Itinerary for Mrs and Mrs X

Transcription

1 Itinerary for Mrs and Mrs X Affordable Adventure 7 July 2015 Overview Day 1, Auckland Arrive Auckland International Airport. Private transfer to the Sebel Suites in the heart of the waterfront district. Accommodation: The Sebel Suites Auckland (4*), Marina Deluxe View One Bedroom Suite Activities: Transport: Private transfer from Auckland Airport to the Sebel Suites Day 2, Auckland Today take a ferry to Waiheke Island and discover the art and vineyards of Waiheke, including the country's top Bordeaux blend. Enjoy lunch at a superb restaurant with lovely sea views. Then take a ferry ride back to the city centre. Accommodation: The Sebel Suites Auckland (4*), Marina Deluxe View One Bedroom Suite Activities: Essence of Wine Tour Transport: Waiheke Island Return Ferry

2 Day 3, Auckland This morning pick up a rental car and make your way over to West Coast and hike the stunning Karekare beach. Karekare Beach on the West Coast is known for its natural beauty and isolation. Auckland's West Coast is very different from the East. Dense rainforest, crashing surf, black sand, often wild weather combine to make this a very soulful, brooding, beautiful place. This is where The Piano was filmed. There are some very good bush and beach walks in the area, as well as an easily accessible waterfall. Accommodation: The Sebel Suites Auckland (4*), Marina Deluxe View One Bedroom Suite Activities: self-hike Day 4, Auckland - Waitomo - Taupo This morning drive 2.5 hours to Waitomo Caves for an introduction to our cave system and world-famous glowworms. After a 3.5km shuttle ride, take a short walk through breathtaking native bush to the cave entrance. There, your guide lights the candles setting the scene for an intimate cave experience, where you will see glowworms up close, and appreciate the beauty of Footwhistle Cave (also known to local maori as Te Anaroa Cave). After the tour continue on a beautiful two-hour wilderness drive across to Taupo. Stay at Acacia Cliffs - nice B&B, great views, owner is an excellent chef. Accommodation: Acacia Cliffs Lodge (5*), Lake View Suite pre-dinner drinks, canapes, breakfast Activities: Footwhistle Glowworm Cave Tours (private) Day 5, Taupo Spend a day with a Maori guide - Tom Loughlin. Tom will pick you up from the lodge and take you to a high country farm. Then you will transfer to a 4WD vehicle with Tom who will take you offroad to a 5,000 acre block of remote Maori land in the mountains. The Maori phrase Kai Waho can be translated as outdoor cuisine. It can also describe a master, or teacher, of the ways of the wilderness. For guests at Tamau Pa, on the beautiful tribal lands of the Tuwharetoa iwi, both these meanings merge to create an unforgetable wilderness experience. Tom will explain the Maori relationship with food, you will help him to lay a hangi (Maori meal cooked underground) and try it. Accommodation: Acacia Cliffs Lodge (5*), Lake View Suite pre-dinner drinks, canapes, breakfast, lunch Activities: Kai Waho "Ko tahi Te ra" Exclusive Full Day Experience (up to 7 hours)

3 Day 6, Taupo - Rotorua - Christchurch - Kaikoura This morning drive 1 hour to Rotorua to enjoy a helicopter experience to active volcano White Island. Your flight takes you north over Hell s Gate Thermal Valley to the Pacific Ocean coastline and the active volcano of White Island. Land at the crater s rim and spend approximately one hour on a guided walk of this fascinating natural attraction. Experience the volcanic fury of the main crater, view sulphur deposits, and the remains of the old sulphur mine. Then fly to Christchurch, drive 2.5 hours up to the Factory in Kaikoura. The Factory is on the beachfront at Hapuku, 10 minutes north of Kaikoura. It offers five-star luxury lodgings in the historic Hapuku Dairy Factory with dramatic views of snowcovered mountains on one side and the ocean on the other. Your stay at The Factory is exclusive, with only one party of up to six people booked at a time, ensuring you are guaranteed privacy and peace to relax and enjoy the stunning location. Accommodation: The Factory (5*), Luxury King Bedroom Activities: Tour 4B White Island Active Volcano landing and walking, Scheduled Air Ticket from Rotorua to Christchurch Day 7, Kaikoura Free day to enjoy whalewatching, swimming with seals and dolphins, seeing baby seals. In the afternoon drive back to Christchurch. Stay at Hotel Montreal perfectly positioned in the heart of Christchurch. Accommodation: Hotel Montreal (5*), Deluxe Suite Activities:

4 Day 8, Christchurch - Greymouth - Fox Glacier This morning take the Tranz Alpine scenic train journey from Christchurch to Greymouth, from one coast of New Zealand to the other. From your carriage you ll see the fields of the Canterbury Plains and farmland, followed by the spectacular gorges and river valleys of the Waimakariri River. Your train then climbs into the Southern Alps before descending through lush beech rain forest to the West Coast town of Greymouth a great base for visits to Punakaiki and the always popular glacier. On arrival in Greymouth pick up a new rental car and continue 2.5 hours to Fox Glacier. Stay at Misty Peaks. Accommodation: Misty Peaks Boutique Accommodation (4.5*), Suite Activities: Tranz Alpine scenic train journey Day 9, Fox Glacier This day long experience introduces the adventurous to the exhilarating sport of ice climbing, on the spectacular ice walls in the upper part of the Fox Glacier. Your professional guide will tailor the day to offer variety and challenge to the novice and expert alike. Before heading to the ice you will be equipped with specialised mountaineering boots, crampons, ice axes and technical gear. During your helicopter transfers to the ice you will enjoy breathtaking views of Fox Glacier and surrounds. Accommodation: Misty Peaks Boutique Accommodation (4.5*), Suite Activities: Fox It Up: Heli - Ice Climbing Day 10, Fox Glacier - Wanaka This morning travel 2.5 hours to Makarora for Siberia Wilderness Adventure with Wilkin River Jet. Enjoy a scenic helicopter flight deep into Mt Aspiring National Park where you will be dropped off to enjoy a 3 hour gentle walk through the bush and along the pristine waters of the Wilkin River. This is a gentle walk and does not require a high level of fitness - just an enjoyment of nature and the outdoors. At the end of the walk you will be picked up by jet boat for a 20 minute thrilling ride back to base from where you will drive 1 hour to the relaxing environment of Riverrun Lodge. Accommodation: Riverrun Lodge (5*), Cardrona room breakfast & evening appetisers Activities: Siberia Wilderness Adventure (4 hrs)

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6 Day 11, Wanaka - Queenstown Drive 90 minutes to Queenstown. Stop at Kawarau Bungy on the way. The Kawarau Bridge Bungy (bungee) - home to the original 43metre Bungy Jump. If you've heard of Bungy, you've heard of the Kawarau... it is where Bungy founders AJ Hackett and Henry van Ash started it all. The world's first and most infamous of leaps is still going strong, with tens of thousands Bungy jumping each year. At the world's best-loved Bungy site, you can choose from a number of options; topple over backwards, forwards, with another person, spin or somersault. Kawarau Bridge Bungy is also the only Bungy in Queenstown where you can choose to bob above the water, touch it, or be fully immersed. Stay at The Dairy - a private and quiet luxury boutique hotel. Accommodation: The Dairy Private Luxury Hotel, Premier Room - with views of the Remarkables Cooked or Continental breakfast and home baked afternoon tea Activities: Kawarau Bridge Bungy Day 12, Queenstown Take a helicopter flight into Fiordland. This flight will show you the best of this region; from the high alpine lakes and waterfalls, to the coastal fiords and glaciers. Your flight will start over Ben Lomond and the Richardson Mountains, then past Glenorchy at the head of Lake Wakatipu. You fly over the Southern Alps and the blue waters of Lake Erskine, before continuing to the source of the Sutherland Falls, Lake Quill. From here you will head towards the rugged West coast and then fly up Milford Sound itself past the iconic Mitre Peak. Now heading towards Mt Tutoko, the highest peak in Fiordland before landing at the Earnslaw Burn this location is exclusive to Heliworks, land on the valley floor with the hanging glacier above you and magnificent waterfalls cascading down the valley walls. Finally return to Queenstown with views of Skippers Canyon with its rich gold-mining history before landing back at the base. Allow 2.5 hours. Afternoon at leisure. Accommodation: Another night at The Dairy Private Luxury Hotel Cooked or Continental breakfast and home baked afternoon tea Activities: Fiordland's Finest (2 1/4 hours with 3 landings) Day 13, Queenstown Free day to enjoy Queenstown activities: hiking; kayaking; wines; rafting; horse riding; farm visits; general sightseeing etc - lots and lots of options here. This is also your back-up day for your helicopter tour to Milford Sound. Accommodation: Another night at The Dairy Private Luxury

7 Hotel Cooked or Continental breakfast and home baked afternoon tea Activities:

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9 Day 14, Depart Drop off your rental car at Queenstown Airport and fly directly to Sydney from Queenstown. Accommodation: Cooked or Continental breakfast and home baked afternoon tea Activities: