FAQs

Why Choose Travelwise Holidays

Our tours are designed for travellers who enjoy discovering new places without the stress of organising every detail. While most guests are aged 60 and over, there’s no upper age limit – just a shared love of travel. You’ll be welcomed into a friendly group of like-minded travellers. Each tour has a clearly identified Activity Level to help you choose the right holiday with confidence.
Travelwise specialises in creating stress-free, enriching journeys for over-60s travellers in New Zealand. Our tours are meticulously planned with every detail taken care of… from seamless logistics and comfortable coaches to high-quality accommodation and included meals, so you can simply relax and enjoy the experience. Many of our guests tell us it's the little details that make the difference. With everything taken care of, they can relax, enjoy the experience and simply focus on making wonderful memories.
Our tours are created from years of customer feedback and a deep understanding of what over 60s New Zealand travellers truly value… comfort, connection, discovery, and peace of mind. The combination of exceptional planning, thoughtful design, and caring Tour Leaders means you can book with complete confidence that your holiday will be enjoyable, enriching, and hassle-free.

Before I Book

We want your holiday to be a stress-free one, and that includes ensuring we include as much as possible in your tour cost. Fully escorted from New Zealand, your tour will include either flights or comfortable coach accommodation, the services of your Travelwise Tour Leader throughout, quality accommodation, daily breakfasts and many lunches and dinners, sightseeing and admission fees as specified on each tour, gratuities (including cruise gratuities if applicable) and your Travelwise documentation.
Every Travelwise journey is designed to be enjoyable, comfortable, and well-paced. Our tours are designed for travellers aged 60+ who are generally mobile and in good health. To help you choose the right tour, we’ve created three simple activity levels based on the pace and physical activity you can expect during your holiday. Please make sure when selecting a tour, it matches your minimum activity level. We are here to help guide you to the best fit. Please refer to our Activity Levels HERE for full details.
We understand many guests have questions about specific needs or mobility concerns. We encourage you to chat with us before booking so we can discuss your requirements honestly and advise on the most suitable tours.
Each year we welcome many single travellers, which is wonderful to see, and often make up 50% of the group! A single supplement does apply. Potentially we can match you with another person; however, this cannot be guaranteed, and therefore if a match is not possible, the single supplement will apply.
Generally, our tours run with a minimum of around 10-15 people and on average we have around 20-22 people on our tours. A few tours may have up to 30 people.
We monitor official government travel advisories closely. If a destination reaches Level 3 – “Avoid Non-Essential Travel”, we will not operate our tours there and will make alternative arrangements. https://www.safetravel.govt.nz

Before I Travel

Travelling is exciting but unexpected events can and do happen. As we cannot accept liability for losses arising from cancellation, medical issues, accidents, or loss of luggage and personal belongings, comprehensive travel insurance is essential for your protection. We strongly recommend arranging comprehensive travel insurance when you book your tour. Please note that for some of our international tours, insurance is mandatory. Currently, Comprehensive Travel Insurance is mandatory for our tours to Africa, the Middle East, the Americas, Asia, Europe & for most Cruises.
Comfort when travelling is important. Layers are always a good idea so you can adjust depending on the weather. Bring a jacket (if it’s cold) and good walking shoes. Dress how you would normally dress and how you feel most comfortable. Smart casual for evening dinners. In terms of luggage, you can take a normal travel bag up to 23kg per person. We do have porterage included at the hotels, but on some occasions you may need to carry or wheel your luggage.
Please let us know your seating preferences, and we’ll happily request these with the airline for you. Most airlines now charge for seat selection, so an additional fee may apply. We will always do our best to accommodate your request; however, final seat allocation is determined by the airline and cannot be guaranteed. Please complete the airline seating section on your booking form so we can assist you with this.
We offer a complimentary pickup from your home on the day your tour departs and a drop-off back at your home at the conclusion of your tour. This is available for all guests located in Auckland, between Whangaparâoa and Pukekohe.

On Tour

The size of the coach can vary depending on our final number booked (we adjust the coach size accordingly), so for a group of 25 we would normally have a coach size of around 45-50 seats; for groups of around mid-20’s we would have a 32-seat coach, so there is always plenty of room. Some select tours will run with a luxury minivan, with a maximum of 14 people. Coaches generally do not have a toilet on board, although we do make frequent stops for breaks and toilet breaks. Where possible, we try to make sure our coaches can “Kneel down” or “Lower” for ease of entry, but we cannot always guarantee this.
Most of the hotels we use have walk-in showers; however, some may not. Please request this on your booking form, and we will see what we can do, although no guarantees.
Please inform us of any dietary requirements at the time of booking, including any allergies, and we will inform our venues of these requirements.

If Something Changes

We pride ourselves on being responsive at every stage. From the first phone call through to the moment you return home, our team and your Tour Leader are there to help. Whether it’s answering questions before you book, adjusting arrangements, or providing support on tour, you’re never on your own.
Please refer to our “terms and conditions” page on this site. The cancellation terms are specific to the tour they are booked. For all tours, if you need to cancel and it is prior to full payment, your deposit, less any applicable supplier fees, can be transferred toward another tour purchase at the time of cancellation. An additional $ 100 per person administration fee is also payable.
Our Tour Leaders are in frequent contact with our Auckland-based team, and we offer 24/7 support. Should a global situation occur that affects your tour, you can rest assured that we will be acting immediately to change travel plans as required, or as instructed by the New Zealand Government. Your Tour Leader will keep you informed every step of the way with any changes, and answer any questions. Our general tour terms and conditions are listed below.