Review of Air Tahiti Nui flight from Paris to Los Angeles in Premium Eco

Introduction

Hello and welcome to the return flight in this short two-part series of Flight-Reports.

While I have an ever-growing backlog of reviews to write up, I'll be sharing these more recent flights first as it's an interesting departure from the usual oneworld airlines I normally review. 

This trip back to France was unplanned, especially as we'd only returned home to California from spending the Christmas holidays in France a few weeks earlier. Unfortunately, we needed to rush back at the last minute due to a family emergency.

As everyone knows, last minute long-haul airfare is always exorbitantly expensive, so I was very thankful to find 3 award tickets to Paris in premium cabins using American Airlines miles. We were able to book a round-trip on Air Tahiti Nui's nonstop LAX-CDG route, with the outbound in Business and the return in Premium Economy, for 97,500 miles, an exceptional value these days.

A roundtrip in Business would have been 115,000 had we been more flexible with dates–a very good deal for an 11h flight–but there was no availability on the return date we needed. I was glad to have gotten at least the outbound flight in Business as it was a night flight. Also, this was an opportunity to try two different cabin classes on a new airline I'd never previously flown. 

Routing

Check-in & Lounge

Checking in online the night prior to the flight, the Premium Economy cabin showed 100% full. The Air Tahiti Nui app doesn't have many practical features–there's surprisingly no option to check in for a flight in the app, you have to go to the Air Tahiti Nui website separately. 

The morning of the flight, we dropped the rental car off at the rental car centre between Terminals 2E and 2F. We then walked through T2F to get to T2D, where the Air Tahiti Nui check-in counters are located at the very end, right before entering T2B, where the boarding gate is located. 

About 2 1/2 hours before departure, there was a long line in the regular Economy queue!

Luckily there are separate lanes for Business and Premium Economy passengers, both of which were empty!

While Premium Economy passengers have access to priority check-in and boarding, priority security screening access is not included, unlike Business class. 

While there was a very long queue at security, it went surprisingly fast. The checkpoint is equipped with new machines that allow you to keep liquids and electronics in cabin baggage. Passengers therefore flowed through rather quickly as there was no need for anyone to take take removing items. 

The main concourse level is down one level from the security checkpoint. 

Of course, the path to the gates and lounges takes you through a duty free area. 

Interesting fuzzy Deux Chevaux in the duty free shop. 

We made our way to the Extime Lounge, which is located one level up from the main concourse. 

Air Tahiti Nui, like most airlines, do not include lounge access with Premium Economy fares. However, we were able to purchase discounted lounge passes as an optional add-on through the website. Note that there are no Priority Pass lounges in CDG Terminals 2B or 2D, which is why we decided to purchase passes. 

As far a third party lounges go, the Extime lounge is quite nice, with a good amount of seating and chic decor. 

As the lounge handles over a dozen airlines' premium passengers, it was quite busy, but we were able to find seating relatively easily. 

The dining area was a bit quieter than the rest of the lounge and the oversized chairs were quite comfortable, though very bulky. 

As it was breakfast time, only breakfast fare was available, which is never terribly interesting, though there were a good amount of hot and fresh options. 

You can see the American/British influence here as savoury items like eggs, bacon, and potatoes aren't normally common breakfast items in France. 

Boarding

As we knew we would need to go through passport control prior to going to the gate, we left the lounge about 15 minutes prior to boarding time.

Well…we should have left even earlier, as there were very long queues at passport control! Families travelling with children are not able to use the E-gates for EU citizens, so we had to get in a long line for manual passport checks. 

The immigration positions were well-staffed, but it still took about 20 minutes to get through as there was a mix of Europeans and non-Europeans in the family queue. 

Unsurprisingly, boarding had already begun by the time we arrived at the gate. 

General boarding was well under way. Luckily, the boarding queues were well organised and we were able to skip the long general boarding line by using the dedicated Business class/Premium Economy lane. 

Unlike the outbound flight from LAX, we had beautiful views of our aircraft thanks to the glass jet bridge. I wish these were more common in the US!

Friendly cabin crew welcome passengers on board with a Tahitian Tiare flower, the symbol of Air Tahiti Nui. 

Very nice first impression of the Premium Economy cabin. The colours are cheerful, bright, and welcoming. 

The cabin is spacious, with just 32 seats laid out in a 2-3-2 configuration. Seats have 38 inches (97 cm) of pitch and 19.5-20 inches (50-51 cm) of width, which is similar to narrow-body Business class/Domestic First class seat dimensions. 

When flying Premium Economy, I generally prefer 787s as the typical 2-3-2 configuration allows for wider seats than the A350's typical 2-4-2. 

At each seat were a pillow, blanket, and small amenity kit. 

The standard 38 inch seat pitch is spacious and pleasant.

There are footrests in addition to legrests. 

While the Tiare flower is nice (and smells amazing!), be aware that bringing plants into the US is generally forbidden. Cabin crew make an announcement saying as much prior to landing. It's a nice touch, but very ephemeral as it needs to be discarded prior to disembarking. 

There are 110v universal power outlets between seats on the front of the centre console, as well as USB ports between seats above the central armrests. 

The IFE remote is located on the side of the centre console. 

Seat controls are located on the side of the armrest opposite the centre console. 

The small amenity kits have decent content by Premium Economy standards. 

I was surprised that there were no noise-cancelling headsets anywhere to be found

There's a convenient bottle holder integrated in the seatback pocket, as well as small storage spaces between the seats in front, which can also be used for bottles after takeoff–storage not being allowed during taxi and takeoff. 

Let's check out the IFE while boarding continues. 

As mentioned in the previous review, there's significantly less content than on larger carriers like AA or BA, but it's sufficient and there's something for all tastes. 

Luckily there's enough children's programming and games to keep kids occupied on these long flights. 

At the gate next door was an Amelia International (French charter airline) A320 operating for Air Algérie

The Flight

Boarding wrapped up on time and doors were closed a few minutes ahead of schedule. 

Flight time from takeoff to touchdown was showing as 10h45m on the IFE map. 

We pushed back from the gate a few minutes early. 

The safety video showcasing the beautiful landscapes of French Polynesia played as we taxied. 

It's always fun to taxi on bridge over a highway

We passed the beautiful Air France Concorde on display at CDG since its retirement. 

Just a few ahead of us for takeoff

And we're off for an 11h transatlantic crossing

Unlike the outbound flight in Business class, the food menu on the IFE system was accurate this time, which is good since there are no printed menus in Premium Economy. 

Testing out the legrest it raises up quite high, which makes it useful, at least if you're average sized or smaller. However, you can't use both the legrest and footrest at the same time, unless you're on the shorter side. At 5'10" (178cm) my legs missed the footrest altogether at this angle. 

It was the perfect length to support my 4ft (122cm) 6-year-old son's legs, hah

The Premium Economy cabin shares lavatories with the Business class cabin. 

I knew better than to blow my money on the crazy expensive Wi-Fi this time! On the flight over the $38 200MB plan lasted me about 10 minutes…nope, never again. I've never lost money that fast even in Vegas! Hah

It does help to close out all unused apps, as the instructions mention, but these are some very low data amounts at outrageously high prices!

After takeoff the small storage spaces between the seats in front were perfect for placing water bottles. 

The lunch service began shortly after takeoff with a proper separate apéritif service. When I say "proper separate" I mean when the airline does a separate pre-meal drink service, and then serves drinks again later with the meal. This used to be the norm even in Economy for most long-haul carriers, but I've noticed since the pandemic that some airlines like AA (and sometimes BA),  are doing just one drink service in Premium Economy and Economy and that's suppose to last you through the meal. 

Being that we're on a French airline, this would never happen, of course, as the concept of apéritif is too ingrained in the French brain–there would be riots if a French airline tried to take it away! My people love a good protest after all, hah. This is a similar subject to the separate cheese course that I mention in so many flight reviews. Even though I've lived in the US for a veeery long time, and prior to that the UK, my French mind CANNOT comprehend having to choose between cheese or dessert…both, you get both! No choosing! 🤣

On top of having a proper apéritif service, there was real champagne available in Premium Economy, which is definitely rare. A positive start to the meal service!

For the meal I went with a red wine, which was decent by Premium Economy standards. 

My son's child meal was served first. Like 99% of child meals it was chicken. No cute presentation like in Business on the outbound flight, but overall decent and well balanced with a good amount of veggies. 

For my meal I went with the beef option, hence the red wine. 

It was decent, but it didn't seem to be very differentiated from an Economy meal. 

I was glad I'd seen the menu on the IFE as the flight attendant working our row mumbled the meal options almost inaudibly and just in general looked unhappy and like he didn't want to be here, making the minimum effort throughout the flight.

Considering how attentive and amazing the cabin crew on the flight out were, this poor attitude was in sharp contrast and surprising. I understand we're all human and all have bad days, but when you work a customer-facing role you have to make an effort. I wasn't is a great mood either as we were coming back from a funeral, but that didn't stop me from making an effort to be nice to those around me. 

Here's a look at the chicken option. 

By the time the meal service was over, there was still over 9h of flight time remaining. 

Lights were turned down shortly after the meal service so that passengers could relax. The seat recline is very good, but not bothersome to the passengers behind as the seat pan slides forward when reclining. I really appreciate this design as you can recline guilt-free!

The IFE screens tilt to make up for the angle of reclined seats. As you can see a fully reclined seat does not encroach much on the row behind. 

Some passengers got very comfortable 🤣 I'm not nearly flexible enough to do that…not that I would—I'd hate to be the person in front of them with feet just inches from my face, hah. 

Selve-serve drinks, snacks, and sandwiches were available in the galley between Business and Premium Economy throughout the flight. 

A little mid-flight snack. 

As I was trying to get comfortable to take a nap, I raised the adjustable headrest it just came off! I don't think it's supposed to do that! 😲

I rang the call button, but waited like 10 minutes and nothing. I then went to the galley, but no crew were there. I tried the call button again, and still nothing…
Luckily, after messing around with it for a few minutes I was able to get the headrest back on the metal track. It was NOT easy! And I made sure not to adjust it again. When I later saw our flight attendant I let him know what happened in case it needed to be written up to be checked out on arrival and he just shrugged his shoulders…he couldn't have cared less. 

Later in the flight, I got another taste of the same flight attendant's poor attitude when I took my son to the lav. It was busy so we just waited patiently in the galley. The flight attendant, who was chatting in another part of the galley came and tapped me on my shoulder and pointed to an area further away. I didn't get it. Why are you pointing to empty space, I thought to myself. Seriously…use your words…what!? So I told him I didn't understand his hand gestures. He then rolled his eyes as if it were too much effort to have to speak and said, "she's waiting" pointing to the passenger with whom he was chatting–not even a full sentence!

I just responded (in French of course), and annoyed by this point "You could have just said that. How would I have known as you all aren't even near the lav. I just assumed you were both having a chat." The passenger then replied to me, "oh no, it's ok no worries, go ahead." But I told her it was no problem and took my son to another restroom. 

Just an absolutely terrible attitude throughout the flight from this flight attendant. I hadn't seen such apathy in years, especially in a premium cabin! What is this AA?? 🤣 

About an hour prior to landing the pre-arrival "meals" were plopped down on the tray tables. It turned out my son's Child Meal was exactly the same as the others, which was fine, but it's funny they bothered to label it "CHML"

No options for the pre-arrival service. Everyone in both Premium Economy and Economy received the same cheese pizza in a box. It's quite decent by transatlantic Economy standards, but seems cheap for Premium Economy, considering cash fares are about 3 times the price of Economy, or more. 

As we began our descent, it was nice to see snow in the San Gabriel mountains. 

After the terrible fires throughout Southern California of the previous month, the rain and snow were very welcome! It had been over 8 months with no measurable precipitation. In fact, there was a large 6700 acre fire very close to my house in San Diego, which thankfully stopped advancing thanks to a rainstorm just a week before we had to fly to France. It's been a stressful start to 2025!

Arrival

With favourable winds, we were due to arrive early into LAX. 

On this westbound day flight, I chose seats on the right side to avoid being on the side with direct sun, and for the usual good view of downtown L.A. on landing. 

If you squint your eyes and look closely you can just make out the Hollywood sign on top of the hill 😅

We landed ahead of schedule. I was surprised to see 2 Air New Zealand aircraft on the ground. Hint for a future trip report destination 😉

A beautiful Qantas superjumbo

We parked at the TBIT satellite concourse. 

We officially arrived at the gate 12 minutes ahead of schedule. 

Being so close to the door in Premium Economy, we deplaned quickly. 

Nice view of our beautiful aircraft on the way to immigration and customs. 

Of course, being in the satellite concourse, it's a looooong walk to the US CBP facility. 

But, as we didn't have any checked bags and all have Global Entry, we were through in seconds once we got there. 

We were out and on our way to the car just a few minutes past the original scheduled time. Thanks for reading!