Oceana offers a unique realm, exciting families with accessible adventures in otherworldly landscapes. Captivating and charming, it's a destination seemingly tailor-made for active teenagers. This handcrafted 16-day tour to New Zealand and Australia, designed for families with teenagers in mind, reveals the best of the two countries, a journey that blurs from glacier walking to glowworm caves, city exploration to Maori haka dances. Explore together, crossing New Zealand's iconic national...
Customizable Itinerary
Day 1
Auckland – A Relaxed Day in the City of Sails
The City of Sails feels more like an oversized village, its atmosphere one of tranquility intermingling with a quaint vibrancy. For getting your bearings in Oceana, it's an ideal place to start, small enough to explore on foot and relaxed enough to help overcome any travel fatigue. You'll be greeted at the airport and transferred to a central hotel that's within a short distance of boutique food markets and some sublime heritage buildings. Relax, take your time and absorb the ambiance that sweeps across New Zealand. This isn't a place where things are ever rushed. It's a country that delights in helping you slow the pace.
What's Included:
Day 2
Auckland to Rotorua – A Journey Through Hobbiton
Day 3
Rotorua – Into the World of the Maori
Day 4
Christchurch to West Coast – Through the Dramatic Arthur's Pass
Day 5
West Coast to Franz Josef Glacier – Walking Through Treetops and Across a Glacier
Day 6
Wanaka – Rainforest Walks and Remote Waterfalls
Day 7
Wanaka – Scenic Flight and Boat Cruise Through Milford Sound
Day 8
Queenstown – Lord of the Rings on the South Island
Day 9
Queenstown – Day at Leisure in the World's Adventure Capital
Day 10
Sydney – Tranquil Day Along the Parramatta
Day 11
Sydney – Climbing Across Iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge
Day 12
Sydney – Wildlife Discovery in the Blue Mountains
Day 13
Melbourne – Exploring the Art of the City
Day 14
Melbourne – Koalas and Kangaroos in the Wild
Day 15
Melbourne – Moonlight Kayak Tour with Fish and Chips
Day 16
Melbourne – Departure
Trip Highlights
- Explore the untouched filming locations from famous movies like The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, with landscapes and movie sets unchanged from their time on the big screen
- Get adventurous in New Zealand and excite the family with an array of unique activities: walk across a glacier, journey through glowworm caves, and wander through the rainforest canopy
- Take a helicopter flight across the fjords of the West Coast and a boat cruise along Milford Sound
- Discover the world of the Maori with a day of cultural immersion in Rotorua, including a thrilling rendition of the haka
- Climb across the famous archway of Sydney Harbour Bridge, then climb down into the mystical valley of the Blue Mountains
- Stand beside kangaroos and koalas in the wild; the remarkable marsupials discovered surprisingly close to Melbourne
- Relax in some of Oceana's most famous towns and cities, taking in the sights of Auckland, Queenstown, Sydney, and Melbourne
- All tours are private guided, and the itinerary has been carefully crafted to ensure a maximum of four hours driving time per day
Detailed Description
Travel to Oceana, and you enter a world of adventure. Glaciers take you to giant ice tunnels and surreal white sculptures; kangaroos hop in giant mobs while exotic birds cruise through the rainforest canopy; fjords cut stark journeys out to sea and mountains hide eucalyptus forest. Across New Zealand and Australia, you'll find some of the world's great landscapes, national parks, and World Heritage sites that reflect nature at its most untamed. Yet the greatest appeal for families is not just the landscape. It's the accessibility. These two countries make unique adventure effortlessly possible. Attractions are easily connected, and there's always somewhere inspiring to stop en route, like when you travel through Hobbiton to reach the Maori culture of Rotorua. While both countries are big, so much is packed into small sections of them, reducing travel time and ensuring every day is a highlight.
This unique itinerary has been carefully crafted for families with teenage children. You're accompanied by a private guide and each day has been designed, so there's never more than four hours of driving. Routes connect various attractions, so you stop off at rainforest walks, surreal caves, or kangaroo fields as you head onwards through New Zealand and Australia. There's also relaxed time and a few days in the cities, a chance for everyone to get their breath after a few days of exhilaration. While there is no age limit for the vacation, many of the activities have an age limit of eight years old.
The first nine days are spent in New Zealand, starting with Auckland, Hobbiton, and a day with the Maori of Rotorua and Taupo. Then, you fly to the South Island, traveling through Arthur's Pass to the World Heritage national parks of the West Coast. These next days are the most adventurous, encompassing helicopter rides, glacier walks, rainforest canopies, glowworm caves, and all the compelling delights found within the country's dramatic landscapes. Your six days in Australia are split between Sydney and Melbourne and the adventure continues. Climb along Sydney Harbour Bridge, search out marsupials in the wild and seek out the art of the city. Luxury hotels are included throughout as are all transfers, providing ease and serenity to complement the exhilarating activities for you and your teenagers.
Starting Price
$6,600 per person (excluding international flights)
Your Zicasso trip is fully customizable, and this sample itinerary is a starting place for your travel plans. Actual costs are dynamic, and your selection of accommodations and activities, your season of travel, and other such variables will bring this budget guideline up or down. Throughout your planning experience with your Zicasso specialist, your itinerary is designed around your budget. You can book your trip when you are satisfied with every detail. Planning your trip with a Zicasso travel specialist is a free service.
What's Included
- Accommodations
- In-country transportation
- Some or all activities and tours
- Expert trip planning
- 24x7 support during your trip
Your final trip cost will vary based on your selected accommodations, activities, meals, and other trip elements that you opt to include.
Reviews of Zicasso's Referral Service
4.86 stars based on 2599 reviews.
This was our first trip to Australia. Zicasso’s travel agent took time to get to know our family and how we like to travel. She gathered our interests and preferences, and carefully curated an itinerary that showcased Sydney, Melbourne, and Cairns/Port Douglas, all within our budget.
This travel agent was very responsive before and during our trip, and monitored our activities to make sure we were happy. In fact, during our stay, one of our excursions (kayaking in Cairns) was canceled due to weather and she was right on top of it. She was able to book us immediately on another expedition (whale watching) of our choice. We appreciated her responsiveness.
Overall, our entire family was extremely happy with our travel agent's arrangements and had a memorable trip to Australia.
Reviewed By Joyce T.
Zicasso's travel designer put together a trip that got us to the places we wanted to see, with companies that suited our abilities and desires. He offered excellent suggestions, was always available, and was a pleasure to work with.
Reviewed By Mark H.
We very much enjoyed our time in New Zealand and Australia. The tours were all very good. Zicasso's travel agent and our tour partner were very responsive and helpful throughout the planning phase and while we were on vacation.
The only feedback we have is that the hotels selected, other than the hotels in New Zealand, did not have the amenities we were hoping to get from four-star properties. We'll do a better job of indicating what we need in hotel selections moving forward, but we thought the hotels could have been a notch better than they were.
Reviewed By Tim G.
I would use our travel company again in a minute! Zicasso's travel consultant really “got me” and designed the perfect trip for us.
The highlights especially included picking perfect places for us to stay (close to most everything we were doing and in the heart of the cities). The tours, both private and small group, gave us not only what we asked for, but even more that we didn’t know existed.
The itinerary was as detailed as it could possibly be, describing the day, what to bring, names and phone numbers to call if there were issues, and who we needed to call to confirm future tour dates.
One of our highlights was the penguin experience. Our guide was great and our trip planner got us “plus” tickets, which I would definitely recommend. Finally, she provided us with the necessary info and guides (where necessary) for our amazing hikes.
Reviewed By Ellin A.
Zicasso's travel specialists were fantastic! They provided excellent and unique recommendations. As a traveler seeking adventure and outdoor experiences, they completely understood my needs. Additionally, all accommodations were high quality, communication was very clear, and pricing was reasonable. I would strongly recommend them to anyone traveling to Australia/New Zealand.
Reviewed By Emil S.
We absolutely loved so much of our trip! My kids’ (ages 11 and eight) favorite activities were luging in Rotorua, NZ, and the sunset camel ride in Uluru, AU, while my husband and I were enchanted by Hobbiton and enjoyed exploring a glowworm cave with the owner's father! We all loved Tasmania.
There were a few hiccups. However, we were very happy with all the support the Zicasso travel company's team provided in real time to help us get back on track.
The overall trip was fantastic. My husband and I appreciated having the team support our adventures, both the highs and the lows. The team members were detailed-oriented. This trip exceeded our expectations and we’re incredibly grateful for their expertise in curating such memorable experiences.
Reviewed By Sivly R.