New Zealand Self Drive Tour Reviews

Gina at First Light Travel did a great job planning our trip. Most everything was easy, itinerary was well planned out. We wanted to see a lot within a two week period and that we did! Our trip was based around seeing LOTR sites and I have to say it’s a great way to see New Zealand. Especially nice was the Hobbiton tour and dinner, the Tongariro Crossing trek, Weta Workshop, and I could go on and on. If I could change anything it would be that I wish we had one day where we could just do whatever, no driving or tours, maybe an extra day in Queenstown as there’s so much to do there, but we only had so much time so now we will know for next time. Also would have been nice our first driving day to not to have to Uber back to the airport from Auckland as we did see a rental car place right near the hotel. Accommodations were nice and Gina booked multiple rooms each time as we are a family of five adults, so having our own space was nice. Especially loved the QT Museum Hotel in Wellington, the Swiss-Belsuites in Auckland and the Kinross Cottages outside of Queenstown. Until next time NZ and First Light!

Danielle helped us plan our trip to New Zealand. She listened to what we were looking for, provided suggestions, adjusted the itinerary to be exactly as we want, and was available for any questions we had. Her recommendations were very good. The trip was hassel free. We enjoyed our vacation.

First Light Travel provided us with a wonderful brush stroke of New Zealand! We toured both Islands with a private driver, experiencing fine wine, food, and the beauty of the country! We will be back!

28 Days in New Zealand – the trip of a lifetime, thanks to First Light Travel

We just returned from 28 unforgettable days in New Zealand, organized by Gina O’Neill at First Light Travel.  FIVE STARS!  We could not recommend Gina and First Light Travel more highly.

Gina organized a top to bottom adventure- and activity- packed trip which met our budget, responded to our desires (and “non-desires”), and exceeded our expectations, including both North and South Islands.  Every day we did something “cool” – there were no wasted travel days or waiting-around days – Gina organized the logistics so that we never had to drive more than 3 hours in a day and could always do something fun every day.  Reservations worked flawlessly – every hotel and every activity had our reservation handy, and off we went. 

I would also say, without looking an itemized budget for every hotel and activity, that we felt we got very fair value for our money.  In many instances, we stayed in hotels we would have been too cheap to book ourselves (!), so we were frequently surprised by the quality and comfort of our accommodations.  In addition, all of the “activity providers” (be they rafting, boating, kayaking, hiking, ballooning, etc.) were excellent: professional, super friendly, safe, funny, engaging, simply first rate.  We never could have found these folks by ourselves, nor felt secure in advance that we had found the right people even if we had.  In short, Gina made great recommendations and choices for us.

Finally, this is the first time we have ever worked with a travel agent.  I am typically skeptical and usually arrange all our own hotels, cars, activities, etc.  But I can say that we are unequivocally HAPPY that we engaged Gina at First Light Travel to do this work on our behalf, so that our only responsibilities were to have a BLAST in New Zealand.  Thank you.  
Sam and Linda.
 

Thanks for all your help planning our fabulous trip.  We love your country and appreciate your planning a trip for us that both allowed us to see so much, without feeling frantic.  We would not have dropped anyplace, and most places we would gladly have stayed even longer.  No hotels were bad, all -- as we requested -- avoided boring international style (except the first and nights in Auckland and the hotel the last night in Christchurch by airport but that was unavoidable) and even the very smallest studio room, the studio at Kaikura, had a plus as they lent us bicycles for free and have cycletracks right there. I am so impressed by NZ's conservation efforts and appreciation of Maori language and culture, as well as 100% friendly spirit and the feeling of safety and public order.

First Light Travel put together a itinerary that met our needs. They organised everything for us resulting in a memorable NZ holiday.  The primary reasons we chose to travel with First LIght was the ease of planning & booking.

First Light Travel did an excellent job planning our month long trip in Australia and New Zealand. They took care of every detail and we simply could sit back and enjoy the holiday. They did a great job recommending (and booking) excursions but also gave us several free days to enjoy the different areas we visited. They provided suggested activities to do in the area, which was GREAT...so we could choose what interested us and we had a great list to start from. We will definitely recommend First Light Travel to our family and friends. Thank You!!

Our questions were answered promptly and with the perfect amount of detail, no matter how small or big the questions were. We felt very well taken care of before we even left for the trip! e loved the Opera House tour in Sydney. The Trips & Tramps: Milford Sound was fabulous! And the Tasman Glacier boat trip was the BEST. The all day Wine Tasting in Marlborough was alot of fun too. We loved ALL the activities and absolutely no issues with any of the tours, they went off without a hitch.

The primary reasons we chose to travel with First LIght Travel were: Price, Service, Ease of planning/booking and quality of information. We were pleased with quick responses to all our inquiries. A quick adjustment was made to our itinerary when we had an unforeseen change made before a tour. 

We would highly recommend First Light Travel to our family and friends traveling to New Zealand and Australia. Our experience from start to finish was exceptional.

Our adventure in New Zealand was magnificent. Thank you so much for planning our once in a lifetime trip. Your care and service to us before and during the trip was superb; we truly appreciate the call to warn us that our ferry might be delayed, and for checking in prior to the trip about which car to hire. One piece that we wished for additional communication was finding the entrance to Alexis Motel & Apartments in Queenstown: there has been road construction for 2 years there and it took a detour over steep hills to find the garage.

I've prepared a review of each booking. Happy to share more details as needed. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and would recommend the trip to anyone!

Accommodations:

1. Nesuto Stadium Apartment Hotel: great location, helpful front desk.
2. B&B @ the Redwoods: our favorite stay on the North Island. Vivien (the host) is knowledgeable, helpful, and a delight. Great breakfast, too.
3. Copthorne Hotel Oriental Bay Wellington: this hotel was OK. There was water damage on the ceiling in our room, but we had no issues.
4. Kahutara PurePod: magical and breathtaking, our favorite stay of the trip. We met the owner of the farm and his puppies, had fun walking in the sheep paddock, and relaxed and soaked in the stunning views.
5. Quest Cathedral Junction: we arrived for late night check-in, which was off-putting just because the garage was dark. We liked how the room overlooked the trolley and was in a central location.
6. Hermitage Mt. Cook: beautiful location and hotel with a view of Mt. Cook and incredible dining experiences. We would definitely return here!
7. Alexis Motel & Apartments: fun stay, reliable manager.

Travel:

1. Marquee Limousines: fabulous. We appreciated the black car service and enjoyed our conversation with our driver on Wednesday morning 22. November, Tanya.
2. Europcar North Island: seamless car pickup, grateful for the automatic assists provided by the newer model.
3. Interislander Ferry: it was delayed 3 hours, but you had called ahead to let us know so this was expected. Our only complaint was that this limited our time at the PurePod in Kaikoura.
4. Europcar South Island: no complaints. Fewer automatic assists than the first car, but Peter was familiar with driving on the left side of the road by this time. :)

Activities:

1. Auckland Sea Kayaks - sunset tour to Rangitoto Island: beautiful views and a great meal. It was quite an arduous tramp in the rain but well worth it to see the bioluminescent waters.
2. Hobbiton movie set tour: unforgettable! My favorite experience on the North Island.
3. Te Puia - Te Po: otherworldly and magical, a real treat.
4. Weta Workshop tour: really cool, fun, and learned a lot.
5. Hassle Free Tours - Lord of the Rings Edoras tour: our favorite activity of the trip and a real treat. The views were unmatched and it was perfect for a Lord of the Rings superfan. The only negative comment is our driver picked up 2 hitchhikers and gave them the tour as well, before dropping them back off at a hostel. This made us and some of the other guests uncomfortable and it felt unfair that they enjoyed this amazing activity for no cost.
6. Nomad Safaris - full day LOTR: fun 4WD adventure. Our specific tour guide was not the most enthusiastic but I think he was feeling ill.

We just returned from an incredible custom New Zealand trip with First Light Travel. We traveled with 2 other couples in a Mercedes Sprinter van (have 11 passenger seats, so very comfortable for 3 couples and a driver/guide), started in Auckland, then took the ferry to Waitheke Island (The Boat Shed for 2 nights), drove to Taupo (Huka Lodge for 2 nights), the flew to Benheim (Marlborough Sounds for winery visits, Bay of Many Coves for 3 nights), then headed to Kaikoura (SHapuku Lodge Tree House for 1 night), before going to Christchurch (The George for 1 night), and then Lake Pukaki (Lakestone Lodge for 2 nights), and Queenstown (Rosewood Matakauri Lodge for 2 nights). The tour included many highlights - landing on the Tasman Glacier, flying over the Southern Alps, Milford Sound cruise, Cloudy Bay winery visit. First Light Travel did an excellent job in coordinating all our hotel stays and activities, and provided the best drivers/guides for our entire trip. We were also given some special treatments - private dinners in the library and cellar at the Huka Lodge, private dinners at the Rosewood Matakauri Lodge, and upgraded rooms at some of the hotels. When I worked out the detailed itinerary with First Light Travel, Danielle Mueth was extremely responsive and always answered my emails within 24 hours (an A+ for that). When I first sent out a proposed itinerary to 4 travel companies for quotes, First Light Travel was the first one to respond, and also the one with the lowest quote. I highly recommend First Light Travel to anyone planning to travel to New Zealand and Australia. In fact, we are already working with Danielle Mueth on a 2025 trip to Australia, covering Melbourne and several national parks in Victoria.