New Zealand north and south tour, in comfort

Planet and people

As a global tour operator, we are committed to operating every one of our trips in a way that respects and benefits local people, their culture and economy, while minimising our impact on the natural environment.

We travel in small groups (maximum 15 passengers on this tour), stay in locally-owned accommodation, eat local produce, support small-scale businesses, and provide opportunities for travellers to interact with local people.

Accommodation is in mainly in lodges, but in Christchurch we stay in a former jailhouse – an important example of 1870s Gothic Revival architecture, which after a period of lying unused has been given a new lease of life as an award-winning hostel under the ownership of a local couple.

We travel between towns and cities by small minivan, but we spend much of our time exploring the natural landscape on foot or by water – hiking, biking, kayaking and sailing.

To allow maximum flexibility in deciding where and what to eat, meals are not included in the tour but we operate an optional trip kitty to buy groceries which are used to prepare shared meals for the whole group. This keeps costs down as the group shares the expense of preparing meals, but it also reduces food waste and means that we support local grocery stores along the route. When the group chooses to eat out, your local tour leader will recommend small, locally-owned restaurants which serve authentic local produce and regional specialities. There is also the option to have a traditional Maori Hangi dinner during a cultural evening in Rotorua.

As well as a Responsible Travel Code of Conduct which we adhere to as a company, we expect our staff and travellers to demonstrate the principles of responsible travel and we provide a number of responsible travel tips to facilitate this, for example how to reduce waste and water usage. We encourage passengers to bring their own refillable water bottle rather than purchase numerous plastic bottles of water along the way. If every passenger takes this action, it can drastically reduce the number of plastic bottles that are produced and sent to landfill.

As a tour company, our responsibilities don’t stop when our tours end. In 2002, we established a charitable foundation so that our passengers and staff could support grassroots community projects around the world. To date, our foundation has donated over £2million to over 75 projects around the world which are involved with health care, education, human rights, child welfare, sustainable development, and environmental and wildlife protection. We match every donation made by passengers and pay the administration costs, so every penny that is donated goes to a good cause.