Hi! I’m Alvin Tse, and I’m a 23-year-old management consultant from Hong Kong. I’m an aviation enthusiast and travel aficionado who is committed to helping people elevate their travel experiences with cheap deals, airline mileage programs, and hotel points.
One of the most important things to know about me is that up until I graduated, my parents funded for most, if not all of my flights. In fact, out of generosity and support for what I do on this blog, they still occasionally do, particularly for my flights home. I’m forever grateful for all the experiences that my parents gift me, and how they’re open to all the options that I suggest whenever it comes to travel. Mom and Dad, I love you.
Regardless of how I got onto the flight in the first place, I know that flying is a God-given gift that I’m incredibly grateful for. However, I like to take the opportunities that I’ve been gifted with, and help other travelers make the best travel decisions. This is the reason that I review flights and hotels the way I do.
Writing up a post in Lufthansa A380 business class
Sometimes I like to look back at how I got so interested in aviation. Given that you’ve clicked on my about page, I suspect you’re interested, so I’d be honoured if you took the trip down memory lane with me. If you don’t, feel free to close this tab, or explore some of our other posts that Jason and I have carefully crafted.
On February 10th, 2008, I boarded Cathay Pacific’s flight 580 from Hong Kong to Sapporo Chitose in business class for a skiing trip. It was the first time I realised what class of service I was in, what price my parents pay for this flight (or what I thought they paid, as they paid with points) and, most importantly, how cool the seats were. I fumbled around, I chewed gum like a noob traveler, and I enjoyed it. It was the first flight I can recall, and the first flight in my life I enjoyed. I’ll never forget that flight.
In Cathay Pacific’s 747 business class in 2009 (this wasn’t the Chitose flight, but it was my first time on the upper deck of a 747)
On the inbound, I learned a lot about boarding service, servicing problems and aircraft maintenance issues when our flight (also on Cathay Pacific) was delayed by a couple of hours. Despite older recliner seats, apparently subpar crew (quoting my mom) and the delay, by the end of the flight, six-year-old me had his own imaginary airline (Alvin Express) mapped out. I was loving it. It’s still hard to imagine that this was ~10 years ago, and how it was the spark to the passion I now have for aviation and luxury travel.
As I grew up more of our flights were shifted to economy, though I did get a taste of the “high life”. In 2009, I took my first fully flat bed in the air on Cathay Pacific’s herringbone business class on the upper deck of their 747. In 2010, I took the A380 for the first time on Singapore Airlines. It was in a middle seat in economy on a turbulent flight, so I don’t remember enjoying it as much as I should’ve.
I was seated in a middle seat in Singapore Airlines’ A380 economy section, and didn’t love the flight too much
In 2013, I flew to Koh Samui in February on Bangkok Airways, and as usual I got my “post-flying high”. Except, at 11 now, this newfound passion didn’t die. I started getting addicted to airlines and airline cabins. I met Jason, my current blog partner, who started introducing me to all the perks of business class, miles and points and why “ZOMG CATHAY PACIFIC IS THE WORLD’S BEST AIRLINE”. Additionally, with all those remote stands I went through (Bangkok Airways usually departs from the satellite terminal at Hong Kong, which requires a bus ride, and Koh Samui doesn’t have any remote stands), I probably got closer to more airplanes than I could possibly handle. Oh, and I actually enjoyed my first airplane sunset from the inbound.
On that same trip, I stayed at the W Retreat Koh Samui, and learned a lot about different hotels and how they brand themselves (the W brand is one of my favourites, and I wish that airlines could brand themselves as effectively). Prior to that (and the March 11 earthquake) we used to go to northern Japan very often, where my sister couldn’t give up on the Century Southern Tower Tokyo (we also frequented Sapporo, where we normally stayed at condos) – this explains why I can’t say much about hotel competition even these days. Later, a few highs included falling in love with the similarly vibe-y W Taipei and flying on the Hello Kitty Jet by EVA Air.
In late 2013, I founded Hong Kong Airline News under the pseudonym of Sergio Maha, as I was too young to expose myself to the internet. (I’ve moved all posts on Hong Kong Airline News to private in the meantime, as they add absolutely zero value to the travel blogosphere, from the inconclusive, self-contradictory maundering to the blurry photos.) I gradually transitioned to writing posts under my own name, which involved taking a few “fictitious” flights (fortunately, I’ve wiped every trace of evidence of those flights as the blog has gained popularity).
While I knew I was too young to own my own blog and was too embarrassed to admit my passion for flying (another reason I “created” Sergio), I had too much to say about the beauty of air travel, and wanted to start doing a little bit of flight reviewing as well. The first flight I reviewed was from Hong Kong to Auckland in economy on Cathay Pacific’s A340. I cringe when looking back at the start of my blogging career every now and then, though I can’t say I regret writing the review.
As I gained confidence in writing and reviewing, as well as more openly nurturing my passion for luxury air travel, I started to permeate my own name into the realms of Hong Kong Airline News. Just as I was getting confident at doing so and had travel booked beyond what I could possibly review in time, the domain I was working on ran out of picture upload space. At the time I didn’t know how to deal with it,, so I decided to set everything up all over again as the Young Travelers of Hong Kong.
The aim of the blog didn’t change at the time. In fact, it has never changed, and never will – by recounting our own experiences with air travel, we strive to help fellow travelers make the best travel decisions.
While other bloggers write to talk about the beauty of miles and points, I’m still learning how to utilise them, and don’t have my whole schedule to use them as effectively, though I do plan to pursue such a career in the future. Rather, I try to focus on the fun of air travel, because I think I have enough to say on that level.
I’d like to think that I’ve reviewed my past experiences pretty extensively, across different flight reviews, airport lounge reviews and hotel reviews, as well as periodical live updates of my travels. Feel free to pay these links a visit should you want to follow along with some of my travels.
If you’re interested in my photos, feel free to visit my Instagram page.
If you have any questions, concerns or requests, feel free to contact Alvin at alvin@thealviator.com.