After an amazing flight and a restful night’s sleep, I headed to the Air New Zealand lounge to wait out my five hour layover in Auckland. Being that I hadn’t planned on flying through Auckland, I hadn’t done any research on this lounge and didn’t know what to expect.

This lounge was huge, but was divided into separate areas so it didn’t seem like a massive waiting room with seats. Even though it was about 6:00 AM, I decided to grab a bottle of mead and grabbed a seat out in the terrace area.

If it were a bit warmer out, they would have had the roof to the terrace retracted as well, but nonetheless, the numerous windows made for a great runway view once the sun came up.

After relaxing in the terrace area and going through some emails, I made my way inside to have my second breakfast of the day. Like the lounge, the buffet was massive. Unlike most lounge buffets though, they had a section with a chef who prepared fresh dishes right on the spot. The paninis were amazing.

After trying out the sumptuous breakfast offerings, I snapped a few pictures of the lounge and of the planes at the surrounding gates.

I really love how Air New Zealand has a common decor and color scheme between the lounge, aircraft, and employee uniforms.

After breakfast, I checked out one of the shower suites to freshen up, then I headed to the theater area to work on the blog.

I really loved the theater area in the lounge. It was quiet, darker than the rest of the lounge, and made for a good spot to truly relax when it got a bit busy. They had a rugby program playing on the television, which was definitely interesting to watch.

I sampled some lunch items as well. Three meals before 11:00 AM would be ludicrous anywhere else, but when traveling, it seems perfectly acceptable!

Overall, I’d place this lounge on par with the Star Alliance Lounge at LAX, better than a regular United Club, and just below the Polaris Lounge in Chicago.

After spending five hours in the lounge, it was just about boarding time. I headed out and made my way towards the gate and got ready to board my flight to Perth.