This was an excellent trip to genuinely experience a great variety of tracks in NZ. We were able to tick off 4 of 9 of the Great Walks. Two of them, Tongariro Northern Circuit & Abel Tasman, we had a longer closer look at. Those & the Siberia Valley at Mt Aspiring NP will be enduring memories. So many activities everyday with very little down time. A fair amount of time spent in the van getting from place to place but unavoidable. Flights from Wellington to Nelson by a small Cessna, helicopter ride into the Siberia Valley & numerous water taxis helped conserve our time. All in all a great trip!
This is my second Toodeck trip, however, this trip was run by Kiwi Experience and it was not what I expected. I still had a great time but the trip was not as seamless as my previous trip. My understanding is that New Zealand is just starting tourism again and Topdeck has a temporary agreement with KE to manage the New Zealand trips. Additionally, I felt that that 17 days was not enough time! Some locations felt very rushed and it would have been better as a 21 day trip.
Fantastic trip- the landscape and trail was so different each day . The ride was never too challenging when you have the support of a group and good bikes. Loved the variety of accommodation - sheep station lodge to hotel - it added to the enjoyment . Guides Kim and Elder looked after us so well - cooked for us for two days, always had a full fruit and treats bowl on the bus, nothing was too much trouble for them. Feel a real sense of achievement at having completed the A2O Trail.