Haka Tours – New Zealand
New Zealand Adventure Touring with Haka Tours
How our customers have molded us
Feb 24th
About 2-3 months ago I set out to structure the initial ideas behind our latest New Zealand Adventure Tours brochure (click here), which is finally off to the printers this week. As a team, we felt it important to focus the attention not on ourselves, but on all the great people that have come along for the adventure since we first began operating in 2007. These are the people that have ultimately made our tours what they are today. So our brochure is full of tour member comments and only contains photos taken by them or our tour guides.
This is a quick summary of how our clients have molded us into one of New Zealand’s top operators – proof that we really do take notice of those good ol’ Feedback Forms at the end of each trip.
Kaikoura - secluded paradise
1. Location, location, location
We began our New Zealand adventure tour path ignorantly – we assumed that the bigger the town, the longer you wanted to stay there. Obviously not the case! It didn’t take long for our tour members to help us realise that if they had wanted to see cities, they wouldn’t have come to New Zealand. Instead, they love the smaller, more exclusive, out of the way places that show them pure kiwi living.
Result: less time in busy places like Auckland, Christchurch and Nelson, more time in beautiful locations like Punakaiki, Wanaka and Abel Tasman National Park
2. Inclusions
Our first few adventure tours included a selection of activities that we picked out for everyone, but we soon learnt people would rather choose their own – makes sense! At the same, t0ur members still appreciated the smaller, “must-do” activities and sightseeing we took them to (e.g. Maori cultural evening, Queenstown gondola, entrance to Orakei Korako thermal park).
Result: greater flexibility – tour members choose their own extra activities and can do as many or as few as they want! Smaller activities still included, plus some added surprises along the way!
Tour Guide Verve Cooking at Te Nikau Retreat
3. Grub
We initially worked with local cafes and restaurants to secure discounts for tour groups in every location we visited, and included this in a booklet we gave out at the start of each tour. But gradually our groups and guides have evolved to saving money their own way and making dinner a more social occasion by cooking together. Our guides also like to make the effort to allow you to try local foods, whether it be fresh salmon from the farms near lake Pukaki, roast lamb, crayfish (lobster) from the Kaikoura coastline, or the local delicacy of whitebait on the West Coast. Yum!
Result: less spending money in restaurants, wider range of food experiences(!) and more money to spend on sightseeing, additional activities and souvenirs!
Haka Tours - Second Tour we ever ran!
4. Vehicles
Our Head Tour Guide Steve started out on day 1 with his own 4 wheel drive car and a trailor (see photo). We weren’t kidding when we said we would give you a personal experience! However, we now have 3 tour buses/vans and are in the process of acquiring another! After hearing how much our tour members appreciated a comfortable drive, we have taken the direction of buying bigger buses (22 seats) but only half filling them (16 people max).
Result: bigger tour vehicles + same amount of people = more room to spread out!
5. Off the beaten track…
As we have evolved we have realised that whilst the extreme adventure is an important feature of who we are, people don’t want it constantly thrown in their face (although there are exceptions and we welcome them with open arms)! Ultimately you are here travelling a new and foreign land and it is important to us that you see and experience as much as possible in the time you have. So we’re always searching out new additions and secret spots to take you to – great new locations are being discovered on every New Zealand tour we do.
Result: whilst you can take your breath away doing extreme activities, we will take your breath away showing you how amazing New Zealand really is
Looking forward to seeing how we evolve in 2010!
El 
Suggestions for Before or After your New Zealand Adventure Tour
Jan 23rd
You can be guaranteed that you are going to see and experience the most you possibly can of the country whilst on one of our New Zealand Adventure Tours, but I often get asked for advice on what clients can do before or after they embark on their time with us. Here’s some brief ideas for the 3 major cities that we depart and finish our tours in.
AUCKLAND
Time scale: 1 day
Our New Zealand Adventure Tours include an orientation of both the city and surrounding area whilst we’re in Auckland, so there probably isn’t much point hanging about the centre by yourself. Go down to the harbour side and jump on one of the regular ferries that depart for Waiheke Island, courtesy of Fullers. A return ticket is $32. According to its tourism site, Waiheke Island is a picturesque blend of farmland, forest, beaches, vineyards and olive groves and we wouldn’t disagree – check out the website for more details here. Above everything else, the island is known for its vineyards, so do try to get to one or two for some tastings!
Alternatively, if you haven’t booked it for whilst on your New Zealand Adventure Tour, we do recommend the canyoning day trip that takes you to Piha. For just $155 this is a great adventure that takes you out of the city.
Time scale: more than 1 day
Please, get out of the city! We cannot stress this enough. We happily sell 1/2/3 nights trips up to Paihia, aka the Bay of Islands which include your coach and accommodation. You won’t need a guide just for this town – there are plenty of activities of all costs (booked through your accommodation) and it is not difficult to fill a couple of days! This trip is exclusive to our New Zealand Adventure Tour customers.
Time scale: 6 days or more
We won’t question your sanity as to why you have committed so much of your time to staying in the city! However, if you have done so, we urge you to jump onboard one of our weekly 6 day Subtropical Far North New Zealand Adventure Tours! For just $899 NZD you will see and experience a whole new part of the country you wouldn’t even know existed if it wasn’t for us! The Northland region is one of the most stunning areas of New Zealand and is full to the brim with culture, history, activities, big lush forests and gorgeous sandy bays. Click here for more details on this NZ Adventure Tour if you need more convincing! Departs every Tuesday.
WELLINGTON
Time scale: 1-2 days
This depends on what we have shown you on your New Zealand Adventure Tour, but chances are that if you have booked on our 7 day North Island Adventure, the trip doesn’t spend any time here – and so you must allow a day or so before/after to get acquainted with what is, in our opinion, NZ’s trendiest city. The great news is that Wellington is a walking city of only 2km in diametre! Take some part of your day to explore our national museum, Te Papa, where it’s not only full of innovative knowledge and information, but quite fun as well! Entrance is free for all and well worth a look. Any keen shoppers will be happy to browse the kooky boutiques – try Lambton Quay, Willis Street, Cuba Street and Courtenay Place. Cuba and Courtenay are the places to be for good food and drink – the nightlife is also centred around here. In particular, check out Matterhorn Bar on Cuba Mall, which continuously wins best bar of the year in the NZ Bartender of the Year awards.
If you are around for a second day, Wellington Rover Tours offer a selection of tours of the city and surroundings which may fit your budget – here is their website. They also offer Lord of the Rings tours for you film fanatics, including a stop at Weta Cave Studios (we go here on our longer New Zealand adventure tours!). If this doesn’t float your boat, there is Wellington Zoo which isn’t the biggest zoo in the world, but it’s only $18 and easy to reach via bus.
Time scale – more than 2 days
Why are you stopping here this long? If you have just finished a 7 day North Island New Zealand Adventure Tour then keep going! We usually have seats free for another 2 days which allows you to travel to the South Island, stay one night in the absolutely stunning coastal town of Kaikoura, and then finish your tour in Christchurch, where flights are just as cheap (if not cheaper) to fly onwards! We charge these extra 2 days as $359 NZD and they include your ferry ticket as well as all the normal things.
CHRISTHCURCH
Staying within the city centre
Normally a single day would be relatively easy to fill in the ‘Garden City’ but alas, be prepared that we will take you to most places whilst you are on your New Zealand adventure tour with us! The main attractions in the city centre are the iconic Cathedral, from where you can walk what they call the “cultural precinct”, which extends along past the Art Gallery, Museums and Avon River until it reaches the Botanical Gardens at the far end. Take a ride on the trams if you can bear the $15 price tag or try “punting” along the Avon!
For food and drink, the “strip” aka Oxford Terrace presents some nice bars and restaurants, and for nightlife there is Sol Square (Thurs – Sat are best). We don’t overly recommend the shopping as it is limited and if honest, as someone who lives here, there are better places in New Zealand!
Out of the city centre
If you are able to afford to get out of the city, look at catching the Tranz Scenic train up to Kaikoura for the day – http://tranzscenic.co.nz/which can vary in price depending on time of year / how far in advance you book!
Another place you can check out is Hanmer Springs, which is an alpine village just an hour and half north of Christchurch – very popular with tourists who are attracted to its natural hot pools, majestic mountains and surrounding forests. There are a couple of tour companies that can take you out here, including Discovery Travel.
Or if you can’t bear to go that far, Akaroa (bottom photo) is a picture perfect sweet little French settlement just an hour away and these guys run tours – http://www.akaroashuttle.co.nz/. Personally I’d take Kaikoura over Akaroa any day but don’t bother if the weather is dire!
Finally, in Winter make full use of the snow season and go skiing/snowboarding at CHCH’s closest commerical field, Mt Hutt. You don’t need gear and you don’t need experience – you can book a day trip including transport, equipment hire, lessons and passes through us! If you have more than a day, consider staying at Methven (Mt Hutt’s local ski resort village) and catching the daily shuttle from there. Talk to your Haka Tour Advisor for more details.
If you are looking for further information on what you can do before/after your New Zealand Adventure Tour, email one of the crew at info@hakatours.com and we’ll be more than happy to assist!
Five New Zealand adventure activities that won’t make you want to wet yourself
Dec 24th
We love our extreme activities – it’s a big part of the New Zealand backpacking experience and it’s great when tour members step outside their comfort zone (they never regret it!). But we also realise that it’s not for everyone and quite often travellers are more than content to pick one or two of the tamer NZ activity options and sit back and relax for the journey. Here’s 5 “less extreme” choices we offer with Haka Tours that are less likely to scare you half to death.
1. Whale Watching at Kaikoura
There’s not many places in the world that you can do this – look out for sperm whale, dusky dolphins, albatross, fur seals, and migrating humpback, pilot, blue and southern right whales. All thanks to the deep sea trench that runs alongside the coast line here.
2. Horse trekking at River Valley
Of course if you don’t like horses, perhaps not for you, but the scenery is beyond spectacular and the guides are very experienced. There’s another option at Queenstown too.
3. Tongariro Crossing (departs Taupo)
Constantly voted in all those lists of most amazing places in the world, and yes, this is the photo everyone always uses. The trek takes up a day on tour and you need to be fairly active, but it’s a walk embarked on by all ages and I hear endless praise from those who do it.
4. Sail an America’s Cup Yacht in Auckland
To quote, “The America’s Cup is the world’s oldest and most prestigious sporting trophy and ultimate yachting regatta.” You can spend 2 hours on the boat and do as much or little as you like!
5. Day trip to Milford Sound
Milford Sound sells itself – if you’ve seen one picture of New Zealand it is more than likely to be of here. We offer a coach-cruise-coach option on the free day in Queenstown and it’s highly recommended to all, especially if you don’t fancy throwing yourself off a bungy or jumping out of the sky.
9 fun ways to annoy your Haka Tour Guide whilst on tour in New Zealand
Dec 19th
Warning – try at your own peril… most are loosely based on past experiences on our New Zealand adventure tours with people who were actually being serious.
1. Sit in the front seat, tell him you can’t stand the New Zealand music he puts on, then plug your iPod in to the stereo system and crank up the Spice Girls [or equivalent cheesy pop] loudly. And sing along… for a good hour or so.
2. Tell them you prefer Heinz to Watties (the NZ equivalent)… for some reason they are vastly protective of their baked beans and tomato sauce. 
3. Loudly support the Ozzie sports teams whenever and wherever possible (though be warned may have potential to get you kicked out of public venues by angry kiwis). For bonus points – wear Ozzie clothing and state clearly that kiwi women are way not as attractive as Australian women.
4. Argue that NZ beer is cat’s piss compared to anything abroad, in particular in Europe.
5. Insist on sleeping in until 5 minutes after you were supposed to leave each morning. Then cry if he won’t allow you time for breakfast.
6. Constantly change your mind as to whether you are going to skydive whilst on your adventure tour or not. (In all seriousness please don’t do this, it’s a pain in the ass and you’ll probably get charged cancellation fees anyway.)
7. Trick him into digesting some of the eye watering, burning hot chilli sauce they serve at the Blue Ice Cafe in Franz Josef (those who have been there will know…).
8. Argue that kiwis (as in the bird – right) are pests and deserve to be eaten by cats.
9. Refuse to do our secret “leap of faith” in Taupo (come on tour to find out what this is!).
Haka Tours runs New Zealand adventure tours from 6 to 24 days long of both islands – check out the tours here.
Chur – El (twitter.com/kiwibrit86)
Perhaps why we only do Adventure Tours in New Zealand
Dec 9th
Thought I’d discuss some differences between New Zealand and the UK today. Not only do a reasonable amount of our NZ adventure tour members come from over there, but I write this blog entry from my parents’ house in a small, insignificant town situated just outside Manchester, England. I’ve been back here for 7 days during which I have seen 1 hour of sunshine and a great deal of white, pasty people, and it seems such a vast contrast to the place I left.
1. Population.
This is bloody obvious really. There’s 60 million people in the UK (which is England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) and 4 million in New Zealand. Come on a tour of New Zealand and you are not here to see crowds of people. Hence everything is more spread out, lots more space, there’s less people in restaurants, less traffic, and a greater chance of everyone knowing everyone else (2 degrees of separation unlike 6 degrees in the rest of the world). So when you come on tour don’t be surprised when your kiwi tour guide seems to be best mates with every passer-by you meet.
2. Shops.
Everyone likes to say that New Zealand is 20 years behind everyone else, but it’s not really and the kiwis don’t appreciate you saying it – when it comes down to it, it’s simply not become commercialised like the UK. Instead, many of the shops are individually owned and unique. This can be quite refreshing… However, I do miss the reassurance of knowing what shops sell what, not to mention the convenience of Sainsbury’s or Marks and Spencer’s (supermarkets) which offer a vast great deal more things than NZ’s PaknSave or New World ever will.
3. Weather.
UK = no summer, lots of rain all year round, continuously grey and cold.
NZ = long summer, decent heat, good tanning potential, less rain, and gorgeous snow on the mountains in winter.
Enough said!
3. Adventure!
Do you think English adventure tours would work as well as New Zealand adventure tours? Nah.
UK entertainment = TV, game stations, shopping, the pub.
NZ entertainment = skydiving, mountain biking, trekking, rafting, beaches, diving, bungy jumping… you get my drift.
You can’t blame the British too much for this, it’s partly the shitty weather.
4. Fashion.
It’s surf or skate wear over in New Zealand. Don’t come on tour with smart clothes – hoodies, t-shirts and boardies all the way. Casual is the key, and even when going out in the evening it’s often flat shoes and trousers for the girls, whereas in England I wouldn’t dream of ditching my heels and shorts/skirt/dress when hitting the town.
5. Chavs.
English people will know what I mean by this word (right). Well, you don’t get any in New Zealand. Nadda. Don’t exist. An even better reason to come over!
6. Infrastructure.
England is great for all that history and old buildings. The cathedral where I went to uni is well over 1000 years old. I was in Wellington once when a kiwi bloke got over excited that a house we were passing was 100 years old. There’s no real comparison here, New Zealand just isn’t very long established in that sense. Streets are wider and all the houses are on one storey rather than several.
7. Landscape.
There’s no denying it, New Zealand is more beautiful, more untouched, and just visually stunning on a much grander scale than the UK. A friend of mine described a part of the South Island quite adequately once when she said it was “like the Lake District on speed”. Our NZ adventure tours wouldn’t work half as well if we ran them in a boring environment. You spend half your time having your breath taken away by an activity, and the other half of the time having it taken away by the view (like with Queenstown, below).
8. Current affairs.
Lot less emphasis or drama when it comes to what is going on in the world – kiwis are peaceful and keep to themselves, so don’t particularly care what everyone else is doing. Just watch the news and you’ll understand – there’s a lack of awareness or interest in any other country. In the UK on the other hand we all love to be in everyone’s business and the media can’t wait to over exaggerate any crisis possible.
9. Heaps or loads?
There are many differences in both pronunciation and language. In the UK it very much depends on where you are from as how you speak but accents in New Zealand really don’t vary that much. Instead, they all say things the same – E’s become I’s, I’s become E’s and so 6 becomes sex, 7 becomes sievin, 10 becomes tin, and so on. Other vowels do vary too. Then they say “heaps” instead of “loads”/”lots”, “chur” instead of “cheers” and words like “sweet” and “bro” get thrown around all over the place.
10. Lifestyle.
The kiwis are simply more laid back and stress-free than the Brits. I’m not stereotyping, it is just how it is. Pace of life is slightly slower and there is less pressure on having to get that perfect education, high-powered well-paying career, but more emphasis on doing what makes you happy. It’s just their way of thinking.
When I look over all these differences between countries I can admit that, apart from the weather and scenery, they are not definite advantages as to which place is better to live in. It is more down to opinion and personal preference as to whether you would rather be in a non-populated, newer, more active yet laid back environment, or in a busy, commercial, chav-filled society that has greater depth in history and politics.
Sometimes it’s a bit like chalk and cheese, which is maybe why so many British come over to New Zealand to go on that big adventure tour and escape the life of the UK for a few weeks, just to remind themselves that something else does exist out there.
It’s a dog eat dog world…
Nov 10th
Adventure Tourism. I like to think that I work in an industry that has values based on passion, honesty and pride – especially in New Zealand which is known for its straight up attitude and laid back approach to life. So it was a bit of a shock to me this month when we were subject to an attack that indicated quite the opposite.
Rankers.co.nz is a recent site set up by a couple of lads who used to own a kayaking company in Abel Tas – it’s a website where travellers can go and post reviews and ratings of any activities, NZ tours, accommodation, etc that they experienced whilst in New Zealand. It’s a fantastic idea and works pretty well – in fact I use it quite a lot when scouting out new people to work with! After all, surely independent reviews must be fairly accurate…?
Yes… if they are real. Thanks to loyal tour members’ reviews, Haka Tours has quickly risen to be consistently in the top 3 of our category – i.e. New Zealand Tour Operator. We were very chuffed with this – at last some way of demonstrating/measuring our capabilities (which we always knew were top!), and it’s a brilliant marketing tool for potential customers to show what we have on offer. All our guides have good mentions and praise. Check it out for yourself!
But someone else must have also noticed our sudden rise to fame, and they don’t seem too happy about it. So far we have had 3 cases of nasty false reviews where someone has tried to take us down! We know they aren’t true – after all, we know the name of every single person who has travelled with us and what their experience was. We also trust our guides 100% to deliver what has become a fantastic product. It sickens me to now realise that there are obviously some other tour companies out there that resent this enough to play such silly games to try to lower the reputation that we have all worked so hard to build up.
I was tempted to entitle this article “Wankers on Rankers” but don’t wish the lads from the website any harm. And as one of our guides Si remarked, I guess we should be in some ways pleased because it is an indication of success to be scaring the others into such extreme actions. I will agree, but remain disgusted. Let’s play fair, boys.
Dare Devils – on the road with a Singaporean TV company
Nov 9th
Over 10 days we have been escorting a Singaporean television production company around New Zealand whilst they film the second series of their show, Dhil Dare Devils. This has basically consisted of our 16 day Amplified NZ tour, condensed into 10 days of absolute madness. Unfortunately I cannot say too much more, because it will give too many spoilers away – but that has been heaps of drama along the road! Wicked for the 10 contestants – regardless of whether they win, they’ve pretty much got a free adventure tour of New Zealand!
Representing the Haka Tours Crew is Si, Ryan, Amanda and myself – 10 solid days of 6am starts and 11pm finishes – it is not surprising that we are all simply knackered. We’re hoping it will get us some good coverage in Asia and encourage some people over to tour New Zealand – and we’ve been trying to get as much Haka branding in there as possible! I will now be known in Singapore as the smiling Haka girl who holds of the flag at the end of races…
El
October News – What's the Haka crew up to?
Oct 17th
Well it’s a Saturday morning and I write this nursing a slight hangover, sitting at my dining table that we never use and listening to Fat Freddy’s latest offering, ‘Dr Boondigga & The Big BW’. Dull and grey outside – New Zealand hasn’t really come up trumps with the weather this weekend and I think the whole country is impatiently waiting in trepidation for summer to finally arrive! Though I did get sunburnt last weekend up in Kaikoura, it must be said.
Anyway, time for a quick update on what’s happening to who in the Haka Tours world, particularly as it seems we’re all in different places at the moment!
Verve
Verve is the only person working today – on tour with a group of 10 currently up in Taupo, where no doubt they will be skydiving (weather permitting), sailing on the epically-sized lake, relaxing in natural hot pools and generally having a good knees up at the bar at Taupo Urban Retreat. He’s spoilt his group recently with not only taking them to the rugby but also buying them concert tickets for a big kiwi band The Black Seeds! They’re definitely getting the true NZ experience!
Stevo
Today is a much long-awaited day for Si-Dawg, who has flown up to Auckland this morning to meet his long estranged beloved Amanda, who he hasn’t seen for about 6 months! Ah, young love… In a few weeks they both will be escorting a Singapore TV production crew around the country who are filming a series similar to the ‘Amazing Race’ – check it out www.dhildaredevils.com!
Also up in Auckland somewhere is Stevo, who is resting up and taking some family time before starting a private guided tour from Christchurch on Monday – taking a Singaporean lady and her 12 year daughter around the South Island for 8 days! I’m rather jealous – they are going to some wicked locations. Our Private Tours have actually been taking off recently and we have run quite a number this year!
Ryan has spent the entire week in Sydney the lucky bastard but will be back tomorrow. The office has been rather empty without him but gotta say it’s nice having the comfy chair ha ha. It’s his birthday in a week but I won’t be cruel and say how old he’s gona be…
And as for me, El, I’m working on designing our new 2010 brochure, keeping the customers (past, present and future) happy and basically making sure the office is ticking over! Got the happy news this week that after months of waiting, immigration have finally granted me a visa to stay in the country which was a little bit of a relief all round really!
Will write again with something a little more informative soon…!
El
Ryan and El - August 2009
The Three Different Ways to Travel New Zealand
Oct 2nd
Some of the people who email us can be fairly clueless about travelling in New Zealand, which is totally understandable – we’d struggle to plan the ultimate trip around all your countries for sure! But just to summarise, this is a great starting point for those considering spending time over here, whether it be one week or six!
When it really comes down to it, you have 3 choices…
1. Do It Yourself.
A popular choice as it is the most independent and is potentially relatively cheap. Hire a car or campervan from someone like Jucy (right) and off you go – on your very own adventure with New Zealand at your beck and command. But is it really? Whilst the independence is great (plus nobody is going to shout at you too much for singing along to the car radio), you must consider the potentials of getting lost, having to organise everything for yourself, and perhaps worst of all, missing out on some real kiwi hidden gems. I’d only recommend it if you are organised or laid back enough to deal with navigating yourself.
Pros - fantastic independence and no need to rely on anyone else. Potentials of being relatively cheap if you are real good at organising your time and money, and research it well beforehand. If you have a large group of mates this could be an awesome NZ holiday, that is until you disagree on something!
Cons - can be quite stressful to find your own way around a foreign country, plus having to organise your own accommodation/activities/route and such… you will miss out on some great hidden spots and trust us, Lonely Planet does not have the knowledge to plan your entire New Zealand trip for you.
2. Hop on, Hop off.
The Big Green Bus
NZ doesn’t have a great rail network like some countries and so we often have to rely on coaches for long distance public transport. Hence the birth of the hop-on, hop-off bus passes, run by the national giants of Kiwi Experience, Magic and Stray. Easily recognizable by the huge coaches and large numbers of the loud 18-24 year old crowd that pours off them in some dazed or drunken state. It works well for certain people, but don’t be fooled by the expensive marketing and a big name… it is just a bus pass and they don’t include anything else.
Pros - could potentially provide a nice go between of giving you some independence and yet giving you a set route to travel, good way of meeting other people if you are young and looking to party
Cons – essentially whatever way you look at it they are a commercial giant and you are a number, the accommodation service most offer can be pretty limited, tour members can be quite limited to age range, any “inclusions” they advertise are usually free to the general public anyway, and when it comes down to it – do you want to spend most of your time stuck on a big coach?
3. Guided touring
Through either large groups – i.e. Contiki, Connections etc. who can have up to 50 on one bus, or the better alternative – small groups. This is where we fit in, with our fully guided, small group (up to 12 or 16) touring. (Check out our website and range of NZ adventure tours here.) Smaller groups will create a more of a “road trip” feel and immediately you are no longer a number to someone – it allows us to be more personal and flexible to your needs and you have a much greater say in what you can see or do. More things are included meaning less stress for you, and your tour guide will be able to include some wicked places that you would not think to go if doing it on your own. And that’s not to mention the local knowledge and stories they will tell you along the way.
If you are going to go down this route, choosing a New Zealand tour company is quite a difficult procedure – they all have their own vibes and include different things. In NZ quite a few will be more outdoorsy – choosing to camp and hike the majority of the time and hence demanding a certain level of fitness. We at Haka Tours focus on the supreme range of adventure that New Zealand is known for – for one, we’re the only company to offer our customers the ability to pre-book activities before coming on tour! With us, nothing is compulsory and you can do as much or as little as you like… your guide will still include heaps of low cost or free adventures along the journey anyway!
Pros – you will come away with a much greater depth of knowledge having experienced the country with a local guide, less stress involved as all your travelling and needs are looked after – and therefore allowing you to relax!, it’s probably the best way to make firm friendships (with others in your tour group), and you can choose a company that is most suited to your personality and likes. Potentially the best time of your life! Many of our tour members even describe their experience as life-changing!
Cons – if you are incredibly independent, this is probably not for you! Some companies can have a higher possibility of cancellation in low seasons – so check with them first.
Whoever you go with in the end, the best advice I would give is to feel out each company’s own buzz and find one that suits your own personality – and do read up on the reviews! Email them before you book – their response to your questions can be a very good indication on how they will treat you whilst on tour! And of course, do please consider us – www.hakatours.com – we’d love to have you onboard!
Rankers.co.nz is a great site for independent NZ travel reviews – click here for Active Bus and Van touring.
Hope that helps!
El
Tour and Marketing Co-ordinator
EXTREME ADVENTURE AND SNOW TOURS – NEW ZEALAND
How safe really is the New Zealand adventure tourism industry?
Sep 22nd
Just been reading the news. Yesterday our prime minster John Key called an inquest into the Adventure Tourism industry over worries certain safety standards were not up to par. Amongst many comments, the remark that stood out in my mind was that some fairground rides are more heavily policed than some of NZ’s adventure activities. But how much are we really putting ourselves at risk on these “extreme adventure sports”?
Key’s investigation is the result of a number of deaths over the last couple of years, the catalyst being Emily Jordan in April 2008, who drowned whilst river sledging in Queenstown. I remember this day clearly as I was in Queenstown myself – my own mother in the UK heard the news a 21 year old English female traveller had died and immediately assumed it was me. Although I didn’t pay too much attention to the news at the time, reading over the story now is quite moving – in particular to hear that her boyfriend had to watch from the side of the river bank whilst she was stuck underneath a rock. I cannot even imagine how hard that would have been. The comapny in question was later fined $66 grand and ordered to pay a further $88,000 to Emily’s family. It seems according to the media that they did not carry the adequate safety equipment to help her in time. To be honest, if so they are a complete disgrace to the industry and should not even be allowed to operate.
Nevertheless, it must be said that these deaths that Key is concerned about are far and few between. I think sometimes travellers often perceive the levels of danger in an activity to be a lot higher than they actually are – quite often because the activity operators like to make it seem so. There is a particular rafting company we use that I know like to hype things up as they go along and get people’s adrenalin through the roof… when really the trip is relatively tame.
When our tour members express concern over the risks of an activity I generally I advise two things to think about. Firstly, how many trips an activity operator will run, e.g. think of the 1000s of people that skydive everyday and have no problems at all. (There is some stupid statistic somewhere that you are more likely to win the lotto than die from skydiving.) Secondly, the cliche that yes you could go out tomorrow and just as easily die in your car at 50kph and not think anything of it beforehand. Life is a risk.
The other point I would like (perhaps contraversially) to make is that many deaths in this industry happen because people do not take notice of instructions. The media are often keen to omit this, probably for the obvious reason of not wishing to offend the dead or come across as insensitive. There were 2 Australian brothers who was crushed to death by an ice fall on Fox Glacier in January who were a prime example of this – they were on their own and went outside of the area marked as safe. In 2007, the Conservation Department estimated about a third of the 600,000 visitors who walk to the Fox and nearby Franz Joseph glaciers each year ignore signs warning of the risk of ice falls.
As John Key was also keen to point out, most in the sector operate well and to a high standard of safety, which is true. Adventure tourism operators cannot afford to be slack – or tour companies such as ourselves would simply refuse to use them.
Overall, I admire Key for wanting to reassure our travellers that the industry has a high level of safety, and I would equally welcome any way through which we can show that our operators have some of the best standards in the world… but as Tourism Industry Association advocacy manager Geoff Ensor pointed out, I would be wary of “knee-jerk” legislation.
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