I did it! I booked a ticket. It’s crazy. OMG. Can’t believe it!
All the thoughts that rushed through my head when I booked our plane tickets to New Zealand and Fiji. It was not completely out of the blue, but it was. Less then two weeks after joining Facebook groups, email lists, and following pages… there it was: a bright and shiny beacon, calling my name. “Air New Zealand flights from $800 roundtrip.” I blinked again, did they miss a “1” in front of the “8?” Is there a catch? There HAS to be a catch! (Note: sometimes there is a catch so read all the fine print – all of it!)
I first saw the post as was getting ready for work, the day before (an idle January Wednesday.) When I got home from work that day, I revisited the post (I saved it – ProTip!) and I went to work on checking dates. Like all travel deals, there are RESTRICTIONS to when they are offered. Do not be bummed or disappointed – great deals come to those who are willing to be flexible. PERIOD.
ProTip: If you want to go to destination X at time Y, be prepared to pay and not find deals. That is how it works. Also, if you want to travel, you need to be able to go with the flow – travel is not for the weak of flexibility.
Anyway, back to the deal. First, the deal was from LAX and I live in Denver. But, where there is a will, there is a way. I can easily get from Denver to LAX on a number of airlines, any time of day. That will not get in my way of this deal. The deal was specifically for November, and the flight departure times were specific, as well. Meaning, the deal was only for certain flights, certain days, and certain times. Again – be flexible.
November – New Zealand – sounds legit. But first, I checked out some online advice (google is your friend) on whether this was an ideal time of year to visit. Hint: it is!! Even if the time of year is less than ideal for your destination, weigh the pros/cons of the deal – if it’s $200 for a trip to where you’ve always wanted to go, then go. Just buy the ticket!
Adding on – well, New Zealand is a long way to go (13 hour flight) and there is a lot to see. After scoping out the length of time we could get off work, and combining it with the Thanksgiving holiday, there were a few days we could hop over to Fiji – and who doesn’t want to go there? Luckily, Air New Zealand made it super easy to add-on. I found their website easy to navigate, and I was able to book the following trip >> LAX to Auckland; Auckland to Nadi, Fiji; Nadi to LAX. Total cost: $2600 ($1300 each) which included upgrading from the lowest-tier economy seats to much nicer ones (worth it for a long trip,) but did not invest in first class, as that was prohibitive to the budget.
What remained, was getting from Denver to LAX, LAX to Denver… and plotting the driving portion of the North and South Islands, oh, and where to stay. This part is the most fun, after booking the ticket of course. More to come on this exciting trip. Now… to tell my husband we are going! Ha!
#60by50 2 unique countries – and 1 more to go, to meet my goal in 2016!
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