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At my age of 33 I can proudly claim I have lived, worked and/or travelled in dozens of countries and moving to New Zealand isn´t my first crazy adventure. However, as before moving to different countries, also in this case I prepare my so-called “to do list” of responsibilities and duties which I wanted to do before my arrival to the country of Lord of The Rings and millions of sheep.

Let this article be helpful and come in handy for those moving to New Zealand with Working Holiday visa.

MY TO-DO LIST BEFORE LEAVING TO NEW ZEALAND

– flights to New Zealand ✓✓✓                       – travel insurance ✓✓✓

– flight tickets to Christchurch ✓✓✓              – health insurance documents ✓✓✓

– new passport ✓✓✓                                     – cancel O2 phone contract ✓✓✓

– international driving license ✓✓✓               – cancel ZOOM subscription ✓✓✓

– new notebook battery ✓✓✓                        – find accommodation in Auckland for first few nights ✓✓✓

– new external charger ✓✓✓                         – find temporary accommodation in Christchurch ✓✓✓

– new phone for great pics ✓✓✓                   – gather info about campervans ✓✓✓

– new apartment deal back home ✓✓✓         – get sleeping pills and other medicine ✓✓✓

– additional bank account + card ✓✓✓          – download offline movies and podcast for long flights ✓✓✓

– announce the bank my leaving ✓✓✓          – PACK & GO ? ✓✓✓

FLIGHTS

I booked my one-way flight ticket to Auckland 3 months before my leaving, at the end of September 2022. One way ticket cost 777 euro with 2 layovers included. Prague – Zurich – New York – Auckland.

The airline company is called Swiss Airlines, however, I booked these flights via Olda Ther and his Czech web https://novy-zeland.biz/ which was cheaper than what I had found.

2 months before my arrival to New Zealand I also booked my flight from Auckland to Christchurch (from Northern island to Southern) for around 40 euro via Opodo, Jet Star Airline.

NEW DOCUMENTS

Before your leaving make sure that all your documents are up to date. In my case I had to renew my ID as well as manage to get another passport (this is also useful in case one passport will get lost, you can still use the second one). Also in order to rent or buy a car abroad, it is useful to arrange international driving license. In Slovakia it is a matter of few minutes and 6 euro at the offices of local authorities.

NEW ELECTRONICS

In order to be fully prepared, get your new external charger, notebook or battery to notebook, new phone, etc … Especially if you are planning to live in a car with limited amount of electricity access, it also useful to have fully functional electrical equipment.

RESPONSIBILITIES BACK HOME

Make sure you have closed up and cancelled all the contracts with your apartment landlord (or make some other arrangements if possible), phone operators, health insurance policy, etc…

For example, in Slovakia if you travel out of Europe for at least 6 months, you don´t have a duty to pay Slovak health insurance, however, in order to do so, you have to provide them either with a new job contract from abroad OR travel insurance contract covering the period of time you will spend out of Slovakia.

TRAVEL INSURANCE

Well, travel insurance is something you hope you will never need to use, however, it is something you shouldn´t travel without. I usually insure myself with True Travellers or Allianz. Make sure you travel insurance is up to date and covers all the activities you are planning on doing (extreme sports, hiking in higher altitude, work risk, … )

BANK DUTIES

Before leaving abroad especially for longer time, I always pay a visit to a branch of my bank(s) to let them know about my travels so they won´t block my card in order to “protect” me from odd foreign transactions. Moreover, I usually need an official bank statement with certain amount of money before entering certain countries with Working Holiday visa such as New Zealand.

OTHER

Last but not least, before setting off I always try to get as much information about the country as possible. I join FB groups, chat with some people who had already been to those countries, I usually book my accommodation for the first two nights or look for some couchsurfing hosts. Regarding New Zealand, for example I have already managed to open my bank account in ANZ bank online and I got an appointment their branch in Auckland on certain date and time to pick up my bank card and finalize the documents. It never hurts to get prepared …

WHICH THINGS I USUALLY PLAY BY EAR

Usually it is the work. I wasn´t looking for any jobs in advance before travelling neither to Canada or to New Zealand, I just play it by ear and look for something on a spot. Sometimes it is great to let the things happen and give some space to spontaneity.  Another thing I am not arranging in advance is buying a campervan. I want to look for it on a spot and hope to be lucky to find a perfect match.

So what do you thing? Have I mentioned everything necessary before leaving to New Zealand for Working Holiday visa? Or actually to any other country where you are planning to live for a while? If not, mention it in the comment below.

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And if you are interested in articles on CENTRAL AMERICA – click HERE. On SOUTH AMERICA click HERE.

YOLO my dear MiliMundo followers.

PS: Looking for great travel insurance with great prices for your future travels? Insurance which you can book even when your journey has already started? Have a look at The True Traveller. I am more than happy with them.

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