Australia
Hobbiton, Rotorua, Tongariro, Abel Tasman and Milford Sound, Auckland to Queenstown in 18 days.
An 18 day small group adventure from Auckland to Queenstown on a private coach: Hobbiton, Hot Water Beach, Lake Aniwhenua, the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Abel Tasman, Franz Josef and a Milford Sound day trip.
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$3,799 AUD
per person
Booked with Wanderlust, an Australian travel business based in Byron Bay (ABN 34 636 612 523). We handle your booking ourselves, before and after you travel.
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Eighteen days from Auckland to Queenstown, with a guide, a private coach and a maximum of 24 travellers. It's the traditional backpacker tour: dorm-style accommodation, daily breakfast and enough free days that you aren't marched from sight to sight.
The North Island covers Hot Water Beach, Cathedral Cove, Karangahake Gorge, the Hobbiton movie set tour, Rotorua's boiling mud pools, a cultural experience at Lake Aniwhenua, Huka Falls and the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. Then the ferry to the South Island, Abel Tasman National Park, Punakaiki's Pancake Rocks, Franz Josef and Lake Matheson. It finishes with a Milford Sound day trip and cruise from Queenstown.
You get 17 nights of accommodation and 17 breakfasts, with free time in Hahei, Wellington, Franz Josef and Queenstown. The Tongariro Crossing costs extra when snow and ice mean an alpine guide and equipment are required.
Hobbiton movie set tour
Dig a hot pool at Hot Water Beach
Lake Aniwhenua cultural experience
Tongariro Alpine Crossing
Abel Tasman National Park
Milford Sound day trip and cruise
Kia ora and welcome to Aotearoa. Drop your bags at your hostel, then take the downhill stroll to the waterfront and get a feel for the City of Sails. Meet your guide at 6pm for your tour introduction, then head out together for dinner at your own cost.
Say haere ra to Auckland and hello to the Coromandel Peninsula. Hahei Beach is the kind of place that has you pricing up a move to the coast. When the tide is right, you drive to nearby Hot Water Beach and dig your own natural hot pool in the sand, then share a group dinner together at the resort.
A full free day in paradise. Kayak out to Cathedral Cove at sunrise or cruise the sea caves by boat (both optional), swim, laze on the beach, watch the sunset from Te Pare Point or settle in at the local pub.
Start the day on Hahei Beach watching the sunrise, then hit the road for the geothermal wonderland of Rotorua. On the way you walk the scenic Karangahake Gorge and tour the real Hobbiton movie set. Arrive in Rotorua for a wander through the Whakarewarewa Redwood Forest and ask your guide about the long list of activities on offer.
Spend the morning your way: go ziplining, plunge over a 7 m waterfall, soak in the Polynesian Spa or wander through the bubbling mud pools of Kuirau Park. In the afternoon you leave the tourist trail for Lake Aniwhenua, where the local Māori whānau welcome you at Kohutapu Lodge. Discover sacred rock carvings, try traditional stick games, learn the haka and flax weaving, and watch a ground-cooked hāngī come to life before you dig in.
Keep your swimmers handy: the first stop is Kerosene Creek, a naturally hot river that is perfect for a morning soak. Then it is on to Taupō, home of Australasia's largest lake and the thundering Huka Falls. Take a lakeside walk, or go all in on skydiving or bungy (both optional).
Early start for what is often called the best one-day walk in the world. The 19 km Tongariro Alpine Crossing takes you through steaming vents, crater lakes and rugged alpine ridges. When there is snow or ice, a qualified alpine guide and equipment are required at extra cost, and if conditions are poor your guide has other great walks in the national park ready to go.
Roll into Wellington, the coolest little capital in the world. Cuba Street and Courtenay Place are packed with restaurants and bars, and there are craft breweries, a cable car, Oriental Parade and Mt Victoria for panoramic views. Wellington is proud of its cafe scene, so make time for a coffee.
A free day in the capital. Browse Te Papa, climb Mt Victoria for the views, find Parliament and the Beehive, or work your way through the cafes and shops. Weta Workshop is optional.
Board the Cook Strait ferry and cruise across to Picton, the gateway to the South Island, keeping the camera ready for the run through the Marlborough Sounds. From Picton you drive through Marlborough to Marahau, where your accommodation sits right on the edge of Abel Tasman National Park. Stargazing and optional wine tasting are on offer in the evening.
Count yourself lucky: a full day in New Zealand's most popular national park. A water taxi takes you to Anchorage Bay past golden sand beaches and brilliant blue water, where you picnic on the beach and check out Cleopatra's Pools, moss-lined freshwater pools with a natural water slide. Then walk about 4 hours back, stopping for photos and swims in secluded bays. Kayaking, sailing, skydiving and canyoning are optional.
Buckle up for a big day down the wild West Coast, through Buller Gorge on a stretch of road named one of the world's top drives. Phone reception is patchy, but you will not need it with views like these. Stop at the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and blowholes, then roll into Franz Josef, set in the rainforest, for a group dinner at your accommodation.
Ice, ice baby. Take a short drive to the start of the track, then hike through native bush and across glacial streams to the terminal face of Franz Josef Glacier for incredible photos. Prefer to rest? Soak in one of the largest spa pools in New Zealand at the Retreat. A heli hike and a kayak across Lake Mapourika are optional.
A scenic day with plenty of photo stops. First up is the mirror-like Lake Matheson for a short walk, then you head inland over the Haast Pass and along Lake Hawea into Queenstown. Once settled, explore the lakeside resort, which has over 100 clubs and bars to choose from.
Two full days in the adventure capital. Pick your own adventure: bungy, swing, jet boating, skydiving, mountain biking, ziplining and horse riding are all optional, or hike Ben Lomond, Queenstown Hill or Bob's Peak for free. Add the nightlife and mountain scenery and it is easy to see why backpackers struggle to leave.
Day two of your Queenstown free time. Keep ticking off bucket-list activities, hike one of the iconic peaks, take the TSS Earnslaw cruise across Lake Wakatipu, head to Arrowtown for a gold rush wander, or just chill on the lakefront and recover.
Hop on the coach for the scenic drive to world-famous Milford Sound, then board a boat and cruise past Mitre Peak and lush rainforest, with waterfalls thundering down if it has been raining. Fur seals, penguins and dolphins are all possible. The Milford Sound day trip and cruise is part of your tour, and you are back in Queenstown for the evening.
Your adventure ends after breakfast. Say goodbye to your guide and your new travel mates.
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Public reviews of the operator who runs this tour on the ground.
"What an adventure!! Fantastic from start to finish. Our group had a wide age range but we laughed so much throughout the trip."
Colette B
Tripadvisor review
"I had an awesome time, everyday was a new adventure and I saw a lot of beautiful places! Also our tourguide … was great, thanks to his constant fun facts and surprise stops, the long bus rides never got boring. He’s a super funny and kind person! I can definitely recommend the trip, you will have the time of your life!"
Tina G
Tripadvisor review
"Stunning scenery, interesting activities and a driver guide who was knowledgeable and had a great energy and made me fall in love with his country."
Leone K
Tripadvisor review
Traveller reviews, source shown on each · shown as excerpts.
New Zealand
9 days · 8 nights
4.9 (575 · Trustpilot)
Auckland to Wellington
6 meals included
$1999 AUD
≈ $222/day
New Zealand
9 days · 8 nights
4.9 (575 · Trustpilot)
Christchurch to Queenstown
7 meals included
$1999 AUD
≈ $222/day
New Zealand
17 days · 16 nights
4.9 (575 · Trustpilot)
Auckland to Queenstown
13 meals included
$4399 AUD
≈ $259/day
From
$3799
