"If you need anything at all please just as one of the team who will
be happy to assist you. We invited to sit back, relax and enjoy the flight."
Good morning and welcome back to another video. Today we'll be flying from Auckland New Zealand
to Singapore via Sydney and in today's and in today's video we'll experience the first leg
from Auckland to Sydney with Air New Zealand on one of their 777 in economy class and
this is the first time I'll be flying this route so it's going to be a new experience
for the books. The flight is set to depart at 9:00am and it's just about 7:00am
in the morning now/ So come along should be a great day I think it's about 3.5 hours over
to Sydney and yeah we'll experience the wonderful hospitality of Air New Zealand as we go from A to B.
We Begin outside the international terminal on a fairly cool morning.
The airport has a healthy buzz with passengers checking-in for the morning flights.
Generally for international flights arriving at the airport three hours
prior to departure is my standard rule but Air New Zealand's website recommended two so on
this particular day I went with that... which I soon found out wasn't the smartest move.
EE: We arrived back in Auckland late last night from Wellington.
By the time we arrived at the check-in area the line for the kiosk was well into the corridor.
The initial line, though long, wasn't terrible and soon we were at the kiosk
where I successfully tapped my way through the check-in process until the last screen.
Instead of a boarding pass being printed we are rewarded with this screen... perfect =/
The customer service desk is small located in the middle of the sea of kiosks.
The line for the service desk snaked its way through the sea but at the same time
blocking other passengers from using other kiosks. The line was disorganized at times
with people (late for their flights) jumping in and took an hour... an hour to reach the service desk.
Once we were called over there was no greeting and the agent was having a conversation with another
employee. We stood there for two minutes while they were having their meeting before she even asked
for our passports and even then their conversation still continued with minimal interactions with us.
Overall it was a poor check-in experience. I wasn't pleased one bit.
"So you already checked-in online" "Ya, it said to come here from the kiosk." "Yeah..."
"Do you have any bags to check in?" "No."
"So it did not print out any boarding passes?" "No, that's why I'm here" -_-
All right so I just made it through the passport control and the security but that check-in was an
absolute mess. You know what those kiosks …those kiosks the program has to be able to identify
at the start whether it can facilitate the whole check-in or not. I touched my way through
the screens and then it says 'okay you have to visit the customer service representative or
the agent' or whatever so you have to stand into another line. And then for Air New Zealand there
customer service area is in the centre of all the kiosks. So you're standing in this line that
kind of weaves its way around other kiosks and blocks other kiosks from being used from
other people and the line went really slow and eventually get to the the desk and the
lady is having a conversation with another employee about whatever.
So and then we're just standing there like waiting for them to finish their conversation like it's
great they're gonna have a conversation but I kind of want to get my boarding pass.
And I think what happened was is since my itinerary has a flight to Tokyo they want to make
sure that I have my vaccine paper because Japan still need three vaccines to get into the country.
So got our ticket and it was fine but you know...
...one reason I guess you know people don't like flying is all the hassle and the check-in is the
first thing you really encounter in an airport so if you have a bad experience there sometimes it
maybe sets the mood for the rest of the day. But you know what it's all done. It took an hour to
get through but it's over with I'm still looking forward to to a great flight and I'm sure the rest
of the day is going to be much better than the check-in so I'm excited to get on board :) And now
we really only have about 10 minutes before we jump on board so we'll head to the gate and uh
do that I don't think... I don't even think there's time for coffee right now.
From the few moments that I had the terminal gate side past the duty free appeared to
have an open fresh feel.l I thought the design of the ceiling is a nice touch.
There's a healthy selection of shops and restaurants and I would have loved to spend
some time here had I not been in such a rush. On top of the escalators there is the Bistro Box
and I ended up having enough time to grab a quick coffee before we jump on board.
EE: Since we were in a rush, I could get a view of the plane in AKL. All outer pictures of the plane are from Sydney!
Today we're departing from gate 3. This gate kind of reminded me of Taoyuan International
Airport in Taipei where the gates are accessed by an escalator down a floor from the main
terminal corridor. By the time we arrived boarding wasn't full swing and to be honest the long line
provided the opportunity to catch my breath and enjoy my coffee before jumping on board.
This was a full flight so I was unable to change
my seat at check-in. Thus will be at seat 40C for our flight over to Sydney.
EE: The passenger in 40A is from Toronto who lives in Australia. Small world! She was very kind and didn't mind my filming.
Today we're on one of the six Boeing triple 777-300 which is an Air New Zealand's fleet for
our flight to Australia. This eight-year-old aircraft has three classes with 346 seats.
The premium economy is notably large housing 54 seats. There are 11 lavatories on board
and Air New Zealand Skycouch is installed and Rows 39-46 ,49 and 50.
The economy cabin is bright, spacious and inviting on these daytime flights,
the bold IFE screens and dark seats provide contrast to the otherwise bright cabin. Speaking
of IFE screens do note that they are installed on the bulkheads for those bulkhead row seats.
There are 10 seats per row in a 3-4-3 seating configuration. Rows 34 and 35 offer paired
seats by the window along with the last three rows due to the tapering design of the aircraft.
And here's a glance at the seats in premium economy. Looks pretty comfy doesn't it.
Back in economy, the seats are black with a headrest and black anti-macassar and you can
see the headrest is adjustable. We are in row 40 which is a row with a Skycoach and you can see
the extra button on the armrest which releases the extension for the couch. The Skycouch is available
for long-haul flights so today it provides no added benefit beyond one extra inch of legroom.
Seatback is slightly different on the triple sevens compared to what we've experienced
on the Dreamliner's. Above the seatback table is an easily adjustable IFE screen. A pair of net pockets
which I prefer over the traditional fabric line pockets provide some storage for personal items.
Seat pitch in the Skycouch Rows is 32 inches while 31 inches elsewhere. But regardless some leg
space is used for the electrical system. The power outlet located above the pocket is a clever choice.
The ergonomic design makes it easily accessible even if you have a short cable
and it's not as awkward as when the socket is near the floor or worse - under your seat.
and above you have the reading light sans (without) the air control.
EE: Speaking of Skycouch, ANZ will install sleep pods 'SKynest" on some Dreamliner's. No plans for their 777.
Air New Zealand offers free Wi-Fi on its 777. I managed to connect to it this time and it
was reliable and perfectly acceptable for texting, email, Google Drive, social media, posting images.
Speaking of posting images, if you are a new viewer I invite you to subscribe for
continued Aviation and travel related content and to check me out on some of these other platforms
where I post and share my thoughts about my trips. And a big shout out to all those
who already subscribed! I enjoyed reading your comments and the Insight you provide :)
Soon after we got off the ground water was offered to wishing participants. Breakfast service began
about an hour into the flight. For breakfast there was one hot and one cold option each served with
a small berry pastry. I went with the hot item which was a frittata served with a tomato salsa.
The salsa added that necessary tangy bite and it paired well with the frittata.
And the cold dish was a muesli and I tried a few bites the berry compote added a bit
of sweetness to the dish but I was happy I went with the hot option on this flight.
The only issue I had was being a southpaw seated in a 'C' seat. #lefthandedproblems.
To complement the meal I enjoyed a Steinlager Classic!
So cheers to New Zealand! Thank you for a lovely week, I look forward to returning!
In addition to the Wi-Fi there is the IFE which was equally as responsive as the one
on their Dreamliners with an easy to follow user interface. It had a nice selection of local and
international content I settled on 'Educators' a New Zealand comedy for the majority of the
flight. I highly recommend to give it a view. There is also Kia Ora the inflight
magazine which are located in the bulkheads. I picked up an issue on my previous flight.
and here's a look at one of the lavatories. No fancy wall design but I appreciated the
soft lighting - a welcome change from that standard fluorescent white light.
And I can't forget the soft rock playing from above. Prior to preparing to land
the cabin attendants handed out little candies to all the passengers. Nice touch!
Airport issues aside, I really enjoy the hospitality on board both my Air New Zealand
flights. Staff were friendly, and enthusiastic and did a great job. but I think the check-in system
has to be addressed and looked at. It was an unpleasant experience to say the least.
I could only imagine how much more stressful it would be for someone who doesn't fly often or
someone who is influenced in English as it would add another layer of confusion to the situation.
This was my first of a three flight itinerary from Auckland to Tokyo via Sydney and Singapore.
The cost came out to $1148NZD for this one-way trip.
All right so that's an Air New Zealand's flight from Auckland to Sydney in economy
class and check-in issues aside it was a nice flight smooth flight over and there's
nice breakfast to tie meal for a couple hours which I really enjoyed. And overall had a nice
relaxing time. Thanks for watching let me know what you thought about Air New Zealand's economy
class from Auckland to Sydney and thanks for watching and I'll catch you in the next episode :)