Sunset over Queenstown, Lake Wakatipu, and the majestic Remarkables mountains in New Zeland

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New Zealand Tours in 2025

Q: What else should I know about planning a trip to New Zealand in 2025?

For more ideas and inspiration, see our New Zealand travel guide and frequently asked questions about planning a trip to New Zealand in 2025.

Discover landscapes shaped by the forces of nature and regions steeped in culture with our New Zealand tours in 2025. Step into the pastoral splendor of Matamata, see the brilliant bubbling geysers of Rotorua, and behold the grandeur of Fiordland's imposing fiords. Whether exploring the North or South Island, our tours of New Zealand in 2025 reveal the natural splendor and warm hospitality that make New Zealand a true South Pacific gem.

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Let these itineraries inspire your personalized travel experience

13 Day Trip IdeaFrom $11,400

Best of New Zealand's South Island

Christchurch, Mt. Cook, Dunedin, Otago Peninsula, Te Anau +3 more

11 Day Trip IdeaFrom $9,700

North Island New Zealand Tour: Cities to Volcanoes

Auckland, New Zealand

Road to Paradise along Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown, New Zealand

14 Day Trip IdeaFrom $14,800

Inspiring Self Drive New Zealand Vacation

Auckland, Coromandel Peninsula & th, Rotorua, Queenstown, Aoraki / Mt. Cook Nationa +1 more

Pohutu geyser in the Whakarewarewa thermal valley, Rotorua, New Zealand. Photo courtesy of Te Puai.

14 Day Trip IdeaFrom $16,000

Luxury Escape to New Zealand: Enthralling Nature and Delightful Cities Tour

Rotorua, Napier, Wellington & the Wairarap, Picton, Christchurch +4 more

Kayaking on Lake Wanaka in Otago, New Zealand. Photo courtesy of Tourism New Zealand / Miles Holden

25 Day Trip IdeaFrom $30,500

Ultimate Adventure Tour in New Zealand, Australia, and Fiji

Auckland, Rotorua, Christchurch, Mount Cook, Wanaka +7 more

Wine tasting at Church Road Vineyard in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. Photo © Tourism New Zealand / Chris McLennan.

11 Day Trip IdeaFrom $10,800

Top Tier Food and Wine Tour of New Zealand

Queenstown, Auckland, Rotorua, Napier

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Zicasso specializes in custom tours, vacations, and safaris tailored to your interests and preferences. From private African safaris to culinary experiences in Europe, submit a trip request to share your ideas and travel style.
2.Meet Your Travel Specialists
To ensure a personalized experience, we'll carefully handpick and introduce you to two of our top travel specialists, each with unsurpassed destination knowledge and local insight aligned to your luxury travel dreams.
3.Design Your Perfect Journey
Compare the expertise of two specialists with itineraries crafted exclusively for you. You can refine these further and choose your preferred proposal. Our unique process ensures a more creative, personalized, and expertly crafted trip.

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Travel Tips for Tours of New Zealand in 2025

What are the best places to visit in New Zealand?

New Zealand offers an abundance of natural wonders and cultural treasures that cater to the discerning traveler seeking a luxurious and unforgettable experience. Here are some of the top destinations we recommend you visit on New Zealand tours in 2025:

Auckland: The cosmopolitan sophistication and stunning coastal landscapes of the “City of Sails” invite you to explore world-class dining, a vibrant arts scene, and neighboring wine regions.
Queenstown: Nestled amidst the majestic Southern Alps, Queenstown is a prime destination for adventure seekers and nature enthusiasts. It boasts adrenaline-pumping activities, scenic hikes, and world-class vineyards.
Rotorua: Immerse yourself in the rich Māori culture and geothermal wonders of Rotorua. Witness awe-inspiring geysers and bubbling mud pools and experience authentic indigenous traditions.
Fiordland National Park: Explore the breathtaking fiords, ancient glaciers, and pristine wilderness of this UNESCO World Heritage Site, which offers once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for hiking, kayaking, and wildlife spotting.

Which island should I visit in New Zealand?

New Zealand's magnificent landscapes span two main islands, the North and South Islands, each of which offers a distinct array of experiences. Both are compelling regions to visit on tours to New Zealand in 2025.

From the charms of Auckland to the geothermal marvels of Rotorua, the North Island shares a journey of discovery. Explore the vibrant Māori heritage, indulge in world-class wineries, and bask in the stunning beauty of the Bay of Islands. Outdoor enthusiasts can embark on scenic hikes through lush rainforests, while city dwellers can immerse themselves in the buzzing culinary and arts scenes. The South Island is a vast, untamed paradise where you can witness the majestic Southern Alps, whose snowcapped peaks provide a stunning backdrop for adventures like hiking, skiing, and scenic flights. Explore the rugged coastlines, glacial valleys, and the breathtaking Fiordland National Park, a true playground for nature lovers.

Whether you choose to immerse yourself in the cultural vibrancy of the North Island or the wild beauty of the South Island, New Zealand offers remarkable journeys. Many travelers opt to explore both islands, allowing them to experience the diverse and contrasting landscapes that make this destination truly unique.

Learn more: New Zealand North Island Itineraries • New Zealand South Island Itineraries

What should I do when visiting New Zealand?

New Zealand offers a plethora of experiences that cater to every type of traveler, from adventure seekers to cultural enthusiasts. Here are some of the must-do activities that will make your tour of New Zealand in 2025 unforgettable:

Embark on scenic hikes through lush rainforests, marvel at the majestic fiords and glaciers, or take a scenic flight over the Southern Alps for breathtaking aerial views.
Savor world-class wines in renowned regions like Marlborough and Hawke's Bay, dine at award-winning restaurants, and discover the rich flavors of Māori cuisine.
Immerse yourself in the rich indigenous heritage by attending a traditional Māori performance, learning about their ancient customs, and exploring historic sites of cultural significance.
From bungee jumping and skydiving in Queenstown to kayaking through pristine waters and whale watching, New Zealand offers an array of outdoor adventures for adventure enthusiasts.
Pamper yourself at luxurious retreats that combine natural hot springs, therapeutic treatments, and stunning vistas, providing a relaxing and rejuvenating experience.

How many days should I spend in New Zealand?

When planning your trip to New Zealand in 2025, determining the ideal number of days to spend in this breathtaking country is crucial to ensure you have enough time to fully immerse yourself in its natural wonders and cultural experiences.

For those seeking a well-rounded introduction to New Zealand's highlights, a minimum of 10 to 14 days is recommended. This time frame allows you to explore the diverse landscapes of the North and South Islands, visit iconic destinations like Auckland and Rotorua, and indulge in unique cultural experiences. If you have the luxury of time and a desire to delve deeper into New Zealand's offerings, three to four weeks is ideal. With this extended stay, you can truly immerse yourself in the local culture, embark on multi-day hiking adventures through national parks, and leisurely explore off-the-beaten-path gems.

From discovering remote regions to embarking on extended hiking trails, you can explore a wealth of opportunities to create lasting memories and forge a profound connection with New Zealand's natural and cultural wonders when determining the ideal duration for your stay.

Learn more: 2-Week New Zealand Itineraries • 3-Week New Zealand Itineraries

What are your most popular itineraries for my trip to New Zealand?

Explore our expertly curated itineraries to New Zealand in 2025. They share a range of immersive experiences tailored to discerning travelers. Here are some of our most popular itineraries:

Embark on an extraordinary journey with our Endless Natural Splendors of New Zealand Vacation that takes you from the North Island's olive-green forests to the South Island's snowcapped peaks.
Immerse yourself in the diverse landscapes and cultural wonders of New Zealand on our A Scenic North and South Island New Zealand Discovery tour, on which you'll experience lush forests, pristine beaches, and sharp-tipped mountains, embracing the dramatic beauty of Auckland, Wellington, the majestic Milford Sound, and more.
Relish our Ultimate New Zealand Family Vacation, a spectacular journey that will lure you into dramatic landscapes where you'll explore glowworm-filled caves, speed through rapids on a jet-boat safari, and lounge on scenic beaches.

What else should I know about planning a trip to New Zealand in 2025?

4.8

Reviews of Zicasso's New Zealand Tours in 2025

Based on 924 verified traveler reviews.

Travel Review: Trip to Australia & New Zealand, Sydney, Melbourne, Queenstown, Rotorua, Uluru, Met Cook, Great Ocean Road

We have just returned from a 6 week trip to Australia and New Zealand. Our travel agents and their team at this travel company are personable, professional, knowledgeable and did an amazing job putting together our trip! Our collaboration involved several phone calls to discuss options and preferences as our trip was being organized as well as a pre-trip call to answer any questions. Our email exchange was continuous and responses were very prompt. We even received a call once during our travels to check in. Our detailed itinerary was precise and accurate. Every connection, tour, driver, hotel, etc. was on time and of excellent quality. While in New Zealand in Milford Sound our flight back to Queenstown was cancelled due to poor weather and we received a quick refund.

In Australia we visited Sydney, Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road ( a favorite of ours!), Uluru, Port Douglas and the Great Barrier Reef, and Hobart, Tasmania. We only stayed a few days in Tasmania but would love to return to enjoy more of the wilderness outside of Hobart.

In New Zealand we visited Auckland and then drove to the Coromandel Peninsula, Rotorua, and Napier. Then we flew to Christchurch on the South Island and drove to Mt. Cook, Queenstown, and Dunedin. If you are big fans of the outdoors, spend more time on the South Island.

Our agent selected beautiful and centrally located lodging that usually offered laundry facilities-helpful for a long trip! The travel company also provided a suggested restaurant list that proved to be excellent! We would highly recommend this company for your Down Under adventures! When we travel again to that part of the world, we will definitely call this company.

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.

New Zealand Luxury Vacation Review: Queenstown, Wellington, Christchurch, Waiheke Island, Auckland, Rotorua, Franz Joseph Glacier

We felt very comfortable planning our trip with Rick. We told him our interests, concerns and and the pace we wanted to travel at. He presented us with an itinerary which we spent hours reviewing along with a map, photos and and a website. Our primary hub towns were Queenstown, Wellington and Christchurch. We used two regional flights and two trains with gorgeous views of the coast and mountains. We took a few cruises and a private flight over the glaciers. Our River Dartboat excursion was cancelled when the drivers came down with Covid and the swim with the Dolphins mistakenly cancelled us off this trip. Cyclone Gabriela damaged Napier and the Coromandel Penninsula and the access roads, so we had to create an alternate plan on the ground in NZ. We added two days at Waiheke Island and attempted a hike up mount Doom and visits to the Weta Projects in Auckland and Wellington.Rick was amazingly helpful with changes that had to be made before and during the trip. He was the best!

Australia & New Zealand Travel Agent Review: Sydney, Port Douglas, South Island, Wellington, Kayaking Doubtful Bay, River Rafting

Wonderful. It was well planned and went off without a hitch (other than the rain/flooding in NZ.) Our travel planner is well informed on the area. He listened to what we were looking for and the itinerary reflected that. It was action-packed but the activities did not repeat themselves. We did change a few of the hotels from what the planner initially suggested (as we wanted a king bed) and in hindsight--those were the least liked hotels (especially the hotel in Sydney and the Villas-a bit shabby.)We have friends that did Shotover River Rafting which is probably a more thrilling ride through the Gorge but due to the weather we were glad we were on Dart, as Shotover wasn't running. We did the the Queenstown Steamship cruise (the lunch option) on a day that one of the days that our 4 tours were cancelled due to the raining/flooding and really enjoyed that. Also the Sydney Harbor Lunch was very nice. The weather temperature was pretty good and heard from Franz Josef through Te Anau that the substantial rain was a century event.The tour guides did an excellent job, really enjoyed our guide from Walkabout Cultural and our guide from the Doubtful Bay Kayaking (Doubtful was really more stunning than Milford). We did hit a Millers Point hotel on our first day in Sydney (nice late afternoon activity/view) and would recommend restaurants:1. An international dish restaurant in Port Douglas (best dinner of the trip)2. Makers of the best peanut butter (for a novelty PB snack) in Wellington3.Seafood and Vegetarian restaurant in Christchurch4. Italian in Wanaka (best to make rsvps)5. Hamburger restaurant in Queenstown (for the novelty) and the Pub on the wharf for a good $20 dinner and live music at 8pm

Australia & New Zealand Tour: Australian Open, Ayers Rock, Great Ocean Road, Cairns, Great Barrier Reef, Auckland, Doubtful Sound

The travel company did a great job for us. Everything worked as planned. Our agent was very helpful and always responded quickly to inquiries.

Aussie Open, 44C/111F on second day - Wow that’s hot. 106 & 108 F on first and third days. A bit cooler. Saw some amazing tennis and had fun despite the heat, suspended play and Williams sisters pulling out of the doubles.

Great Ocean Road is fabulous, though the coach tour is bit long, 15 hours, and stops at anything that looks interesting. I enjoyed it all, but Debbie was less thrilled due to the length and constant dialog from the guide. We learned our tolerance of guided tours is not very high.

Cairns was great: Great Barrier Reef was just spectacular. The tour was absolutely first rate. Fabulous!! Best snorkeling conditions ever and of course the reef is awesome. No sharks unfortunately.

Kurnda was wonderful and I especially loved the trip through the tree tops in the gondola.

We rented bikes in Cairns and had a blast riding along the coast. The hotel is surrounded by trees with thousands of fruit bats living in them. At dusk they all take off flying around the hotel and nearby streets. I thought it was great but the wife was a little freaked out.

Uluru was nice … and hot. Sunset was pretty, but we attracted a lot of flies. The hiking was a bit much for some of the party. Sunrise was early … and not as good as sunset. We had the same guide for both, a French woman, which was a bit disappointing for the wife - she wanted an Aussie. Beautiful place with wonderful stories.

Sydney was wonderful. Opera house tour and story of the architect made us cry. Harbor cruise was spectacular. Loved Sydney and the Rocks area.

Blue mountains were fogged in, but we had fun on the high angle train. Debbie screamed the whole way down on purpose for a Frenchman videoing the trip.. He spoke no english and we no french, but he loved the soundtrack he got. This was on Australia day.

Driving in New Zealand, South island was a snap. Te Anau was beautiful as was Milford Sound and Doubtful was the best of all. The overnight was great and we saw millions of stars, Wow! We Kayaked and swam in the Tasman sea. Cold - 59F!

Queenstown was wonderful, though the day before a couple from India told us there was nothing to do there. Ha! There was plenty to do. The gondola and luge were a blast and we really enjoyed the city. If we ever go back, Queenstown will be one of the cities we visit, along with Auckland.

We got fogged out of our helicopter trip to the Franz Josef Glacier. Refund in the works. But we did hike out to see the Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers. Not too bad, but tough to take pictures under a cloudy sky.

TranzAlpine railroad was very nice, relaxing and beautiful. Christchurch looked like a war zone. We were surprised at the apparent slow progress some 3+ years after the earthquake. But NZ doesn’t have the resources for a quick rebuild I guess.

North Island driving was a bit more challenging due to more people, but not bad. We got a smaller car this time and it was easier to fit on the slightly narrower roads of NZ.

The Scenic Hotel in Napier was fabulous. We were sorry we were staying only one night. The view from the window was spectacular. Walked quite a bit and enjoyed the area.

The Copthorne in Rotorua was likely the worst place we stayed. Not bad (the others were great), but it needs updating. Rainy day for the area attractions tour, but we enjoyed most of it, especially the Agrodome show - wonderful! Rotorua does have a pervasive sulfur smell to it, but I got used to it.

Auckland was wonderful. We each captained (steered) a 50 foot sailboat in the harbor on a beautiful 1hr 30min cruise. Highly recommended. The Explorer hop on/hop off was OK, but not a big hit. We did see some very nice sights.

Highlight of Auckland, besides the sailing, was being “kidnapped” by a local woman, about 65-70 years old, and driven to Mount Victoria, after we took the ferry across the harbor. She gave us a history lesson, showed us all around and took us to her favorite bar afterwards. I was quite wary to start with, but we decided to accompany her in her car. Worked out very nicely.

All flights were very good, with wonderful service on the LAX-Melbourne and Sydney-LAX legs. The latter flight was about 40% full, so we could really stretch out and sleep. No jet lag to speak of on either end - we planned our sleep times well.

New Zealand, Australia Vacation Review: Queenstown, Auckland, Milford Sound, Christchurch, 2 Weeks

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!