Mum's going to new Zealand, best flight companies

janeys

My Mum is going to visit my brother in February and I'm trying to find the best deals for her and I'm not sure where to start looking. Dad died 2 years ago and this will be her first trip to NZ and her first on her own, she is 80 and I'm trying to do all the research for her, I'm going to try and get some insurance quotes today as well. Any help greatly appreciated.

PeacefulWaters

Skyscanner - use whole month option if the dates don't need to be exact.

Don't buy via links on that site - look to book direct from the airline.

Consider if she wants a stopover somewhere in the Middle East or Far East.

Perhaps part or all of the journey is a higher class cabin should be considered too. If her finances allow.

richardw

Where in the UK does your mum live?

SW17

PeacefulWaters wrote: »

Skyscanner - use whole month option if the dates don't need to be exact.

Don't buy via links on that site - look to book direct from the airline.

Consider if she wants a stopover somewhere in the Middle East or Far East.

Perhaps part or all of the journey is a higher class cabin should be considered too. If her finances allow.

Agree with this, and also worth checking out a couple of reputable offline flight specialists such as Trailfinders, Flight Centre, Dialaflight etc. Depending on the itinerary, especially if there are stopovers, they sometimes have access to fares that don't surface so well online.

pandora205

I've been twice and booked via STA Travel both times, who are very competitive. It's worth playing with dates as a few days can make hundreds of pounds worth of difference in costs.

janeys

Thanks for all your good advice, she is thinking she will need a stop over and we are urging her to go business class (Mum and Dad had saved the money and we are trying to pursuade her to use it all on a little luxury for herself), Mum lives in Kent so can get to London or Stanstead.

PeacefulWaters

janeys wrote: »

Thanks for all your good advice, she is thinking she will need a stop over and we are urging her to go business class (Mum and Dad had saved the money and we are trying to pursuade her to use it all on a little luxury for herself), Mum lives in Kent so can get to London or Stanstead.

Perhaps a different stopover when returning from the stopover on the way out would serve a practical purpose and let her see a bit more of the world.

sazaccount

Air New Zealand are really nice to fly with, depending on where she would like to stop they fly via america as well as the east. They are slightly more expensive than others but there flights are lovely!!!

richardw

The main options are Singapore airlines, Thai Airways, BA/Cathay pacific via Hong Kong, Malaysia Airlines, Air NZ via LA, there might be Air NZ code share via Singapore or Bangkok.

There may also be some premium economy possibilities if business class is looking expensive. Play around with the airlines websites for possibilities.

Doshwaster

One of the advantages of Air NZ is that they give you the chance to go around the world. You could go out via SE Asia and then return via the west coast of the US (or the other way around)

They have a really good multi-stop planning tool which allows you to play around with dates and routes
https://flightbookings.airnewzealand.co.uk/vbook/actions/intmultistopsearch

NZ is a long way so it is worth paying a little more for good flights.

Kernow666

i have flown air new zealand 3 times now and they are really good and you can book a thing called a skycouch which is basically a whole row to yourself with a fold down bed