Luxury New Zealand Vacation Review: Rotorua Ziplining, Waitomo Caves Black Water Rafting, Tongoriro National Park Hiking, Hobbiton

We had the trip of a lifetime with lots of great activities. We booked our own air, but hotels and excursions were booked by this New Zealand travel agency. We expressed a desire to do some activities that for 50+ would be considered "extreme". We did some zip lining, black water rafting in the Glow Worm caves in New Zealand, white water rafting, jet boating, and hiking. We also were able to enjoy some of the Maori culture. We rented a motorcycle a traveled the North Island and got to most of the "must see" stops. The hike was 15 miles long and a little too physically demanding for us, but we were able to finish and wouldn't have given up having the experience. The chateau in Tongoriro National Park was a bit too stuffy for us. Very much centered around British culture with High Tea served. We had a tough time because the lift was broken and we were so sore from the hike that it was extremely difficult to navigate the steps. Lastly, our flight itinerary called for a layover for almost a full day in Sydney. I have a friend that lives there and she was going to take us on a harbor cruise. I asked my travel agent if I needed to do anything special in order to leave the Sydney airport for the day. She indicated that there was not. Upon arrival, we got all the way through customs and were turned away because we did not have a VISA. So instead of spending a glorious day with a friend who took the day off from work to entertain us, we got to sit in the airport doing nothing. This was extremely disappointing. We truly had a great trip. The hotels were OK. The excursions were terrific. Not sure that I would use this agency again though.