As others have said before me, a trip of a thousand miles begins with the first step. And so it was that this trip began, for me, with a United Airlines shuttle flight from my home town area of Sparks, Nevada. I flew from the Reno airport, to Los Angeles and then overnight to Rarotonga in the Cook Islands.
The overseas flight was with Air New Zealnd, which is a United partner. It's always cheaper to fly with the same airline or affliation on a multi-flight journey. It works out that the airlines won't allow you to upgrade on a tour ticket using freqent flyer miles, but you do get mileage credit for the current trip - in my case, I took United miles, not Air New Zealand miles.
The overseas flights to/from the South Pacific were crowded, but not full. I had the good fortune to have a vacant seat next to me on both flights, so I could stretch out, get up to use the restroom when I wanted to, and not get bumped by people or things using the aisle. The overseas flight was over eight hours and I was able to get several hours sleep, albeit not like sleeping in a bed. Ah, the trials and tribulations of a traveler.
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