Thorgils

As a complete newbie to NZ (and to New Zealand), I have a couple of simple questions about an upcoming flight. In late February, my wife and I are flying AKL-SFO in J, on NZ8. Our tickets are open-jaw returns to the US, on a UA codeshare. It now transpires that we will be leaving from Wellington, and I've booked additional one-way "seat plus bag" tickets to connect at AKL, with what should be a generous allowance for connecting time. Because the NZ website reservations system apparently only allows passengers on a single PNR to choose adjacent seats, I needed to get separate PNRs for the two of us on the WLG-AKL flight to permit booking window and aisle seats in the same row.

Here are my questions:
1) Am I correct to assume that we will be able to surrender our bags at WLG for our full TPAC itinerary (even though we have three PNRs)? Or will we be required to retrieve them at AKL, and possibly have to schlep them landside between terminals? Do NZ FTs have any particular advice in this situation, or is it all very straightforward?
2) I don't expect any lounge access at the WLG domestic terminal by virtue of our J tickets ex AKL, but do we qualify for a NZ lounge as I am a paid United Club member (under the *A "paid membership" policy)? If so, which lounge? (Since my retirement, I no longer have any *A status.)

nzkarit

Firstly normally WLG-AKL flights are pretty full so if you book a window and aisle assume someone else will have the middle seat.

1. No if not on a single PNR, you will need to collect your bags at AKL domestic and carry them over to AKL international. Its less than a 10min walk and generally faster to walk than get the bus.

gratn

cavemanzk

chowinlondon

Yes you will have access to the WLG lounge by virtue of being a United Club member https://www.staralliance.com/lounge-...&filter=expand .

Thai-Kiwi

I assume the BP wouldnt scan green for lounge entry, and Air lounge staff may not be familiar with provisions of Mikeage Club. A copy of the linked *A reference might be handy to have in hand.

NZbutterfly

1. Officially the answer is no - they won't check your bags from Wellington to Auckland to SFO. Unofficially? Definitely worth trying. A few people have been successful but it's not the norm. I'd pull out your business class ticket and ask if they might be able to tag your bags right through. Also, it is possible to split your seating on the same PNR by calling Air NZ if one likes the aisle and the other the window. We don't mind if the middle seat is taken. I've also made seating changes via social media (saves being on hold etc)


2. United club and I think Air Canada is the other paid membership that have access to Air NZ lounges. There is a regional and a main lounge in Wellington. I'd go to the main lounge (never been to the regional one).

Thorgils

Thanks for all your advice.
It's good to learn that the domestic terminal does have "premium desks." With just one class of domestic service, I wasn't sure that we would find one.
If I call in a few days before travel, is there anything that the telephone agent can or will do to facilitate our being able to check the bags through to our final destination? As to seat splitting, we've already got the two domestic PNRs in this case, but that capability might be good to know about for any future similar situations.
This suggests that (as with AF at CDG) there's no NZ check-in desk for international bags in the domestic terminal baggage claims area. Is that correct? If so, are there luggage trolleys that one can take if walking between the two terminals?
Like NZButterfly, we don't much care if the middle seat is taken. My wife likes only aisle seats and I like only window seats, and if we are booking early enough to have those options, that's how we always book. I don't want to sound obsessive for just a one-hour flight for which anything is tolerable, but I would be pretty angry if I experienced an airline routinely doing what cavemanzk describes. "Pretty smart" isn't the phrase I would use; "arrogant" or "completely customer-insensitive" would be much more apt. If that sort of behaviour is indeed common on NZ domestic flights, presumably it might be safer for us to select seats in different rows? I have to assume that there's some sort of inter-seat distance limit that cools NZ's interest in reseating people with the same surname in adjacent seats without passenger consent?

Thai-Kiwi

Correct. Many trolleys, and the 10 mins walk is clearly marked on the pavement between the terminals.

sbiddle

Calling won't achieve anything. Ground staff have the final say - they have the ability to interline bags but for a number of reasons will not do this for anybody except NZ Elite customers (and even then they may choose not to do it for them). You can ask, but expect your answer to be no.

It's hardly a big deal to walk your bags to the international terminal the 8 min walk is shorter than you'd walk just to get between gates at some other airports!

nzkarit

Remember seat selection is a suggestion & they can be rearranged for operational reasons as much as they like. And if a human has done the moves opposed to an algorithm, doubt you would ever been able to find someone who could tell you why seats were rearranged.