Tremendous food and wine. Super comfortable seats. And, best of all, some of the nicest crew I’ve ever spent time in the air with.
My wife and I recently flew from San Francisco to Auckland and then on to Sydney with Air New Zealand. We got upgraded from Premium Economy to Business Premier about a half-hour before boarding, and were understandably thrilled.
Business Premier for long-haul flights features wide, comfortable seats. We were flying at night so there was soft, purple-pink mood lighting that was very relaxing.
We were given a glass of sparkling wine (I could’ve had water or orange juice, but who turns down sparkling wine?) when we sat down, as well as a nice pink and black amenity case with a toothbrush, an eyeshade for sleeping, lip balm and nifty socks. They also have Aotea skin care products; a Kawakawa Balm with manuka oil, kawakawa and beeswax and a Harakeke seed oil and manuka water hand and body cream.
The products are made using native New Zealand flora, grown sustainably on Aotea (Great Barrier Island), and inspired by traditional Māori herbal practices.
Long-haul Business Premier class on Air New Zealand. Chris Tarpey/Air New Zealand photo
We’d had a problem with a lost item in the United Lounge just prior to boarding, and the crew on our flight was nothing short of sensational; calling everyone they could think of to see what they could do to help and providing constant assurances they were all over it. As it turned out, we were too close to take off to retrieve what we had misplaced, but we felt very much appreciated by the crew, and that was terrific. A big THANK YOU to Beau, Jacki, Dandan, Heidi and Dan.
Shortly after take-off, one of the many flight attendants up front came by with some warm nuts, and poured me a fabulous, richly-flavoured Pinot Noir from New Zealand. Wowza; one of the best I’ve ever sipped.
I chose a meal of short rib, with veggies, as well as a very good, sweet corn and saffron soup.
Air New Zealand Business Premier also offers lie-flat seats with thick, comfortable blankets, a memory foam mattress and two full-size pillows. There’s also an ottoman footrest that doubles as guest seating; a very cool feature if you’re travelling with someone you know (or you’re sitting near someone you’d like to know.)
Here’s a link to an Air New Zealand Business Premier video
On this plane the attendants had to come and set up our lie-flat seat, something I haven’t seen before, but they did it quickly and I slept a good five hours overnight.
Long-haul Business Premier class on Air New Zealand. Chris Tarpey/Air New Zealand photo
Other Business Premier benefits
- Free standard seat selection
- Two pieces of carry on (up to 14kg in total, with one item weighing up to 10kg)
- Three pieces of checked luggage (up to 23kg each)
- A higher Airpoints Dollars and Status Points earn rate^
- Terrific in-flight seat maps with rich detail
We also had comfy, over-ear headphones with great sound. Air New Zealand doesn’t carry as much North American entertainment as a Canadian or American carrier does, so you might not see as many Hollywood films or TV shows as you might expect.
For breakfast I enjoyed a nice dish of scrambled eggs with sauteed onions, fingerling potatoes and spicy chorizo sausage. There also was oatmeal, bagels, waffles with fruit and first-rate coffee. I also enjoyed a taste of the waffles with apple, chia and blueberry compote, vanilla syrup and custard.
It was an 11-hour flight but it felt like a short hop from Toronto to Vancouver.
Our second flight was in what Air New Zealand calls “Flight Works Deluxe” class from Auckland to Sydney. It’s an interesting approach, in that you sit near the front in “regular” seats, but they leave the middle seat vacant in a three-by-three seating arrangement. The cabin crew was again engaging and helpful, and I had very good birchermuesli and a flaky, chocolate croissant.
Coming back we flew coach from Sydney to Auckland and were quite comfortable. We then flew Premium Economy from Auckland to San Francisco. Because we left Auckland late in the evening we were able to really take advantage of the seating, which provides a solid recline that’s a full 50% more than regular economy. I slept a good four to five hours on the way back to California.
Premium Economy with Air New Zealand gives you luxury leather seats, with generous armrests, a leg rest and extendable foot support.
Premium Economy class on Air New Zealand. Chris Tarpey/Air New Zealand photo
Other benefits include:
- More personal space
- Free standard seat select
- Two pieces of carry on (up to 15lb each)
- Two pieces of checked luggage (up to 50lb each)
- Complimentary meal and drinks from our Premium Economy menu
- A higher Airpoints Dollars and Status Points earn rate
The food and drinks were similar to what we enjoyed in business class on our way from San Francisco to New Zealand. For dinner I had the slow-cooked lamb (that type of thing seems to do well on airlines, I find) with Swiss chard, roasted parsnips and a quince reduction. Breakfast offerings include fresh fruit, pastries and yogurt, as well as (usually) a choice of corned beef hash with grain mustard cream sauce, scrambled egg and fried kale or waffles. I thought the latter were quite good.
Here’s a link to a video about Air New Zealand’s Premium Economy class
Air New Zealand doesn’t have a lounge at San Francisco International, but we were able to use the regular United lounge prior to departing on our California-Auckland flight, and then the super-premium Polaris lounge once we got our upgrade to business class. The food was excellent, and I enjoyed a great glass of Scotch whisky.
On the way home I was able to use my Star Alliance status to get us into the Air New Zealand lounge in Auckland. Not only was it spacious and bright, but there was great food; including Asian snacks, noodles, cheeses, New Zealand wines, and even a chef cooking up tasty, perfect lamb chops on an open grill. I’d never seen that in a lounge before.
All in all, a full two thumbs up for premium Air New Zealand service. If you’re flying to New Zealand or Australia, it’s a fabulous option.
