Return to San Francisco International and the American Airlines Admirals Club
Polishing Silver
It’s time to start tracking back to that place back east. But firstly, to go through the Harvey Milk Terminal 1 and enjoy trying my best at being a millennial by having an Avocado toast in the Admirals Club.
In this Tier Point-laden adventure
- All I ask is for one decent airfare. Just ONE. Anyone?
- Off to Birmingham Airport
- FR669 Birmingham to Dublin Airport with Ryanair
- Welcome to Dublin, Premier Inn – Dublin Airport
- Early Morning Dublin Airport and US Preclearance, 51st and Green Lounge
- AA723 Dublin to Philadelphia – Flagship Business Class
- A Rocky Interlude – Exploring Philadelphia
- Return to PHL and the Philadelphia American Airlines Admirals Club
- AA2663 Philadelphia to San Francisco – US Domestic First
- A new terminal and The Crowne Plaza, Burlingame
- The Intercontinental San Francisco (and trying the new BART trains)
- Asian Eats around San Francisco
- A challenge unto myself: Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge
- Ferrying around the bay with Golden Gate Ferry
- Of Dragons and Lions – Celebrations in San Francisco Chinatown
- Back to SFO, American Airlines Admirals Club
- AA164 San Francisco to New York JFK – Transcontinental Business Class
- A snow-laden pit stop at JFK and the American Airlines/British Airways Greenwich Lounge
- AA104 New York JFK to London Heathrow – Flagship Business Class
- Transiting across Heathrow Terminals and the British Airways Galleries North
- BA836 London Heathrow to Dublin Airport – Club Europe
- A Two Hour Dublin Turnaround featuring the Dublin Airport Lounge
- BA4469 Dublin to London City Airport – Club Europe by BA CityFlyer
- To the trains… and on the cheap
- Points in the bag
Waking up on the last day on the West Coast, the hotel and sun gave a wonderful sunrise. And yes, I was cursing that day that was turned into a rain-laced hell when I arrived in the city.
That’s the joy of travel. Weather is still a deciding factor
I took my time getting my crap together, and by 7:30, I was almost ready to go. I now had choices – how to get to SFO. Do I cheat and take an Uber, or do I take the BART?
Considering I had added a new bag to the fleet whilst travelling – I decided to say “screw it” and jumped an Uber. Sometimes, it’s easier to pay the extra $31 to get to the airport and not deal with the joy of American sidewalks first thing in the morning.
Thankfully, there wasn’t much of a wait, with a driver “happy” to see me for the drive to San Francisco.
Within minutes, we were out of the city grid and on a freeway.
Motion.
Streets of traffic
Freeways
Ah. The suburbanite’s current vehicle of choice – a truck.
I took the time to look around as the driver’s lead foot was firmly down on this ride over to the airport.
With the driver following the map, we were soon nearing the airport – with the driver confirming which terminal I required. Thankfully, the Uber dropped me off at the curbside of the terminal, rather than in a multi-story car park that would need a lot of navigation to exit.
I entered the terminal and again – I was just amazed at how light and airy it is compared to previous US terminals I’ve visited on my travels. Yes. I’m looking at you, O’Hare.
I trotted over to the priority desks, where there was a small queue growing. Thankfully an agent pulled me from it and escorted me to a desk for check-in.
They tagged my bag to Dublin and confirmed all the fights that were booked should be operating today – however, there might be problems at JFK if the predicted snow was set to arrive.
See you in Dublin… hopefully (and yes, there was an AirTag in it. I’ve learned that lesson long ago)
With that, I headed to the security lanes. And I wish I could say it was a long wait – but I was the second person in the security verification queue before heading straight to a scanner to be processed.
Wow.
The process is very much like a European Airport screen experience, rather than an American one – i.e., you go to a station, unpack what you need individually screened and then place it in the scanner, as opposed to a single line of people.
My baggage caused no concerns, so I was allowed to proceed.
Exiting the secure area, I started to slowly make my way to the American Airlines Admirals Club. With how quiet it was in the terminal, I could have got away with a coffee and a seat at a quiet gate – but if I have lounge access, I’m not going to say no to it.
More on Harvey Milk
I noted that most of the chains that I would expect haven’t made an appearance here, with more local brands present.
The lounge wasn’t hard to find – with it near toilets.
American Airlines Admirals Club, San Francisco
I was blipped in and welcomed to the lounge, with the agent noting that AA164 should be departing on time today.
With that, I headed upstairs from reception into the main lounge.
Although there was this beauty of an Airbus A321neo. And yes, it suits it well.
The lounge is divided into various segments – but there was one thing that stood out to me – a lot of natural light. That makes a big difference when travelling.
Business zone.
There was a mixture of armchair/bucket chair-type seats, as well as cafeteria-style seating. Considering the width of the space the airline had to work with, it seemed to be a clever use of the available space to lounge.
I pitched up a bench seat near a window and settled in. A good enough place to do a little typing before realising I was still on holiday.
Sometimes, I forget that I can put the keyboard down and ignore the world for a while. It’s not impossible. I just forget that some days.
I went to graze on the breakfast offerings – thankfully, there was a mixture of hot and cold items available.
Cold items
Creamer and the many flavours thereafter.
Fruit
Cola machine
Bacon and Eggs
Baked goods to toast
Caffeine.
Tea based caffeine
In addition to this, there was an Avacado Toast station, with Sourdough bread. Whilst I don’t subscribe to “Avocado Toast will not allow you to buy a home” (trust me – been there and done that), it’s something I’ve never tried – namely as I’m not a great fan of Avocado.
But hey. There’s always a first time for everything.
And if we’re going to have Avocado toast, we’re going to have all the toppings.
The toppings were a nice touch, giving flavour to the avocado. As for the avocado… I feel like I haven’t missed out on much over the past years.
Sitting in the lounge and out of the window, it provided a nice view of the world and the apron as I waited for the departure clock to count down.
But like all clocks, they run down eventually
I took my leave of the lounge and headed down to the gate – amazed at how bright this terminal is compared to some I’ve been through in the USA (yes O’Hare Terminal 5 – even with your refit, I’m still looking at you).
Popping past one of the shops on the way, I found some of the precious TCHO Chocolates I love. I grabbed a few at… higher than I would have liked pricing.
Alaska Boeing 737 taxing past. This was a few days after the 737-9 MAX fleet was grounded.
Where do you want to go?
The hub where AA sits.
Approaching the gate, it seemed that the aircraft would be fully loaded heading out today, with a full upgrade list.
Sparks
I was happy – I had a window seat assigned, and I would be defending it.
Boarding was a few minutes away when I arrived, so I settled down near a fake dog to wait out the last minutes of pre-boarding.
Eventually, boarding was called, with First Class and military members allowed to board first, followed by passengers in business class.
I took my overhunting to board the aircraft. It was time to start tracking eastward.
Next
American Airlines AA164, Transcontinental Business Class.
No, I will not swap my seat. And nor should you.
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