The reviews and feedback found below are unedited. We pride ourselves on this feedback and hope that you will trust us to make your New Zealand dream a reality.
Wow wow wow! We looked for NZFT tours on a recommendation. So glad we did. Harriet called us and got a sense of what we wanted and didn't want, ie bungy jumping 🤪 then constructed us a tour lasting 55 days. Our tour was flexible and included time for us to visit family on both of New Zealand's islands. We got to see and experience so many things. When people have asked us what our favorite part is we can only answer that everything was our fav as it was all so different. Harriet had everything organised to perfection, even contacting us when a road was closed due to stormy weather and concerns re land slips. We did take the opportunity to meet Harriet when we visited Wanaka it was so nice to put a face to the name. Many people have asked us about our trip and we have without hesitation recommended New Zealand Fine Tours and Harriet. If/ when we visit Australia and NZ again we'll be in touch. Thank you Harriet. Best wishes Caroline and Martin Gill.
Kayla - thank you so much for all of the assistance you provided us in planning our once in a lifetime trip to the North Island. You so easily put together a trip that got us to the sites that we wanted to see without having to drive. Even when the third party did not pick us up for our tour to Hobbiton, you contacted another third party to get us to our tour on time. The accommodation locations and hotels were excellent in Rotorua and Auckland. I really appreciated the app to keep me on track for each day so that I didn't miss anything. We also enjoyed the additional tours added to fill in our trip. It was a wonderful last night celebrating at the Orbit 360. We will definitely recommend you and Fine Tours New Zealand if we hear of someone else traveling to this beautiful country. Thank you!
Excellent 10-day self-driving tour!! Sites enjoyed thoroughly & lodging all top notch. Most of all, I was so impressed by the excellent customer service provided by Petra Obrovska, all along the way. She was infinitely patient and good humored. The trip exceeded my expectations. The online portal used by the company was very user-friendly & handy too. I will recommend Fine Tours New Zealand to others who are considering a trip there.
Excellent tour organised by Harriet from Fine Tours. It all ran smoothly from start to finish. All drivers on tours and general transport (intercity) professional, informative and helpful. The tours were varied and interesting and very well chosen for what we required. The drivers were so enthusiastic and passionate about what they did (Elite Tours, Fullers Great Journeys boat and coach and flexitours). The young Maori team put on a great concert at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. The guide was very informative too. Even the driver that took us to the airport was so professional, it was like having a chauffeur. A varied selection of hotels picked from standard (Auckland) to comfortable, homey, friendly, beautiful view and amazing breakfast (Paihia, Kingsgate) right through to so luxurious I can't believe it only had 4 stars (Rotorua, Novotel). Harriet also organised the gondola ride and buffet dinner at Rotorua. This is an experience not to be missed. Harriet listened to all the things I wanted to do and worked hard to fit it all in and picked really good tours to incorporate everything. I think she did an amazing job and gave me a massive break from trying to book it all myself. It gets really wearing and tedious looking at a computer screen for hours, trying to juggle things around so they all link up but she did it in a day.....very efficient service. Many thanks Harriet and to all at Fine Tours!!!
New Zealand Fine Tours provided us with exceptional service, and we were lucky enough to have been put in touch with Harriet, with whom we had regular contact when building our itinerary. We just wanted to say a very big “Thank you” to Harriet and team for putting together all of the elements of our dream holiday. Fine Tours organised it all so well that we were literally able to drive from one beautiful place to the next with clear and precise satnav instructions, making the most of the stunning views, as well as a variety of highlights along the way. We were also made very welcome at each hotel/motel that we stayed in, all of which were of a very high standard. The activities that Harriet arranged for us were - without exception - exactly, or even better than we had hoped for, and the people who looked after us were amongst the nicest people we would ever be likely to meet. It is difficult to express how grateful we are that we could rely on Harriet for all the advice and help that we needed. Without the engagement offered by New Zealand Fine Tours, we would never have been able to enjoy our dream holiday as much as we did.
I worked with Chelsea Lodge. First and foremost, she listened. I told her the places we wanted to see and the activities we wanted to do and then asked her to add places she felt that we would like based on our discussion. I also mentioned the quality of hotels we enjoy staying in. Chelsea put together a marvelous trip that met our expectations and more. The process used by New Zealand Fine Touring is smooth and easy. They are a sustainable company, and everything is done digitally, including a fine phone app. I priced several travel agencies and NZFT was very competitive. And finally, any issues we had during the trip, such as weather-cancelled activities, she worked with us to secure a refund. I highly recommend Chelsea and New Zealand Fine Touring.
We had a fabulous time in New Zealand! Our three-week self-driving tour from North to South Island was a whirlwind and we saw beautiful scenery throughout. We were very lucky with the weather, even getting sunshine in Milford Sound. The itinerary Petra helped us arrange gave us a good balance of activities with the driving time. Everything went very smoothly. Petra was exceptionally responsive and helpful throughout the planning process, with email responses often within hours. She even helped us with a last minute tour change while we were in New Zealand. The app provided by Fine Tours New Zealand was super helpful during our trip. We highly recommend Petra and Fine Tours New Zealand!
Christina, Thank you so much! Noah and I had a wonderful time in New Zealand, and will definitely be back to do the south island one day! We loved all of the excursions, and we were so happy to stay in Hamilton after the caves in order to experience the magnificent Hamilton gardens prior to heading to the airport. We also had a chance to stop by the Otorohanga Kiwi House to spot the elusive Kiwi bird. The accommodations were also great. We were a little disappointed with the Hotel in Rotorua due to the smell -- that permeated throughout the hotel and in our room. Although the location was great, just being off the lake a bit, or in another part of the lake would have been better as it seemed the sulphur smell was absent or very mild everywhere else around town. Additionally, the driver from the Auckland airport dropped us off at the wrong hotel. Luckily I realized that pretty quick, and was able to grab him and get us back in the van to the M Social. All-in-all we were so pleased, and would highly recommend you (we actually did on our travels in-country already!), and will definitely reach out when we have an opportunity to return to your fabulous country! Thank you! Malka
The moment we decided to travel to the South Island of New Zealand we reached out to Fine Tours New Zealand through their website. We heard back almost immediately from Harriet. She made planning the trip easy. She worked with our budget and responded to all our requests while leveraging her vast knowledge and expertise. Even with a tremendous time zone gap between us, her responses were timely and informative. Her recommendations were spot on. The trip had so many highlights it's impossible to choose our favourite part. We did love dining at The Muttonbird in Wanaka - again, one of Harriet's recommendations. We've just returned from three glorious weeks away with nothing but good things to say about the experience. Thanks, Harriet. We won't hesitate to recommend you and Fine Tours New Zealand!
We just completed our 4-week trip to New Zealand. I have been working with Christina in planning this trip for over 2 years because of Covid restrictions. We want to thank her for all of her work, kindness, and patience for coordinating 9 people for this trip. Everything was beyond our expectations. The people, scenery, itinerary, lodging, and food were all wonderful. We couldn't have done it without her. The only issue we had was the trip to Stewart Island and transferring to Ulva Island. There was confusion at the dock since there was an unexpected cruise ship arrival that required the use of all the taxis and boats over to Ulva Island. Christina immediately took care of it and had us on a private boat. Upon return to Stewart Island, taxis ignored our request to transfer us back to town even though they were empty. They were transporting people from town to the dock. It was pouring rain and some of our people had a hard time climbing the hill to get back to town. I would suggest having a taxi hired for the trips from town to dock and return. The hotel in Mt Cook was ideal since the Hermitage Lodge was very crowded with Chinese New Year and parking was difficult with the large van. Our room location was great, more isolated with our own parking area. Working with Christina was a wonderful experience and would recommend her to anyone interested in visiting your country. Thank you again, Kathy and Bill Hegeman.
Chelsea Lodge and her colleague Shelly at Fine Tours New Zealand did a fine job matching a detailed itinerary with our goals and preferences for our 3 week trip to New Zealand. To emphasize their remarkable service, we were stranded in an eventual 6 hour back up from an auto accident on a rural 2 lane road with no possible bypass. About 3 hours into the wait, Chelsea contacted us(we had not notified them at all) to offer suggestions and support in case we needed to adjust our itinerary. We had been pleased with their response to questions before the trip, but this was a step above expected. My best day was the Milford Track/Milford Sound tour. My wife’s favorite day was the Tiritiri Matangi Island tour. That said, the Maori cultural events, Queen Charlotte Track tramp, and Wilderness Lodge stay were all pretty special.
We had a great trip and really enjoyed everything. Lydia did a great job customizing our itinerary and making recommendations. The only minor hiccup was an issue with the voucher for the rental car that wasn't properly in the system, but this was resolved within an hour. The team was quick to respond to flight delays and subsequent changes. It was such a relief to pass off a lot of the planning - I would book this trip again in a heartbeat! I would definitely recommend NZ Fine Tours to anyone planning a NZ trip.
It was a pleasure working with New Zealand Fine Tours. We could not have planned such an amazing and memorable trip without them. Very responsive, knowledgeable, and kind. I have already recommended them to two families.
We knew very little about which sites to feature in our one week stay, so we trusted you to pick them and lead us along. In that regard, you did a great job. We asked for lots of nature, and you delivered. We asked for an extra day in Wellington and are so glad we did. We spent hours in the Te Papa museum and even found time to join a sea shanty sing-along in the local bar. Kaikoura turned too rainy for the whales, but that gave us a day for their museum and a drive around tour of the area. The train to and south from Kaikoura was a lot of fun and a great way to spend a few hours. The true gem for us was Mt. Cook and that area. They'd had a bush fire, earthquake, and knee-deep snow the week before, so we were gifted with white mountains and lots of sun. Spectacular. We had no idea it would be so awesome. The room at The Hermitage was great, with views. The stargazing was worth a try, but not good weather. But the glacier explorers event was our favorite single thing. Thank you for including that. Overall, we were so amazed with the friendly people wherever we went, the great food (our favorite meal of the month was the Zephyr Restaurant in Kaikoura), and helpful service. We've been telling people that we're glad we saved New Zealand for the last week after 3 weeks in Australia. Why? Because you did a great job of giving us lots of guidance and handling all the details, and because NZ is so spectacularly beautiful.
We wanted to take our trip of a lifetime and I am so glad we chose Fine Tours and Jannette to help us. There were a few things about our hopes that were unrealistic and Janette helped us accomplish all the things we wanted to do in what I would now call adorable manner. Good and kind people were there to transition us to the places we needed to go without ever overstepping their place and helping us accomplish what we had always hoped. THANK YOU JANETTE AND FINE TOURS
Dear Nichole, We had an absolutely fabulous time in New Zealand! All of the tour guides, drivers, and scheduled activities you arranged went so smoothly and everyone was so nice. We especially enjoyed the Geothermal Rotorua Tour with Elite Adventures. Trent, the owner, was our guide and it ended up being a private tour, just the three of us! He was incredibly knowledgeable and we learned so much. My daughter really enjoyed the Redwoods Treewalk and I was so glad you added it to the itinerary. The Polynesian Spa experience was awesome! The views were amazing and it was so relaxing. Every day we experienced something we had never experienced before. It made us want to return to New Zealand again one day to experience the South Island. Thank you so much for making this such an incredible family vacation. You made everything so easy from the start. I will definitely contact you again when we decide to visit next time. Aloha,Tammy, Brian and Reese
It was a great trip! Everything went off without a hitch.
I would recommend this trip to everyone. Petra put together a very comprehensive trip. Her recommendations were excellent and she always made herself available during my trip. Really, really a great experience. Thanks Petra!
We had a wonderful self-driving tour in New Zealand, thanks to Vickie and the Fine Touring Group. We knew what cities we wanted to visit, but needed help with hotels and directions and other suggestions. We couldn't have done the trip without your help- thank you!
I'm writing a much belated note of thanks and praise for Christina Brockie and the New Zealand 'trip of a lifetime' that she managed for us. Christina is the best. She worked with us through the Covid years, scheduling and rescheduling as conditions changed. All of our questions and concerns were always quickly addressed and friendly advice was given. Our accommodations exceeded our expectations and suggested activities and itineraries were exactly what we wanted. There are not enough superlatives to describe our experience. Thank you, Christina! I hope that we can work together again.