I would say that the response was neutral to positive overall. We met one lady in the 3% group, but it was awesome overall. It brought some nice conversations with locals that I would likely not have had otherwise.

I met two gentlemen of Scottish decent, a busdriver in Auckland and a gentleman outside Rotorua in a coffee shop and a large number of women who thought it was very nice and didn't mind saying so. And some younger folks as well. And a lot of questions as to "why" (it is much more comfortable)

The sporran helped I think. It ties the kilt back to the traditional roots, more as a kilt than a man wearing a skirt.

And people recognized the sporran/kilt combo. Even without it being a tartan kilt.

I did have two not quite as positive experiences, but not bad. One TSA agent who felt the modern kilt was "too short" because he had a number of kilts o his own and a twenty something girl who thought I should be kissing men ... "Because you're wearing a skirt." (We were traveling with an group, and for a travel game, if you happened upon roadwork and were stopped by a "lollipop man/woman" [the person with a stop/go sign] if you hopped off and kissed them you won a drink.)

By the end of the trip to Wellington (from Auckland) There was the question of whether I wore pants at all. All in all very accepting though and nothing other than the typical "what do you wear under the kilt."

Even leaving and returning to the USA and having to clear security it was pretty positive. (Cleared in Washington Dulles and Los Angeles) The TSA experience wasn't bad. And