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Air New Zealand Skycouch Review

Editor Update: Unfortunately the LHR-LAX route has now been suspended.

Air New Zealand have become one of my favourite airlines, and it goes without saying that they are my airline of choice when flying between London and Los Angeles. The airline operates a three-class service on a Boeing 777-300ER; which flies daily between the British capital, tinseltown, and Auckland in New Zealand. However, there is a unique product located within the Economy cabin. The Skycouch.

The outer set of seats (by the window) in the forward section of the economy cabin are designated Skycouch rows, something that was introduced following feedback from frequent fliers. The clever folks within the design and innovation team at Air New Zealand had the idea to utilise a set of three Economy seats, where a leg rest comes up from underneath at touch of a button to form a fully-flat couch, with room for up to two adults and small children to cuddle up together and get some well-deserved rest. Another key point of the SkyCouch is the ability for the leg rest to be adjusted individually from each seat at either 30, 60 or 90 degrees in order to suit the needs and comfort of each passenger. It goes without saying that it is no surprise how popular the Skycouch seats have become, and I was incredibly fortunate to see why many people travelling for both business and leisure like the product.

Check In and the Departures Area

Air New Zealand's flights between London, Los Angeles and Auckland now operates from Terminal 2 at Heathrow; which is otherwise known as The Queen's Terminal.

After a two-and-a-half-hour coach journey from my home to Heathrow Airport, it was a nice surprise to encounter a very short check-in process which must have taken a little under five minutes to complete. The agent was polite, friendly, and made good conversation with each passenger; something of which you don't see each time you pass through the airport!

Soon enough I was through security and into the duo-level departures area. You'll find a plethora of retail and dining outlets, including the very first John Lewis at an airport, and a restaurant by Heston Blumenthal.

Air New Zealand flights depart from the gates located in T2B. It's a satellite terminal which can be accessed via a passenger tunnel. Be warned that it is a 10-15 minute walk away from the departure lounge.

Boarding

After a leisurely walk towards my departure gate, I took a seat and waited to be called forward to board the aircraft.
As the Skycouch seating is located within the forward section of the Economy cabin; you'll usually be invited to proceed along the air-bridge towards the end of the boarding process; unless you are a Airpoints Gold Elite, Gold or Koru Member.

I was welcomed on board with a cheery “Kia Ora” by two of the in-flight crew, who then checked my boarding pass and directed me towards my allocated seat, or should that read seats in this instance. As with any large aircraft, you'll board through the second door and walk through parts of the Business Premier and Premium Economy cabins; however I wasn't that bothered seeing as my Skycouch was waiting for me!

The Economy Cabin

The 244-seat Economy cabin is split into two sections that are located from the middle of the wings through to the rear of the aircraft, mostly in a 3-4-3 configuration. This is inclusive of the Skycouch rows.

Although the Economy cabin is quite large, there is a lot of space. Each seat has a pitch of approximately 32-33" which is generous as compared to Air New Zealand's competitors on the route. In addition, the cabin feels very bright and airy thanks to the overhead storage bins which drop-down from the ceiling and contemporary LED lighting. You'll also find there are five washrooms; two in the middle, and three at the back.

If you're in the Skycouch row, flight attendants will come and explain how to work the seats and distribute special seat-belts that you can use when lying down once you are airborne. It is worth mentioning that you can also view this information at any time via the special Skycouch information card which is located within the seat pocket.

Amenities

Each seat features a very responsive 10.6” setback touch screen and on-demand in-flight entertainment system with over 500 hours worth of movies, TV shows, documentaries, audio and games to choose from.You will also find an in-seat power an USB port which is perfect for charging your laptop, iPad, Kindle or any other device you have with you, so long as you activated flight mode prior to departure. Note that some rows of three will share two power ports.

You'll find a small pillow, blanket and headphones waiting for you at your seat, If you're in need of some amenities then you'll be happy to know that you can request a toothbrush, toothpaste, eye mask and/or earplugs through the in-flight entertainment system during the flight or by simply asking the flight attendants.

On Air New Zealand, you can also order drinks and snacks from the "in-flight kitchen" in-between meal times. Additional highlights of the IFE include a detailed destination section, TripAdvisor application, seat-chat messaging service and the opportunity to participate in a survey relating to your in-flight experience.

Departure

After stowing away my things, it was time to push-back and ascend into the clouds above London.

Once we had reached our cruising altitude, I was handed a Skycouch seat-belt pack from one of the flight attendants; whom provided me with a brief overview on how to operate the leg rests; which was actually fairly simple. The crew member was incredibly friendly and was always popping by to see how I was.

Prior to the dinner service, the crew passed through distributing arrival documents for the USA and offering iced water with lemon.

The Dinner Service

Air New Zealand pride themselves on offering delicious food from sustainable resources, regardless of where you are seated on board the aircraft. Internationally-acclaimed chef Peter Gordon sits on the airline's Culinary Team and I've always found the food to be of a very high standard.

During the meal service you can choose from a selection of both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, including a selection of fine New Zealand and international wines. Tea and coffee is served at the conclusion of the meal.

The menu in Economy on my particular flight (NZ1 on March 9, 2016) was as follows:

To Start
Potato salad
Warmed bread roll & butter

The Main Event
Sun-dried tomato chicken with mashed potato and green beans
Beef madras curry with basmati rice and peas

To Finish
Cheddar cheese and crackers
Ice cream

I opted for the Beef Madras, which I found it to be a little bit spicy. Thankfully the ice cream which followed helped to me to cool down.

Overall I thought the meal choice and the quality was very good, something of which I have rarely said about an airline before.

During the flight

Following dinner I decided to watch a couple of movies on the recently updated in-flight entertainment system which I found to be incredibly responsive, and there was more than 500 hours worth of movies, tv shows, audio and games to enjoy including many blockbusters that you may have only seen in the cinema a few weeks before. Star Wars: The Force Awakens anyone?

A couple of hours later and I was starting to feel tired which meant it was time to put the Skycouch to the test. One of the good things about the Skycouch is that you don’t have to have all the leg rests up at once (or on the same level), unless you want to lie fully flat, that is. So I notched seats A and B up to a 90 degree angle and snuggled down. I fell asleep within ten minutes or so and absolutely loved it. Comfortable, Spacious and Brilliant spring to mind.

Following my afternoon nap I thought I would try out the on-demand drinks and snacks service; which is available in-between meal times on the flight. As I mentioned earlier, you are able to order soft drinks, teas, coffees, and a selection of alcoholic beverages and snacks using the easy-to-use in-flight entertainment system. Once you place your order, it will be brought to your seat within a matter of minutes by the flight attendants. For the purposes of this review I timed it and on average received my order within three and a half minutes, which is incredibly efficient.

For younger travellers, Air New Zealand offer some great features seat-back TV there is a special area just for them. The young or young at heart can play fun games, watch family-friendly movies, TV shows and documentaries and listen to music. There is even a dedicated Disney section for all those Mouseketeers out there.

Afternoon Tea

Approximately 90 minutes prior to landing a light snack was served which consisted of the following:

To Start
Chilled fruit salad

Sandwich
Chicken Caesar
Cheese and Pickle

Sweet Offerings
Warmed scones served with strawberry jam and clotted cream.

Once again the meal came with a selection of hot and cold drinks from the bar.

A lot of people seem to think the scones served on-board a flight can be quite doughy. I can confirm this was not the case on this occasion, and the chilled fruit salad was very refreshing.

As we were nearing the city of Angels, I selected the Airshow function on the in-flight entertainment system and kept an eye on our progress; seeing as we flew fairly close to Grand Canyon and Las Vegas; two of the many destinations that is on my ever growing bucket list. Shortly afterwards, we were on our final descent into Los Angeles and soon enough it was time to gather my things and begin my adventure in Los Angeles.

Service Observations

Throughout any flight I tend to jot down some notes about my experience; below are some from this particular experience:

- The first meal is served from the front to the rear of the Economy cabin.
- For the second service, the service is reversed to operate from the rear to the front.
- In-between meal times the crew passed through the cabin offering iced water every thirty minutes.
- The "in-flight kitchen" where you can request drinks and snacks was available for approximately 5-6 hours of the flight.
- The flight attendants were extremely friendly and responded to any requests in a timely manner.
- They were always polite and were keen to engage in conversation with passengers.

My Verdict

Overall I was extremely impressed with the Kiwi-style service an on board experience by Air New Zealand. The Skycouch is certainly an innovative and popular product which I am happy to have experienced.

If you can't afford to experience the lie-flat seats in Business Premier; then the Skycouch is a fantastic option at an affordable price.

So in all, would I recommend the Economy Skycouch to a single, business-traveller, couple or small family looking to fly between London, Los Angeles and Auckland? Without a doubt.

*This review has been updated in March 2016.

Want to know what it’s like to fly with Air New Zealand in other cabins? Read on!

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11 Comments

  1. Thanks so much for this review! We are flying ANZ with SkyCouch in September with three young kids. So, thanks especially for the review on the IFE for the kidlets 🙂

    1. You are most welcome. Enjoy the Economy SkyCouch and the Air New Zealand experience. 🙂

  2. very helpful review as my husband and I will be using the sky couch in 13 weeks. I am counting, yes.. lol
    The review is honest and covers all kinds of persons who might be inclined to give it a go. thanks much.

  3. Thank you so much for your wonderful review. I will be traveling to Australia (my first time abroad) and was going to check into the Skycouch because it just looked really comfortable and I prefer room. It is hard to tell how much room you would actually have in the regular economy area and I do need to have a little room and not be crowded by other passengers. Kind of a phobia. Thanks again.

  4. Hi Ben, I’m doing my research about flights to NZ and have only just discovered these SkyCouch options, They look incredible! But I can’t find anywhere online that gives me a rough idea of the price & you can’t choose it as an extra until you’ve entered all your details & confirmed the booking of your flights on Air NZ website. I know it varies from flight to flight- but I will be doing a similar route to yourself (London to Auckland) so was wondering if you could give me a rough idea or a percentage of what it costs in your flight fees?
    I hope this doesn’t seem like a rude request! Just really want to find out before I fully dedicate myself to use AirNZ. Thanks

    1. Hi there Becky. If you are travelling alone, the upgrade price for a SkyCouch is £599pp per sector. If you are travelling with someone, then the upgrade prices does vary. Between London and LA, this is currently £349 extra for each sector, so £175 each which is amazing. I think that was your question, but If you want further info, feel free to send me an email. 🙂

    1. Hi Linda. For three adults the Skycouch probably would not be ideal. For two adult or two adults and a small child, then it would be worth it. Otherwise for three adults it is really three standard Economy seats with the ability to put the leg rests up. Hope that helps!

  5. Ben – landed on your blog searching for what others had to say about skycouch, from comfort perspective (as opposed to food experience etc.). I hope you publish this comment.

    Just curious since you are a professional blogger with considerable media exposure – did Air NZ provide you free or discounted ticket or upgrade to skycouch? Also, what is your height? That matters in deciding the comfort level.

    Here is my experience May 15, 2018. I am an adult with height 5′ 10″. Flew yesterday AUC-LAX on skycouch for extra NZ$500 (price varies depending upon time when you buy, even or the same route). Was a single occupier of the skycouch. NOT worth it even though the price in US $ is $360. Check out what others are saying on TripAdvisor.

    My gripe is about the false advertising, and your blog seems to be going with it in its response to questions (e.g., to Linda, reproduced in “…”) and the overall tone of your review. Can’t upload here, but the information they have in advertising and for example, in instructions flyer in the air plane are MISLEADING in showing the people comfortably sleeping. On TripAdvisor, you will see reviews from people having height 5′ 2″ and 5′ 5″ not considering it worthwhile paying extra several hundred dollars for this, I did not know about skycouch thing until at the air port, so did not have time to do any research and went by the ads and what the sales counter lady told me (“very comfortable”). Someone has also measured the size of 3 seats combined to be 5′ 1″. The reclining seats from the row ahead are not shown in the visuals on the airline website. You cannot keep your head towards aisle, it has to be towards the window, and obviously, the feet not protruding. I web site shows a mattress (and special pillows?). I got neither and did not know those are included. Though not sure how much comfortable it would have been with mattress when you are trying to sleep with bent legs.

    Suggestion – is aviation authority cool with having 4 seats made to skycouch? With some board like thing at one end that toggle up/down for safety purpose? I would be willing to try that, even if the price is 25% more. The clumsy solution implemented at current is NOT much of an upgrade, you still don’t get any sleep form what I can tell from my experience and those of host of others on other review sites.

    Ben wrote:
    “Two adult or two adults and a small child, yes. Otherwise you would really just have three standard Economy seats with the ability to put the leg rests up”.

    1. Hi Nachi. Thanks for your comments. AirNZ provided nothing in regards to the flights or the Skycouch. The product isn’t for everyone’s taste, I will admit that. But I am 5’8″ and when resting I curl up slightly and found it to be comfortable enough… a lot better than trying to sleep upright in an Economy seat anyway.

      You should have got a light mattress and some pillows, I am surprised to hear you did not receive those. These can usually be found at the seat upon boarding or on the last trip I found these in the overhead lockers. Your comment about trying it with four seats (in the middle section) is interesting. Maybe you should put that to AirNZ as a comment/suggestion.

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