New Certification - New Zealand Specialist Gold!

I went to New Zealand and Came Home a Gold Specialist

​Education is so important for travel advisors. It's how we keep up with the latest travel trends, learn about or experience the newest adventure activities, and discover new places in the world. These experiences are what I draw on when designing the most incredible adventure vacations for my clients.

New Zealand is at the top of the list for most adventure travel seekers, and for good reason. The North and South islands offer stellar outdoor experiences, exquisite beauty, and friendly people. 

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After completing the 100% Pure New Zealand Specialist program at the Silver level, the next step to attain Gold Specialist level was an in-country visit to New Zealand to experience it myself! With a group of nine other selected travel advisors from the U.S., I was hosted around the North Island for 11 days in March 2019 for non-stop adventuring! There was also a fair amount of eating. Not a bad combination, eh?

Air New Zealand makes travel to New Zealand pretty easy with a 12-hour direct flight from LAX or 13-hour flight from SFO. After the overnight flight, we arrived in Auckland and jumped right in with a city, bush and beach tour. While the city of Auckland is a bustling metropolis with the traffic you would expect of a major city, the surrounding natural beauty of protected native bush and beaches offers the peace and fresh air the outdoors person craves.

After exploring Auckland and its surrounds, we were off for our 11-day sprint of the North Island of New Zealand! We headed north first to the turquoise waters of Bay of Islands and Waitangi Treaty Grounds. Then over to the west shore for a visit with Tane Mahuta, the Lord of the Forest, a giant kauri tree in the Waipoua Forest and our Maori guide from Footprints Waipoua. Our night hike to Tane Mahuta with Billy Boy leading us forward with the sounds of his chanting was truly magical!

I don't want to bog down this blog post with details of the entire trip so I'll have to post more about New Zealand, and I will! In the meantime, here's a list of other places I visited:

• Tongariro National Park
• Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre
• Napier, town famous for its Art Deco architecture and festival
• Huka Falls Jetboat
• Waitomo Glow Worm Caves tour
• Sailing on Auckland Bay
• Hole in the Rock Dolphin boat tour, Bay of Islands
• Wellington, beautiful metropolitan capital city on the water
• Zest Food Tour in Wellington
• Weta Workshop Studio tour
• Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa & Maori behind the scenes tour
• Hamilton Gardens

If you're thinking about an adventure vacation in New Zealand, contact me!

​Kerry is an Adventure Travel Specialist who designs custom trips for adventurous travelers.
Ready to plan your next adventure? Let's talk!
​Text, call or email - - 775-303-6282
kerry@MountainAdventureTravel.com