Awesome Things to do in New Zealand Cities

New Zealand’s cities all too often are overlooked as great travel destinations.  While it’s hard to compete with the likes of Aotearoa’s impressive mountains, rivers, beaches and glaciers, we think our cities punch well above their weight when it comes to things to do and see.  From heritage sites to hip cafes, you’ll find the urban offerings here are world class.  Surprised?  Check out these great things to do in five of New Zealand’s cities: Continue reading

Interesting Facts About Christchurch

One of our favourite tours to run is the Discover Christchurch city tour, where one of our friendly and fun guides shares facts and history about our great city while you admire the view from one of our restored double-decker buses.  Christchurch sightseeing has never been more fun!

Double Decker bus tourOne of the comments we hear a lot, especially from locals, is how much new information they learned about the city.  There are plenty of interesting stories to tell about Christchurch (which is one of the reasons we think everyone should check out our Discover Christchurch tour).

Here are just a few interesting facts about Christchurch that might inspire you to dig a little deeper into the city’s history:

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Awesome ‘Made in New Zealand’ Adventure Tours and Activities

Adventure TourNothing makes us happier than giving our guests a good rush with our thrilling adventure tours: the half-day 4WD Jetboat Adventure and the full-day Alpine Safari Tour.  Between the 4WD tour of the rugged Canterbury high country and the high-speed jetboat ride, there is plenty to get your blood pumping.

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Open top double-decker resumes Christchurch tours

New Zealand’s only open top double-decker bus resumes its tours around Christchurch this week as its owners celebrate an award winning first year of operation.

Mark and Nikki Gilbert, who together run Hassle-free Tours, brought the distinctive 1964 Routemaster bus to Christchurch last year and it, along with a closed top double-decker, has proved a big hit with visitors to the city.

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5 Amazing Lord of the Rings Filming Locations

Just a few more months until Peter Jackson’s newest movie, The Hobbit, comes out.  We can’t wait to see Mr. Jackson’s interpretation of Tolkien’s story, as well as the always-stunning New Zealand landscape starring as Middle Earth.  We expect the film will give us a good reminder to appreciate the surreal and diverse landscapes in our backyard.

All of the excitement over The Hobbit has got us thinking about the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and we’ve come up with a list of our five favourite Lord of the Rings filming locations.  Check out our picks and let us know which sites you’d love to visit the most.
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