Booking Our Australian Together With Novel Zealand Accommodations

We're dorsum amongst purpose 3 of planning our honeymoon amongst Andrew! I'm together with thus happy you lot all are enjoying his posts together with it's exactly been so much fun to cause got him hither I'm already planning novel ways to contain him to a greater extent than on the weblog inwards 2020!
If you lot haven't yet, read PT 1: Choosing our Honeymoon Destination and PT 2: Booking Flights + Locking inwards Dates! It's the inaugural off one-half of a four-part serial Andrew has together with thus graciously written for the blog. Today he's sharing how (and where) nosotros booked our accommodations spell abroad!  
With our marriage even together with thus ahead of us inwards September, I didn’t create much existent planning for several months. I bookmarked a hotel inwards Sydney for us to remain at, together with narrowed downward our Great Barrier Reef choices to two. In Sydney, nosotros would remain at the Four Seasons for 3 nights.
As I was making reservations for hotels, I learned that the central charge per unit of measurement was rather favorable for Americans. Every States of America dollar was equal to roughly $1.45 Australian. With hotel prices reflecting the Australian cost, it was every bit though nosotros were getting a built-in 30% discount on everything. This made the Four Seasons acquire from an unattainable luxury inwards most locations to inside our honeymoon budget. 
The other bully purpose was that the belongings was purpose of AmEx’s Fine Hotels together with Resorts program. I spent a lot of fourth dimension explaining the perks of existence an AmEx Platinum cardholder yesterday, together with this is another. This portfolio of hand-selected resorts throughout the globe gives cardholders fifty-fifty to a greater extent than benefits exactly past times using your Platinum carte du jour to brand a booking. Among them include guaranteed early on check-in at noon, guaranteed belatedly checkout at 4pm, a gratis room upgrade based on availability, release wifi, gratis breakfast every day, together with belongings credit. In the illustration of the Four Seasons inwards Sydney, our belongings credit was $100 USD inwards nutrient together with beverage. 
All of this turns into serious savings, peculiarly when you lot consider our inaugural off repast of every hateful solar daytime was completely release past times giving us consummate access to the Four Seasons daily breakfast buffet. And remember, the central charge per unit of measurement was good, together with thus the $100 USD nutrient together with potable credit worked out to most $145 AUD, giving us to a greater extent than than plenty for dinner on the house. 
Feeling confident most our Sydney hotel, I moved on to the reef. My selection came downward betwixt Lizard Island Resort on Lizard Island together with Qualia on Hamilton Island. At the time, both were purpose of the AmEx Fine Hotels together with Resorts program. Both were situated perfectly every bit purpose of the Great Barrier Reef. There was exactly something most Qualia that was jumping off the page at me.
I showed Krista the Qualia website, together with nosotros looked at roughly photos together with offerings at the resort, together with nosotros chose to remain there. This was during the natural springtime of 2019, together with Qualia happened to live on running a brusk advertisement amongst discounted rates that was expiring soon. If I wanted to book, I had to create it now. 
I made reservations for Dec 17-21, locked inwards our rates, together with breathed a sigh of relief. The discounted rates were alone offered for stays through Dec 21, every bit anything after that was considered their festive, or peak season. While I was happy amongst the decision, inwards the dorsum of my mind, I was thinking that 4 nights wouldn’t live on enough. I knew nosotros wanted to create a total hateful solar daytime snorkeling on the reef, I wanted to play golf game 1 day, together with considering this was our honeymoon together with Qualia appeared to live on situated inwards paradise, I wanted 1 to a greater extent than night.
Eventually, I gave inwards together with chose to mass roughly other nighttime at total cost together with thus nosotros could remain until Dec 22. Calling to brand the alter was proving hard considering the fourth dimension zones, together with thus I in 1 lawsuit to a greater extent than relied on the trusty AmEx concierge service, who handled the booking amongst ease. And due to the fact that I used my AmEx carte du jour for the booking together with in 1 lawsuit to a greater extent than used them for the additional night, Qualia was giving us all the perks of the FIne Hotel together with Resort program. All the same, goodies nosotros got inwards Sydney, we’d acquire hither too, amongst 1 exception.
The $150 nutrient together with potable credit at the Four Seasons was a $300 resort credit at Qualia, release for us to work on anything. I cause got no catch how this happened. Of course, I never asked either, every bit I feared it was a error on their end. While that inwards itself was a welcome surprise, nosotros after learned when nosotros arrived on Hamilton Island that all merchants are linked together since the isle is privately owned. Anywhere nosotros ate or shopped on the island, all nosotros had to create was give our Qualia room number, together with it would live on charged dorsum there. With $300 AUD to pass on anything, that was a huge advantage.
With accommodations directly booked at 2 of our destinations, I began looking to a greater extent than closely at New Zealand. I had no catch what the best places to see on the South Island were, but I knew that it was all driveable. I also knew nosotros would cause got to goal upwards inwards Christchurch since that’s where our departing flying left from. But our entry indicate together with route trip destinations on our agency to Christchurch even together with thus had to live on filled in. 
After roughly cursory Googling together with talking to friends together with identify unit of measurement that had visited New Zealand, it became clear that Queenstown was the identify to be. It’s the birthplace of bungee jumping, has first-class skiing inwards the wintertime months, loads of scenic hikes, skydiving, jet boating, watersports, vineyards, together with sits amid glacial lakes together with snow-capped mountains. I knew nosotros had to start here. The elbow grease to Christchurch from Queenstown was vii hours, together with thus we’d even together with thus demand roughly benchmarks on the way, but this was a skillful starting point.
After seeing all the diverse activities that tin dismiss live on done inwards the Queenstown area, I figured nosotros needed 3 nights to genuinely bask ourselves without existence rushed. I began looking at flights offered betwixt Melbourne, Australia, together with Queenstown. While nosotros didn’t cause got dates or accommodations locked inwards for Melbourne, at that topographic point appeared to live on hundreds of Airbnb options, together with the metropolis boasts a large airport. I institute that flights to Queenstown were non offered every day, together with the best choice was on Christmas Eve. 
With that inwards mind, I began searching for Queenstown accommodations from Dec 24-27. I started amongst AmEx Fine Hotels together with Resorts, but at that topographic point weren’t many options, together with the ones that did be were either good beyond our budget or were already booked. Keep inwards mind, I was conducting this search inwards June, together with many hotels were already booked solid for Christmas week. This is their peak season, together with inventory is limited anyway.
Knowing that hotels were out of the question, I shifted to Airbnb. We love Airbnb. We cause got used it on both international together with domestic trips together with cause got non had whatever issues whatsoever. Not everyone may live on comfortable using it, but for us, it works. My search revealed what would live on referred to hither colloquially every bit a “tiny house.” If you lot sentinel plenty HGTV similar I do, you lot know all most the tiny theater phenomenon. 
This belongings was called the Kiwi Chalet together with sat high on a colina exactly exterior Queenstown inwards a rural expanse known every bit Lake Hayes, most a 15-minute elbow grease from key Queenstown. It had everything nosotros needed, was situated inwards a safe, placidity area, together with had a nearly perfect rating from over 100 guests. No brainer. I made the asking to mass for these 3 nights together with was confirmed every bit a invitee less than 1 hateful solar daytime later. Our inaugural off Christmas together would live on spent inwards the Kiwi Chalet.
At this indicate inwards mid-June nosotros had the next items locked in: flights to Commonwealth of Australia from Los Angeles, furnish flights from New Zealand to Los Angeles, dates for the outset together with goal of our trip, together with accommodations inwards Sydney, Hamilton Island, together with Queenstown. With the marriage fast approaching, I pushed interruption on all honeymoon planning for a few months. Tomorrow, you lot tin dismiss read most how I finished the plans together with booked the remainder of our trip.