Day 1 – Toronto to Los Angeles

It’s day one of the trip, and there’s not much to report.  Traffic was light, so we arrived at the airport early, about 2.5 hours before our flight.  We checked in with Air Canada, cleared US customs, passed through security, and enjoyed a light breakfast in the Maple Leaf Lounge until it was time to head to the gate for boarding.

On board the plane, we were delayed about 20 minutes for “paperwork”, and were eventually on our way.  The onboard breakfast menu was good.  Nadine had the omelette and I had the Belgian waffle; perhaps not a great idea after working so hard to lose a few pounds, but then this is vacation!

Once in Los Angeles, we decided to rent a car for the afternoon to kill some time before our flight to Auckland.  We drove up the Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu, through the surrounding canyons, and had a good look around Beverly Hills.

Unfortunately, the photos I took today didn’t work out so well, as some of my camera settings must have been wrong.  Perhaps I can still clean them up when I get home.  I’ll consider today a learning experience and try to be more careful the rest of the trip! 

We’re now resting in the Air New Zealand lounge before our overnight flight to Auckland.

Itinerary Overview

Planned Itinerary

Date Description
April 4 Fly Toronto to Los Angeles, connect with overnight flight to New Zealand
April 5 In transit to New Zealand
April 6 Arrive Auckland early morning
April 7 Explore Auckland
April 8 Drive to Rotorua in morning
April 9 Explore Rotorua in morning, fly to Dunedin in afternoon
April 10 Explore Dunedin and Otago Peninsula
April 11 Drive to Te Anau
April 12 Cruise on Milford Sound, return to Te Anau
April 13 Drive to Queenstown
April 14 Explore Queenstown
April 15 Drive to Wanaka
April 16 Drive to Franz Josef
April 17 Explore Franz Josef glacier
April 18 Drive to Christchurch via Arthur’s Pass
April 19 Explore Christchurch
April 20 Drive to Blenheim
April 21 Drive to Picton, ferry to Wellington on North Island
April 22 Explore Wellington
April 23 Fly to Australia in afternoon
April 24 Explore Sydney
April 25 Fly to Hamilton Island
April 26 Explore Hamilton Island
April 27 Explore Hamilton Island
April 28 Fly to Sydney in afternoon
April 29 Explore Sydney
April 30 Fly to San Francisco
May 1 Fly to Toronto

New Zealand Travel Plan

Accomodations

Accomodation Arrangements

Over the course of the trip, we’ll stay in a variety of accomodation options ranging from budget to luxury, from historic to modern, and from urban to remote country settings. Below is a list of our choices.

New Zealand

Australia

United States