Review of Garuda Indonesia Boeing 737-800 Business Class Bali – Lombok + Economy

Garuda Indonesia
Lombok (LOP) – Bali/Denpasar (DPS)

Flight number: GA450, GA451
Aircraft: Boeing 737-800 (twin-jet)
Departure: 11:20 am, 1:20 pm (local time)
Arrival 12:10 pm, 1:50 pm (local time)
Duration: 45 min, 30 min
Distance: 81 mi, 135 mi
Seats: 6H, 6K (Business Class), Right hand side seats in the middle (Economy Class)

«Not expected BUSINESS»

To be honest, this review should have been made about Indonesian airlines Lion Air, which could be interesting for many travelers by the lack of feedbacks about it.

Our journey began at Denpasar International Airport, from where we had to have a flight to Lombok island, operated by Lion Air. On the departure gate we came at the airport 1 hour 40 minutes prior to the departure time. We knew that the flight is domestic and this amount of time is more than enough for registration. BUT, arrived at the airport, at the registration desk, an officer told us that the flight was cancelled and all the bookings were moved to the flight, which departed 2 hours ago.

To say that we were shocked or disappointed means say nothing. The company did not send us any message about this, how could we know? The thing is that we could buy a standard round trip ticket with Garuda Airlines, but we decided to make the review more interesting and take different airways for these two flights. What could we do? Of course, to buy new tickets. Unfortunately, the trustworthy company Lion Air did not have more flights for that day and we went to Garuda office. Luckily, they had tickets for the upcoming flight in two hours, but remaining seats were only in Business, what also pleased us.

1. Denpasar Airport and our second round of registration procedure.

This time our registration process was more comfortable and pleasant. We had to go to the special registration room for Business Class passengers only. It was much faster and convenient, as there was no line at all and we went directly to the lounge, which was one more bonus to our flight.

1.1. Garuda Indonesia Domestic Lounge

Actually, the lounge for domestic flights was more than good, as there are obviously no long transits and people do not stay there for many hours. Despite this fact, that lounge is fully equipped with all the necessary amenities, such as buffet with dining area, relax zone, smoking balcony area, computer zone and even a shower in the rest room.

The range of food in the buffet was typically Asian, but various enough. It is not for European taste, of course, but there was a choice from salads and appetisers to main dishes and even a soup. There was a station with Halal food, where you can order an omelet, for example. Different soft drinks and sweet snacks were also provided, but no alcohol.

We decided to try some local food, just to try something different, but honestly, did not like it. Not because of the way of cooking or any products features, just because of the European taste.

When we came to the airport and realised that we have to wait until the next flight to Lombok island, we were a bit disappointed, but when got our Business Class tickets and lounge invitation, it turned us into a right mood. To say more, all the expectations, not only about the lounge, but also about the flight itself were proved!

Let’s move to the journey and exactly to its start, which was good, as well. The boarding began on time and there was no line, as Garuda provides a separate line for Business Class passengers.

2. Flight time

Overall impression was great. For our personal view, this flight could be an example of how the 30 minutes flight should look like, starting from service to cabin convenience and food offering.

The aircraft was not the biggest one, it was Boeing 737-800. The configuration of Business Class cabin for this aircraft is 2-2 and there are only 3 rows, and for the Economy Class is 3-3 in 25 rows.

2.1. Business Class experience

Business Class in this aircraft let passengers to relax and even not notice the time spent to destination. It provides very comfortable wide and regulated seats with a lot of space in front, TV screens and headphones, as an entertainment, a torch as a part of a seat, if you prefer reading (materials for which the company also offers), instead of media entertainment, a pillow and blanket, a choice of welcome drink with hot towels and even a lunch box. What surprised us, was the number of features that company prepared for the flight that takes less than hour. 

The crew was very polite and helping. We mark it, because nowadays, opinion about the Asian politeness and high service not always works. The work of crew really surprised us, as their team work gave to that 30 minutes flight very high quality. Right after we went up in the sky, flight attendants started the meal service. They quickly gave us a meal box and took it, as soon as we finished it. We had about 5 minutes for checking the lavatory and the aircraft captain informed us about the landing. Saying a couple of words about the lavatory, we can not skip the availability of hand lotion and refreshment perfume in it, which is very pleasant and unusual for short distances.

2.2. Economy Class experience

Having a big flight experience in all possible classes with different airlines, we could conduct that this one was one of the best Economy Classes, especially for the flight less than 1 hour. 

They provide almost the same lunch box, which includes a small pastry, nuts and water, personal media entertainment with headphones and comfortable enough seats for Economy ones.

It is not difficult to make a conclusion about these two different, but so good Garuda flights and and understand that it is worthy. A good summarise for our flights could be our personal confirmation of Garuda’s quality. It definitely keeps its high standards.