Interactive map Click a route for times, fares & info...

See New Zealand by train...

Whether you're an overseas visitor or a born-and-bred New Zealander, trains are the best way to travel between New Zealand's three main cities, Auckland, Wellington and (with a little help from the Interislander ferry) Christchurch.  Trains are also the way to reach the North Island's Tongariro National Park, the South Island's west coast at Greymouth, the whale-watching and dolphin-swimming centre at Kaikoura or the Marlborough vineyards at Blenheim.  See the route map opposite.

Unlike domestic flights, the trains take you at ground level past superb scenery that can't be seen by road, in civilised comfort that cramped and uncivilised long-distance buses can't match.  So ditch that short-haul flight and actually see New Zealand!

New Zealand's long-distance trains are operated by Kiwi Rail's 'Scenic Journeys' passenger division, originally privatised as Tranz Scenic but back in public ownership as part of KiwiRail as of 2008.  This page explains routes, train times, fares, the best way to buy tickets, and what there is to see on the journey.

Train times, fares, tickets...

  Auckland to Wellington by Northern Explorer train

  Wellington to Picton by Interislander Ferry

  Wellington-Picton-Blenheim-Kaikoura-Christchurch by Coastal Pacific train

  Christchurch - Greymouth by Tranz-Alpine train

  Christchurch - Timaru - Dunedin - Invercargill (bus)

  Christchurch - Queenstown - Milford Sound (bus)

  Dunedin - Queenstown by Taieri Gorge Railway

  Flights to New Zealand

  Hotels & accommodation in New Zealand

  Tours to New Zealand with train travel

  Useful country information: currency, time zone...

Sponsored links...

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Useful country information

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Auckland - Wellington by train...

The Northern Explorer (formerly Overlander)...

This is an amazing journey, and one of my favourites, so ditch that domestic flight (or nightmare bus journey) and ride the Northern Explorer from downtown Auckland to city centre Wellington, stress-free and in comfort at ground level.  Stop off if you like at the Tongariro National Park.  This is an epic 681 kilometre (423 mile) journey right across the interior of the North Island, taking you in a single day past every kind of scenery there is, from coastline to volcanoes to mountains, from lush green farmland to thick New Zealand rainforest.  It will take you the length of the historic North Island Main Trunk Railway, completed in 1908, over such feats of engineering at the Raurimu Spiral, Turangarere Horseshoe and Makatote Viaduct.  It's one of the world's great railway journeys, yet is remarkably affordable!

For times, fares, information & photos,
see the Northern Explorer page...

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Wellington - Picton by ferry

The Interislander ferry...

It's one of the most scenic ferry crossings in the world, and easily the best way to travel between New Zealand's North and South Islands - an experience, not a flight.  There are up to 5 daily sailings across the Cook Strait between Wellington and Picton, crossing time 3 hours.  The 08:25 sailing from Wellington and 13:15 sailing from Picton connects with the Coastal Pacific train to/from Christchurch, see below.  The Cook Strait has a reputation for rough seas, but in reality only a third of the crossing is actually in the Strait itself, most in sheltered waters, and in my experience it was rock steady on the big, modern and stabilised ferry Kaitaki.

Interislander sailings from Wellington:  08:45, 14:45, 17:00, 20:00.

Interislander sailings from Picton:  06:55, 10:45, 13:45, 18:45, 22:00.

Crossing time is 3 hours.  Times vary by season, so check ferry fares & timetables for your date at www.interislandline.co.nz.

In Wellington, the Interislander terminal is a long walk north of the railway station, but a shuttle bus clearly marked 'Interislander' leaves from platform 9 at the railway station 50 minutes before each sailing.  The journey time is 5 minutes, the fare is NZ$2 per person, children under 5 free.  Foot passengers must check in at the terminal at least 30 minutes before sailing time.  All heavy baggage is checked in so only hand luggage is carried on board.  Passengers connecting with the train to Christchurch can check in bags in Wellington all the way through to Christchurch.

In Picton, the Interislander terminal is 200 metres from the station.  All heavy baggage is checked in so only hand luggage needs to be carried on board.

The 08:25 sailing from Wellington & 13:15 sailing from Picton connect with the Coastal Pacific train to/from Christchurch.  You can book combined Wellington-Christchurch ferry & train tickets  online at www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz, but see the advice bee below to get the cheaper tickets.  Both these sailings are normally operated by the Kaitaki, the largest ferry in New Zealand waters.

The Kaitaki may look familiar to ferry travellers from Ireland or the UK.  She started life in 1995 as the Isle of Innisfree on the Irish Ferries Holyhead-Dublin and Pembroke-Rosslare routes, and later the P&O's "Pride of Cherbourg" on the Portsmouth-Cherbourg route.  The Interislander ferry company was started in 1962 by New Zealand Railways, hence its close connections with the train service to Christchurch.  Another ferry company also operates several daily ferries between Wellington and Picton, www.bluebridge.co.nz, but these ferries don't connect with the train to Christchurch.

Kaitaki Plus first class lounge:  For an extra NZ$45 paid on board, you can access the Kaitaki Plus lounge with quiet seating, power sockets, free WiFi, complimentary alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and a free light hot meal.  Over-18s only.  On the down side, the views from the lounge are slightly obstructed, and you may spend much of the crossing on deck, gazing at the scenery!

A voyage on the Interislander...

• The ship sails out of the Interislander terminal at Wellington and describes a wide arc out of Wellington harbour, with views of Wellington's seafront.

• It passes the suburb of Seatoun on the right and exits the harbour into the Cook strait separating the North and South Islands.  Also on the right are some wicked-looking rocks, including the Barrett Reef where the Lyttelton-Wellington overnight ferry m/v Wahine came to grief in a storm in 1968.

• The crossing of the Cook Strait itself only lasts an hour, and at the other side the ferry passes between narrow headlands into the Tory Channel.  Named after the "Tory", a migrant ship which passed through the channel in 1840, the Tory Channel is one of the Marlborough Sounds, a narrow channel between Arapawa Island on the right and a strip of mainland on the left.

• The ship slowly follows this channel, through an 's' bend, entering the larger Queen Charlotte Sound and finally arriving at Picton, a small town and the railhead for the South island.

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The Coastal Pacific...

The Interislander ferry and connecting Coastal Pacific train are easily the most comfortable and scenic way to travel from Wellington to Christchurch.  It's also very cheap, with inclusive train+ferry fares from just NZ$139.  Named TranzCoastal until 2011, the train regained its original name Coastal Pacific when it resumed running on 15 August 2011.

NO SERVICE MAY-OCTOBER:  Wellington & Christchurch are now cut off from each other in winter from May to October:  New Zealand appears to be closing for business in winter, as the Coastal Pacific has not run at all from early May until early October since 2013, leaving no civilised transport link between Wellington and Christchurch in a supposedly developed country, just planes or a bus.  Update May 2017:  When it returns for the winter season in October, they intend it to resume running all year round.

EARTHQUAKE NOVEMBER 2016:  TRAIN CANCELLED.  This lovely coastal route has been badly damaged and put out of action by the earthquake in November 2016.  It will be out of action for many months and will certainly not run for the rest of this 2016/17 summer season.  Much of the line is now repaired, but a crucial tunnel requires has been split by the quake and requires partial re-boring.  They hope the train will resume for the winter 2017/18 season, meaning in October 2017.  Check its status with www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz.  The TranzAlpine is still running, as are North Island trains.

* = The Coast Pacific used to run daily all year round, but since 2013 it has not run in the New Zealand winter from May to October, see www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz.  However, they hope to resume year-round operation once the earthquake damage is repaired, perhaps in late 2017.

One class of seating, cafe-bar, open-air viewing platform.

There are other Wellington-Picton Interislander ferry sailings, see www.interislandline.co.nz, only the rail-connected sailing is shown here.  It leaves Wellington at 08:45 on some dates, and northbound times vary too, so always check for your date of travel.

* Webstarter = limited availability, no refunds, no changes.  Starter = limited availability, $20 for any changes which can only be made more than 48 hours or more before departure.  These cheap fares disappear from the Kiwi Rail Scenic Journeys website when it is viewed from a computer outside NZ, so either use the Tor Browser workaround explained below or buy by phone!

Children aged 2-14 travel at reduced fare,  Infants under 2 travel free.

How to buy tickets...

Buying your tickets online is simple, but not as simple as it should be.  You can buy Wellington-Christchurch combined train+ferry tickets (or tickets between any other two stations on this route) at www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz with print-at-home tickets, but there's a big problem.  Kiwi Rail have set up their website to hide the cheaper Webstarter & promotional fares if your computer is located outside New Zealand, even though anyone from any country is entitled to buy them.  The screenshots below show a similar booking for the TranzAlpine, and speak for themselves.  I was quite shocked when I first worked out what was going on, but there's an easy workaround which I'll explain in a minute.

1.  What you see if you book just using your PC normally:

2.  What you see if you book with the Chrome Hola! extension installed and switched to New Zealand, as explained below.  Much cheaper prices magically appear!

How to buy cheaper tickets online from outside NZ using the Hola! workaround:  Anyone from any country is entitled to buy the cheaper fares shown in the second screenshot, the only problem is that they don't appear unless you give your PC a New Zealand IP address.  So here's how to do just that:

(1)  Go to http://hola.org and install the Hola! extension for Google's Chrome browser (obviously, if you don't already use Chrome on your PC, install it first, it's a great browser).  Hola! is a browser extension which allows you to surf using an IP address located in a country of your choice.  I use Hola! to watch BBC iPlayer catch-up TV on my laptop when I'm in the Netherlands at my in-laws, as the BBC annoyingly blocks iPlayer when a computer is located outside the UK.

(2)  Open your Chrome browser, and you should now see the Hola! flaming head logo top right.  If it says 'off', switch it on.  Click it and it should say 'Select A Country'.  Click 'More...', then look down the list and pick 'New Zealand'.  It should briefly say 'Browsing from New Zealand' and then a New Zealand flag should appear top right in place of the Hola! logo.  You are now browsing with an NZ IP address!

(3)  Now go to www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz and book your Kiwirail Scenic journey, and be amazed at how cheaper prices magically appear that weren't there when you browsed normally!

(4) I recommend removing or at least disabling Hola when you've finished with it.  I find it useful, but left running it has some computer vulnerabilities.

Or buy via an international phone call instead:  If you're not sufficiently computer-savvy, you can buy all the cheap prices if you call New Zealand.  Call KiwiRail Scenic Journeys telesales on + 64 4 495 0775, as all fares are available by phone, potentially saving money even allowing for the cost the call.

Or book by phone, call 0800 872 467 (in NZ) or  00 64 4 495 0775 (from outside NZ)...

From outside New Zealand, call Kiwi Rail on + 64 4 495 0775, remembering that NZ is 13 hours ahead of the UK in the UK's winter, 11 hours in summer - you should be able to buy the full range of fares including Webstarter and Starter fares, although recently people have said staff have been funny about selling the full fare range if they know you're not in NZ.  When you're in NZ, call them on their free-phone number, 0800 TRAINS (0800 872 467).  Insist on a Starter or Webstarter or abort and book online as above!

Alternatively, if you live in the UK or Ireland you can arrange New Zealand train tickets or passes & reservations with UK-based train travel specialist International Rail, call 0844 248 248 3.  From outside the UK +44 844 248 248 3.  Lines open 09:00-17:00 Monday-Friday.

On board the Coastal Pacific train...

• New AK coaches were introduced on this train in 2011, featuring massive picture windows and roof skylights, very similar to Switzerland's famous Glacier Express.

• Comfortable seating:  The Coastal Pacific train has comfortable seats.  In the new 'AK' carriages, half of each car consists of bays of four around tables, lining up nicely with the wide panoramic windows.  the other half are unidirectional seats, rotated by staff at the start of each journey to face the direction of travel. Most line up with the windows.  All seats in the new 'AK' cars have power sockets for mobiles, laptops or cameras (New Zealand voltage and plug, of course)

• Cafe-bar:  The Coastal Pacific has a cafe bar serving snacks, drinks, tea, coffee, wine, beer, spirits and light microwaveable meals, at reasonable prices.  I can recommend the breakfast roll in the morning (NZ$7.50) and the Devonshire cream tea in the afternoon (NZ$6).

• Open-air viewing platform:  There is a full-length open air viewing platform, ideal for photographers or just watching the scenery.  It's usually at the north (Picton) end of the train.

Travel tips...

• Shuttle bus for ferry departures and arrivals at Wellington:  The Interislander terminal is a long walk north of Wellington city centre, but a shuttle bus (clearly marked 'Interislander') operates from platform 9 at the railway station 50 minutes before each ferry leaves.  The journey time is 5 minutes, the fare is NZ$2 per person, children under 5 free.  Tickets can be bought with cash or credit card from the ticketing station.  Similarly, a shuttle bus meets each ferry arrival and will take you to the railway station as soon as everyone has reclaimed their baggage (although there's no shuttle bus for ferry arrivals after 9pm).

• Check-in & baggage:  You must check in to the Wellington Interislander ferry terminal at least 30 minutes before departure.  At the ferry terminal, all bags except hand baggage must be checked in.  If you're connecting with the Coastal Pacific train, you can check your bags all the way through to Christchurch.  Similarly, when checking in at Christchurch, you can check your bags all the way through to Wellington Interislander ferry terminal.  Your bags will automatically be transferred between ferry and train at Picton, and you reclaim them at your final destination, either Wellington or Christchurch.

• Make a seating request:  If you book by phone (or book online and then call Kiwi Rail's freephone number when you get to NZ at least the day before travel, quoting your booking reference) you can make a seating request.  The obvious request to make is for seats on the left-hand side of the train going south from Picton, or the right-hand side coming north from Christchurch, as this puts you on the coastal side of the train where most of the scenery is.  Keen photographers could also request seats at the northern (Picton) end of the train close to the viewing platform.  Requests can't be guaranteed, of course, but it doesn't hurt to ask!

The journey aboard the Coastal Pacific...

• The 3 hour, 92km crossing of the Cook Strait is one of the most scenic ferry rides in the world.  You sail in a wide arc out of Wellington harbour and across the open sea of the Cook strait itself, before passing between headlands into the Tory Channel, named after the migrant ship 'Tory' which navigated the channel in 1840.  The ship follows this narrow channel between the island of Arapawa and the mainland, all the way to Picton at the head of Queen Charlotte Sound.

• At Picton, the station is just a 200 metre walk straight ahead of you.  Look out for the 'Edwin Fox', a preserved 19th century sailing ship in a museum on the left.  It's the ninth oldest wooden sailing ship in the world, and you can see it from the road even if you don't have time to go in to the museum.  At the station, the small wooden station building now houses a 'Subway' fast food place, a travel agency, and a small check-in desk for the train.  Seats on the train are allocated there.

• The train leaves Picton station and curves around valley out of the town.  Within half an hour you're in the middle of vineyards in the Marlborough wine region.  You'll pass one of the main Montana wineries, with its huge stainless steel tanks.  The train calls at Blenheim, the region's main town.

• Soon after Blenheim, the train climbs hard up a long gentle pass through grassy hills.

• Within an hour of leaving Picton, snow-capped mountains appear in the distance on your right, and you pass over what used to be a double-decker combined road and rail bridge over the Awatere river, with the railway on top and roadway underneath.  The road deck has been removed now that a separate road bridge has been built.

• Just over an hour from Picton you skirt Lake Grassmere.  Salt is produced here, by letting sea water evaporate in large salt pans.  You'll see piles of harvested salt on the right.

• About an hour and a half after leaving Picton the train reaches the sea.  It now runs right along the coastline for about 98 km.  You'll see beaches, cliffs, rocky headlands, in places draped with low-lying sea mist. 

• Although parts of the line are much older, the Picton-Christchurch railway was only completed in 1945, although work on this coastal section started in the 1930s.  Until then, overnight ferries had linked Lyttelton (the port of Christchurch) direct with Wellington.

• The train stops at Kaikoura, the South Island's main whale-watching and dolphin-swimming centre.  The whale-watching centre is now housed in the old station building.  the train stops for several minutes here and you can get out and stretch your legs.

• The train continues along the coast.  Watch out for the seal colonies just feet from the train.  the seals tend to be the same colour as the rocks, but with a  bit of practice you can spot huge numbers of them!

• Just over 3 hours from Picton, the train swings inland again, through green hills and pretty valleys.

• The train passes through the Christchurch suburbs and arrives at Christchurch station.  This is now a small modern single-platform rail terminal, opened in 1993 in an unremarkable industrial estate built on what was once the massive Addington Railway Works.  Much of New Zealand Railways' locomotives and rolling stock were once built there, although there's little left to show for it..!  The new station is some 3km from the city centre, but taxis and shuttles (shared minibus taxis) are available.  Until the recent earthquake, Christchurch's original station (well, the building opened in 1960 though built to a design first published in 1938) still stood on Moorhouse Avenue to the south of the city centre where it had become the 'Science Alive' entertainment centre.

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See the TranzAlpine page for times, fares & details...

The TranzAlpine is the most scenic train journey in New Zealand, and one of the most scenic train trips in the world.  Not surprisingly, it's become the most successful of all the Kiwi Rail Scenic Journeys passenger train services, very popular with tour groups because of the spectacular crossing of the Southern Alps between Christchurch and the South Island's west coast at Greymouth.  It's a fantastic trip, though in my opinion neither as epic or as historically-significant as the Auckland-Wellington Northern Explorer.

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Once important cities, Dunedin and Invercargill have declined in importance and apparently no longer justify a proper train service to the rest of New Zealand.  The last Christchurch-Dunedin-Invercargill train service, the daily "Southerner" over the South island's Main South Line, was withdrawn in 2004.  Nowadays, anyone wishing to reach these towns must endure a long bus journey from Christchurch.  Here are the main bus services, although an additional bus may run on Fridays and Sundays.  Please check times before travelling at the bus operator websites,  www.intercity.co.nz.

Fares & how to buy tickets...

 Christchurch-Dunedin costs NZ$33-$46.  Christchurch-Invercargill costs NZ$35-$67.  You can check fares and book bus tickets online at www.intercity.co.nz.

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There were never any train services to Queenstown, although historically you might have taken a slow train from Invercargill to Kingston (the preserved Kingston Flyer train uses part of this route), then a steamer across Lake Wakatipu to Queenstown, a route on which Queenstown's famous 100-year old working steamship Earnslaw would have worked.  Today, there are bus services operated by several companies.  You need to change buses and overnight in Queenstown if you are travelling to/from Milford Sound.

Fares & how to buy tickets...

 You can check times, fares and book bus tickets online at www.intercity.co.nz, www.newmanscoach.co.nz & www.toplinetours.co.nz.

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The Taieri Gorge Railway Track & Trail connection...

The most rewarding way to travel between Dunedin and Queenstown is via the Taieri Gorge Railway's Track & Trail train/bus link.  The Taieri Gorge Railway (www.taieri.co.nz) is a preserved railway running daily year-round tourist trains through spectacular scenery over part of the old Dunedin-Cromwell branch railway.  Leaving from the beautiful and much-photographed 1906 railway station in Dunedin's town centre, it travels a few kilometres south over the South Island Main Trunk Line (still well-used for freight but sadly with no passenger service) before branching off inland through the scenic gorge that gives the line its name.  The train terminates at Pukerangi, 58 km from Dunedin (extended to Middlemarch on summer Fridays & Sundays, 76 km from Dunedin) and a minibus connection takes pre-booked passengers from Pukerangi to Queenstown.  Highly recommended!  The Taieri Gorge Railway now also operates a tourist train called the Seasider along the main line between Dunedin and Palmerston.

Fares & how to buy tickets...

To check fares and buy tickets, contact the Taieri Gorge Railway on www.taieri.co.nz or call (03) 477 4449.

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New Zealand Scenic Railpass:  Buy online at www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz/scenic-rail-pass..

• There is an excellent New Zealand Railpass giving unlimited travel on all Kiwi Rail passenger trains and the Inter-Island Ferry between Wellington and Picton.  If you're going to travel on all 3 trains from Auckland to Wellington, across on the ferry and down to Christchurch and on to Greymouth, the 7-day pass will save money and give flexibility. 

• Fixed pass = continuous unlimited travel, Freedom Pass = a set number of days unlimited travel which you can spend on the dates you want within an overall period. 

• To buy online see www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz/scenic-rail-pass.  Once you have a railpass, it's easy to make seat reservations to go with it simply by calling Kiwi Rail on 0800 TRAINS (0800 872 467) or from outside New Zealand, 00 64 4 495 0775.

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Ask a professional train travel specialist to arrange your trip...

Custom-made holiday specialist Railbookers can arrange tours or holidays around New Zealand using train travel rather than buses or flights. They take good care of their customers and get good reports.

  UK call 020 3327 0761, www.railbookers.co.uk. 

  US call free 1-888-829-4775, www.railbookers.com.

  Canada call free 1-855-882-2910, www.railbookers.com.

  Australia call toll-free 1300 971 526, www.railbookers.com.au. 

  New Zealand call toll-free 0800 000 554 or see website.

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Make sure you take a good guidebook.  The Lonely Planets and Rough Guides are easily the best out there for the independent traveller.  Both guides provide an excellent level of practical information and historical and cultural background.  You won't regret buying one of these guides..!

Click to buy online at Amazon.co.uk...

Lonely Planet New Zealand    Rough Guide to New Zealand

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Accommodation in New Zealand

Suggested hotels...

• In Auckland, the Airedale Hotel or Mercure Auckland Hotel are both sound central choices, the latter right near the Britomart station and Devonport ferry terminal, though not the cheapest options. 

• In Wellington, the Shepherds Arms Hotel is a cosy gastro pub just 15 minutes walk from Parliament and the city centre with friendly staff, great food and good beer.  A top choice!

Other hotel sites worth trying...

• www.tripadvisor.com is a good place to find independent travellers' reviews of the main hotels, and it has the low-down on destination sights & attractions, too.

• www.booking.com is my own preferred hotel booking system (Hotels Combined being a search/comparison system).  It has a simple interface, a good selection in most countries worldwide, useful online customer reviews of each hotel, and decent prices, usually shown inclusive of unavoidable extras such as taxes (a pet hate of mine is systems that show one price, then charge you another!).

Backpacker hostels in New Zealand...

• www.hostelworld.com:  If you're on a tight budget, don't forget about backpacker hostels.  Hostelworld offers online booking of cheap private rooms or dorm beds in backpacker hostels in many places in New Zealand at rock-bottom prices.

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Flights

Overland travel by train & bus around New Zealand is an essential part of the experience, so once there, don't cheat and fly, stay on the ground!  But a long-haul flight might be unavoidable to reach New Zealand in the first place.

1)  Check flight prices at Opodo, www.opodo.com...

2)  Use Skyscanner to compare flight prices & routes worldwide across 600 airlines...

3)  Lounge passes...

Make the airport experience a little more bearable with a VIP lounge pass, it's not as expensive as you think!  See www.loungepass.com

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Travel insurance

Take out decent travel insurance, it's essential...

Never travel overseas without travel insurance from a reliable insurer, with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover.  It should also cover cancellation and loss of cash and belongings, up to a sensible limit.  An annual multi-trip policy is usually cheaper than several single-trip policies even for just 2 or 3 trips a year, I have an annual policy myself.  Here are some suggested insurers.  Seat61 gets a small commission if you buy through these links.

In the UK, try Columbus Direct or use Confused.com to compare prices & policies from many different insurers.

If you have a pre-existing medical condition or are over 65, see www.JustTravelCover.com - 10% discount with code seat61.

        If you live in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the EU, try Columbus Direct's other websites.

  If you live in the USA try Travel Guard USA.

Get a spare credit card, designed for travel with no currency exchange loading & low or no ATM fees...

It costs nothing to take out an extra credit card.  If you keep it in a different part of your luggage so you're not left stranded if your wallet gets stolen, this is a form of extra travel insurance in itself.  In addition, some credit cards are significantly better for overseas travel than others.  Martin Lewis's www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money explains which UK credit cards have the lowest currency exchange commission loadings when you buy something overseas, and the lowest cash withdrawal fees when you use an ATM abroad.  Taking this advice can save you quite a lot on each trip compared to using your normal high-street bank credit card!

 

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