DolceBunnie

Checking In: Sofitel Auckland Viaduct Harbour | Auckland, NEW ZEALAND

Once we passed through customs at the Auckland International Airport, a gentleman dressed in a black and white uniform had already been waiting for us at the departure hall, holding a whiteboard with the other travel bunnie’s name on it. We followed him outside to a black Mercedes Viano which was our ride to the hotel. Despite being Winter, Auckland’s temperature was pleasantly warm on the day of our arrival. The drive from the airport to Sofitel Auckland took around 30 minutes, and when we finally arrived, I was so excited to jump out and stretch my legs, but more importantly, I was eager to freshen up in our room before heading out for some burgers.

Surrounded by water and boats, Sofitel Auckland is situated at the Viaduct Harbour, a very picturesque location not far away from the city centre. Check in was a swift process with zero fuss. Our room, located on level 3 of the hotel, was a superior room with city views, unfortunately there was construction going on right outside of the hotel which meant that it was loud and dusty during our stay, so the Juliet balcony was of no use at all. Decorated in velvet grey and blue, the room was bright thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows, and although the room itself was small, the bathroom was quite nicely sized, and equipped with deep soaking bath and a big rain shower (with great water pressure).

We didn’t get to use the hotel’s swimming pool nor the fitness centre during our short stay, however we did find the concierge to be friendly and helpful. If there’s one bit of advice that I could give about booking this hotel, I would have to say, forget about the superior room and book the next room up as room positioning makes all the difference.

Bunnies’ Travel Notes

Bunnies’ Room Number: 330 – Superior Room

Bath products: Lanvin Paris

Perks that we loved: complimentary wifi

Check-in/check-out times: 3pm - 11am

Time of stay: May 2016

What we paid: $400NZD for two nights + $130NZD for airport pickup

Come Fly with Me - Emirates Airbus A380 First Class

This year for my birthday month, the other travel bunnie decided to spoil me with a two week trip to New Zealand, visiting both islands and flying first class with Emirates on an A380. I was beyond ecstatic when our flights were booked. Being a Sex and the City fan, I drooled over the second movie when the girls traveled to Abu Dhabi on the fictional Afdal Air - a.k.a Emirates First Class. I’ve travelled in first and business with other airlines before, but they were nowhere near as impressive as having your own private suite.

Upon checking in, we were given express passes for passengers to speed through the process and skip queues. Someone must’ve been having a bad day, because we were still told to wait and hardly given any priority. Luckily for us it was a quiet morning with a few passengers around, so it was hardly an issue. After browsing through the duty free shop, we went to the Emirates Lounge located at T75 (yep, that’s a long way to go from Immigration) of the Brisbane International Airport. The lounge itself was spacious with a good spread of continental breakfast and beverage selections available, including Veuve Clicquot. A soft voice over the announcement called us for boarding, I checked my camera to make sure that I had enough memory space as I knew that I was gonna go crazy with the snapping once on board.

We were greeted and lead to our suites. I literally gasped in amazement. Where had I been all my life?! The opulence was beyond my imagination and the size of the plane (with the business and first class seats located on the second level) only magnified the lavishness of all the little details on board. I had my own minibar that pops up with a touch of a button, a seat that can easily turn into a full flat bed, sliding privacy doors, a HUGE TV and that’s not all, ladies and gentlemen, I had a vanity table with mirror. I was still in my own little world trying to take these all in when two smiling cabin crew came over, one had a gold dallah in her hand, and the other had a tray lined with fresh dates. It was my first time trying Arabic coffee and I found the flavour surprising aromatic and calming. Each date was stuffed with a roasted almond, and they were quite addictive… but I was too shy to ask for more.

Before take off, I was offered a glass of Moet, and was advised that the 2006 Dom would be available once we took off. Can’t complain with that. After some fresh berries and a delicious crepe with vanilla mascarpone and berry compote later (presented on a crisp white tablecloth, served on Royal Doulton bone china plates with Robert Welch cutlery if I may add), I decided to check out the Shower Spa, which is available only for First Class passengers. The room is incredibly spacious, its decor - simple yet elegant, and has a feature wall decorated with the sweeping skyline of Dubai. If the flight was longer, I would’ve no doubt taken a nice hot shower, lather up with the Bvlgari productsprovided and pranced around on the heated floor, I mean, come on, getting your hair wet at 40,000ft is pretty awesome.

I’m the worst flyer in the world but this flight was such a wonderful experience, I hardly noticed any turbulence through out the flight. The service was impeccable. In fact it may be the service that was the most impressive part of all with the numerous flight attendants all going out of their way to do everything they could to ensure that experience was wonderful as possible (including taking some polaroid family snaps of us all). They truly provide a personal touch to the otherwise over-the-top glitzy experience. We were really well looked after by the cabin crew and Minibun George got two new fluffy friends - Enrico the monkey and Peek U the panda, which he went everywhere with during our trip to New Zealand.

I used to say to the other travel bunnie that I could never justify paying so much money for business or first class, as I would rather spend the money on hotels, but I guess this experience has really changed my mentality. When flying is as memorable as this then then Australia’s isolated location doesn’t seem like a such a problem at all.