Hi,
The Check In terminal was rather quiet when I arrived at Auckland Airport.
There is a pretty secluded Air New Zealand Premium Check In area to which I had access because of my Star Alliance Gold status.
I was quickly served by a friendly agent and took the direct elevator from that area up to the security fast lane. So very quick I was airside.
It was already dark outside and I tried to catch some nice views of the waiting aircraft including the 777 that was scheduled to bring me to LAX.
Next I headed to the Air New Zealand lounge on the upper floor.
The lounge is huge and offers plenty of different seating options.
This includes a nice outdoor terrace.
There is a nice bar as well:
During my stay the lounge was very empty and quiet which is nice before such a longhaul flight.
Some views on the nice food selection.
I only had a small dinner.
Starting my way to the gate:
Boarding started with a slight delay but happened in an orderly way with priority sequences respected fine.
The friendly crew welcomed me onboard and I passed the nice looking and huge Premium Economy cabin taking my aisle seat more to the back.
A nice and big pillow plus blanket was already waiting at the seat.
Same for a small amenity kit in a paper box. It had nice contents though including some hand lotion which is not typical for Premium Economy.
The menu was also waiting at the seat.
The seat itself was very comfortable for Premium Economy including nice pattern, very good pitch and a helpful leg rest.
The flight ended up very full and we started our pushback about 30 minutes behind schedule. Flight time was scheduled to take 11 hours 10 minutes this night across the Pacific Ocean.
Unfortunately not welcome service was offered on the ground at all which is sad for a Premium Economy product. A welcome drink or hot towel would have been a great gesture.
We climbed into the dark skies and about 30 minutes after departure the drinks trolley made its appearance for an aperitif service. I had a Gin & Tonic. Sadly no snacks like crackers or nuts were served with that drink.
About 15 minutes later the dinner trolley appeared and I was friendly served my choice of chicken. Nice warm bread was offered from a basket plus more drinks. The whole meal was nicely presented and tasted very good. Only a cloth napkin would have been nicer than the used (still high quality) paper napkin.
Bread and wine refills were offered by the crew which was a nice and friendly gesture. I felt well taken care.
Once the trays were cleared, I was asked for after dinner drinks and I decided to finish my meal with a nice cup of tea.
I managed to get several hours of quite good sleep - the comfortable seat for sure helped.
The lavatories on Air New Zealand feature a nice wall decoration.
About two hours out of LAX the cabin lights were turned on and nice hot towels were distributed.
Next a nice and tasty warm breakfast was offered.
Croissants and drinks were offered proactively several times. The orange juice tasted very well and like freshly squeezed.
We started our descend into LAX and landed exactly on time.
Before landing nice farewell candies were offered from a basket.
Thanks for reading,
FlyAlex
Very solid Premium Economy product. That extra comfort really makes a difference on such a long TPAC flight. While this seat is more "generic" and no where near as innovative as their first generation W produce, the Spaceseat in 2-2-2, it's probably a lot more comfortable in this more traditional layout.
The lounge looks really nice. More lounges should have outdoor terraces like this. Especially when you're about to get on or off a 12-15h TPAC flight, it's nice to get some fresh air between flights if connecting.
Thanks for sharing!