My wife and I, together with sister and brother in law, have just returned from a very relaxed holiday in Bali from the 15th to 25th of May. However, not all of the time was as relaxed as I would have liked. We, the four of us, are normally a little paranoid about being on time and tend to leave home very early (bloody near the day before if the truth is known) in case we miss the flight or some such other catastrophe. As a result we arrived at the Perth International Terminal with about two and a half hours spare before departure on the Saturday morning we left. Just as well. The queues at the booking desk were small when we arrived but seemed to be taking one hell of a time moving. As usual, for me, I was hyper critical of those in front of us who must have been screwing the system with useless questions and the like. What a mistake, the entire automatic ticketing system had broken down and boarding passes were being hand written for each passenger. The staff were terrific, although under a lot of pressure, but could not stop the delays or frustrations. Not to worry. We were cleared through with time for all the duty free shopping and a wee celebatory drink prior to leaping onto our jet propelled steed. Went to the bar on the airside of the terminal and ordered a few mixed drinks and a beer. The beer was great but the other drinks came without any ice. Seems there had been a power failure two days before and they had yet to catch up with such niceties, for a bar, as ice. This has nothing to do with Air Paradise but is a huge embarrassment to us when you consider the impression this must give to overseas visitors to our fair state and country. Not to worry, we thought, nothing we could not cope with. Boarding came and we were eventually seated in row 41 seats A to E. The aircarft was chockers and a little warm but no problems, even had a convenient overhead locker for a change. Just before departure the cabin crew gave all on board a small bottle of water to keep up fluid levels in flight. When I say everyone I should add that what I meant was everyone on board except 41 A through E. It took some time for me to attract one of the crew's attention to point out that we had been overlooked. We did get our water and a heap of apologies. After take-off we noticed that the temperature still remained at a slightly higher level than normal but all else was going great. After take-off it quickly became apparent that for those of us who like to start the holiday with a drink, or two, were going to have to wait. Nothing was offered in the way of "normal" cabin service until after the service of the inflight meal. This is where we came to our biggest problem. Having had nothing more than a piece of toast for breakfast we were starting to feel the pangs when the food trollies appeared. It didn't bother us that they started at the row immediately behind, row 42, or up the front a bit, as long as we were fed. Everyone was getting a choice of meals and a drink and the carts were getting closer and closer. Then, horror of horrors, the cart coming to us stopped and went back to the mid section galley. The cart behind had long since disappeared and the other people in row 41 had been served. We were left with nothing. Again a quick yell to the cabin staff was required to get them back. Very apologetic and all but the fact remained that they had just left us off the food distribution list. We were eventually catered for but with no choices left on the menu. What we did get was bloody awful (beef and rice supplied by an Australian caterer) apart from the red wine. The staff were very polite and helpful but had still forgotten we were there for the second time on that flight. During the flight I had to make the obligatory visit to the dunny to do what had to be done by one who has had a long trip and a couple of fluid intakes. Back in my seat I remarked to my wife that the toilets were starting to look a bit scungy and were not a pleasant place to visit. She must have listened very carefully to this because when she had to go she decided to lend the airline a hand and tidy up a bit so that she could do her thing in relative cleanliness. She couldn't believe it when after only a couple of minutes in the toilet a stewardess knocked on the door and invited her to leave as she was taking too much time in there. There was no body else queued at the time and she had not been long at all. Throughout the entire flight the cabin temperature remained at an uncomfortable level. I do not suggest that this was deliberate but, when I was involved in similar operations, it was always accepted that by upping the temperature and lowering cabin pressure just a tad you could have a cabin full of very drowsy passengers for the entire flight. Arrival at Denpasar was also a memorable experience. The captain (Captain Kangaroo) managed to pull off one of the hardest landings that I have ever had the misfortune to sit through. Don't get the wrong impression; it was hard but not dangerous. This was commented on by a number of passengers.
I have filled in a customer comments form for Air Paradise but have yet to receive any response - to early yet I suspect. I have also flown with Air Paradise before and could not sing their praises high enough. A number of folk recently have had negative reports on this airline and I can only trust that our flight was a variation from the norm and does not herald a continuing decline of standards.