It’s been five years since you’ve been able to fly like this to the Gold Coast
Monday, 22 June 2026
For the first time in nearly five years, Qantas has touched down on the Gold Coast from across the Tasman. The new thrice-weekly service injects over 52,000 seats to the route—a massive win for the 217,000 Kiwis who visit the beachy Australian city each year.
As the only airline offering business class between Auckland and the Gold Coast, Qantas is pitching to the more than 7000 of those Kiwis coming for business, and those who want to cross the ditch in style.
Stuff stepped onboard the inaugural flight to see if the 'pointy end' lives up to the price tag.
The route
Auckland (AKL) to Gold Coast (OOL) on flight QF210.
The plane
A Boeing 737-800.
Check-in
A business class ticket entitles you to use Auckland Airport’s Express Lane through immigration and security, and grants you entry to the newly revamped Qantas International Business Lounge at Auckland Airport.
The seat
I am in aisle seat 1C, one of 12 leather seats in business class in 2-2 configuration.
Although these seats do not lie flat, they are wider than the ones in economy at 56cm. They have a leg and footrest to put out into the 94cm of legroom, and an entertainment screen that pulls out of the armrest.
USB-A ports and a main power outlet are tucked into the side of the seat within easy reach.
Time in the air
The flight is scheduled to take three hours and 40 minutes, departing at 11.05pm and landing at 12.45pm. We took off on time and landed with beach views at 12.07pm, 40 minutes early. We must have had quite the tail wind!
The entertainment
Unfortunately, the in-flight tech didn't move quite as fast. The armrest-stored touchscreen felt dated and sluggish, requiring multiple firm presses to navigate.
While new releases like Marty Supreme and The Housemaid were available, and TV show box sets of series like All Her Fault and The White Lotus season one, a large chunk of the movie library was only available to watch on the Qantas Entertainment App. For a premium ticket, passengers shouldn't have to squint at their phones to watch a film.
The wi-fi, while available, connectivity was hit-and-miss. I could send texts and sync emails on my phone, but web browsing would not work. I could not get it to connect on my laptop either which was disappointing as I had hoped to do some work on the flight.
On the plus side, the headphones are comfortable and sit over the ears.
The food
The entrée is a Spanish roasted vegetable salad with caramelised bacon, slow-roasted cherry tomatoes and sherry vinaigrette. Because there wasn't a vegetarian alternative for the starter, I skipped it and went straight to the main.
For the mains, there is a choice of grilled lemongrass chicken with egg chive fried rice and sesame spinach, or a vegetarian option: baked pasta with eggplant, sautéed zucchini, slow-roasted cherry tomatoes and marinated feta. I get the latter and enjoy that it was packed with flavour and a bit of spice.
To finish, there is cheese and crackers and a Whittakers sante chocolate bar. Once the trays are cleared, along comes a Kāpiti salted caramel ice cream pot.
The service
Our dedicated cabin crew member, Todd, made a warm personal introduction at the start of the flight and cleared the meal trays swiftly so I could get quickly back to relaxing.
The verdict
If your budget allows, business class is a great way to start your holiday or relax into a business trip. Landing just before 1pm means by the time you get your bag and your Uber, it’s time to check into the hotel and you haven’t had to get up in the middle of the night and battle the 6am crowds at security.
The frequency
Qantas will operate three flights per week year-round between Auckland and the Gold Coast on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
The essentials
Flights to the Gold Coast with Qantas start from $370 one-way (economy). Business class fares start at $1365 one-way. See qantas.com/nz
The writer flew courtesy of Qantas.