New Zealand Self Drive Tour Reviews

Confident from the get-go, Micala and the team at First Light Travel helped us plan a vacation that we will always remember! Your Service, Your consultant, Ease of planning/booking, Unique travel products, Quality of information made it the right choice for me to choose First Light. I loved the unique Maori experience in Rotorua with the cultural exposure and the Hangi meal, the itinerary was perfect. Thank you for the memories.

Shirley Capel, Malaysia

Tracy, Anne, and Michelle did such a great job putting together our 49-day trip to New Zealand.  We traveled from the north end of the North Island most of the way to the south end of the South Island.  Most of that time was with wonderful, knowledgeable private drivers.  We stayed in amazing hotels and estates with fantastic chefs.  Along the way, we landed on Mount Tarawera, a volcano that erupted in 1886, and visited a Māori village that was excavated after the eruption; we went on a private tour of Te Papa Tongarewa with a Māori elder, and were the only two visitors that day invited to view their behind the scenes collections of Māori taonga (treasures); we spent 90 minutes in Footwhistle Cave photographing glowworms with the father of the cave owner; we walked through Hobbiton; the docents at museums in three smalls towns opened their museums for us; and we spent a couple of hours with a dinosaur hunter, who has an extinct species of shark named after him, viewing the K-T Boundary, the iridium-rich layer of dust left behind after the Chicxulub asteroid strike in the Yucatán Peninsula.  When we got home, friends and family asked us our favorite thing on our trip.  There was absolutely no way to answer.  We never ran out of things to do.  Each day was full of amazing experiences!

Thank you Gina and First Light Travel for a dream come true! My husband was stationed in NZ when he was in the US Navy many years ago and raved of its beauty ever since. He finally got to share it with me. Gorgeous country and gracious people. Our favorite spot was Mt. Cook. Your detailed arrangements, including driving times and reminders, were appreciated. The accommodations selected were clean, comfy and perfect for us. We tell everyone: the visit was worth the long flight and if you want to go, make sure you call Gina at First Light Travel!

Gay & Gregory Laubert USA

Working with First Light was wonderful. They custom built our trip to New Zealand and Australia and followed through with all of our requests. Their correspondence once prompt and working with Michelle was a joy. We chose to visit New Zealand for 2 weeks and Australia for one week. We let Michelle know our thoughts of what to visit and she put together an itinerary for us. We were able to blend our own planning with some of her professional thoughts. FirstLight set up our car rental and our hotels and some of our tour packages. All of these plans went smoothly once on our trip. I highly recommend using this company for your New Zealand and Australia adventures.”

Denise and Dennis Riley (USA)

Hi Jaimee, 

Our last day travelling back to Perth today , I want to thank you and your team for a great holiday. Also for sorting out the issues of transport between the islands. We have had an amazing time experiencing the wonderful golf courses, accommodation and activities that you’ve planned for us.

We will certainly recommend and already have anyone that wants to visit NZ. More than happy for you to put this email on your website 

Thanks again 

David and Margaret Beer, Australia

Hi Michelle, Doug & I had the most amazing trip!!! Thank you for working with us to create an itinerary took us to so many wonderful places and experiences. This trip would not have happened without you. When we began planning the trip you talked to us on the phone. You listened well and were able to adjust your generic itinerary to fit us. We enjoyed all the excursions. I can't pick out which one I liked best. The accommodations (except the one in Methven) were great! In addition, you were available to help us when adjustments had to be made due to cyclone Gabrielle. We've got some great memories and pictures. Thank you so much!!!

Dianna & Doug, USA

Hi Michelle,

We made it home with only minor delays in Vancouver.

Thank you so much for making our trip so memorable. We had a great time. You and your team did a fantastic job especially when our ferry to South Island was cancelled. This could have ruined our vacation if not for your prompt adjustments to our schedule. The changes caused very minor disruption and in fact enhanced our trip. Lorraine very much enjoyed the Coastal Pacific rail journey.

All arrangements went without a hitch and accommodation was surprisingly good. All our excursions with your partners were excellent and the weather was very cooperative.

We are so glad we went with First Light Travel. Such a professional company with great staff. You made our trip.

Many thanks,

Chris and Lorraine, Canada

We had a fantastic honeymoon thanks to Michelle! She worked with us to personalize it to our wants within budget. Michelle, was also great about making sure all vendors knew we were on our honeymoon. Most of our hotels had champagne waiting for us. We will definitely be turning to FirstLight again in the future!

Lani & Stone USA

We enjoyed our holiday very much overall and thank you very much for your efforts and making changes. It was very unfortunate that we couldn’t go to Napier but we had a great holiday nonetheless and it was great to meet you in Auckland.

We will have to plan a return visit to your beautiful country.

Annie and Neville Filar (UK)

Perfect itinerary. Easy to work with our agent. Very accommodating. Very fair pricing.

Scott Kalish & John Budin, USA