Luxury New Zealand Birthday Review: Queenstown Bungee Jumping, Marlboro Wine Tour, Fox & Hans Josef Glacier Helicopter Tour

Review by traveler

karthik m.

1.19.2015

General Info

Traveler Review

Which Country (Countries) did you visit on this trip?

New Zealand

Your overall comments on the trip and the travel company:

We had a wonderful trip to New Zealand thanks to this New Zealand travel agency and our travel specialist. We had worked very closely with our apecialist in outlining our needs, budget and interests and she did a good job putting together an itinerary that was fun, that allowed us to explore our interests and that resulted in a memorable trip for my wife and I.

I had already done a lot of research myself on NZ and the things that I had wanted to see. I usually book trips myself using online tools and this was one of the few instances when I decided to use an agent and am glad I did so. Our agent rightfully noted that my agenda was too ambitious for two weeks and that I needed to drop a few places. She suggested a few activities that we had not heard of before like zorbing and her local knowledge certainly helped a lot and her planning and execution were spot on.

On arrival in Auckland, NZ, a professional booklet was waiting for us with a detailed daily itinerary along with vouchers, suggestions for places to visit , brief descriptions of the regions we were visiting etc. which was priceless! We religiously referred to it every day of our trip bracing ourselves for what lay ahead the next day :)

All in all a fantastic road trip that made my b'day celebration a memorable experience!

What were the most enjoyable or memorable parts of your trip?

Our trip to NZ included several memorable parts but if I had to pick a few must do's, it would be the following

Bungy jumping in Queenstown ( Our first time and awesome..we did the one at A J Hackett's in Kuwarahu River)
Scenic drive from Queenstown to Glenora ( gorgeous 'postcard' like views, the best I have seen across both islands)
Wines in the Marlboro region ( Simply superb white's and surprisingly even the red's and trust me I am a wine aficionado and know a thing or two about wines ;)
Drive from TeAnau to Milford Sound ( stunning views, waterfalls, hikes)
Helicopter views of Fox Glacier and Hans Josef
Hiking through Lake Matheson near Fox Glacier - stunning views of Mt Cook with great reflections on a clear day
Activities (If you are into this sort of thing)
- Sea kayaking in Nelson (Tasman National Park)
- River Rafting in Queenstown - skipper's canyon
- Zorbing in Rotorua ( fun , first time activity that involves rolling down a hill in a ball filled with water)
- Whale watching in Kaikora ( Beautiful coastal town with lovely views)
- Visit to the sets of Hobbitton ( Lord of the Rings movie sets: You will appreciate the level of detail that went into creating middle earth!)
- Hiking up the two glaciers
Food ( lamb burgers are a must if you eat meat!)

If you could take your trip again, what would you do differently?

I'd skip the recommendation of wine tasting in Nelson and instead focus on the Marlboro region with its spectacular wines. I may have also chosen to spend a night near Marlboro given my keen appreciation of vino ;)

The rest of the itinerary was great. It did involve a new hotel almost each night but in two weeks with so much road to cover there's not much you can do to avoid that.

I accidentally discovered Lake Matheson courtesy the guests in our B&B in Fox Glacier. I'd definitely recommend that to other travelers as a must see.

Photos

Luxury New Zealand Birthday Review: Queenstown Bungee Jumping, Marlboro Wine Tour, Fox & Hans Josef Glacier Helicopter Tour

General Info

Which Country (Countries) did you visit on this trip?

Your overall comments on the trip and the travel company:

What were the most enjoyable or memorable parts of your trip?

If you could take your trip again, what would you do differently?

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