Pure New Zealand (2012)

Auckland • Rotorua • Arrowtown • Franz Josef Glacier • Greymouth • Wellington
  • 14 days
  • from only:
  • $3795
  • $272 per day
    Land Tour Only
  • 16 days
  • from only:
  • $4945
  • $310 per dayIncludes international airfare and government taxes
IN THIS SECTION:
Detailed Itinerary
Video: Travelers' experiences of Pure New Zealand
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Is this Adventure Right for You?
It's Included
Unique Accommodations
Extend Your Adventure
Optional Tours
Trip Leaders
Grand Circle Foundation
Photos From Our Travelers
Your Travel Handbook
Air information
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Customize your trip

Learn how to customize your adventure, or view standard air routing and travel times. The choice is yours with our True Choice program.

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Customize your trip

With our True Choice Program, you can choose to stay longer before or after your trip on your own, or combine two adventures to maximize your value. Here are more ways to create the OAT adventure that’s right for you:

  • Choose our standard air routing, or work with us to select the airline and routing you prefer
  • Make your own international flight arrangements directly with the airline, applying frequent flyer miles if available
  • Stay overnight in a connecting city before or after your trip
  • Request to arrive a few days early to get a fresh start on your adventure
  • Choose to “break away” before or after your trip, spending additional days or weeks on your own
  • Extend your adventure with our optional pre- and post-trip extensions
  • Combine your choice of OAT adventures to maximize your value
  • Upgrade to business or premium economy class

The air options listed above will involve an additional fee of $100 per person for confirmed requests (as well as incremental airfare costs based on your specific choice). This service fee will be waived for Inner Circle/Sir Edmund Hillary Club members.

Or, when you make your reservation, you can choose our standard air routing, for which approximate travel times are shown below.

GATEWAY

TRAVEL TIME*

Atlanta, Seattle

22hrs

Boston

25hrs

Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis, Phoenix

21hrs

Detroit, Philadelphia

26hrs

Chicago, Newark, New York (JFK), Orlando, Portland, OR

23hrs

Washington, DC (Dulles)

24hrs

Los Angeles

14hrs

San Francisco

20hrs

* Estimated total time, including connection and layover. Actual travel time may vary.

The information above reflects approximate flight times from the gateway cities listed to Auckland, New Zealand. Routing is based on availability and subject to change. You will receive your final air itinerary approximately 14 days prior to departure.

REFER and EARN

Earn increasing rewards as a Vacation Ambassador

REFER and EARN as a Vacation Ambassador with
the BEST referral program in the industry

Inspiring new travelers to join the OAT family is a rewarding experience—both for you and your new travelers.

Share your love of travel with others and, for each referral who embarks on an OAT trip, you will earn $100 in CASH or credit. With your 4th referral departing on a 2012 departure, your reward increases to $200 in CASH or credit per person. And once you refer 8 travelers departing in either 2012 or 2013, you'll earn a FREE trip valued up to $4,500 per household—which will bring the total value of your earned rewards up to $5,600.

And you are also passing along savings to your new traveler: We'll instantly deduct $100 off the cost of their reservation when they mention your name and Customer Number while reserving.

To learn more about the benefits of our Vacation Ambassador Referral Program, please call us toll-free at 1-800-955-1925 or click here.

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Optional Tours

Expand your discoveries with our optional tours

Day 6:
 Te Puia Maori Cultural Center with Dinner $110 per person

Located in an area of vast geothermal activity, Te Puia was a naturally formed fortress first occupied by the Maori people in 1325. It is now home to the Maori Arts & Crafts Institute, one of New Zealand’s premier Maori cultural centers. The native peoples of this region are known as the “tribe of hospitality” and they are famed for their performing arts. Tonight we’ll take a guided tour of the carving and weaving schools and discover many Maori legends and traditions. Then we'll experience a Te Po ceremony including a welcome, warrior's challenge, and kapa haka (performing arts) concert. Then we savor a traditional Maori feast.

Day 9:
 Dart River Jet-boat Safari $165 per person
T4896

On this half-day optional excursion, we’ll explore the Dart River on an unforgettable jet-boat adventure in the Mount Aspiring National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. First, we travel along the shores of Lake Wakatipu to Glenorchy, a frontier town at the base of the Southern Alps. Here we board 4x4 vehicles for a journey through forests with huge snowcapped mountain backdrops made internationally famous by movies such as The Lord of the Rings. When the road comes to an end, we take a short walk through the forest to board our jet-boat and ride upstream on the Dart River, enjoying spectacular views in an area so remote that few ever get a chance to experience it. On the return trip to Glenorchy, our driver will put our jet-boat through its paces, showing how it can make high speed precision turns and 360-degree spins. Jet-boats were invented in New Zealand for shallow, braided rivers like the Dart and this is a truly thrilling way to view some of the country’s finest alpine scenery. After returning to Glenorchy we ride back to Arrowtown.
Day 11:
 Helicopter Flight Over Mount Cook $240 per person
T7448

If weather permits, take this optional helicopter flight for a bird’s-eye view of the Mount Cook region, with its pristine Alpine scenery and the Franz Josef and Fox glaciers. Experience a unique snow landing at the head of one of these glaciers, the only ones in the world that descend from crisp cigar snowfields into lush temperate rainforests. In the hand of a pilot highly experienced in navigating New Zealand’s alpine environment, enjoy the thrill of this helicopter flight through what is undoubtedly one of the most inspiring regions of the world.