Air New Zealand Premium Economy Cabin (New) by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Air New Zealand Economy Cabin (New) by
Kaell116, on Flickr
The other thing you notice is that everything is shiny and new (but you expect that from a new aircraft) but the colour scheme just stands out more in my opinion compared to the old. One thing that I did remember from what I had seen online was that the Toilets all had some sort of pictures in them of some sort, the two in the business cabin both had pictures like someone was looking in a window (along with a real window) but the ones at the back of the PE cabin had the great designs. I did something I swore I would never, ever do in my life as an Avgeek. I became a Laviator. I took photos of the toilets (I swear it was for the photos).
A Chandalier in the Toilet! (Painted on the Wall) by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Bookcase in the Toilet by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Back to the flight. As we climbed to our cruise altitude of 31000 ft (thank you Captain for that bit of information) the crew just seemed to be running back and forth constantly but not really doing much. There was no pre dinner beverage service at all, and for the first 30 minutes of the flight, all we got was a hot towel. It was then a good hour into the flight that the service even looked like it was going to start. Eventually I got my starter before everyone else and that was a almost 1h 15 mins into the flight and before I was even offered a drink!
My Starter - Vege Soup with Sour Dough Bread by
Kaell116, on Flickr
I had decided to be a bit complicated and try and have the soup they offered as the Express Dine option as a Starter (or at least a small bowl of it). This was brought out to me on a tray well before everyone else. I felt a little bad. But it seemed that’s how this service was going to progress. Eventually everyone else got their starters and a drink but I was skipped on the drink service for some reason. This was going to be the story of my dinner service pretty much. I felt like I had to ask for things several times over. I did however finally get my drink and it was time to tick off the first thing on my list.
Trip List Item #2 – Drink a glass of Champagne on a Long Haul Flight.
My First Glass of Champagne on a Long Haul Flight! by
Kaell116, on Flickr
The champagne was Piper Heidsick and the small weird looking flute glass they used was perfect for what I wanted. A small glass to really start this trip off (all the rest of the food was going to be enough of an indulgence). Just as my mains was being served I was offered a refill and went back to a trusty companion, sparkling water. But unfortunately as usual, it was forgotten. I finished my main and was offered dessert before I asked for the water again. The self service on the IFE was not even working either so that was not a good sign.
My Main - Steak, cooked perfectly! by
Kaell116, on Flickr
The Signature Ice Cream Sundae with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, Pear Sauce & Caramel Popcorn by
Kaell116, on Flickr
The food was great, the soup was to die for, the Steak main was great. The ice cream sundae dessert. O god yes! Mal is going to have to work off this flight when he gets to Vancouver. But to be honest, who cares, Ive earned it all right. With dinner in my belly, It was time to get comfy and good time to as minority report was winding up.
I put the seat into bed mode and got comfy. The full flat seat was great and the double thick mattress pad that was so raved about in reviews certainly does help, but the blanket is thin and the cabin felt super cold so that didn’t help. Unfortunately I was just to amped to even get any sleep, so figured I may as well just watch some tv. I decided to try out one of new features of the IFE and that is the ipod connectivity. Thankfully the cables are free to all premium class guests. The in seat ordering worked for this, well, it allowed me to order. The cable however, failed to arrive. So I got off my butt and got it myself the old fashioned way.
Air New Zealand Business Premier Seat in Bed Mode (New) by
Kaell116, on Flickr
View from Bed Mode by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Watching Videos from my Ipod by
Kaell116, on Flickr
This seemed to be the story of the service. Really haphazard. Some crew just could not do enough to please you, yet others seemed like it was to much trouble and really hard to get started on a conversation. But at this point it was to early to make a judgement as it was only 3 hours into a 12 hour flight. I settled in and watched some tv and then with an episode of tv that I had brought with me done, I moved onto writing up this trip report with a fresh cup of hot coffee in hand. The seat belt sign came on around this time due to some lumpy action and outside the window a lovely sunrise was beginning as we progressed further north. The seatbelt sign stayed on about an hour or so. I tossed and turned on the seat/bed for several hours watching movies and trying to make myself comfortable and or sleepy.
Mid Night snack, Shortbread & Coffee by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Writing my Trip Report at 38000ft by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Sunrise somewhere over the Pacific by
Kaell116, on Flickr
About the 5 hour mark I think I shut my eyes for a little bit and may have gotten a light sleep for about an hour… maybe. I am not quite sure. Eventually I just started to come alive around about the 3 hours to go mark, I was planning on getting some breakfast about this point to try and resync my body clock but it seemed that the crew decided it was time for everyone to start stirring. The mood lighting came on and started to go through its morning wake up routine. This meant people were getting up and it meant for me, time to make myself feel a touch human (one of those things you need to do on a flight), so I waited in line for a bathroom so I could clean my teeth.
oops someones looking in the toilet window by
Kaell116, on Flickr
The Real Window in the Toilet by
Kaell116, on Flickr
View out the Toilet Window by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Wake up Mood Lighting by
Kaell116, on Flickr
Wake Up Mood Lighting by
Kaell116, on Flickr