T-minus 5 Hours

That's it, we're packed. The bit of the holiday process I hate most is done. Thanks to Lynne for her extra-ordinary patience and belief that it will all go into the luggage.

Several months of research on Lynne's part and discussion between us as routes and driving times developed and we have a plan.  It's quite an ambitious itinerary but it is very varied and should be fun. 

We hadn't intended pre-booking more than a few critical overnight stops but as we found we needed to book some of our activities, the days began lock themselves in. We also had one town where we had difficulty finding a site as there was an annual agricultural show the weekend we were passing through. In the end we have booked almost all of our sites. It is a low stress solution as we don't have to start finding a site at the end of a busy day. 

Campsites in New Zealand have proven to be quite cheap compared to UK, Powered pitches in the region of £25-35 though odd ones in tourist hotspots can be £55-60. There are also many more basic at less than £20 and there are Freedom sites with no charge. 

Our RV, or motorhome is a mix of the 2 vehicles we have traditional hired in Scotland. It has the rear lounge of the larger vehicle to relax in the evening if weather or insects drive us inside, but it also has the drop down bed of the smaller vehicle which is great as you drop the bed and get in and in the morning, straighten the covers , push the button, and it goes up into the ceiling. It is also halfway between in sizes so I am very comfortable about driving it even of mountain roads.

Tickets, visas, customs declarations etc all sorted.  Taxi to airport in an hour or so then a 7h15m flight to Dubai, a 2 hour transfer, and a 16h flight to Auckland.

Emirates have been good so far, I have even been able to book gluten free* meals and they are shown on my tickets for all 4 legs so I'm hoping that I'll eat well rather than chomping some crisps and a nut bar.

Next post from the far side of the world :)

* I have celiac disease which is an autoimmune disease. If any molecules of gluten from Wheat, Rye or Barley touch my stomach lining my autoimmune system attacks and damages the lining of my stomach. There is no cure or medication so I must avoid any gluten for the rest of my life.