We finally stepped off the plane in what felt like the farthest corner of the terminal. The walk to Terminal 6 was no small feat—long tunnels, endless signs, and a good ten minutes of my life I won’t get back. At the final junction, I somehow managed to turn left instead of right and, to my surprise, found myself outside. Unexpected, yes, but I have to admit, that breath of fresh air was actually a pleasant change.
Security was refreshingly quick – no long lines, no hassle. And since the terminal was on the smaller side, it was just a short stroll to the lounge. Or so I thought. I ran into a bit of an issue: apparently, a domestic first-class ticket on Alaska doesn’t automatically get you lounge access. Oneworld Emerald? Sure. But Alaska first? Not so much.
Once I finally got in, I was greeted by a pretty sparse spread of complimentary snacks and drinks. If you wanted to “upgrade” to something a bit nicer, the price tags on those premium spirits were outrageous. To add to the discomfort, the lounge was stiflingly warm. I didn’t linger long – just grabbed a coffee and made an early exit to the gate.
For this last 90-minute hop, we were on a small Embraer 175. Luckily, I was in row 1, so legroom wasn’t a problem this time around. The real surprise, though, was boarding the plane via a jet bridge! In Europe, you usually have to trudge up a set of stairs to board these smaller jets, so this felt like a little luxury.
Any hint of luxury disappeared the moment we took off. The entire in-flight service consisted of a single drink and a snack, which took all of five minutes. After that, I was left to my own devices, so I spent the rest of the flight glued to the window, taking in the passing scenery.
After landing, we had a brief taxi to Terminal B. From there, it was about a 10 to 15-minute stroll to the hotel shuttle bus stop – just enough to stretch my legs. When I got to the pickup spot, I jumped onto the hotel’s live chat, and within a minute, they had the shuttle on its way.
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