The Tour "SOUTHERN CROSS" brings you close to New Zealand’s wildlife and at the same time there will be heaps of opportunities to enjoy an adventure. You see the Coromandel peninsula, Rotorua, the Bay of Islands, Cape Reinga and much more before taking a plane to Nelson from where we start our South Island part of this tour. Glaciers, Queenstown and many other beautiful places are waiting for you.
SOUTHERN CROSS - 15 DAYS
BOOKING CODE: 'WEKA'
DEPARTS: AUCKLAND - ENDS: CHRISTCHURCH
07 April - 21 April 2012
30 June - 14 July 2012
29 September - 13 October 2012
24 November - 08 December 2012
05 January - 19 January 2013
PRICE: $ 2150
INCLUDED ARE:
-Transport & Fuel
-A professional guide!
- A flight from Auckland to Nelson
-All accommodation in Backpackers, Units or Motels - the places are unique & fantastic - each place is different.
-All Breakfasts with cereals and/or toasts with jam, honey and more!
-All Dinners! We make sure you get plenty and good food to eat! You will love it!
-Hot Water Beach
-Cathedral Cove Walk
-Alternative program for those ones not going to “White Island”
-City Sightseeing Rotorua
-Lake District Rotorua
-Secret Hot Pool
-Huka Waterfalls
- Whangarei
- Kawakawa - Hundertwasser house
- Pahia
-Waitangi Treaty grounds
- Kaitaia
- Ahipara beach
- Hokianga Harbour
- Kauri Forest
-Pancake Rock formations
-Knights Point Lookout
-Bruce Bay Greenstone Hunt
-Waterfall & Rainforest Walks
-Gold mining Walk Kawerau Valley
-Arrowtown Gold mining town and 'Lord of the Rings locations'
-Sightseeing Queenstown and surroundings.
OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES NOT INCLUDED IN TOURPRICE:
We have negotiated 'special deals' with many operators, ask us for further details.
We have a detailed list available for you at the time of booking.
-Surfing - have fun and give it a go!
-White Island Excursions - walk on a volcano!
-Rafting the Kaituna - the highest commercially rafted waterfall is part of this trip!
-Whakarewarewa Thermal village - the one village on the planet build on a Thermal area!
-Wai-O-Tapu, the colorful thermal area with the orange Champage pool - a New Zealand icon.
-Cream Trip through the Hole in the Rock
-Sailing in the Bay of Islands
-Skydiving
-Zorbing
-Jetski Tour Bay of Islands
-Horse riding Kaitaia
-90 Mile Beach to Cape Reina trip
-Kiwi House - West Coast
-Helicopter Flight and Full Day Rafting trip - Westcoast
-Glacier Hike - walk on a Glacier with a professional team guiding you.
- Horse riding close to Queenstown
- Jet Boating in the Kawerau gorge. A dramatic gorge to go for a ride.
- Bungy Jumping - you got to do it once in your life!
-Gondola and Luging - great fun and great views from above Queenstown
- Ice Bar - build completely out of ice for a not alcoholic drink
- Milford Sound - the most well known tourist attraction in New Zealand, the dramatic drive
into Fjordland includes lots of waterfalls and cliff faces. Even better by plane!
-Activities in Queenstown - ask us for more information.
ITINERARY:
DAY 1: AUCKLAND TO COROMANDEL
We will pick you up in Auckland and drive to the Coromandel Peninsula.
Hot Water Beach, our next stop en route entices you to dig your own thermal pool into the sand (best at low tide), also to sit back and watch dolphins playing in the surf. This is also a good place to try out surfing! You will have time to walk to the famous Cathedral Caves, these Chalk cliffs lie around a couple of great beaches and it is a great place for a swim!
Overnight: Hahei, Coromandel
DAY 2: ROTORUA
We make our way south and reach the Bay of Plenty with it's many Kiwi Orchards 2 hours later. Not far from Rotorua you have the opportunity to go rafting can do this here, a beautiful river with lots of rapids is waiting for you. Back in Rotorua we will go for a Tour around town to show you the famous Museums building, the lake front and the Rachel Hot Springs.
Overnight: Rotorua
DAY 3: WHITE ISLAND VOLCANO
This day is not to be missed. Destination “White Island”, a volcanic landscape to be reached by boat. On arrival you will be given appropriate safety equipment. There is simply no place which resembles this landscape; the closest might be the Moon! Take your camera and take a spare data card!!
Those ones not wanting to go to White Island will have time to do activities in and around Rotorua or Whakatane.
Overnight: Rotorua
DAY 4: ROTORUA - THERMAL AREA - HOT POOLS - MAORI VILLAGE
We visit the Maori Village of Ohinemutu, where we get a fantastic insight into Maori life and culture. Afterwards you will have time to swim in a warm lake before taking a bath in a thermal river! Then we explore Wai-O- Tapu. This thermal area hosts the colorful ‘Champagne Pool” and has heaps of craters and sinter terraces.
Overnight: Taupo
DAY 5: TAUPO - BAY OF ISLANDS
We allow for an early start - on the way up north we enjoy the views of the rural area south of Auckland, then Auckland itself before we reach the North Shore. We have a few breaks on the way before reaching the coast with magnificent views south of Whangarei Heads.
After a break at the Marina in Whangarei we stop for an exclusive Toilet break in Kawakawa - the toilets were build by the famous Austrian Architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. We reach Pahia in the Bay of Islands an hour later.
Overnight: Pahia, Bay of Islands
Day 6: BAY OF ISLANDS
Time to enjoy a cruise through the Bay, most famous is the Cream Trip - here the boat delivers and picks up milk from the farms on the way to the Hole in the Rock. It is also possible to swim with dolphins. You may also decide to hop of the vessel in Russel and enjoy some hours at the beach.
Overnight: Pahia, Bay of Islands
Day 7: BAY OF ISLANDS
A good and fun thing to do is to go on a Jetski Trip through the Bay. Then there is Waitangi, We show you round the Bay, including the Haururu Falls, the Mangroves and we walk through the Treaty Ground of Waitangi. We drive to the northernmost city in New Zealand, Kaitaia. The southern end of 90 Mile Beach is a fantastic place to go horse riding or surfing.
Overnight: Kaitaia, Northland
Day 8: NINETY MILE BEACH - CAPE REINGA
We leave early in the morning to link up with the bus leaving from Kaitaia to Ninety Mile Beach and to Cape Reinga or we drive with our vehicle to the top of the North Island.. You have the chance to have a lot of fun and enjoy a ride with a toboggan from the top of the dunes.
Overnight: Kaitaia - Ahipara, Northland
Day 9: AHIPARA - HOKIANGA HARBOUR - KAURI FOREST - AUCKLAND
Then it is off to Hokianga Harbour, huge dunes are expecting us across the harbour. We allow time to explore the Kauri Forests, including Tane Mahuta - the giant of the forest - a giant almost 2000 years old. We make our way back to Auckland, where we will be back in the evening. We take a late flight to Nelson, South Island.
Overnight: Nelson, South Island
DAY 10: NELSON TO WESTCOAST
We drive into the stunning Buller gorge and onto the West Coast. The road is one of most scenic roads on the planet; we follow the ocean until we reach the strange Pancake rock formations. We have time to go out and explore this unique place, before driving to Greymouth.
Weather permitting we have a bonfire on the beach.
Overnight: Greymouth
DAY 11: WESTCOAST & GLACIERS
In Hokitika you can see carvers working with greenstone or Jade; it is also a good place to see Kiwi birds, before passing many lakes and rivers, we head deeper and deeper into the mountains. About half an hour before we reach Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers we drop off those ones going on a Rafting trip. Fox and Franz Glaciers stretch deep into the Rainforest, which creates a dramatic contrast in scenery. There will be time to take a guided hike onto the glacier or a flight by helicopter to the top of Mount Cook to fully appreciate the grandiosity of your location. Some stunning Hot Pools are waiting for us at night.
Overnight: Franz Josef
DAY 12: GLACIERS TO QUEENSTOWN
On our way along the coast we stop at a fantastic beach and try to find greenstone. We then see some dramatic cliff faces until we reach the remote settlement of Haast, right at the bottom of the West Coast. We have further stops at a stunning waterfall before making our way over the dramatic Haast Pass over to the beautiful settlement of Wanaka. After an hour's break we make our way into the Kawerau gorge, time to go for a ride in a Jet boat and those ones not wanting to do this can explore a historic gold mining area. We then stop at the Bungy Bridge, anyone keen can jump at the place where the bungy jumps where invented. We allow time for the Arrowtown, site of many 'Lord of the Rings' locations and a great place to go shopping before driving the last few kilometers to Queenstown.
Overnight: Queenstown
DAY 13: QUEENSTOWN TIME OUT
In the morning we make our way to the Bungy bridge, time for a jump if you like to do it!
Then we allow time for a lunch break in the old Gold mining city ‘Arrowtown’.
In the afternoon you have time to get to know Queenstown, a great place to see the town and the stunning location is from the Top of the Gondola, where you also may try to go for a luge ride.
You also have the options to enjoy some of the Adventure Activities in Queenstown or get to know some remote parts of the country, such as ‘Skipper’s Canyon or go Fun yaking in the Paradise valley; a very well known area thanks to the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the 'Milka cow commercials'.
The ‘Lord of the Rings’ Fans will enjoy a trip to Deer Park Heights, were many locations can be found.
Overnight: Queenstown
DAY 14: QUEENSTOWN TIME OUT or MILFORD SOUND
There is so much to do that one day will not be enough. Endless options such as going paragliding, Canyon Swing or go for a ride on a Quad bike and much more. You may also choose to , visit Glenorchy with it’s ‘Lord of the Ring locations or simply enjoy time at the lake or do a bit of shopping.
Alternatively you can also go to the iconic Milford Sound, it is a worthwhile day Tour from Queenstown. Even quicker it would be if you fly into the fjords. The steep cliff faces and dramatic landscape with many glaciers, snow capped mountains, waterfalls and rainforest build a dramatic backdrop for this stunning scenery which you find in every guidebook.
Overnight: Queenstown
DAY 15: END OF TOUR IN CHRISTCHURCH
Passing the mountain ranges of the Southern Alps with many lakes on the way we make our way back to Christchurch. We arrive at around lunchtime in the biggest city of the South Island.
From here you can make your way back to your destination by plane, bus or train.
Thank you for travelling with Active Planet.
