Stephanie Holmes flies Sri Lankan Airlines from Kuala Lumpur to Colombo, on MH9119, a Malaysia Airlines codeshare flight

The plane: Airbus A321-NEO, one of six of this type of plane from the Sri Lankan Airlines fleet (which totals 27 aircraft). Class: Economy My seat: 25B, a row with a 2-2 configuration — all others in the cabin are 3-3. The row is directly in front of the emergency exits halfway down the plane, and has a space next to the window where the A seat should be. Facing the other way is the fold-down cabin crew seat, which — when they’re seated for take off and landing — means you’re in very close quarters. Price: $4021 for two return tickets from Auckland through to Colombo.

Flight time: 3 hours and 10 minutes, and we left right on time.

How full: About 70 per cent

Fellow passengers: Mainly Sri Lankans, with a few excited holidaymakers thrown into the mix.

Service: Excellent. The crew were friendly and helpful, and all incredibly well-presented. The female crew members wore turquoise saris, which looked stunning.

Food and drink: It was breakfast time, but I wanted to avoid the Western and Chinese option, and instead start my Sri Lankan culinary journey with a breakfast curry. There were none left by the time I was served, but perhaps sensing my disappointment, one of the crew found me an unclaimed special vegetarian meal. It was delicious — a bowl of lightly spiced dhal, with polenta and paratha bread. Entertainment: There was a far better selection on this three-hour flight than there was on the 11-hour Malaysia Airlines flight we’d just been on. More than 125 movies, including recent releases, plus 72 TV episodes, games, an e-reader, and apps providing more info on our destination.

Toilets: A bit tired but did the job.

Airport experience: KLIA was very quiet when we arrived at 5am. It slowly came to life as we waited. We did a lot of walking to help stretch the bodies. Colombo international airport was efficient and easy, with friendly border security staff and a good selection of duty free booze.

Would I fly again? Absolutely. And, if they flew the neos on the long-haul route, I would definitely choose to fly with Sri Lankan from Melbourne direct to Colombo, as it would give a better, more comfortable service than Malaysia Airlines.