New Zealand Gap Year Itinerary (14 Days)
Day 1: Welcome to New Zealand (Auckland to Pihia)
Arrive into Auckland where you will be met by our on-ground Kiwi staff. They will help you settle into your new home and which also happens to be your transportation for the next week. From Auckland we will start our journey north to the Bay of Islands.
Day 2: Sailing and Swimming with Dolphins (Bay of Islands)
Today we're off on a fun filled day of sailing, snorkeling, and swimming with dolphins around the beautiful Bay of Islands. Explore the Bay of Islands on a 40ft catamaran while spotting dolphins, penguins and other bird life or just soak up the sun on the deck.
Day 3: Optional Sky-Jump (Pihia to Waitomo Caves)
We will depart the Bay of Islands this morning and travel south to Waitomo Caves. On our journey we will stop in Auckland and have the chance to take an exciting optional Sky-Jump from the Sky Tower in the heart of downtown Auckland. At 192m (630ft) Sky-Jump is a cable controlled base jump. The view is awesome, the experience unforgettable. After this awesome experience we will continue on our way to Waitomo Caves.
Day 4: Black Water Rafting (Waitomo Caves to Rotorua)
Today we will have an exhilarating caving experience blending abseiling, climbing and floating through a unique underground river system. Abseil into the awesome limestone tomo to experience the adrenaline rush as you clamber and slide through squeezes, zip into the black water filled abyss and scramble up waterfalls in your pursuit of daylight. We will then depart Waitomo Caves and make our way to Rotorua.
Day 5: Zorb, Agrojet, Swoop and Kiwi Culture (Rotoura)
Start today of with a Zorb ride where you are safely harnessed inside the Zorb before being sent head over heels downhill. Watch the world spin past the windows. Now that your warmed up it's time for a Agrojet ride which is a 13ft, 450 horsepower jet boat that will deliver you up to 100kph in four seconds! In the tight man-made watercourse, you will take corners not unlike Formula One race cars. Let's keep the action going with a Swoop. One, two or three people are placed in a hang-gliding harnesses, hoisted 40 meters in the air, pull the rip-cord and FLY! To finish off the day we will be experiencing a Maori concert performance which is an essential part of a Rotorua visit.
Day 6: Fantastic White Water Rafting (Rotoura)
Today we will take on the mighty Kaituna which boasts the highest commercially rafted waterfall (7m) in the world. This spectacular region of the country offers wonderful scenery and some of the finest rafting conditions around! After a hard day on the river you can take the chance to relax with an optional mud spa.
Day 7: North to South (Rotoura to Queenstown)
Board a domestic flight from Rotoura bound for Queenstown – the adventure capital of the Southern Hemisphere. This cosmopolitan town has no shortage of adrenaline inducing activities for you to sample. As the birthplace of bungy jumping, Queenstown is renowned for the countless adventure activities available to its visitors. If bungee jumping isn’t enough for you, skydiving, jet-boating, cable flying or parapenting await. If these all seems a bit much for you, more mellow activities such as ice-skating or a cruise on the lake are also easily accessible.
Day 08: Optional Activity Day
Start the day off with a wild ride down the Shotover River aboard the famous Shotover Jet Boat. Then we head to the Skyline Gondola and Luge complex which sits high above Queenstown on Bob's Peak, 790m above sea level. The Complex is reached by gondola cableway. Once on top of Bob's peak the luge race is on! Two 800 metre tracks go down through the trees, accessed by Pomagalski chairlift. A scenic track with viewing bays allows a leisurely trip down whilst enjoying the panorama. An advanced track allows the more adventurous to enjoy the challenge of banked corners, a tunnel, bends and dips. You can also take the option of parapenting off Bob's Peak. You will then have the afternoon free to take advantage of the many other fantastic optional activities that Queenstown has to offer, which include bungee jumping, sky diving and canyon swing……………. the list is almost endless.
Day 09: Let the Service Begin!
This morning we will pack up the car and say farewell to Queenstown as we make our way to our community service base, which is located in the small town of Papatowai! The drive will take us about fours hours through some of the most scenic landscape New Zealand has to offer. On arrival into the coastal town of Papatowai we will be met be our local hosts Fergus and Mary. Once we have settled into our new base it’s then time to meet some of the local Penguins and let the service begin!
Day 10: Exciting Projects
Today will be your first full day of service work! Project work during the course of your program will involve participation in a variety of initiatives. You can expect to spend a lot of time on Fergus and Mary farm building fences, planting, and crawling along their privately owned 30 year old penguin reserve. You also might find yourself in the community gardens and trails to the ocean. In addition to building and gardening, you will have the opportunity to develop services for the children that live in Papatowai. This might involve working at the local fire department, the children’s playground, or local schools. You can expect your days to be long and full of different types of service. In the process of this hard work you will notice yourself becoming part of a community that is removed from much of modern day nonsense and in truly unchanged by time. By traveling across the world to help a community you are showing that your compassion has no boundaries and you will be welcomed as a neighbor and not a stranger. Tonight we can get together and have an exciting cultural seminar on the Maori Culture and learn about the famous Haka; maybe even try to do it ourselves...
Days 11: Full day of work with a little time to wander!
This morning you will continue with the projects you began the day before. Lunch will give you some time to rest and relax together before you go back to work for the afternoon.
Day 12: The Work Must Go On!
The morning will be spent finishing up any projects that need completing, or simply see what else we can do for the town of Papatowai. This afternoon we will be sure to have some optional activities. If you are particularly involved in any project of service we can continue with that, or… You may have the opportunity for some touring and sightseeing along the coast. You can determine the pace of the afternoon but it may include a few hours combing the beach for paua shells, sea kayaking, visiting the Lost Gypsy, or roaming the hills to explore the area. The staff will know all the best sights and activities to fill up your day and will happily help you make the most of your afternoon. In the evening, you will return to the base house to socialize, play soccer, go for a run or walk with our staff or just chill out. There will also be night astronomy classes! Southland is one of the best viewing spots in the entire world because of the lack of light pollution, air pollution, and positioning on the globe.
Day 13: Farewell Rugged Coast
Today we are going to drive back across to Queenstown. It’s going to be an early start to the morning so we plenty of time for some side trips and see some very unique spots off the beaten track. We can stop for pictures, go into local shop to buy some hand carved bone or Pounamu, and get some of the world’s best fish and chips. Today is a chance to do some much desired shopping for souvenirs.
Day 14: Goodbye Aoteroa!
Well your time in New Zealand has flown by like a dream and you should now be truly ingrained in Kiwi land. You will have time to say goodbye to the new friends and land that you have become a part of.
An Important Note about Schedule Changes: Rustic Pathways reserves the right to change, alter, or amend the daily itinerary for this trip at any time. Changes can be made for various reasons including changes in flight or program schedules, changes in the schedules of various external tours incorporated in our trips, the addition of new activities into a trip, or the substitution of an old activity for a new activity. The itinerary shown here provides a good outline of the anticipated daily schedule for this program. As with any travel program, some changes may occur. |
Service in the Land of the Long White Cloud
