New Zealand Travel Guide

Zicasso’s trip planner did an excellent job. Communication and the quality of the experiences were everything we'd expected and more, especially in New Zealand. The accommodations were first rate; the highlight was the lodge in Queenstown. The guides and drivers were professional and knowledgeable, especially those in Queenstown and Auckland. We loved the dedicated website for reference, as well as the detailed booklet and maps for both countries. 

For future itineraries, I would add another day in Queenstown and a full day in Christchurch. If days were limited, I would recommend one less day in Auckland and/or skipping the drive/train from Franz Josef. 

The only complication was the day we spent 10 hours going to and coming from Milford Sound.  I recommend doing Milford Sound by plane/helicopter from Queenstown, which would also permit seeing the glaciers/southern alps from the air. The only things we missed were the zoo in Auckland and the Blue Mountain day tour in Sydney. Next trip!

It was great working with Zicasso's travel specialist, and the traveling was great, getting around to all the places. Below are the events that were cancelled on us due to the weather:

Tranz Alpine train ride - Scenic Plus to Greymouth, staying in the Rainforest Retreat, Franz Josef Twin Glacier, Kayak, and walk tour, Milford Sound/Fjordland. That's not the travel specialist's fault, but I would never go to New Zealand in October, ever again. All the roads were closed, and we ended up taking a taxi cab from Christchurch to Queenstown, and that was a rough trip due to the high winds. We should have started in Australia instead of starting in Aukland, New Zealand. That's from my experience.

Zicasso’s travel agent did an excellent job planning this trip. We loved New Zealand.

If we were to do it over, we would probably reduce the hours on buses and vans by perhaps flying, for example, from Christchurch to Queenstown.

We loved our Māori cultural evening and the Redwoods evening light show in Rotorua.

We wondered why we were collected at 8am and driven to the airport in Rotorua, where we ended up spending over six hours at the airport, leaving little time to spend in Christchurch that day. It did not make any sense to us.

We loved Queenstown and the accommodation at our hotel in Queenstown. Queenstown was the highlight of our trip. Unfortunately, and beyond anyone's control, our kayaking trip was cut short due to windy weather and we were unable to do the glacier heli-hike in Franz Josef, also due to weather conditions, leaving us with a lot of time in a much less desirable town and our worst accommodation for nearly two days.

The rail adventure was superb.

We absolutely loved so much of our trip! My kids’ (ages 11 and eight) favorite activities were luging in Rotorua, NZ, and the sunset camel ride in Uluru, AU, while my husband and I were enchanted by Hobbiton and enjoyed exploring a glowworm cave with the owner's father! We all loved Tasmania.

There were a few hiccups. However, we were very happy with all the support the Zicasso travel company's team provided in real time to help us get back on track. 

The overall trip was fantastic. My husband and I appreciated having the team support our adventures, both the highs and the lows. The team members were detailed-oriented. This trip exceeded our expectations and we’re incredibly grateful for their expertise in curating such memorable experiences.

Overall, my recent trip to New Zealand, organized by this travel agency, had some truly unforgettable highlights. The agent's hotel picks were consistently great, perfectly suiting my preferences.

Most Enjoyable/Memorable Parts: The most memorable parts of the journey included an incredible experience seeing the Akaroa dolphins, delightful vineyard stays, and a breathtaking helicopter tour that showcased the stunning landscapes. Touring the incredibly beautiful country was a constant joy. Even though we had to reschedule, Milford Sound was absolutely spectacular. Paroa Bay and Lindis were lovely places to stay, and their staff were incredibly attentive. The hotel and our stay in Christchurch were wonderful surprises; we wished we had spent another night there and one less night in Queenstown. All of our drivers were great, and we had the best time with them, especially our drivers in Christchurch – I would highly recommend keeping that company for future bookings.

Areas for Improvement / Things I Noticed: Compared to other agents I've used with Zicasso, there was a noticeable lack of personalized touches. Usually, there would be a welcome letter or a fun gesture upon arrival, and little notes at different locations highlighting the travel agent's favorite spots or things not to miss.

A significant point of friction was the communication, or rather, the lack thereof. There was no WhatsApp group for the group to communicate once we arrived in the country. There was a complete lack of proactive communication from the ground team; I only heard from them if I reached out with a problem. Typically, there's a "welcome to the country, here's our WhatsApp chat in case you need anything" message, with the team constantly monitoring it.

I also found myself having to check in for flights and activities myself. This has always been confirmed and taken care of by the agent in my previous experiences, with updates provided via WhatsApp or email.

The mandatory app download was also problematic. The app itself wasn't great as it didn't allow for back-and-forth messaging and lacked quick-link calling, forcing me to copy and paste numbers when I needed to contact the tour operator. It was also frustrating that I couldn't add my own bookings or places I wanted to check out, meaning I constantly had to switch between apps.

Finally, there was a booking discrepancy in Christchurch. After I specifically asked to confirm the correct number of people, and the team assured me the correct number was confirmed, the penguin tour operator stated only three people were booked. I had to instruct them to contact the booking agent directly to sort it out.

Things We Would Have Avoided: Staying in Queenstown was a bit of a disappointment as it felt overly touristy. Even though the hotel had a shuttle, its location was quite far from everything, making it inconvenient.

Despite these points, the trip provided many fantastic experiences and showcased the agent's ability to select excellent accommodations and plan exciting activities.