Weekend KK Seafood Extravaganza on AirAsia and SilkAir

[ycp81]

Over the past weekend, we made a short getaway to Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, East Malaysia. It was not my first trip to the city, and the main purpose of the getaway was for the food, especially the seafood which the seaside town is famous for.

The flight up was on AirAsia, with departure from the brand new Terminal 4. Boarding passes were printed from the self-check-in machines.






Flight info display. T4 is literally a AirAsia terminal.




Using my Priority Pass, we visited the Blossom Lounge. I would say this this is the best of all Priority Pass lounges at Changi Airport, offering better ambience and F&B then the many other SATS Premier and Dnata lounges at T1-3. The lounge is also used by premium pax on VN/KE and some others.








Salad bar




Hot food and noodle bar




Sandwiches and desserts




Alcohols




My food selection. All were rather good, and way better than the T2 SATS Premier Lounge.

[ycp81]

Being the KE lounge for its premium pax, KE's inflight magazines are available on the magazine racks as well.




About 25min prior to departure, we headed to the gate, where boarding was just about to commence.




It was a special-liveried A320 today.








22 March 2019
Air Asia
AK 1792
Singapore (SIN) - Kota Kinabalu (BKI)
A320
9M-AQD
Economy Class
Flight Time: 1H59M


Boarding






Hot Seats with red headrests.




Normal rows.




Cargo being loaded.




Legroom was LCC-ish tight as expected.




Inflight magazine and BOB/shopping menu.




Boarding was completed rather swiftly, and it was going to be an almost full flight this evening.

[ycp81]

Pushed back right on schedule.




It was a lengthy queue for departure with at least 5 aircraft ahead of us.






Departure from Rwy02C.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ir4Pcjwp2gw












Shortly after takeoff, service started with the distribution of pre-booked meals, followed by sales of snacks, drinks and merchandise.






We pre-booked 2 meals. Each meal came with a coffee or water. First was the AirAsia signature Pak Nasser's Nasi Lemak. As expected, it was spicy and tasty.

[ycp81]

The other meal was the Nasi Kandar with Chicken Varuval. This might not look appetising, but was delicious as well! Malaysia AirAsia certainly knows how to prepare authentic south-east Asian dishes.






Flying into the sunset.






Another view of the cabin.




There was nothing much else to do for the remainder of the flight, till we approached and landed into Kota Kinabalu Intl Airport Rwy02 ahead of schedule.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P62Up9ptDMQ


Parked at the gate and disembarked. It was a short and pleasant 2hr flight on AirAsia.






SilkAir at the gate beside.




Immigration and customs were swift and within 10min after disembarkation, we were onboard a Grab ride for the 10min hop to the city center! First stop, seafood! And it was amazing that we could actually reach our dinner spot right in the city center, Welcome Seafood Restaurant, just 20min after getting off the aircraft!






This restaurant is very popular and offers value-for-money seafood. Had a reasonably good seafood dinner with the famous coconut pudding dessert to wrap up the day.

[ycp81]

We stayed at Le Meridien Kota Kinabalu for 2 nights. The hotel seemed to be renovated quite recently, with a very modern looking lobby.




Rooms are newly renovated, huge and comfortable as well.








Our hotel room offered a sea view.






For breakfast, we had the famous Tuaran Mee and a Sarawak Laksa at Seng Hing Coffee Shop, just behind our hotel.






Passed a huge wet market Pasar Besar, selling everything from fruits, veges, meats and seafood.






Along the KK waterfront.

[ycp81]

I love KK




Kota Kinabalu city center




Tried a famous Sandakan Wet Market Fried Pork Kuey Teow inside Suria Sabah shopping mall.




Sunset from hotel room.




In the evenings, a market is set up across from the hotel.






Second round of seafood dinner, this time at SuangTian Seafood restaurant. It was a fantastic seafood dinner!










Breakfast on the last day was the famous and delicious pork noodles at Kim Hong Lee coffee shop, also just behind the hotel.

[ycp81]

Visit to the Sunday Market along Gaya Street.










Another plate of the delicious Tuaran Mee with seafood.




The sea is pretty clear today.




After checking out of the hotel and a 2.5hr massage session at a spa across from the hotel, we headed back to the airport via Grab. It was again a maximum of 15min and RM12 ride back to the airport. The terminal was not too busy at this time of the day.




SilkAir check-in counters were located at Row A. By Dec this year, the Kota Kinabalu route would be transferred to Scoot.








FIDS




Visited the only lounge in the International section of the airport, Plaza Premium Lounge. This lounge was also used by all airlines. The lounge was separated into 2 sections. There was a smaller and cosy lounging area with some snacks and beverages near the entrance.

[ycp81]

There is another bigger section of the lounge.




Which led to the buffet and dining area. To be frank, the selection is quite sad, with a pathetic looking salad bar and a small selection of cook-to-order dishes, apart from the usual snacks, instant noodles, nuts and beverages.








My light dinner, which is not too impressive....






It was only a short walk to the departure gate, where boarding had just commenced.





24 March 2019
SilkAir
MI 395
Kota Kinabalu (BKI) - Singapore (SIN)
B737-800
9V-MGP
Economy Class
Flight Time: 2H03M


Boarding the aircraft.








Business Class seats. Nope, I would not be sitting here tonight.




Where I belong.

[ycp81]

Boarding in progress




Legroom was only slightly better than AirAsia. Tight but bearable for the short flight. Blankets could be requested from the crew.




Special livery AirAsia A320 parked at the gate beside.






Inflight magazines and safety card.






After boarding was completed, crew came round to distribute packaged wet towels.




Safety video was played as we pushed back.






Departure from Rwy02.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1iLMlzKUhI


Service commenced shortly after takeoff, first with the special meals distributed, followed by the normal meals. There were 3 male crew and a female crew serving in economy. The purser and another female crew were in Business, with a total of 6 cabin crew onboard. Service was friendly, professional and efficient.






For this flight, I had pre-ordered the Hindu Non-vegetarian special meal. It was served with fruits and a cup of water.

[ycp81]

The Hindu meal was, as expected, spicy and flavourful, and seemed better than the normal choices offered.






My friend had pre-ordered the Indian Vegetarian meal, which was tasty as well.




View of the cabin while crew were clearing the trays. Service was very efficient despite the very full flight in economy.




Standard lavatory with the basic amenities only.




Rest of the flight was spent with a nap and soon the cabin was turned blue as we started our descent into Singapore.








Landing on Rwy02L.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkhZv2U9BEo


Taxied to Terminal 2 but we actually parked at a Terminal 1 gate D40.






Disembarking






It was a reasonably pleasant flight on SilkAir on this short sector. With SilkAir being scheduled to be merged into SQ next year, this could be one of my last, if not last flights on SilkAir, especially as SilkAir's route are gradually being reduced and handed over to Scoot. However, it will be interesting to see SQ starting narrowbody operations next year!

[yflyer]

Very nice pics of KK, ycp81! Especially the food...

Mrs yflyer recently visited and raved about all the seafood she ate too. I've not been myself, but a visit to KK is on my to-do list.

Those buy-on-board Air Asia meals look really appetizing too. I think spicy dishes like nasi lemak or nasi kandar work well on planes.

[CarbonMan]

Thanks, ycp81, for the short excursion. The last time I was in KK was back in the 80's. Looks like time for a short weekend.