South Pacific Travel Agents & Reviews

Shelley was very good at listening to our desires and bringing it all to life! There were things that could have been done to ensure our trip went more smoothly and for that reason I am not giving a 5 star. There were bumps in the road and some advice that perhaps should have been given as it was our first time to NZ. For example, it seems that the driving times given to us were for local people. All the drives took at least 30% to 40% longer than we expected. There was also a lot of construction on the road, we may not have driven as much had we realized how difficult and stressful some of the driving would be. We found ourselves getting in late to Wellington at 5/6pm and couldn't obtain a dinner reservation. We ended ordering pizza on uber eats because the idea of getting back into the car was daunting. Golfing and then driving 5 hours was too much!! We also drove out of our way to go Wairakei instead of Rotorua just to find out they were closed for repairs for 3 weeks. I feel our tour company should have been aware of that. We had issues with our rental car not having our information which caused us to miss out on most of our wine tour in Blenheim. Things were scheduled a bit tight and I wish she would have advised us of that. I would not recommend the hotel in Wellington. They have bathrooms with glass doors and a curtain, really bizarre. Parking garage is far away.  

I cannot say enough great things about the travel company and Karen. From start to finish, Karen was an absolute pleasure to work with. She listened attentively to our interests early on, worked with us to craft an ideal itinerary, and was patient along the way as we made changes to travel dates and our needs shifted. She seemed to really "get us" right away, and customized a 12 day trip that felt uniquely curated for our family. Karen was incredibly responsive despite the time difference between NZ and the US, answering all of our questions almost immediately. She took great care to find outstanding accommodations, tour guides, and restaurants--every single one of her recommendations was spot on. Karen even took time out of her busy schedule to meet us in person in Nelson, which only confirmed our suspicion that Kiwis are the nicest people on earth!I am a stickler for detail, but I felt relaxed about all logistics thanks to the very detailed itinerary Karen provided that kept all important information in one place (and having it on an app on my phone was even better!) At all times, we knew exactly what we needed to know--where, when, and how we would get from one point to the next, what to expect each day, and what to do if things did not go smoothly (but they always did!) Anyone booking a trip to NZ should use the travel company and never look back. They will ensure the trip of a lifetime.

Rick with the travel company did an amazing job putting together this memorable 3 week journey to New Zealand for us.  He spent time with us up front to get to know us and provided an itinerary that was a perfect fit.  Part of our journey was on our own but he also provided very helpful advice for that part as well.  He was always available and quick to respond to our questions (and we had a lot of questions).  About 3 weeks before the trip we had a web conference and he went over ever detail.  Every single activity and all the lodging were perfect for us. The itinerary he provided guided us very well. We could never have put such a seamless package together on our own. Everything he put together was 'spot on'.  He is very professional and we can't thank him enough for making this dream of ours come true. Our three experiences with Zicasso have been excellent.  This is our favorite way to travel!  Debbie and Mike M.

Our 3 week trip to New Zealand was well planned and executed. We were met by friendly drivers who were on time and knowledgeable about the country. We visited wonderful old growth forests on hikes led by passionate leaders and learned much about the country’s trees and unique plants as well as birds. We went to beautiful wineries and tasted delicious wines. We visited museums, botanical gardens and roamed the cities. We travelled by boat, car and railway. We canoed, visited caves and trekked in valleys ringed by sky-high mountains. Some of our planned excursions, such as swimming with dolphins, helicopter ride to Franz Joseph Glacier and whale watching, were cancelled because of rain and bad weather, our travel company reimbursed us for the amount we had pre-paid.

Because we knew little and wanted to enjoy the New Year's celebration in Sydney, Australia, we found our travel agency on the internet and contacted them with regards to such a trip. We were planning 2 years in advance because of Covid.We found the right company. During the 2 year wait, we became less able to handle a lot of walking and riding and our travel agency was able to adjust our schedule to our needs.  The trip to Sydney for the New Year's celebration is a great experience. Included in our trip was a journey on a cruise ship. The service was magnificent, the food above excellent, especially if you like seafood. The activities aboard required a bit more youth than we had but the ships' personnel accommodated us and helped us to participate in all.  AND the fireworks on New Year's Eve are worth traveling across the globe to experience. Sydney does it all. Also included in our trip were private tours: one to the Blue Mountains where a delicious lunch was served in full view of the area and stops included a wild animal park and one of the Royal Horticultural Gardens. Another included a tour by cart of the Royal Botanical Garden in Sydney; we liked this one so much we rescheduled a second tour to see the sections of the garden we didn't have time for the first time.   The planning and accommodations made by the agency and the ability to change activities even during the trip itself made this travel company stand out above the rest.

Following a Backroads multi-adventure trip to New Zealand, we worked with Shelley to plan a multi-adventure itinerary in Australia. This was our first time visiting Australia (and our first time working with Zicasso) and Shelley was great to work with and coordinated a variety of desired experiences (and all the necessary transport and hotel reservations) in Sydney, Port Douglas/Cairns and Melbourne. In addition, she helped coordinate our travel logistic to and from Auckland, New Zealand.I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Zicasso as well as Shelley and our travel agency to anyone interested in visiting Australia.

Geoff and his team did a fantastic job putting together our family trip to New Zealand. He helped us hit so many of the things we wanted to see. The hotels were perfect for our family and he found some great experiences for us to share. Particular highlights were the private fly fishing and rafting trip, the glowworm tubing experience and the Maori cultural experience.   Geoff and Libby made us feel like they truly enjoy sharing their country with others and we’re wonderful to work with.

The trip was absolutely amazing and it was wonderful to be able to give a budget and the travel coordinator organized absolutely everything for us so we didn’t have to think and only had to get there and enjoy. We will definitely be using this service again for long trips out of the country. I will highly recommend this service and our travel coordinator to others looking to travel out of country and look forward to many more hassle free vacations like the African trip we took.