New Zealand Self Drive Tour Reviews

Chrissy worked with Adeline to arrange their ‘pre wedding shoot’ while on holiday in New Zealand ( they are getting married in Dec 2013 in Singapore)

Dear Chrissy,

I really want to thank you for finding Glen Den station as I fell in love with the view there. It was through the journey that we found more locations to shoot We meet many wonderful people in NZ who let me shoot my pre wedding pictures such as Chard farm winery. Lake Tekapo and Queenstown were the main locations I had in mind before coming to New Zealand, however, your planning made it even more wonderful. Thank you so much once again!

Adeline Ng & Raymond Xu (Singapore)

Hey Verity

You made my dream of going to New Zealand a wonderful reality. The tailored trip planning was incredibly easy and resulted in a perfectly suited vacation that was the right mix of outdoor activity and relaxation. Attached are some photos from Fox glacier.

Many thanks and best, 

Alisha Hamilton (USA)

From the awesome Milford Track to the Sydney Harbor Bridge climb, Shelley and First Light Travel arranged an absolutely incredible experience for us. Way too many adventures to list, all so very, very good! 

Thanks, team!

Morris & Lynn Hoover, Austin TX

Shelley,

Just a huge THANK YOU to you! You made our trip and we loved every minute of it because you took the stress out of the planning! I don’t write reviews most of the time because I wasn’t impressed but I was overly IMPRESSED with your follow up and communication and helpfulness!

Thanks again

Steven and Kirsten Reeves (USA)

To be speaking about first light travel is like talking about a close friend to me. My association with first light travel has been for more than a year and has been extra special. I have no words to express my gratitude and appreciation for Verity, Brent and first light travel. My tour to New Zealand was phenomenally awesome and the best I had in my life. I really think it was my good luck to come across first light travel while googling for a tour company to explore New Zealand. Verity has been extremely professional, cordial and punctual with me. She patiently acknowledged all my woes whether it was money hassles or visa issues and many such problems which made me wait for more than a year before I could actually make this tour. And this made my holiday in NZ even more special. Verity sorted out everything and made an awesome itinerary for me. Right from when I was picked up from the airport and dropped back, everything was exceptionally well planned and taken care of. I was given ample time to look around by myself and relax. I met awesome people from across the world and made many friends. The best thing I did overall in New Zealand was skydiving! The fox glacier hike and the journey through the tranzalpine express were breathtaking. I was just having the most thrilling adventure of my life. Even by itself New Zealand is so picture perfect and people are so friendly that it seemed nothing can even otherwise go wrong. I fondly recall the day when Brent from first light travel called me the moment I stepped into the reception of my accommodation at fox glacier informing me about the bridge collapse between fox and greymouth. I was amazed to see the extent to which the tours are taken care of. I always felt safe and had that comforting feeling that someone is watching my back! Especially considering the fact that I was touring all by myself in New Zealand. Even after reaching home, Verity was kind enough to promptly inform me that I would be getting refund of the activities which I could not make due to weather conditions. I mean how much more can u expect from a travel company! I can go on and on about first light travel but to cut short I would really say I would give a ten on ten to first light travel in every department! My only recommendation is that if they can provide more visa assistance to people like me from third world countries. After coming home, my friends and family are amazed and bewildered to know that New Zealand is such an awesome place. The photographs have turned out to be picture postcards, each one of them. The overall experience has been overwhelmingly good. I should go beyond just recommending first light travel to someone who wants to visit New Zealand. I wish first light travel covers more and more places all over the world so that I can plan all my future travels through it!!! The sky is not the limit!!!! I would really want to visit New Zealand again and again. I have even recommended my mum and dad to travel to New Zealand this year. I would just tell everyone to blindly choose first light travel because its simply the best! Verity now I miss planning on the tour with you!

Vivek Gupta

Our trip to the North and South Islands was a trip of a lifetime, thanks to Shelley! Our itinerary was perfectly planned and paced. Our first week was organized around the Milford Track Guided Walk with Ultimate Hikes, and we traveled up the South Island before concluding our trip sightseeing in Rotorua and Auckland on the North Island. Our itinerary was the most detailed we've seen, replete with suggested activities, descriptions of our accommodations (including the owners' names-very helpful), and information about Air New Zealand baggage limits. The travel and activity vouchers made our trip a snap, and our accommodations were expertly hand-picked. Shelley was wonderful to work with. She was responsive, detailed, and quick to answer our numerous questions.

We would definitely recommend Shelley and would enjoy working with her again!

Robert and Mara

Love your work Shelly!!

We get amazing feedback, and rightly so - our team works hard to create the perfect adventure for those about to travel ‘Downunder’. 

But this is cool, look what Shelly got in the post today. 

Thanks Charles and Brenna, we are stoked you had a blast in New Zealand (and Brenna said yes)

A few images from our Fantastic Honeymoon in NZ superbly organised by Brent 10 years ago. Great to see First Light Travel has gone from strength to Strength. Keep it up.

Chris and Ciara

Hi Shelley, We would like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the most wonderful amazing holiday in New Zealand.

All our accommodation was excellent and the most wonderful congenial hosts at Blue Thistle Cottages were unbelievable. We found every New Zealander we met to be so friendly - in fact on arriving in Christchurch we asked the lady at the Colombo Street Apartments to recommend somewhere we could go for dinner and she suggested the Speight Pub a few blocks away. Whilst walking there we got drenched in a downpour, on arrival the Maitre dried our shoes by the big open fire, prepared a wonderful meal then got one of his staff to drive us home as it was still raining!!!!! How is that for hospitality! We only had one rainy day and that was our last day in Dunedin - other than that perfect sunny days.

The helicopter flight and landing blew us away, as did the Eco Tour at Wanaka (where Chris the guide had a relic thigh bone of a Moa that he had found), the Jet Boat and Rainforest tour of the Dart River fabulous, the Onsen Hot Pools in Queenstown so beautiful and relaxing, the Glow Worm caves at Te Anau amazing and we all loved the trip to Milford and the Cruise - especially David who wanted to see avalanches, snow, high mountains - he saw the lot!

We were amazed at the "value for money" of our trip and will definitely be recommending you to our friends. The scenery for the whole of the South Island just so beautiful .. originally from out west I have been used to flat brown sheep paddocks with dirty brown sheep .. In New Zealand lush green paddocks with lovely white sheep!

Many Many thanks for a wonderful wonderful holiday,
hugs,

Val and David