[Jakarta]

Hello all, anyone able to help, we want to take a few days to get to Auckland with 1 or 2 stopovers but am struggling to figure out the most cost effective way of doing this.

Anyone able to offer any advice?

Thanks

[Jakarta]

I have tried every combination of stopovers on the air NZ website but it keeps telling me nothing matches my requirements.

[JandM]

You could phone Air NZ - for an ordinary national-rate number in the UK, I found myself talking to someone at Auckland Airport, who was very helpful with the particular queries I had (and hearing her voice made soon being in NZ feel all the more real :nice1).

[Jacqi B]

We went into the Air New Zealand office at New Zealand House when we went to get our blue stickers. Said that we wanted to fly from London to Wellington but have stopovers in the states and Raratonga and was that possible?
No problem, she said and looked it up for us. We are toying with getting return/RTW flights as one way is 75% of the cost of a return/RTW and OH wants to come back to visit his parents. We figure that buying a return, and then doing the same again when back here might be the cheapest way to do it.
So the very helpful AirNZ person asked if we wanted to come back the same way or via the far east and looked at us stopping off in Hong Kong on the way back.

I think, basically, any route they fly you can get off and stay for a few days (or weeks) rather than getting straight back on the plane after refuelling. Give them a call.

AirNZ is holding the route we chose for two weeks (no obligation/no cost) and we are going to look at other ways - I want to talk to companies like Travelbag or Flightbookes or whatever tghey are called to get some options though.

[urban78]

You could phone Air NZ - for an ordinary national-rate number in the UK, I found myself talking to someone at Auckland Airport, who was very helpful with the particular queries I had (and hearing her voice made soon being in NZ feel all the more real :nice1).

If you call the Air NZ UK freephone number, you'll speak to someone from the Contact Centre in Auckland, either in the city or over the North Shore ;)

They have a dedicated internet helpdesk for people experiencing difficutlies booking online, you should ask to speak to them Jakarta, there may be a way around your booking problem :)

Jen

[Jakarta]

nice one thanks for the advice, seems calling them is the way forward, does anyone know if it is more expensive to stop over?

[Jacqi B]

does anyone know if it is more expensive to stop over?

I don't think so. But ask for prices with and without to find out.

[urban78]

nice one thanks for the advice, seems calling them is the way forward, does anyone know if it is more expensive to stop over?

A lot of the flights include free stopovers in some cities, but it would depend on what's available and where you'll be stopping as well :cool:

[Toonster]

By the way - when you are booking, before you pay, it might be worth checking these guys out:
http://www.flightcentre.co.uk/info/policies/fly_for_free

I've got a branch near me, and when I went in to check, I asked whether it included booking directly through the airline, and the lady behind the counter said "Yes" - it's got to be worth a go! :clap

[M-Squared]

Yes definitely talk to a human directly! :nice1 :)

[Sporty]

We are going over London having 6 stops before arriving to Auckland. We are paying 550 Euros per person with all taxes. So if you want you can really get good deals, the only thing is that you search the net for few days.

If you wana have 2 stops I would recomend you

1. London Stansted - Kuala Lumpur with AirAsia ( we got it for 120GBP pp )
2. Kuala Lumpur - Bali with AirAsia (you can get it for 20 GBP pp)
3. Bali - Auckland Air Malaysia with conection in KL (we got it for 300 USD pp)

Good luck!:clap

[Toonster]

Oh wow - thanks for the tip :nice1

[Jakarta]

Thanks all, Sporty how on earth did you get flights so cheap?

[Sporty]

Thanks all, Sporty how on earth did you get flights so cheap?

Me sitting infront of computer for 7 days (16 hours a day lol) and just seraching all possible connections. You have to catch the promotions that airlines are having, thats all.

GOOD LUCK!!!

[KerryS]

AirAsia is a cut-price, no-frills airline though, so not really comparable with AirNZ and the ilk. But if price is the most important consideration then it's definitely the cheapest option - although multiple stops are needed.