After ten amazing days in South Island, it was time to head back to Singapore. While Iโd flown into Auckland (and then onwards to Queenstown), my open-jaw itinerary involved flying back from Christchurch instead.
Singapore Airlines currently operates Christchurchโs only โrealโ international route (well, if you exclude Australia and Fiji), a 4x weekly A350-900 service. Eligible passengers are directed to the Air New Zealand International Lounge, but frankly, thereโs very little to get excited about here.
| ๐ธ tl;dr: Air New Zealand International Lounge Christchurch | |
| With a limited selection of food and middling amenities, Air New Zealandโs Christchurch International Lounge canโt even measure up to some Domestic Lounges. | |
| ๐ The Good | ๐ The Bad |
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| ๐ณ๐ฟ Journey to Middle Earth |
Access and Operating Hours
The Air New Zealand International Lounge at Christchurch Airport is located on the first floor (thatโs one floor up from the ground level) of the international terminal, with access through the duty-free area.
The lounge opens 2 hours and 30 minutes prior to the first international departure for the day. Christchurch isnโt seeing a whole lot of international traffic at the moment, but fortunately for Singapore Airlines passengers, thereโs an earlier Air New Zealand flight scheduled. This means the lounge opens well ahead of SQโs check-in counters (at the T-3 hour mark), and close as soon as they board.
Lounge access is available to:
- Star Gold, Airpoints Gold, Elite, Elite Partner and Koru members departing on an Air New Zealand flight (+1 guest for Star Gold, Airpoints Gold, Elite Partner and Koru, +3 guests for Airpoints Elite)
- Business Premier passengers departing on an Air New Zealand flight
- Business and First Class passengers departing on a Star Alliance flight
- Star Gold members departing on a Star Alliance flight (+1 guest)
Lounge Overview
Air New Zealand describes the Christchurch International Lounge as โA sleek, well-equipped and comfortable lounge. An excellent place to relaxโ.
Thatโs doesnโt tell you a whole lot, but at 597 sqm and with seating for 125 guests, itโs one of the smallest International Lounges out there.
The lounge started out full when I arrived at 8.30 a.m, but started to empty out as the other international flights departed. SQ298 was the last Star Alliance flight for the day, so for the final 80 minutes SQ passengers had the whole place to themselves.
Seating is a mish mash of couches, arm chairs, dining tables and communal tables, with a rather eye-catching fire pit as the centrepiece (it wasnโt in operation, but I assume they turn it on during the June/July winter period).
The lounge adopts a fairly open plan design, which means there arenโt a lot of private spaces. But tucked away in a corner was a dining table with three chairs, partially hidden from view by three decorative columns. We snagged this spot and stayed put till closing time.
The lounge had a TV area though it was begging for a larger screen. The current display couldnโt have been larger than 32 inches, completely inadequate for the viewing distance.
Those travelling with young kids will be relieved to know that thereโs a dedicated kidsโ room, with all the toys and Peppa Pig you could care for.
Power & Productivity
The complimentary Wi-Fi network offered speeds of ~11 Mbps down and ~9 Mbps up. It was adequate for basic web surfing and video streaming, but anyone wanting to watch higher bitrate Netflix or YouTube might encounter stuttering.
The lounge was well-equipped with Type I power plugs and USB-A charging ports. However, there were no options for USB-C or wireless charging.
Near the entrance was a small business centre that had a soundproof room for taking calls, five individual workstations and a printing station.
Food & Beverage
Self-serve buffets have long since returned to New Zealand, including at airport lounges. However, I have to say the F&B selection in Christchurch was extremely disappointing.
Breakfast options included fruit and pastries, cereals and breads, plus yoghurt and parfait.
The only hot options were scrambled eggs (which had so much butter added you could feel your arteries clogging with every bite), baked beans, and sausage links. That was it for food, and I really was expecting at least a couple more choices like breakfast potatoes, mushrooms, grilled tomatoes or bacon.
But even more shocking was the fact the Christchurch International Lounge lacked barista service, a near staple in Air New Zealand lounges. Coffee out of a machine is almost blasphemous for New Zealand, but thatโs all that passengers get here.
At least the rest of the drinks selection was decent, with the usual soft drinks, juices, local and imported beers, and assorted New Zealand wines.
The wine selection featured:
- Villa Maria 2021 Sauvignon Blanc (4.0โ )
- Villa Maria 2019 Pinot Noir (3.7โ )
- Vidal Reserve 2018 Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon (3.6โ )
- Vidal Reserve 2020 Chardonnay (3.6โ )
- Dulcet NV Sparkling Wine (3.2โ )
What really surprised me is that despite Christchurch being the secondary gateway to New Zealand, the F&B selection was much smaller than that of the Auckland Domestic Lounge. There were fewer hot food options, a smaller range of wines, and no barista-made coffee. I know which one Iโd rather hang out at.
Showers & Toilets
The Christchurch International Lounge has just two showers, although that doesnโt pose much of an issue at the moment since all flights depart in the morning, and Christchurch doesnโt get much in the way of international connecting traffic. Thereโs no shower attendant to assign rooms or buzzers; itโs first-come-first-serve.
Shower rooms are functional, if a little blandly designed- this wouldnโt be out of place in a hospital bathroom, come to think of it.
Water pressure was decent, and shower amenities were by Antipodes, a premium New Zealand skincare brand.
Conclusion
The Air New Zealand International Lounge in Christchurch gets the job done, but it comes off as woefully inadequate when compared to the Domestic Lounge in Auckland. Yes, a domestic lounge features a wider selection of food and wines, barista service and more showers (7 vs 2).
I suppose the thought process is that Auckland sees a lot more international to domestic connecting traffic, and therefore the Domestic Lounge in Auckland serves as a sort of arrivals lounge. Christchurch International Airport, on the other hand, would see lower volumes of domestic to international connections, and connecting passengers would be transferring from short-haul flights where showers and such arenโt really a priority.
In any case, the Christchurch International Lounge is hardly flagship material, so adjust your expectations accordingly.
Before the pandemic Christchurchโs international routes on NZ were to Perth (twice weekly, and only since 2019). Otherwise they are all east coast of Australia and Fiji. The Christchurch international lounge gets less traffic than the Queenstown domestic lounge.
That would explain quite a bitโฆ
Ah that explains why you called it NZโs secondary gateway. You drummed up Christchurch a lot in your mind haha. Itโs like calling Seletar Singaporeโs secondary gateway.
I was actually thinking CHC intl lounge looks more than I expected Air NZ would provide for CHC, except for those baked beans โ they look terrible.
Baked beans are a hate crime full stop. If the SQ flight is the last flight of the day, with the breakfast F& B on offer, one has to be fair and realistic about whatโs currently on offer to a mere 80 guests. Hopefully as things ramp up, this lounge will get its refurb (looks to be the old โwood heavyโ design) to align with Akl international and domestic.
One comment on this lounge (since I was checking to see if it had been finally upgraded) is that it is still in the old โNZ bachโ style of lounges. It must be the last in the network to be upgradedโฆdue to so few daily international flights from CHC. Wellington is the same in that even though upgraded, itโs still basic in terms of food and coffee with so few flights per day I guessโฆ.the Australian lounges for Air NZ by comparison are amazing!