Prague & Japan
May 18-28, 2012
AC448 YYZ-YUL, LH475 YUL-MUC, LH1692 MUC-PRG, May 22 LX1485 PRG-ZRH, LX160 ZRH-NRT, NH2153 NRT-CTS, May 26 NH82 CTS-HND, TG661 HND-BKK, May 27 TG922 BKK-FRA, May 28 LH76 FRA-DUS, LH472 DUS-YYZ
Like the trip to Turkey and Taipei, this trip was booked last July and was about getting the best value out of a First Class reward ticket to Asia with a stop in Europe. Although we've been to Japan many times, we've never made it to the north island of Hokkaido so I picked Sapporo as our Asian destination. Since our trip near the Czech border on our trip to eastern Germany in 2003, I have always wanted to visit Prague, so with some creative routing managed to put together a great trip. To make the most of the first class experience we had time in the Munich, Zurich, Haneda and Bangkok First Class Lounges (including another trip to the spa for a massage) and what may be our final trip to the Frankfurt First Class Terminal. Prague lived up to my expectations with a beautiful old town and although we didn't have a lot of time, enjoyed Hokkaido, as we have the rest of the country. This part of Japan was almost free of western tourists, so language was a bit challenging, but the locals were very friendly and accommodating, so we got by without too much drama. On our way home we got to experience the private suites (with sliding doors) of the Thai Airways first class to Bangkok and Frankfurt, another once-in-a-lifetime experience that capped off a great trip.
May 18-19
Overnight flight to Prague and afternoon and evening to explore
May 20
Beautiful day in Prague to explore the town
May 21
Last full day in Praque
May 22-23
Day of flying and afternoon in Sapporo
May 24
Morning train to Otaru and afternoon in Sapporo
May 25
Morning train to Hakodate with stop in Noboribetsu
May 26
Last day in Hakodate and afternoon train to Sapporo an flight to Haneda
May 27-28
After midnight departure from Haneda and on to home with night in Frankfurt