Travel Journal

Dear Travellers,

Many of our clients are now planning their European adventures next year and ‘earlybird’ specials for 2026 European flights, cruises and tours are now out. Planning the perfect European holiday is our absolute specialty, it’s our #1 destination – the team have all lived there and travelled extensively around it, so please don’t book anything until you’ve spoken to us first!

Many Kiwis start their journey in the UK, often tracing family roots or visiting children on their OE. It’s a great introduction before heading to “The Continent” and many of our clients like to take their lifestyles on holiday with them to Europe, so if you love walking, cycling, cruising or sailing or if you’re a foodie or wine lover, the options here are endless. Whether it’s your first trip to Europe or your 20th, there’s always something new to discover.

With 50 countries to choose from and countless languages, we’re here to help you narrow it down!

• Culture Seekers: Visit delightful villages, vineyards, and ruins in Dordogne, Provence, Tuscany, Puglia, or Sicily.
• History Buffs: Head to Italy, Greece, and Turkey for a deep dive into Classical history.
• Ocean cruising – will it be the Mediterranean, the Adriatic, the Aegean or the Baltics? Done that? How about cruising around the British Isles, through the Norwegian fjords or the Atlantic Coast of Spain and Portugal?
• River cruising – the classic 2 week ‘Amsterdam to Budapest’ along the Rhine/Main/Danube is still the #1, but how about the Douro in Portugal, the Seine/Rhone in France or the Moselle?
• Boating Enthusiasts: The Mediterranean, including Croatia, Sicily, and the Greek Islands, is perfect. Or try the canals of France or the UK for a calmer experience.
• City Lovers: Paris, London, Barcelona, Rome, Edinburgh, Dublin, Lisbon, Venice, Dubrovnik and Amsterdam are perennial favourites, but with Europe getting more crowded each summer, maybe consider trying something different – we love Berlin, Porto, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo, Reykjavik, Bologna, Vienna, Zagreb and Ljubljana.
• Nature Lovers: Scandinavia offers pristine fjords, while Switzerland and Slovenia have stunning mountains and lakes. Iceland’s geothermal scenery is spectacular.
• Walkers: Options abound, from the Amalfi Coast and Cinque Terre to the Lycian Way and Camino de Santiago, or the Alps and Dolomites inland.
• Cyclists : Favourites are the Loire or Provence in France and Puglia, Tuscany and Umbria in Italy, but how about Normandy & Brittany or cycling in Denmark or Sweden?
• Music Lovers: Vienna is great for classical concerts, Verona for opera, and the European summer is full of epic music festivals.
• Adventurer / Off the beaten track: Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Albania, the wilderness of Northern Scandinavia & Iceland are perfect for adventure.
• Beaches – it’s hard to beat the Greek Islands, the Costa Brava, Algarve or the Mediterranean Islands. Loved Croatia? Try Albania next!
• War History Buffs: Visit the battlefields of France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Turkey or Eastern Europe.
• Foodies: Almost anywhere in Europe is a treat, but San Sebastian and Bologna are just two of our favourites!

What’s trending for 2026?

With Europe now getting a more crowded in the tourist hot spots and a few degrees warmer during the peak summer and European school holiday months of July-August, we’re noticing a definite trend among our clients towards travelling in the cooler Spring (May-June) and especially in the Autumn (September & October) months, so it certainly pays to book early if travelling in September & October as these are now also becoming ‘peak’ season. Those travelling in the hottest months are heading to cooler areas of Europe. We’re already noticing that the Balkans, Switzerland, Scandinavia & Med islands like Corsica, Sicily & Malta are some of the ‘in vogue’ destinations next year.

Cruises, Tours and Villa / Apartment stays are usually the first thing we book for our clients as they have fixed dates, so the rest of the itinerary falls into place around them.

There are already big earlybird savings with all the most popular ocean and river cruise options like Viking, Avalon, Scenic, Emerald, Uniworld & Oceania and with all the big cruise lines (Princess, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Regent, Silversea etc.). The range of cruise itineraries and ‘deals’ is now enormous, please contact us and we’ll help guide you through the maze!

All the main touring operators will also have early booking deals, whether they are coach operators like Globus, Trafalgar, Insight or Albatross or small group tour operators like Intrepid, Backroads Touring or Explore Worldwide. We’re noticing that their more interesting itineraries are already selling fast for 2026.

Prefer something more active? Walking & cycling specialists like U-Tracks, Exodus, Macs Adventure & Inntravel are now releasing their 2026 itineraries and will also have early booking deals.

Getting around

Fly, train or hire / lease a vehicle? The low cost airlines like EasyJet, Ryanair & Vueling now dominate regional European flying, but some European countries are now banning short domestic flights and prioritising their train networks instead. For those longer itineraries, consider leasing a car with Peugeot, it’s cheaper than a hire car and you get a brand new vehicle that you can pickup in one country and drop in another.

Airfares to Europe

At this time of year, we expect ‘earlybird’ airfares with all airlines, and they are usually pretty similar, so it’s important not to panic and book a flight before planning your whole European itinerary first, otherwise it can be costly to unwind these flights later. We’ll help you find the right fare in economy, premium economy or business class that’s best suited to your itinerary and budget.

If you prefer to fly long-haul from Christchurch rather than flying from Auckland or changing planes in Australia, there are still just 2 options over our winter months, Singapore Airlines (direct to Singapore) and Emirates (via Sydney to Dubai).

Singapore Airlines are still the only ‘one stop’ option to Europe and fly to all the main airport hubs like London, Paris, Rome, Milan, Barcelona, Munich, Frankfurt & Istanbul. They also have services to Brussels, Manchester, Copenhagen.

Their Auckland flights are sometimes a little cheaper than their Christchurch flights and they partner with Air New Zealand as well. They offer Premium Economy on all their NZ and European flights also.

Emirates touch down via Sydney means it’s at least a‘2 stop’ option to Europe with Dubai, but they also have flights direct from Auckland to Dubai, which can often be significantly cheaper than their Christchurch flights, so that’s worth considering for the cost-conscious traveller. It can also sometimes be cheaper also to change aircraft in Sydney before flying onto Dubai rather than getting back on the same aircraft after that 2 hour layover.

As well as the bigger hubs, Emirates’ range of smaller destinations in Europe is impressive, so ideal for itinerary planning, with over35 cities offered including Athens, Oslo, Malta, Cyprus, Stockholm, Prague, Nice, Lyon, Venice, Vienna, Bologna, Budapest, Prague and Warsaw. A handful of their European flights are operated by their low cost subsidiary FlyDubai.

They don’t yet offer a Premium Economy cabin on all their Dubai-Europe flights, but this option is gradually being rolled out across their fleet, so check with us if you are interested in that option.

Air New Zealand don’t currently fly to Europe, although there are rumors of a return to London at some point in the future, probably to Gatwick rather than Heathrow. You can still fly with the national carrier half-way to Europe (so to Asia, the US or Canada) and then fly the rest of the journey with a partner airline like Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, United, Air Canada, British Airways or Virgin Atlantic. This is a good option for those wanting to use their Airpoints to upgrade – albeit it’s important to note this can be done on the Air Operated flights only, or who need to fly Air NZ to maintain their Airpoints status. Air NZ are always innovative, and in addition to offering ‘Skycouch’ & ‘Economy Stretch’ seats in economy on some routes, will be introducing the ‘Skynest’ sleep pods on their Auckland-New York flight at some time in2026. Getting seats on those partner airline flights at the right fare to be able to include it on the Air NZ ticket can be tricky, so it’s a good idea to book well in advance. It’s also worth bearing in mind that Air NZ currently still have a number of leased aircraft in their long-haul fleet which don’t offer all these extra options.

Qantas flights from NZ to Australia have expanded significantly in the last year, and they continue to partner with Emirates on their long-haul fares, so you can combine both carriers on the same ticket. They could be a good option if you fancy a stop in Bali or South Africa enroute to Europe and they also fly direct from Perth to London!

There are plenty of other options as well from Auckland or via Australia – think Qatar Airways via Doha, Malaysian via Kuala Lumpur, Cathay Pacific via Hong Kong, Etihad via Australia and Abu Dhabi etc.

Like to travel, but perhaps not so thrilled by the prospect of 30+ hours of flying to get there? We’re increasingly asked “how much extra does it cost to fly in a bit more comfort?”  Here’s some ideas.

Visas and other paperwork

UK

If travelling to the UK, you now need an ETA to visit. the UK Government are asking people to apply for their UK ETA’s using their mobile app (below). It costs 16pounds. You will need access to your emails when applying as they send a security code to your email before you can proceed. You will need to upload a copy of your passport face pages (JPEG format) and a digital photo of yourself as part of this process, then answer some simple questions then pay the 16 pounds with a credit card.

That’s the quickest. If you can’t do that, you can still apply online – just click here and just click on ‘I can’t apply on the app’.

European Union/Schengen Area

At some date in the last quarter of 2026, New Zealand passport holders will probably need an ETIAS Travel Authorisation to enter the EU. We’re being deliberately vague here as the scheme has been delayed several times since 2020, was recently pushed back again from 2025 to “late 2026”. Once the scheme is live (it is NOT currently) applying for an ETIAS can only be done online via the official ETIAS website or download the ETIAS app, which is also under construction. Complete the application form, pay the fee of €20, submit your application and await an email confirming the outcome. Applicants under 18 or over 70 pay no application fee. Once granted, the passport holder has the right to enter and remain in the countries of the Schengen Zone for up to 90 days in any 180-dayperiod and an ETIAS is valid for three years, or until the passport expires. During that time, passport holders can make multiple entries into the Schengen Zone.

Happy Travels!

The Discover Travel team