expensive new visa rules in New Zealand

[isaanistical]

Dig ever deeper into your wallet if you want to travel to NZ. From October, any intending visitor from a visa-waiver country (UK, EU etc) will need a visa-waiver visa (yes, I know...). It will cost NZ12 online or NZ9 if you use their official 'app'.

There's more though: the euphemistically named "International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy" will be introduced alongside the ETA and will cost an eye-watering NZD 35. Obviously Wellington has been taking gouging lessons from Bangkok.

Also, according to local reports, travellers will need to show proof of onward journey on checkin, not arrival.

 

[tifino]

 

Immigration New Zealand - Visa Waiver Countries

 

[ravip]

Obviously Wellington has been taking gouging lessons from Bangkok.

The love for Thailand is overpowering!

Facts are zilch!

[JAS21]

 This topic has come up very good time for me.

 

My wife and three other friends,  all retired teachers want to go and visit New Zealand and Australia.

 

They plan to fly to the north of the north island and then drive down to the south island and then fly to Australia.

 

My wife has both a Thai and a UK passport  and plans to use the UK passport to enter and leave both New Zealand and Australia.

 

The others only have THAI  passports.

 

We did a similar visit some 12 years ago and I remember having to get some electronic Visa for Australia. I also remember you have to be careful where you got the Electronic thing from else it cost you a lot more money.

 

 Would someone kindly point me into the right direction to apply for whatever she needs

 

 can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Thanks 

 

[Denim]

Note to self.

 

Cancel planned long holiday to NZ with extended family of 23 people.

[Jai Dee]

5 hours ago, JAS21 said:

can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Any of the major car rental companies will allow you to do that... Avis, Hertz, Budget, Thrifty, etc.

 

You can collect one at Auckland airport and drop it off at Christchurch airport.

 

And a Thai drivers licence is OK too as it has your personal details in English on the licence.

[domomc]

On 9/19/2019 at 10:43 AM, JAS21 said:

 This topic has come up very good time for me.

 

My wife and three other friends,  all retired teachers want to go and visit New Zealand and Australia.

 

They plan to fly to the north of the north island and then drive down to the south island and then fly to Australia.

 

My wife has both a Thai and a UK passport  and plans to use the UK passport to enter and leave both New Zealand and Australia.

 

The others only have THAI  passports.

 

We did a similar visit some 12 years ago and I remember having to get some electronic Visa for Australia. I also remember you have to be careful where you got the Electronic thing from else it cost you a lot more money.

 

 Would someone kindly point me into the right direction to apply for whatever she needs

 

 can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Thanks 

 

re care hire there are so many options but from experience i strongly recommend GoRentals:-

 https://www.gorentals.co.nz

have a great trip and a couple of tips:- check out two awesome hot springs, one in the north of the North island (my personal favourite) and the other in the north of the South island

 http://www.ngawhasprings.co.nz/the-hot-pools/

 http://www.maruiahotsprings.nz/

[tontraveller]

On 9/19/2019 at 10:43 AM, JAS21 said:

 This topic has come up very good time for me.

 

My wife and three other friends,  all retired teachers want to go and visit New Zealand and Australia.

 

They plan to fly to the north of the north island and then drive down to the south island and then fly to Australia.

 

My wife has both a Thai and a UK passport  and plans to use the UK passport to enter and leave both New Zealand and Australia.

 

The others only have THAI  passports.

 

We did a similar visit some 12 years ago and I remember having to get some electronic Visa for Australia. I also remember you have to be careful where you got the Electronic thing from else it cost you a lot more money.

 

 Would someone kindly point me into the right direction to apply for whatever she needs

 

 can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Thanks 

 

I just recently finished and got approved visa for NZ, using this website..https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-a-visa/about-

[shaurene]

On 9/19/2019 at 10:43 AM, JAS21 said:

 This topic has come up very good time for me.

 

My wife and three other friends,  all retired teachers want to go and visit New Zealand and Australia.

 

They plan to fly to the north of the north island and then drive down to the south island and then fly to Australia.

 

My wife has both a Thai and a UK passport  and plans to use the UK passport to enter and leave both New Zealand and Australia.

 

The others only have THAI  passports.

 

We did a similar visit some 12 years ago and I remember having to get some electronic Visa for Australia. I also remember you have to be careful where you got the Electronic thing from else it cost you a lot more money.

 

 Would someone kindly point me into the right direction to apply for whatever she needs

 

 can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Thanks 

 

Google it for what you need. 

[natway09]

NZ $35 = approx 670 Bht    WOW . Better stay home then 

Get a life

[VirgoSG]

On 9/19/2019 at 10:43 AM, JAS21 said:

 This topic has come up very good time for me.

 

My wife and three other friends,  all retired teachers want to go and visit New Zealand and Australia.

 

They plan to fly to the north of the north island and then drive down to the south island and then fly to Australia.

 

My wife has both a Thai and a UK passport  and plans to use the UK passport to enter and leave both New Zealand and Australia.

 

The others only have THAI  passports.

 

We did a similar visit some 12 years ago and I remember having to get some electronic Visa for Australia. I also remember you have to be careful where you got the Electronic thing from else it cost you a lot more money.

 

 Would someone kindly point me into the right direction to apply for whatever she needs

 

 can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Thanks 

 

For visa waiver countries' (including UK) new requirement, you can access it here:  https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-a-visa/about-visa/nzeta

 

Regarding rental cars, for a trip in Feb/March this year I booked via Rentalcars.com (which I use a lot), and got an almost new Toyota RAV4 from Ezi Car Rental for 29 days at THB49,000 including extra driver, GPS and full insurance.  Picked up at Christchurch Airport, dropped off Auckland Airport, no charge.  I highly recommend the Ezi service too

[JAS21]

31 minutes ago, natway09 said:

NZ $35 = approx 670 Bht    WOW . Better stay home then 

Get a life

Jesus <deleted> out of your mind this early in the day.

 

I have to be a careful as we bought my Aging Asian Babe an E350e three months ago so we don’t want to pay anymore than necessary for this electronic things.

 

Actually life is great happily married 17 years now ... how are you doing..married to Ma Beer bottle...maybe AA would be more suited to you.  ????

 

 

[JAS21]

54 minutes ago, shaurene said:

Google it for what you need. 

Yes I know. Just trying to do it the easy way as have my arm in a sling and have to use Siri.

[JAS21]

28 minutes ago, VirgoSG said:

For visa waiver countries' (including UK) new requirement, you can access it here:  https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-a-visa/about-visa/nzeta

 

Regarding rental cars, for a trip in Feb/March this year I booked via Rentalcars.com (which I use a lot), and got an almost new Toyota RAV4 from Ezi Car Rental for 29 days at THB49,000 including extra driver, GPS and full insurance.  Picked up at Christchurch Airport, dropped off Auckland Airport, no charge.  I highly recommend the Ezi service too

That is very helpful, thank you. I think they want a nice SUV I will give them a call

[wtfracing]

On 9/19/2019 at 10:43 AM, JAS21 said:

 This topic has come up very good time for me.

 

My wife and three other friends,  all retired teachers want to go and visit New Zealand and Australia.

 

They plan to fly to the north of the north island and then drive down to the south island and then fly to Australia.

 

My wife has both a Thai and a UK passport  and plans to use the UK passport to enter and leave both New Zealand and Australia.

 

The others only have THAI  passports.

 

We did a similar visit some 12 years ago and I remember having to get some electronic Visa for Australia. I also remember you have to be careful where you got the Electronic thing from else it cost you a lot more money.

 

 Would someone kindly point me into the right direction to apply for whatever she needs

 

 can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Thanks 

 

Avis car rentals does it but you leave your car at the ferry in Wellington and they give you another car in Picton when you get off the ferry after crossing from North to South.

[Lacessit]

It's not really expensive compared to what non-Asean nationalities are charged in SE Asia, and the Kiwi dollar is significantly less than the greenback.

Good accommodation is fairly pricey, Air BNB is not a bad option. Better off cost-wise renting from an off-airport company, they will usually come to you at the airport anyway.

Both the North and South Islands have a lot of great scenery. Personally, my favourite is the South - Akaroa, Littleton, Wanaka, the Clutha River, Milford Sound, Otago Peninsula.

 

 

[Jai Dee]

15 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Good accommodation is fairly pricey, Air BNB is not a bad option.

 

BNB travelling is actually a fun way to go, as your hosts will have a good local knowledge of their area and are usually friendly and open people.

 

It's a good way to have a fun, social holiday and I'm sure that your Thai guests would enjoy it too.

 

BTW I'm not talking about AirBNB here... but genuine BNB homes hosted by genuine EnZud folk. 

[Lacessit]

1 minute ago, Jai Dee said:

 

BNB travelling is actually a fun way to go, as your hosts will have a good local knowledge of their area and are usually friendly and open people.

 

It's a good way to have a fun, social holiday and I'm sure that your Thai guests would enjoy it too.

 

BTW I'm not talking about AirBNB here... but genuine BNB homes hosted by genuine EnZud folk. 

I've stayed in both there, the genuine BNB's are admittedly better quality, which makes them more expensive.

I wonder how the Thai guests will cope with English spoken with interchangeable vowels. They will be completely confused by one particular number.

[Jai Dee]

2 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

I wonder how the Thai guests will cope with English spoken with interchangeable vowels. They will be completely confused by one particular number.

 

I assume you are referring to the number 6 lol.

 

Yes the Enzud accent does take some getting used to, however if the Thai friends have been to other English speaking countries before they should be fine.

 

Most Kiwis are very friendly and approachable, and will take the time to explain things clearly and slow their speech down for foreign tourists.

 

[Russell17au]

I think what the OP is trying to point out is that many other countries are now slowly increasing their various fees for anything to do with immigration.

[JAS21]

9 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

I've stayed in both there, the genuine BNB's are admittedly better quality, which makes them more expensive.

I wonder how the Thai guests will cope with English spoken with interchangeable vowels. They will be completely confused by one particular number.

 Well firstly I’m not going as per the first post.

 

My wife’s English is excellent, having lived in th UK, two of the others speak quite good English and one speaks passable English so I don’t think they will have a problem.

 

 I will suggest that they look at BNB. I think the three who have Thai passports only will have to provide pre-booked accommodation when they apply for their visa but it could always be canceled later.

 

 I understand the three are going to apply for a joint visa, whatever that is, anyways it is up to them what they do. I will help where I can 

 

tks

[JAS21]

1 hour ago, wtfracing said:

Avis car rentals does it but you leave your car at the ferry in Wellington and they give you another car in Picton when you get off the ferry after crossing from North to South.

Thanks, that is an option they are looking at I think.  My son who used to live in Wellington suggested it. I understand Picton is small but has a car rental company near the ferry. 

[Number 6]

We did three weeks South Island. Everything but food was horribly overpriced. Accommodation was on par with Europe in value, perhaps worse. It's a nice place but the Western US is a far better trip and much cheaper as well. Take my word for it. Really it's not much compared to SW national parks, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Wyoming, Utah...

[TPI]

Thanks for the information, my family and I make up a group of 12 persons, we were all planning a holiday in NZ next year...back to the drawing board! 

[Gillyflower]

5 hours ago, Jai Dee said:

 

I assume you are referring to the number 6 lol.

 

Yes the Enzud accent does take some getting used to, however if the Thai friends have been to other English speaking countries before they should be fine.

 

Most Kiwis are very friendly and approachable, and will take the time to explain things clearly and slow their speech down for foreign tourists.

 

At my time of life, it's too late to learn a new lingo.  I nearly had a heart attack when I TRIED to read this. 

[cheshiremusicman]

On 9/19/2019 at 10:43 AM, JAS21 said:

 This topic has come up very good time for me.

 

My wife and three other friends,  all retired teachers want to go and visit New Zealand and Australia.

 

They plan to fly to the north of the north island and then drive down to the south island and then fly to Australia.

 

My wife has both a Thai and a UK passport  and plans to use the UK passport to enter and leave both New Zealand and Australia.

 

The others only have THAI  passports.

 

We did a similar visit some 12 years ago and I remember having to get some electronic Visa for Australia. I also remember you have to be careful where you got the Electronic thing from else it cost you a lot more money.

 

 Would someone kindly point me into the right direction to apply for whatever she needs

 

 can anyone recommend a car hire company such that they can hire a car in the north and drop it off in the south 

 

Thanks 

 

A few years ago, I was contemplating doing the same, but came across a company providing fully inclusive coach tours  and booked a 17 day tour of New Zealand (both North and South islands).  This tour was fantastic and we got to see things that I would never have seen if I had been driving myself, and also you can have a drink without being worried of being hauled over by the police. The organisation was superb from start to finish with very good quality luxury coaches and hotels. My wife and I couldn't fault the tour. They had a wonderful system whereby each and every day you sat in different parts of the coach. The drivers, one for the North and one for the South were excellent guides and kept us informed as we traveled around each day. Cost wise I sure that we could not have come close to matching the price we were charged for everything and we had absolutely no need to organise anything from start to finish. No hassle hiring cars, which I'm sure you would need two of for five people and luggage, no having to haul your suitcases in and out of your vehicles (all taken care of by the drivers) and you would all be travelling together on the same luxury coach and no worries about vehicle breakdowns accidents etc.

If the moderator removes the name of the company just PM me.

I don't suppose that I am allowed to name the company on here, but if you are interested  just PM me.

THE  GRAND TOUR

[JAS21]

8 hours ago, cheshiremusicman said:

A few years ago, I was contemplating doing the same, but came across a company providing fully inclusive coach tours  and booked a 17 day tour of New Zealand (both North and South islands).  This tour was fantastic and we got to see things that I would never have seen if I had been driving myself, and also you can have a drink without being worried of being hauled over by the police. The organisation was superb from start to finish with very good quality luxury coaches and hotels. My wife and I couldn't fault the tour. They had a wonderful system whereby each and every day you sat in different parts of the coach. The drivers, one for the North and one for the South were excellent guides and kept us informed as we traveled around each day. Cost wise I sure that we could not have come close to matching the price we were charged for everything and we had absolutely no need to organise anything from start to finish. No hassle hiring cars, which I'm sure you would need two of for five people and luggage, no having to haul your suitcases in and out of your vehicles (all taken care of by the drivers) and you would all be travelling together on the same luxury coach and no worries about vehicle breakdowns accidents etc.

If the moderator removes the name of the company just PM me.

I don't suppose that I am allowed to name the company on here, but if you are interested  just PM me.

THE  GRAND TOUR

 Thanks I will pass that on but I am not going just the four of them 

[lust]

This is obviously a troll account from immigration trying to justify their TM30 bs

[oldhippy]

Gone are the days that I would travel to NZ, and receive a 6 months visa on arrival, extendable in any labour office in any small town.

Working of course not allowed, but when I worked illegally (fruit picking) I could claim a tax refund upon departure.

Wonderfull country, wonderfull people, hitchhikers paradise, and beautifull language - to me this was what English should sound like.....

And with the money I earned fruit picking, next 6 months Polynesia, next 1 year working and saving in Belgium, and then start again.