Flying back home
Unfortunately our awesome New Zealand with kids, RV roadtrip is over. After breakfast we take the taxi to the airport. As we are quite early there isn’t any queue and we can check-in straight away. One of the things I love about travelling with kids: in Asia, Australia and New Zealand, they have priority lanes for check-in, boarding and the customs when travelling with kids.
After check-in we stroll around the airport, have a coffee and eat some lunch. Finally we are ready for take-off to Brisbane, where we will have a 2 hour stop-over, before we continue our flight to Taipei. As it gives you the opportunity to stretch your legs, use a normal toilet and have a quick drink and eat, I am looking forward to our Brisbane stop-over. From Brisbane we continue our flight to Taipei. On arrival we check-in to our hotel for the day. After a short rest we have a refreshing swim. Not to long as we have a city tour planned in the afternoon. The tour is a wonderful break from the 4 stretches we have to fly. When we are back at the hotel it’s time to take a shower, enjoy dinner and get in the taxi again back to the airport. To be honest I am looking forward to being home again, I am so excited seeing my (hopefully still pregnant sister)!
Home!
We arrive in Amsterdam in the morning after a relaxed flight. We are all able to catch a good night sleep on board. What a surprise!! When we leave the baggage claim, all the grandparents and my very pregnant sister and her boyfriend are waiting for us.I love seeing my sister with her huge belly!! She tells me she is experiencing backache since this morning. Maybe she is going into labor? We are having a “welcome back drink” at the airport, when my sis goes home because the backache gets too painful. Only a few hours later we hear she is in the hospital for the delivery. Around 22:00PM we meet our little nephew Mees Joppe for the first time. When we finally get into bed that evening, we sleep around the clock.
We have made an amazing trip through New Zealand with kids. We enjoyed each others company, loved the beautiful nature and the fantastic adventure we experienced together. We have the intention to make an amazing journey like this, with the kids, every five year. I start thinking of our next destination straight away :).
Tips & tricks: New Zealand with kids
If you feel like travelling with your kids: go for it!
Request special kids meals when you book your flight
If one of the kids is a really bad eater; take some food they like and know with you on the plane
Adjust to the timezones you are in, even in the plane.
Make sure you have entertainment with you, ipad with movies/ games, you will be very happy when your jetlagged kid can watch a movie and you can sleep a little longer
Dont drive to long, we did 4 hours max per day, which was already quite long for the kids
Make sure the kids have time to play around as well
Top 10 campgrounds might not always be in the best spots, they do have wonderful facilities for kids; playgrounds, family bathrooms and big kitchens.
The Top 10 member card gives you discount on the ferry (Northern Island to Southern Island) as well
Make sure you book the ferry in time
December is peak season, book campgrounds way ahead
New Zealand has a famous “coffee culture”, you can get a wonderful coffee almost anywhere
Life in New Zealand (fuel, grocery shopping) isn’t cheap
You can get everything you need for small kids in the supermarket
New Zealand with kids: ready to go home again
New Zealand with kids: back home again
This guest blog is written by Lonneke, she is living in the Netherlands with her husband Marcel and two sons Thije and Hidde . Lonneke tells us about the amazing trip she made with her family to New Zealand when the boys were 2,5 and 4 years old.
