Review of Air Tahiti Nui flight Auckland → Papeete in Economy

Conclusion

Air Tahiti Nui
My rating concerns ATN, and unfortunately can not concern Air New Zealand that issued the ticket, for this code share giving no benefit to passengers despite a Staralliance status.
The new economy cabin is successful on the whole, a great visual. Comfort is OK but I regret a 90° position of the seat that I feel uncomfortable, but it is very nice when reclined and not bothered by the front seat when it tilts
Smiling and pleasant crew.
Catering is average of what I know of ATN, good enough but no extraordinary. After a flight with Singapore, ATN still suffers from the comparison.
IFE is good with a beautiful image, a touchscreen responding well, and finally the VOD that was sorely lacking before the retrofit. What a pity of having savings on the choice of films, really too small , it's cheap

In the end I found the successful retrofit economy class, with some caveats on some details or small choice of movies on the IFE

Air New Zealand Koru Lounge, International Terminal
I have not had the time and the courage to explore it in detail, but food was correct but below what I expected while we were at lunch time. The setting is nice and spacious, not overcrowded at that time. ANZ should do better for the flagship lounge of its hub.

AKL airport
This airport is usually very nice for quick transits. But this time it was not the case with a painful procedure for check in and controls. Because of the lack of agreement between Singapore and Air New Zealand / Air Tahiti Nui. But ultimately the image of the airport suffers. What a pity because apart from that, I find it very pleasant

PPT airport
The airport remains functional for landing but not pretty, would need a facelift

8 Comments

• 

  Chibcha SILVER 556 Comments 2014-05-03 08:58:09

  Awesome series, I enjoyed every single one of your reports.
  
  I found AF the least nice of the airlines for the long haul, SQ looked awesome overall, but TN's interiors were my favorite. LH was ...well LH as usual I guess, the seats are not the latest ones if I'm not wrong.
  
  That transit in LAX looked awful, specially for passengers like you in for another long haul. Bad play by NZ and TN on the codeshare, were the conditions readily available?
  
  Seeing you travel with your child reminded me of my childhood when travelling with my dad, who introduced me into aviation geekness, kudos for the boy for withstanding the long trips!
  
  Saludos!
  
  2014-05-03 08:58:09

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  anthonytahiti AUTHOR 1563 Comments 2014-05-05 03:22:09

  I appreciate your comment
  
  Sure that TN interior make you feel on holydays.
  LH seat was indead not the latest
  Conditions of the code share TN/NZ were readily aviable, but not at the first sight, and the lack of advantages for *A Gold was not clearly explained
  The kid is already avgeek, asking us to come back in a plane 2014-05-05 03:22:09

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  jetsetpanda 2283 Comments 2014-05-03 09:05:38

  Very enjoyable report and I congratulate you and your family for having the stamina to do this long and tiring trip. It's amazing to see how many miles you flew at the end when you counted all the segments. Pity about the lack of *A benefits when you flew with ATN. Code shares do not always guarantee a smooth transaction and many people find them confusing.
  
  TN looks like a fun and nice carrier to try. Unfortunately I have no plans for any trips to that part of the world in the future. Perhaps I can catch them from LAX-CDG through AA or DL since they are partners. I imagine that the crew are carefully selected and would look beautiful. I believe that Polynesia is very similar to Hawaii in the sense that it is a melting pot of different races and cultures, with Polynesians being more image conscious due to the French influence. Some of the people from these parts of the world have such beautiful and exotic features that they can be stunning to look at.
  
  Thanks for taking us along for the ride. 2014-05-03 09:05:38

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  anthonytahiti AUTHOR 1563 Comments 2014-05-05 03:29:03

  Thanks a lot for all your comments
  
  You can also fly with TN on the LAX PPT route, code share with AA, QF, NZ
  I was in Hawaii in 2010 and I find these 2 polynesian archipelago really different, French Polynesia is really better for who's main interest is sea and nautical activities. I really enjoyed Hawaii for inland tourism : volcanoes... 2014-05-05 03:29:03

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  KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6733 Comments 2014-05-04 23:11:48

  Thanks for sharing! code-shares can be complicated when the code-share partner is not part of an alliance or in a different alliance as is the case here. As you saw, status and the perks that come along with it do not apply on the operating carrier--you were very lucky to gt into the lounge as are correct, you technically did not have access. The new cabin looks very attractive and the seats seem comfortable with a generous pitch. The IFE seems really good and modern. Overall ATN offers a very good product. Thanks for making an effort to do such a good and detailed report despite such a tiring routing! 2014-05-04 23:11:48

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  anthonytahiti AUTHOR 1563 Comments 2014-05-05 03:32:42

  Thank you Kevin for your comment.
  Sure that this code share is disappointing. Conditions are completely different with the TN/QF code share on the same route.
  TN is a good carrier, pity that they did not choose a larger choice of movies for the IFE 2014-05-05 03:32:42

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  'Round the World I Go 5 Comments 2014-05-16 00:01:44

  Question, how to you put your pictures in the report. When I do mine it says there is an error. Is that because the resolution is too much? should i use a phone camera instead?
  
  Thanks 2014-05-16 00:01:44

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  anthonytahiti AUTHOR 1563 Comments 2014-05-16 08:33:47

  Picture's size should not exceed 2Mb. Please see here : http://flight-report.com/en/help.html
  Reduce size of your pics with dedicated software (many are free)
  2014-05-16 08:33:47