"Very disappointed with Business seating"
Philip Beddard (United Kingdom)
✅ Trip Verified | Very disappointed with Air New Zealand Business Class seating. The seats themselves are the narrowest that I have experienced on any business class section of an aircraft. They are badly designed as far as the ergonomics are concerned and have no elbow room, resulting in a cramped environment. Entertainment monitor is small and can easily cause problems with the pull out table at meal times. The herringbone pattern of the seating results in no privacy . I really do not want to be able to observe all my fellow passengers during the flight and I don't want them observing me. Headphones are cheap and not noise reduction. Main meal was small. It seemed no more in volume than one would get in Economy. Only difference is that it was presented better with a plate and white linen. Cabin crew were unable to provide sliced lemon for my tea and sandwiches offered were dry and curled up at the edges. This is not how Business Class should be experienced. My ticket from the UK via Perth and then onto New Zealand was through Singapore Airlines. Their seating and service is excellent. Had to use Air New Zealand for Perth to Auckland return as they are part of the Star Alliance. Air New Zealand Business Class travel is a waste of money.
Seat Type | Business Class |
Aircraft Type | Boeing 787 |
Seat Layout | 1x2x1 |
Date Flown | December 2019 |
Type Of Traveller | Leisure |
Sleep Comfort | 12345 |
Sitting Comfort | 12345 |
Seat/bed Width | 12345 |
Seat/bed Length | 12345 |
Seat Privacy | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"improved the pitch of the seat"
2 reviews W Gan (New Zealand)
✅ Trip Verified | The plane was quite new, seat was well padded, Air NZ clearly improved the pitch of the seat and these seats on the A321 is quite spacious. The biggest problem with this plane is the infotainment. Air NZ went for a better, sharper screen and a new OS. The available content isn't too different from before, but the OS is really buggy, it regularly asked me to go to the next episode when i am 0-50% through my current episode, the OS doesn't remember the last played position of my videos, and the navigation of movies/TV is completely unintuitive. Otherwise actually a pretty big upgrade over the old A320 product, I would still rate this seat highly.
Seat Type | Economy Class |
Aircraft Type | A321 NEO |
Seat Layout | 3x3 |
Date Flown | October 2019 |
Type Of Traveller | Business |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Viewing Tv Screen | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | yes |
"Tight but comfortable"
Victor Han (Canada)
✅ Trip Verified | Good seats, good entertainment centre and power outlet in each seat. Tight but comfortable. Would prefer to have a bit wider seats but enough for me to do my work on my laptop during the long trip.
Seat Type | Economy Class |
Aircraft Type | Boeing 777 |
Seat Layout | 3x4x3 |
Date Flown | October 2019 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Viewing Tv Screen | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | yes |
"seats narrower than your shoulders"
Wouter Boeren (New Zealand)
Not Verified | My sore back lasted more than 3 days after my flight. I'm a big guy, 6'8" and built to match, though not overweight. When the seats are narrower than your shoulders you know you've made a mistake. I did the normal dance people of my height have to go through and paid the $150 fee to get myself an emergency row seat for the extra legroom. My complaint about Air New Zealand seating boils down to how narrow they are and that the headrests dig into my back even at maximum extension to the point where I cannot sit back in any kind of comfortable position without hurting my back because of it.
Seat Type | Economy Class |
Aircraft Type | Boeing 787-9 |
Seat Layout | 3x3x3 |
Date Flown | June 2019 |
Type Of Traveller | Solo Leisure |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Viewing Tv Screen | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"one of the worst business class"
2 reviews Cong Wang (New Zealand)
Not Verified | Boeing 787-9 Seat was soft, good leg room, entertainment was good. But the shape of the foot rest made sleeping uncomfortable was i couldnt keep my feet in a good position (im 184cm) Privacy was poor. Air NZ business class seat is possibly one of the worst business class products around.
Seat Type | Business Class |
Aircraft Type | Boeing 787-9 |
Seat Layout | 1X2X1 |
Date Flown | March 2019 |
Type Of Traveller | Business |
Sleep Comfort | 12345 |
Sitting Comfort | 12345 |
Seat/bed Width | 12345 |
Seat/bed Length | 12345 |
Seat Privacy | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"appallingly bad seat"
1 reviews Peter Riddell (Australia)
Not Verified | We flew MEL/CHC on 07 September, emergency exit seat 11E, NZ898. Without a doubt the most uncomfortable, appallingly bad seat I've had to sit on in an aircraft for as long as I can remember. The seat back seemed to angle slightly forward, the seat base slightly back and so I felt as if I was being sandwiched. I had to get up and walk during the flight and on landing all I could think was "get me off this aircraft, now!" I was in extreme lower back pain and it took me some days to recover. The return flight NZ 883 to SYD on 12 September was only minimally better, I was able to secure a small pillow but the seat again had no recline. At least I wasn't in as much pain at the end of that flight. These two experiences ensure I sadly won't be back on an NZ aircraft again in the foreseeable future in spite of their awesome crew.
Seat Type | Economy Class |
Aircraft Type | A320 |
Seat Layout | 3x3 |
Date Flown | September 2018 |
Type Of Traveller | Solo Leisure |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Viewing Tv Screen | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"Legroom less than Singapore Airlines"
Anthony Maplesden (New Zealand)
✅ Trip Verified | Bit disappointed but otherwise just ok. Legroom was less than Singapore Airlines but as a tall man I was able to be comfortable. Not overly happy with the food but was ok. Singapore Airlines food was better. The crew were very nice except for 1 lady who I thought was a little crabby. Entertainment was good and the electric window shade I thought was brilliant. Sometime it is too bright to look out the window but don’t want the shade down where these electronic shading was great.
Seat Type | Economy Class |
Aircraft Type | Boeing 787-9 |
Seat Layout | 3x3x3 |
Date Flown | April 2018 |
Type Of Traveller | Solo Leisure |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Viewing Tv Screen | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | yes |
"served on china plates"
Richard Mitchell (Spain)
✅ Trip Verified | My flight in the Premium Economy cabin (seats 25A and 25B) from Hong Kong to Auckland was one of the best I have experienced. The legroom was better than the equivalent seat on Cathay Pacific the day before. The cabin crew were extremely friendly and efficient. The food was good served on china plates with metal cutlery. Lots of wines on offer, with generous top-ups. The AVOD was superb. We could use the toilets at the back of the Business Premier cabin, instead of having to go back through economy. I would fly Air New Zealand premium economy again.
Seat Type | Premium Economy |
Aircraft Type | 777-200 |
Seat Layout | 2x4x2 |
Date Flown | March 2018 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Viewing Tv Screen | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | yes |
"this worked very well for us"
J Apgar (United States)
✅ Trip Verified | This review is for the Sky Couch, which is 3 standard economy seats where the footrests are independently adjustable up to a fully horizontal level. After reading reviews on the sky couch, we were concerned that it was only appropriate for children. However, due to my wife's back issues, she needs to lay flat or on her side for any extended periods. That left us with either business or trying out the sky couch. So we risked it and flew RT SFO to Auckland and found that this worked very well for us. She was able to curl up on the two seats with footrests up while I sat in the aisle seat. We didn't attempt to both lie down. It seemed pretty tight for that. But it was good for her and a much more economical alternative to business. For complete details - she is 5'4" and I am 6'.
Seat Type | Economy Class |
Aircraft Type | Boeing 777 |
Seat Layout | 3x4x3 |
Date Flown | December 2017 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Viewing Tv Screen | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | yes |
"discomfort and frustration"
1 reviews S Lane (New Zealand)
✅ Verified Review | Been wanting to try the economy sky couch on Air New Zealand for a while now, and on this trip from San Francisco to Auckland we chose to pay an extra $600 to reserve one. Sky Couch sounds great in theory - you get special seats in a row of 3 that have fold up footrests that fill the space between your seat and the next row up. And maybe if you an an adult traveling with a child it would be a really good system. However, for two adults it is an exercise in discomfort and frustration. My partner and I are both 5' 7" and average weight, but we really struggled to find a position that was comfortable for more than a few minutes. I gave up after an hour and just sat up for the rest of the flight--between the seat belts digging into my back and the lack of leg space I was not going to get any sleep anyway. I was not happy. Bottom line: Absolutely not worth the money unless you are a very tiny couple or a single person traveling with a child.
Seat Type | Economy Class |
Aircraft Type | Boeing 777 |
Seat Layout | 3x4x3 |
Date Flown | September 2017 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Seat Legroom | 12345 |
Seat Recline | 12345 |
Seat Width | 12345 |
Aisle Space | 12345 |
Power Supply | 12345 |
Seat Storage | 12345 |
Recommended | no |