Trip Planning and Arrival (Pre-Departure)

--Portland, OR--

 
I'm taking a rather round-about way of getting to New Zealand. First I'm going to drive from Portland down to California, so that I can drop some things off at my parents' house, deliver a car that we need to get rid of, and, most importantly, see everyone down there one last time before I go. That'll be a 10 hour trip, and then I'll stay for three nights before I get on a plane.

My first flight ($317, one way) is going to be from San Francisco International to Vancouver Canada, and then I'll get on a plane that will take me to Tokyo. I'm going to stop in Japan for a little over a week to visit my friend Alex, who I haven't seen for over a year now. 

After that stop, I fly ($464, one way) from a different airport in Tokyo to Manila in the Philippines. I would love to get out and explore Manila while I'm there, but the layover is only going to last 4 hours. From there, I fly over to New Zealand, arriving on a Friday afternoon.

The SkyBus airport shuttle will take me from Auckland International Airport to the city centre (NZ spelling!) for NZ$16, and from one of those stops I'll be able to check in at my hostel in the Central Business District (CBD). I'm going to stay at Base Auckland, which has high reviews on Hostelworld.com, but poor reviews on google. There I can stay in a 6-bed dorm for NZ$30 a night. Right now I'm going to stay there for the first 5 nights while I acclimate to the new hemisphere and time zone, learn about the city, and view apartments and flats to rent.

[Added 9/23 - ALWAYS BUY CANCELLATION PROTECTION]
Right after I booked my hostel I wrote to my advisor Melinda with my travel plans. She wrote back later in the afternoon with an offer to pick me up from the airport, have me stay with her for a night, and then drive me into town on Saturday for a tour of Auckland. 

Fortunately(!) I added the $1 travel protection to my deposit on my hostel booking. Double fortunately(!), I now have a chance to switch hostels! In my initial overview of Base Auckland's reviews, I only read the average rating, but didn't read anyone's individual reviews on Hostel World. Turns out it's a party spot, and the bathrooms are rather dirty. So now I am booking with the Attic Backpackers, who have good reviews from both Google AND Hostel World.