Business Class to New Zealand - Ask the Community https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/ One Mile at a Time Discussion Board en-US Wed, 16 Sep 2026 00:55:48 +0000 wpForo 60 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695660 Sun, 09 Aug 2026 00:21:08 +0000 Look at a map. Notice that SYD, MEL, ADL, BNE, NAN are all within ~3hr flight time of AKL. There's lots of cheap flights MEL/SYD to AKL. Maybe it's worth spending a night in SYD and a few hundred bucks on a cheap 3hr econo hopper in order to not have to spend 15hr in Y to get across the pacific in the first place?

Think out of the box. Can you assemble your way to something the wrong way around? I got to NZ last year by booking a BA hop to London via CX to get to a CX LHR-HKG-AKL flight. It meant spending a couple days in London, but we have friends there ad my wife hadn't been there for a while, so well. (As it happens, the JFK-LHR hop got cancelled, so we got J-class UK261 payout to boot. :) ) 

I just booked SFO-ADL for 90k. say $350 for a Y flight to CHC, and $120 for a hotel... 

YMMV on this of course. This kind of itinerary means either taking chances on connections or spending a day or two in the transit city to get some buffer, and of course some additional expense to fill in the blanks. Not everyone can afford the time or the additional expenses. On the flip side, it adds to the adventure of it all. 

 

 

]]> Ask the Community bacos https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695660 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695648 Fri, 07 Aug 2026 21:11:54 +0000 We went in March. We found AA DFW-AKL for 83k pp on the new 787-9P (grabbed the first row suites as well). Could not find anything for the way back but was lucky enough to see AKL-LAX on Delta One for $2400pp so I bought those tix, helping us with DL status renewal as well.

]]> Ask the Community PJS678 https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695648 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695645 Fri, 07 Aug 2026 16:17:15 +0000 Ask the Community Wildcats-LEX https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695645 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695642 Fri, 07 Aug 2026 15:56:16 +0000 Ask the Community HNL https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695642 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695586 Fri, 07 Aug 2026 00:10:09 +0000 Ask the Community kswartz https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695586 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695567 Thu, 06 Aug 2026 20:31:27 +0000 Feel free to use my referral link to sign up!  https://seats.aero/r/ndc7kjm

]]> Ask the Community Debo https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695567 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695566 Thu, 06 Aug 2026 20:29:25 +0000 Ask the Community Debo https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695566 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695558 Thu, 06 Aug 2026 19:54:09 +0000 This was by no means ideal, but I booked AF LAX-PPT in J using Flying Blue miles. We had a 23 hr layover in Tahiti, then continued on Air New Zealand J to AKL (booked that back when Amex travel would give 35% points back on all J/F travel). 

If you get desperate maybe you can find something similar, booking the “short” hop from Tahiti or Fiji separate. That 23h layover was brutal. 4:00am departure lol.

]]> Ask the Community GP_7676 https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695558 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695554 Thu, 06 Aug 2026 19:40:38 +0000 If I recall, this blog has written about services that will monitor award redemption rates, though a quick search didn't turn anything up. Am I remembering that correctly?

You might also consider doing a split trip. For example, if you are willing to pay to fly to Hawaii on a separate ticket, an award on Hawaiian Airlines between HI and NZ is likely going to be a bit less than an award from LA to NZ (though probably not by that much). It would at least open up more options for you, though.

By the way, I totally endorse travel to NZ. It's one of my favorite countries, and everyone is so immensely friendly! 😄

]]> Ask the Community kswartz https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695554 RE: Business Class to New Zealand https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695532 Thu, 06 Aug 2026 02:42:39 +0000 We flew United Polaris in 2024 booked with lifemiles - great deal that hadn't been back since. As funkyflapjak mentioned I also see 100k United Polaris, United miles, close in. There is space on Fiji Airways from time to time, which requires a connection in NAN. 

]]> Ask the Community Jimmy’s Travel Report https://onemileatatime.com/community/ask-the-community/business-class-to-new-zealand/#post-695532