Five Nights of Doing Nothing at the Intercontinental Fiji Golf Resort and Spa
Five Nights of Doing Nothing at the Intercontinental Fiji Golf Resort and Spa
February 2014 - matthandy
Bliss – the view from my balcony
This Report Features The Following
- Fiji Airways A330 – Sydney to Nadi -
- Five Nights At The Intercontinental Fiji Golf Resort and Spa –
Including the pool, beach, restaurants and bar
- Fiji Airways B737 – Nadi to Sydney -
Background
Welcome to my 25th trip report on Flyertalk!
As some of you may know, I recently moved back to my home, the UK, after living and working in Sydney for the last three and a half years. I made the difficult decision towards the end of 2013 with a plan to moving back at the start of April 2014. I handed my notice in at work and finished on the 31st of January giving me two whole months to do whatever I liked. I decided that I should go on a bit of tour of Australia and also look at places that were accessible from Australia that I wouldn’t normally fly to from the UK. One of these is Fiji.
I have been to Fiji before (see here) and very much enjoyed myself. However the weather wasn't that good, the resort was busy and I only had a couple of nights there due to work commitments. So this time I needed to have a longer stay.
When I went before I thought that the Hilton was very nice but I wasn't too thrilled with the beach (lack of) so this time I wanted to stay somewhere that had a nice beach attached. A bit of research led me to the Intercontinental Fiji Golf Resort and Spa which is located at Natadola Beach in the south west of the main island, about an hour from Nadi. A quick browse of the site and I'd booked myself into a Garden View for five nights. The resort looked amazing and the plan was basically to plan nothing. If I wanted to spend all of my time at the resort so be it. If I wanted to do some day trips then that was ok too. I'd worked hard and I felt as though I deserved some relaxation time.
Flights were booked with Fiji Airways although I could have flown with Virgin and I think Jetstar, however, I was keen to try out the new A330 which had started on the Sydney route in mid-2013. Due to the timings I wasn't able to get it on the way back unfortunately. The total cost including ground transfers was $1950 AUD.
Sydney to Nadi
My flight left Sydney at 1.45pm which meant a relaxing morning at home getting everything ready. I didn't need to pack a huge amount and just took a small suitcase for the trip.
As usual I decided to take the train to the airport from my local station, Museum. I love this station as it reminds me very much of the old stations on the London Underground. The train to the airport took 20 minutes or so and once at the International Terminal (1) I made my way to the Fiji Airways check in desks. There was a reasonable queue and it took me 20-30 minutes to check in. I asked the chap behind the desk if any paid upgrades to Business Class were available. Initially he said yes but then after some keyboard tapping and a phone call he apologised and stated that they had all been sold. Oh well.
Museum Station
Fiji Airways check in desks
As I had no lounge access there was no rush to get airside so I decided to visit the viewing deck which is located outside towards the apron within the landside area of the airport. A small hike up the stairs later and I had a full view of the runway and apron. I'd timed it rather well as soon after arriving the Airbus A330 that would take me to Nadi arrived. I was able to grab a few photos before heading back to the check in area and through immigration and security which weren't particularly busy.
Again, as I had no lounge access I decided to grab something quick to eat. I'm sorry to say that it was McDonalds but I did have a good view with my quarter pounder.
After that was done with I made my way to the gate which was gate 10, the same one that BA often uses for the Singapore and London flights.
A Qantas 747-400
My A330
My A330 coming onto stand
Overview of the observation deck
McDonalds with a view
Boarding started on time and with the minimum of fuss, there was no mad rush. Business class passengers were invited to board first followed by economy passengers by row number.
Sydney to Nadi – Fiji Airways Economy
Flight: FJ910
Carrier: Fiji Airways (FJ)
Aircraft: Airbus A330-200 – DQ-FJT
Scheduled Departure Time: 13:45
Scheduled Duration: 3h 55m
Scheduled Arrival Time: 18:40
Travel Class: Economy
Seat: 22K (seat map)
As I made my way down the jet bridge I was met at the door by a crew member and given the customary 'bula' welcome and then made my way to my seat which was quite a bit further down the aircraft than I had thought. I passed the business class cabin which looked rather nice in cream leather. The seats were the same as SQ's regional product which has had good reviews.
The economy cabin was really well appointed, very clean and bright. It was completely different to the old cabin on the 737!
On my seat was a small pillow but nothing else. Headphones were in the seat pocket for use with the touch screen IFE system in the seat in front of me. More on that later.
My A330 at gate 10
My A330 at gate 10 - refuelling
A brief shot of the Business class cabin
My seat, 22K
Leg room
Touch screen IFE
The view over the huge wing
The economy cabin
I settled into my seat and soon the cabin filled up. I was quite surprised that it was so busy, given that this was a Sunday after the school summer holidays. Several announcements were made by the cabin crew welcoming us on board and then an announcement from the Captain to let us know that we were on time and would be leaving soon. I'd hoped that the seat next to me would remain free but it didn’t. Luckily, my neighbour was a very pleasant lady who offered me a mint. Little did I know that it would be the hottest mint that I've ever had. I hid my watering eyes and did the polite thing and said thank you through gritted teeth!
Soon we were pushing back and on our way to the runway. I've flown many hundreds of times and for me the taxi is all about seeing what aircraft you can see on the way. However, this time was different. At various times during the 10 minute journey a massive crash and bang could be heard. It was so loud that other people in the cabin were looking around and showed obvious concern. I was with them. It sounded like something had detached and was crashing against something else metallic as we rolled forwards. Later I discovered that it was quite a normal 'feature' of the A330's brakes and was something to do with the hydraulics releasing, not very comforting I have to say.
After an uneventful take off we were soon up and on our way to Nadi.
After about 10 minutes or so the seat belt sign was turned off and we were free to move around the cabin. I decided to explore the IFE system. There was a reasonable selection of the latest films to watch. I decided to watch 'Elysium' and had a bit of a shock. You have to pay to use the IFE! I did discover later that there was one free film but all of the rest were locked. The cost was $10 although I don't know if that was AUD or FJD. It was unclear how you pay too. No worries, I had my iPad. I did like the fact that you were able to order drinks directly from your seat. Soft drinks, beer and wine were free but spirits had to be paid for.
Sydney harbour
The economy cabin after take off
Surprise! You have to pay to watch a film
Soft drinks are free…
Approximately 30 minutes into the flight the crew came around to hand out a refreshment and serve drinks. Given that the food on the way out on my previous Fiji Airways (Air Pacific) flight was somewhat dire I was expecting the same and I wasn't disappointed. We were handed a box which contained a small tub of coleslaw, and tub of orange juice and some biscuits. Tucked into the top was a warm unimpressive looking chicken, cheese and onion sandwich. To drink I went for a Diet Coke. The sandwich was as good as it looked. New aircraft, new seats, new IFE, new crew uniforms, new name, same old food.
The rest of the flight was uneventful and I spent the time watching a film and listening to some music on my iPad.
Close to Nadi the Captain announced that we'd be descending soon and the crew went around the cabin to make sure that everything was stowed away.
We had a very smooth landing, just a few minutes ahead of schedule and were welcome to Nadi by a beautiful sunset which bathed the aircraft in a warm orange glow.
Snack
In the box
Chicken roll, not very nice
Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean
The cabin, mid-flight
Landing at Nadi
On stand
On stand
Once on stand we were off the aircraft reasonably quickly and were greeted in the immigration hall by the welcome band which is always a really touch. Immigration was quick although not particularly friendly. I then went down stairs to collect my bag which took a little while to come out. I made my way through customs which involved having my bag scanned and then out into the arrivals hall to find the company rep that I'd arranged my ground transfer with.
Verdict
I thought that the A330 was brilliant. Compared to the dated offering of the 737 aircraft (which serves the morning flight) it was a breath of fresh air. The cabin was light, bright and a really nice place to be. The seat was comfortable and it was nice to find a pillow offered even if I didn't use it on this short flight.
I found the crew friendly, as they always are however the big let down was the food. It really was bargain basement and did the airline no favours.
Up Next
I arrive at the hotel to find it rather empty! A great room, amazing swimming pools, a fantastic beach, great stuff and ok food.