[shakyle2906]

HI

Been busy looking at the flights to Napier from Heathrow....

Got a great deal (so i look at it) for 2 adult and 1 child flying 8/4/07 with return date of 30/7/07 (although not coming back.... hopefully...)

Choices are stop over in LA or Hong Kong ??

Rang up Air NZ and they suggest that as we have a 4 1/2 year old, Hong Kong is our best bet - although 20kg each allowance.

LA is 46kg each - but reckon customs is a pain - have to have finger prints, photos taken, etc

Can anyone advise if they travelled this way and what our best option would be ?? Know its best to listen to travel staff, but could use the extra luggage allowance ....

Got two weeks before have to book, as realised passport runs out shortly unfortunately, so another extra expense .... Typical!!

Any help gratefuly recd

Sharon

[gil]

Hi Sharon,
We did LAX simply for the extra baggae allowance. Haven't got a 4.5 year old but did travel with me, hubby, 18, 15, 10 and 9 year olds. Customs/immigration were a lot better than we had expected, actually almost pleasant. There were long queues though: of our 4 hour stopover, we were in a queue for 3.75 hours!! Finger printing was considered "fun" by our younger two, although we were all a bit tired, it was worth it for the more than double baggage allowance in our view.

Gil

[jubjub]

We did both on our trip "home" last year. HK is a lovely bright airy airport, plenty of places to eat, lots of space, dont know how it would work if you were in transit, but as far as I know you get to wander round the shops etc. You may even be able to grab a shower.

LAX you get herded off the plane (if you do the non stop NZ1 flight) have to queue to get passports checked and fingerprints/photo (you do go first if you got kiddies) then you are put in a room with toilets, free nibbles and drinks, and uncomfy seats and not much space for littles to run about, thats it! Now by the time you get in there, you are not there for that long, but its a bit basic.

Guess its up to whether you want the extra luggage to put up with less than perfect facilties for an hour or so....

[StevieD]

3.75 hours!! That is ridiculous isn't it!

We are going with Singapore Airlines, stopping overnight in Singapore. 30kgs each, not too bad, don't expect we'll need any more than that.

Steve

[jubjub]

Oh, forgot, you could do a sneaky, out through LA and back through HK we did that and because part of our ticket was through LAX, we got the big baggage allowance.....

[veronica]

hong kong airport is a good one, normal transit treatment. LA is the pits, both airport and transit system.

[Tia Maria]

Sharon,

Are you flying direct to Napier or will you be using an internal flight?

The reason I ask is that a lot of the internal flights have a lower baggage allowance and threfore getting 46kg is not much use if you have to loose or pay for the extra, to fly internally.

Also be aware that hand baggage can also have a weight allowance as well as a size allowance, this one caught us out, but luckily they let us on anyway.

Cheers

Tia

[Jameelka]

When we flew over to Auckland in August we flew Air NZ via Los Angeles (2 days after all the arrests over terrorists,chaos at Heathrow and not allowed anything on the plane except documents, purse etc..) we flew this way so we could take the girls (aged 9 and 10 yrs then) to Disney.
We were expecting LAX to be a nightmare, but it was absolutely fine, had to wait while they could find pens for us all to fill out the visa forms, but other than that very little hasstle and would def do it again.
When we came to fly from LAX to AKL we arrived at LAX airport hrs to early thinking it would be really tight security and would take ages to clear our bags, but it took no more than 20 mins from check-in to sitting in the departure lounge!
We have flown Singapore Airlines and they were extremely good, but just depends on which route u want to fly and stop over.

[alan999]

I've just come out ANZ via LAX to return the other way.

I landed late (although on time) at LA so perhaps because of this the delays weren't bad. About 1hr in the queue. After 9 hrs sitting on the plane just being able to shuffle along in a queue was a pleasant change!!

The fingerprint and eye stuff took minutes, and the people very pleasant, then into the lounge for nibbles and a sit down. This area wasn't that nice.

My advice is take advantage of the luggage, get out of the plane asap to get in the queue quickly. That's what I'll be doing next time.

[shakyle2906]

Tia

We fly from Heathrow to Auckland, then from Auckland to Napier, all through Air NZ from what i can see ....

Any ideas ?

Thanks for telling me about hand luggage, i will bear this in mind. What happens if it is internal flight ??


Sharon

[urban78]

Tia

We fly from Heathrow to Auckland, then from Auckland to Napier, all through Air NZ from what i can see ....

Any ideas ?

Thanks for telling me about hand luggage, i will bear this in mind. What happens if it is internal flight ??


Sharon

As long as your domestic flights are booked on the same ticket as your international one, you'll be fine regarding baggage allowance :) If your dom flight is booked separately, that's when you get into trouble :no Domestic flights have an allowance of 20kgs and you get stung by $5/kg excess baggage charges.

Hand luggage is 7kgs, if you measure it altogether it should not go over 115cms...usually it should fit into the overhead lockers.

Jen

[andrewandjane]

some one posted on this subject a while ago and said to get off the plane t LAX with all the passengers who are leaving there and not getting a connecting flight. as this gets you to the front of the que and into the transit lounge.

were going to try that one as we have a 2yr old a and a 5 yr old. doubt theyd put us back on the plane till its out turn, were just going to pretend were stupid or something. and got off at wrong time :uhoh but at least well be off plane and sitting in a bigger space :D

[katandbob]

Sharon,

Are you flying direct to Napier or will you be using an internal flight?

The reason I ask is that a lot of the internal flights have a lower baggage allowance and threfore getting 46kg is not much use if you have to loose or pay for the extra, to fly internally.

Also be aware that hand baggage can also have a weight allowance as well as a size allowance, this one caught us out, but luckily they let us on anyway.

Cheers

Tia

I found this too, but luckly both in Chch when I picked my boys up in september with double BA and just this month when Rachel my daughter flew home after a visit with the eldest son returning home - they had US baggage allowance from AUK but the staff let it on :clap saving me $$$$ PHEW!

[colindp]

We did the LAX route and wish we hadn't, waited for ages in the queue for the fingerprinting thingy (thankfully my little one was 19 at the time and he didn't show off), eventually got into the lounge with the very uncomfortable seats and the basic nibbles, thankfully we weren't there long. However, it did make us late arriving in Auckland and as a result missed our connecting flight to Dudders meaning a double hop via Wellie & Christchurch, which did have it's compensations being a bit of a rugby fan with us on the flight to Christchurch was Graham Henry and a number of the All Black players....

[sarahw]

were going to try that one as we have a 2yr old a and a 5 yr old. doubt theyd put us back on the plane till its out turn, were just going to pretend were stupid or something. and got off at wrong time :uhoh but at least well be off plane and sitting in a bigger space :D

Anyone with little kids gets ushered past the queue anyway - they recognise that with little ones you aren't going to stand in line & probably have to change nappies/feed them etc. - they usually put you through the entrance to the transit lounge that the 1st class & business class people go in so don't worry.

Jen is right - if your connecting flights within NZ are booked also through Air NZ then you are allowed the same amount of luggage as you are for the international flight - otherwise there'd be a heck of a lot of people WAY over the baggage limit!! If, however, you fly in with another airline, for example Quantas or Emirates, and take an Air NZ flight to your NZ destination then your luggage allowance goes right down to whatever the maximum domestic luggage allowance is. We've experimented with this ourselves & when visitors have come - also if you book your flights all the way through with Air NZ they will move your domestic flight if you are late/early to suit you if they have space, whereas if you are with another airline for the long-haul part Air NZ won't help you at all as my parents found out when they flew Emirates last time & got told they'd have to wait the 2 hours to get to Welly or pay to go on the earlier flight (even though it was almost empty & their actual booked flight was full to bursting!).

[Trigirl]

they will help you though and let you keep your luggage allowance if you come in on another star alliance flight so you are ok with singapore airlines as they are star alliance too.

[sarahw]

Didn't know that - that's interesting - thanks for the info Trigirl!

[Sam B]

We've just done the Heathrow via LA route. They let people with children queue jump to the front for the finger printing. It was a bit grim, in fact I would do a proper stopover somewhere nice so we could all sleep in beds next time. The 46kg of luggage each was a complete boon though.

[shakyle2906]

Thanks all for your replies, we feel its worth taking chance just for the luggage allowance .... savs us shipping loads over!

Our other dilemma is, we will be booking the flights with Air NZ from start to finish, but were wondering, what happens if our flight is late leaving Heathrow, thus landing in LA late ...... what happens with the connections ? would we be charged to fly on ???

Sharon

[jubjub]

If its a through flight with them, no probs at all, its not like Easyjet/ryanair where they charge you if you sneeze...

[Family Maidment]

We flew to Napier with Air NZ from Heathrow with a 4.5 year old and 5 week old. This was 3 years ago so prior to the new checks.

It was fab to get the extra allowance and the stop was ok. 4 year old ran aroung the small lounge eating the free apples.

We walked with all our bags and cases from the international to domestic terminal at Auckland as the checking for the domestic flights at the international terminal was very long and we only had just over the hour to get our connecting flight. (OH and I each had a trolley with the cases and the 4 year old pushed the pram!!) When checking in at the domestic terminal we had to lable the bags in priority order as they would not all fit on the smaller aircraft. This was easy as OH box of tools were not important as were a few cases full of gifts we were given upon leaving the UK. The bags would follow later in the day to Napier and be taken to our Motel by taxi free of charge.

Upon arrival in Napier we collected what bags they could fit into the plane including the tool box? however my (yes my) case was left in Auckland with the other non priority bags and I wanted to shower and change!!! AAAHHH. 2 hours later a taxi turned up at the motel and we were all reunited and I could at last change.

All I would say is mix and clothes up in the cases so everyone has a change in each case - just in-case!!!

Jo

Doing the flight again to Tauranga after Easter - this time Virgin - Lax (4 nights Disney) then Air NZ to Tauranga via Auckland (boys this time - 6 & 2)

[shakyle2906]

Thanks Jo!

Our worry is more for the litle one than us.

Whats there to do for little ones - never flown with him before, so whole new experience for us all!!

Whats it like in Napier - have you settled ok ??
Hubby has job in Hastings to go to.
Any areas you would recommend ?

Sharon

[Trigirl]

4 year old ran aroung the small lounge

i bet you were popular with everyone else.....

[Hannah]

Not as popular as my 2 children who each raced , the wrong way, up and down the travellator!

Having been through Hong Kong airport for the first time a couple of weeks ago it was a nice clean airport, easy to get around, and stress free (unlike LA - and i found that stressful BEFORE the new checks!!!). My son tapped my arm as we progressed through the airport and whispered "why do all the chinese people sit in a line over there?" - he was referring to a row of seats occupied exclusively by chinese people! I explained to him that you would expect this in Hong Kong airport. Kids eh!!!

[Croft]

Thanks all for your replies, we feel its worth taking chance just for the luggage allowance .... savs us shipping loads over!

Our other dilemma is, we will be booking the flights with Air NZ from start to finish, but were wondering, what happens if our flight is late leaving Heathrow, thus landing in LA late ...... what happens with the connections ? would we be charged to fly on ???

Sharon

It's the same aircraft all thw way through from London to Auckland, so no need to worry about missing a connection at LA! It does seem odd to have to take all your hand luggage off at LA though, especially when you return to exactly the same seats! When we first flew in 2001 (just after 9/11) you had to take all hold luggage off too, but that's not the case any longer. There are stacks of internal flights in NZ, so if you do land late in Auckland they'll put you on a later flight.

To be honest, LAX is OK, and we fly it because of the 46kg allowance (down from 60kg since last year), oh, and the extra 2 inches leg room on the 747s.

When we fly next in June we'll taking the round the world route - outbound via LAX to get the 46kg luggage limit, then via HK for a stopover to have a looksee!

[wiki]

This reminds me about an article I saw today on the BBC website

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6341129.stm

BA is going to charge up to £240 to take an extra bag - even if it's part of your individual weight allowance! The fees, which apply from Tuesday, 13 February, will be imposed even if the combined weight of the two bags is below the allowance.

It's supposed to make it easier for BA to move into Terminal 5 at Heathrow if they don't have as many bags to process.

Travellers on shorter international trips will face a bill of £120 and those on domestic journeys, £60.

I think you get a discount if you pay in advance...

BA said that flights to the US, Canada, the Caribbean, Nigeria, Brazil and Mexico would be exempt from the new charges to bring policy "in line with the local government regulations".

[Trigirl]

To be honest, LAX is OK, and we fly it because of the 46kg allowance (down from 60kg since last year), oh, and the extra 2 inches leg room on the 747s.

unfortunately all flights to London via LA are now (since November ish) on the 777s. if you want the extra legroom of the 747s you have to fly via hong kong

[speckythecky]

Transit on NZ1 and NZ2

To meet the security requirements of US Customs and Border Protection, travellers in transit in Los Angeles on NZ1 to Auckland or NZ2 to London must remain in the transit facility. Here is an outline of the transit procedure you can expect.

When you leave the aircraft in Los Angeles, Air New Zealand ground staff will direct you to the transit area where you will be required to present your passport and completed U.S. Immigration form to officials for inspection
There is no requirement to complete the Customs form when in transit
Boarding passes must be retained for the continuation of your journey
Entry formalities require all travellers aged 14 - 79 to have a photo and prints of index fingers taken by officials (US and Canadian citizens exempt)
US Customs and Border Protection processing may result in a delay to enter the transit facility; we understand queuing can be uncomfortable so will be offering refreshments while you wait to be processed by the authorities
If you need to use a toilet before entering the transit area, please ask one of our Air New Zealand ground staff for directions
Once in the transit facility, complimentary refreshments and snacks are available to you.
Should you require any assistance in the transit facility, please do not hesitate to speak with any of the Air New Zealand ground staff.

also first part of flight (ie london to la is 747, LA to NZ is 777

[Trigirl]

also first part of flight (ie london to la is 747, LA to NZ is 777

if you fly NZ1 all the way through then both legs of the journey are on a 777 and the instructions for transit above apply.

you can choose if you prefer to fly NZ1 from london to LA which is a 777 then NZ5 from LA to NZ which is a 747. if you do that you have to take all your bags off and recheck them at LAX. the instructions speckythecky has posted above only apply to you if you are staying on the same plane all the way through (ie NZ1 - or NZ2 if you are going the opposite direction!)

if you decide to transfer from NZ1 to NZ5 then this is the process

Transit to other Air New Zealand flights

If you are transferring to an Air New Zealand flight with a different flight number you will need to go through regular US Customs and Border Protection processes with all of your bags.

Entry formalities require travellers aged 14 - 79 to have a photo and prints of index fingers taken by officials (US and Canadian citizens exempt)
Bags which are tagged to their final destination may be re-checked at the Interline Transfer Desk before leaving the arrival hall (even if you do not hold a boarding pass for your next flight)
If you are holding a boarding pass to your onward destination, after leaving the arrival hall you may proceed directly to your departure gate
If you do not hold a boarding pass for your next Air New Zealand flight, proceed to the Air New Zealand Service Centre in the departure concourse to obtain your boarding pass and seat allocation.

[speckythecky]

Sorry Trigirl, must try to read all the instructions while checking costs of flights:(

[Trigirl]

we spent ages looking at the LAX options - but in the end the whole hassle factor (and having to be fingerprinted like criminals just for daring to spend a few hours inside their borders!) put us off and we went via Hong Kong.

[speckythecky]

I am thinking that the extra luggage is worth the effort. Also thinking of give the boys a break and let them see disney for a couple of days, anything to bribe them that they do want to go to NZ

[Croft]

unfortunately all flights to London via LA are now (since November ish) on the 777s. if you want the extra legroom of the 747s you have to fly via hong kong

Thanks Trigirl - I didn't know they'd 'switched' the aircraft. I guess I'll have to suffer on the 777 outbound!

[Caroline and Dave]

Good old BBC,they never fail to cock up the information they give out. They have just announced on the Jeremy Vine show on Radio 2 that if you fly Air New Zealand via LA you will be allowed to take 2 x 35 KG suitcases in the hold. (It is actually 2 x 23 KG cases) What chance have the rest of us got when yet again the beeb give out the wrong information.

Dave and Caroline:(

[andreamatt]

Hi

We're looking into going to NZ via Hong Kong in June. We're also thinking of having a 2-3 day break there. Has anyone been to the Hong Kong Disneyland place? Your comments please...

Andrea

[joey + susie]

have read through this thread - and am thinking...

we are travelling to NZ in April (no flights booked yet), we have no kids, no plans to ship/send extra baggage.

so...the route on nz1 via LAX is worth the extra baggage?

Anyone got any thoughts...

Also (can these x2 23kg bags, per person, be any size, shape etc.)

And has anyone taken a motorcyle helmet to NZ before (hand luggage or put it in the hold - my boyf and i are having a heated discussion!)

Susie

[Croft]

have read through this thread - and am thinking...

we are travelling to NZ in April (no flights booked yet), we have no kids, no plans to ship/send extra baggage.

so...the route on nz1 via LAX is worth the extra baggage?

Anyone got any thoughts...

Also (can these x2 23kg bags, per person, be any size, shape etc.)

And has anyone taken a motorcyle helmet to NZ before (hand luggage or put it in the hold - my boyf and i are having a heated discussion!)

Susie

from the Air New Zealand site:

For routes via LAX, 2 x 23kg.

Under this piece system, each piece of baggage should have total dimensions (length + width + height) no greater than 158cm (62").

So no, it can't be any size or shape, but...

Oversized Items
If you are travelling with items that exceed maximum dimensions for checked baggage, these are classified as oversized.

Examples of oversized items are bicycles, surfboards, hang-gliders and wind-surfers. Since these are larger items, carriage will be subject to availability of space on the aircraft.

The following items may be considered as one standard piece of baggage:

Any portable musical instrument not exceeding 100cm in length
One bicycle
One surfboard
One pair of snow skis
One snowboard
One pair of water skis
One golf bag containing golf clubs and one pair of shoes
Please note there is a maximum weight restriction of 32kg (70 lbs) per item and length restrictions also apply.

and finally, if you're taking sporting goods it seems you can stretch to 30kg on the HK route - the 46kg limit on the lAX route remains the same.

> Domestic New Zealand flights
> Flights between New Zealand and Australia, the
Pacific Islands, Asia, Japan or London via Hong Kong
An extra 10kg baggage allowance is given for sporting equipment free of charge. Examples include bicycles, golf clubs, skis, snowboards. Excess baggage charges apply once the free allowance has been exceeded.

> Flights to/from the USA, Canada or Tahiti
> Flights between New Zealand and London via
Los Angeles
Sporting equipment, for example golf clubs, skis, snowboards, bicycles and surfboards are included in the piece allowance. Excess baggage charges apply once the piece allowance has been exceeded.

As for the motorcycle helmet, carry it in either. If you're carrying it in the cabin luggage make sure it fits in a bag this size and under this weight.

Pacific Economy and Pacific Premium Economy Class customers may take one piece of cabin baggage with a maximum weight of 7kg (15lbs) and maximum total dimensions (length + width + height) of 115cm (45").

http://www.airnewzealand.co.uk/travelinfo/baggageinformation/check_in_baggage.htm

I'd say the extra weight you can carry on the LAX route is worth it, and it's only a couple of hours of minor dsicomfort at LAX.

[Trigirl]

If you're carrying it in the cabin luggage make sure it fits in a bag this size and under this weight. just remember also that you wont be allowed to take another bag in addition to the motorcycle helmet. they are still being very strict on this - another forum member got stopped last week. http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=10187&page=2

[mc&j]

Hi Sharon,
were flying via Hong Kong with Air New Zealand with a 14month old. We booked him a seat so he can have 20kg luggage too, but his carseat will be classed as his hand luggage as with his pram....we will probably ditch it ( pram not baby! ) before we board as it is 5th hand. The extra allowence with LA would have been nice but we went for a safe bet insted. We've booked into an airport hotel ( Regal ) for 24hrs so I'm hoping to exhast him in the swimming pool. Interesting to read everyones views on HK Airport. Off the wall question but has anyone been able to purchase infant formula there?

xx