New Zealand Trip (2 weeks to departure) 9/30/15

Telephone Issues:

I have been busy trying to fill in gaps of knowledge needed to make our adventure smooth and seamless. The issue of using a cell phone that works in New Zealand has been difficult, as I mentioned before. My Verizon iPhone will not work on the networks in NZ and I made a decision to purchase the new unlocked iPhone 6 plus despite not really needing a new iPhone.

However, what I learned about this is the following: Apple advertised that the new unlocked iPhones could be used with any carrier world-wide. What they didn't tell you is they are not available and they don't know when they will be available. They are selling only phones specific to either ATT or Verizon in the USA and this kind of irks me because this unlocked phone that could be used with T-mobile or Sprint, etc. are not available. Clearly they are bowing to pressure from the major carriers at this point in time.

Finally, I decided to purchase an unlocked GSM phone on Amazon for use in NZ. I bought a Nokia X6 for $66.00 and will purchase a SIM card in NZ. At least I then will be able to make calls and receive emergency calls from the USA should that be necessary.

It seems that most motels and hotels have Wi-Fi access so I can send and receive emails while on our journey and hopefully update my blog.

GPS Devices:

Since data is costly in NZ, and since I can't get a new iPhone that could use Google maps anyway, I decided to rent an automobile with GPS. The cost is about $10 NZD per day ($6.40 US per day) but purchasing a Garmin with NZ map download was more expensive. The Garmin Map software for NZ is about $160 US  Garmin NZ/Australia Maps. Thus, renting the automobile with GPS is about a wash, since it is unlikely I will be using the New Zealand mapping software frequently in the future. You can find some used SIM cards with the mapping software on E-Bay for about a third of this price, but one never knows if it will truly work in the phone that you have. Generally returns are not accepted on E-Bay.

Inter-Island Ferry

If you are a senior (> age 60) you can get better ferry rates that younger travelers. The ferry travels between Wellington on the North Island to Picton on the South Island and travels twice daily. Transit time is 3.5 hours and the cost for two seniors is $120 NZD. If you have to cancel for any reason, you only get 50% refund. However, if you reserve at $140 NZD and have to cancel, you can receive a 100% refund. I think I will plan to purchase at $140 since we don't know the travel routine sufficiently well at this point in time.

The other issue is the rental car exchange at the ferry terminals. We rented from Avis and reserved a Toyota Corolla, automatic with GPS for 18 days. The cost is $1267 NZD (about $810 US). The collision damage waiver is included in this price and when I get to the Avis desk at the airport, I'll see if the price can be lowered a bit because my VISA card provides CDW provided the entire rental is charged on the VISA card.

The car is turned in at one ferry terminal and a new vehicle is received at the other terminal. We need to exchange twice, as we are arriving and leaving from Aukland airport. I am not certain how long this exchange will take and I need to check with the Avis people at the airport because with fixed ferry departure times, I need to have an efficient process to avoid missing the ferry.

As I was writing this post and got into the details of these exchanges, one needs to pay attention to the Avis rules for Multi-Island Hires

Difficulties arise when you check out the hours of operation at the Wellington Avis place at the Ferry terminal. In Wellington, their hours of operation are listed as 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm and 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm. Since we are taking the 9 am ferry to Picton on the South Island, there will be no one to accept the return of the vehicle. In navigating their site, I did click one link that said this:

ABOUT THIS LOCATION

AFTER-HOURS RETURNS Park & lock the car. Place the completed contract & the keys in the key drop box. Remember to take your personal belongings with you. The Picton hours of operation are much better and there will be personnel to issue a new vehicle to me. Returning from Picton to Wellington introduces a new permutation of difficulties. The rental can be turned in at Picton in time for the 9:05 am ferry departure, but then on arriving in Wellington, there is no one available to issue you a new vehicle until 3:30 pm, a three hour wait.  I wrote to Avis to see how they handle these transfers for the morning ferry and will post more later about what I learn.

Planning Our New Zealand Adventure (9/25/15)

Earline will turn a glorious 60 years of age this October 19th and I wanted to do something special to celebrate this milestone in her life. We kicked about multiple possibilities that included a round trip cruise from San Francisco to the Hawaiian Islands, but this was rejected for fear of hitting hurricane season.

Finally, on a whim, we chose to go to New Zealand, a place on my "bucket list" and certainly a place that should prove to be memorable. I purchased round trip, direct flight tickets from New Zealand Air for two of us at a cost of $2,467.80. This flys us from San Francisco to Aukland, NZ which is the cheapest of the airports in their country. Choosing to fly into or out of differing airports adds several hundred dollars to each ticket. We felt we could utilize the savings for our adventure by choosing Aukland, "The City of Sails."

With tickets purchased, the next chore is to decide on whether or not to purchase a pre-planned "drive yourself" tour. This would make things easy in terms of planning, but a 14 day pre-planned trip was close to $7,000/per person. I spoke with others who have been to New Zealand, read on-line comments, and purchased two guide books from Amazon before deciding that we are just going to go and rent a car and explore on our own.

In terms of Guide Books, I tried to find the most recommended and useful ones and initially purchased DK Eyewitness Travel: New Zealand but I found this book not to be the most user friendly. I then purchased Fodor's Travel:New Zealand and found this much more user friendly in terms of suggesting drives, places to eat and stay, etc. I was hoping to find something like the AAA books available in the USA that list prices of places to stay, etc. but so far I have not seen a book with this information. However, with a bit of internet searching, you can discover these things.

I did learn that if you are a AAA member in the USA, the New Zealand Automobile Club will offer you reciprocal benefits while you travel in NZ. There is a AA in the Aukland airport where I hope to pick up appropriate travel books and maps.

My next thought was renting a car in New Zealand. From what I read, there is a high excess damage cost that they collect at the time of rental unless you somehow lower this cost. I learned that if you use your VISA card for the entire rental, there is a waiver called "Collision Damage Waiver" or CDW that is given to you. I must still confirm this fact with VISA before starting our journey.

Next is what type of vehicle do I need for October? This will be Spring in NZ and there might still be snow in areas of the South Island where we wish to go. Many people want to rent camper vans for a freer traveling style, but I think we will plan to drive in a car and stay in motels/B&B's/ or hotels to mingle more with the locals. One thing I learned is that many rental companies will not let you take the vehicle on the inter-island ferry that leaves from Wellington, on the North Island to Picton, on the South Island. You must turn in the vehicle in Wellington and obtain a new one in Picton. Apparently, this is done at the time of your rental. We will need to do it twice since we are returning to Aukland from the South Island.

The cost of the ferry for seniors (>60 years of age) is $120 New Zealand Dollars (NZD). It takes about 3.5 hours to transit and only departs twice daily. It is suggested to book several days in advance.

The currency in NZ is in NZD and one NZD = $0.64 US. I called Chase Bank to obtain about $500 NZD prior to our departure so we have at least some local currency to work with.

My next order of business will be to book a hotel in Aukland so we have a confirmed place to stay on our arrival. We leave San Francisco on the evening of October 14 but because of the advanced time difference of 19 hours, we arrive on the morning of October 16 even with a direct flight. We have planned to go tango dancing in Aukland on that arrival evening so we need a place to rest and adjust for the time change. Hotels are fairly expensive in Aukland, as they are in most major cities, but I thought we would stay for two days to explore the city and surrounding areas before leaving.

Another problem I encountered is cell phone incompatibility. I use Verizon in the USA that uses a technology called  CDMA (code division multiple access) while wireless telephony in NZ uses GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication). My iPhone cannot simply have a SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module) bought in NZ and slipped into my phone. I can rent a phone in NZ or consider buying a new iPhone 6 that will work on multiple protocols. I am considering a new purchase as I write. The new iPhones are released today but certainly are not cheap.

There is still much to do and to plan but we are already beginning to feel the excitement of a new adventure!