Air New Zealand Air Points - Paid upgrade to Biz from Y+?

Travelling return to NZ with the other half in late March 07 on NZ5/6. We're booked into Premium Economy, but I was wondering if it's possible (and economically feasible) to upgrade to Biz class before departure, assuming there's availability.

The husband has a dodgy back and loathes travel; the PEcon seats will help, but it would be nice to surprise him with a lie-flat seat. I asked the ANZ reservation agent at booking; all she would divulge was that it was "expensive" but wouldn't give any details. :confused:

Appreciate any info.

I asked the ANZ reservation agent at booking; all she would divulge was that it was "expensive" but wouldn't give any details. :confused:

Appreciate any info.

Many moons ago I asked the same question of a NZ res agent, LAX ckin agent and AKL ckin agent. All three quoted me a price that by sheer coincidence was the fare difference between Y and J.
When your friendly res agent said expensive, that is why.

I wouldn't be too worried if you didn't manage an upgrade. My wife also has a dodgy back and we recently travelled AKL-LAX-AKL on the new flat bed seats. While I thought they were great, my wife found them very hard and uncomfortable, so much so that she only managed to get intermittent periods of sleep, in spite of having taken a sleeping pill. In her words, it was "like trying to sleep on an ironing board", and it took her a day or so to get over each flight. She much prefers the older type business seats in the 767s.

I wouldn't be too worried if you didn't manage an upgrade. My wife also has a dodgy back and we recently travelled AKL-LAX-AKL on the new flat bed seats. While I thought they were great, my wife found them very hard and uncomfortable, so much so that she only managed to get intermittent periods of sleep, in spite of having taken a sleeping pill. In her words, it was "like trying to sleep on an ironing board", and it took her a day or so to get over each flight. She much prefers the older type business seats in the 767s.

Feedback that the lie-flat seats are rather 'firm' has been taken onboard by NZ. You'll be glad to know thicker pillows and thicker, softer mattress pad have been sourced and should be introduced network-wide by early to mid November.

Fair enough - thanks to all for replying!

Feedback that the lie-flat seats are rather 'firm' has been taken onboard by NZ. You'll be glad to know thicker pillows and thicker, softer mattress pad have been sourced and should be introduced network-wide by early to mid November.Nice. I have had no problem sleeping on the new seats, but the bedding is a bit insubstantial. In particular, some way to prevent the pad moving around and bunching up would be fantastic.

justakiwi

I found it more comfortable to sleep on top on the bedding and asking for a blanket to put on top (still plenty warm enough for me)

Jeff

I found it more comfortable to sleep on top on the bedding and asking for a blanket to put on top (still plenty warm enough for me)

Jeff

I do the same, but mostly because I find the duvet just too warm for sleeping, given the ambient cabin temperature. However, I now make a point of requesting the travel rug as soon as I board - on one recent flight, the FA frowned as if it was a most unusual request and said "I'll have to see". Thankfully, one was found, but it makes me suspect that they are not carrying travel rugs for BP pax as a matter of course.

Feedback that the lie-flat seats are rather 'firm' has been taken onboard by NZ. You'll be glad to know thicker pillows and thicker, softer mattress pad have been sourced and should be introduced network-wide by early to mid November.

.... and have they? Feedback from anyone?

I would also like to know if any improvements have happened to make the beds a little softer. For our December trip to the US, because of the hard beds on NZ my wife and I ended up going via SYD to connect with the UA flight to LAX. This gave us both a good night's sleep and we collected tons of UA miles, but the downside was the food and the IFE, neither of which were in the same league as the NZ product, plus, as you would expect, travelling JFK-LAX-SYD-AKL on our homeward journey, our bags took quite a bit longer than us to complete the trip home. (The other side effect was that when we arrived in Sydney on the outward trip, the UA flight to LAX for that day was cancelled due to a malfunctioning PA system, so we spent an unexpected night in a Sydney hotel)
So now we are in a bit of a quandry as we contemplate booking for our upcoming trip to NYC in May.

Now I've heard it all!

A passenger choosing to detour from Auckland to Sydney to pick up a United flight, because they think they will sleep better in their Business Class seat than the Air NZ Business Premier bed?

What a strange world we live in!

Strange but true!

While the new BP bed is great for me, my wife, who suffers from a painful back and hips, had found the firmness of the bed quite uncomfortable on previous flights, so it was for her benefit that we took the UA flight. And it worked - she slept much better, and felt fine the following day which is also important - and is why we hope that ANZ will introduce a thicker mattress pad for the benefit of people who suffer from sensitive backs.