Welcome to my upcoming trip report series, which details a review journey that I embarked on in late 2025. I’m slightly delayed on my trip reports but aim to be mostly updated by the end of the month.
This review journey encompasses flight reviews on Porter, Air France, Aircalin, Thai Airways, and SWISS, alongside hotel reviews from Canada, France, and Thailand! Naturally, there will also be lounge evaluations.
## Reasons for this trip
This was purely a review trip, so I undertook this journey to experience as many intriguing airline and hotel offerings as possible, while minimizing my time away from home.
The primary impetus for planning this trip was my desire to explore the new SWISS Senses A350 business class, ensuring I stay informed about the latest transatlantic offerings. However, when I discovered award availability between Europe and the United States, I reminded myself that by redeeming Air Canada Aeroplan points, I could start in Asia too, with just a slight increase in points. While I’m at it, why not assess another airline operating between Asia and Europe?
And since I’m headed to Asia, it makes sense to optimize the outbound as well, to sample new (at least for me) products right? 😉 Ultimately, the segment of the trip that I’ll cover involves 20,224 miles of flying, across six segments.
## The airlines I traveled with on this trip
I’ll share the exact itinerary I booked, including the amount I paid. This will be presented in the chronological order of my travels, which is the reverse of when I booked (I arranged the return segment first and the outbound last).
To begin the journey, I flew Porter’s Embraer E195-E2 PorterReserve, their premium offering, from Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to Montreal (YUL). I booked this for 10,000 Alaska Atmos Rewards points plus $5.60 in taxes & fees:
11/15 PD572 Fort Lauderdale to Montreal departing 12:50 PM arriving 4:23 PM
After spending a night in Montreal, I boarded Air France’s Boeing 787-9 business class from Montreal (YUL) to Paris (CDG). I secured this for 60,000 Air France-KLM Flying Blue miles plus $266.47 in taxes & fees:
11/16 AF343 Montreal to Paris departing 5:00 PM arriving 5:55 AM (+1 day)
Following a couple of nights in Paris, it was time for the flight I was most looking forward to, as I experienced Aircalin’s Airbus A330-900neo business class from Paris (CDG) to Bangkok (BKK). I booked this for 105,500 Air France-KLM Flying Blue miles plus $474.40 in taxes & fees (this is a step award cost, but my curiosity to fly Aircalin created a unique opportunity, plus I earned the points with a transfer bonus):
11/19 SB501 Paris to Bangkok departing 8:50 PM arriving 2:25 PM (+1 day)
Next, I arranged the return journey all on one ticket, thanks to the convenience of Air Canada Aeroplan. This included flying Thai Airways’ Boeing 787-9 business class from Bangkok (BKK) to Milan (MXP), followed by a short hop within Europe flying SWISS’ Airbus A350-900 business class from Zurich (ZRH) to Boston (BOS). I booked this for 87,500 Air Canada Aeroplan points plus $138.02 in taxes & fees:
11/22 TG940 Bangkok to Milan departing 12:35 AM arriving 7:10 AM
11/22 LX1613 Milan to Zurich departing 10:30 AM arriving 11:35 AM
11/22 LX52 Zurich to Boston departing 5:30 PM arriving 8:00 PM
Alongside flight reviews, you can look forward to evaluations of the following lounges:
– The Air France Lounge Montreal (YUL)
– The Primeclass Lounge Paris (CDG)
– The EVA Air Lounge Bangkok (BKK)
– The Turkish Airlines Lounge Bangkok (BKK)
– The Lufthansa Lounge Milan Malpensa (MXP)
## The hotels I stayed at during this trip
Typically, during review trips, I don’t tend to spend many nights in hotels. In that regard, this trip was delightful and quite leisurely! I spent one night in Montreal, two nights in Paris, and one night in Bangkok, providing me the chance to explore four different hotels.
For the first night, I stayed at the Four Seasons Montreal. I had heard