mercato | Window Seat Preferred

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About Author

Reformed backpacker & former ultra-cheap traveller, Andy now atones for his past by overspending on premium travel experiences and failing at making the most of the miles & points game. Former expat now returned to Ireland, he is a product manager by day, and travel aficionado by evening and weekend.

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My Recent Travels...

One Night at Selingan Turtle Island
En-Route to Sandakan – AirAsia AK6492
Magellan Sutera Resort – Executive Suite Review
A Challenging Stay at Kimpton de Witt, Amsterdam

RECENT GRAMS

✨ Bornean Snapshots . Some (very delayed) snaps

✨ Bornean Snapshots
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Some (very delayed) snaps from our amazing Borneo experience back in February - from Sandakan to Turtle Island, to Bilit, to many stops along the way. More to post - as usual, in my very own leisurely time 😂
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A real once in a lifetime trip 😍
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(thanks also to our tour organiser @sepiloktropical who kept the show on the road despite crazy floods at the time - I can't imagine trying to do this trip self organized)
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#borneo #sandakan #wildlife #turtleisland #malaysia #sabah #orangutan #proboscismonkey #windowseatpreferred #travel #trip #sunbear #rainforest #stwadventure

🌴 Landings in Kota Kinabalu! 📸 Here's a few

🌴 Landings in Kota Kinabalu!
📸 Here's a few shots approaching Kota Kinabalu, and from our flight with Malaysia Airlines in Business Class (thanks to a very lucky upgrade bid a few days before departure).
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Review of this flight on the blog - as always link in bio, or windowseatpreferred.com/tvvi
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Overall though, despite the crews best efforts, for a relatively new cabin it was pretty disappointing with 3 out of 4 seats not able to recline in Row 1 alone, noticeably tighter legroom than before, no entertainment monitors, an armrest panel that kept falling to the ground and then this "odd" Korean chicken dish in a country renowned for wonderful local food?!
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All fine if, like us, you paid very little - though I'd have a much harsher take of we'd paid the full business fare.
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KK however was wonderful and the start of what would be a great, action-packed week - more to come 🤣
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#kotakinabalu #bki #landing #malaysiaairlines #businessclass #windowseatpreferred #windowseat #inflight #sabah #malaysia #mh #travel #mhupgrade

Is That You, Spring 👀 . . . #hike #hiking #irel

Is That You, Spring 👀
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#hike #hiking #ireland #spring #scenery #ballyhouriganwoods #woods #tipperary #outdoors #nature #explore #windowseatpreferred

🌙 KL Nights 📸 Were you really in Kuala Lumpu

🌙 KL Nights
📸 Were you really in Kuala Lumpur if you didn't take a pic exactly like this? 😂
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Throwback to just two weeks ago, before heading back to a far colder Ireland 😒
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Happy Weekend!
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#klcc #kualalumpur #malaysia #skyline #twintowers #windowseatpreferred #night #view #city #petronastowers

✈️ Impressions of an Elderly Business Class
📷 From #Dublin to #AbuDhabi - myself and @isha_aquaphile wound up in one of @etihad 's oldest business cabins (and one of the two oldest aircraft) in their fleet, for some reason now allocated on a near-constant basis operating to and from Dublin.
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Full review on the blog, few highlights below; windowseatpreferred.com/4xyw
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- Despite the age, we still had fully lie-flat seats (looking at you, Emirates), and the cabin was clean and as well-kept as possible.
- Service was mostly great on this flight, and we received complimentary wifi cards (presumably to offset the in-flight entertainment issues, see below).
- Very minor, but we we were allowed bypass transit security in Abu Dhabi, which was a great timesaver for transit passengers.
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👎
- We were in the front row - because our months' ago seat selection was quietly deleted about 3 days before the flight.
- Oddly, the benefit you'd imagine front row to come with, didn't; all main meal options except one, 'the fish', were somehow out of stock by the time we were asked for our choice. I ended up going with the all-day dining menu.
- The in-flight entertainment for the whole cabin went down about an hour into the flight, and anyone in the middle of something had to restart and try find the right place.
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We've had great prior experiences with Etihad Business, and while this wouldn't put us off for good, this cabin is clearly in dire need of a renovation and some love.
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#businessclass #etihad #ey46 #boeing777 #etihadbusinessclass #flightreview #travel #windowseatpreferred #trip #flight #DUB #dublinairport #luxurytravel #AUH #etihadguest

✨️ Sunset Flights (& 🥂's) . Snapshots from

✨️ Sunset Flights (& 🥂's)
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Snapshots from our return flight from Frankfurt back to Dublin, in business class - for whatever excitement that's worth in Europe on a 2 hour flight 😂
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Also, our last flight of 2024 as it turned out; don't worry, we're only about 2 weeks away from the first flight of 2025, and not before time it feels like 😬
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To read more, visit the blog - windowseatpreferred.com/lh980 or through link in bio.
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Have you already booked any flights for 2025?
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#travel #windowseat #windowseatpreferred #lufthansa #lh980 #businessclass #frankfurt #dublinairport #sunset #inflight #runway #champagne

🇩🇪 City Sunset - Frankfurt Edition! . Before

🇩🇪 City Sunset - Frankfurt Edition!
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Before Christmas, myself & @isha_aquaphile headed off for 3 nights to check out the Christmas markets in Germany - with our last night kicking off with this beautiful sunset, and a stay in the very opulent (perhaps too much since we didn't want to leave even to explore the city) Steigenberger Hof...
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In the end, how did the two compare?
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We enjoyed Heidelberg, sure, but it definitely had a touch of the tourist mecca about it - and don't even get me started on our quite challenging hotel stay (see blog link for that one) 😬
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Frankfurt, which never seems to be on anyone's real must-see list, on the other hand was actually really to our liking; a very expansive Christmas market right downtown, live entertainment, and very conveniently a few train stops from the airport to the city centre.
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Are we cultural philistines? Yep, probably. Will that change in 2025? No... 😂
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#frankfurt #sunset #frankfurtammain #city #downtowb #maintower #germany #frankfurtaltstadt #altstadt #windowseatpreferred #travelblog

✈️ Farewell 2024, Hello 2025 - Part II Can you

🥂 Farewell 2024, Is That You Already 2025? With

🥂 Farewell 2024, Is That You Already 2025?
With the same regrettable punctuality with which me and @isha_aquaphile all too frequently turn up to boarding gates, I thought it was belatedly time to look back at the Window Seat Preferred year that was 2024.
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In spite of the carefully curated Insta (yep, guilty like everyone else...), 2024 started pretty rubbish - and from there on, we dedicated ourselves wholeheartedly to getting out, making the best of the year, and travelling. A lot, as it turned out 🤣
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So here's how the first half of the year went (let's pretend I'll post part two tomorrow even though we both know I'll forget)...
1) One of the year's (many) window seat pics. Gotta earn the username...
2) First trip! Powerscourt in Wicklow. What a luxurious stay - we bounced between the ridiculous suite we'd been upgraded to, the pool and sauna, the whiskey distillery, the gardens, and everything in between!
3) Paying my respects to my beloved second home - the @aerlingus lounge, Dublin Airport.
4) Beautiful Verona - both a few Aperol Spritz's in...before attempting to climb a nearby hill (very worth it) for stunning views.
5) Sunset over Lake Garda, in Malcesine.
6) Another second home! Back to Kuala Lumpur, to remind myself of life in a tropical country where you can get delicious food anytime.
7) Koh Lipe - incidentally, the first place myself & @isha_aquaphile ever travelled to, together. Becoming more commercialised and busy by the way, so if you fancy crystal clear waters in Thailand with no competition for a beach spot, this is probably final call.
8) Please enjoy this picture of @etihad business class. I don't feel like I should have to add any further detail here...
9) We flew to the Aran Islands. This should not be attempted (as it was) so absolutely, dreadfully hungover.
10) My once-yearly harrowing journey on Ryanair to remind myself of what it's like trying to sleep to the sound of scratch-card pitches.
11) You've no idea how many kids had to be pushed out of the way to make way for this pic of two mid-30 year olds...
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Stay tuned for Part II tomorrow! And, Happy New Year 🥂
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#travel #2024 #windowseatpreferred #travelblog

🌞 Sunset Skies . Sunset on board @lufthansa LH9

🌞 Sunset Skies
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Sunset on board @lufthansa LH980 from Frankfurt back home to Dublin 🤩
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#travelblog #windowseatpreferred #windowseat #lufthansa #sunset #travel #inflight #windowseatview #flying #trip #winter #businessclass

🌎 Snapshots from WTM! . This year, for the firs

🌎 Snapshots from WTM!
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This year, for the first time, I attended #WTMLDN as a blogger - at first, it was super overwhelming, and while I wouldn't recommend a daily commute to it from Ireland, overall it was a great event, with so many fascinating stands, great opportunities for networking, and just so much to see in the few days!
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A quick overview (and a few tips) for any other travel bloggers thinking about it for next year now on the blog - windowseatpreferred.com/wtm24
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Have you been? What did you think of it?
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#wtmldn #wtmlondon #wtm #london #aerlingus #shannonairport #windowseatpreferred #flights #travel #travelblog

📷 Guess The Lounge 🥂 From #Athens to #Dublin

📷 Guess The Lounge 🥂
From #Athens to #Dublin with @aegeanairlines in Business Class - a quick photo tour, for those not bothered reading the blog (did I ever mention, 'link in bio'? 😁)
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- Incredibly peaceful, spacious lounge with great views; the only issue was we just didn't have enough time to really make use of the bar (3rd pic - no surprise that I felt that merited its own feature).
- Classic short-haul European business cabin BUT...with decent seats, an actual middle seat table, really good food, and - prepare the fireworks for this act of EU airline exorbitance - a pre-departure Champagne 🥂
- As an added bonus, @isha_aquaphile & I were treated to additional complimentary in-flight entertainment; Row 1 getting rapidly wasted (not because of the crew - one or two seemed to be all it took) and all that brought. 😬
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Have you flown with Aegean? Or received complimentary in-flight entertainment like us? 🤣
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#aegean #aegeanairlines #athens #a3630 #aegeanlounge #windowseatpreferred #flight #businessclass #businesscabin #plane #inflight #airportlounge #travelblog

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