Flight Check: Auckland to Rarotonga on Air New Zealand

I was on a Works ticket so got full service. I had chicken and noodles, plus a bloody Mary. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The plane: An Airbus A320.

My seat: 20F, in a mercifully empty row.

Flight time: Four hours.

On time? We departed on the whistle and landed also 15 minutes early. This flight is scheduled to arrive in Rarotonga at 12.45am, which is a killer. Plan for a late start the next day.

How full? Just over half, on a Wednesday in early March.

Fellow passengers: All were mates heading home from what I could tell - I've never seen so many people stop and chat to each other on a plane before. It was like being at a pub in Haast. There were quite a few couples aboard too.

Food and drink: I was on a Works ticket so got full service. The beef ran out before it got to my row, so I had chicken and noodles, plus a bloody Mary.

Entertainment: That Works ticket got me the full range of Air New Zealand's excellent inflight entertainment to choose from, which featured at least two of the big films in this year's Oscars. I watched a silly Will Ferrell comedy and then a bit of Portlandia, topped off with a Daft Punk doco. Good stuff.

Would I fly this again: Well, now that Jetstar are flying to Raro there is more choice for consumers - and on a four-hour flight, it will come down to price difference for me, and many other holidaymakers.