ANZ - BNE to SFO via AKL

[Steve Dyer]

Hello fellow AFF's

I have recently booked BNE - AKL (Y) / AKL - SFO return. The AKL to SFO is in Y+.

What have been people experiences on the product? It is all 773 with the exception of the SFO - AKL leg.. Any random upgrades? Any real recognition of the VA Plat status I carry?

Interested to hear peoples thoughts.

Cheers

 

[MarkD]

I dont find the spaceseat too comfortable. on the window/Aisle on window block. The two centre section ones are better, if you pick Isle and window seatmate wants a pee, he is gonna wake you up. The centre section doesnt have that issue. They arent business class seats, so dont expect that, even if they look like it in the photos.
Service is great, Food good, and recognition as a VA platinum (FAs were great)

772 is pretty much y seat with bit more legroom, unless you get a refurb, which is pretty good (Same seats as 787). Y on the 773 isnt too bad, even at 10 abreast, whenever I have flown Y I have been fortunate and had double shadow, and in the preferred / FF Seats, thats a bed pretty much. Last Y flight LAX-AKL I slept a good 7 hours solid in Y.
Good Airline and I recommend (My equal favourite with Singapore Airlines, although NZ Recognition of VA Status is far greater than SQ)

 

[jpk]

Spaceseats look great but all style no substance. I find them claustrophobic especially on the windows. As markD said, centre seats are the place to be. Still better than being down the back...
I don't mind the old 772 PE seats, they are quite comfy. Basically just a bigger economy seat with more legroom and recline - just like most other PE products.
Haven't tried the new PE yet.

I think you will enjoy them - some good savings on those flights, tempted to book one myself. Write a TR!

 

[Steve Dyer]

I decided to upgrade both long haul to Y+ - the North route is the 773 and the south us the 772 but it is not a refurb from what I can see. Normally i would do VA but I wanted to make sure I got home quickly. It is only a 4 day trip from departure (2.5 on the ground in US) and as opposed to fighting airport security in SFO and LAX to fly VA, i decided the ANZ option was was the best. I also have a meeting finishing at 530 the afternoon of departure which was always going to make it tight!.

I will write a TR - I am keen having flown VA many times, to see the difference, I have always been lucky however to snag a points upgrade from Y+ to J on VA - is there any bid options or anything to try their premier business seats?

Cheers
Steve

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

Air NZ does have a system where you put in a bid for an upgrade.
They do charge for it in $, I have done it, but got rejected because a few days before the flight, my plane went from a 777 to a 320, SYD - AKL.
I know you are looking forward to a 777, but sometimes, on that evening NZ flight to AKL, they do subs.
A few days, I think a week before the flight, they would email you and ask how much you are willing to pay. I had hoped to go (when I did the bid-rejected (fail as they say), it was from Y to J.
Watch for the email.
If you get the upgrade, prepare to pay about Aud$350 or so BNE to AKL, one way, that is what the minimum starts at.
Cant say about NZ to US, havent done that.
Flew SYD - AKL more recently, in J, nice touch, herringbone which I dont quite like.
Havent tried the BNE Koru, the Koru in AKL (depending on when you will fly), might have been renovated by then, or in the middle, they say it will be started in 3 months or so, takes 6 months as per Koru SYD.
If you get J, Expresspath is a good thing, Australia departure wise, and also Australia entrance wise, immigration and Customs.

 

[AviationNZ]

I'm pretty sure you can put the bid offer in as soon as the booking has been made. Just login online via the manage my booking part and away you go.

AKL lounge is scheduled to be opened in August I believe, and BNE lounge later this year.

 

[Cryptarcadian]

Was looking into a similar itinerary and noticed that for lounge access in LAX on the way back flying NZ, the VA website says access to the Star Alliance lounge is only available for VA Platinum, not Gold. Is that accurate? Has anyone tried this?

Good to hear you get status recognition from NZ... when I last flew SYD-AKL-SFO last year the crew were friendly, but I was a Red, so have nothing to compare to. The Spaceseats themselves were decent. Sure, they don't recline nearly as much as you think they would, but they're miles ahead of 3-4-3 down the back if you're on your own (and no cuddle class)! Recline on the seat in front of you doesn't encroach into your space, and there are a few nice little compartments and nooks for you to store things in, so there are some ways in which it's more like a J seat than a typical PE seat that's just Y + legroom/recline.

The window seats on the left supposedly have a few extra inches of legroom compared to the centre ones. Downside is, even if there's nobody next to you (as I lucked out with on the way back), the shape of the window seats is such that you can't stretch out to take advantage of it (whereas you definitely can in the middle).

Tip: Try and snag a spare beanbag... they're a little too small and tend to move around when you nudge them, so just one of them is not brilliant as a footrest

 

[yohy?!]

Air NZ does have a system where you put in a bid for an upgrade.
They do charge for it in $, I have done it, but got rejected because a few days before the flight, my plane went from a 777 to a 320, SYD - AKL.
I know you are looking forward to a 777, but sometimes, on that evening NZ flight to AKL, they do subs.
A few days, I think a week before the flight, they would email you and ask how much you are willing to pay. I had hoped to go (when I did the bid-rejected (fail as they say), it was from Y to J.
Watch for the email.
If you get the upgrade, prepare to pay about Aud$350 or so BNE to AKL, one way, that is what the minimum starts at.
Cant say about NZ to US, havent done that.
Flew SYD - AKL more recently, in J, nice touch, herringbone which I dont quite like.
Havent tried the BNE Koru, the Koru in AKL (depending on when you will fly), might have been renovated by then, or in the middle, they say it will be started in 3 months or so, takes 6 months as per Koru SYD.
If you get J, Expresspath is a good thing, Australia departure wise, and also Australia entrance wise, immigration and Customs.

its too late at night to decode this monologue

 

[eastwest101]

its too late at night to decode this monologue

[h=1]Stream of consciousness (narrative mode)[/h]From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode, or device, that seeks "to depict the multitudinous thoughts and feelings which pass through the mind. Another term for it is 'interior monologue'."[SUP][1][/SUP] The term was coined by William James in 1890 in his The Principles of Psychology, and in 1918 May Sinclair first applied the term stream of consciousness, in a literary context, when discussing Dorothy Richardson's novels.

 

[MarkD]

[h=1]Stream of consciousness (narrative mode)[/h]From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode, or device, that seeks "to depict the multitudinous thoughts and feelings which pass through the mind. Another term for it is 'interior monologue'."[SUP][1][/SUP] The term was coined by William James in 1890 in his The Principles of Psychology, and in 1918 May Sinclair first applied the term stream of consciousness, in a literary context, when discussing Dorothy Richardson's novels.

**** hey. I have no idea what that means. I am dumb

 

[Revolio]

Stream of consciousness (narrative mode)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode, or device, that seeks "to depict the multitudinous thoughts and feelings which pass through the mind. Another term for it is 'interior monologue'."[SUP][1][/SUP] The term was coined by William James in 1890 in his The Principles of Psychology, and in 1918 May Sinclair first applied the term stream of consciousness, in a literary context, when discussing Dorothy Richardson's novels.

learning sometimes appears in the most obscure locations......