Booking our First Flights
In my previous planning post, I mentioned choosing New Zealand and the Asia and Oceania regions for our travels. We’ve now booked the first (and last) of our flights, resulting in two return trips so far. Our journey begins and ends with flights from Copenhagen to Singapore, framing our 10-week adventure. Shortly after arriving in Singapore, we’ll head to New Zealand with another return trip. One-way tickets were nearly as expensive as return flights, about 80% of the cost, so we opted for this arrangement for these segments of our journey.
While we will have a short stay in Singapore for a few days, New Zealand feels like our first “true” destination. This is the first place for which I need to plan in more detail at this point.
Means of Transportation, Accomodation and Outlining the Itinerary
Our New Zealand adventure is approaching quickly, and since we’ll be visiting during the peak season over Christmas and New Year’s, it’s crucial to make some reservations. We have decided this trip will be a motorhome journey, starting in Christchurch in the South and ending in Auckland in the North. We spent two weeks exploring Alaska in a motorhome, this past July, for the first time and loved the experience with the girls. It offered so much freedom and flexibility, eliminating the hassle of packing and unpacking. For destinations like Alaska and New Zealand, this mode of travel truly makes sense. While I’ve camped in tent in New Zealand before, traveling by motorhome in New Zealand is a new experience for us, so I need to figure out how best to plan and prepare for this adventure.
I’ve begun crafting an itinerary for our month-long adventure. This high-level overview will enable me to secure bookings for the festive season, and pinpoint must-see spots that need advance reservations. However, I also want to keep some flexibility to adjust our plans based on the weather or new inspirations. We intend to do a lot of freedom camping, as we enjoyed it in Alaska and prefer it over large holiday parks. However, spending some time in holiday parks with all the amenities that come with it will also be enjoyable and the combination will create a well-rounded experience.
For drafting our itinerary, I found the CamperMate app (Motorhomes – Campsites – Holiday Parks – Experiences | CamperMate) and the Department of Conservation website (Stay at a campsite: Places to stay) extremely helpful. Having previously visited New Zealand and having a general idea of our destinations, I used these resources to pinpoint specific stops, sights, and potential overnight stays.
Whether it’s your first visit or a return trip, I also recommend checking out this official tourism site: Welcome to New Zealand | Official site for Tourism New Zealand.
I’ll share the itinerary once I have added more details. It’s already beginning to take shape, and as I plan and refine the trip, my excitement is growing.
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