Where's Johnny Jet: Heading to New Zealand

Kia Ora! From that Maori greeting you know I am in New Zealand. How exciting is that?! If you want to come for the ride grab your camera and sense of adventure, because we are about to travel to Middle Earth and visit one of the most special, beautiful and crazy countries in the world. And we're flying there in style!

Air New Zealand

Air New Zealand has made a nearly complete transformation in the past year. It begins for me with their brand new airport lounge at LAX's Terminal 2. Passengers in business class (Air NZ calls it Business Premier) can relax, check e-mail, take a hot shower or have a tasty pre-flight snack before boarding. On the plane, Air New Zealand's friendly flight attendants sport new duds that are both modern and stylish. The best part about Air New Zealand's makeover is the new seat configurations in all three classes of service: Business Premier, Pacific Premium Economy and Pacific Economy. Pacific Premium Economy is similar to United's Economy Plus seating. Both offer more leg room (39 to 40 inches), but Air NZ has wider seats (18.5 inches), a full leg rest and in-seat power ports. Pacific Economy is standard coach, but there's a 34-inch seat pitch. And all economy seats have 8.4-inch high-resolution monitors with in-flight entertainment systems of over 780 hours of video content: movies, TV shows, music and video games. All this makes the 12-hour, 45-minute flight seem too short.

Business Class

Fortunately, I was chillin' in one of Air New Zealand's state-of-the-art Business Premier seats. I didn't know what to expect when I first saw the strange seating configuration. All the seats are set up like individual pods, and are on a slight angle instead of facing forward like traditional seating. These comfortable 22-inch-wide leather seats might not make it easy for couples or families traveling together, but they're sure great for travelers who want their own personal space, either for working or a good night's sleep. Each seat has a small ottoman that is used primarily as a footrest. It can also serve as a seat for another passenger to dine or work together, though without a back rest it's a little awkward.

Dinner On Board

Before takeoff flight attendants come around with pre-flight drinks and trays filled with individually wrapped eye masks, ear plugs, toothbrushes, tooth paste, lip balm and comfy socks. I grabbed one of each -- they increase your chances of having the best possible rest. After takeoff more drinks were served, including some of New Zealand's finest wines. A four-course dinner followed, with a menu full of New Zealand-inspired choices (designed by Govind Armstrong of Los Angeles' trendy Table 8 restaurant). Air NZ's food once had a poor reputation, but that's no longer the case. The starter was a cress and frisee salad with duck prosciutto. Then came a choice of NZ lamb, seared cod with a Dungeness crab soup, or wood-roasted chicken breast with olive oil whipped potatoes. I chose the latter. I passed on the cheese and fruit plate, but there was no way I'd turn down dessert: pineapple and strawberry ice cream! What a perfect way to get ready for bed.

Time to Sleep

When it was time for some shut-eye, the flight crew attentively came by and turned the seats into beds. That's right: These seats transform into a 6-foot, 7.5-inch flat bed. As soon as the flight attendant lay down a padded sheet, soft blanket and pillow I was ready to dive in. In fact, I slept the longest ever on a flight: a good 7 hours. I didn't even bother using the in-seat power port to plug in my laptop, eat the light snack or break out one of the many travel magazines I brought. Instead, when I was awake I watched TV on the 10.4-inch screen that came with noise-cancellation headphones. I could have watched a number of movies, including recent blockbusters or even the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. But I opted for travel shows and "Two and a Half Men." (Note to Air NZ: One more pillow would have been perfect. It's a little difficult to watch TV lying down). An hour before landing breakfast was served: a choice of creamy scrambled eggs with chives, or buttermilk pancakes. What an incredible way to travel! Air New Zealand definitely makes a long trip short. Good on ya! For reservations, click on www.airnewzealand.com/usa or call 800-262-1234.

About New Zealand

New Zealand (see map) is 1,200 miles southeast of Australia. It is made up of two major islands: North Island (44,197 square miles) and South Island (58,170 square miles). They are separated by Cook Strait. New Zealand's population is a mere 4 million. First to arrive were the Polynesians, from a nearby South Pacific island to the North, around the 10th century. Both the Polynesian language and the descendants are called Maori. New Zealand's largest city, Auckland (population approximately 1.3 million), has the largest Polynesian population in the world. But don't worry: Everyone in New Zealand speaks English. That's because the vast majority are of European descent. They started arriving thanks to Abel Tasman, the Dutch navigator who in 1642 was the first European explorer to arrive. Another watershed date in this young country is 1769. That's when Captain James Cook of the British Royal Navy arrived, and the United Kingdom claimed the land for itself. Though New Zealand retains ties to the U.K., in 1907 it became a self-governing nation. The capital, Wellington, is located near the south end of North Island.

From the Airport into Auckland

New Zealand landed some of the best press available five years ago when the first "Lord of the Rings" trilogy was released. The film showed the world how beautiful this country is, with its green mountain ranges, flowing rivers, deep alpine lakes and subtropical forests. The result was a 16% boost in tourism. Most overseas arrivals land in Auckland, on the North Island, where I began my trip. I was traveling with a group of writers, and we had a 5-hour layover before our domestic connection to Rotorua. Instead of hanging out in the airport lounge (which was really nice, and had some of the best lounge food I've ever encountered), we went outside and hired a driver. Plenty of taxis and shuttle buses waited patiently outside of Arrivals. At the front of the line a man named Darshan offered us a two-hour tour in his Super Shuttle Van (a different company than the one in the U.S. with the same name) for $120 NZ ($75). It was a bargain, especially compared with one-way prices into the city. Taxi NZ$45 ($28); shuttle bus NZ$24 ($15); Airbus NZ$15 ($9.50) per person one-way.

A Quick Tour of the City of Sails

Without traffic, it takes about 25 minutes to get into Auckland, a big, cosmopolitan city with a subtropical climate, three harbors, two mountain ranges and more than 50 islands. It reminded me of a mix between Sydney, San Francisco and Seattle. Auckland is called the City of Sails, and the reason was apparent when we drove over the Harbour Bridge. The harbor is filled with sailboats. A great place to view the city is atop Mount Eden -- a dormant volcano (Auckland has 48 of them). If Mount Eden is not high enough, take an elevator up the Sky Tower -- at 1,076 feet, the tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere. Some of the women in our group wanted to shop, so Darshan took us to Victoria Park Market. Don't go there -- unless you like tourist traps. After explaining we wanted to shop where the locals do, he took us to High Street. That was much more our style. Time passed quickly, but even in those short two hours we could see why Auckland is regularly voted one of the "best lifestyle" cities in the world.

Auckland to Rotorua

Although Rotorua is one of the most touristy destinations on North Island, there's not a lot of air service. That's probably because it's only a 2 1/2- to 3-hour drive, and most travelers rent cars to explore the country. (It's a fantastic country to drive, but they do use the wrong side of the road.) When I learned Air New Zealand flies only a Beechcraft 1900 (a 19-passenger plane resembling a flying tube of tooth paste) to Rotorua, I wondered why we didn't drive. The plane was so small there was no flight attendant, and when the captain walked down the aisle before takeoff to check if seat belts were fastened, he asked a passenger sitting near me if he would mind moving to one of the empty seats in the front because the plane was "taily." I asked the woman next to me what that meant. She said, "The plane is too heavy in the back." Makes sense, I said. Then she made the sign of the cross. She saw me staring at her with frightful eyes (I hate small planes) and said, "It's always rough flying into Rotorua." I quickly made the sign of the cross too, but I really wanted to jump out and hire Darshan to drive me. It was too late, though. The pilot had shut the door, and within seconds we were taxiing down the runway. The 40-minute flight turned out be very smooth and scenic. When we landed I turned to my seatmate and said, "You scared the daylights out of me" She said, "I know. I figured if you thought it was going to be rough it would lower your expectations." She was right!

Video

Here's a 2-minute Johnny Jet Video of my trip down to Auckland. With high-speed the video takes about one minute to load; with dial-up, please allow up to three weeks.

Next Week

Next week we check in to one of the most amazing and exclusive lodges in the world, and explore some of New Zealand's beauty, culture and adventure sports.

Happy Travels,

Johnny Jet

Please tell us what you think of this week's newsletter!

Web Resources

• Air New Zealand
• Auckland Air Bus
• Maori Language
• New Zealand Map
• Sky Jump From The Sky Tower

John E. DiScala (aka Johnny Jet), is the founder of www.johnnyjet.com, the ultimate travel website and weekly newsletter. He logs over 150,000 miles a year, has been featured in over 800 articles (including Frommers.com, USA Today, Time, Fortune, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post), and has appeared on ABC, CBS, CNBC, MSNBC, NBC, FOX News Channel, and PBS. Sign up for Johnny Jet's Travel News, Tips and Stories at www.johnnyjet.com.