Airline review: This ticket to paradise is excellent, even in economy

The airline: Air Tahiti Nui

• Route Auckland to Tahiti Faa’a (Papeete), flight TN102
• Frequency Three times per week (Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday)
• Aircraft Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner
• Class Economy; seat 42A
• Flight time 4 hours, 5 minutes (the plane pulled away from the terminal on time, to the minute, and landed 25 minutes ahead of schedule)

Air Tahiti Nui flies Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners from Auckland to Tahiti. Credit: Getty Images

Checking in

I fly in from Australia with Air New Zealand (Air Tahiti Nui has codeshare partnerships with both Air New Zealand and Qantas). Just after 1pm in Auckland the line to check in is relatively short, but moves slowly. An introduction to island time, I suppose. Nevertheless, the check-in staff are friendly, and when the attendant realises my partner and I haven’t been seated together, she scrolls and clicks to find a way to seat us together (with a spare seat next to us to boot).

Baggage

One checked bag up to 23 kilograms and a generous cabin baggage allowance – one carry-on bag up to 10 kilograms, plus personal item up to three kilograms.

Loyalty scheme

Guests are automatically signed up to Club Tiare on their first trip, with 3000 welcome points.

The seat

The seat has just 31 inches (79 cm) of legroom, but you probably won’t need to sleep.

Seats are in a 3-3-3 layout, and are 17.3 inches (44cm) wide with 31 inches (79cm) of pitch. Comfort levels are satisfactory, and wrap-around head rests offer some neck support. Given the flight takes off and lands at a reasonable hour (landing at 10pm Tahiti time is 8pm New Zealand time, though you’ll go back in time and land the day before), you probably won’t need to sleep. That said, each seat comes with a blanket and pillow, and your inflight pack contains an eye mask and socks, so you can get cosy for a nap if you wish.

Entertainment + tech

There’s a decent selection of entertainment on the 11.8-inch (30cm) screen, including 25 new-release movies. I find myself down a rabbit hole reading the entertainment system’s short stories about Tahitian life and culture, like vanilla farming and Tahiti’s emblematic flower, the tiare, which is handed fresh to every guest upon boarding. Wi-Fi is available from $US8 ($A12) for 20MB, but as the flight attendant candidly tells me, “It’s overpriced and runs out quickly. You can go without.”

The airline claims its aircraft have “smoother ride” technology, which helps reduce turbulence. The second half of the flight has a few bumps and the seatbelt sign dings on a number of times. Would it have been even bumpier without the tech? Who knows?

Service

Staff are upbeat and always smiling.

Onboard service is excellent, and staff exude the upbeat, smiling demeanour French Polynesians are known for. When I call for a cup of water, it’s in my hand almost immediately. Tahitian music plays as you board and the plane is decked out in bright colours, with seats matching the colour of region’s famously aqua-blue water, so, combined with the friendliness of the staff, it feels like your holiday starts when you board.

Food

For lunch, I opt for the beef goulash (the other option being chicken schnitzel with mash). The beef is tender and the sauce is rich, and paired with spuds, salad, cheese, crackers, a bread roll and cake, it’s a filling meal. The chocolate cake is moist to the brink of stodgy, but passable, however the biggest letdown is the bread (this is a French airline, after all), which is cold and dense. The small but exclusive selection of French wine offers some consolation.

Carbon emissions

Total CO² emissions are 206 kilograms. Air Tahiti Nui partners with Carbon Click to let you voluntarily offset greenhouse gas emissions generated by your trip. You can choose how much you wish to contribute to offsetting your flight, and if you offset 50 per cent, the airline pays the other half.

One more thing

The pattern you see marked on Air Tahiti Nui’s aircraft and printed on the staff uniforms draws inspiration from the traditional tattoos of French Polynesia and depicts manta rays, whales, albatross and fish hooks, for example, each with their own symbolic meaning, such as prosperity and luck.

The price

From about $1500 return departing from Sydney or Melbourne via Auckland.*

The verdict

The flight gets you in the mood for a good time on island time, and the overall experience and aesthetics feel fitting in light of the end destination.

Our rating out of five

★★★★½

The writer flew as a guest of Air Tahiti Nui. See airtahitinui.com

Fares are based on those available for travel three months from the time of publication and subject to change.