Travel Deal | Essential Experiences of New Zealand Vacation
9-Day Auckland, Wellington & Queenstown with International Flights from $2,739*
Save $646 per person with this deal!
An essential New Zealand experience with scenic train ride. Includes flights, tours, hotels & transfers all in one New Zealand Vacation Package
Highlights & Inclusions:
| |
Permitted US Departure Dates: September 2 – December 9, 2018 and February 3 – June 20, 2019 departing on a Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday only. Starting Price Can Be Found: April 28 – June 11, 2019 departing on a Tuesday, Thursday & Sunday only. | |
Choose Your Own Wellington Adventure: | |
Wellington City Highlights Tour
| Middle Earth Filming Locations Tour
|
Booking Code: ST-NZ40a or ST-NZ40c
Call: 888-359-2877 (M-F, 8:30am-5pm CT USA)
Don’t miss this amazing New Zealand vacation and scenic rail experience!
Book by: October 8, 2018
Packages by AboutNewZealand.com, a subsidiary of About Australia, a fully bonded ARC accredited travel company.
Other Departure Cities
Direct International Flights from the following cities are available!
San Francisco – Add $100+
Houston – Add $100+
Chicago – Add $200+
About New Zealand Reviews
Trip Details
Ah, New Zealand. You may know it as the place that provided gorgeous background scenery for films such as “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” or maybe you think of it as the birthplace of bungy jumping. Or maybe you just know it as the land with more sheep than people. No matter what comes to mind when you think of New Zealand, one thing is certain:
New Zealand is an incredibly diverse and culturally rich country and this vacation package is perfect for experiencing a little bit of everything on your journey.
Arrive in Auckland
Begin your New Zealand vacation journey in Auckland. The “City of Sails” is the perfect starting point for your journey through New Zealand. This harbor city has played host to the America’s Cup International yachting race on the beautiful Waitemata Harbour. You’ll see incredible views from the edge of this coastal country as Waitemata Harbour looks out over 15 islands that dot the horizon.
A half-day tour of Auckland’s scenic highlights gives you a proper introduction to the city. You’ll see the city center and eclectic and fashionable neighborhoods like Karangahape Road and Ponsonby.
Cross the Auckland Harbour Bridge and see more of the city’s spectacular sights on your tour.
- See amazing views of Auckland’s skyline over Hauraki Gulf.
- Walk through The Domain, one of Auckland’s oldest and largest public parks.
- Take a ride along Tamaki Drive, a scenic waterfront route along the coast.
After you’ve been properly acquainted with Auckland, spend the rest of the day venturing out on your own. Return to some of the sights you’ve seen on your tour or see more of the city on your own. Tip: For a truly thrilling way to commemorate your Auckland visit, head on over to the Auckland Sky Tower. At a staggering height of 722 feet, the truly adventurous can choose to participate in a bungy jump sending you plummeting 630 feet down!
And that’s just the first day!
Glowworms, Farms & Culture to Rotorua
A full day trip on a luxury coach awaits as you are whisked away for an epic tour featuring several of New Zealand’s most cherished experiences. Pass through New Zealand’s beautiful countryside passing dairies, sheep farms and small farming settlements en route to your first stop, the Waitomo Glow Worm Caves.
The Glow Worm Caves are one of New Zealand’s most treasured highlights. Follow a guide through amazing cave formations and subterranean landscape. The tour ends with a silent, drifting boat ride through a cavern that is brilliantly lit with the twinkle of thousands of tiny glow worms that call the cavern home. Think of the glow of a firefly, but with a soft blue hue. This almost indescribable cave experience definitely needs to be seen in person.
Your tour continues to Rotorua – a city that is a hotbed of geothermal activity in New Zealand, including geysers, hot springs and volcanoes. In fact, the city itself is located on the inside rim of a volcanic crater. Upon arrival in Rotorua, you’ll be introduced to a working New Zealand farm. A guide will take you around the farm on an all-terrain vehicle, where you can see how the farm works, witness a sheep shearing and hand feed the farm’s many animals.
Then, you’ll arrive at the Te Puia Institute, one of Rotorua’s most culturally-important and iconic Maori experiences. Te Puia Institute combines Maori culture of the Maori Arts and Crafts Institute along with incredible geothermal experiences. At Te Puia you’ll see:
- The thermal valley and the Pohutu geyser, colorful silica deposits, boiling mud pools and more.
- Traditional Maori woodcarving and weaving.
- The famous Maori village with opportunities to see cultural performances.
Train to Wellington
From Auckland, the beautiful Northern Explorer rail takes you on a scenic trip to Wellington, while you take in New Zealand’s most picturesque countryside. Open-air viewing cars allow an up-close look at the beautiful rocky coasts and canyons, lush farmland and the volcanoes of Tongariro National Park.
Arrive in Wellington and spend two nights in a centrally located hotel, within walking distance to Westpac Stadium, Te Papa Museum, the waterfront and more. Choose between two different tours to get to know this amazing city: A City Highlights Scenic Tour or a Lord of the Rings Middle Earth Film Tour
Wellington is famously known as the city where many scenes from the Lord of the Rings were filmed.
Choose your Wellington Adventure
You can experience a half day tour that truly brings some of your favorite Middle Earth scenery to life on a tour that is great for fans of the movies and non-film buffs alike.
You’ll embark on an epic journey of Lord of the Rings filming locations all over Wellington. See Middle Earth come to life as you see the pristine rainforest of Rivendell, the Gardens of Isengard, the quarry of Helms Deep and much more. You will also visit Mount Victoria, the site that made Buckland come alive in the films.
If you’d rather see Wellington City proper, opt for the Wellington City Highlights Tour. You’ll become properly acquainted with the city’s beautiful downtown surrounded by picturesque rolling hills. A guided coach drives you through Wellington hot spots, including a ride on the Wellington Cable Car. A ride up Mount Victoria gives you spectacular 360-degree city views of the city.
Explore Queenstown
Jet off to Queenstown where you’ll spend 3 days in this dynamic outdoors oriented city. Enjoy 3 days to do whatever your heart desires from the numerous outdoor nature experiences like hiking some of Queenstown’s rugged terrain, extreme adventure sports activities (skydiving anyone?), tours, the buzz of downtown and more. Even if you choose not to partake in any optional tours, there is plenty to experience on your own around Queenstown. The choice is yours.
An amazing New Zealand vacation experience can you show you all sides that this dynamic, culturally rich country has to offer. You’ll feel like you’ve seen it all with the diverse array of experiences to be had. New Zealand is renowned for its amazing culture and majestic beauty and it is important to see it all for a true look at this amazing country. Don’t risk missing out – let us do the planning and give you an authentic and unforgettable Kiwi-experience.
Useful Links: New Zealand Visa Requirements, New Zealand Adventure Tours, Things to do in Queenstown, Things to do in Auckland
Read more About New Zealand Reviews