News

People often talk about New Zealand as an "active" destination.  They also talk about the phenomenal natural beauty.  And also about the friendliness of the people.  And finally, most of them say their time here was the best they had of anywhere in the world. As a tourism operator specialising in New Zealand, I'm delighted.  As a world traveller who has seen... > Read more

27 Jan 10

I was up in the Bay of Islands, yesterday, tacking a product inspection on to the end of a trip with some delightful Canadian clients.  This was a real hardship - conning a 70ft trimaran around one of the most beautiful harbours in the world in near-perfect weather conditions.  And to make it worse, my family came up - children I've hardly seen over the busy season.  It's always... > Read more

27 Jan 10

We are known for telling our top lodges they are expensive.  In certain cases, though, this can be money well spent.  We have held off writing about Eichardt's in Queenstown as we have also been very impressed with The Spire.  So we've decided to write about both of them.   Eichardt's is one of our favourite top lodges in the country.  Very boutique, beautifully... > Read more

14 Dec 09

Preliminary indications from our sources in the market are that the Rugby World Cup will be expensive, and there will not be enough accommodation.  We have heard anecdotes of 3-star accommodation going for more than NZ$700 per night.  Meanwhile tickets are going to be "comparable" with the last World Cup.  The only logic we can see around this is that the organisers... > Read more

14 Dec 09

The New Zealand tourism season is now in full swing and we and our partners are flat out once again delivering above expectations to sophisticated travellers.  Luckily, the weather is starting to stabilize so there have been few weather-related cancellations. Clients are again impressed with the country - and I cannot emphasize enough again the very high quality of the locals. ... > Read more

14 Dec 09

We were approached by some wonderful clients a couple of months ago.  A father and two sons wanted a special trip to NZ focused on fishing, exclusive activities, and luxury.  They had gone to a mainstream luxury agent and were not satisfied with the result.  Then someone 'in the know' recommended they should talk to us.  They now have some incredible memories to enjoy for... > Read more

24 Nov 09

I don't understand how some people are able to specialise in more than one country, when I have difficulty staying up to date with New Zealand!  I was lucky enough to be checking out Wellington last week, as part of a Rugby World Cup 2011 site visit.  Before that, I had always written Wellington off, advising people that New Zealand was rightly not famous for its cities.  Way... > Read more

24 Nov 09

Last week I was treated to a little Irish luck.  Through an Irish agent we had previously impressed, we were put in touch with Trevor Brennan Rugby Tours and I had the honour and privilege of showcasing New Zealand for Trevor Brennan and Mark Pinsent.  It started off as one would expect with famils of key properties, presentation of special events, and the building of an... > Read more

24 Nov 09

There are many 'received wisdoms' in New Zealand tourism.  One of the more annoying of these is "to see New Zealand, you need to get out of Auckland".  Many itineraries, put together by junior people around the world with little product knowledge and very little client contact, follow this precept and shoot people out as fast as they can to those great uncommercial... > Read more

23 Sep 09

One of the things which makes us different in New Zealand tourism is that we are hands-on.  We are hands-on with our clients, guiding them and walking into lodges with them, seeing their immediate reactions and answering for every aspect of their time in New Zealand.  That can be quite stressful at times, when some people are off form or have new staff. A less stressful,... > Read more

22 Sep 09