Big move in Jan...

Hi All,

We have finally got the visa and after a very emotional Xmas will be taking a one way flight to NZ ;o)

I am just wondering whether any advise can be given on a multitude of questions ranging from rental properties both short and long time, removal companies and also schools???

We are hoping to find somewhere on the Whangaparaoa Penninsula and as such thought of Orewa College for High School and Wgp school for the primary... what are your thoughts, if any???

Flights are also an issue; from various threads on this and other forums I gather that well priced flights are few and far between... also that it is cheaper to go through an agent rather than book direct with the airline (I don't really understand this as I would have thought eliminating the middle man would save money). In addition with the flight being so long and with four children I was looking for an excellant service (Cathay Pacific was very disappointing when we flew over for a holiday at Easter). Emirates have been highly recommended but when I phoned trailfinders in Manchester I was told that I would have to fly: Manchester to Heathrow, Heathrow to Dubia, Dubia to Singapore; and quite possibly Singapore to Brisbane before finally landing in Auckland from Brisbane!!!! I haven't telephoned anywhere else yet to check this information - Can anyone shed any light on it?

I will probably think of hundreds more questions over the next few weeks, so I apologise in advance to the moderators, if I scare off all your visitors!!!

Cal ;o)

Hi Cal,

Welcome to the site! Ask as many questions as you like - there are a few of us on here that are already in NZ, and lots of people who are going through the process from the uK so I'm sure you'll find answers to your questions.

I haven't had any experience of taking little 'uns on the plane, but I've heard that Singapore Airlines are fantastic with kids, and even take them off your hands for a while if you need a break.

With regards to flights, Christmas is the most ecpensive tome to fly I'm afraid, unless you are prepred to fly on Christmas day! Have a play with the dates - you may be able to find a cheaper fare.

Hope this helps!

Jod
:icon_cool:

Hi Jod,

Thanks a bunch... as it happens, I do have another question :icon_wink: - sorry :icon_lol: :

Q. How can I arrange email notification of replies to posts?

I don't want to seem ignorant by not replying to any resposes I may get to my questions.

Thanx,
Cal.

Hi Cal,
To get reply notifications, you need to switch them on in your profile (click 'Profile' near the top of this page). You can also choose which topics you want replies to by scrolling to the bottom of the page, and on the left (just underneath the 'New Topic' and 'Post Reply' buttons), you will see 'Watch this topic for replies'. Click that, and you will get emails when someone posts. You can do that for any topic, not just ones you have posted in.

Hope that helps!

Cheers Taffy!

I will follow your instructions step by step.

Thanks again,
Cal :icon_eek: icon_exclaim.gif

Have you checked out Air New Zealand - their prices are reasonable and if you fly via LA its a HUGE baggage allowance

[quote:4dcb35b298="joanne"]Have you checked out Air New Zealand - their prices are reasonable and if you fly via LA its a HUGE baggage allowance[/quote:4dcb35b298]

Well, I wouldn't fly via LA with kids again even if the flight was free... this has to be the World's Worst Flight - nothing wrong with AirNZ at all (quite the opposite) but at LA the authorities cram you in to a holding pen, force you to go through immigration checks whilst you wait and keep you there for the three hours or so whilst awaiting the next hop. No opportunity to walk around the airport, entertain the kids etc.

In contrast... go the other way around via Singapore. Last time I went the Singapore Airlines flight left Heathrow @ 10:30pm on a Saturday night - I woke up just as we were landing at Singapore and once on the ground went for a swim... had a beer next to the outdoor pool..did some shopping... all in the airport. Jumped on the next hop to Auckland a couple of hours later feeling terrific. No contest, really. Only cost ?550 too.

Alan.

[quote:950ff1c713="cal"]Hi All,

We have finally got the visa and after a very emotional Xmas will be taking a one way flight to NZ ;o)

I am just wondering whether any advise can be given on a multitude of questions ranging from rental properties both short and long time, removal companies and also schools???

We are hoping to find somewhere on the Whangaparaoa Penninsula and as such thought of Orewa College for High School and Wgp school for the primary... what are your thoughts, if any???

Flights are also an issue; from various threads on this and other forums I gather that well priced flights are few and far between... also that it is cheaper to go through an agent rather than book direct with the airline (I don't really understand this as I would have thought eliminating the middle man would save money). In addition with the flight being so long and with four children I was looking for an excellant service (Cathay Pacific was very disappointing when we flew over for a holiday at Easter). Emirates have been highly recommended but when I phoned trailfinders in Manchester I was told that I would have to fly: Manchester to Heathrow, Heathrow to Dubia, Dubia to Singapore; and quite possibly Singapore to Brisbane before finally landing in Auckland from Brisbane!!!! I haven't telephoned anywhere else yet to check this information - Can anyone shed any light on it?

I will probably think of hundreds more questions over the next few weeks, so I apologise in advance to the moderators, if I scare off all your visitors!!!

Cal ;o)[/quote:950ff1c713]

Cal,

You can get stats/results for all NZ schools off the web (cannot recall the URL right now). Everything that you will want to know is probably in one of these numerous spreadsheets.

You really want to look at these closely...as there are indicators that most aspirant kiwis would use to avoid certain schools/colleges....

Alan.

Hi Alan,

Thanks for that. I have been in touch with a couple of schools already via email and we are due to visit them when they re-open after their summer hol's... kids off school therefore, longer than anticipated - good job we are renting near the beach!

We were given a quote for Air New Zealand via LA and when I queried the intransit immigration process with the travel agent, he told me we wouldn't be getting off the plane, we would only be stopping to re-fuel... Can you imagine? With four kids in economy - think he was having a laugh!!! :icon_twisted:

With same agent we have booked flights with Emirates (thought after everything and considering we can't afford upgrading we should at least have the best airline for economy - well I haven't heard anything bad about them yet) We fly direct from Manchester to Dubai and then 2 hours wait before last stretch Dubai to Auckland.

I will post to let everyone know how we have gone on.

c ya,
Cal