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| 'Before'... my view between the lacy curtains at the Cathedral Gate Hotel |
My first taste of an upgrade was during a visit to the
historic town of Canterbury in my naive early 20s. I was staying right next to
Canterbury Cathedral in a hotel that had been a place of accommodation for 600
years. The corridors sloped alarmingly and the bathroom had a bath and a
plastic container to help you throw water over your head. No, it was not the
late middle ages, it was the late 1990s. So I shuffled into the tiny front
office with my trusty backpack and was told that my single room was not
available, did I mind taking a double at no extra cost? Did I mind? I thought
I’d won the lottery! I was all a-giggle when I threw my backpack down on to the
floral bedspread and gazed out the window and on to a small town square. Utterly
content and smug.
Upgrades were few and far between for the next decade. When
taking flights, I was told, by people allegedly in the know, that I should
dress nicely, ask nicely whether the plane is full and suggest, nicely, that I
would be amenable to an upgrade should one become available.
That never worked.
On a flight between Hong Kong and Beijing my friend and I
tried to buy our own darn upgrade and failed at that too! The ground staff told
us it was really too expensive to consider (um... $250 each) and anyway, there
was really only one seat available. This sounded suspiciously vague to us....
The breakthrough came when I travelled with two frequent,
Qantas Club members and our flight was delayed. Someone summoned us via
loudspeaker to the front desk. There we were solemnly handed our new boarding
passes. Lovely blue ones. Business Class. BUSINESS CLASS. All the way to Hong
Kong.
That flight was one of the most enjoyable of my life. I
still think fondly about the fine asparagus and gruyere soup, of the champagne
on arrival, and of the stewardess who kindly enquired whether there was
anything else that could possibly be done for me. I played with that adjustable
chair for hours, trying every horizontal, vertical and semi-horizontal/vertical
position available (truth be told the cushion was a little thin and the
mechanics underneath a little lumpy) but I could not sleep for a moment. What?
And miss being in Business Class? No way!
Every economy flight after that has been particularly
galling and depressing. On the way back from that same Business Class trip, we
were upgraded again but only to Premium Economy. I remember the three of us
sniffing our noses with slight disappointment. Premium Economy, eh? If we must
I suppose.
The best upgrade I’ve ever experienced, however, was on a
recent trip to Singapore. I was checking into the Marina Bay Sands resort and
unbeknown to me, a friend of mine had spoken to her friend at the Marina Bay
and asked if anything special could be arranged for me. I was travelling by
myself.
Well. I sauntered up to the front office on my birthday and
handed over my voucher for a room I felt sure would be in the basement. ‘Happy
birthday’, the receptionist smiled. She tapped and fiddled away and then said,
‘Sorry I’ll just be a minute, I’m printing your Club Privileges letter’.
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| 'After'....the view from my king size bed at the Marina Bay Sands Resort |
Che? ‘I’m pretty sure that’s not the room I booked’, I told
her. She glanced at my quizzically and then smiled, ‘Oh, you’ve been upgraded’.
I positively beamed.
I was at my bumpkin best when I threw open the door to my
52nd Floor Suite and couldn’t help shouting ‘Oh my God, someone else has to see
this!! Oh. My. God’. Floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Bay. Two lounge
rooms. A dressing room. A bathroom bigger than my last hotel room. And a king
size bed. All to myself. My friend had also organised flowers, a cake and a
bottle of wine. Heavenly. Apart from the fact that I was terrified at the
prospect of approaching the window (the dizzying heights!), I was unbearably
happy.
I could never stay there again of course – I couldn’t bear
staying in the bargain basement room next time round and the chances of my
being so spectacularly upgraded again are slim. Hence the blessing and the
curse.
Does anyone else have a good upgrade story?
