Solomon Islands has started a new route to Auckland via Port Vila in Vanuatu, with Solomon Airlines in codeshare with Air Vanuatu. Photo / Supplied
Solomon Islands has started a new route to Auckland via Port Vila in Vanuatu that flies out of a brand-new international terminal opened for the 2023 Pacific Games. Ben Leahy steps on board for the ride.
Airline: Solomon Airlines in codeshare with Air Vanuatu
From: Honiara, Solomon Islands
To: Auckland via a short stopover in Port Vila, Vanuatu
Visas: Kiwis and most nationalities can get visas on arrival in Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
Departure airport: Flying in the Solomons can be a different experience. For instance, I saw a passenger load a foam chilly bin containing a huge fish straight onto a domestic flight — no baggage check-in required. I tell the tale only so you understand that while Honiara International Airport’s terminal is brand new, it is still a no-frills travel experience. Built and donated by the Japanese to the Solomons for the 2023 Pacific Games, its only shop is a cafe with fried cabinet food. Luckily, it’s also not a busy airport. So I happily strolled straight to the front of the empty check-in counter. Not so happily, it still took more than 30 minutes to check in. I was flying a new route that Solomon Airlines has started in a bid to attract more Kiwi tourists. It was set up as a codeshare with Air Vanuatu. But when I flew, the two airlines didn’t appear to have the details fully ironed out. Like how to book my bag through to Auckland. Waiting for staff to figure it out, I became nervous I’d never see my luggage again. After all, my original flight to the Solomons a week earlier had been delayed and cancelled because of plane problems and a cyclone. That meant my wife hadn’t been able to join me on the trip — leading me to spend weeks chasing ticket refunds. During the delays, neither of the airlines contacted me once by email or text to alert me to flight changes. So — once the airport staff finally told me they had worked out how to check my bags in — my confidence wasn’t running high that my luggage would make it home in one piece.
Seat and entertainment: Fortunately, I was in for a pleasant ride home. The check-in ladies had bestowed seat 5a upon me in the A330′s 3-3-3 arrangement for the first leg to Port Vila, and 4a for the second leg to Auckland. On the first leg, I had an empty seat next to me, and on the second I had all three seats to myself. Seat 4a also boasted acres of legroom, being right behind business class and normally reserved for the airline’s Bellama Club members. But with no Bellama members in sight and no in-flight entertainment, I stretched out to snooze. My roast chicken and chicken wrap meals were also better than on my recent Qantas flight — but is that really something to boast about?
Passengers: The Honiara-to-Port Vila leg wasn’t busy, but did have a diverse mix of Solomon Islanders on board, as well as what seemed like a wide range of university students and business folk. After stopping in Vanuatu, the plane loaded with homeward-bound Kiwis. They seemed a little less chipper and sunburnt than what I would’ve expected, perhaps because Cyclone Lula had interfered with their travel plans.
Arrival airports: Touching down at Port Vila’s Bauerfield International Airport, I was the only person transiting to Auckland. With only a one-hour stopover before the same plane took off again, an airport worker stood waiting for me at the bottom of the mobile stairs. She then rushed me on a whirlwind circuit of Port Vila’s small airport. She skipped the long immigration queues, taking me straight to the front for my transit stamp. Then we headed on through the exit hall, past the hire car shops, before again jumping the security queues and heading into the international lounge where I waited to board the same plane. While my mini VIP airport tour worked fine, it did leave me wondering if it would go as smoothly if there were a bigger group of transiting passengers. Later, after taking off again and landing at Auckland Airport at 10pm, quarantine staff kept huffing passengers waiting on board the plane for up to 30 minutes. It was only after two officers walked the aisle spraying a fumigation can that we were released.
Best: Stretching my legs and snoozing across three seats of underserved Bellama Club comfort as well as a VIP tour of Port Vila’s airport.
Worst: Having had my first flights delayed and cancelled. The trouble at check-in gave me heart palpitations that I was waving goodbye to my bags. Fortunately, it didn’t turn out that way.
Final verdict: It’s hard to give Solomon Airlines and Air Vanuatu a recommendation based on the terrible service of my original flight to Solomon Islands. By contrast, my return flight was a pleasant and smooth journey.
When there's nothing as far as the eye can see, you may appreciate the company.