This company is very organized! I booked this tour through Viator and the owner communicated to me…read moreimmediately about the procedure to get to the Island. The tour guide was very informative, went to 3 vineyards ( postage stamp, Stony Ridge and Cable Bay Vineyards). Lunch at 372 - fabulous day!

The booking process was very easy and the communication was clear and timely. We booked an earlier…read moreferry (9:15) through Island Direct. It was nice to have some time after departure to have a coffee and walk around the shoreline. The bus was parked right outside and Caleb gathered everyone up and we were off! I'll update this review at the end of the day.

Our hotel was a walking distance from the ferry terminal. Really nice to stroll around. We boarded…read morethe Fullers 360 to Waiheke Island. The information and ticket offices was just in front of the terminal. Very easy to find.

The Auckland Ferry Terminal is a beautiful Edwardian Baroque building. It was built in 1912. Its…read moredesign is similar to the San Francisco Ferry Building in California. The terminal connects Auckland with ferries going to the North Shore, West Auckland, South Auckland and the surrounding islands. It is centrally located at the end of Queen Street. It was the principal way to reach the North Shore until the Auckland Harbor Bridge was opened in 1959. Nice place to sit and enjoy the view on a sunny summer day in Auckland.

Who knew Rangitoto's little neighbor was full of walking tracks too?…read more Enter: Motatapu Island. After doing several double takes of the stark contrast between Rangitoto's volcanic rock & Motatapu's rolling green pastures, I decided it was time to go out and explore. We took the Rangitoto ferry* (early bird is only $20 return...sweeeeet). From the wharf, you walk along the coast to across to Islington Bay which brings you to the causeway path over to Motatapu. You then join the Motatapu walkway, including a network of paths which cover a large portion of the island. We followed the path over to Home Bay, which is a beautiful swimming spot and also 'home' (tehee) to a DOC beach campground. From there, you have a number of options through farmland, WWII gun emplacements and tunnels and/or chillin' with the local cattle (these guys have some pretttttty stellar views). Tips: + Give yourself the whole day if you want to start in Rangi and work your way around Motatapu - it's nothing strenuous but it covers some distance. + Signage isn't amazing so I'd bring a map and be flexible in your routes, if you know what I mean :) + Bring water - there's aren't many places to fill up along the way, so make sure you bring plenty All in all, a nice little day trip (especially for those without a car and/or if you don't love "crowds" - Rangitoto is definitely the more popular destination). *They do have a ferry that runs directly to Motatapu, but it's seasonal and not every weekend, so be sure to check out the Fullers website.

Motatapu is Rangitoto's forgotten neighbour. It's not often talked about - potentially because it…read moreis harder to get to - but it's an island that every Aucklander should visit at least once. You can access the island via Rangitoto or get a public ferry from downtown to Home Bay (although, these are less frequent). Once you're there, there's oodles of walking tacks to explore, most with spectacular views of the Hauraki Gulf. History buffs - keep an eye out for the WWII gun emplacements.

My wife and I were on a week long vacation to Auckland and we saw many good reviews for this tour…read more We boarded and took a 40 minute trip to Waiheke Island for some scientific readings and then it was off to see some dolphins and birds and whales. They told us if you find these cool Gannett birds, it should tell you where the dolphins are. They divebomb the fish as the dolphins rile them up. We saw at least 400 dolphins on this trip and then we saw a whale, and they kept us out for an extra hour to check out a dolphin in the harbor. Great crew, that was very fun and you can order beer on the trip. Plus!

We had the most fabulous time today! We saw manta rays, wholes, dolphins and even a shark! Zara…read moretaught us a few things about phytoplankton, tiny plants living near the surface of the ocean, that are responsible for producing the oxygen we breathe for 3 of 5 breaths ! If we do Ty take care of our oceans, we'll have a hard time breathing! My 5 yo and 8 yo said it was a great day that they will never forget.

Tiritiri Matangi is a magical island paradise less than an hour and a half on the ferry from…read moredowntown Auckland, or also accessible by private boat. I just spent a week on the island as a volunteer and it was just fantastic. More fantastic is that anyone from the public is able to book to stay at the Department of Conservation operated bunkhouse on this amazing open bird sanctuary. The views, birdlife and atmosphere are everything you ever wanted from a trip out of town. The bonus of going on an overnight trip of course is the opportunity to see the island's nightlife which includes kiwi, tuatara and morepork, and of course rouse yourself horrifically early for a dawn chorus. The bunkhouse itself is an excellent facility. Dorm-style rooms with complete kitchen, bathroom and dining areas. The island runs on tank water so be prepared for short showers (but with hot water!) and other water conservation practices. You're responsible for cleaning up and taking any rubbish with you when you leave. Also, the island is predator-free so be prepared to undergo a complete biosecurity checklist before heading to the island. This might mean vacuuming out your pack or picking seeds out of your socks but it is most definitely worth it.

Great way to experience nature and learn from an experienced animal advocate. We did the night hike…read moreand it was thrilling to go thru the forest with Tristan. He provided a tasty picnic dinner near the beach. This was the last night of our 3 weeks in New Zealand and enabled us to end on a great non-touristy note. Highly recommend Tristan's tours.

Looking for a shore excursion off the beaten path in Auckland that would take me into nature and…read moreout of the city and after much research I settled on Habitat Tours. I am so glad I did. Tristan picked up my guest and I in the harbor downtown where our cruise ship was docked and off we went. We had opted for the Waitakere Half Day Tour which included a short hike through the beautiful sand dunes leading up to Lake Wainamu, a walk through the Cascade Kauri Park among the majestic and ancient Kauri trees, and some play time at Bethell's Beach to stroll the sands, wade into the waters, and take it all in (with tea and cookies waiting for us when we finished). It was just my guest and I on our tour so everything was tailored to us and very intimate. We loved chatting with our guide Tristan and we felt great about supporting a local small business. If we had more time we would have done a full day tour. Really just a fantastic day and would highly recommend Habitat Tours to anyone wanting to get out and explore nature around Auckland.

The tour includes driving you around Waiheke and tastings at 3 wineries. They will pick you up from…read morethe ferry or downtown. Julie was a lovely guide and bus driver. They have pre-booked tastings at the wineries and thus you get a tour of the vineyard and some information about the history, etc. Our tour had 10 people on it. My only critiques are that they don't give you that many tastings at the wineries (3-4) and they don't allow substitutions if you don't like whites or reds. Also they give you an extra 30-45 minutes at each winery after the tasting has ended, which was perhaps a bit too much time. I figured out you could take a public bus from the ferry terminal that will drop you off right in front of many of the wineries, so not sure its fully worth the money (though this tour does take you to ones that are not available by public bus). You do get better value for money with this tour though compared to many other tours we looked at.

Travel days can be hectic and stressful…read more.. Since this was our first time arriving in Sydney, Australia, and departing from New Zealand, we arranged our pre- and post-cruise air and land transportation through Oceania Cruises. We were more than impressed with the itineraries that they scheduled for our foursome. Our New Zealand driver picked us up from our hotel, Sudima Auckland City, at precisely at 5;30 PM, allowing us an uninterrupted 30-minute drive or 24 miles to Auckland Airport (AKL). Along the way, our driver informed us that Auckland Airport (international) is this nation's busiest and largest airport, yet it has only two terminals. One terminal handles international airline connections through Air New Zealand, Qantas, Emirates, and Cathay Pacific, among others, while the other handles domestic airlines such as Virgin Australia and Airwork. He also advised us on navigating the three levels of the International Terminal, since we were unfamiliar with the airport's layout, which helped to make our departure less stressful. From the Air New Zealand drop-off point, we proceeded to the ground-floor check-in kiosks since we needed bag tags for our checked luggage, even though we had checked in for our flight on the app 24 hours in advance. Check-in was very easy, and a friendly agent was available at the kiosks to assist everyone if needed. After attaching our tags, we took our bags over to the agents to weigh and associate them with our flight tickets. We then passed through to the first-floor retail shops, highly efficient immigration and security, and duty-free vendors before reaching the second floor, where the departure gates were located. We also were impressed by the comfortable modern and Māori-inspired designed décor. While negotiating the crowds and making our way to our departure gate, we had allowed for a 3-hour cushion so we calm down and grab something light to eat pre-flight. We couldn't think of purchasing more souvenirs since we had spent the past 20 days in Australia and New Zealand and everything was packed in either our checked-in or carry-on luggage. So, our appetites were diverted to several food vendors, which, amazingly, offered tasty food and beverage options along with quick, friendly service. Before we knew it, time seemed to fly by and we were ready to board our flight home. We boarded stress-free to our selected seats and promptly fell asleep on a smooth and quiet flight thanks to Air New Zealand.

The airport is nice and clean. I did notice that there are far less restrooms available than in…read moreother airports. Also when you arrive you will be checked again and again by customs. Quite strict about bringing any food, animal, plant or soil matter into the country. I get that, but after you get asked the same question at the 3rd or 4th checkpoint it starts to get a bit redundant.