[dbonnett]

Hi there,
I am hoping some kind soul can assist me.. I am trying to plan out our reccie trip for next year and am looking at transportation options/prices. Unfortunately, the interislander won't show their cheaper fares on the web site, unless your IP address is in NZ, so they will only quote me the rich tourist tariff :(
It would be great if someone could go to the interislander website (http://www.interislander.co.nz ) and check the Web Saver and Saver Change fares for a one way trip (Picton->Wellie) as far out as you can go. We are going to be travelling in June, but they are only going to Apr right now, so the exact date doesn't matter.

A reply here would be best so that others can benefit as well.
Thanks in advance!

[suebeenz]

Hi there,
It would be great if someone could go to the interislander website (http://www.interislander.co.nz ) and check the Web Saver and Saver Change fares for a one way trip (Picton->Wellie) as far out as you can go. We are going to be travelling in June, but they are only going to Apr right now, so the exact date doesn't matter.

A reply here would be best so that others can benefit as well.
Thanks in advance!

Hmm, I'm in NZ, but i'm not sure how you select 'web saver'/ 'saver change' fares. I just followed the instructions on the page

Picton to Wellington Wednesday, 11 Apr 2007
5:45am 9:00am Arahura $65.00

That's just for one adult (yeesh, really?). If you don't think those are the websaver/saver change fares, let me know. (guessing someone else will correct me in the meantime anyhow :laugh )

[Brijan]

Hi Dbonnett
I found a sailing on 30th April leaving picton at 6pm $45 1Adult 1way, it was a web saver fare. sailings earlier in the day are sold out already so you may have to book as soon as the time rolls out month by month.
good luck
Brian :)

[dbonnett]

Thank you suebeenz and Brijan: That will help enormously! Since we are planning to do job interviews in CC and Wellie, timing is important and I am weighing the cost of flying vs train/ferry (flying from CC to Wellie is significantly cheaper than the train/ferry!).

I feel like I am organizing military maneuvers for a rapid assault, not a family vacation!

If we decide to go with the train/ferry, I may need to call on the good graces of someone in NZ to order my tix for me, but that is for the future...

Thanks again.

[suebeenz]

I haven't taken the ferry yet, but plan on it in the next 6 months for sure. Can someone tell me how I get the websaver rates from their website? I didn't see how to check for that on the website. ($65 was the cheapest I could find)

Thanks!

[jess]

Suebeenz - After you enter your dates on the homepage you should see a sailing options list with all 3 fares that looks like this (if you can see the pic)...

http://www.barksdalerichmond.org/pics/j/forum_ferry.gif

[suebeenz]

Strange, my IP is definitely in NZ, but only the 'Easy Change' rates are shown to me. Perhaps something to do with my 'Regional and Language Options' set in XP ? Jess, is your location option in Control Panel/Regional Options/Location set to New Zealand?

I'm all for saving $20! :clap

[jess]

Yes, location is set to NZ.

[suebeenz]

Yes, location is set to NZ.

Strange. I just reset everything to new zealand and rebooted, and I'm still only shown the chump rates. If I figure it out later, I'll post my findings.

(If I'm in NZ, but can only see the chump rates, perhaps there's a way for people outside NZ to get the non-chump rates.) :yes

[dbonnett]

Strange. I just reset everything to new zealand and rebooted, and I'm still only shown the chump rates. If I figure it out later, I'll post my findings.

(If I'm in NZ, but can only see the chump rates, perhaps there's a way for people outside NZ to get the non-chump rates.) :yes

Chump is such an ugly word.. How about "Indigent Kiwi subsidizer"? :D

[suebeenz]

Chump is such an ugly word.. How about "Indigent Kiwi subsidizer"? :D


Sounds like we need to add IKS to the summary of terms on this site! :clap

[suebeenz]

Hi there,
I am hoping some kind soul can assist me.. I am trying to plan out our reccie trip for next year and am looking at transportation options/prices. Unfortunately, the interislander won't show their cheaper fares on the web site, unless your IP address is in NZ, so they will only quote me the rich tourist tariff :(
It would be great if someone could go to the interislander website (http://www.interislander.co.nz ) and check the Web Saver and Saver Change fares for a one way trip (Picton->Wellie) as far out as you can go. We are going to be travelling in June, but they are only going to Apr right now, so the exact date doesn't matter.

A reply here would be best so that others can benefit as well.
Thanks in advance!


So just to sum up my experience. It doesn't seem to be IP based, because I'm in NZ and the cheap fares weren't shown to me either. However, after changing my computer's time zone to NZ, then the cheap fares popped up. Anybody outside NZ care to try this and let us know if that works for you?

To do this on XP, you would double click on your clock display in the on the taskbar (typically bottom right), and then select the 'Time Zone' tab in the window that pops up. There you should then see a drop list with your current time zone - try changing it to (GMT+12:00) Auckland, Wellington.

:cheers

[jodieinchch]

Thought about looking on Air New Zealands Grab-a-seat deals that are updated on a daily basis. These give a different selection of flights on a daily basis for a cheap cost. Might be worth checking on a daily basis. Go onto www.airnewzealand.co.nz then click on the green GRABASEAT box in the top right. Keep checking back...
Hope that helps! Not sure how flexible you are, but they do go quick, so keep your eyes peeled!

[wiki]

I'm in the UK and I just changed my clock to NZ time (happy 9.51am to you all!) and I got the cheap rates :clap

But this PC still has UK as the location (UK ISP etc) so maybe it is purely a time thing? (and I tried the other day and only got the easy change option I think)

Also, I found this on the site

Because we recognise the travel plans of international customers can change at short notice, we limit bookings made outside of New Zealand to our most flexible fare type. If you are booking from outside New Zealand you will only see Easy Change fare options. These fares are excellent value for money as they allow you to make changes up to the last minute. A full refund will be given if cancellation is advised prior to time of check-in.

Web Saver and Saver Change fares can be booked once in New Zealand, but we caution that there is a risk of space not being available close to travel date. In addition there is a risk that prevailing fare conditions will be unsuitable for international traveller needs.

so they seem to be offering the more pricy tickets as a "favour" to us hehe... perhaps chump is the right term?

[jess]

Great tip suebeenz! It must be the time setting. :nice1

---

The cheaper options have a lot more restrictions, so if your plans are uncertain it might be better to use the $65 flexible fare so you don't lose the full amount of a non-exchangeable ticket. Of course if you know exactly when you will travel, the savings are better. :)

[suebeenz]

Hey good deal! :cheers Glad you're able to get the cheaper ferry rates outside NZ (and that I can now get the cheaper rates inside NZ too :nice1 ). Thanks to Jess for helping me track things down.

[dbonnett]

So just to sum up my experience. It doesn't seem to be IP based, because I'm in NZ and the cheap fares weren't shown to me either. However, after changing my computer's time zone to NZ, then the cheap fares popped up. Anybody outside NZ care to try this and let us know if that works for you?

To do this on XP, you would double click on your clock display in the on the taskbar (typically bottom right), and then select the 'Time Zone' tab in the window that pops up. There you should then see a drop list with your current time zone - try changing it to (GMT+12:00) Auckland, Wellington.

:cheers

Suebeenz & Jess, you rock:clap I had to do this with a different browser than my currently active one (Firefox with a whole bunch of open tabs), so there may be a cookie issue. If it doesn't work the first time, close your browser and then reopen it and go to the Interislander.co.nz site.