ABOUT OVERLAND NZ:
A UNIQUE ADVENTURE TOUR COMPANY IN NEW ZEALAND
Overland NZ is a New Zealand operator and tour company offering a great mix of New Zealand soft adventure tours and holidays. We offer fabulous travel experiences for anyone who is interested in seeing the best of New Zealand.
Overland NZ specialises in Overland tours that are unique in concept for New Zealand travel; they are small group, fully escorted, virtually all inclusive with many stops and points of interest only offered by Overland NZ. We want to introduce visitors to some very special places we know in both the North and South Islands.
Overland NZ is operated by people who share a passion for New Zealand, travel and adventure. With many years of experience gained from working for some leading names in the Adventure Travel business, we are strengthened further by working with, and partnering with, people with bundles of energy, ideas, drive and enthusiasm for New Zealand. Our combined expertise, experience and accumulative knowledge adds new scope to the types of trips we will continue to offer.
A love of New Zealand prompted us to develop Overland NZ; we built this website to offer people different ways of seeing New Zealand.
Jemma: New Zealand Head Office
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Australian born, Jemma has lived in her fair share of countries: England, France, America, Mexico....And she has traveled most of the world since she departed Australian shores when she was younger. She has been traveling, or in the Travel Industry, in some form or manner ever since she can remember. She is now happily living in New Zealand with her nuclear Kiwi family, enjoying everything this country has to offer. Tiki touring through New Zealand is a favourite pass time, and she and her family spend most weekends visiting somewhere new. Danmar is often taken out for family trips when not in Season ( Danmar only works from January to end April each year) so she is still on the road in the capacity she was built to be used. Travel is an absolute love for Jemma - and being able to combine her passion with her day to day life is close to Nirvana. When not concentrating on Overland NZ, she also operates the World Wide sister company: Keystone Journeys. | |
| Rian: Operations, Truck Maintenance, On the Road |
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A proud Kiwi, Rian left New Zealand in his late teens on his big OE. He landed in London with a mate and after a few years working and traveling in Europe, he found himself driving Overland trucks in Africa. As a fully qualified Diesel Mechanic and born and bred farm boy, he found himself at home with the trucks on the Dark Continent. He loved the life, he loved the travel and he loved the trucks - so much so he and a friend bought a couple and contracted them out to some major Overland Adventure players based in London. He ended up being a Workshop Manager based in Africa and then built a new, small fleet of Overland trucks destined for Africa, the Middle East and South America from a workshop in France. He was always destined to return to New Zealand; it's in his bones, so he designed and help build Danmar, the Overland truck that is used on our Overland NZ Overland tours. Rian also designed the routes/itineraries for the Overland tours; wanting them to be a mix of pure adventure travel and comfort holidaying; camping in the middle of High Country Stations, overnighting in amazing Back Country Lodges, a smidgen of metropolitan cities, small townships and a whole lot of showcasing the best that New Zealand has to offer. | |
Flora: Australia. Flight Center. Flights + Insurance
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Flora has worked in the Travel Industry for over 10 years. She worked in London in a Sales and Marketing role for one of the countries largest Overland Adventure Companies. Through work she was able to travel Europe, North and Southern Africa. She then moved into Aviation and worked for a large European airline, and this enabled her to continue her love of Travel - and working within the Travel Industry. A move back to Australia for family, she now works in Melbourne at Flight Center and is there to help our Australian clients with their airfares and Insurance queries.
Contact: flora.nifakos@flightcentre.com.au
PH: +61 (03) 9091 9300 | |
Malcolm: UK + Europe Rep. Flights, Tours + Insurance
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Malcolm has over 20 years experience in travel having been a self employed travel consultant for most of that time with a short period owning two travel agencies with ten staff. He has traveled across several continents including North & South America, Europe, North Africa and the Indian Ocean.
He has now been an agent for Overland NZ in the UK for over 3 years so can help you plan your first - or next - New Zealand tour, whether you are 20 or 60.
Contact: sales@like2travel.com
PH: 01772-620108. | |
On the Road Guides / Tour Leaders / Crew
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Overland Camp + Lodge Tours: Your driver / guide is with you the duration of your tour. He / she will
be sitting around the camp fire with you at night, and will also be
there (if you want) for a night out in town. Your crew work incredibly
hard on tour and they are there because they love New Zealand and love
the adventure. Your crew organise all your accommodation, optional
activities if you wish to do any, organise the shopping and generally
give you all the local information you may need when on tour. The crew
have years of experience and are an integral and important part of our
Company.
Small Group Hotel / Hostel based Tours: The Tour Guides on these trips have a cabinet full of awards for the industry-recognised in-house training program that has been operating for the last decade. The Guides / Crew have been hand-picked as some of the the best in the business to inform and educate you about local flora and fauna, Maori culture, history and more.
Full Camping Bus Tours: The driver/guide (there are two of them) are there to provide you with a wealth of knowledge about New Zealand - history, culture, and trivia as well as recommending and booking activities, doing the shopping and helping with the cooking, and getting you from A to B each day.
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Overland Camp + Lodge Tours: Our Overland Tours are a
mixture of camping, hotels and Lodges / Stations. Camping is very
comfortable; we provide easy to erect three person Dome Tents and comfy
sleeping mattresses. Camping varies from established sites with all
necessary facilities to the occasional free camp.
We also are privileged enough to be able to camp in a fabulous High
Country Station or two. We always stay at the best possible campsites in
the area - nearly all of the sites we use have very clean and ample
shower facilities. Some of the more basic camps may be in places of
spectacular beauty or in the National Parks. Here general facilities
may be limited but you will have a chance to get a real feel for the New
Zealand wilderness.
In the bigger cities we stay in comfort level hotels chosen for their
location and reputation. All rooms in these hotels are en-suite. We also
stay in a very special remote Back Country Lodge in the South Island
which is in a place of such incredible beauty that it is sure to be a
highlight.
Small Group Hotel / Hostel Based Tours: A combination of wilderness lodges, upmarket backpacker resorts, cabins/tented camps and small motels in breathtaking locations such as Urupukapuka Island in the Bay of Islands, the Coromandel, Abel Tasman, Makarora and Doubtful Sound are available. Some of these accommodations are available exclusively for these tours due to the small group size or preferential arrangements.
Full Camping Bus Tours: On the full camping tours, a carefully chosen
combination of well managed camp sites has been chosen. These range from
DOC (Department of Conservation) camps - often in wilderness locations -
to commercial camping grounds usually run by local Kiwi families. DOC
camping grounds are ideal for those looking to get “beyond the tourist
trail”, often located in stunning spots near lakes, mountains and
coasts. You will find facilities a little more basic but still
everything we need with running water, toilets and fireplaces. A
spacious, shared tent, and a sleeping mattress is included in the price
(sharing with one other person of a similar age/same sex). For those
traveling together you will get your own tent. The tents are designed
for 3 people so there's plenty of room. You can upgrade to have the tent
to yourself for a small fee. You can upgrade to cabins most nights for a
small fee. You will be able to decide on the day and its a great option
if you fancy treating yourself for a few extra $s. It also ensures that
you dont need to worry about unpredictable weather.
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Overland Camp + Lodge Tours: Most meals (B,L,D) are
included whilst on tour. When staying in city hotels you are free to try the local restaurants or cafes, which is some cases is an absolute must! (Dinners when staying in city hotels are not included).
Breakfasts when camping are usually tea, coffee, cereals, fruits, juices, toast and
the occasional fry up or pancakes. Lunches on the run are salads,
sandwiches or rolls, juice, tea and coffee. Dinners can be anything from
BBQ's to roasts. No-one has ever gone hungry on our tours. Dinners are
usually decided after input from the passengers and you will also be
part of the cooking and preparation. All meals as per itinerary are included - and you get fed very well
indeed. Fresh food is bought on an almost daily basis and most products
are sourced locally; and yes, we can cater for any type of dietary
requirement.
Small Group Hotel / Hostel Based Tours: Meals as per itinerary (B,L,D) are in included. Meals not included gives you the opportunity to try and savour our local New Zealand produce.
Full Camping Bus Tours: Most meals are included - as per itinerary. Your Guides do all the shopping and arrange cook groups for meal preparation, cleaning up etc. On average you would help with the cooking every four days. Vegetarian, vegan, non dairy etc can all be catered for. The trailers contain the kitchen and all the equipment needed to prepare meals.
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Equipment on the Vehicles
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Overland Camp + Lodge Tours: We have 2 mountain bikes on board that you can use - for free - whenever
you want. We also have a well stocked library on board and we
encourage book swapping, or simply leaving finished books on board for
the next lot of passengers. We have Boogie Boards, plenty of Board
Games and other games / sport equipment available. The truck also has a couple of tables inside for those days when
you would like to write a postcard or play cards while traveling. The
tents, sleeping mattresses and high backed camp
chairs are extremely comfortable, we have a full kitchen tarp + full kitchen, outside
lighting, inside heating, full on board kitchen and plenty of room
inside the truck for your day packs.
Full Camping Bus Tours: Avanti bikes are carried on board for those that wish to hire them. A helmet, repair kit, map and 0800 Help Me number is provided. Bike hire works out from NZ$14 per day dependent on the length of the tour. You can bring your own bike for which there is a Private Cycle Handing Fee charge - the cost of which is detailed on booking.
The buses carry body boards, soccer balls, rugby balls, cricket sets so there is plenty to keep you entertained.
All kitchen equipment is carried on the bus. | |
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Overland Camp + Lodge Tours: We much prefer small groups and this is why we only have seating for 22
passengers. The groups generally range from 8 to 15, up to 18 - 20 in the busier
months. We feel that smaller groups are much more intimate, like you
are traveling with friends; smaller groups also leave a far lesser
footprint at the places we visit and pass by. You get to know not only
your fellow travelers but also your Crew, who become more like part of the
'travel family' as opposed to just your 'Tour Leader' or 'Driver'.
Small Group Hotel / Hostel Based Tours: Although the average age of these passengers is between 18 and 45, age is just a state of mind, so there are really no age limits imposed. These tours are designed for reasonably fit, active travelers wanting a small group experience. With an average group size of 15 (and a maximum of 24), these tours offer a more personalised experience than bigger companies. This enables the group to visit more remote areas, choose unique and individual accommodation and offer better-quality walks and specialised activities.
Full Camping Bus Tours: These tours are not about age but more the type of person. The average age of a passenger on these tours is about 27 - the oldest in their mid 70s. The majority of people are between 20 and 40. No matter what your age these tours attract people who want to enjoy the great outdoors.
The main priority on these tours is the great New Zealand outdoors in all its forms; so whether you are a keen cyclist, walker, water fan or adrenaline junkie there is something for everyone. The buses range from 20 seats to 41 seats with an average group size of about 26. | |
Environmental Issues & Responsibilities
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Overland Camp + Lodge Tours: We stay in locally owned accommodation, have Local Guides and use activity options that are owned and operated by local people wherever possible.
Our smaller group sizes - ie up to only 22 passengers ensures we have minimal impact on our surroundings. Our office recycles waste as much as we possibly can and we use recycled products when ever possible. All documents are emailed.
We ensure our passengers minimize waste by using products with minimum packaging, leave no litter and keep all water sources clean. We leave camp-sites clean or cleaner than we find them. Rubbish is always carried out.
Our truck is stringently tested and meets or exceeds all the required emission standards.
Small Group Hotel Based Tours: The mini-coaches used are the lowest emission and most economical currently available, plus by traveling by bus you are already minimising your impact compared to driving yourself. Having an environmental conscience is about much more than cutting your carbon output, which is why these tours support sustainable tourism activities. These tours go off the beaten track, stay away from the crowds and work with the smaller Local Operators to ensure that the money spent goes into the local areas. You will see the benefits of this in very obvious things such as the conservation efforts at Blue Duck Lodge in Whakahoro.
Full Camping Bus Tours: An annual Sustainability Assessment is conducted. Staff are regularly trained to ensure the entire team understands the goals and their responsibilities. An aim to reduce CO2 emissions by regular vehicle maintenance checks including fuel efficiency and tire pressures, and by reducing fuel use at least 10% over the previous year | |
Feedback:
At the end of every tour, we ask our passengers to fill in a Feedback Form which is given to the Head Office. This feedback is very important to us. It gives us updates as to what does and does not work, what our passengers like a lot and what they maybe don't like so much on tour. If we get constant negative feedback about accommodation or activities - then we change it. Simple as that. This Feedback can be returned to us via your Crew, sent to us, or emailed to us via the website. Your comments will remain private and will only ever be published if your permission has already been given to do so.
Overland NZ - New Zealand Overland Adventure Tours and Holidays.
