My family wants to head to NZ this winter for a ~1 week ski trip... can anyone offer me some advice on the best way to do this on a budget?

Should I be hunting around for some cheap package deals? or am i better off looking for some cheap jetstar/virgin flights and then arranging accommodation and lift passes myself? Any other suggestions?

Anyone know some good websites to check out?

Cheers !

http://www.flightcentre.com.au/holidays/catalogue/byregion.jsp?regionId=9

its better to get a packaged deal, i dont know how they make any money

Nat - We went last year to Queenstown it was bloody brilliant. We got direct flights from BRI to Queenstown so it was a little bit more expensive but worth it IMO. We went to a travel agent, I think we could have gotten a better deal online. If you book early and pay early you'll get the best deals...but you gotta be willing to shell out the money now, months beforehand then later. Bestflights.com.au or flightcentre are good places to start.

Oh man, try to get the extra dollars for Qantas, AirNZ or at the very least pick Jetstar. Flying Virgin is ridiculously painful, even on the 1hr flight to Sydney.

We went to Queenstown late last year for our honeymoon, was really good and I recommend it to anyone!

We flew Virgin and I didn't mind it, but I don't believe in adding hundreds of dorrahs to a trip to fly a bit more comfortably or get 'free' food. YMMV.

We bought vouchers through nzski.com for lift fees and equipment hire etc. and I recommend them and their packages. The good thing about getting vouchers is that you get a discount and they are redeemable for other stuff around town in Queenstown that you'll want to do like the Shotover jetboat etc.

Plan on having a day or two off skiing along the way, unless you're seriously uber fit you just won't be able to ski for 5 days straight.

Queenstown is a mixed bag for nub skiiers and boarders too. There's great learning areas, but once you move beyond that you have to jump into some pretty challenging slopes. Its kind of like there's a great level 1-10 area and awesome s*** for 20+ but nothing for 10-20 :D

last edited by Hogfather at 12:37:24 10/Apr/07

Flying Virgin is ridiculously painful, even on the 1hr flight to Sydney.

What's the difference.. really? Serious question. I've flown Virgin to and from sydney heaps of times and didn't have a problem.

You have to be careful with purchasing jetstar/virgin tickets - check qantas first. I remember I was looking for a flight from Melbourne back to Brisbane and qantas ended up having the cheapest ticket by $40. With free food, not having to pay for headphones and a TV to watch; better way to travel imo.

virgin gives new meaning to the term 'sardine class'

but I don't believe in adding hundreds of dorrahs to a trip

It's likely to be the difference of < $100 - in fact if you book enough in advance then Qantas is usually cheaper than Virgin. I just did a quick check for the 11th of May flying from Bris to Wellington and its $164 ex taxes (7.10pm) with Virgin or $236 ex taxes (9.30am) flying AirNZ. Only $72 for a bit more comfort and a more convienent travel time.

Another example is Brisbane to Melbourne on the 11th of May flying Virgin is $139 at 8.15am or $143 flying Qantas at 7.50am.

What's the difference.. really?

I used to fly Virgin alot to Melb/Syd. It's really bare bones stuff, you get a seat and that's it. If you want headphones, paper, food, drink, etc then you need to pay for it yourself. This is how budget airlines run. On Qantas you will get all that stuff above included in your ticket, the seats are more comfortable and the experience is just pleasent. You also get TV entertainment on Qantas :).

I remember having a really painful lower back after flying Virgin but it's no longer the case with Qantas, the seats really are different. Perfect example is that I flew my finacee down to Melbourne about 6 weeks ago while I was working there and the only flight she could get down was Virgin. She came off the plane and had a really painful lower back, hips and thighs. We flew back on Qantas and she had no problems.

The Bris->Melb Qantas flight above is actually $129 when buying from Qantas (I just used bestflights.com.au). Cheaper AND free stuff..

It's likely to be the difference of < $100 - in fact if you book enough in advance then Qantas is usually cheaper than Virgin.

When we were looking to fly, it was about 500 bucks more to book Qantas than Virgin. It depends on what deals the companies have running and when you are looking to book, but Virgin has generally been quite a bit cheaper every time we've wanted to fly. And I'm a Qantas frequent flyer so I try to fly with them whenever I can.

Also, someone recommended f***en JET STAR over Virgin? What the f*** - Jet Scare has to be by far the WORST of the airlines Ive ever flown on. At the time they didn't even have allocated seating (which they apparently have now). I'm a cheap f***er when it comes to flying but even I won;t go Jet Star :D

make sure you go to that putt putt place at the bottom of the chairlift with the luge on top

Queenstown Mini Golf, Upper Brecon Street, Queenstown i think

Nat divorce your husband, steal all his money from his bank account, claim its to fix your car, then go to NZ for a 2 week holiday.

Its free then.

True story lol :(

I got served.

Hunt her down.