Review: Virgin Australia 737 Economy Nadi-Brisbane
- Konrad Tillman
- Jun 24
- 10 min read
Intro
Following a tantalizing couple of days in Fiji, including heading out to a private island, meeting new friends on an ATV tour, and somehow ending up drunk at 11 pm in a Burger King, it was sadly time to head off back to Los Angeles.
For the first flight of three back to Los Angeles, I had the opportunity to try out Virgin Australia in economy on their 737-800. Let's get into it, as it was actually quite a pleasant flight all around, with a more than kind seatmate.
Route- Nadi-Brisbane
Flight Number- VA178
Seat- 10A
Aircraft- Boeing 737-800
Date- September 2nd, 2024
Flight Time- 4 Hours 17 Minutes
Price Paid- 85K UA Miles + 150 USD
How I Booked
Figuring out award space down to Fiji on Fiji Airways, I was looking for a way to get back to Los Angeles when I came across something interesting.
For those unaware, United charges 100K miles from AUS/NZ to the USA on a saver business class award, but only charges 85K when departing from Eastern Oceania (such as Tahiti). As it would happen, United's chart has it so this ticket only came out to 85K United Miles. Don't ask me why, it makes no sense...
Virgin Australia: Nadi-Brisbane (Economy)
Virgin Australia: Brisbane-Sydney (Economy)
United: Sydney-Los Angeles (Business Class)
In my opinion, this was a fantastic deal. If only I could have gotten the two Virgin Australia awards in business, it would have been the same cost!
Nadi Airport+Check In
Spending the day exploring the town of Nadi and relaxing, my lovely host, Uma, offered to take me to the airport around 1:00 pm for my scheduled departure of 3:55 pm. I always speak about how kind Fijians are, but on the way, she saw some guy walking to the airport and offered him a free lift. Talk about kindness...
Bidding farewell to Uma, and giving a great big hug, it was time to check in, or so I thought. Nadi airport is small, with most of the Australian banked departures leaving around 3 pm, and the flights to the USA leaving later in the evening.
This meant that both Qantas and Virgin Australia check-ins were slammed to the brink. Wowzers, this is packed...
Without status, and due to flying economy, I decided to take a seat for a little bit and let the crowd fizzle out. Then again, the airport had free wifi, so this made it easier to just browse instagram 😅.
Roughly an hour later, around 2 pm, I headed back to begin the process of checking in. At this point, the economy line had died down (business was always empty), so I slotted in the back.
It was a bit of a wait before I reached the front, but when I did, I realized I had forgotten about something...
MY ETA!!
Oh frick, frick, frick, frick. Considering I travel to some of the hardest countries in the world to access, this was an utter screw up. Complete and utter shambles by me. With 20 minutes until check-in closed, I had to fill it out, get it approved, and show it to the staff...
Side note: I needed an ETA because I was entering Australia to fly from Brisbane to Sydney later that evening...
Thankfully, I submitted it and got the confirmation almost instantly. Sometimes I think the universe is watching out for me, and sort of telling me, "Konrad, get your sh*t together ASAP"
Quickly printing my boarding pass with minutes to spare, it was time to head off through immigration...
Immigration and security were relatively quick thanks to most passengers already being funneled through, and I was through to the gate about 50 minutes prior to departure, just as the inbound was pulling in from Brisbane.
Nadi Airport (Airside)
Unfortunately, I was in economy today, which meant no access to any business class lounges (I do not have priority pass, I don't know why). However, there were a couple of shops and restaurants around, so, in the end, I decided to grab a cheeky pizza and one last beer before boarding.
Really not wanting to leave Fiji, I mean really not wanting to leave, boarding was called at 3:20 pm local time.
Boarding
Virgin Australia boards my "zones". Business Class and those with status will board with Zone 1, while those in economy are in zones 2-4. With the flight being a relatively low load, I waited around until most of boarding had already been completed. Honestly, I was on island time myself.
It was a gorgeous day outside, overlooking some beautiful aircraft such as a Fiji Airways A330 and a Qantas 737 getting ready to head down to Sydney.
Interestingly, there was enhanced screening on this flight at the gate, and they would not allow those with water bottles onboard. This happened in Bali as well (on Virgin Australia), and they made me throw away an empty Yemenia water bottle I had received. Ridiculous...
Finally getting through the turtle race (yes, it was that slow), and breathing in the last breath of Fijian fresh air, I was warmly greeted by a lovely flight attendant for today's flight.
The Seat/Cabin
Stepping onboard, I was pleased to find a sleek-looking cabin laid out in a 2-class configuration. Separated by a small purple see-through barrier, lie 8 Business Class seats across 2 rows in a 2-2 configuration. While not the most private in the sky, I like that Virgin Australia still offers this.
Moving on back, there are 168 economy seats laid out in a 3-3 configuration with a standard pitch of 31 inches...
For reference, these are Collins Pinnacle seats.
The cabin ended up going out about 85% full today, and I lucked out with not only a free middle seat, but a man in the aisle I would end up talking to the whole flight!
Okay, yes, I added more detail in this report of the seat, but I figure I should actually start doing that more. Anyways, the boring stuff is out of the way, let's get into the fun!
Departure
At 3:50 pm local time, boarding was wrapped up, and the captain came on to welcome us onboard and let us know that we would be pushing back shortly.
Sure enough, a minute later, while chatting with my new friend in seat 10C about Kava 😅, we ended up pushing back.
It was a whopping 3-minute taxi out to the runway today after the pre-flight checks had been initiated, and we were wheels up at 3:58 pm local time with some (insert Nigerian accent) tantalizing views.
IFE+WIFI
Climbing up to 10,000 feet, and in deep conversation comparing Fiji to Australia, I decided to check out the IFE and WIFI options for today's flight. Not that I was ever going to use, but this is a review...
Virgin Australia offers free movies and TV shows, including new releases such as Barbie (at the time). In addition, wifi is available for a fee starting at 9.95 AUD.
Side note: I often think Australia is so cheap exchange rate-wise, but then I start spending so much and realize it isn't....
All in all, I was impressed by the offerings. However, who needs to stare at a screen when you are chatting away with this man who now lives in Australia, but commutes 6x per year to visit his family back in Fiji.
Combine that with views like this, and I think we don't see the beauty in aviation anymore. It's about marketing, listening to others, and being 38,000 feet up in the air. Or sleep 😅 if you are on business... Aviation is extremely special to me, as my mum and dad met on a flight from New York to London. It's funny that I run a travel blog now...
You wouldn't believe me, but back in the US, I am the biggest introvert 😅.
Meal Service
Approximately 40 minutes after departure, the friendly cabin crew came around with big smiles, offering a drinks selection. Water was complimentary, but everything else had to be paid for (including booze and food). Below is what the menu looked like:
This is quite cheap by Virgin Australia, especially considering that QF is only about 50$ more expensive on this route, but this is how the airline operates...
As I had gone on a bit of a crazy one the night prior, I asked for a couple of cheese and crackers as well as a Coke Zero (gotta watch that 23-year-old dad bod sometimes). My seatmate went with some noodles, and we chatted away as we ate over the Pacific Ocean.
Finishing up the meal, my seatmate began telling me more of what Fiji is really like. He said that it is a beautiful place, but it is expensive, and there is a huge problem with methamphetamines. I had already learnt a little bit about it on the boat the day prior, but it was interesting to learn, and I quote him, "Fiji gets portrayed from the outside as perfect, but it isn't".
Just a little bit of knowledge for you...
Lavatories
With the Coke Zero going straight to the belly, the urge to head to the lavatory was of the essence. Virgin Australia has two lavatories for the 168 passengers, both located at the very back. While there wasn't much in terms of amenities, I was pleased to at least see it clean...
Service
Throughout my reviews, I always try to tell it how it is (no BS), and while I recently had a poor experience service-wise (not this flight) on Virgin Australia, the cabin crew on today's flight was very good, and I will give credit where it is due. Here are a couple of things that stood out to me:
Upon boarding, we were greeted very warmly and with smiles. It seemed genuine, not just a facade.
We were checked on a couple of times during the flight, to see if we wanted anything else, and always with smiles.
Upon leaving the restroom, one of the flight attendants asked, "Can I get you anything".
So, while nothing revolutionary, I found all of the FAs to be friendly and welcoming.
Arrival
Chatting away for the next 2 hours with my seatmate about more of Fiji 😅 (we actually still chat to this day on instagram), around 5:20 pm local time, the captain came on to announce our descent into Brisbane. You want to talk about a beautiful sunset:
Soon enough, we were on short final with a gobsmacking view of downtown Brisbane... I have been to Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, and Cairns, but never Brisbane (or Perth for that matter).
We touched down quite a bit ahead of schedule at 5:51 pm, and made our way over to the international arrivals.
Turning my phone off of Airplane Mode, I had received a notification from United. Oh no... I had been rebooked for the next morning! With my new flight set to land in Sydney Domestic at 7:45 am, and my flight to Los Angeles boarding at 8:40 am, my brain quickly went from 'relaxation' to 'I need to sort something out'.
Bidding farewell to the crew, immigration was a breeze, and it was off to the Virgin Australia desk.
Final Thoughts
Flying Virgin Australia from Nadi to Brisbane was actually quite a pleasant flight overall. While I wasn't appreciative of their "unbundling" of economy, it wasn't the end of the world having to pay 10 USD for 2 packs of crackers and a Coke Zero. It was all made up for by the mostly comfortable seats, the good service, and having a kind seatmate who kept my brain somehow engaged all flight.
Now, would I fly Virgin Australia again? Based on this flight: Yes. Based on future flights? Oof, I can't wait to share what happened...
Fiji Series:
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