Highlights

• All inclusive
• 14 Days/13 Nights
• Fully escorted modern coach travel
• 4 star accommodations
• Hotel porterage (we’ll handle your luggage for you!)
• 3 cruises included
• Personalized meet and greet

Inclusions

• Accommodation – Christchurch – Distinction Christchurch Hotel (1 Night), Twizel – Distinction MacKenzie Country Hotel (1), Dunedin – Scenic Hotel Southern Cross (1), Te Anau – Distinction Luxmore Lake Te Anau (Deluxe Room) (1), Queenstown – Millennium Hotel Queenstown (2), Franz Josef – Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier (Douglas Wing) (1), Christchurch – Sudima Christchurch Airport Hotel (1), Wellington – James Cook Hotel Grand Chancellor (Executive Room) (2), Rotorua – Pullman Rotorua (City View Room) (2), Auckland – Sudima Auckland City (1)
• Meals – 13 cooked breakfasts including a specialty breakfast: Stratosfare Restaurant, Rotorua; 11 sumptuous dinners including complimentary pre-dinner drink at the Welcome Dinner and 3 specialty dinners: Walter Peak Homestead, Queenstown; Mãori Hãngi and Concert, Rotorua; Farewell Dinner including pre-dinner drink, Auckland; 1 lunch: Milford Sound Cruise; 1 delicious Devonshire Tea: Larnach Castle
• Day Tours – Christchurch: City Sights Tour; Dunedin: City Sights Tour, Larnach Castle and Devonshire Tea; Milford Sound: Cruise & Picnic Lunch; Queenstown: Cruise Lake Wakatipu on the TSS Earnslaw; Arrowtown: Lakes District Museum; Scenic TranzAlpine Rail Journey; Picton: Cruise on the Interislander Ferry; Wellington: Te Papa National Museum of New Zealand, City Sights Tour; Rotorua: Skyline Rotorua Gondola & Luge Ride, Agrodome, Te Puia Geothermal Wonders, Traditional Maori Hangi & Concert, Hobbiton Movie Set Tour; Auckland: City Sights Tour
• Transfers – Airport to Hotel and Hotel to Airport

Tour Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive Christchurch

On arrival into Christchurch you will be met by your tour director and transferred to your hotel. This evening meet your Tour Leader and traveling companions.

Hotel Distinction Christchurch Hotel

Dinner included

Day 2: Christchurch – Aoraki/Mt Cook – Twizel

After an introductory city sights tour depart Christchurch and travel through the southern Canterbury Plains to Lake Tekapo. See the brilliant turquoise water, visit The Church of the Good Shepherd and view the Sheep Dog Statue. Marvel at the spectacular mountain ranges including Mt Cook, New Zealand’s highest peak. The opportunity is available (time and weather permitting) to enjoy a scenic flight (optional) over the Southern Alps before traveling to Twizel.

Hotel Distinction MacKenzie Country Hotel

Breakfast & Dinner included

Day 3: Twizel – Dunedin

Depart Twizel and see Lake Benmore, before following the Waitaki River to Oamaru, famous for its limestone. Continue south to Dunedin and enjoy a city sights tour followed by some free time.

Hotel Scenic Hotel Southern Cross

Breakfast & Dinner included

Day 4: Dunedin – Te Anau

This morning travel out along the Otago Peninsula to Larnach Castle where you hear of the tragic and scandalous history on a guided tour. Enjoy time to wander around this Garden of International Significance followed by a delicious Devonshire Tea. Farewell Dunedin and travel through Balclutha and Gore to Te Anau, gateway to Fiordland and your overnight stay. Today you may like to visit the Te Anau Glow Worm Caves (optional).

Hotel Distinction Luxmore Lake Te Anau Hotel (Deluxe Room)

Breakfast & Dinner included

Day 5: Te Anau – Milford Sound – Queenstown

Depart Te Anau for a fascinating drive to Milford Sound where you board your launch for a cruise on this magnificent fiord. See the spectacular Bowen Falls and towering Mitre Peak as you enjoy a picnic lunch. This afternoon travel to Queenstown, overlooking magical Lake Wakatipu. Spend the next two nights at this year round resort which offers a wide range of activities and attractions. This evening is free and you may choose to dine at one of the many fine restaurants.

Hotel Millennium Hotel Queenstown (2 nights)

Breakfast & Lunch included

Day 6: Queenstown

Today is a free day for you to explore Queenstown at leisure. Your Coach Captain & Tour Guide are available to assist with the many sightseeing options available, including the thrill of a jet boat ride, a heritage tour to Skippers Canyon or get up close to a Kiwi bird. This evening board the vintage steamship TSS Earnslaw and cruise across Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak Station. Sit back, relax and enjoy a gourmet barbecue dinner which the chef will prepare in front of you at the Colonel’s Homestead. After dinner enjoy a short farm tour then reboard the TSS Earnslaw for a sing along by the piano as you cruise back to Queenstown.

Breakfast & Specialty Dinner included

Day 7: Queenstown – Arrowtown – Franz Josef

Travel to Arrowtown and visit the Lakes District Museum. Continue via the Haast Pass to the mighty West Coast. See the snow capped peaks of the Southern Alps as you travel north to the township of Fox Glacier. Time is available (weather permitting) to experience a scenic flight (optional) over the spectacular glaciers.

Hotel Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier (Douglas Wing)

Breakfast & Dinner included

Day 8: Franz Josef – Arthur’s Pass – Christchurch

Travel to Hokitika and visit the Greenstone Factory. Continue into Arthur’s Pass and board the TranzAlpine, renowned as one of the great train journeys of the world. View rivers and valleys as you travel through the Waimakariri Basin, over massive viaducts and through the patchwork farmlands of the Canterbury Plains to the elegant city of Christchurch. On arrival your coach will be waiting to transfer you to your hotel.

Hotel Sudima Christchurch Airport

Breakfast & Dinner included

Day 9: Christchurch – Picton – Wellington

Travel along the East Coast to the seaside village of Kaikoura. Enjoy the spectacular scenery as you travel through Marlborough Country, famous for its food and wine. Continue to Picton, where you will board the Interislander Ferry for your journey through the Marlborough Sounds and across Cook Strait to Wellington.

Hotel James Cook Hotel Grand Chancellor (Executive Room) (2 nights)

Breakfast & Dinner included

Day 10: Wellington

A highlight this morning will be time to explore Te Papa, New Zealand’s National Museum with exhibits that embrace both Maori and European views. Reboard your coach for an extensive city tour which showcases the history and culture on show. Enjoy free time this afternoon and this evening is also free to choose your own dining arrangements.

Breakfast included

Day 11: Wellington – Taupo – Rotorua

Depart Wellington and view the snow capped peaks of Mt Ruapehu and Mt Tongariro as you travel to Lake Taupo. Visit the spectacular Huka Falls then travel along the Thermal Explorer Highway to the geothermal wonderland of Rotorua.

Hotel Pullman Rotorua (City View Room) (2 nights)

Breakfast & Dinner included

Day 12: Rotorua

Today begins with a gondola ride and breakfast at the Skyline Rotorua. There is also time for a luge ride! Next stop is Agrodome for an action packed hour of farming entertainment and education that’s unlike anything you’ve seen before. Visit Te Puia to see the boiling mud pools and awesome geysers that Rotorua is famous for. Enjoy some free time this afternoon. This evening experience an entertaining Maori cultural performance followed by a delicious Hãngi meal.

Breakfast & Specialty Dinner included

Day 13: Rotorua – Auckland

This morning depart Rotorua and travel through the picturesque countryside to Hobbiton for a guided tour of the Movie Set from The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies. Your guide will recount details of how this beautiful piece of farmland was transformed into The Shire from Middle Earth. Continue north to Auckland for an orientation tour. This evening enjoy a pre-dinner drink with your new friends at the farewell dinner.

Hotel Sudima Auckland City

Breakfast & Specialty Dinner included

Day 14: Depart Auckland

Time to say goodbye. You’ll be transferred to the airport for your flight home after a memorable New Zealand holiday.

Breakfast included