New Zealand Birding Tour

New Zealand North and South

This tour will start and end in Auckland, New Zealand. We will spend 4-days traveling and birding the northernmost parts of the North Island.  After that, we will fly from Auckland to Dunedin on the South Island.  We will spend 4-days traveling to the southern tip of the South Island, with a visit to Stewart Island. From there, we will head to Queenstown and fly back to Auckland.  

• Travel Dates: March 20 - 30, 2027
• Group Size: 7 travelers, spots left = 7
• Trip Length: 11 days
• Rate per person:  $6,720 per person (based on double occupancy), an extra $1,850 for single occupancy.
• Rates include:  Lodging, meals, daily tours, airport transfer, and basic travel insurance.
• Not included: International flight to Auckland (AKL), snacks, alcohol, dessert, and trip cancelation insurance.
• Adventure level:  Easy, please check the "Welcome" page for definition
• Reservations: To reserve a spot on the trip, a non-refundable 20% deposit is required, and the non-refundable balance is due six months prior to the trip.  

Itinerary

This is a new itinerary for 2027, and we will be adding more birding and lodging info as soon as possible.  Please contact us for details in the meantime. 

Day 1, Auckland
Arrival at the Auckland International Airport (AKL).  You will be met at the airport with a shuttle to our hotel for one night.  Lodging at the Holiday Inn 

Day 2: Whangārei 
From Auckland, it is a 2.5 hour drive the town of Whangārei, where we will spend one night. Stopping at numerous birding locations along the way.  

Day 3: Cape Reinga
A full day birding of birding.  From Whangārei, it is a 3-hour drive to the northern most point of the North Island called Cap Reinga.  We will be staying for one night along the Cape Reinga peninsula. 

Day 4: Dargaville 
From Cape Reinga, it is a 2.5 hour drive to the town of Dargaville, where we will spend one night. 

Day 5: Flight to Dunedin 
We will head back to the Auckland Airport for our late afternoon flight to Dunedin on the South Island.  We will stay for one night in the Dunedin area. 

Day 6:  Dunedin to Stewart Island
From Dunedin, it is a 2-hour drive to the town of Bluff, where we will be taking the 1-hour ferry to Stewart Island, where we will spend 2-nights. 

Day 7: Stewart Island 
A full day birding Stewart Island

Day 8: Queenstown
Morning ferry back to Bluff, for a full day birding the South Island on our way to Queenstown, where we will spend one night. 

Day 9: Flight back to Auckland
Morning birding the Queenstown area and then an afternoon flight back to Auckland.  We will be staying for 2-nights at the airport Holiday Inn 

Day 10:  Auckland
About a 1-hour drive south and east of Auckland in the Thames Estuary and Coromandel Forest Park.  We will spend the day birding these excellent areas. 

Day 11:  Fly Home
There will be a shuttle to the airport for your flight home.

Ian "Sav" Saville:  Sav was born and brought up in London. He started birding in the early 70s and was fairly active in the British twitching/birding scene from then through to the late 80s – building a British list of just on 400 (which was quite a lot in those days!).

Sav moved to New Zealand in 1989 and stayed for nearly 3 years, before having to return to UK in 1991. In late 1993 he went to Saudi Arabia for 2 ½ years (during which time he was a regular contributor to “Birding World”) and then arrived back in New Zealand in 1996.

Sav has been the Ornithological Society of New Zealand (OSNZ) Regional Recorder (c.f. County Recorder in UK) since 1996 and was the OSNZ Regional Representative for the Manawatu Region from 2000-2011. He was then appointed to the OSNZ Rarities Committee. Sav moved to Hawkes Bay in early 2014, with the Ahuriri Estuary and surrounds now being his ‘local patch’.

Sav was also a key player in the rediscovery of the supposedly-extinct New Zealand Storm-petrel, being on the trip in January 2003 when the species was initially resighted and being the first person onboard to see the bird.