It's time to book your 2025/26 trip to New Zealand (and here's why)

What kind of New Zealand holiday should I take and why?

You might be thinking more carefully about the kind of accommodation you're comfortable staying in, and your safest transport options for getting around New Zealand.

Luckily we offer a variety of options, each with their own advantages. We have summed them up for you here. We have even included some of our favourite itineraries, all of which can be customised to suit you perfectly.

New Zealand Self Drive Holidays:  The perfect road trip

Why a self-drive holiday? 

• Your holiday, your way - work with our Travel Specialists to create your dream New Zealand self-drive itinerary, planned to your exact specifications.
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• Travel at your own pace - since you're not part of a tour group, you can make the itinerary as action-packed or as relaxed as you like!
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• Get off the beaten track - in your own vehicle, you can get to places where the crowds and big coaches can't.

Independent self-drive holidays give you control over where you go, and what makes you feel safe and comfortable. Smaller hotels or bed-and-breakfasts only? We'll arrange it. Sanitised, air-conditioned vehicles? Absolutely. On-road advice and support available from our Travel Specialists 24/7? It's a promise.

Try this itinerary: New Zealand Grand Tour Self-Drive

Escorted New Zealand Coach Tours - Everything's taken care of

Why an Escorted Coach Tour of New Zealand?

• Travel in armchair comfort, with all the driving and planning done for you.
• Make new friends with your travel-loving coachmates (great if you're travelling solo)

Does riding on a luxury coach with people you don't know seem scary? 

Rest assured: reputable coach tour companies (and we only work with those) have put a huge amount of work into making their New Zealand guided trips as safe as they can possibly be.

Keen to know more? Our luxury coach tour partner Grand Pacific outlines its traveller protection measures on its Staying Healthy On Tour page.

Try this itinerary: Ultimate New Zealand Rail, Cruise and Coach Tour

Privately Guided tours of New Zealand - the ULTIMATE BESPOKE journey

Why a Private Guided NZ Tour?

• You have the services of a tour guide all to yourself, instead of shared between a large tour group.
   
• Travelling with a local guide will share fresh insights into the lives of everyday New Zealanders and their country.
   
• Your guide can offer concierge services with restaurant pickups and drop offs and managing your check in reservations.
   

More information: First Light Travel Privately Guided NZ Tours

Why book your upcoming NZ holiday with First Light Travel?

Our Guaranteed Flexibility 

With any holiday booking, it makes sense to only book if you can change your plans if you need to.

Read more about the First Light Travel Flexibility Promise.

Travel Planning Expertise... 7 days per week 

Our extended days of operation mean we can work with you on your travel plans even on weekends. This means we can respond more quickly to all your queries, and we won't rest until every detail is perfect.

Our Qualmark Gold Award for Excellence 

We're fiercely proud to have achieved the coveted Qualmark Gold rating: this valued NZ award is only given to the best sustainable tourism businesses delivering exceptional customer experiences.

Want more? Here are thirteen good reasons to travel to New Zealand with us

Our Itinerary Planning Service is Completely Free!

First Light Travel’s Itinerary Planning Service doesn’t cost you any more than doing it yourself: we get paid out of commission to the companies we use, so you don’t pay a penny for our assistance when you book with us.

While you're busy getting on with life, First Light Travel will custom-design a bespoke itinerary just for you, an itinerary which:

• Fits your budget 

• Blends seamlessly with your timeframe & travel style 

• Puts your bucket list items front & centre 

• Offers exceptional, handpicked accommodation to suit your wallet 

We'll work with you to fine-tune the itinerary until you're 100% happy, then take care of every booking and offer 24/7 support while you are exploring our part of the world.

Are you ready? Let's plan your perfect vacation! 

Simply fill out our Enquiry Form and someone will be in touch within 24 hours.

And when you do book we have created a Flexibility Promise to make your life easy!