New Zealand Self Drive Tour Reviews

I would highly recommend First Light Travel. From the outset, Jo Taylor was extremely helpful and attentive and I knew we'd be in safe hands. We had a very short time to pull an itinerary together for our 11 day tour of the South Island but Jo listened carefully to our needs and pulled together the most amazing trip we have ever had. We wanted to experience the spectacular scenery of New Zealand whilst also enjoying comfortable 4*+ accommodation and we were not disappointed. Everyday, we thought it couldn't get any better but the south island just kept exceeding our expectations. Milford Sound, The Milford Track and the Rob Roy Glacier Trek were all absolutely stunning and after a long day hiking, we'd always return to wonderful, comfortable, cozy accommodation with great people and great service. Thank you First Light Travel and Jo for a vacation we will never forget!

Sheryl & Troy Muniz Singapore

Shelly:

Thank you again for a wonderful trip.

I am pleased to provide a review of First Light Travel and their knowledgeable travel agent, Shelly Kirk. My wife and are experienced travelers and our expectations are extremely high. First Light Travel is a boutique travel agency that designs individualized itineraries for discerning travelers. After identification of our travel likes and dislikes a nearly thirty day New Zealand adventure/itinerary was specially prepared by Shelly Kirk (a New Zealand resident). When the travel packet arrived we were impressed with the abundant information as well as the detailed day-to-day specifics. Driving distances, recommended restaurants and special information for each day were detailed and easy to understand. Ms. Kirk designed a wonderful once-in-a-lifetime New Zealand trip as the accommodations, visual sights and specialized side trips were perfectly planned. Because of Shelly Kirk’s attention to detail we saw and experienced the best that New Zealand has to offer. Amazingly we did not experience a single negative experience during our trip. With highest accolades am pleased to recommend First Light Travel and their agent Shelly Kirk to future KIWI travelers. The personal touch and attention to detail is evident as during our trip Shelly Kirk arranged to meet us for lunch to insure our needs were being met. That personal encounter reveals the specialized treatment that one encounters with First Light Travel and Shelly Kirk. Please email me at [email protected] if you would like additional information.

Again, thank you for a wonderful trip.

Your New Friend.

Allen and Geraldine Varner - USA

Hi Jo!

It is Richard Tan. I would just like to thank you for organising such a wonderful and enjoyable trip. We really enjoyed ourselves very much. Both Heather whom we had as a guide in Wellington and Godfrey , who drove us to Martinborough and our guide there too were Super. They were simply fabulous. They were the best we had throughout our trip. Godfrey took care of us as though we were his family. Very professional.

Once again thanks a lot for showing us the best of your beautiful country, those places we had been to.

Have a great weekend.

Best regards

Richard Tan - Singapore

We had a wonderful 10th anniversary trip to NZ South Island organised by First Light Travel :). Christine Goodger was a wonderful agent and arranged things such that the itinerary planned went very smoothly. She was able to adapt the plan when I unfortunately injured my knee and suggested good alternative activities to original ones we planned. We had no Issues transiting from the Transalpine railway to rental car. And the daily activities were not too tiring. The accommodation planned was also superb with friendly hosts and good locations.

I really thank Christine and the team for organising such a memorable trip.

Geoffrey Samuel & Michelle Tan - Singapore

Highly recommend FLT, especially Jo Taylor. Jo was able to help us customize the perfect self-drive itinerary that included an ideal blend of planned activities and free time for spur-of-the-moment fun. Planning, booking, and travelling was easy and worry-free, thanks to Jo. The level of detail she provided before and during the trip made for a stress-free enjoyable vacation. Having traveled to 25+ countries, New Zealand is one that we definitely plan on returning to…maybe this time with the kids in tow! We won't hesitate to use Jo and FLT again for future NZ travels.

Sarah & Jeremy Hessel - USA

Shelley was an exceptional travel agent.  Having not been to NZ or Melbourne AUS we really needed the type of expertise she provided.  When our travel to NZ was delayed, she was excellent managing our schedule and re-booking required activities.  She was quite pleasant to work with and very timely in her responses.  I highly recommend her and the firm to others.

Paul, Carolann and Grant Stickler - USA

I had never used an agent before, but Shelley did a fantastic job getting to know us first via email and then via phone, then putting together a near-perfect itinerary for our 7-week New Zealand road trip adventure! Having our itinerary booked and paid for ahead of time made for a stress-free holiday once we were there. The pacing was just right too — a 3-4 hour drive between each location, then usually staying two or three nights at each accommodation.

Bruce & Carol Oppenheim - USA

Dear Jo,

We had a wonderful time in nz thanks to your terrific advice, help, and planning of such a good itinerary. The trip was great and we want to thank you for your work in making this such a memorable experience. We will definitely use you again if we return to nz and will tell all our travel friends about First Light Travel. Your attention to lodging, places of interest, and transportation, all made the the trip so much easier than if we had tried to do this on our own. All you promised was delivered and the ease of contacting you made planning so simple.

Thanks again for your invaluable help.

Henry & Janet Capillary - North Carolina USA

First Light Travel helped me plan my sabbatical vacation to New Zealand. I didn't have time to research and plan my trip. I was on the internet trying figure out what I was going to do in New Zealand and happened upon their website by chance. We chatted and then we spoke on the phone. I told them what my husband and I like to do and they planned an itinerary for us and we made some tweaks to it. They were very responsive to all my questions and I'm glad I used them. We had an amazing vacation filled with great memories!

Victoria & Charly Baclig - USA

Jo at First Light Travel created a great itinerary tailored specifically to our expressed interests. All of the details required to coordinate transportation and scheduled activities meshed perfectly. All of our accommodations were top-notch. The hotels and B & B's typically included attractively-furnished rooms in scenic natural settings. All had extremely friendly and helpful hosts. All of our tours and guided hikes were with the best of the local tour companies and included knowledgeable guides and great local itineraries. We chose First Light Travel after reviewing about a half dozen different travel company itineraries because First Light Travel offered by far the best accommodations and combination of activities. We couldn't be happier with First Light Travel and would highly recommend them to anyone traveling to New Zealand.

Terry & Charlene Proeger - USA