First-class comfort in a Qantas A380 Source: Supplied
A grand suite on the Carnival Spirit. Source: Supplied
UPGRADE anyone? Brian Crisp discovers four of travel's little (big really) luxuries. It seems the more you pay the more space you get.
1. Carnival Spirit
"The suite life"
You don't tend to spend a lot of time in your cabin on a cruise ship. The cabin is where you deposit your clothes, have a shower and sleep after hours of enjoying the onboard fun, food and activities.
I sailed on Carnival Spirit with my family at Christmas for 11 nights to New Caledonia and Vanuatu.
We were supposed to go to Fiji as well, but a cyclone intervened.
We booked three balcony cabins - all on deck eight. The cabins have everything you would expect to find in a compact up-market hotel room.
It's a comfortable way to travel. You unpack once and your steward comes in every day to tidy up.
Three days into the cruise my phone rang. A suite had become available and it was mine - if I wanted it. Yes.
The voice on the other end of the phone asked: "Don't you want to inspect it first?"
No, I replied, we will be packed and ready to move to deck six in 45 minutes.
Our suite, cabin number 6182, was twice the size of our previous room. The bathroom had a separate bath and shower (there was no bath in the balcony cabin).
We had a private entry area and combined lounge and bedroom.
The balcony was also bigger with seats and a lounge area. We were able to host the Christmas morning feast - croissants and champagne for six - in our room.
2. Qantas
"First things first"
The overnight A380 flight from Singapore to London provided me with a bit of a quandary. Sleep, or not sleep?
When you are lucky enough to be in first class, should you sleep or force yourself to enjoy the plethora of goodies on offer? There's on-demand movies and TV shows on a 43cm screen; Neil Perry-inspired snacks and meals; and a delightful wine list.
The first-class cabin on the Qantas A380 sits under the staircase that leads to the upper deck. On my leg of the journey it was full, as was business class.
The individual suites, designed by Marc Newson, are larger than most offered by Qantas's competitors. The seat swivels to convert into a bed, which, at 212cm long and 73cm wide, provides comfort for just about any size or shape.
Even though I wasn't sure if I was going to sleep, I slipped into the pyjamas as soon as I could and slapped on plenty of the Payot Paris skincare products.
You can get a one-way economy flight on the A380 from Sydney to London with Qantas (depending on the day and availability) for about $1400.
A business-class seat costs $4799 and the best price I could get for first-class travel in an internet search of the Qantas site was $6562.
If you can afford first-class travel there's no doubt it is one of travel's ultimate treats.
You feel better when you arrive and the priority lanes get you out of the airport quicker than your fellow passengers.
By the way, I did sleep but only after road testing everything on offer.
3. Sheraton on the Park
"The Ambassador Suite"
Kylie Minogue loves this room. And why wouldn't she.
It overlooks Hyde Park in Sydney (from its three private terraces) and at 160sq m is bigger than a lot of inner-city apartments. It is available for almost $4000 a night (depending on availability) but is in very high demand with businessmen, couples for special occasions and celebrities. I think our Kylie stayed there during Sydney's New Year's celebrations.
The suite is a forest of textures and colours from the rich purple bed accessories to the striking red leather chairs in the lounge room.
There is no doubt that this suite will leave you with lasting visual impressions.
The design elements are clever.
So clever that I have stolen some to use in my home.
The six-seat glass-top dining table, and basic kitchen, give guests the option of hosting small dinner parties.
This is something many businessmen have already taken advantage of with the meal catered by the hotel's excellent restaurant.
The bathroom, with an expanse of marble, double vanities, spa bath and Bulgari products deserve to be used.
Make sure you leave time for a long soak in the tub, preferably with a glass of bubbly in hand.
4. Eurostar train
"Business class"
The Eurostar left Gare du Nord at exactly 9.13am. This was my first taste of Business Premier train travel. Business Premier has its own check-in area so we were able to avoid the queues. It also gives you access to the lounge so I was able to sneak in one last authentic French croissant before heading back to the UK. And we all know the croissants are so much better in Paris than anywhere else in the world.
The train trip to London is a great opportunity to sit back and take in the French and English countryside. Or, if you must, there is a Wi-Fi connection so you can catch up on emails.
The seats are comfortable with, importantly, good leg room. There's room to store bags and a snack is served (airline trolley style) to break the journey.
We arrived back in London in time for a spot of Sunday lunch at Jamie Oliver's Fifteen.
Lovely jubbly.
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