Air New Zealand: Sky Couch or Premium Economy?

I spent many months and many hours planning our March adventure to New Zealand. For budgetary reasons we were going to fly at best in Premium Economy, but because Air New Zealand offers a very unique option with their SkyCouch, we wanted to try this option.

We spent a lot of time looking at online reviews and speaking to a few we knew who had been to New Zealand, and determined that the SkyCouch was a more favorable option than Premium Economy in this case.

What is a SkyCouch?

On its long-haul planes, with 3-4-3 seating in economy class, Air New Zealand offers economy passengers the option to purchase two additional adjoining seats so that you end up with three seats across. However, the seats aren’t just normal economy seats, they have a footrest that comes up flat with the seat cushion making a much wider seating or sleeping area.

In addition, SkyCouch passengers are provided with a thin mattress and three pillows, in addition to a blanket. It’s an ingenious invention. While adults over 5’ in height can’t fully stretch out, if you can sleep with your knees bent, it works quite well. And it’s especially valuable to parents traveling with young children. An adult and small child could share a SkyCouch, as it’s wide enough.

(I was concerned that the raised leg rest would block the seatback pocket in front of you, where you might store a phone or book, but it doesn’t. With the footrest fully raised, you still have access to the seatback pocket.)

SkyCouch or Premium Economy?

Much to our chagrin, we found out two days prior to our scheduled departure that our SkyCouch seats were cancelled and no longer available and we were booked in economy in the middle seats! Apparently the plane we were supposed to fly on was rerouted to fly the All Blacks team somewhere. To make a very long story short and to the point, we ended up flying out in Premium Economy seats and flying back in SkyCouch seats.

The main difference, besides cost, between these two classes of service is the upgraded meal service in Premium Economy, a cushier and more comfortable and wider seat, and a larger video screen in the seatback in front of you. While the Premium Economy seat reclines more than the Economy seat, in my view it doesn’t recline enough to make it a better option than being able to lie down flat, even with the knees bent. But that’s a personal choice, of course. If you can sleep sitting up and partially reclined, it may be a better option if budget isn’t a concern.

As for cost, the SkyCouch is less expensive than Premium Economy. In addition to the cost of an economy ticket, there’s an upcharge of around $1000USD for the two additional seats one way ($2000 roundtrip). The Economy seat is around $900-$1000 roundtrip. So if you buy the SkyCouch roundtrip, the fare is around $3000.

It’s important to point out that the number of SkyCouch seats is very limited and that number varies by aircraft type. The process for purchasing the SkyCouch is a bit awkward and Air New Zealand’s website could stand improvement. You (or your travel agent) can only book a SkyCouch after you’ve completed purchase of an economy seat – it comes up as an add-on option. Likewise, as we learned the hard way in our experience, once purchased it is not guaranteed should an aircraft change occur.

As for the better meal service in Premium Economy. Our dinner service was okay, the standout actually being the fresh bread generously served. A lot of cheese was served for our dinner: the appetizer was smoked mozzarella, there were two cheeses for the after-dinner cheese course, and a piece of cheesecake for dessert! There were three entrée choices – gratefully without cheese! In economy the meal was fairly decent, with two entrée choices.

Cabin service overall was efficient in both classes. (On our return flight, our flight attendant in economy was probably the nicest, kindest person I’ve ever had on a flight. She couldn’t do enough and was great assisting with the SkyCouch setup, and authentically friendly.) Breakfast service preceded touchdown.

Our flight from Los Angeles to Auckland arrived early and was only about 12.5 hours long, comparable to a flight to mainland Europe. The return flight was slightly longer.

Finally, a word about bathrooms. Ok, I doubt there’s much written about airplane bathrooms in economy classes, but I must admit that I was surprised by the wall decor in Air New Zealand’s bathroom! The wallpaper of books on a shelf  made me smile, and that the airline thought to add this thoughtful touch in the bathroom!

Dan Ilves