Natural New Zealand - in Style
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Trip Highlights
• Help preserve the kiwi and other endangered native birds
• Explore Waiheke Island and its boutique vineyards and cafes
• Feel the excitement of an Americas Cup match race
• Sail in the stunning Bay of Islands
• Fly down North Island in a Helicopter (via Waitomo Caves and Huka Lodge)
• Relax in New Zealand's finest luxury lodges
• Taste the wines of the Marlborough Sounds
• Watch whales in Kaikoura
• Heli-hike on the Franz Josef Glacier
• Soar over magnificent Milford Sound in a helicopter
• Choose from a myriad of activities in Queenstown
Your ''Taste of Volunteering'' Project
Play your part in a ground-breaking environmental conservation project in New Zealand to help save native birds, including kiwi.
The Cape Kidnappers and Ocean Beach Wildlife Preserve is a significant ecological mainland restoration project, situated on privately owned land on the iconic peninsula of Cape Kidnappers, Hawke’s Bay.
The vision is to restore many of the plant and animal communities that existed on the peninsula prior to human colonization.
The project is being undertaken on a large scale and across a mosaic of different habitat types. It is large enough to accommodate viable populations of most forest birds (including kiwi), and the movement of species which range widely over a variety of different habitats).
The large size of the preserve enables it to potentially support at least 400+ kiwi pairs and makes it the largest kiwi area protected from predators in Hawke’s Bay.
When to help?
The best time for you to assist at the sanctuary would be early December until early January, and early March to early April.
During these dates there are seabird chicks of two species (Cook’s petrel and Grey faced petrel) on site. The chicks have come from offshore islands where colonies still exist naturally, in the absence of predators. The chicks are hand fed on alternate days until they fledge after about three weeks and head out to sea. Feeding involves teams of 5 or 6 volunteers each time. It is a fantastic experience, ideal for families or honeymooners.
You get to help carry the chicks from their burrows to the “Petrel Station” where they are weighed, measured and fed a “sardine smoothie”, mimicking what they would be fed in the wild by their parents.
If you come any other time of year you can assist with the day to day running of the sanctuary, which would involve pest control work (servicing bait stations, checking traps, running tracking tunnels).
Trip Summary
From the moment the helicopter whisks you away from your plane and you fly over the stunning Hauraki Gulf to be deposited at a gorgeous boutique spa resort on Waiheke Island, you will know that this is a trip of a life time.
Revel in luxurious boutique hotels and personalized experiences as you get off the beaten track. Relax in the comfort of a private villa with a personalized chef and watch the sun set on the Southern Alps as you sip a glass of Gibbston Valley Reserve Pinot Noir over looking Lake Wanaka.
Avoid the crowds and gain a real appreciation for the dramatic and almost prehistoric landscape as you soar over both the North and South Islands in a helicopter. Sweep over beaches, hover over volcanoes and glide over the crystal waters reflecting the stunning fjords of Milford Sound. It is not by accident that New Zealand is the setting for J.R.R Tolkien's ‘Middle Earth’ and though you won’t see any hobbits your Maori guide may yet send shivers down your spine with tales of a ‘taniwha’ (a legendary monster).
This meaningful luxury adventure that counts can be tailor-made to suit your activity preferences, and length of time available.
For more information please contact us.
* Note re Comfort Level: 5+/5 Accommodation is in the finest quality luxury lodges and hotels
Feel free to contact us if you have any enquiries about this trip.
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