(upbeat electronic music)
(machine whirs) (static buzzes)
- All dressed up,
flying one of the most colourful Dreamliner,
going to Tahiti today.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
(scanner beeps)
How's this? Face-to-face to Dreamliner nose.
This aeroplane has a name, Bora Bora.
Earlier there was a guy, came to me saying,
"Are you from Tahiti?"
Oh, I think, maybe I look like one, right?
- [Camera Person] Yep. - Welcome onboard, sir.
Thank you very much.
That will be straight on your right.
- Yeah. - [Attendant 1] Thank you.
- Where's my flower?
- Oh, yes. (Sam laughs)
When you arrive in Tahiti, you're going to have it!
(upbeat electronic music continues)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
- Ia orana, everybody.
Welcome onboard this Tahitian Dreamliner.
My name is Fabri Soyano, I'm the Captain of the flight.
My First Officer today, Mr. Arnold Cho.
- [Sam] Say, "Ia orana". - Ia orana!
- Okay, we're going to leave today to Tahiti.
Flight time four hours and 35 minutes.
Flight number 3900.
And we should have very nice weather to destination.
- I think Tahiti is in the middle of nowhere,
on the middle of Pacific Ocean,
far away from every continent.
- [Captain] Yeah. - Once we depart Auckland,
it's completely transocean.
- It's completely transocean, only water.
- [Sam] Only water? - [Captain] Only water.
- [Sam] Until we land? - [Captain] Until we land.
We have couple of islands from here to
Tahiti.
We have Fiji, on the left side,
and Tonga, but that's it.
- Now, perhaps the craziest thing flying this route,
from New Zealand to Tahiti,
is we're going to gain a day
because we're going to arrive, actually, yesterday.
(upbeat electronic music)
I came down the premium economy
to check out all the colourful stuff they have.
It's very colourful.
The atmosphere,
the cabin decor,
make you feel instantly relaxed going on holiday.
This is the premium economy.
Let me check out the recline.
- Yeah, we are almost the same!
You can try it. (laughs) - Yeah.
I like this shirt,
but you are cooler. - I like yours.
- You have actually real tattoo.
- Yes. See I don't have a tattoo here. Yeah.
- You are going to do one in Haiti?
- Mm, I'll think about it.
- Ah, yeah. Nice! - Yeah
It's really quite different to all the other aeroplanes .
Check out all these art they pain on the bulkheads.
I think these are all the landscape at Bora Bora.
I remember this is the volcano.
After boarding, about 20 minutes sitting here,
I have started to noticed the pattern.
There's lots of patterned design on the pillow here,
on this duvet.
You see all the pattern here, painted?
And of course, on my shirt.
I think in the South Pacific,
they like to be very colourful, and lots of pattern as well.
I'm just showing all the products here.
But really, I think these days,
my video is not much of a review anymore.
I think it's more about
my personal travel and aviation experience.
- This is the voucher for the wifi.
It's just 10 megabytes,
and it will work just after departure, okay?
After takeoff. - [Sam] Free wifi?
- Yeah. - 10 megabytes?
- Yeah. - [Sam] Okay.
(Attendant laughs) No streaming, no live.
(plane announcement broadcasts)
- Excuse me, sir. Can you wear your shoulder belt, please?
Thank you. - [Sam] Oh, my shoulder belt.
Thank you. - Thank you.
(plane announcement broadcasts)
(propeller whirring)
(Captain speaks indistinctly)
(aeroplane rumbling)
(navigation guide speaks indistinctly)
- Rotate it.
Is it straight? - [First Officer] Yep.
(plane announcement broadcasts)
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
- Ia orana, manava, welcome aboard.
- [Sam] This is for here?
- [Attendant 2] Yeah. - Okay.
- If you are married.
Have to put it for the heart side.
- [Sam] Oh? - Left, heart side
- Smells very nice.
This is really interesting. She said,
"If you're single, you on this side.
If you're married, you on this side."
All the single people can see each other, right? Funny.
- Are you ready for lunch? - [Sam] Oh, yes.
- We're having a salmon with couscous and vegetables
or chicken with polenta.
What is your choice? - [Sam] I'll have a salmon,
yeah. - Salmon?
Have you made your mind for your drinks?
We have choices of red wine,
white wine.
We have the Chablis or the Chateau de Facade.
It's a sweet wine.
- [Sam] Okay. Maybe, I'll have a look at label.
- [Attendant 3] Okay, sure. - [Sam] Okay.
- First wine is the Chablis.
Oops, sorry (laughs). - [Sam] Oh, yeah.
The Chablis, yeah.
- [Attendant 3] You can try this one.
- [Sam] Okay, I have the Chablis. Yeah.
- I'll let you have a taste first.
- [Sam] Sure.
- [Attendant 3] Here you are. - Thank you.
It's very nice.
It's from France, right?
- Yes, correct.
It's French wine. - [Sam] Yeah.
There was no welcome drink during the boarding.
But after takeoff, they serve a very big tray of food.
There was five course all on one single tray.
There were a starter, a salad, main course,
dessert, and cheese.
A very, very heavy meal tray.
A very good taste too.
Feel like a bit of Pacific fare.
Salmon, fish, chicken, and couscous.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
It looks like a 70% full flight,
and the cabin crew showed me the meal here.
It's only one choice.
It looks like a black bean sauce chicken with rice,
pasta, salad, and the dessert for the four-hour flight.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
When I came down,
he was taking picture of me.
And now, it turned out, - Yeah.
- he watched my YouTube video. - Mhm.
- Yannick, right?
- Yeah. - Yeah.
- Yannick.
- And how is the comfort on the flight?
- Comfortable.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
- Actually, I do feel this leg room
is better than other airlines,
right? - [Yannick] You're right.
- [Sam] There's a little bit more.
- [Yannick] You're right. - [Sam] Yeah.
It is a little bit narrow
because 787, they are 3, 3, 3. - Yeah.
- But the leg room a little bit better than...
- Mhm. - Because it's a long flight.
- Yeah. - Yeah.
You're lucky, you have a whole row.
You're sleeping good. - I'm so lucky.
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
- We still have about two hours until we land in Tahiti.
And as the sun's fading down, I'm going to take a nap.
It's a little bit narrow here,
but I can actually push down this armrest, here,
to create a bit more leg room.
During the flight, I was thinking,
why would they have a 2, 2, 2 configuration
on a Dreamliner?
It's not the latest individual aisle access,
you have to hop over somebody.
But again,
I thought about they're actually a holiday carrier.
They're not competing, business carrier,
with a full-suite door for business.
They're just transporting holiday-maker
and also, Tahitian Islander to a few destination.
Perhaps, that's why they have this configuration.
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
The time difference between Auckland and Tahiti's 22 hours.
Because Auckland is one of the earliest time zone.
And then, we cross the dateline,
we gain a day, and Tahiti's one of the last time zone,
so this is so interesting.
I'm actually gaining time on this flight.
(plane whirring)
- [Navigation Guide] 100,
50,
40,
30,
20,
10,
five.
(plane thuds) (gravel crunches)
- [Captain] Great job.
(crickets chirping)
(plane rushing)
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
- What's goodbye in in your language?
Goodbye? - It's "mauruuru".
- Mauruuru. - Mauruuru.
- Mauruuru. Bye bye. - Bye bye. Mauruuru (laughs)
Bye bye! Mauruuru!
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
(Tahitian band plays)
- That was such a nice welcome, right?
I think every flight land, they do this singing here.
It makes you feel special.
- What a beautiful welcome.
Oh my God! Another one!
Wow!
Muah, muah!
Thank you.
This is such a welcome gift.
Look at this. Love it!
Such a welcome arrival at Tahiti.
(air whooshes)
(planes whirring)
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
Bruno is our friend, here, in Tahiti.
He's showing us all the spotting points.
Really is a paradise here. The fence running low.
You can get beautiful rotation shot.
(plane whirring)
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music continues)
Just came here. (waves crashing)
The black sand beach of Tahiti.
An incredible backdrop in the background.
How is the sand like?
- [Bruno] Very, very thin, actually.
No? - [Sam] Very thin sand?
- [Bruno] Yeah, yeah.
Very thin sand. - [Sam] Ooh, very fine.
- [Bruno] Let's put it in the light.
Very thin. - [Sam] I see. Wow, wow.
- [Bruno] It goes everywhere. (laughs)
- [Sam] This is a Red Snapper. - [Bruno] Oh.
I don't know, we have different things.
- [Sam] Wow. Good one. Good catch.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
Trekking in the woods,
like a forest expedition inside Tahiti.
We're going up to see a waterfall.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
(waterfall splashes)
(upbeat electronic music continues)
- In Tahiti, at Papeete Airport,
there is an aviation-themed restaurant.
Look at all these decor.
Windows cut-out, vintage poster, and a local beer.
Cheers!
(upbeat electronic music continues)
And the waitress, the ladies here, dressed in aviators.
We have first officer, captain, managers, everybody. Cool.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
This morning I'm departing the paradise, going back,
and I met a little fan who came out to the airport.
It's 7:00 AM right now.
- Manna Ricky. - Yes.
- And he gave me this really beautiful necklace.
Thank you so much for that.
- It's nice to meet you. - Thank you.
Thank you so much. - And have a nice trip back to
Hawaii. Have a...
- I just want to say, this is a great man from Tahiti.
He's been looking after us.
Showed us all the spotting points,
and very patient, and take care of us here.
This trip, without him, it would not be a success.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
Wow!
I have the whole lounge to myself
because we are late.
Everybody already went to boarding.
I was doing some plane spotting through the window.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
This is where we came from.
Walking back onto the aeroplane.
I'm sad. Leaving the paradise.
(upbeat electronic music continues)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
(suitcase clacking) - [Attendant 4] Hello.
Ia orana. - Ia orana.
- [Attendant 5] Hello! - Welcome aboard.
- Okay. B, by the window sill.
Please enjoy your flight. Mauruuru!
(upbeat electronic music continues)
- Welcome aboard to this flight
from Tahiti to Auckland, to New Zealand.
We are three pilots in the day, today in the cockpit.
My name is Olivier.
This is my First Officer, Jean Marier,
and here, Instructor Pilot, Gilles.
We're almost ready to go,
and flight time will be five hours,
should be straightforward flight.
We're going to takeoff on Runway 22 in Tahiti.
On the left-hand side we have a nice view of Tahiti.
On the right-hand side, is going to be our neighbour island.
It's Moorea.
- I had a short, but a sweet stay.
You don't want to miss out next week
because I'm going to show you what I did here.
I was internally island flying to Bora Bora. Paradise found.
I also observed a couple things here.
The hotel rooms are all full here.
The accommodation's limited, and they hit a ceiling,
so there's no more air services can be increased
to accommodate all the tourists to come to Tahiti.
Having said that,
the tourism sector is finally on a boom again after Covid,
so there are multiple inter-island flight
to Bora Bora every day.
And I hope to be back next year, again.
I see that your name is Kaipolani.
- Yes.
- Is there means something in Polynesian?
- Actually, it's a Hawaiian name.
- [Sam] Oh. - It's actually, Kaipolani,
means "love of heaven".
(plane announcement broadcasts)
- I think I just saw you in the safety video.
Isn't that you in there, in that safety video?
- Did did you watch it? - I did.
- Yes, it's me. - [Sam] I caught you there.
- So you better watch it,
and fasten your seatbelt. (seat belt clicks)
And now we're good to go.
- [Sam] Good to go.
(upbeat electronic music)
(propellers whirring)
(plane announcement broadcasts)
(plane whirring)
- Test, test.
(plane whirring)
(navigation guide speaking indistinctly)
- Approaching.
(plane whirring)
(Captain speaks in French)
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
- What would you like?
- I'll try croissant and one this one.
What is it called again?
- We call this firi firi.
- Firi firi. - Firi firi.
It's made with coconut milk.
- Oh, okay.
- So I got Tahiti donuts.
- Yes. Like Tahiti donuts.
That's right. - Okay.
(plane whirring)
- After takeoff, the ladies change from their uniform.
Now, they're in Tahitian dress,
and you have three colours. - Yes, we have.
So we have the purple, red, and the
yellow.
'Cause it looks like sunshine,
the love, and the beauty.
You've been to Huahine?
- Huahine? - Yes.
- I had a stop there - [Attendant 4] Okay.
- [Sam] on the way to Bora Bora.
- [Attendant 4] Okay.
- [Sam] You guys will see the next video
on the way to Huahine.
It's very beautiful.
It's an island. (loudspeaker chimes)
- Yes, it's an island.
It's the Island of Women,
where you have the beautiful women,
and we are from this island.
Our ancestors live there.
- My grandma is from Huahine.
I have a part of my family living in Huahine,
and I really found that when the Moana movie came out,
there were a lot of similarities.
Because when you stand in the village of Fare,
and you look at the mountain,
you can see a pregnant woman laying down,
and her knees is the highest mountain of Huahine.
So if you go to Huahine, don't miss it.
- Yes. - [Attendant 6] Yeah.
- It's really amazing.
- You know, I noticed, actually,
the flight attendant on Air Tahiti,
they like to dress them in pearls.
- Yes. - The black pearls,
the famous pearls from Tahitian...
If you see all three of them has...
Actually, have pearls on their neck.
- Black pearls. - Yeah, black pearls.
Tahitian black pearls.
(upbeat electronic music)
(plane whirring)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)
- [Navigation Guide] 100,
50,
40,
30,
20,
10,
five.
(plane rumbling)
(upbeat electronic music)
(upbeat electronic music fades out)