Polynesian Airlines J Class APW(Samoa) - TBU(Tonga)
Jun 29, 2004, 3:27 pm
#1
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Polynesian Airlines J Class APW(Samoa) - TBU(Tonga)
And now for something a little different!
This years big holiday in the Swanhunter household was a trip from LHR to the South Pacific routing BA F to SYD, TG F to AKL then NZ J on to Samoa. As all of those flights have been well commented on I thought I would stick to writing about the 2 unusual sectors in the trip, the first of which was Polynesian Airlines (PH).
Booking a ticket
This proved rather more difficult than I had expected. It proved impossibel to find anyone in the UK who would issue a ticket for PH. I ended up calling their Sydney office to arrange reservations. Flying through SYD meant that I could then pick up the tickets rather than risking ToD at 1am! When I made the call only one J class seat was available - however they were happy to issue me with 2 seats and send a message to Samoa to release extra inventory! This left me worrying about a possible oversold situation.
Picking up the ticket
Was a great deal easier than booking - once I had found the PH office in Sydney which seemed to have moved without telling anyone. Kept the Westin concierge entertained for a while!
Check in
After a glorious 6 days in Samoa the missus and I dragged ourselves out of bed at just gone midnight for the 30min trip to Falelo International Airport, Samoa. As I was concerned about being bumped, we planned to get to the airport with at least 2 hours to space. Why the worry? Well the next flight was three days time!
In the event there were no problems at all. There was a dedicated J class line, which was queue free. We were allocated 2D and F, the second row on the 737-800 for this mornings flight. Check in was pretty fast despite the antiquated technology, and colourful Polynesian priority tags added to our bags. PH also have a lounge, for which invitiations were carefully handwritten. The Y check in only had a short queue - in general things seemed pretty organised down to the QF codeshare sign hanging over check in. The check in area is open fronted onto the road and is housed under a soaring fale style roof. The whole airport is quite new and was built with Japanese aid.
A quick stop at the bank to pay the departure tax (about USD15, can't remember exactly how much) and it was off to immigration. Or not, as the official hadn't turned up. We ended up kicking our heels for 45 minutes waiting for the counter to open - not an ideal activity when stone cold sober at 1.30 in the morning. This didn't stop the airline broadcasting multiple P.A's asking us to pass through to the departure lounge straight away.
When he finally showed up, immigration was pretty quick and security very thorough (but corteous) indeed. The magnetometer must have been turned up high as my belt beeped for the first time in over a year.
The lounge
Yes, a lounge! Inspite of this being one of no more than 8 international flights a week from Samoa, PH provide a Business class lounge. A very friendly lady was in charge, and ushered us to a seat. There was a pretty spare selection of booze on display - no more than 6 bottles of spirits and some Australian wine, along with the usual soft drink selection. Snack were the usual carbo-lounge type stuff, apart from some delicious plantain chips. Still, it beat an AC or RCC hands down for free drinkies and ambience too. The lounge itself was nicely air-conditioned and fitted out the standard lounge style furniture. No Internet access or other busines facilities though.
We made ourselves at home with a paper and some water. The lounge filled up with local dignatories, leaving us looking slightly out of place. A lone Australiand game fisherman made up the complement.
We were called for boarding after the Y class pax had been called. This nicely avoided any queue. No BP readers here, just an old fashioned manual check of stubs. No airbridge either, enabling us to get a lungful of fresh night air before boarding a plane the way God intended - up a flight of stairs.
23 May 2004 PH855
APW - TBU
737-800
J Class Seat 2F
Our 737 was one of 2 in PH's fleet, and was named Island of Savai'i - interestingly enough the island that Hawai'i derived its name from.
On board we were greeted by one of the crew and pointed in the direction of our seats. Each 737 is kitted out with three rows of J class seats in a 2-2 formation with about a 42' pitch. The seats are very, very similar to a standard US domestic F class seat but have been given a few added extras. A decent legrest and footrest have been added, along with in seat IFE containing half a dozen video channels.
To be continued...
This years big holiday in the Swanhunter household was a trip from LHR to the South Pacific routing BA F to SYD, TG F to AKL then NZ J on to Samoa. As all of those flights have been well commented on I thought I would stick to writing about the 2 unusual sectors in the trip, the first of which was Polynesian Airlines (PH).
Booking a ticket
This proved rather more difficult than I had expected. It proved impossibel to find anyone in the UK who would issue a ticket for PH. I ended up calling their Sydney office to arrange reservations. Flying through SYD meant that I could then pick up the tickets rather than risking ToD at 1am! When I made the call only one J class seat was available - however they were happy to issue me with 2 seats and send a message to Samoa to release extra inventory! This left me worrying about a possible oversold situation.
Picking up the ticket
Was a great deal easier than booking - once I had found the PH office in Sydney which seemed to have moved without telling anyone. Kept the Westin concierge entertained for a while!
Check in
After a glorious 6 days in Samoa the missus and I dragged ourselves out of bed at just gone midnight for the 30min trip to Falelo International Airport, Samoa. As I was concerned about being bumped, we planned to get to the airport with at least 2 hours to space. Why the worry? Well the next flight was three days time!
In the event there were no problems at all. There was a dedicated J class line, which was queue free. We were allocated 2D and F, the second row on the 737-800 for this mornings flight. Check in was pretty fast despite the antiquated technology, and colourful Polynesian priority tags added to our bags. PH also have a lounge, for which invitiations were carefully handwritten. The Y check in only had a short queue - in general things seemed pretty organised down to the QF codeshare sign hanging over check in. The check in area is open fronted onto the road and is housed under a soaring fale style roof. The whole airport is quite new and was built with Japanese aid.
A quick stop at the bank to pay the departure tax (about USD15, can't remember exactly how much) and it was off to immigration. Or not, as the official hadn't turned up. We ended up kicking our heels for 45 minutes waiting for the counter to open - not an ideal activity when stone cold sober at 1.30 in the morning. This didn't stop the airline broadcasting multiple P.A's asking us to pass through to the departure lounge straight away.
When he finally showed up, immigration was pretty quick and security very thorough (but corteous) indeed. The magnetometer must have been turned up high as my belt beeped for the first time in over a year.
The lounge
Yes, a lounge! Inspite of this being one of no more than 8 international flights a week from Samoa, PH provide a Business class lounge. A very friendly lady was in charge, and ushered us to a seat. There was a pretty spare selection of booze on display - no more than 6 bottles of spirits and some Australian wine, along with the usual soft drink selection. Snack were the usual carbo-lounge type stuff, apart from some delicious plantain chips. Still, it beat an AC or RCC hands down for free drinkies and ambience too. The lounge itself was nicely air-conditioned and fitted out the standard lounge style furniture. No Internet access or other busines facilities though.
We made ourselves at home with a paper and some water. The lounge filled up with local dignatories, leaving us looking slightly out of place. A lone Australiand game fisherman made up the complement.
We were called for boarding after the Y class pax had been called. This nicely avoided any queue. No BP readers here, just an old fashioned manual check of stubs. No airbridge either, enabling us to get a lungful of fresh night air before boarding a plane the way God intended - up a flight of stairs.
23 May 2004 PH855
APW - TBU
737-800
J Class Seat 2F
Our 737 was one of 2 in PH's fleet, and was named Island of Savai'i - interestingly enough the island that Hawai'i derived its name from.
On board we were greeted by one of the crew and pointed in the direction of our seats. Each 737 is kitted out with three rows of J class seats in a 2-2 formation with about a 42' pitch. The seats are very, very similar to a standard US domestic F class seat but have been given a few added extras. A decent legrest and footrest have been added, along with in seat IFE containing half a dozen video channels.
To be continued...
Jun 29, 2004, 7:37 pm
#2
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: SYD
Programs: Too many golds, no plat: OZ*G, AC*G, NZ*G, VA Gold, QF Gold, HH Gold, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 5,362
Interesting stuff, Swanhunter - I'm looking forward to reading the next instalment. I'd also be curious to hear a few impressions of Samoa and recommendations on what to do there, if you have the time. And, while I'm being demanding, how PH compared to NZ's inter-Pacific island service! 
Jun 30, 2004, 11:43 am
#5
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: SE1, London
Posts: 23,505
Thanks for the comments! mad_atta, I'll do a comparison at the end of the report. Bretteee, I'll do likewise for the Samoa comments.
PH855, part 2
I was pretty happy with the cabin configuration for a short haul flight, and it would be perfectly acceptable for up to about 4-5 hours. Overnight would not be so pleasant as the recline was no more than 130 degrees. In my book that is O.K for a doze, not so good for anything longer.
Departure
Pre-take off drinks were offered, the usual choice of either juice or water. The f/a's were efficient but not overly friendly - a pity as pretty much everyone else we met in Samoa was diarmingly friendly.
Push back was on time, and we were number 1 for take off - amazingly there were no ATC delays.
There is something very satisfying about a plane trundling down the runway, turning on a sixpence and then thundering down the runway with no waiting around. Cabins lights were dimmed straight away, curtains drawn to keep the nasty Y pax away and most of the pax around us settled for sleep. While we only had the short hop to Tonga, some were carrying on to SYD via AKL. Quite a haul.
Food! Drink!
Despite the minging time of the night, a refreshment service was offered. Drinks were hand served from the galley (we both had water), and linens were laid. The snack was a tasty ham and cheese panini, piping hot and served with tomato ketchup, a roll and a small bowl of fruit. Very acceptable indeed, especially when washed down with a glass of Rosemount Estate (Shiraz Cab Sauv since you asked). I decided not to investigate the champagne option as the glass of red went straight to my head.
The rest of the flight passed without incident with the f/a coming through a couple of times to top up my water. Immigration and customs forms for Tonga were also passed out. The IFE had a pretty poor selection so I settled down for an hour with my iPod and a good book.
Arrival
The lack of traffic makes arrival somewhere like Tonga an easy process. You hit top of descent and other than a bit of lining up for the runway it is straight down all the way. A night landing is a bit disturbing as you seem to be sinking into a bottomless bit over the sea, before a few twinkling lights show the coastline and 30 seconds later you thump down on the runway.
Simple is a good desciption of the runway at Tongatapu and must be maintained to the lowest standards allowed - the lighting seemed pretty simple. The terminal building also qualified for the title simple too. A short hall ended in an immigration counter manned by one very sulky official - fair enough at 4am. By the miracles of the International Date Line we had leapt forward a day to the 24th.
Baggage reclaim was fast. Our priority bags had their own tractor to bring them from the plane. The belt moved about 10ft bringing them into the hall and we were good to go. Customs was a simple process - one form and a cursory glance at our passports. No need to inspect our vast quantity of luggage. In a laidback South Pacific style a few taxi drivers asked if we need a ride. I choose the least persistent and was quoted a decent price. After changing money, it was off to the International Dateline Hotel
In summary
PH seem a perfectly decent airline. Everything under their control worked as it should do and there seemed a concerted effort to offer a decent quality premium product. I would not have a problem with flying them again, and the Y seating did not look too ghastly either - probably a 33' pitch. I would be more concerned about width given that most Samoans are big boned!
In comparison to NZ though, the only area were PH came out ahead was the comfort of the seat. I found NZ's J class seat to be one of the most backbreaking, hard and illconceived I have ever sat it. If ergonomists voted it the best in the sky, I am never going to trust a word said by them again! PH's effort was much better padded and formed.
Otherwise, I found the crew on NZ to be genuinely superb (and the ground staff too which is even more of a novelty), I thought the food selection imaginative and beautifully executed and the wine list well selected. The IFE selection was a bit more up to date too. To compare the AKL and APW lounges would be unfair - though the decor in AKL needs some serious attention. It's no criticsm of PH at all, but NZ have got some very good elements to their J product - though they should have as it is a long haul product v PH's mid-haul routes. Nonethless add the new seat to NZ's J class and they would be a first choice airline for me.
Samoa comments
We had 6 days, which we split between Upolu (the main island, where the capital Apia is located) and Sava'i. Apia is a charmingly ramshackle capital city, compact with a interesting market, a few decent bars and restaurants plus some world glass snorkelling 15 minutes walk away at Palolo Deep. Aggie Grey's (world famous hotel) is also in Apia. We didn't stay there but did have dinner in the restaurtant which had one of the most random gatherings of people I have ever seen. I was in hysterics for most of the meal, it was that odd.
There is one other top line option the Kitano Tusitala which is where the NZ crews stay. That seemed pretty nice too, but for reasons lost in time we stayed in a small inn just of town. While friendly, it wasn't great value for USD70 a night. We also drove around the island for a day - some stunning beaches on the South and glorious mountain scenery in land.
While Upolu was nice, I lost my heart to Savai'i. It ranks as one of the most wonderful travel experiences of the 86 countries I have visited. The whole island moves at the speed of a snail. People in the villages stop to wave at you as you drive through. The villages themselves are traditional in style, beautifully maintained with open fale everywhere. Behind them are spiky volcanic hills, covered in the greenest foliage I have ever seen. On the other side is invariable a white sandy beach running down into crystal clear water. The only sound is the lap of water on the sand and the distant roar of breakers on the beach. We spent 4 days in a beachside fale - USD70 a night, 8 feet from the water and about 25 meters from the reef. There is nothing like rolling out of bed, popping your mask and snorkel on an going for a wake up swim with the reef life at 6.30 am. Magic.
Some photos here Username Swanhunter, P'word flyertalk
Oh, and there is a report on FJ (Air Pacific to come)
PH855, part 2
I was pretty happy with the cabin configuration for a short haul flight, and it would be perfectly acceptable for up to about 4-5 hours. Overnight would not be so pleasant as the recline was no more than 130 degrees. In my book that is O.K for a doze, not so good for anything longer.
Departure
Pre-take off drinks were offered, the usual choice of either juice or water. The f/a's were efficient but not overly friendly - a pity as pretty much everyone else we met in Samoa was diarmingly friendly.
Push back was on time, and we were number 1 for take off - amazingly there were no ATC delays.
There is something very satisfying about a plane trundling down the runway, turning on a sixpence and then thundering down the runway with no waiting around. Cabins lights were dimmed straight away, curtains drawn to keep the nasty Y pax away and most of the pax around us settled for sleep. While we only had the short hop to Tonga, some were carrying on to SYD via AKL. Quite a haul.Food! Drink!
Despite the minging time of the night, a refreshment service was offered. Drinks were hand served from the galley (we both had water), and linens were laid. The snack was a tasty ham and cheese panini, piping hot and served with tomato ketchup, a roll and a small bowl of fruit. Very acceptable indeed, especially when washed down with a glass of Rosemount Estate (Shiraz Cab Sauv since you asked). I decided not to investigate the champagne option as the glass of red went straight to my head.
The rest of the flight passed without incident with the f/a coming through a couple of times to top up my water. Immigration and customs forms for Tonga were also passed out. The IFE had a pretty poor selection so I settled down for an hour with my iPod and a good book.
Arrival
The lack of traffic makes arrival somewhere like Tonga an easy process. You hit top of descent and other than a bit of lining up for the runway it is straight down all the way. A night landing is a bit disturbing as you seem to be sinking into a bottomless bit over the sea, before a few twinkling lights show the coastline and 30 seconds later you thump down on the runway.
Simple is a good desciption of the runway at Tongatapu and must be maintained to the lowest standards allowed - the lighting seemed pretty simple. The terminal building also qualified for the title simple too. A short hall ended in an immigration counter manned by one very sulky official - fair enough at 4am. By the miracles of the International Date Line we had leapt forward a day to the 24th.
Baggage reclaim was fast. Our priority bags had their own tractor to bring them from the plane. The belt moved about 10ft bringing them into the hall and we were good to go. Customs was a simple process - one form and a cursory glance at our passports. No need to inspect our vast quantity of luggage. In a laidback South Pacific style a few taxi drivers asked if we need a ride. I choose the least persistent and was quoted a decent price. After changing money, it was off to the International Dateline Hotel
In summary
PH seem a perfectly decent airline. Everything under their control worked as it should do and there seemed a concerted effort to offer a decent quality premium product. I would not have a problem with flying them again, and the Y seating did not look too ghastly either - probably a 33' pitch. I would be more concerned about width given that most Samoans are big boned!
In comparison to NZ though, the only area were PH came out ahead was the comfort of the seat. I found NZ's J class seat to be one of the most backbreaking, hard and illconceived I have ever sat it. If ergonomists voted it the best in the sky, I am never going to trust a word said by them again! PH's effort was much better padded and formed.
Otherwise, I found the crew on NZ to be genuinely superb (and the ground staff too which is even more of a novelty), I thought the food selection imaginative and beautifully executed and the wine list well selected. The IFE selection was a bit more up to date too. To compare the AKL and APW lounges would be unfair - though the decor in AKL needs some serious attention. It's no criticsm of PH at all, but NZ have got some very good elements to their J product - though they should have as it is a long haul product v PH's mid-haul routes. Nonethless add the new seat to NZ's J class and they would be a first choice airline for me.
Samoa comments
We had 6 days, which we split between Upolu (the main island, where the capital Apia is located) and Sava'i. Apia is a charmingly ramshackle capital city, compact with a interesting market, a few decent bars and restaurants plus some world glass snorkelling 15 minutes walk away at Palolo Deep. Aggie Grey's (world famous hotel) is also in Apia. We didn't stay there but did have dinner in the restaurtant which had one of the most random gatherings of people I have ever seen. I was in hysterics for most of the meal, it was that odd.
There is one other top line option the Kitano Tusitala which is where the NZ crews stay. That seemed pretty nice too, but for reasons lost in time we stayed in a small inn just of town. While friendly, it wasn't great value for USD70 a night. We also drove around the island for a day - some stunning beaches on the South and glorious mountain scenery in land.
While Upolu was nice, I lost my heart to Savai'i. It ranks as one of the most wonderful travel experiences of the 86 countries I have visited. The whole island moves at the speed of a snail. People in the villages stop to wave at you as you drive through. The villages themselves are traditional in style, beautifully maintained with open fale everywhere. Behind them are spiky volcanic hills, covered in the greenest foliage I have ever seen. On the other side is invariable a white sandy beach running down into crystal clear water. The only sound is the lap of water on the sand and the distant roar of breakers on the beach. We spent 4 days in a beachside fale - USD70 a night, 8 feet from the water and about 25 meters from the reef. There is nothing like rolling out of bed, popping your mask and snorkel on an going for a wake up swim with the reef life at 6.30 am. Magic.
Some photos here Username Swanhunter, P'word flyertalk
Oh, and there is a report on FJ (Air Pacific to come)
Last edited by Swanhunter; Jun 30, 2004 at 1:54 pm
Jun 30, 2004, 2:30 pm
#6
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: DCA
Posts: 1,413
Great pictures. Wow, did the almost exact reverse trip way back in 1989... Parents and I flew from Tonga (had stayed at the Int Dateline) to Samoa on a a PH 727. Funny thing was that it was some sort of unscheduled flight that we switched to at the last minute, so there were a total of 6 pax on board: 3 oriental ladies and us 3 aboard the 727 - every other seat was empty... as a kid I could not believe it.
We also flew on PH from that tiny little airstrip above Apia to Savai'i, and then back to Faleolo, all on a 6-seater they had back then. Stayed at the Tusitala in Apia...
Great to hear it's still the same great place!!!
We also flew on PH from that tiny little airstrip above Apia to Savai'i, and then back to Faleolo, all on a 6-seater they had back then. Stayed at the Tusitala in Apia...
Great to hear it's still the same great place!!!
Jul 1, 2004, 2:44 am
#8
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: SYD
Programs: Too many golds, no plat: OZ*G, AC*G, NZ*G, VA Gold, QF Gold, HH Gold, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 5,362
Great report Swanhunter - thanks! Nice photos too.
Was the International Dateline Hotel as bad as I hear it is? Interesting to see your comments re the AirNZ J seat - while hardly state of the art, I find it comfortable, though it certainly is quite firm. You would probably prefer the A320 business class seat, which is much softer, though it is only a short haul product and comparable to the PH seat in dimensions and recline.
Was the International Dateline Hotel as bad as I hear it is? Interesting to see your comments re the AirNZ J seat - while hardly state of the art, I find it comfortable, though it certainly is quite firm. You would probably prefer the A320 business class seat, which is much softer, though it is only a short haul product and comparable to the PH seat in dimensions and recline.
Jul 1, 2004, 7:23 am
#9
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Tonga
We had a total of 4 nights in Tonga, which was only enough time to visit Tongatapu (main island) and hop over to one of the small islands of it's costs. The outlying islands were well out of reach owing to the collapse of Royal Tongan Airlines a month before.
The International Dateline Hotel was pretty crap. As we only had a 7 hour stopover before heading on I booked a standard room. Big mistake. Peeling paint, mould, bare nails in the floor, ill fitting glazing and a mosquito problem coupled a serious staff attitude problem made for a rubbish stay. There are nicer rooms but the staff stay the same. Avoid - not that there are many other options in Nuku'alofa
2 nights at the Royal Sunset Beach Resort were much better. A nice fale on the beach, some great food and a decent wine list helped the time go by. There was good snorkelling offshore on the reef including some gigantic clams. The weather was pretty rubbish - grey, windy and dollops of rain.
We also spent a day touring Tongatapu which was pretty dull - the island is falt so there is little inland scenery and the weather did not encourage a beach day. The highlight was a visit to the blowholes - 2 miles of coast lined with them. Another night in Nuku-alofa was spent in some of the yachtie orientated bars - good fun.
I would like to go back to Tonga to visit some of the other islands. But I didn't fall in love with the country - perhaps the weather didn't help.
We had a total of 4 nights in Tonga, which was only enough time to visit Tongatapu (main island) and hop over to one of the small islands of it's costs. The outlying islands were well out of reach owing to the collapse of Royal Tongan Airlines a month before.
The International Dateline Hotel was pretty crap. As we only had a 7 hour stopover before heading on I booked a standard room. Big mistake. Peeling paint, mould, bare nails in the floor, ill fitting glazing and a mosquito problem coupled a serious staff attitude problem made for a rubbish stay. There are nicer rooms but the staff stay the same. Avoid - not that there are many other options in Nuku'alofa
2 nights at the Royal Sunset Beach Resort were much better. A nice fale on the beach, some great food and a decent wine list helped the time go by. There was good snorkelling offshore on the reef including some gigantic clams. The weather was pretty rubbish - grey, windy and dollops of rain.
We also spent a day touring Tongatapu which was pretty dull - the island is falt so there is little inland scenery and the weather did not encourage a beach day. The highlight was a visit to the blowholes - 2 miles of coast lined with them. Another night in Nuku-alofa was spent in some of the yachtie orientated bars - good fun.
I would like to go back to Tonga to visit some of the other islands. But I didn't fall in love with the country - perhaps the weather didn't help.
Jul 1, 2004, 7:06 pm
#10
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: SYD
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Posts: 5,362
I've heard that Tongatapu isn't much to write home about. The Vava'u group is reputedly lovely (and the humpback whales are a major attraction too) but of course the demise of Royal Tongan airways made that a bit problematic for you. I had heard that AirNZ was possibly going to ferry one of its B1900s over to provide some domestic flights, but I haven't heard what has happened since. A hell of a blow for Tongan tourism (and at a time when they were just managing to raise their profile, especially in the USA), to have its main attraction out of reach! 