AAT Kings - Contrasts of New Zealand & Australia - Itinerary

On arrival, you will be transferred to your hotel. This evening join your Travel Director for a welcome reception and dinner - it's a great opportunity to get to know everyone in a unique setting.

Included Meals: Welcome Reception - Dinner with Wine

Accommodation: Melbourne - 2 Nights

Take a deep dive into Melbourne’s art-filled lanes and alleys on a private walking tour. Spot a jazz bar or hidden restaurant you fancy? The afternoon is yours to indulge however you wish.

Included Meals: Breakfast

This morning you will be transferred to Melbourne Airport for your flight to Cairns, Queensland. On arrival join a private wildlife journey at Hartley's Crocodile Adventures. Enjoy a boat cruise and encounter koalas, wallabies, birds, crocodiles and more! This evening is free for your to choose from the numerous restaurants that Cairns has to offer.

Included Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Cairns - 3 Nights (or similar)

Get ready for an experience of a lifetime - board a high speed catamaran and cruise out to the Great Barrier Reef. You can snorkel and view this natural living wonder up close (equipment provided) or stay dry and explore the stunning reef from the comfort of a semi-submersible craft, just one metre underwater. Enjoy a tropical buffet lunch before you return to Cairns.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Today is a free day to do as you choose.

A great option is the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway to Kuranda, be amazed as you travel over and through World Heritage rainforest, explore quaint Kuranda village and later board the Kuranda Scenic Rail for this historic rail journey.

If you’d prefer to spend the day relaxing by your hotel pool or sitting back at a local café you can do that too!

In the evening rejoin your travelling companions for a unique dining experience at Tjapukai Cultural Park. Hear dreamtime stories, witness a high impact dance performance and enjoy dinner with your local host to the sounds of the didgeridoo.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Highlight Dinner

This morning you'll fly to Sydney!

Following a leisurely start to the morning it’s time to switch the tropical vibes back to city highlights as you fly to Sydney. Check into your centrally located hotel and spend the rest of the day and evening exploring as you wish. Ask your Travel Director for sightseeing and dinner suggestions.

Included Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Sydney - 3 Nights

Discover one of the great highlights of Sydney, the beautiful Sydney Opera House, on a guided tour inside this iconic building before experiencing the beauty of the city aboard a sightseeing harbour cruise sailing past Circular Quay, Shark Island, magnificent homes, beaches and parkland, and the iconic Harbour Bridge. If there ever was a place that slipped from the pages of a fairy-tale, Wendy’s Secret Garden at Lavender Bay is it. Overlooking Sydney Harbour, this pocket of floral paradise is explained by a local volunteer – did you know this was once unused wasteland? Take a walk around the grounds among the shrubs, herbs, and towering trees lining meandering paths, eyes peeled for the resident parrots, gulls, kookaburras and wagtails. Your visit provides a contribution to the ongoing maintenance of the enchanting garden.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Today is free for you to do as you choose. Why not take a day trip to the spectacular Blue Mountains for fresh mountain air and stunning scenery. You’ll visit the charming village of Leura, see the famous Three Sisters rock formation and visit a Wildlife Park to get up close and personal to some of Australia’s cuddly native animals.

If you’ve always wanted to climb Sydney Harbour Bridge, today could be your chance on a thrilling ‘Bridgeclimb’. Dinner tonight is beside Sydney Harbour. Because can you ever get enough?  

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner 

Haere Mai and Welcome to the 'City of Sails'

Today you fly across the Tasman Sea to Auckland, the City of Sails. The remainder of the day is yours to do as you please. There is plenty to see and do in Auckland. New Zealand’s largest city is located between two large harbours and 48 extinct volcanic cones scattered over the city are evidence of its volcanic past. They also provide a perfect location for viewing the city! A diversely cultural place, Auckland is a great location for marine adventures, wine tasting, forest walks, and urban sophistication. This evening meet your New Zealand Travel Director over dinner at your hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner with wine

Accommodation: Auckland - 2 nights

City Tour 

Embark on a city sightseeing tour this morning to Mission Bay. Keep your camera at the ready to capture spectacular panoramic views of the skyline, sprawling North Shore and Waitemata Harbour from Bastion Point and Michael Joseph Savage Memorial. Spend the afternoon as you wish.

Meals: Breakfast

Today, you’ll venture through the King Country region, which was at the centre of the New Zealand Wars in the 1860s.

On arrival in Rotorua, embark on an orientation of the area before visiting Rainbow Springs Nature Park. Discover native flora that grows around the crystal-clear mineral water springs and you might even spot a kiwi or two!

This evening, enjoy a traditional Hangi Highlight Dinner and cultural performance at the Tamaki Māori Village.

Meals: Breakfast, Highlight Dinner

Accommodation: Rotorua - 1 night

Your day starts with breakfast at Hobbiton, experience the iconic rolling hills and green pastures of the Hobbiton Movie Set as seen in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies before continuing to Auckland to board your flight to Queenstown. Tonight, speak with your Travel Director about dining recommendations in Queenstown.

**(airfare is not included and must be booked in addition to this itinerary - please contact us to confirm the most up to date details).

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Queenstown - 3 nights

Journey over the Devil’s Staircase and along the shores of Lake Wakatipu to Te Anau and its lake, the largest in the South Island. Travel through the rainforest of World Heritage Fiordland National Park, sighting glaciers and mountain ranges. Drive through the hand-hewn Homer Tunnel to the numerous photo opportunities afforded by the Mirror Lake, Pop’s Lookout, Cleddau Valley and the Chasm, Mitre Peak and Bowen Falls before reaching Milford Sound. Enjoy lunch while you cruise on this wonder of nature. Return to Queenstown this evening.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Explore Queenstown your way! Go wild with a jet boat ride or white water rafting. For the less adventurous there is a wine and garden tour, play a round of golf, or just enjoy wandering through the town and botanic gardens. 

This evening join your Travel Director for dinner at The Boatshed, set in the historic Railway Shipping Office built-in 1936. Restored and relocated to its lakefront setting, The Boatshed with its spectacular views of Lake Wakatipu and the Remarkables, is the perfect venue for your Highlights dinner this evening.

Meals: Breakfast, Highlight Dinner

Today you will leave the alpine wonderland of Queenstown behind, traveling through Central Otago to the Mackenzie region with time along the way to stop in Arrowtown then Cromwell, situated next to the pristine Lake Dunstan and taste delicious stone fruit at a local orchard. Continue over the dramatic Lindis Pass before reaching the Starlight Highway and Tekapo's world renowned UNESCO Aoraki McKenzie International Dark Sky Reserve. This afternoon enjoys the views of Mt Cook before heading to the iconic Church of the Good Shephard. This evening, see amazing constellations that can only be seen in the southern hemisphere, including the Southern Cross, to the Magellanic Clouds and the Milky Way. Your local specialist expert astronomy guide will enhance your knowledge and understanding of our Southern Skies as you admire and ponder the possibilities through our powerful optical telescopes.

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Accommodation: Tekapo 1 night

The Canterbury region of the west coast is a rustic union of grassy plains, mirror-like lakes and snow-capped mountains, the kind of landscape that you might see on postcards. Arrive at the beautiful English city of Christchurch for a guided visit. The city is not only rebuilding itself after the devastating 2010/11 earthquakes, but is changing the way architects think about design. Case in point the mind-bending Transitional Cathedral,made largely of cardboard, and Turanga, the gold-clad central library.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Christchurch - 2 nights

Travel north through rolling countryside to Hurunui Hills, a hill country farm in North Canterbury. Enjoy warm Kiwi hospitality with the Bamford Family, who have been farming at Hurunui since 1884 with six generations focused on producing premium Merino sheep, wool, and Angus cattle. Soak up stunning scenery while enjoying morning tea, meet the farm animals & discover what it is like to live off the land on this unique Be My Guest experience. Continue to a local vineyard, Waipara Springs Winery, where it’s time to relax and enjoy a platter-style lunch among the vines. A big day leads to a big evening joining your Travel Director and travel mates for a celebratory Farewell Dinner featuring produce from the Canterbury region.

This evening join your Travel Director for a Farewell Dinner.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Farewell Dinner

Haere rā and Bon Voyage!

We are sure you will enjoy this tour and our promise is to make your travels through Australia and New Zealand as hassle-free and hospitable as possible - ensuring that today you leave with a memory card full of photos, and huge smiles on your faces when recalling your time Downunder! Have a great homeward journey, farewell and hope to see you again soon.

Meals: Breakfast

Included Highlights 

• Snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef
• Be introduced to some native Australian animals at Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures
• Take a walk beneath the famous sails of Sydney Opera House
• Explore Auckland’s city sights
• Experience Maori culture at Tamaki Family Marae
• Spot a kiwi bird in Rotorua
• Discover spectacular Milford Sound on a scenic lunch cruise
• Explore the adventure capital of New Zealand, Queenstown
• View the waters of Lake Tekapo
• Stargazing at UNESCO Aoraki McKenzie International Dark Sky Reserve

Premium Inclusions

• Private car airport transfers on arrival and departure 
• Airport meet & greet on arrival
• Enjoy selected New Zealand and Australian wines with all hotel dinners

Inclusions

• Experienced Travel Director and Driver Guide
• Quality accommodation
• Travel by luxury coach

Dining 

•  17 Full Buffet Breakfasts
•  2 Lunches
•  1 Be My Guest Lunch
•  2 Dinners
•  4 Dinners with Wine
•  1 Highlight Dinner
•  1 Farewell Dinner

Day 1 – flights to arrive prior to 12 noon into Melbourne Airport

Day 18 – flights to depart anytime from Christchurch Airport

*Internal-vacation flights: Please note that the price above includes land and internal-vacation airfares, which are required to be booked in order to fulfil the vacation itinerary:

• Day 3 – Melbourne to Cairns
• Day 6 – Cairns to Sydney
• Day 9 – Sydney to Auckland
• Day 12 – Auckland to Queenstown
• Return airfares from your home port are not included in the price above.
• Return airport to hotel transfers are included in the holiday price