[CarbonMan]

Originally Posted by jammed View Post

Originally Posted by yflyer
I found myself asking the nice gentleman seated to my right, a total stranger, if I could take a picture of the main course on his Y tray before he started eating, just so that you would see both choices of Y main courses that were served, and not just the option I chose......

Ahh the lengths you went! looking fwd to rest of the TR
Haha...yes, and thanks!

I think it's easier to get that done in Y where people are a tad more relaxed about having a conversation with the guy on the next seat. In J and F, many are totally fixated about their own privacy.

On a separate note, I like the configuration of their J class, where the seats in the centre aisle always have some space between them.

[MEL-World]

I think it's easier to get that done in Y where people are a tad more relaxed about having a conversation with the guy on the next seat. In J and F, many are totally fixated about their own privacy.

On a separate note, I like the configuration of their J class, where the seats in the centre aisle always have some space between them.

Obviously good for J privacy

[yflyer]

After deplaning in Haneda from JL38 from Singapore, I headed straight for the JAL Sakura Lounge in Haneda Airport.

The Sakura Lounge, which is JAL's branding for their business class lounge, was revamped and re-opened in March 2014, just two months ago. The First Lounge was still under renovation, so a space in the Sakura Lounge was set aside for F pax.

This is a fairly large lounge spread over two floors, with the main dining and shower area on the lower level, and the business center area and another lounge area on the upper level.

I went first to the dining area. This was fairly busy around breakfast time, but cleared up later in the day, only to fill up again late in the evening.





I liked the decor in the lounge. A lot of wood, and almost a living room-like feel to it.









The next picture is a view of a room in the lounge set aside for F pax (until the new F lounge is open). It was just a room with seats and a few bottles of wine (no different from what was available outside). It didn't appear to offer anything special other than being a separate/dedicated space...



But the J lounge was plenty good for me, and I would imagine it would satisfy quite a proportion of JAL's premium pax as well.

[yflyer]

Back in the dining area, I started with a glass of iced coffee. The self service coffee machine (a very advanced device with colour LCD) had a setting for iced coffee, and it worked very well.

[yflyer]

A few items from the breakfast spread...



Bread from Maison Kayser...



Cauliflower soup...

[yflyer]

Other food available in the lounge included a salad bar...



Which included several salads I had never encountered before. The butterbur and garland chrysanthemum salad was delicious, for example...



There were small bowls of udon...





And both plain rice (Japanese short grained rice -- delicious...) and rice with horseradish...

[yflyer]

For lunch and dinner, you also had a selection of dim sum and mains...



The prawn dumplings ("har gao") were especially good, and would pass muster if served in a dim sum joint.

Stewed chicken...



Beef and japchae...

[yflyer]

One of JAL's signature dishes is their Japanese beef curry...eaten with Japanese short grained rice.

This is rich, mild (not really spicy) and quite delicious. The staff had to keep replenishing this dish as it was very popular with everyone in the lounge.



I grabbed a tray and assembled a meal based on the selections available, focusing on the curry first, before going back for the other dishes later.

[yflyer]

A wide selection of alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages were available, including sake and Japanese whisky.





JAL has a signature citrus fruit juice drink called Sky Time, which they serve in the lounge as well as onboard. Worth a try -- I like it very much.



They take their beer here very seriously as well. There is an automated pouring machine to ensure it is poured the right way...

[yflyer]

Upstairs, there was a separate lounge, which included a section reserved for F pax.



Another beverage counter...



A closer look at the Sakura motif on the wall...


From this part of the lounge you had partial tarmac views...



There were also several massage chairs...





The work area close by was open and spacious, with several pods, as well as desks.

[yflyer]

I also had a shower in their shower area...





Apart from a very sleek, modern, slate / black and silver theme, there were accessories and fittings found largely only in Japan...



At least this washlet had fairly straightforward instructions, as well as a clearly marked "STOP" button which is not always apparent on these devices...

Being into technology I could not resist a bit of experimentation...

The "sound" button plays a recording of the sound of flowing water, ostensibly to mask any other sounds of activities taking place. As for the water pressure button, I threw caution to the wind and hit "+" right up to max and survived to tell the tale...

[yflyer]

A few other nice touches in this lounge included dedicated changing rooms...



As well as large lockers with keys that could be used to store your belongings while in the lounge. This meant that I could lock my rollaboard, backpack etc and use the lounge unencumbered.



I left my things in the locker, then left the lounge to explore the duty free shopping in the terminal.

There is a very extensive selection of Japanese whisky (as well as sake) in the duty free shops at Haneda...





Overall the JAL Sakura Lounge is a wonderful lounge and a great place to spend a long layover. The catering is superb, and the lounge only seems to busy in the morning at the start of the day, and in the late evening where the whole dining room fills up. The rest of the time, lounge traffic appears to be light and the whole place has a very tranquil atmosphere.

The international part of Haneda airport is not huge, but it is a pleasant enough place for a transit stop. At least on the flights I took, there were no queues at the transit security checkpoint whatsoever, and I emerged straight out of the transit security area, up an elevator, into the main airside shopping and departure gate area within minutes of deplaning.

Apart from lounge dining, there are also several other dining outlets which look promising, including one specialising in soba and udon.

[yflyer]

It was soon time to board my flight to San Francisco.





Boarding commenced on time, and as usual I boarded with iPhone in hand to snap J pics on the way to the rear...

Unlike the new SS6 seats on the JAL 767 I flew from SIN, these 787's still had the older slanted lie-flats.





Comfortable looking, but not state of the art...

Here's another picture I took of the J seats as I was deplaning after the flight.

[yflyer]

There was soft pink mood lighting in the Y cabin while boarding. JAL Y seats, laid out 2-4-2, were wide, soft and comfortable.





Legroom was fairly good, with the IFE boxes taking up only a small amount of space.

[SQueeze]

It was soon time to board my flight to San Francisco.

Boarding commenced on time, and as usual I boarded with iPhone in hand to snap J pics on the way to the rear...

Unlike the new SS6 seats on the JAL 767 I flew from SIN, these 787's still had the older slanted lie

Comfortable looking, but not state of the art...

I much prefer these 2-2-2 layouts than the crammed staggered seatings. There is so much more sense of space than cubicle-like staggered seats. Tried the stagger-type on Jet and had bad impression. Felt like sleeping under my office desk.

Anyway, thanks for the extensive trip report. I know it's a lot of work. Looking forward to the rest.