Spectacular Nature to Sparkling Cityscapes New Zealand Tour

Urupukapuka Island, Bay of Islands.

What to expect on this itinerary

Every day on this opulent 17-day retreat of New Zealand will provide you with limitless opportunities to discover the country at your own pace and in your own way. Resplendent experiences abound across the hypnotizing destinations of New Zealand, and you will be continuously blown away as you explore the idyllic landscapes and cultural nuances that sweep from Keri Keri to Auckland. The choices will be entirely yours!

Countries Visited

New Zealand

Places Visited

Keri Keri, Taupo, Waitomo, Napier, Nelson, Abel Tasman National Park, Queenstown, Milford Sound, Blanket Bay, Auckland

Suggested Duration

17 Days

Customizable Itinerary

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Day 1

Keri Keri - Arrive at the Bay of Islands

Your journey in New Zealand will begin in the city of Keri Keri on the banks of the breathtaking Bay of Islands. After a short flight from Auckland, you will transfer to your luxurious accommodation on its own private ridgeline of the bewildering bay. Views of snow-capped mountains, turquoise water, and rolling pastures will all officially welcome you to this spellbinding destination.

What's Included:

Transfer
Accommodation
Day 2

Keri Keri - Marine Moments in the Bay

Day 3

Keri Keri - More Marvelous Scenes to Explore

Day 4

Taupo - Beneath the Silver Streams of Huka Falls

Day 5

Taupo - Gorgeous Geothermal Spectacles

Day 6

Taupo - Glowing Caves and Thermal Pools

Day 7

Napier - Between Flourishing Vineyards

Day 8

Napier - Delectable Vintages and Delightful Valleys

Day 9

Abel Tasman National Park - A Tasteful Arrival

Day 10

Abel Tasman National Park - Postcard-Perfect Memories

Day 11

Abel Tasman National Park - Slow Living on Golden Shores

Day 12

Queenstown - Adventurous Spirits and History Buffs

Day 13

Queenstown - Mind-Blowing Landscape Views

Day 14

Blanket Bay - Absolute Peace and Quiet

Day 15

Blanket Bay - Remote Journeys in a Rich Landscape

Day 16

Auckland - Fine Dining in a Humming City

Day 17

Auckland - Departure

Trip Highlights

  • Admire the remarkable marine spectacles and marine life sightings when snorkeling among the Bay of Islands
  • Stroll through the forested landscapes of Kauri and Puketi and unravel the history that veils the old-world town of Russell
  • Station yourself beneath the pounding streams of Huka Falls, one of New Zealand’s largest waterfalls
  • Embark on adventures across the geothermal landscapes of Taupo and Rotorua, where you can kayak across  Acacia Bay or traverse the Waiotapu Thermal Wonderland
  • Allow the marvelous scenes of glow worms or moments enjoyed in thermal pools near Lake Rotoiti to seduce you
  • Satiate your desires for fine wine at the premier wine estates on New Zealand’s coveted Napier vineyards
  • Chart the glistening water that surrounds Abel Tasman National Park to castaway coves and golden beaches
  • Witness the mesmerizing scenery that blankets Abel Tasman National Park from a unique vantage point when hovering over it in a biplane
  • Witness the summits that surround Queenstown on a zip-line or uncover the rich ancestry of Arrowtown on a peaceful history tour
  • Capture the unrivaled vistas of Milford Sound by flying above in a plane and cruising past in a boat
  • Race across the Dart River between towering rocky canyons on a jet boat cruise from Queenstown
  • Indulge in remote excursions across the isolated slice of mountainous paradise of Blanket Bay on tranquil walks across the peaks or through the beech forests

Starting Price

$19,400 per person (excluding international flights)

Your Zicasso trip is fully customizable, and this sample itinerary is a starting place for your travel plans. Actual costs are dynamic, and your selection of accommodations and activities, your season of travel, and other such variables will bring this budget guideline up or down. Throughout your planning experience with your Zicasso specialist, your itinerary is designed around your budget. You can book your trip when you are satisfied with every detail. Planning your trip with a Zicasso travel specialist is a free service.

What's Included

  • Accommodations
  • In-country transportation
  • Some or all activities and tours
  • Expert trip planning
  • 24x7 support during your trip

Your final trip cost will vary based on your selected accommodations, activities, meals, and other trip elements that you opt to include.

4.8

Verified Traveler Reviews

Based on 672 reviews

Travel Review: Vacation in New Zealand & Fiji, Nelson, Te Anau National Park, Abel Tasman, Doubtful & Milford Sound, Pahia

This travel agent and the travel company team were out of this world! They crafted an amazing four-week adventure for us in New Zealand and Fiji. We started in Te Anau, NZ, where we focused on hiking and boating to both the Milford and Doubtful Sounds. We flew from Te Anau to the Nelson area at the top of the south island and fell in love with Mapua, located just 30 minutes from Nelson. We explored the Abel Tasman area extensively there. Next, we traveled (by plane again) to Russell, just across the way from Pahia and Kerikeri. It was a dream of a place, and we continued to hike, sail, and eat amazing food and drink delicious wines. Our accommodations couldn't have been better! Our travel company thought of everything! Last stop was Fiji - this their idea - make a stop in a super relaxing place on the way home back to Texas. The resort was out of a picture book - we had an extraordinary villa with our own plunge pool - the service, food, and staff were beyond amazing. We highly recommend this company - even when we had a travel snag, our agent answered his cell straight away and was on call to help us get to a solution. Can't say enough good things about him and his team!

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New Zealand Luxury Review, North & South Islands, Wellington, Queenstown, Sheep Farm, Vineyards
We had an amazing experience with this travel team. I worked directly with our trip planner who was a pleasure to work with and she put together a wonderful itinerary for us. I gave her an overview of what we wanted to do, basically visit both the North and South Islands of New Zealand and get a good overall feel of the country.  We only had 15 days available for this trip due to our work schedules back home which made it a bit of a challenge for our planner. Within a couple of days, she came back with a first pass itinerary which looked really good.  I had a slight change to one of the dates/locations and she was able to accommodate it quickly for us.  We nailed down the dates of our vacation and she was able to confirm all the accommodations and activities within a couple of days. It was a painless process and we were very happy with the results. All the accommodations, activities and transportation this travel team arranged for us were superior. We stayed in a great boutique hotel in Queenstown, a spectacular lodge across from Mount Cook, a great apartment in Akaroa close to everything, an ultra-modern luxury hotel in Wellington, a romantic lodge in Napier surrounded by vineyards, a cute little cottage on a sheep farm near Waitomo Glowworm caves and a top end hotel in Auckland on the harbor. We couldn't have been more pleased with our accommodations.All the activities they arranged for us were great and gave us a great experience in New Zealand.We paid for everything up front, so it was really nice not dealing with any of that while on our trip.  I highly recommend this travel team, you can't go wrong with them.

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New Zealand Luxury Trip Review: Rotorua, Queenstown, Hobbiton, Wellington, Glenorchy, Milford Sound, Māori Culture, Museum

We have been fortunate and blessed to travel the world and have used Zicasso to point us in the right direction. This travel company is among our top three; no, make that number one; the best travel agency we have worked with on all accounts.

Our agent and her team hit a home run. From the drivers and local guides to the food choices, experiences, lodging, and delightful and professional expertise shown to us, all of our expectations were exceeded. Truly, they care about making a traveler feel so very welcome, and the sheer beauty of New Zealand was only surpassed by the warm, kind, joyful, and loving people.

There were so many instances in which we had to pinch ourselves to make certain the magical journey was real. From the most delightful, delicious, and charming dinner with a magnificent Māori family, to the helicopter ride to Mount Owen, the boat trip to Abel Tasman, our Milford Sound boat ride, the Weta Studios, the magnificent lodging in Rotorua, and personally meeting our agent during our stay in Nelson, our two-week journey kept building more and more cherished memories. As it turned out, one of my friend’s daughters is studying in Christchurch, and after viewing our itinerary and speaking with another team member of the company, he and his wife have decided to explore other parts of New Zealand using this exemplary, professional, and probably best, detailed-oriented company.

We want to personally thank our agent for her marvelous suggestions, arrangements, and positive, charming, professional, and gracious personality. You truly created a most memorable trip experience that will not be forgotten and will always be appreciated.

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Luxury New Zealand Tour Review: Taupo, Rotorua, Tongariro National Park, Abel Tasman Park, Mt. Cook, Tasman Glacier, Lake Wanaka

My husband and I went on a wonderful trip to New Zealand visiting both North and South Island. The trip was originally planned for 2021 but had to be postponed until this year. I prefer working with an agent, and Lindsay from our travel agency was extremely responsive, offering helpful options and suggestions. Even though the time we spent on the North Island was right after the torrential rains, we modified the itinerary to spend four days in the Taupo area and two days in Rotorua.

We hiked in the Tongariro National Park and part of the Great Lake Pathway, sailed to view the Maori Rock Carvings, and visited Orakei Korako geothermal pools and Huka Falls in the Lake Taupo area. In Rotorua, we relaxed in the mineral pools of the spa and enjoyed the indigenous Maori experience at Te Puia.

The next 12 days were spent on the South Island where we had sunny and warm weather! One of our favorite places was Abel Tasman Park where we went kayaking and hiked the beautiful Coast Trek. We continued our adventures with a memorable heli-hiking experience on the Tasman Glacier in the Mt. Cook region, followed by visiting the unique blue penguins and Royal Albatrosses on the Otago Peninsula and enjoyed a hike and cruise on the famous Milford Sound in Fiordland National Park.

We ended our journey with three days in the Lake Wanaka area where we kayaked, hiked, and visited some of the region's famous wineries.

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New Zealand & Australia Trip Review: Hiking near Punakaiki & Wanaka, Wai-O-Tapu, Farmlands of Napier, Marlborough Sound, Sydney
We recently completed a 3 week trip to New Zealand and Sydney, Australia. Our travel planner and this travel company turned our ideas for this trip into a wondrous adventure!! Working with our planner was fun, easy, and totally enjoyable even before the trip began! She offered hotel and activity alternatives, listened intently to our preferences, and made all the booking an absolute breeze!! Knowing our planner was available (in the background) during our entire trip was an added bonus when we experienced a hotel booking hiccup along the way. We contacted our planner with the issue (on a Friday evening while she was walking her dog on the beach!!), she went to work immediately to resolve it, stayed in touch with us via text messages and calls, and fixed the issue without hesitation. My wife and I were relieved and impressed with the integrity and professionalism with which the planner worked.Regarding the trip itself, New Zealand is a gorgeous country with so many outstanding places to see. The travel company offered us a great mix of independent travel coupled with the right amount of "pre-booked tours and activities" to immerse us in the New Zealand culture. Whether it was biking the farm country around Napier, boating around Abel Tasman National Park or hiking the trails of Punakaiki and Wanaka the trip exceeded our expectations. When our tour of Milford Sound was cancelled due to weather related road closures, our planner quickly rebooked us on a trip to Doubtful Sound giving us the opportunity to still experience the beauty and tranquility of Fiordland National Park.Sydney is an amazing city with an outstanding transit system. Book a Blue Mountains tour to see the countryside but don't miss out on exploring all that Sydney has to offer beyond the Opera House (the tour of the Opera House should be on everybody's list; a great take!). Manly Beach, the coastal walk from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach, Spice Alley for dinner, and the Sydney Fish Market are all not to be missed. 

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New Zealand Travel Review: Auckland, Queenstown, Milford Sound, Sailing, Wine Tasting, Hiking, 2 Week Adventure Trip
This was a trip of a lifetime.  We worked well together, came up with an awesome itinerary for 6 weeks to New Zealand and Australia.  You name it we were going to do it.  This truly was an itinerary with planes, trains & automobiles.  Let's not forget to include boats, helicopter, camel and kayak.  We had such a variety of things planned including wine tasting in both NZ and Australia.  I can't say enough good things about our travel company!!!  In the planning stages they even spoke to us about where and when to go as far as seasons and which way to go whether it be Australia first or NZ. As it turned out, the recommendation to go to New Zealand first was perfect. We were saved the experience of Australia for only a few weeks and maybe being stuck there!  No stone was left unturned, even when the fires occurred in Australia.  Our impact was going to be minimal.We left the US on March 9th for NZ arriving on the 11th.  No problems with Covid-19, we continued on with our itinerary.  Sailing in the harbor in Auckland, wine tasting on a beautiful little island outside of Auckland.  On to Queenstown which is delightful and Milford Sound for an overnight on a ship.  Absolutely beautiful.  Glad we did this vs a day trip or boat ride.  We flew back to Queenstown, which I'd recommend because you have a great overview of the mountains.  Breathtaking!!  Picked up a rental car and drove to Franz Josef to climb the glacier.  We're an older couple, but this was an incredible, first-time experience! My husband still marvels! We took a train to Christchurch which is still suffering the after effects of the 2011 earthquake.  Again a train up the Pacific Coast which is beautiful to Nelson.  Kayaking, hiking and a catamaran in the Tasman Sea.  What scenery!!  Up to Rotorua for more fun.  Well this is where the wheels starting coming off of our fun.  Things got cancelled because of Covid-19 and the ever changing environment of new shut downs and what the government was asking of people and vacationers.  Starting on the 15th of March our travel agent was continually in contact with us about Covid-19 and how our itinerary was going to be impacted.  She made alternative suggestions, we made the decision to extend in NZ.  As our trip went along, things kept changing....  NZ decided to shut down on March 25 midnight.  Our new flight home was March 29, then March 27.  She worked with us so closely and was so helpful she actually got us a flight home on March 25.  While we were having fun and enjoying ourselves, this company was working for us behind the scenes.  You can't ask for more than that!!  By the way, we came home and quarantined.  To date, we're healthy.

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Customizable Itinerary

This is a sample itinerary to inspire a personalized trip designed with your travel specialist.

28,000+ Verified Traveler Reviews