New Zealand Tours for Seniors

Zicasso’s trip planner did an excellent job. Communication and the quality of the experiences were everything we'd expected and more, especially in New Zealand. The accommodations were first rate; the highlight was the lodge in Queenstown. The guides and drivers were professional and knowledgeable, especially those in Queenstown and Auckland. We loved the dedicated website for reference, as well as the detailed booklet and maps for both countries. 

For future itineraries, I would add another day in Queenstown and a full day in Christchurch. If days were limited, I would recommend one less day in Auckland and/or skipping the drive/train from Franz Josef. 

The only complication was the day we spent 10 hours going to and coming from Milford Sound.  I recommend doing Milford Sound by plane/helicopter from Queenstown, which would also permit seeing the glaciers/southern alps from the air. The only things we missed were the zoo in Auckland and the Blue Mountain day tour in Sydney. Next trip!

Overall, my recent trip to New Zealand, organized by this travel agency, had some truly unforgettable highlights. The agent's hotel picks were consistently great, perfectly suiting my preferences.

Most Enjoyable/Memorable Parts: The most memorable parts of the journey included an incredible experience seeing the Akaroa dolphins, delightful vineyard stays, and a breathtaking helicopter tour that showcased the stunning landscapes. Touring the incredibly beautiful country was a constant joy. Even though we had to reschedule, Milford Sound was absolutely spectacular. Paroa Bay and Lindis were lovely places to stay, and their staff were incredibly attentive. The hotel and our stay in Christchurch were wonderful surprises; we wished we had spent another night there and one less night in Queenstown. All of our drivers were great, and we had the best time with them, especially our drivers in Christchurch – I would highly recommend keeping that company for future bookings.

Areas for Improvement / Things I Noticed: Compared to other agents I've used with Zicasso, there was a noticeable lack of personalized touches. Usually, there would be a welcome letter or a fun gesture upon arrival, and little notes at different locations highlighting the travel agent's favorite spots or things not to miss.

A significant point of friction was the communication, or rather, the lack thereof. There was no WhatsApp group for the group to communicate once we arrived in the country. There was a complete lack of proactive communication from the ground team; I only heard from them if I reached out with a problem. Typically, there's a "welcome to the country, here's our WhatsApp chat in case you need anything" message, with the team constantly monitoring it.

I also found myself having to check in for flights and activities myself. This has always been confirmed and taken care of by the agent in my previous experiences, with updates provided via WhatsApp or email.

The mandatory app download was also problematic. The app itself wasn't great as it didn't allow for back-and-forth messaging and lacked quick-link calling, forcing me to copy and paste numbers when I needed to contact the tour operator. It was also frustrating that I couldn't add my own bookings or places I wanted to check out, meaning I constantly had to switch between apps.

Finally, there was a booking discrepancy in Christchurch. After I specifically asked to confirm the correct number of people, and the team assured me the correct number was confirmed, the penguin tour operator stated only three people were booked. I had to instruct them to contact the booking agent directly to sort it out.

Things We Would Have Avoided: Staying in Queenstown was a bit of a disappointment as it felt overly touristy. Even though the hotel had a shuttle, its location was quite far from everything, making it inconvenient.

Despite these points, the trip provided many fantastic experiences and showcased the agent's ability to select excellent accommodations and plan exciting activities.

The itinerary was awesome! We had a few snafus with hotel reservations, but they were quickly resolved. The tours were perfect and all private, with excellent guides. The pace made good use of the time we had and maximized seeing the most locations in our time frame. The hotels were beautiful (especially the one in Queenstown, WOW!) and the rooms were perfect for our needs (kitchens and laundry). It was so great having everything pre-booked and guided, as it allowed us to relax and enjoy the trip and not worry about logistics. It was a trip of a lifetime.

I would highly recommend this Zicasso travel agency! When traveling so far away, it made such a difference to have everything coordinated by a professional. I have had many people ask how we managed to do so much with the time we had. Now, I don't think I can travel any other way.

I did not generally think this tour agent was as good as others I have used through your services. They did not seem as willing to arrange a first-class trip, particularly designed for me and my partner. Our favorite part of the trip was our overnight in Doubtful Sound, which I felt I had to arrange. Several of the views of the city (Queenstown and the Needle in Auckland ) were fine, but just the usual tourist deal and expensive. I would have preferred a half-day private tour of Auckland, for example. We wanted a half- or full-day fishing trip, which was kind of an add-on.

Overall, the trip went off without a hitch, besides a cyclone that hit the North Island in New Zealand. It ended up not being a factor for us as we flew in and out of Auckland on time.

There was a potential strike at Air Tahiti when we were supposed to fly to Bora Bora, but we managed to avoid that as well. The only excursion we didn't get to do was the jet boat tour, as high amounts of rain caused the river to get so high, they had to cancel.

We didn't get to do the helicopter flight from the cruise at Milford Sound because not enough folks signed up for it. We knew that going in though and weather wouldn't have allowed it anyway. We were able to schedule our own helicopter tour later that day and had an enjoyable time.

The trip was very good. To be better, I would have liked choices of different activities with different price levels. For example, our trip to Milford Sound cost a significantly higher price per person, where we could have done a similar trip (albeit not as good an experience) for a much lower price per person.

Also, the hotel in Auckland, while in a great location, did not have any dresser drawers or closets; I had to live out of my suitcase. A different hotel in Auckland might have been better. And although we did not ask for dinner to be included, it would have been nice to know we needed reservations and some suggestions for a nice dinner.

Next time, I will know better to ask these questions. As this was my first time using a travel agent, I did not know to ask these questions.