Kia Ora New Zealand
Kia Ora New Zealand
Kia Ora New Zealand
17 Days Starting in Auckland, New Zealand and ending in Christchurch, New Zealand
Visiting: Auckland, Bay of Islands, Rotorua, Wellington, Christchurch, Omarama, Dunedin, Te Anau, Queenstown, Franz Josef
Tour operator:
Tour code:
LABC24
Guide Type:
Fully Guided
Tour operated in:
EnglishTrip Styles:
Interests:
Activities:
Tour Overview
Embark on the "Kia Ora New Zealand" tour, a captivating journey through the stunning landscapes and rich cultural heritage of New Zealand. This adventure takes you from the vibrant city of Auckland to the breathtaking beauty of Christchurch, with highlights including the World Heritage-listed Fiordland National Park and the enchanting Milford Sound. Experience the thrill of the North Island's extremes or relax by the pool in Queenstown. Discover the historic Waitangi Treaty Grounds and the serene Bay of Islands. Travel in comfort with a specialist team of guides, enjoying quality accommodations and a scenic cruise across Cook Strait. From the geothermal wonders of Rotorua to the dramatic beaches of Kaikoura, this tour offers a perfect blend of nature, history, and adventure. Whether you're exploring the iconic Hobbiton or cruising on the TranzAlpine train, every moment promises unforgettable memories.
Make Travel Matter
Lake Tekapo: Journey through New Zealand's most important historic site, Waitangi Treaty Grounds, with a passionate local guide. Discover the stories, people and events that have shaped the past, present and future.
Itinerary
Day 1: Welcome To Auckland
Location: Auckland
Accommodation Name: Holiday Inn Express Auckland City Centre
Auckland is hypnotic, the kind of place you could easily lose yourself in for a couple of days. Or weeks. Arrive at your leisure and explore waterfront precincts filled with yachts or just meet fellow travel companions at a Welcome Reception tonight.
Day 2: Auckland - Bay Of Islands
Location: Bay of Islands
Accommodation Name: Copthorne Hotel and Resort
Meals Included: Dinner
Say goodbye to the ‘City of Sails’ as you journey north to New Zealand’s dramatic Bay of Islands from Auckland – 140 islands ringed by turquoise sea. It’s undeniably beautiful, but it also holds a special historical significance: this is where the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840, between Captain William Hobson and Māori chiefs. Your guide, perhaps a descendent of one of the original signatories, will explain the significance of the site, while pointing out the world’s largest ceremonial war canoe and a carved meeting house.
Day 3: Bay Of Islands Free Time
Location: Bay of Islands
Accommodation Name: Copthorne Hotel and Resort
If there’s a travel destination that inspires wanderlust, the Bay of Islands is it. Today, trip the light fantastic and head off in whatever direction you please. Perhaps travel up to Cape Reinga/Te Rerenga Wairua, the very top of New Zealand, via idyllic Ninety Mile Beach. Or glide around on an historic tall ship, enjoy a cruise to the iconic Hole in the Rock or join a tour of Russell and learn more about the settling of the Bay of Islands.
Day 4: Bay Of Islands - Auckland
Location: Auckland
Accommodation Name: Holiday Inn Express Auckland City Centre
Today, New Zealand’s most northerly city is well and truly on your radar. Whangarei is like the country in a tantalising snapshot – a union of nature and forward-thinking culture. Explore at your leisure before sinking back into your seat for the mesmerizing commute back to Auckland.
Day 5: Auckland - Rotorua
Location: Rotorua
Accommodation Name: Ibis Rotorua Hotel
Meals Included: Dinner
Another day on a tour in Auckland. Lucky you. After a morning of sightseeing, set your GPS for the Waitomo Caves tour. This place is radiant – quite literally. While cruising cavernous waterways, your route is cast in a magical light by thousands of glowworms. It’s a landscape almost as otherworldly as Rotorua, where mud pops and jettisons from bubbling geysers, and steam rushes skywards from cracks in the Earth. Tonight, delve deep into Maori culture and traditions at Te Puia. The Te Pō Indigenous Experience begins with a delicious buffet dinner of locally sourced cuisine and an authentic Māori twist in each dish. Following dinner, view an exhilarating cultural performance that takes place in our beautifully carved meeting house, Te Aronui a Rua. Afterward, enter the geothermal valley on our waka (electric shuttle) and discover one of New Zealand’s most magnificent geothermal wonderlands – featuring dramatic geysers, bubbling mud, and beautiful native bush. Enjoy a hot chocolate, seated on a naturally heated rock terrace overlooking the powerful Pōhutu Geyser.
Day 6: Rotorua Free Time
Location: Rotorua
Accommodation Name: Ibis Rotorua Hotel
Explore at your own pace today, but with plenty of tips from your Travel Director. Want a bit of down time? We wouldn’t blame you for simply blissing out at Wai Araki Hot Springs & Spa. Hobbit fans will want to take advantage of today’s opportunity to visit the sights featured in The Lord of the Rings movies at Hobbiton. These beautiful landscapes are not only a bucket list tour for Hobbit fans but a gorgeous countryside getaway.
Day 7: Rotorua - Wellington
Location: Wellington
Accommodation Name: Travelodge Wellington
You’ll hear Huka Falls well before you see it – at this natural wonder, a staggering 220,000 litres of water thunder over an 11-metre-high waterfall every second. The road ahead unfolds in a broad panorama of Lake Taupo, its waters so vivid and blue you’ll think someone has taken the glasses off your nose and cleaned them for the first time. Traverse the Kapiti Coast to New Zealand’s cool little capital, Wellington, where there are so many restaurants and bars to choose from, you’ll need a guidebook. Wait, you have an in-the-know Travel Director to talk to about your Wellington tour.
Day 8: Wellington - Picton
Location: Wellington
Accommodation Name: Picton Beachcomber Inn
Wellington is known for its uber-cool cafés, designed to fuel you through a session at Te Papa, the Museum of New Zealand. Onwards to the Interislander for a cruise across Cook Strait, from the North Island to the South, through a maze of arms and inlets.
Day 9: Picton - Christchurch
Location: Christchurch
Accommodation Name: Wyndham Garden
There aren’t many beaches more dramatic than the sands of Kaikoura. Bonus points if you spot a sea lion or sperm whale frolicking offshore, Kaikoura is the marine wildlife centre of New Zealand. Talk to your Travel Director for tips on the essential restaurants to dine in tonight – Christchurch has reinvented itself in more ways than one.
Day 10: Christchurch - Omarama
Location: Omarama
Accommodation Name: Distinction Heritage Gateway Hotel
Meals Included: Dinner
A Christchurch tour shows you that the city is not only rebuilding itself after the devastating 2010/11 earthquakes, but is changing the way architects think about design. Case in point the mind-bending Transitional Cathedral, made largely of cardboard, and Turanga, the gold-clad central library. From here, your outlook is the Canterbury Plains: the turquoise waters of Lake Tekapo, snow-capped mountains and atmospheric towns. Your Indoor Dark Sky Astronomy Experience in Takapo, hosted by passionate guides, will forever change the way you see the night sky. You'll see for yourself it may be one of the quietest spots on the planet, yet it has one of the busiest skies in the universe.
Day 11: Omarama - Dunedin
Location: Dunedin
Accommodation Name: Scenic Hotel Dunedin City
If you’ve ever wanted to see New Zealand’s oldest public gardens, today you’re in luck. Oamaru, with its stately tree-lined streets and limestone buildings, stands proud before you journey further south toward the 'Edinburgh of the South'. Dunedin’s Scottish ancestry is everywhere you look, from the manicured grounds of Otago University to Larnach Castle. It’s easy to while away the afternoon in the city’s atmospheric art-lined alleys. Or venture further afield to discover the wildlife that thrives in this pretty pocket of the country – fur seals and penguins among them.
Day 12: Dunedin - Te Anau
Location: Te Anau
Accommodation Name: Distinction Luxmore Hotel
Meals Included: Dinner
Departing Dunedin this morning, rolling green hills dotted with doe-eyed sheep are replaced by soaring mountains as you weave your way into Fiordland National Park and the South Island’s biggest lake and the town of Te Anau, home to magical glowworm-filled caves accessed by boat across the lake. We highly recommend a visit. Soak up the serenity – it doesn’t get any better than this.
Day 13: Te Anau - Queenstown
Location: Queenstown
Accommodation Name: Copthorne Hotel and Resort Queenstown
From the moment you step outside today, nature rules. Your route through Fiordland National Park is an intoxicating union of beech forests, alluvial flats, meadows and mirror-like lakes. Gin-clear rivers carve the countryside, with all roads leading to Milford Sound/Piopiotahi. Cruising this World Heritage-listed expanse will give you goosebumps, a string of waterfalls creating a misty curtain across sheer escarpments. Venture out into the Fiord on a sightseeing cruise, where dolphins and seals are a common sight.
Day 14: Queenstown Free Time
Location: Queenstown
Accommodation Name: Copthorne Hotel and Resort Queenstown
Meals Included: Dinner
Take today at your own pace. Like things fast and furious? Feel the wind in your hair on the high-octane jet boat ride, perhaps. There’s a reason why Queenstown is known as the adventure capital of the country. Nature lover? Discover some of New Zealand’s feathered friends at a wildlife centre. Wherever you wander, make sure you’re back in time to glide across Lake Wakatipu aboard the historic TSS Earnslaw to Walter Peak High Country Farm for a gourmet barbecue dinner.
Day 15: Queenstown - Franz Josef/Waiau
Location: Franz Josef
Accommodation Name: Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier
Meals Included: Dinner
Try and keep count of today’s lakes. Leaving Lake Wakatipu behind, Arrowtown appears on the horizon. We know you’ll want to linger in the movie-set-like streets, lined with trees and character-filled boutiques. But Lake Dunstan awaits, as do its orchards. Pause to refuel on flavour-packed stone fruit. Then there’s Lake Hawea followed by Lake Wanaka, with its Instagrammable shoreline of poplars and willows. Over the Haast Pass, the pretty town of Franz Josef/Waiau awaits. Get some perspective on an optional scenic flight over Franz Josef Glacier/Ka Roimata o Hine Hukatere – if the weather behaves, you may even get to land on it.
Day 16: Franz Josef/Waiau - Christchurch
Location: Christchurch
Accommodation Name: Wyndham Garden
Swap snow for pounamu (native greenstone or jade) in Hokitika: the pounamu found here is the stuff jewellery dreams are made of. Just when you thought your adventure couldn’t get any better, you’ll aboard the TranzAlpine train bound for Christchurch, through tunnels and over viaducts with panoramic views of snow-capped peaks, icy rivers, beech forests, gorges and river valleys.
Day 17: Farewell From Christchurch
Location: Christchurch
Two New Zealand islands. Multiple glaciers. Endless lakes. Thermal springs. Black beaches, and white beaches. An endless parade of wildlife. We hope you find the words to describe this epic adventure to your family back home.
What's Included
What's Not Included
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Flights
Flights to and from the start/end of your trip are not included in the trip price.
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Personal items
Items such as comfortable walking shoes, sunglasses, sunscreen, hat, water bottle, warm layers, and camera are not included.
Mode of Transport
Travel includes a cruise across Cook Strait, from the North Island to the South, through a maze of arms and inlets. Swap snow for pounamu (native greenstone or jade) in Hokitika: the pounamu found here is the stuff jewellery dreams are made of. Just when you thought your adventure couldn’t get any better, you’ll aboard the TranzAlpine train bound for Christchurch, through tunnels and over viaducts with panoramic views.
Accommodation
Your Guided Holiday includes a range of quality accommodation for your comfort. The accommodation you will enjoy on this tour includes: Holiday Inn Express, Auckland; Copthorne Hotel and Resort, Bay of Islands; Ibis Rotorua Hotel; Travelodge Wellington; Picton Yacht Club; Wyndham Garden, Christchurch; Heritage Gateway Hotel, Omarama; Scenic Hotel Dunedin City; Distinction Luxmore Hotel, Te Anau; Copthorne Hotel and Resort, Queenstown; Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier.
Dining Summary
- 16 Full Breakfast (B)
- 5 Dinner (D)
- 2 Highlight Dinner (HD)
- 1 Farewell Dinner (FD)
Fitness Requirement
- Low level of fitness required
Flexible Holidays
- Want to get your heart racing? Explore the extremes of the North Island then feel the natural rush of Queenstown. Or just laze by the pool. Your choice…
Flight information
- Flights to and from the start/end of your trip are not included in the trip price. Day 1 – flights to arrive prior to 4.00pm into Auckland AirportDay 17 – flights to depart any time from Christchurch Airport
Iconic Sites
- You don’t need a reason to visit World Heritage listed Fiordland National Park. But if you’re looking for one, make it shimmering Milford Sound/Piopiotahi. This place is nature amplified.
Natural Wonders
- End-of-the-Earth drama awaits in the Bay of Islands, where 140 droplets of land unite powdery beaches with dreamy pockets of forest.
What to Bring
- Comfortable walking shoes Sunglasses, sunscreen and hat Water bottle Warm layers in cooler months Camera
Check out our Q&As
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What kind of activities can I expect during the free time in the Bay of Islands?
During your free time in the Bay of Islands, you can choose to travel up to Cape Reinga via Ninety Mile Beach, glide around on a historic tall ship, enjoy a cruise to the iconic Hole in the Rock, or join a tour of Russell to learn more about the settling of the Bay of Islands.
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What unique experiences are included in Rotorua?
In Rotorua, you will explore Te Puia's geothermal valley, learn about Māori history and culture, enjoy a dinner of hangi-inspired cuisine, and witness a cultural performance in a finely carved meeting house. The experience ends with a view of the Pohutu Geyser while enjoying a hot chocolate.
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What is the significance of the Waitangi Treaty Grounds visit?
The Waitangi Treaty Grounds is New Zealand's most important historic site where the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840. A local guide, possibly a descendant of one of the original signatories, will explain the site's significance, showcasing the world's largest ceremonial canoe and a carved meeting house.
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What wildlife might I see during the tour?
You may encounter dolphins and seals during the Milford Sound cruise, and in Dunedin, you might see fur seals and penguins. Kaikoura is also known for its marine wildlife, including sea lions and sperm whales.
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What is the TranzAlpine train experience like?
The TranzAlpine train journey offers panoramic views as it travels through tunnels and over viaducts, providing a scenic route from Franz Josef to Christchurch.
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What are the accommodation options during the tour?
The tour includes a range of quality accommodations such as the Holiday Inn Express in Auckland, Copthorne Hotel and Resort in the Bay of Islands, Ibis Rotorua Hotel, Travelodge Wellington, Picton Yacht Club, Wyndham Garden in Christchurch, Heritage Gateway Hotel in Omarama, Scenic Hotel Dunedin City, Distinction Luxmore Hotel in Te Anau, Copthorne Hotel and Resort in Queenstown, and Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier.
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Who will be my travelling companions on the tour?
The beauty of taking a holiday with us is you’ll have the opportunity to meet and travel with people from all over the globe.
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Can I join the tour once it has departed?
It is important to adhere to departure times while on tour for the comfort of everyone on-board, and to make sure no one misses out on the planned experiences. The coach will not be able to wait for you, and in some instances, if you miss a departure time you will need to make your own way to the next destination to re-join the tour.
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Do you operate a “single share” option and how does it work?
AAT Kings operated Guided Holidays have competitive single supplement rates available if you prefer to confirm your own room. Or we can match you to share with a guest of the same gender at no extra cost. If we fail to match you, we will accommodate you in a single room at no extra cost.
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How long has the tour company been trading?
Over 100 years
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What documents will I receive before I travel?
We will email your documents to you approximately four weeks before your departure date provided you have completed your pre trip registration using the My Travel Portal. If you’ve booked through a travel agent, your documents will be emailed directly to your agent.
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Low Deposit
AAT Kings requires a minimum deposit of 100 GBP per person or the full booking value, whichever is less, with the final balance not due until 60 days before departure.
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Cancellation Policy
We don't charge a cancellation fee, here is a summary of aat kings charges.
Up to 60 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of deposit.
At 59 days before tour starts: Forfeit 30% of booking price.
At 15 days before tour starts: Forfeit 50% of booking price.
At 7 days before tour starts: Forfeit 90% of booking price.
At 1 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of booking price.
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