New Zealand
New Zealand
Introduction
That's right. You heard me. I'm going to spend a year working and travelling in the awesome internationally recognised as 'New Zealand'
To Do
 |
Get work/holiday visa |
|
Book Flight |
 |
Get Travel Insurance |
|
Book initial accommodation in Auckland |
|
Set up NZ Bank Account |
|
Transfer money to that bank account |
|
Buy a giant backpack + sleeping bag |
|
Buy a netbook for travelling computations |
|
Make a packing list |
|
Draw up a rough budget plan |
|
Buy Matt-leg tour ticket |
|
Buy Mum-leg tour ticket |
Flights
Hokai, so, flights are actually quite complicated. Here's a flights detailed page for them and here's the summary:
Booking Reference: HJC5GH
OUTBOUND
- Outbound Flight Status: Booked
Outbound Flight
| From | To | Via | Date and Time | Landing At | Flight No | Terminal | Carrier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London - LHR | Auckland - AUK | Hong Kong | Thursday 12th August 2010 21:05pm | 09:00am Sat 14th | NZ38 | LHR Terminal 1 | AirNewZealand |
RETURN
- Return Flight Status: Booked: But must be changed in September 2010
Return flight
| From | To | Date and Time | Flight No | Class | Carrier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auckland - AUK | ? Hong Kong ? | ? 10th August 2011 (time) - (time) | Flight ID | Class: Economy | AirNewZealand |
| ? Hong Kong ? | London - LHR | ? 11th August 2011 (time) - (time) | Flight ID | Class: Economy | AirNewZealand |
.
Auckland Accommodation
Two Main options:
Oaklands Lodge in Mt. Eden, short (cheap and regular) bus ride to centre, pleasant and quiet location.
Auckland International YHA - excellent cooking facilities, nearer centre and probably have better travel centre.
Might win on convenience- can always book for 6 days then switch to Oaklands if it's no good.
Price-wise I think they are exactly the same - £10.45 a night for an 8-bed dorm.
Because of location and reviews Auckland International YHA wins...this round... also airbus from airport goes straight there which is handy. Important not to confuse with Auckland City YHA which is apparently crappola.
Travel Insurance
| Policy | GlobeLinks | World Nomad |
|---|---|---|
| Cover 1 | GL Thing | WN Thing |
| Cover 2 | GL Thing 2 | WN Thing 2 |
| Cost | GL quote | WN quote |
Rough Plan
- Arrive in Auckland, get over jet lag, deal with bank stuff and other stuff.
- Stay in Auckland for 2 weeks- try to get in Cape Reinga, the little islands, and Auckland itself.
- Homestay/farmstay your way round: First to Coromandel across to Rotorua, Bay of Plenty and Hawkes Bay, Napier region then down to Wellington.
- Stay in Wellington for a week, then home/farmstay across to New Plymouth region, Taranaki and Waikato back up to Auckland, via Te Awamutu.
- Enter Matt stage left (Auckland -> Christchurch)
- Do same sort of thing for South Island as north - stop off in the key places for a week or so (Christchurch, Queenstown, Dunedin), Go north, round, south home/farmstaying along the way, back to Christchurch
- Enter Mum stage right (Christchurch -> Auckland)
- Get a job for 3 months or revisit highlights, hang out doing whatever. If some people were awesome at the beginning, go see them again.
- Come home with a slightly Kiwi accent, and a set of charming anecdotes where money used to be.
Mandatory activities
- Pilgrimage to Te Awamutu
- Waitomo Caves
- Sandboarding
- Visiting:
- Napier
- New Plymouth
- Dunedin
- Stewart Island
- the Catlins
- Fox Glacier
- Milford Sound
- Auckland,
- Christchurch
- Greymouth
- etc.
- Maybe a trip to Samoa.
Work and homestay Options
Farm and Homestay options - HelpExchange