Review of Garuda Indonesia flight Denpasar → Jakarta in Economy

It was my trip from Ho Chi Minh City to Bali in July and August. For the return leg, I flew from Denpasar (DPS) to Jakarta (CGK) before flying back to Ho Chi Minh City with Vietnam Airlines. For this domestic leg, I chose GA since it's a Skyteam member and I could accumulate miles into my Vietnam Airlines Lotusmiles membership as well as got the benefits from my Elite Plus tier.

I had a nice trip to Bali in 5 days. I visited several places such as Trunyan skull village, temples and beaches. Really love this country.



My flight was at 12:00 so at 8:30 I check-out at Mercure Kuta Hotel and took a taxi to the airport. DPS domestic terminal is actually its old terminal. Since the new terminal opened, this old terminal became the domestic one.

As I have Vietnam Airlines Platinum membership (Skyteam Elite Plus), I finished my check-in very quickly. GA has a separate area for CIP check-in, including business class, Elite and Elite Plus passenger. I quickly proceeded to the airside to take some photos and go shopping. There was nothing much to tell at DPS domestic terminal except for the great view to the runway and tarmac. Although I have Elite Plus tier but it's a Vietnam Airlines one, not GA so I was not invited to CIP lounge.

DPS domestic terminal


Business class, Elite and Elite Plus check-in area


The flight was on time. I boarded GA's Airbus A330-300 through aerobridge. It was so exciting because this was the first time I flew with GA's Airbus A330-300. The plane has 42 J seats in 2 cabin. The smaller one has 12 J seats. The rest is 215 Y seats in 2 cabin also. Anyway, I was impressed with the business class cabin because of the seats color.

The boarding gate:


The business class cabin:


Wifi available on board. Oh yeah!


The Y seats are quite comfortable with large seat pitch. Before take-off, the cabin crew invited passengers with candies. This is great! Passengers like me feel that I was taken care very well and the service is good for a short domestic flight like this!

Comfortable seat pitch:


And wow, headset was distributed to enjoy the entertainment system for just a short domestic flight. That's great!


Welcome candy:


Shortly after take-off, meal service began. Hot meal for short domestic flight is not strange to me. I usually take flights from Ho Chi Minh City Hanoi and was served full meal during these flights. But GA's meal is more well-presented and they use stainless steel dining set (not plastic). I chose fish with potatoes while my mom chose chicken with rice. There was a small cup of jelly as dessert. Tea and coffee was served after that.



After the meal, I experience the free wifi onboard. GA offers 15 minutes of wifi free. I think it's enough.


After around almost 2 hours, the plane landed in CGK. I stay at ibis Styles hotel near the airport before going back to Ho Chi Minh City the day after that. The hotel offers free airport transfer.



Video about the flight: