Up, up and finally away

When you’re travelling to one of your favourite destinations, you really want the journey there to be as smooth as possible.

So it was that I arrived at Sydney Airport full of hope and expectation about a golfing holiday in Vietnam with some like-minded friends. We’d been counting down the days for months, eager to get back to a country that does golf and hospitality so well.

We’d booked Premium Economy tickets so the flight over would be extra comfy and – as we’re all being encouraged to do these days – checked in online before arriving at the airport.

Given our PE status, we were able to use the business class check-in desks and with heavy, bulky golf clubs in tow as well as suitcases this was a huge blessing.

Our bags got those wonderful ‘priority’ labels and I must admit there was a slight feeling of smugness as we walked past those still queueing up to get their economy seats.

What do they say about Karma…?

Those smiles turned to frowns as we clocked the queue just to get into passport control. There were hundreds of frustrated passengers and the line stretched all the way past the restaurants and shops – and all this on a Sunday morning!

Little wonder Sydney is crying out for a second airport and the Badgerys Creek facility can’t come online soon enough.

It took simply ages to get through to the terminal proper and our intended, relaxing two-hour stint in one of the paid-for lounges ended up in no more than a hurried 20 minutes.

Fortunately, boarding was super swift with the dedicated Zone 2 for PE passengers ensuring we got on the plane quickly and efficiently, settling into our seats while those down the back filed enviously past. It’s surely the next best thing to turning left…

There were 35 seats in the Premium Economy cabin, which was laid out in five rows in a 2-3-2 format. Although I’d booked seat 12H when making the reservation online I was actually allotted 10C, which is the first row in PE.

While still a very comfortable seat, with plenty of width, it did mean there was a toilet wall in front of me and at almost 1.85cms tall it was a bit cosy, often forcing me to put my feet up on the aforementioned wall. At least I got my anti-DVT stretches in.

The seat had all the mod-cons we’ve come to expect from modern airlines: power points for your phone and laptop. A blanket, pillow, amenity kit and very natty slippers completed the accoutrements on offer.

Once in the air our meal came very quickly. I had a choice of either braised pork with chilli bamboo, steamed rice and veggies, or fish with lime caper cream sauce, mashed potato and veggie.

I opted for the pork, which was yummy, and picked at the usual selection of side dishes and the fresh, warm bread roll. The well-stocked drinks cart served a variety of beers, wines and soft drinks.

After a short tug-of-war with the TV screen in my armrest I settled in to peruse the entertainment choices, which were varied, up to date and wide ranging.

I watched a movie about a diminutive Frenchman who wanted to rule the world (not bad) and a film with some badly ageing heroes trying to capture spectres with giant vacuum cleaners (not recommended).

Suitably relaxed it was time to put the seat back and have a wee nanna nap before landing. The controls were handily placed and easy to work and aided by those comfy slippers, my VA pillow and blanket, I was soon stacking some sizeable ZZ’s.

There was still time to enjoy a hot and delicious steak and cheese pie before we began our descent and landed smoothly into Ho Chi Minh just ahead of schedule.

Vietnam is fast becoming one of the hot destinations for Aussie travellers and that means competition is fierce among the various airlines wanting to get us there.

While there are budget options available, I would thoroughly recommend Vietnam Airlines for it’s quality of service, level of comfort and value for money.

# Writer was not hosted for this review and paid for his flight.