Haka Tours

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Haka Tours in New Zealand have a wide range of trips to choose from. They aim to provide stress-free New Zealand tours, customised to your own taste. Providing adventurous tours for small groups, the trips are a set number of days, so you get to know everyone on your tour and become a ‘family’. With Haka Tours you will travel with like-minded people that generally share the same attitude towards travelling – they want to see and experience the country they are in, not just see it from a bus window. Haka can also provide private custom tours for groups of friends and family.

Haka have several adventures to choose from, which are grouped by type. Choose from Adventure, Snow or Haka Plus tours. There’s a Haka trip to suit everyone.

Haka Adventure Tours

Tours from Haka come in three flavours: Adventure; Snow; and Mountainbike (MTB). Scroll to see more and follow the links for full details and departures.

The History Of Haka Tours

Haka Tours were established in 2006 and were the creation of Ryan Sander and Steve Latham. Both Ryan and Steve are Kiwis with a love of travel and adventure that brought them together to form this tour provider. Together they designed and developed a set of tours and then a unique system that allowed customers to build their own tour, giving the tours a much more personal edge.

The first Haka Tour set off in June 2007 and the company has kept growing since then; adding more departure dates and hiring more staff. In 2008 they added Snow Tours, making them the most adventurous tours in New Zealand.

In 2011, Haka Lodges were added, which is a chain of upmarket backpacker hostels. On these trips about a quarter of your nights are spent in a Haka Lodge, so you can be sure of the high standards provided by your accommodation.

Haka is often perceived as being the word for a Maori War Dance. In fact, Haka simply means ‘Dance’ or a ‘Song accompanied by Dance’.

Haka Tours

The tours limit the group size to 16, so it really is a small tour group and you will easily get to know everyone. With Haka, you pick your ‘base’ tour and then customise it by choosing activities and add-ons. All activities, add-ons and accommodation are prebooked and paid for in advance, so you don’t have to worry about booking or if you have enough cash spare on your trip. What’s more, you are even provided breakfast, so you can be fully prepared for a day of adventures. There are three types of tours that Haka provide – Adventure, Snow, Mountain Bike and Haka Plus.

Adventure Tours

These are the original trips provided by Haka, and there are a few to choose from. Ranging from the 3-day Bay of Islands to the 23-day Epic New Zealand Tours, which covers both the North and the South Islands. There are tours that are just the South Island, some that are just the North Island and others cover both islands. Click here to browse the Adventure Tours by Haka.

Snow Tours

Haka Snow Tours take in New Zealand’s snowsports scene. You can ski or board several mountains and see a number of mountain ranges. Choose from the 5-day Snow Fix to the 12-day South Island Snow Odyssey. There are plenty of activities on each tour and add-ons to choose from. To browse all Snow Tours by Haka, just follow this link.

Haka Plus

The Haka Plus range of tours adds the comfort of 3-4 star hotel style accommodation. From boutique city hotels to rainforest retreats, this range is for those looking for extra comfort on their New Zealand tour. There is also a smaller group size of 11 people, so it’s an even more intimate travel experience. These tours are perfect for adventurers who like to have their creature comforts, having the best of both worlds. There are also some extra special inclusions, such as a private sunset cruise. Once again, you can choose from South, North or both Islands adventures. To browse all the Haka Plus Tours, just click here.

Haka Lodges

You’ll spend roughly a quarter of your Haka nights in Haka Lodges, which is Haka Tours own brand of backpacker hostel. The Haka Lodges policy is to provide customers with more for less, so they are upmarket backpacker accommodation with a small price tag. The company have a strong sustainability ethos and so are big on recycling – they even have worm farms to recycle food waste.

Haka Lodges have custom made bunks and hotel-quality mattresses, so you’re ensured a good night’s’ sleep after a long day of adventuring. Even though the lodges have modern features and are upmarket, they still have a fun and casual vibe, that is essential for a good hostel. An extra plus point, all the Lodges boast amazing views.

There are also Hake Hotels for the Haka Plus tours. These are super stylish inner-city 3-4 star hotels. At the time of writing, these were not nationwide, but there shouldn’t be too long to wait.

Why Tour With Haka?

There are plenty of reasons to choose a Haka Tour for your New Zealand trip. They provide a wide variety of amazing tours for the adventurous traveller that wants to experience the country they are in. Here are just a few reasons why Haka Tours are so good:

Small Groups

With an average of 8-12 travellers on Haka Tours (though the maximum is 16), it feels more like a road trip with friends than an official tour. Smaller groups mean you get to know everyone better and make some great friends for life.

Great Reviews

Haka Tours have a wide variety of awards under their belts throughout the years. From tour company to accommodation awards, so you know you are travelling with a great company.

Amazing Guides

None of the Haka Tour Guides were Guides before joining Haka Tours. When employing Haka Tours look for people with a real passion for New Zealand who are also down to earth and friendly. This perfect combination makes your guide knowledgeable and they will not only be able to answer any questions, but they’ll also become a friend too.

It’s Totally Kiwi

Haka Tours are completely New Zealand owned and operated. The small team really love their country and love seeing their customers having a unique Kiwi Adventure.

Customer Service

If you have any problems it will get sorted by the person you speak to. You won’t be transferred and any emails won’t be forwarded to others, there’s no messing around. After booking the Haka Team will keep in touch until you start your tour.

The Experience

With Haka Tours you don’t just see New Zealand, you experience New Zealand. It’s about exploration and become immersed in local life. Not only will you leave with happy memories and stories to tell, but you’ll also make some great friends for life from around the world.

More Than A Bus

Haka Tours are more than the ‘hop-on, hop-off’ passes, as stay with the same small group throughout your trip. You have a fun, guided tour of everywhere you visit with unique stops along the way. Haka Tours can get to places the larger buses can’t, so you really do get off the ‘beaten track’.

Unique Accommodation

As well as using Haka Lodges and hotels, you’ll stay in some other unique accommodation, such as Aquapackers (an ex-navy marine boat) in Abel Tasman. Each stop has the best accommodation possible.

Pre-booked Activities

Haka Tours are the only company that allows you to pre-book activities. However, nothing is compulsory, and your guide can give you alternatives if you don’t want to join in with certain activities.

Haka Tours will provide you with an amazing adventure around New Zealand. Whether you have time to tour the South Island, the North Island or all of New Zealand, there’s a Haka Tour for every adventurer. Whether you want an Adventure, Snow, Mountain Biking or the creature comforts of Haka Plus, Haka can provide you with your ultimate New Zealand adventure. With amazing accommodation, prebooked activities and breakfast included, get ready for an incredible journey with Haka Tours in New Zealand.

Categories: Backpacker Tour Companies, Backpacking, Companies, Journeys, Road Trips | Comments
ntook

Author Bio: Nat

I’m Nat, the backpacker behind natpacker. From the UK, I was bitten by the travel bug during a round the world trip in my early twenties. Since then I have been determined to see as much of this world as possible. My passion for travel led me to start up this blog, partly to record my adventures and partly to inspire others to travel.

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