Singapore/Australia/New Zealand advice

dondo

We went to NZ via Singapore 3 years ago and loved it

We were a family with 2 young children so maybe different interests than your son but highlights were as follows:

-Singapore: Gardens by the Bay, especially if you stay until the evening and they do the light show. Also if he flies Singapore Airlines (who are great) tell him to hang onto his boarding card as it can get you discounts on entry to various places.
New Zealand
-Christchurch: Antarctic centre https://www.iceberg.co.nz/
-Dunedin to The Taieri Gorge Railway trip: https://www.dunedinrailways.co.nz/
-Milford sound cruise: we stayed in Te Anau and got bus from there to the boat which was best way to do it as you get chance to see scenery rather than concentrate on windy roads! We went with https://www.jucycruize.co.nz/ and they were great
-Helicopter flight to Franz Josef and Fox glacier: expensive but well worth it. Go for a flight that covers both glaciers. We did it with https://www.glacierhelicopters.co.nz/ but got a discount voucher from here http://www.aatravel.co.nz/main/listing.php?listingId=22349#voucherInfoContainer
-Jet boating in Queenstown: we used Thunderjet but there are others
- Glow worm caves: we did it in north island as friends of our family do tours there- quite a small set up compared to others but very good http://nikaucave.co.nz/
-Tepui in Rotorua: geo thermal things like mud pools etc. as well as Maori meeting house and show, there are other thermal attractions in the area too.
-Sky tower in Auckland- go up towards end of day and you'll see the skyline change from day to night. maritime museum in Auckland good too
-Wellington: great to wander around, the Botanical Gardens and do the cable car. Great museum at Te Papa
-Waitangi Treaty grounds: right at the top of the North Island and where the Maori treaty was signed

One of the motel owners recommended bookme.co.nz as a good site for booking discounted trips etc. We didn't use it as already had booked a good few things.

Ballard

How could I have missed Te Papa? Such a fantastic museum? Similarly Mona in Hobart is fantastic if they go there.

roshydoshy

If you're confident with his flight itinerary I would recommend running options through https://matrix.itasoftware.com/ and then calling a flight broker or 'ethnic' travel agent - I usually use Southall Travel https://www.southalltravel.co.uk/ as they are legit and really helpful - other ones out there.
Martin has touched on these here https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/travel-tips/?utm_source=MSE_Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=29-May-18-9307&utm_campaign=nt-hiya&utm_content=34#drivefrance item 8!
You just let them know the times and dates of the flights from the ITA page and they can search for the best deals - you can't book through ITA and the prices it throws up are not what you will pay (as everyone needs to make their money on top of these) but it helps with knowing when/where the cheaper flights are we booked business class return flights from Oslo to Australia for slightly more than economy returns from London - even factoring the £66 return to oslo

Gloomendoom

roshydoshy wrote: »

we booked business class return flights from Oslo to Australia for slightly more than economy returns from London - even factoring the £66 return to oslo

Just checked the dates I'm interested in using Singapore from Oslo. Still a lot more expensive than economy from Heathrow but £3300 cheaper than business!

sazaccount

Hi,

Looking at your dates there is a lot to see in a short space of time maybe only choose either Australia or Nz, Singapore personally I wasn!!!8217;t a big fan when I visited but a few friends have been and love it I did really enjoy little India for the food.

Australia is BIG I!!!8217;ve been 3 times and still not made it to Tasmania or traveling down the east coast I loved Uluru (I worked out at the resort for 5 months 9 years ago) the stars are just mind blowing!

New Zealand has so much to see it may look small but the roads don!!!8217;t go in straight lines so in a car from Wellington to Auckland takes like 10 hours I did stray bus on the South Island (and a short top of the north island I wouldof spent longer but had to return to the uk quickly to get a work visa for India) and loved it I really didn!!!8217;t think I would as I!!!8217;ve always self planned trips.the people and drivers were great (and I!!!8217;m not very sociable) on each leg they would take us to random points for self-guided walks which some were mind blowingly beautiful. I hated Auckland but I had lived in wellington for 14 months and loved the city they have very different vibes

Treat me.nz is a good website in nz for booking !!!8220;trips!!!8221; I got a really good deal in Queenstown for Milford sounds just asking the agents if they could match but for the day I wanted.

Personally I would just choose one country for the 3 weeks plus a couple of days stop over

Edit is your son under 30 or a student? Sta travel are good for these types of trips and have some good discounts if your the above or have a look at momondo.co.uk for a multistop flights Sta will price match

roshydoshy

Gloomendoom wrote: »

Just checked the dates I'm interested in using Singapore from Oslo. Still a lot more expensive than economy from Heathrow but £3300 cheaper than business!

Belated reply - sorry! I think it was due to Christmas season hiking up economy flights! Perfect storm and i fully took advantage of the minor difference in price! :j

Didi33

I went to NZ in March 2017 and it was gorgeous - my favourite thing to do out there was the Great Walks, there are 8 dotted around the country (both islands), and can vary from 1 day trips to 5 days. It's worth doing some research into what the weather will be like, but if you do decide to do one then make sure you book in advance! The overnight treks have huts dotted around for you to sleep in, but there's limited space. I think I booked mine about 2-3 months in advance. Enjoy!