New Zealand Multisport & Wine Adventure

Arrival & Departures

We’ll meet you in the New Zealand’s capitol city of Wellington (airport code WLG) on the first morning of the trip – we highly recommend arriving at least a day ahead of time since it will allow you recovery time from a very long flight!

We’ll finish in Christchurch, New Zealand (airport code CHC) on the last day, so you should get an “open jaw” ticket into Wellington and out of Christchurch. Upon booking, we will send you a Pre-Departure Packet with complete travel information and ideas for how and where to extend your trip.

What's Included?

• A Zephyr guide will be on each trip and will be accompanied by a local wine guide and a local trekking guide during specific portions of our trip.
• Double occupancy lodging is included. If you are traveling solo, we will match you with another traveler of the same gender. However, you may pay a single supplement to have your own room.
• All of your dinners and breakfasts are included, as are most of your lunches. Gratuity for these meals is also included. In general, we leave some lunches open so that you have time to explore and enjoy the local flavors en route.
• All your transportation is included once you meet your guide(s) on the first day, including water taxis and ferries.
• Zephyr pays for all wine tours and special tastings. All drinks at meals or at local establishments are on your own.
• Bike rental on our biking day is included, as are any fees associated with our scheduled activities.
• NOT INCLUDED Beverages, desserts, lunches, gratuities to your guides, personal expenses and travel to and from the destination.

Weather

First, a little geography! New Zealand’s climate is dominated by two main geographical features: the mountains and the sea.  The country is comprised of two main islands (North Island and South Island) and a number of small islands around their perimeter. The South Island has a range of mountains known as the Southern Alps that divide the island along its length, and peaks ascend as high as 12,316 ft (Aoraki / Mt Cook). This makes for a varying climates. Both the North and South Islands of New Zealand enjoy moderate, maritime climate, weather and temperatures.  Let’s focus on the South Island, since that is where we spend most of our trip.

The west coast of the South Island can be extremely wet, while the eastern side can be very dry. We will be spending much of our time on the north coast – straddling both sides of the alps to some extent. Our trip is broken up with time on the coast (cooler) and time in Marlborough, New Zealand’s sunniest region. We will be visiting in early Fall (March).  Along the Queen Charlotte Track, we can expect temperatures in the 50s (Fahrenheit) at night and the 70s during the day. The Fall season has an average of 10 days of rain per month, so we may see a shower or two. Once we head inland to the Marlborough’s wine region, we can expect temperatures to be slightly warmer and drier; we will be arriving just as the wine grape harvest gets into full swing, which is always an exciting time to be near the vineyard!

Because we will be spending much of our time outdoors, and because we can never predict the weather, we encourage you to prepare for both rain and sun, hot and cold!  While we should be able to expect splendid late summer/early fall conditions, there is likely to be occasional showers and rainfall.  Please see our packing list for full details on what to bring.

Extending Your Vacation

There is no shortage of things to do and places to see if you decide to extend your stay in New Zealand after (or before) your Zephyr Adventure (most people feel that traveling that far justifies staying for a longer vacation!).  It is a beautiful country, and we’ll be visiting during a wonderful time of the year.  To start out, see Top 10 lists from one source for both the North Island and the South Island.

South Island: We end our trip in Christchurch, so this is an easy spot to stay an extra day or two. Heavily damaged by a severe earthquake in February of 2011, Christchurch is still a beautiful seaside city worthy of a visit. Christchurch is also the gateway to many other South Island destinations. If you have time to add onto your trip, you may decide to rent a car (best way to get around this rural country) and visit places such as Queenstown (one of the top-rated destinations on the South Island, with a large alpine lake and extreme sport destination of unprecedented beauty) or Milford Sound (hailed by Rudyard Kipling as the “eighth wonder of the world,” the Milford Sound is within Fjordland National Park, which is a very rainy spot, but you’re rewarded with waterfalls!)

North Island: If you want to see a bit more of New Zealand, you may decide to come early and spend a day or two in Wellington, or extend your layover in Auckland (New Zealand’s largest city at roughly one and a half million people) for a bit and checkout some of what the North Island has to offer.  If you’re a fan of the Lord of The Rings, you may want to visit “Middle Earth” (where much of the movies were filmed), located south of Auckland near Matamata.

Wine

You definitely don’t need to be a wine expert to enjoy this tour. In fact, you don’t even need any knowledge of wines at all. All you need is an open mind, an ability to discern what you like and don’t like, and an adventurous spirit.

Ability Level

This adventure is rated Moderate, mainly because we hike for three days on the Queen Charlotte Track.  If you are not used to hiking for three days in a row, you may find this taxing, even though we eliminate the most difficult day of this 71-kilometer track. Our remaining daily hikes and walks are easier and shorter and you can even opt out of them if you like.  We also have one day of biking on this trip and it requires some navigation.  However, the route is fairly flat and mostly on quiet country roads.

Flights

We’re not going to lie, the flights to New Zealand are long, ranging from 14 – 18 hours depending on where your starting airport is located, and expensive – but it’s absolutely worth it!

Limited Trail Options

We’ll be hiking point to point in order to cover as much ground as possible during our time in New Zealand. Because of this our the days on the QCT are NOT as flexible and we are not able to offer a range of route distances. On these days you will need to be prepared to do the full distance. However on one of the days, you may opt out of the hike by taking a boat ride (NZ $45) instead. Though you would miss the beautiful trail scenery, there is a lot to do at the Lodge where we’ll be checking into and you would otherwise not get a lot of time there.

Not So Vegetarian Friendly

We truly try to accommodate everyone’s meal preferences on every trip, but due to the location of this tour Vegetarians should take note that meals are meat heavy.

Who Would Enjoy This Tour

If you are fairly active and have always wanted to visit New Zealand, this is your opportunity. If you are into wine, the New Zealand wines will impress you, as will the focus on quality and sustainability in New Zealand’s food world. Finally, the stunning landscapes offer breathtaking moments for even the most jaded travelers!

Changes to Your Itinerary

While everything under “What is Included” will remain the same, the actual restaurants, hotels, and activities listed in our itineraries are subject to modifications. Changes that are out of our control are common – a restaurant closes or loses its awesome chef, a winery changes its visiting hours, a hotel gets remodeled, a road or trail undergoes construction. You are entrusting us to create an outstanding vacation for you and so it is possible we may take the liberty of making necessary changes (even at the last minute, during the guides’ scout trip) to the itinerary that will improve your overall trip experience. If there is any one experience that is going to make or break your trip, please discuss this with us in advance! We will attempt to keep our website itinerary as current as possible and communicate any major changes with you in the weeks prior to the tour.