19 Day Signature Rail, Cruise And Coach

• Travel with Grand Pacific Tours
• Return airfares from Australia
• Professional Coach Captain
  
• Tour Leader
  
• 17 nights 4 star accommodation
  
• Milford Sound Overnight Cruise
  
• 6 two night stays
  
• Hotel porterage
  
• 3 rail journeys
  
• 4 cruises
  
• All sightseeing and prepaid attractions
  
• Extensive Optional Activities
  
• Classic Documentation Pack
  
• 18 cooked breakfasts including a specialty breakfast: Stratosfare Restaurant, Rotorua
  
• 14 sumptuous dinners including complimentary pre-dinner drink at the Welcome Dinner and 4 specialty dinners: Mãori Hãngi and Concert, Rotorua; Walter Peak Homestead, Queenstown; Speights Ale House, Dunedin; Farewell Dinner including pre-dinner drink, Christchurch
  
• 2 delicious morning teas
  
• Enjoy GPT Hotel Wine Time (discounted drinks)
  
• Airport transfers included on the first and last day of tour

• Kauri Museum
  
• Waitangi Treaty Grounds
  
• Hole in the Rock Dolphin Cruise
  
• Glenbrook Vintage Railway
  
• Paradise Valley Springs
  
• Skyline Rotorua Gondola and Luge Ride
  
• Agrodome
  
• Thermal mud pools and geysers
  
• Te Puia traditional Mãori Hãngi and Concert
  
• Te Papa, NZ's National Museum
  
• Cruise on the Interislander Ferry
  
• Coastal Pacific Rail Journey
  
• International Antarctic Centre
  
• Christchurch Tram
  
• TranzAlpine Rail Journey
  
• Cruise Lake Wakatipu on the TSS Earnslaw
  
• Lakes District Museum
  
• HIGHLIGHT Milford Sound Overnight Cruise i
  
• Speights Brewery Tour and Tasting
  
• Larnach Castle and Devonshire Tea
  
• Olveston Historic Home
  
• Auckland City Sights Tour
  
• Wellington City Sights Tour
  
• Christchurch City Sights Tour
  
• Dunedin City Sights Tour

Deposit & Installment Payment Option:

• Book now and secure your package with only a $99.00 deposit per person.
• Pay a 2nd installment of $2,907.00 per person within 7 days.
• You will then be invoiced for final payment 120 days prior to departure.

Booking Process

• Select the purple 'Reserve Your Seat' tab to begin your booking (you must 'Sign Up' first by entering your email and creating a password)
• Then select the purple 'Book now' tab of the tour you have selected
• Select your Departure Date, Departure City, Number of Passengers, Room Configuration, any Upgrade Options, and enter any Special Requests
• Click the purple ‘Proceed to Secure Checkout' tab
• Enter your credit card or PayPal details to secure your deposit/payment. You may also pay via BPAY (not available within 70 days of departure)
• Once your order is complete, you will be prompted to complete a Booking Form so that we can fulfill your booking
• Your booking is confirmed once your Booking Form is submitted and you can begin the countdown to your Inspiring Vacation!

Booking On Request

• Your Inspiring Vacations package is made up of multiple components and travel partners. Once your booking is made and passenger details form submitted, we will begin to confirm all of your arrangements. Please note, this process can take several business days to complete
• Once all elements have been confirmed we will send you an email confirmation, if we are unable to confirm we will provide you with alternative dates or offer a full refund of your deposit or re-credit your account if a travel credit was used
• Please DO NOT book any additional services, such as flights, until we have confirmed your Inspiring Vacations package in writing. Inspiring Vacations will not be liable for any fees or charges incurred to change or cancel components not booked by Inspiring Vacations should your selected package be unavailable

COVID-19
Due to COVID there maybe disruptions to standard operating schedules of particular components of this itinerary. Should a component be effected a substitute will be confirmed prior to departure.

Fitness Requirements
While the tour itinerary should give you some guidance and overview to the expected requirements, to determine if this tour is right for you we categorise each of our tours in terms of their intensity. These guidelines are to ensure that each tour group is conducted as expected and to ensure the overall satisfaction of all Inspiring Vacations customers.

As a general rule, porterage is not included, therefore at all times you are expected to handle your own luggage where help may not be available.

Accommodation
The accommodation listed is subject to change. Any changes will be of an equal or higher standard.

Airport Transfers
Airport transfers in New Zealand are included on the first and last day of your tour. This includes any pre or post tour accommodation directly linked with the tour hotel. Transfer vehicles will wait up to 1 hour after the flight lands in New Zealand.

Single Supplement
Single supplement is $2,650.00 per person, in addition to the twin-share price.

Triple Share
Not Available

Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is recommended to protect yourself against the unexpected. In addition to the support that a policy may provide, you may be asked to present a copy of your travel insurance documentation while traveling.

We have partnered with nib to offer our customers competitive rates for their travel insurance. You can book Comprehensive or Essentials cover for your domestic, international or multi-trip journeys simply by clicking HERE.

 Note that Inspiring Vacations cannot provide advice with regards to any insurance product.

Visa & Passport Information
It is the traveller's responsibility to ensure they have a valid passport. The passport must be valid for a minimum of six months from the intended date of return.

Visa's may be required.

Please note that these details are subject to change without notice. We recommend visiting https://smartraveller.gov.au for up to date information in terms of entry requirements.

Tour Documentation
Final documentation including, e-tickets and hotel details, will be provided approximately 30 days prior to travel.

Group Size
Maximum of 32 travellers

Children
On Ultimate Small Group Touring and Signature Mid-Size Group Touring, children under 16 years are not permitted. 

Tour Type 
To meet the needs of various types of travelers, we choose to operate various types of tours, and depending on your selected package will mean different services are provided throughout your trip. The following descriptions of each tour style we hope will ensure that each traveller has appropriate expectations before they start their travels:

• Fully Escorted - This tour is fully escorted by an expert English-speaking guide who will accompany you throughout the tour. 

This package includes international airfares or has the option of adding international airfares to your booking when selecting your departure city.

If international airfares are included this will be stated in the ‘Inclusions’ section

Alternatively, if international airfares can be added to your booking you will be able to select your departure city after clicking ‘Book Now’ and a cost will be stated next to your selected departure city. This cost will then be added to your booking and flights will be added to your booking.

Conditions of flights for this package bookable by Inspiring Vacations:

• Flight Offer valid from select departure cities within the purchase path only
• Flights will be booked with the best available airline/s with luggage included. Low-cost carriers may be booked in conjunction with a full-service airline. Depending on the carrier, entertainment and meals may not be included but payable at an extra cost on-board. We cannot specify or guarantee the airline booked. If you would like a specific airline, please request this at the time of purchase. To make a flight request, please click ‘Book Now’ and select Would you like us to contact you around our flight service?  By selecting this option you will be sent a request form after completing your purchases to make your request. 
• Flights may not be direct and may include multiple connections
• Due to disrupted airline schedules globally with the pandemic, stopovers/transit times may be longer than usual (up to 12 hours in duration in some circumstances).
• Once ticketed, flights are non-refundable; any changes will be subject to the airline rules, Airline change fees and an Inspiring Vacations change fee of $250 per person.
• Full names as per passport (including all middle names) are required at the time of submitting your traveller booking form. Any error in the names submitted will be subject to an Inspiring Vacations name change fee of $150 plus any applicable fees charged by the airline, or the ticket may be non-refundable with the purchase of a new ticket required. 
• If the required booking class is unavailable at time of booking, surcharges may apply. Total cost is final only at time of ticketing. Once issued, air tickets are subject to amendment and cancellation fees or may be non-refundable
• Any airline schedule changes or cancellations are outside of our control. It is important that you, as the customer, stay up-to-date with the latest airline schedule information prior to your departure. If a schedule change results in extended transits or an earlier/later departure from your destination, any additional accommodation or alternative arrangements will be at the traveler's expense.
• After booking, the price payable may be subject to change as a result of factors beyond the control of Inspiring Vacations. Inspiring Vacations reserves the right to increase the price payable and this will be reflected on the customer's invoice. Increases may be in relation to, but not limited to, currency fluctuations, airline taxes, airfare increases and fuel surcharges.
• Internal airfares (where applicable and included in the itinerary) will be using a local carrier and may include low-cost carriers without meals or entertainment. Checked baggage will still be included for each passenger. Any additional baggage required is payable at time of check-in. 
• If you are travelling with another party on a separate booking, we cannot guarantee that the same flights will be booked for all parties, as this strictly depends on availability. 
• You will be responsible for handling your luggage at all times as the services of porters are not included. If travelling over the recommended amount, you will be liable for any excess baggage fees enforced by the airline, payable directly.
• In the event of that you no-show on your scheduled flight, please be aware the airline will require you to pay a no show fee, Airline reissue fee plus any additional airfare and taxes. Inspiring Vacations will also charge a $250 admin fee to assist re accommodating you on the next available flight. Please note that depending on the airline's policy, purchasing a new ticket may be required.

Baggage

Included baggage differs based on your country of origin. Included baggage will be as per the following:

Baggage allowances provided by the airline might differ to the values stated above. However limitations are required due to transport storage restrictions on your selected tour or package.

Flight requests, amendments or preferences

We understand customers may wish to request changes to their included airfares. If you wish to fly with a certain airline, land at a certain time or change your flight in other ways we will gladly provide you with a personalised quote tailored to your specific requirements.

To make a flight request, please click ‘Book Now’ and select Would you like us to contact you around our flight service?  By selecting this option you will be sent a request form after completing your purchase to make your request.

We would be more than happy to provide you with a quote for the following requests:

• Airline Preferences - You may wish to fly with a particular airline
• Cabin Preferences - These include upgrading to premium economy or business class
• Extensions (start and end cities must remain the same) - You may request to extend your stay pre or post tour.
• Meal Requests - You may request a specific meal for dietary requirements.
• Seat Requests - If you would like to request particular seating. However please note, not all airlines allow the selection of pre-purchased seat arrangements.

We are currently unable to provide a quote for the following requests:

• Stopovers - Is where you might want to stop in transit for a certain amount of days prior to your tour or after your tour.
• One way flights
• Different start or end city to the tour - you may not amend the arrival or departure city of your itinerary. 
• Around the world tickets  - Is when a ticket includes multiple stops in different continents.
• Return home to a different city from the one you departed.
• Frequent Flyer point redemption - Is when an airline allows you to redeem points to pay for your flights or upgrade your ticket.  

If we can’t fulfill your request and you still wish to proceed with the booking, please select Land Only (excluding UK customers). This will allow you to travel on the land portion of the package without the included airfares. You will then be able to arrange your own flights separately.

FAQs

For more frequently asked questions please view our FAQs  section. 

Online check-in 

Some airlines may not permit online check-in where flights have been booked by a travel company. Where unavailable to do so online, you will be required to check-in at the airport. Inspiring Vacations cannot check-in online on behalf of our customers.

You can enhance your holiday by arriving or departing before or after the tour, adding a stopover package en-route or booking a tour extension. On this tour you can choose from the following options:

Pre and post-tour accommodation 

• Pre-tour accommodation (Auckland): $310 per room per night for double/twin/single
• Post-tour accommodation (Christchurch): $260 per room per night for double/twin/single

Please specify in the 'Special Request' field when making your purchase your preferred travel arrangements and if you would like our team to book additional nights' accommodation. The additional cost for these land arrangements will be added to your final payment invoice and are subject to availability.

• Visas
• Travel insurance (compulsory)
• Tipping
• Optional activities
• Personal expenses
• Anything not mentioned in the itinerary

The TranzAlpine schedule is yet to be advised for the 2023 season, including any scheduled track maintenance days. Grand Pacific Tours has compiled the tour dates on the expected schedules and should the rail journey not operate on the day of your tour, you will be eligible for a reduction of $140 per person from your tour price.

The Coastal Pacific schedule has been released and may not operate on some tour dates.

Should your tour be affected, your train journey will be replaced by a coach journey.

Please note that your tour is operated by Grand Pacific Tours and documentation is provided via delivery to your residential address approximately 14 days prior to departure.

In order to ensure a smooth process for delivery of your documents, you will receive a phone call directly from Grand Pacific Tours leading up to the delivery dispatch date to confirm your delivery address details.

Please ensure you answer this call and provide accurate details to the supplier. In the event that an incorrect address is provided there may be additional costs to redirect the delivery to the correct address.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the above please do not hesitate to contact us.