Garuda Indonesia Economy Class: DPS-SYD A330-300

I made my way back to the US from a week in Bali via Sydney. The ticket was super cheap from SYD-HNL-SFO so I figured why not spend a few nights in Australia. Booking Garuda Indonesia flights is best direct via their website. The fare was around USD 250, but offered nonstop service from Bali to Sydney on a redeye flight so I could maximize my time on the island. When booking my flight you could select Extra Legroom seats for around USD 100 which would be worth it for a redeye  of 6 hours. Luckily, I had Delta Silver status which is part of SkyTeam so I was able to secure the seat at no charge after a phone call. It wasn’t allowing me to select it online. I selected seat 21A over the phone which is just behind Business class in the bulkhead row.

The flight was fairly full for a Wednesday night flight. I found my seat at 21A and the only other person in the row was in 21K. There was plenty of legroom to stretch out. The only downside of the seat is that the armrests are stationary. We departed around 25 minutes late and arrived in Sydney 15 minutes late.

WiFi was offered onboard via OnAir. They included a free texting plan to all passengers and to upgrade to unlimited usage for the entire flight you’d need to pay $21.95. Since it was a redeye, I opted just for the texting plan. I didn’t plan on using the WiFi, but texting is a nice to have.

After 6 hours, we landed into Sydney on a cloudy morning. The clouds cleared and ended up being a beautiful summer day in February.

Conclusion: I’d highly recommend flying Garuda due to their 5 star safety rating, but especially if you have status with Delta or another SkyTeam alliance partner. The Extra Legroom seat is the way to fly on a longhaul! Inflight WiFi is always a nice amenity as well as a nonstop flight. The other option I was planning was via Singapore, but that adds at least 5 more hours to the trip. Fly Garuda on this route!