New Zealand
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Brace yourselves for breathtaking scenery and some of the world's most fascinating endemic flowers and birds on one of the most exciting wildlife adventures we offer! New Zealand is justly famed for its stunningly beautiful and varied landscape of coastline, forests, mountains and fjords, and its hard-to-match array of endemic wildlife. Join us as we roam its land and seas in search of this country's unique and often endangered flowers and wildlife, on a trip devised for us by New Zealand's foremost wildlife tour operator, Mark Hanger.
A hundred million years of isolation have made New Zealand very much a world apart in evolutionary terms. The absence of land mammals have given its native birds room to adapt and move into the mammal niches, relatively free of predators. Thus they have evolved into a truly fascinating avifauna, including the famous nocturnal flightless Kiwi, but with many other uniquely-formed, and often very tame species. The plants are also highly distinctive, and we shall be seeing a splendid range of these as we travel through the New Zealand summer. Perhaps best of all, though, there is the spectacular scenery. This ranges from the hot geysers and volcanic springs of North Island to the fjords, alpine glaciers and rushing rivers of South Island, dominated by towering Mount Cook, and culminating in the awesome granite peaks of Fiordland. Our tour aims to be the botanical and wildlife trip of a lifetime, covering the islands from north to south, and visiting a superb range of the New Zealand habitats on land and sea. We begin our tour on North Island, starting with its superb lowland forests and majestic trees, and an excellent array of the endemic landbirds on Tiri Tiri Matangi Island, near Auckland. We spend another day in the ancient podocarp forests here, where the primitive, endangered Kokako calls eerily from the treetops, and we'll see some of the volcanic landscapes and thermal activity on North Island, including the superb peaks of Tongariro National Park. After crossing Cook Strait, we will explore some of the wildest and most spectacular parts of South Island in search of more endemic plants and birds, and a host of seabirds along the coast and inlets. Kahurangi National Park has a wealth of botanical treasures including the famous 'vegetable sheep'! Other experiences on South Island include probably the most stunningly close encounter with seabirds you'll ever have, superb endemic alpine flowers around Mt Cook, and the breathtaking landscapes of Fiordland National Park, while on far-southern Stewart Island, you'll have one of the most memorable night-birding trips in search of Kiwis,that you'll ever undertake, and close encounters with penguins and parrots - sometimes on the same beach ! In addition to a superb variety of birds and scenery, New Zealand also boasts good accommodation and excellent home-grown food and wine. This tour can be incorporated into your own private visit to New Zealand. We can organise your flights out on any days you choose, or leave you to make your own arrangements. |
Prices:
The price is per person, and is fully inclusive of return scheduled flights* London-Auckland, internal flights as specified, airport taxes, full board accommodation, road and boat transport as described, incidental tips, and the services of the leader(s).
The price excludes travel insurance, optional tips to the local guide/s and driver, drinks and other personal expenses. *For a price excluding the flights London-Auckland return please deduct £945 from the tour cost. If you are booking your own flights please contact us first to check that the times fit with the current itinerary. Accommodation: Good quality hotels and lodges with rooms en suite, except on Stewart Island, where some of the rooms have shared facilities. Leaders: Local guides Numbers: Max. 14 clients 
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Click here for a full, printable itinerary |
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