New Zealand : New Zealand with a Difference

This 24-day itinerary is flexible, starting in either Auckland or Christchurch, and can be shortened to 20-days if required. A special feature is the opportunity to visit Stewart Island, recognised as New Zealand’s “hidden gem”, which comprises Rakiura National Park. This area provides sandy beaches and lush rainforest, the natural habitat of the kiwi, making it one of the best places to observe this shy bird in the wild.

North Island’s Bay of Islands is the only sub-tropical region with plenty of sunshine and glorious beaches. Turquoise sea studded with islands is easy to explore with scenic cruises, dolphin swimming excursions and fishing trips. This area also has a fascinating history; it was here that the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840, in which the Maori chiefs sealed their future. Well worth a visit are the Treaty House, Maori Meeting House and 100ft long war canoe! The verdant Coromandel entices visitors with its lush native bush, beautiful coastal scenery and natural attractions - we recommend Hot Water Beach where you can relax in your very own hot pool dug in the sand!

Inland, Rotorua is one of the most visited places in the country, proud of its stronghold for Maori culture and geothermal activity with its famous mud pools and spouting geysers. The heartland of North Island boasts superb and dramatic scenery – the geothermal hot spots of Wairakei and Lake Taupo, with the aptly named Craters of the Moon belching sulphurous steam vents, and Tongariro National Park’s twin snow-capped volcanoes Tongariro and Ruapehu, surrounded by desert like lava and ash.

South Island’s Abel Tasman National Park is renowned for its stunning coastline of turquoise bays fringed with golden beaches and its peace and tranquillity. The famous Abel Tasman Coast Track has hidden estuaries, idyllic golden sand beaches, castaway islands and forested headlands. The magnificent West Coast is wild and rugged, with a wave-pounded coastline, the island’s highest mountains and the accessible Fox and Franz Josef glaciers, amongst the fastest moving glaciers in the world. A nature lover’s paradise, fur seals, colonies of rare black petrels, white herons and blue penguins breed along the coast, and the large areas of rainforest and wetlands are rich in wildlife.

Queenstown is fondly known as the Adventure Capital and it certainly lives up to its name - there is just about every kind of adrenalin-pumping activity imaginable: bungy jumping, hang gliding, luging, parapenting, ballooning, rafting and jet boating. Mountain gondola rides, historic steamboat cruises and some great shopping and dining complete a stay in this relaxing and pleasant town. The scenery of Fiordland National Park is breathtaking – dramatic mountains rising steeply out of deep fiords, waterfalls running down the slopes, lush forests and beautiful blue lake waters, inhabited by dolphins, seals and countless birds. A cruise is the perfect way to experience these iconic waterways and enjoy their solitude and peacefulness.