I’m always curious about airlines I’ve never flown before. And in my typical neurotic fashion, I always search around to find reviews of new airlines before I fly them. So in the interest of helping anyone else that’s like me out there, this is my experience flying Air New Zealand for the first time.
If you’ve been reading this blog for a bit, you may remember when I understandably had to cancel all of my 2020 travel plans. Well Air New Zealand was part of those plans ๐ .
My Mom and I booked 2020 flights on Air New Zealand for 2020 and when we had to cancel, we had to call to do so and they gave us credits that needed to be used on their airline before June 2021. However, since New Zealand didn’t start letting anyone in the country, let alone foreigners until well after that, that deadline was extended.
Booking
When we got the green light that New Zealand was letting in foreigners, we started re-planning our trip. And a part of that was re-booking this trip on Air New Zealand as a roundtrip flight from Auckland to Queenstown and back.
Flights Details
- When: October 2023
- Where: Auckland to Queenstown, New Zealand
- Flight: NZ 637
- Flight Time: 1 hour, 46 minutes
- Seat: 15A
- Distance: 965 miles
Auckland (AKL) Airport
So after our adventures around the north island of New Zealand, we arrived back at Auckland Airport and were dropped off in the rideshare area across the street. We then took our bags across that same street to the terminal.
Check In
We arrived at the Air New Zealand check in area to see lots of kiosks.
There we checked in and printed our boarding passes. Air New Zealand only allows personal items that are less than 7kg/15 lbs, so even my usual canvas purse was too heavy. Luckily our tickets included a checked bag up to 23kg/50lbs so I checked my 40L Backpack with a few extra items than usual and made the 15lbs limit for my carry on item.
We then grabbed our tagged luggage to drop it off at the Bag Drop Area and held onto our boarding passes. The Bag Drop area had no line and everyone was super friendly.
Security
Interestingly, security was separated by specific airlines. The Air New Zealand security area was across from the McDonald’s. There were clear announcements that anyone with ankle high boots or steel capped shoes needed to remove those for screening, but all other shoes were fine.
Electronics like Kindles and my portable charger were also fine to stay in my bag. All of our stuff was placed by staff in bins laying down. My Mom and I were in the security line for maybe 15 minutes, which was also what they estimated on a screen.
The information screen after security said to go to our gate even though the flight was two hours away. We suspected that might mean it’s time to go through the individualized security sections since the gate areas were fairly small.
We chilled out and waited to board while enjoying the airport Wifi, which was free if you gave them your email address. However, I don’t think they’ve ever sent me an advertising email so I’m not sure what nefarious purpose they want it for ๐ .
Another interesting occurrence was that no one checked our boarding pass at check-in or security. However, it was checked when entering plane, but no one ever checked our IDs. I guess things are more chill down here ๐ .
THE JOURNEY
Boarding
30 minutes before take off, the flight started boarding. I zoned out when they were announcing the first group so I’m not sure what was said there, but it seemed like instantly they were asked for rows 15+, which was us! We got in line to board and were on the jet bridge in no time. The bridge was split into two lanes: rows up to 15 and the rest. We were in seats 14 and 15.
The Flight
I then found my standard domestic economy seat (can you tell I’m spoiled from all the First Class that I’ve experienced on this trip? Cause that’s exactly what’s happening ๐ ).
I got settled in my window seat and a little TV came down for the safety video, but there were no TV’s on the back of our seat and no wifi. Woe is me ๐ .
Despite all of my ‘hardships’ we took off on time and shortly after take off, we had a snack service, which included water, tea or coffee andย a cookie, corn chips or something else that was made in NZ made that I don’t remember ๐ . The FAs then came back to gather trash and the TVs on the ceiling came back down to play an interactive trivia game.
20 minutes before landing, the FAs came around to give out lollies. They were good ๐ . The last 15 minutes of the flight was a bit wild. We seemed to be literally dodging mountains, going below snow capped peaks, and this big ass Airbus felt like it was gonna shake apart at some points.
We also had a few rollercoaster worthy drops and when we finally landed successfully, the pilot got a lot of applause. I guess I hadn’t considered the flight challenges the wild landscape of Queenstown would create, but that was a great reminder. I learned after we landed that there was a strong winds reminder and we luckily didn’t experience anything like that while leaving Queenstown.
Landing
Queenstown is so gorgeous it doesn’t look real.
The airport looks like a lodge from the outside and is adorably small on the inside. We took a ramp from the plane to the ground and then walked across the tarmac into the airport.
Mom and I then then followed signs to Baggage Claim. Bags started coming out immediately and we got ours in only a few minutes. Awesome! I then ordered an Uber with my Google Fiย phone plan that works anywhere in the world.
We then left the airport through the exit door right next to baggage claim and walked straight towards. Along the way we saw a green directional sign and the lowest line on it said that app based pickups were straight ahead.
We continued walking straight until we could no longer see the terminal and arrived at an open parking lot type area that said Transfers. Luckily this was indeed the rideshare pick up point so we hopped into our Uber and were off to explore Queenstown!
Queenstown (ZQN) Airport
Flights Details
- When: October 2023
- Where: Queenstown to Auckland, New Zealand
- Flight: NZ 630
- Flight Time: 1 hour, 56 minutes
- Seat: 15A
- Distance: 965 miles
Check In
After an amazing time exploring Queenstown and visiting Milford Sound, it was time to fly back to Auckland.
We arrived at the airport and rolled up to Air New Zealand’s kiosks. We had the same weight restrictions as our flight to Queenstown so we printed our bag tags and checked our bags.
Heads up that there’s a scale to the right of the kiosks in case you want to double check your bag’s weight and don’t carry a mini luggage scale like meย ๐ .
We then headed to the Bag Drop area, which you can get to from between the rows of kiosks or all the way on the right where there’s a Bag Drop sign. When we reached the front of the line, they scanned our bags and we were good to go. We then headed a few feet away to security.
Security
Interestingly, security was split into domestic and international sections with big signs indicating which is which.
Our section for domestic departures was adorably small and super quick. As when we were leaving Auckland, no one checked our IDs or boarding passes. Wild.
At the front of the security line, they had us take out our laptops but not Kindles. We did have to take off our jackets, but they didn’t care about liquids. In fact, I saw a small child go through security with an entire bottle of water. It’s madness ๐ ! Something else I haven’t seen before is that they don’t care about taking off shoes unless they go above the ankle. Very specific!
THE JOURNEY
Boarding
We then settled into our tiny gate (picture below – yes that’s all of it).
About 30 minutes before our departure, boarding started and it was a bit of chaos. First they asked for Star Alliance Members and then immediately said everyone else get on the plane, which obviously created a glom of people.
When we got to the front of the glom, they scanned our tickets and then had us go outside to a ramp to get on the plane. The first ramp was for rows 1-15 with the remaining rows needed to use the second ramp.
After checking out the gorgeous views from the runway, we settled into our seats.
The Flight
I checked out what the amenities for the flight would be and confirmed that we once again didn’t have wifi. I’m so spoiled ๐ .
Anyway, we took off on time and there was no wild turbulence like we experienced while dodging mountains to get to Queenstown. It’s great to know that a wild ride is not a standard occurrence.
Once we were in the air, we had a drink service that offered tea, coffee or water and a small snack. Our snack was a small and apparently local cookie that my Mom has been asking everyone about because they were so good. I then checked out the flight’s magazine.
After that, I settled in to read a book and before I knew it, the FAs came around with a piece of candy for us because it was time to land!
We landed in Auckland and headed to Baggage Claim.
Baggage Claim
We had been to Auckland airport’s international baggage claim before, but not domestic. So after following signs to Air New Zealand Baggage Claim, we waited for our bags and they came out in less than 5 minutes. Impressive!
THE REVIEW
So that’s what happened, but now let’s get into the actual review portion and what I thought of the experience.
Customer Service
I was really happy with Air New Zealand’s customer service. While their boarding practices may be a little questionable, everyone was very kind and helpful. I especially loved the piece of candy everyone received before landing. It was a little something extra ๐ .
Seat
Air New Zealand doesn’t have a First Class cabin (in case you were wondering what my fancy Mom was doing in economy ๐ ). Their economy seats are solid for a domestic flight.
Food
I enjoyed all the drinks and snacks we received and obviously extra enjoyed the candy.
Entertainment
There was no entertainment to rate here. No wifi, no TV, no streaming and no outlets. No big deal ๐ . Luckily I always travel with a million books I want to read on my Kindle so the flight passed quickly.
Conclusion
Overall, I enjoyed my time on Air New Zealand and would be happy to fly them again. They’re a solid airline that doesn’t have a lot of frills and does have a mysterious boarding procedure, but I had a great time.
When’s the last time you flew a new airline?
Haha not as related to this post, but I did finally order Zenni’s and it was all thanks to your post. Keep up the great work and amazing detail outlining NZ Airlines
Haha that’s amazing!! I love my Zennis. I hope you enjoy them. And will do! Thank you for reading as always.
Yeah I’ve flown ANZ a few times and the staff everywhere has been absolutely lovely. As are the citizens as a whole! Right down to the big biker dude who would have been sporting Hell’s Angels crime tats here 1) noticing 2) apologizing 3) wheeling his bike out of the way when we were behind him waiting for him to wrap up a chat. Gorgeous place and people. Kia Oro!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear it wasn’t just my experience on these two flights. And aww that’s so nice! Kia Oro!
Qtown is the most stunning place to land! And Air NZ is infinitely nicer than Jetstar. The Koru Hour flights are a little step up in the food/bev side.
Yeah it was wild. And oooh yeah – I’ve never flown Jetstar, but I specifically remember entering the Queenstown airport and ANZ had no line while Jetstar was the length of the airport. No idea what was going on there, but I’m not keen to kind out ๐ . And cool about Koru Hour – I didn’t see that option for our flights, but will keep my eye out in the future if I’m flying with my fancy Mom ๐ .
That spa looks really nice. I need a hot spring soak. It’s still cold here in Portland. ๐
Oh no – I hope it warms up there soon. And definitely go to a spa if you want – I went to two in the last few weeks and it was lovely.