AAT Kings Essence of New Zealand Itinerary

‘Haere Mai and welcome to New Zealand. Now you can relax - you are officially on holiday. 

Arrive early to see just how Christchurch has transformed itself since the 2010/11 earthquakes. Meet your fellow travellers this evening for a Welcome Reception.

Flights to arrive prior to 4.00pm into Christchurch Airport

Accommodation: Christchurch - 1 Night

Step out with your guide for a deeper dive into ‘The City of Gardens’ before traversing the colourful Canterbury Plains: the turquoise waters of Lake Tekapo and snow-capped mountains. Your Indoor Dark Sky Astronomy Experience at Tekapo, 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.

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Accommodation: Omarama - 1 Night

Architectural drama awaits in Dunedin. While away the afternoon in atmospheric art-lined alleys or sipping a lager or two in Speight’s Brewery (a national institution).

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Dunedin - 1 Night

Rolling green pastures dotted with wide-eyed sheep are your backdrop to Gore, the country music capital of New Zealand. Invercargill is obsessed with something else: motor vehicles. Tributes to speed legends colour the city. So it's only fitting that you visit Classic Motorcycle Mecca for a tour and Highlight Dinner.

Meals: Breakfast, Highlight Dinner

Accommodation Invercargill - 2 Nights

The ferry ride to subantarctic Stewart Island is wild and wonderful. When you arrive, you’re welcomed by the country’s southernmost community. It’s largely untouched, which means endemic flora and fauna thrive here. But don’t take our word for it. Meet the locals on a Village & Bays tour.

Meals: Breakfast

Today on your New Zealand tour, get a taste of country life combined with good old fashioned southern hospitality as you meet a ‘Southern Girl’ local female farmer at Real Country. Get a feel for life on the farm as you have demonstrations of Horse communication and Working sheep dog mustering. Try your hand at a Stock whip cracking lesson, and feed and interact with the friendly farm animals. For every guest, we donate funds to The Fairlight Foundation, Advancing Women in Agriculture. Continue to Queenstown.

Meals: Breakfasts

Accommodation: Queenstown - 2 Nights

Today, sign up to dive deep into Milford Sound/Piopiotahi within World Heritage listed Fiordland National Park, best explored on an optional tour cruising the waterway. Don’t be surprised if you see dolphins and seals.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Visit Arrowtown, which found its riches in gold, its residents building stately homes, now filled with boutiques and restaurants – that still line the street to this day. Around the next bend is the Alpine countryside of the Southern Lakes, from Lake Dunstan to oh-so-blue Lake Hawea and lovely Lake Wanaka. Over the Haast Pass, the town of Franz Josef at the edge of the Westland World Heritage Park, awaits.

Meals: Breakfast and Dinner 

Accommodation: Franz Josef - 1 Night

Wandering Hokitika’s windswept shore on the West Coast feels a bit like you’ve discovered the end of the Earth. The town’s other natural beauty is pounamu (native greenstone or jade). Prepare yourself for Punakaiki’s Pancake Rocks and blowholes; they owe their existence to the thundering surf that will lull you to sleep.

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Accommodation: Punakaiki - 1 Night

Following the beautiful Buller River heading inland to the quaint quintessentially kiwi town Murchison - its like travelling back in time 50 years. We then pass through the beautiful Nelson Lakes and forest, home of the 'Blue Lake' with the clearest recorded fresh water in the World. 

Nelson has a large creative community of working artists that gives the town a laid-back, bohemian feel. Passionate wine makers and craft beer brewers in the area mean that sitting in the sun with the tipple of your choice is a lovely way to enjoy the town centre.

Meals: Breakfast 

Accommodation Nelson - 2 Nights

Receiving some of the highest sunshine hours in New Zealand, the Nelson district it the perfect destination to visit year round. Located in the North-West corner of New Zealand, the Nelson region is surrounded by sheltered mountain ranges, golden beaches, national parks and boutique wineries and breweries. From Nelson, it’s easy to access any of three distinctly different National Parks.

On this day at leisure, you’ll have the option to journey to the top of the South Island and enjoy a relaxing cruise in the Abel Tasman National Park. Or perhaps take a short bush walk, relax in sunny Nelson or explore the many arts and craft galleries.

Meals: Breakfast

Board the Interisland Ferry, sit back and enjoy New Zealand hospitality on the three hour journey across Cook Strait which connects New Zealand’s North and South Islands - This is one of the most scenic in the world. The journey offers a dramatic view of both the North and South Islands. As you enter the picturesque Marlborough Sounds keep an eye out for wildlife such as seabirds, dolphins, seals, whales and orca that make the sounds home.

Enter the North Island through Wellington Harbour. 

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Accommodation: Wellington - 1 Night

Travel to Napier. Beautifully preserved 1930s architecture is Napier's special point of difference. After a massive earthquake in 1931 destroyed the commercial centre of Napier, rebuilding began almost immediately in the architectural styles of the times - Striped Classical, Spanish Mission and Art Deco.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Napier - 2 Nights

After a devastating earthquake in 1931, Napier completely rebuilt itself in just two years. The end result is architectural Nirvana, a city home to the world’s greatest concentration of Art Deco, Spanish Mission and Striped Classical buildings. This morning get the lowdown from your in-the-know local guide on a Napier tour. Your afternoon is at leisure.

Meals: Breakfast

This afternoon, explore Te Puia's geothermal valley, and learn about Maori history and culture on this guided experience, which includes hangi-inspired cuisine and a cultural performance in a finely carved meeting house, Te Aronui a Rua. It ends on a high at the Pohutu Geyser, where, armed with a hot chocolate you'll view one of New Zealand's geothermal wonderlands.

Meals: Breakfast, Highlight Dinner

Accommodation: Rotorua - 2 Nights

Today, it’s your choice. Hobbit fans will want to take advantage of the opportunity to tour Hobbiton movie Set featured in The Lord of the Rings & Hobbit movies. Want a bit of down time? Bliss out at Wai Araki Hot Springs & Spa (both own expense).

Meals: Breakfast 

Welcome to Auckland, the ‘City of Sails’. You’ll understand how it got its moniker when you glimpse yachts gliding around its two harbours. But today your sights are firmly set on New Zealand's national game: rugby. The interactive All Blacks Experience explores an introduction to the game as a part of New Zealand culture.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Auckland - 1 Night

Haere rā and Bon Voyage!

It’s amazing how much of two islands you can see in 18 days. Provided you have the right people at the helm, and like-minded company, that is.

Meals: Breakfast

Flights to depart anytime from Auckland Airport

Itinerary Variations
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