Accommodations

The Kea Family Trip is an activity-oriented trip around the South Island. We've chosen interesting, comfortable and family-friendly accommodations throughout. In some places it's quite luxurious but many of the other places we stay are off the beaten track – and don't have many accommodation options – but are really, really spectacular. We think you'll love the places we stay!

Recommended Flights

If you're flying in on the first day of the trip, or out on the last day, we recommend arriving in Christchurch by approximately 9 - 10am on Tuesday, and departing from Christchurch after 3 – 4 pm on Sunday. Other flight times may also be possible – if you are considering other flight times please let us know.

Pick-up Information

On the first day of the trip we can either pick you up from the Holiday Inn City Centre in Christchurch at 10.30am, or at the Christchurch airport in front of the information desk at 11am.

Drop Off Information

On the last day of the trip we can drop you off at the Christchurch airport in time for the flights above, or anywhere in central Christchurch in mid-late afternoon.

Fitness

You and the kids need to have a reasonable level of fitness to enjoy yourself on the Kea , but no more than the average family. This trip is all about family fun so the activities are OK for people with short legs! If you're concerned about your fitness level, or whether your kids are up to it, have a chat with us so we can help you choose between the Kea and our other trips.

Experience

You don't need any outdoor experience at all to enjoy our trips. All our trips allow you to make the most of New Zealand's incredible environment. Our experienced guides are highly trained and will look after you and the kids. You don't need to have ever been in a sea kayak to enjoy kayaking Okarito Lagoon or in a raft or jet boat to enjoy those activities either. All we ask is that you be in reasonable shape, and that everyone's keen to have fun in New Zealand's amazing outdoor playground. We guarantee you'll have an incredible time. We manage the level of commitment to suit your experience, and we have an impeccable safety record. We hold all relevant government licenses and our staff are highly trained and experienced.

Kea Start & End Point, and Direction of Travel

To keep our group sizes down, we sometimes run the Kea in two different directions around the South Island – Northbound (refers to initial direction of travel from Christchurch) and Southbound. This itinerary happens to be written up in the Southbound format. Whichever trip you take, you'll do all the activities we've mentioned, just in a different order. The Kea is a product of many years of evolution and fine-tuning – it works well whichever direction you go.

Flexibility

Because of the off-the-beaten-path and non-commercial nature of some of our accommodation on this trip, we sometimes need to change a night stop. We try to make as few changes as possible but we might have to make slight changes to make sure your trip is as good as it can be.

Included

The trip fare is US$2499 + 12.5% NZ government taxes for adults, and US$1999 + tax for kids 15 and under. We quote all prices in US dollars, so our guests from all over the world can more easily relate prices to their own currencies. You can also join for shorter periods of time, at a pro-rated fare. The trip fare includes just about everything, specifically:

• All guiding services. We always have at least two guides per trip.
• Comfortable accommodation for the entire period you are with us. We can also organize accommodation for you if you want to arrive earlier or leave later.
• All your meals, except in Queenstown where we've found people prefer to check out the wide range of restaurants. Alcohol is not generally included, although we do spring for a few drinks here and there!
• All hiking and kayaking described in the itinerary, except optional extra activities, such as the heli-hike at Franz Josef. We have estimated the rates for optional extra activities operated by local activity operators in US dollars, including all required equipment, but these rates may vary according to the USD/NZD exchange rate of the day. There are many optional activities available at extra cost, particularly in Queenstown. None of these activities are compulsory, and nor will your trip seem less awesome if you do the cheap or free options. Although some people enjoy sampling hang gliding, bungy jumping, jet boating, skydiving, and so on, others prefer to focus more on the hiking, paddling and cycling, which is of course the reason you're coming to New Zealand in the first place!

We’ll see you soon!