Louise, our guide, was incredibly inviting and informative throughout the entirety of our trip. We spent about three hours driving through beautiful countryside learning about New Zealand’s history, agriculture, and Maori culture. We went to both Wai o Tapu Geothermal Park and the geothermal park/Maori culture park at Te Puia. The former was beautiful, and Louise made sure we knew how these geothermal areas were used by the Maori. Te Puia was an amazing experience, as we were graciously invited to participate in a welcome ceremony and performance, and toured the on-site school that teaches traditional arts and culture to new generations. It was extremely interesting (and heartening) to learn about the Maori and see the work being done to preserve their traditions. Walking through the rest of the park, we even got to see a geyser erupt amidst the smoking craters and pools. The day was extremely memorable, and our guide was one of the most pleasant people we met.

If you love the hobbit or Lord of the Rings this trip is a must! It’s an early day but Nick, our driver, got us there before the crowds and everyone goes on the same length tour through Hobbiton itself which is just gorgeous- over 40 hobbit holes and the Green Dragon is very nice too! The Waitomo caves were incredible- our guide gave us the history of the limestone caverns and her people’s connection to them. Her great great grandfather was the chief of the local Maori people who discovered the caverns and they have been running tours since the late 1800s! The gloworm looked like constellations above us but you can’t take any pictures!

My tour guide up to Hobbiton was Chris (from the Auckland and Beyond Tours). Fabulous person! Lucky to have him on that day. The tour guide at the Hobbiton, though, seemed to be in a hurry (that's something I didn't expect). In my opinion, he didn't give us enough time to roam around and enjoy our beer (in fact, he seemed upset because we took a bit longer to take the bus). The rest was perfect. A must see scenic beauty (whether you are a fan of the movies or not). Would definitely like to visit it again.

Our guide David was excellent. We managed to get out early to catch the sunrise (and some beautiful photos) of the Matamata area around Hobbiton and were the first tour of the day (nobody else to get in your shots!) The New Zealand scenic routes were fantastic to get a taste of New Zealand outside the larger towns and David's tips were extremely helpful for where to go and what to look for at each location.

I highly recommend this tour! We didn’t have to drive all the back roads and through traffic. The van was comfortable. We had breaks to stretch and use the facilities. Nick, our guide, was phenomenal: friendly, knowledgeable, and a great driver. Lunch was included and tasty. And the tours were fantastic: even better than I expected! Thank you so much fir a wonderful day! You even provided beautiful weather.