I am in the NZ lounge

[JessicaTam]

As the trans-Tasman bubble settles down, a few AFFers are likely to find themselves on an Air New Zealand flight. Posts here if you are passing through.

 

[JessicaTam]

I am in the ZQN lounge until about 1200.

 

[Mattg]

I’m in the AKL domestic lounge for the next hour.

There is a very impressive buffet breakfast selection available, and beer & wine is available from 8am!

 

[henrus]

and beer & wine is available from 8am!

I believe that's only determined by their liquor license. I suspect if the NZ gov allowed a 24/7 license then it might be beer/wine all the time.

 

[Notyourbag]

I was in the AirNZ Wellington international lounge on Tuesday for the 6.20am flight and can confirm alcohol was available for passengers who desired an early morning tipple!

 

[serfty]

I’m in the AKL domestic lounge for the next hour.

There is a very impressive buffet breakfast selection available, and beer & wine is available from 8am!

With my experiences as an Airpoints Elite a decade ago, if the lounge was open (Domestic or international), booze was available. 8am would seem a restriction on that.

 

[JessicaTam]

I am currently in the WLG domestic lounge. I will hopefully be gone by 1130, but there seem to be a few delays on the network.

 

[Mattg]

In the IVC Koru lounge for the next hour or two.

No flights have left yet this morning due to the thick fog blanketing the airport. The lounge is now full due to all the delays/cancellations from earlier this morning.

It's a regional lounge but a few hot food options - sausage rolls, soups, quiches etc. Also sandwiches, bagels and ginger slice.

The bar is already open and a few of the folks on the delayed 6.10am flight are indulging.

Update: Flight to AKL now cancelled, will be here another 4 hours.

 

[Mattg]

In the Invercargill lounge again this morning for a fourth attempt to get out! At least the fog has cleared today…

 

[Kiwi_Flyer]

There are a few places that are risky this time of year. It's why I scheduled my IVC trips in April and May.

 

[OZDUCK]

In the Invercargill lounge again this morning for a fourth attempt to get out! At least the fog has cleared today…

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When we drove from Te Anau to Dunedin I decided that we did not have time to drop 'down' to Invercargill. I have always wondered if I missed much?

 

[Mattg]

I have always wondered if I missed much?

It's a nice enough place, but not really.

I had not actually planned to spend any time in Invercargill, but my 3-hour connection turned into 2 nights because of the fog.

 

[OZDUCK]

It's a nice enough place, but not really.

I had not actually planned to spend any time in Invercargill, but my 3-hour connection turned into 2 nights because of the fog.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[Mattg]

AKL domestic Koru Lounge again for the next couple of hours.

There’s a decent dinner buffet including chicken korma. Pretty busy as it’s a Friday evening, but not overcrowded.

Does anyone know what’s behind the frosted glass door near the buffet area which says “by invitation only”?

 

[Ade]

Does anyone know what’s behind the frosted glass door near the buffet area which says “by invitation only”?

AirNZ's version of CL ?

 

[Mattg]

AirNZ's version of CL ?

That was my first thought, but articles like this one about politicians often rubbing shoulders with members of the public in the regular Koru lounges seem to indicate that such a lounge doesn't exist in NZ?

 

[OZDUCK]

That was my first thought, but articles like this one about politicians often rubbing shoulders with members of the public in the regular Koru lounges seem to indicate that such a lounge doesn't exist in NZ?

Well the article below , towards the end, sort of says that a CL type lounge does exist. To quote - "If your passport wallet packs Air New Zealand's by-invitation Elite Priority One card, your private lounge-within-a-lounge is hidden here at Auckland Airport. Tucked away behind a blackened glass door labelled "by invitation only" lies the AirNZ equivalent of the Qantas Chairman's Lounge – but it's not a lounge ordinarily open to Chairman's Lounge members."

Air New Zealand international Koru business class lounge Auckland

Air New Zealand's flagship international lounge at Auckland Airport is back in full swing, buoyed by quarantine-free travel between NZ and (most of) Australia. For the time being, the lounge even opens its doors to eligible passengers departing on Qantas flights, in addition to those of AirNZ...

www.executivetraveller.com

 

[henrus]

As others have mentioned it's Elite Priority One. Rumored to be the top spenders but unlike CL doesn't include politicians.

The NZ PM frequently posts her boarding pass on social media when traveling and even she's only got NZ Elite status (or at least that's what's on the boarding pass).

 

[Ade]

The NZ PM frequently posts her boarding pass on social media when traveling

Hope no one fetches her passport info from her BP ... I remember this happened to Tony Abbott, a couple of years ago.

There was a VERY detailed article about how the hacker was able to do it and provided some examples as well. I couldn’t find that particular article. However, below is the BBC's coverage of the incident

Tony Abbott hacked after posting boarding pass on Instagram

A hacker uncovered the Australian ex-PM's phone number and passport details but told the authorities.

www.bbc.com

 

[Ade]

To quote - "If your passport wallet packs Air New Zealand's by-invitation Elite Priority One card, your private lounge-within-a-lounge is hidden here at Auckland Airport. Tucked away behind a blackened glass door labelled "by invitation only"

Now I remember seeing one such frosted, blackened door in BA's Singapore Lounge. I think it was the OW-E lounge from BA.