Reading Time: 3 minHave you ever dreamed of traveling to the other side of the world ... only to feel overwhelmed by the thought of such a long journey? Earlier this year, my partner and I flew to New Zealand for a wedding, but the logistics of planning this trip were daunting.
The goal, of course, was to find business-class award tickets for the entire trip, but there were a few reasons that were likely not going to work in our favor. We were traveling in February, during peak summer season in the Southern Hemisphere. Finding award availability to New Zealand (or even Australia) for two passengers on the same flight would also be challenging.
Rather than chasing the perfect award ticket, I tried something different: breaking the trip into two manageable parts.
Not only did this keep my points and miles usage relatively low, but it also let me ease into the time change while enjoying a mini-vacation along the way. The secret wasn’t necessarily about finding some loophole or mistake fare, but it was about being strategic about routing and timing.
From my home base in Utah, I had a head start being closer to the West Coast. That made it easy to kick things off with a nonstop Delta flight from Salt Lake City (SLC) to Honolulu (HNL), booked with SkyMiles.
If you fly Delta often, you probably know that SkyMiles redemptions can be hit or miss for international travel thanks to dynamic pricing. But when it comes to domestic routes, SkyMiles can deliver solid value. Rather than pushing through a marathon travel day straight to New Zealand or Australia, I opted for a six-and-a-half-hour flight to Hawaii.
Delta gives select co-branded Amex cardholders a 15% discount on Delta-operated award flights, so we paid less than 28,000 SkyMiles each for a Main Cabin ticket. To top it off, we scored an upgrade to Premium Select (complete with a proper meal!), making the flight feel a little more like a splurge than a budget redemption.
And just like that, we were already halfway across the Pacific. By the time we touched down in Honolulu that evening, we felt refreshed.
The best part? That leg of the trip felt like a mini-vacation in itself. With an intentional 36-hour stopover built in, we had just enough time to soak up some sun, reset, and break up the journey.
Spending some time in Hawaii allowed us to acclimate better to the four-hour time difference. By the time we touched down in New Zealand, it was hard to believe we had gained almost an entire day back!
We easily found award space on a Hawaiian Airlines flight from Honolulu (HNL) to Auckland (AKL) for just 35,000 miles per person. We transferred our Bilt Rewards points to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan (now Atmos Rewards as of August 20, 2025!) because Bilt is the only credit card program that partners with Alaska for point transfers.
That nine-hour journey spanned nearly a full day, but the timing worked out perfectly. We landed in the evening, just in time for a full night’s rest to hit the ground running the next morning.
By planning our stopover carefully and flight timing, we avoided overnight trips, stressful connection times, and spared ourselves from starting the trip with intense jet lag. That’s the part people often overlook when chasing the “fastest” route.
Sometimes slower, with an intentional pause in the middle, is better.
