KW,

You are right--separate tickets is the way to go. It seems that the expensive leg on AirNZ is from SIN-AKL. If I take another airline, such as Emirates, the cost is substantially less at US$690 ^ versus US$1781 on AirNZ. Next step is to see what it costs for business class. And still need to sort out the local flights.

Thanks KW.

MoreCoffeePlease