Faaa airport = Tahiti

[stellaB]

After reading much criticism of this airport I was prepared for the worst but was pleasantly surprised. Our flight home was 3 nights after the end of the cruise on Tahitian Princess but our 2200 hours flight to LA was still full so our experience may be representative of other nights. We took a taxi from the IC to the airport at 6-30 and stood in a short line until check-in opened at 6-50 pm. At about this time some of the coaches arrived and the line started to get much longer. Although not air-conditioned the land-side part of the airport is open on one side and very spacious with a couple of shops and a snack bar. For some reason the restaurant was not open so dining options were limited. Once through security we proceeded to the upper floor lounge which very few people seemed to realise existed and was very comfortable with more access to fresh air.

Anyone who has experienced Phuket airport in Thailand will consider Faaa a haven of luxury!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Thanks for reminding me about the time that check-in starts for the 2200 flight out. So probably leaving the hotel at 5:30 is a bit early. I'll have to check and see what time the buses will be leaving the Radisson that evening, and just come a little earlier.

[2manyplaces]

Wendy, we left Papeete about 3 weeks ago. I believe the buses left the Radisson about 6:15/6:30 pm.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Thanks for that. I guess a cab at 6 would get us there ahead of them!

[Caroldoll]

we are paying for a hotel room and don't want to wait around the airport a lot. Can't you just go check in like two hours before the flight?

[Spikesgirl]

Yes you can, but then you might be battling the long lines for check in, unless you are flying business or first class. Then you can get there much later and still have a speedy check in.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

So if you're flying Business, the only benefits to getting there early is the chance of an upgrade to First, and an easier time through the security lines? So if we arrived at 7 or even 7:30 p.m., we'd sail right in? (flight is 10)

[Spikesgirl]

I can't tell you about the upgrade to first as it flew nearly empty both ways. There were also seats left in business class, which doesn't usually happen on any flight we've been on. You still have to go through security like everyone else, so there's no real benefit there, but the lines to check in are very short for business (there is a seperate check-in line). If you arrived at 8 or even 8:30, you'd probably sail right through, but I haven't tried. We are always there a little early and then camp out in the lounge until the flight.

[worldtraveller]

Does the airport have luggage carts, both when you arrive and when you leave?

[Spikesgirl]

We did have carts when we left, so I would imagine they have to be available for arrivals as well. We weren't looking for them, but they should be by baggage, just like in most major airports.

[Caroldoll]

so how late do you think we can arrive and still check on

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I can't tell you about the upgrade to first as it flew nearly empty both ways. There were also seats left in business class, which doesn't usually happen on any flight we've been on. You still have to go through security like everyone else, so there's no real benefit there, but the lines to check in are very short for business (there is a seperate check-in line). If you arrived at 8 or even 8:30, you'd probably sail right through, but I haven't tried. We are always there a little early and then camp out in the lounge until the flight.

 

Thanks Charlie, yes I know there's a separate check-in line, but worried about long security lines if there are multiple flights. I wonder if there's a way of finding out how many flights there are on a specific night (guess I could check the AF schedule.)

 

I'm usually paranoid about being late, so unlikely to leave it to the last minute to check in, but interested in hearing the answer to the question.

 

But, as for arriving at LAX, surely there is a shuttle bus between terminals?? Why would you want to push a cart a mile, unless you want your exercise for the day!? :rolleyes: Although I seem to remember walking from Tom Bradley to terminal 2, and it wasn't very far.

 

BTW, I just saw somewhere that check-in closes 1 hour prior to a flight departure.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I see that the AF flights seem to be at 1:15 AM. So shouldn't conflict with 22:00 too much.

 

Meherio, are there still Air New Zealand flights leaving Papeete at times? Any other carriers?

 

Oh boy, I just looked at Expedia--there's Qantas, Hawaiian Airlines, Air New Zealand all leaving around the same time of day. Ugh. Maybe there's some code-sharing going on I don't know about.

[Spikesgirl]

But, as for arriving at LAX, surely there is a shuttle bus between terminals?? Why would you want to push a cart a mile, unless you want your exercise for the day!? :rolleyes: Although I seem to remember walking from Tom Bradley to terminal 2, and it wasn't very far.

 

BTW, I just saw somewhere that check-in closes 1 hour prior to a flight departure.

 

There is and I jsut didn't realize that there was a shuttle. My DH can pinch pennies at the strangest times and insisted that we walk it. Had I known...well, the story would have had a much happier ending. however, it was exceptional exercise and helped to offset the very excellent meals that we had on board the plane (plus I walk an average of three miles a day at home, so it wasn't that muchof a hike as it was trying to manage the stupid rolling suitcases)

[boone2]

Wendy, they are all probably codeshares, we flew a Qantas codeshare with ATN and I think NZ airlines were on the same check in. We walked from Tom Bradley to Terminal 2 for AC flight, a very easy 5-10 min walk, just turn left as you come out of TB. I had asked on this board previously and the shuttle runs the opposite way around so although T2 is right next door it takes 20 mins to get there by the bus. We had lots of suitcases but didn't use a cart, didn't have enough small change on me. We managed just fine. Hope this helps

Terry

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Thanks Terry, so you mean that both the Qantas and Air New Zealand flights would be the same ones as the ATN? If so, that's great news.

 

Yeh, we've walked to terminal 2 as well. We'll be doing the reverse this time. Now we have to figure out what to do with our long layover in LAX going out. We've pretty well decided not to leave the airport, since storing baggage is a big pain.

 

We're Amex Plat, so we can use various Business lounges, but our friend Jim is Amex Aeroplan Platinum which has different benefits, not sure if we can sneak him in or not--there's a Maple Leaf Lounge in terminal 2 at LAX that he has access to, but we don't--maybe we'll just split up, who knows? We'll be looking forward to the Biz lounge after check-in--I'm assuming that this is the Qantas lounge (should have been a clue about the code-share, duh!)

[Wendy The Wanderer]

It just occurred to me that this Business lounge thing might be moot. Since we'll be between flights, these lounges are probably only available for checked-in departures, so finding a lounge in Terminal 2 when we are arriving will not help us. Too bad if true. I wonder if there's a way around that. Don't have a lot of experience with how this works.