Fiji Airways Economy Class A330 Review

This Fiji Airways Economy review on the A330 is 1 segment on my 4 segment ticket from Singapore to Fiji to LA and back. The Singapore to Fiji segments are in Business class with Fiji Airways while the Fiji to LA segments are in economy. I got this full trip for $792 are a “deal” that you could only book through the Expedia Singapore website.

Checking-In with Fiji Airways

I checked-in for my Fiji Airways economy flight 6 hours early. That’s a thing you can do when your at an airline’s hub. Why would I check-in that early? Because there happened to be a cyclone in Fiji and I had to check-out of my hotel. Tourism is pretty limited when it’s raining super hard. I had concerns about being able to fly out of Fiji, but my flight was scheduled before the full brunt of the cyclone would hit the island.

The flight is a 10-hour journey in economy. Not the most difficult economy flight I’ve done, but I’m going to make it comfortable of I can. So, during check in, I asked the agent if it would be possible to get a window seat with an empty seat next to it. Not available. Economy seating is 2-4-2 and there’s a lot of people on the flight. I didn’t give up.

I then asked if it would be possible to get an AISLE seat with an empty seat next to it. That was possible. I don’t think the check in agent was going to offer that if I gave up after my first request. So considering the level of service I’ve seen with other airlines, Fiji Airways won’t go the extra mile to help the passenger.

Pro-Tip: keep asking and make a solution.

Security at Fiji Airport

When my ticket was printed, I was “randomly” selected for a secondary screening. A big SSSS was printed on the ticket. I don’t know the official meaning, but frequent flyers like to call it the Super Severe Secondary Screening.

I went through security expecting an additional screening and nothing happened. The person checking me in directed me to keep going through to the departures hall so I kept going. I wasn’t sure if I accidentally skipped out on the secondary screening.

Fiji Airways Premier Lounge

I spent the 6-hours comfortably in the Fiji Airways Premier lounge. Even though I was flying in economy, I was able to access the lounge using my Priority Pass card. It’s a benefit from my AMEX Hilton Surpass card ($95 annual fee includes 10 visits) that gives me access to (eligible) airport lounges.

Luckily, there is NO time limit for spending time in the Fiji Airways lounge. So I ate, watched movies and relaxed. If you have a layover in Fiji, just know that the internet is not that fast. Hotel wifi ranges from 0.128mbps – 1mbps. My Google Fi Phone internet speed was at 2mbps. The WiFi in the airport was 6mbps which was fast enough for me to stream movies online.

Fiji Airways A330 Economy Class

Boarding

I got in the long line at Fiji Airport to board my flight. As you know with economy, you gotta line up cause there’s no Priority boarding for you. I wasn’t in a rush cause the flight wasn’t too full. That means you don’t really have to battle for overhead bin space.

After they checked my ticket, I was redirected to the secondary security checkpoint. SSSS’d right before getting on the plane. I could see the plane and everyone boarding the plane could see me.

They touched all of my exterior, but none of the interior…so we’re all good. If you want to make the airport security agent while they are checking you, just moan a little. That tends to expedite the process.

The Seat 3/5

Fiji Airways has an Economy seat configuration of 2-4-2 while Fiji Airways business class has a 2-2-2 seat configuraiton. Obviously, the best Fiji Airways economy seat is at the window with an empty aisle seat. Since I couldn’t get that, I took the next best thing, an aisle seat with an empty seat next to it (center of the cabin).

As for the seat itself, it was comfortable enough and a pretty standard experience for economy class. It’s not the

Pro-Tip for motion sensitive flyers: Get a seat by the wings of the plane. The stability of the plane is based around the center of the wings. For the smoothest flight experience, sit by the wing!

In-Flight Entertainment 2/5

Not awesome. It was the exact same entertainment selection as my Singapore to Fiji flight on Fiji Airways Business Class. I ended up watching movies on my phone and an audiobook from Audible. I listened to the Bob Iger autobiography, “Ride of a Lifetime.” He should have called it his “Iger-ography.”

For reference, here’s a link to the current list of what’s playing on Fiji Airways.

Amenities 3/5

Included with your Fiji Airways Economy seat, you get a pillow and blanket. The blanket says “Property of Fiji Airways, do not take.” I guess that’s been a problem.

At your seat, you also get a pair of headphones. An hour before landing, the flight attendants come by to collect all the headphones…I guess there’s trust issues.

Food 2/5

I know to keep my expectations low for plane food…cause it’s always “plain food.” You’re probably laughing a lot at that joke right now. If not, take a moment and let it sink in. You may continue reading once you catch your breath.

The food is some of the worst food I’ve had on an economy flight. I’ve had better food in Lufthansa Economy class on a 1-hr regional flight and they just served a ham and cheese sandwich.

Besides the food tasting bad in Fiji Airways economy class, the food was also in a very small portion. Imagine the small cups they provide on the plane, not imagine if that was the portion of food they provided…cause that was the amount. I left the flight pretty hungry.

Arriving at LAX

Even though it wasn’t my best long haul economy experience, I arrived at my destination safely which is the most important thing. When you get to LAX, you’ll have to go through security. If you’re eligible, I highly recommend getting Global Entry because you can bypass the long immigration and customs lines.

I never ask anyone to pick me up from the airport, because LAX is always a disaster with traffic. Instead, I opt for the LAX Flyaway Bus (video) which gets me pretty close to home for less than $10.