Six weeks; No hassle; Greatest experience ever
My boyfriend and I (both 72 years of age) have just returned from a six-week, custom-tailored, independent trip to Australia and New Zealand.
We started talking about this trip over a year(...)
(...) prior to our departure date. After my initial 2.5 hour telephone conversation with Christopher at About Australia, I knew we had found the perfect "partner" on whom we could depend to help us with all the details. Not only did Christopher listen to our lists of where we knew we wanted to go and what we knew wanted to see, but he also asked a myriad of questions to determine the types of surroundings, activities, accommodations, modes of travel, etc. that appealed to us.
Within two days, Christopher got back to us with a detailed suggested itinerary and optional excursions which we then had time to go through and tweak as we wanted. Christopher worked so diligently and closely with us to get everything just perfect - for us. This was our trip - no one else's.
Once we finalized the locations and activities, About Australia took care of all the rest. Our adventure included stays in nine different locations in Australia and six locations in New Zealand. Our hotels were booked by About Australia and were just as we requested - smaller boutique hotels, when possible, centrally located so we could walk whenever and just about wherever.
Once in Australia and New Zealand, we traveled by plane, train, automobile (self-drive), boat, and a lot of walking (which we like). About Australia figured out how the means/times of travel in order to get everywhere we wanted to go and took care of all the bookings.
Our activities included the Sydney Bridge Climb, Sydney Opera House, A Night at Field of Light by Camel (Ayers Rock), snorkeling/diving the Great Barrier Reef (Port Douglas), an America's Cup Sailing Excursion (Auckland), and others far too numerous to list.
About Australia made all the arrangements for the optional excursions. All of the optional excursions/tours were small groups making each experience more personal, friendly, and satisfying. Everything went off without a hitch. We were simply astounded at the ease of our six-week trip considering all the travel and excursion schedules and the level of professionalism and organization that obviously went into the customization.
Christopher and About Australia did what we never could have done on our own - and most certainly, not at their price. Their attention to detail allowed us, prior to the trip, to concentrate just on where we wanted to go and what we wanted to see and do; their attention to detail allowed us, after departure, to just relax and enjoy every moment of the adventure. It was the trip of a lifetime. We would recommend About Australia to anyone looking for a terrific travel experience with no hassle. Thank you Christoper and About Australia for our trip-of-a-lifetime.