Flying from Auckland to Houston aboard Air New Zealand

Photo / Mark Mitchell

Anthony Houlding flies aboard Air New Zealand flight NZ28, from Auckland to Houston.

The plane: A 787-9 Dreamliner. Even the fact my travel plans were changed repeatedly due to Air New Zealand's Rolls Royce engine maintenance issues cannot dampen my enthusiasm for these planes. New, quiet, comfortable and spacious. They are beautiful to travel in.

My seat: Premium Economy. This was my first time travelling long haul in any other class than Economy, and it felt luxurious. Significantly more space and comfort than I was used to. For a 14-hour flight it was definitely worth it.

The flight: Overall, one of my best flying experiences. We had a slightly delayed departure due to having to wait for the last remaining passengers. As they boarded the plane it got me thinking: if you're going to hold up the whole plane, at least have the decency to look frazzled as though you've had to run. Strolling on board with three duty-free bags makes you look like a bit of a knob. We made up time in the air and arrived in Houston early.

Due a combination of extra space, a couple of gin and tonics and a sleeping pill, I managed to sleep for a little over seven hours, which well and truly smashed my previous record for sleeping on a plane. I can't recall getting off any long-haul flight feeling as fresh. The other game changer for me was having a pair of noise-cancelling headphones — removing the background plane noise made a huge difference.

Entertainment: I watched The Last Jedi, and a documentary about big-wave surfer Laird Hamilton. It would take many flights to get through all the choices.

Food and drink: My first choice was unavailable, so for dinner I had beef cheek with horseradish mashed potato, caponata, chard and porcini butter. I also struggled through the bread selection, and a beautiful chicken salad starter with eggplant, pickled red onions, coriander and mint. Desert was a chocolate creme with macerated dark cherries.

As I said, I haven't flown anything other than Economy or budget, so for me this type of restaurant-quality food on a plane was amazing.

Service: Superb. Competent, friendly and welcoming. The crew member who predominantly looked after my area was exceptionally good. The contrast with travelling on a domestic connection in the US could not have been greater.

Fellow passengers: A mixture of Americans heading home, and Kiwis who mostly appeared to be on work trips. The majority of passengers in the Premium Economy cabin appeared to be travelling alone (like myself). I spoke to two Kiwis who were travelling to the east coast of the US as I was, and loved the fact we could now go straight to Houston and skip LAX.

Airport experience: The customs hall at George W Bush Intercontinental was almost empty on arrival, which was a blessing, because it was huge, and at capacity must handle a massive amount of people. I transferred in the domestic terminal which was busy — being Friday afternoon there were lots of locals taking a break or going home for the weekend.

The bottom line: Exceptional service on an almost brand-new plane (and the increased comfort of Premium Economy) made a 14-hour flight very enjoyable.