Great Journeys New Zealand

Although driving is my forte, travelling by rail with Great Journeys New Zealand was absolutely the way to get across part of the South Island of NZ! We went with the 'TranzAlpine Scenic Plus Experience' and it was wonderful. The staff were so kind and welcoming and made us feel very comfortable. My wife and I had just married each other and the staff wrote in a card, and all signed it - amazing! Thank you Great Journeys New Zealand. ❤️ - Courtenay Driving Educator

This was a very enjoyable ride from Picton to Christchurch. It started off with checking in our baggage at 10am at the Picton station. The lady that run reception is a rude. The most annoying thing about this train ride is that we can’t choose our seats and we there is absolutely nothing we can do about it. My suggestion to them is that they should check in guest first come first serve for scenic side and for those who ride the whole ride should get that priority. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the scenic side and our group of 4 sadly watched how they left another group of 4 open seats stay open for half of the ride. It was very aggravating. We enjoy our seat with a table though. If you’re not on the scenic side it also gets very hot as the sun beams on you. Ppl actually did close their blinds. The open air cart was very nice and breezy. The cafe was alright on their selection too. Very inconsistent reception for paying for your items though. Overall it was very scenic and it was enjoyable.

I was privileged to be a member of the first guided tour group. The complete tour travelled on all three of their trains from Auckland to Queenstown (includes a bus sectoin from Greymouth) but due to time constraints I only went as far as Christchurch. This was a wonderful trip with stops along the way - all organised ahead of time. Some stops were just one night with others two nights. Some sightseeing tours were included eg cablecar ride, Marlborough wine tour and city sights tours whilst others were optional extras egpunting in Christchurch and whale watching in Kaikoura. Most meals were included with some on the trains. Our tour guide, Mark, demonstrated his great love for NZ and was extremely knowledgeable and helpful. We also had time to ourselves to rest, hire a bike and wander through the shops, galleries and museums etc. The trains had onboard commentaries and were very comfortable with large viewing windows to take in the spectacular scenery. Also met Valerie, Graham and Emma from the booking office. A fantastic team. Loved every minute.

Train ride was fine, was a bit delayed but once we were on our seats were easy to find and relax. Open air car was a lot of fun, and the snacks in the cafe were good.

Place for : photo and relaxing Walking down from my bus toward the bus station, the cold winter is blowing so strong it got into my bone. As i get into the train after purchasing my ticket, the train blow a loud horn, making sure everybody know that the adventures is about to begin. As the engine start, pulling its body trough a dense fog, i sit beside the window not sure what to expect in this journey I'm about to have, and enjoying the moments alone. As the sun starts to rise up, pushing all the fog, slowly revealing the beauty it hides, i was mesmerized, and stand up reaching for my camera and rush to the front. As the door open and i walk to the open side of the train, my eyes won't shut itself. Range of mountains, full with wild flowers, stream of rivers shimmering like gold, lots and lots of green field, full of animals, and still so many indescribable by words alone. That moment i really wish god give me an extra pair of eye in my back so I won't miss a moments of the scene in the other side of the train. When you come here make sure you bring camera and prepare the right lenses for your shots. Every penny you pay for this trip will worth it. You won't regret it, I'm sure of this. It makes me wonder what will this landscape be when it is spring. And how about summer and spring?

The Great Journeys of New Zealand is a very good company. I took TranzAlpine with them which was very beautiful & scenic. Their Interislander was also very helpful in going from South to North Island. The plus lounge access on Interislander is extremely useful so make sure you get it. The staff of TGJONZ is also very friendly & cooperative.

be sure to be very clear on seating expectations. We did the Transalpine journey from Chch to Greymouth, and paid extra for the better dining and seating, totalling $1600 return in the same day. Had it cost $400 I might not have been so annoyed, but when web photos show tables, then many of us find on arrival tables are limited, that doesn't bode well. The food was great, service was pretty good too. However, at check in we asked if we were sat on a different side for the return journey, we were assured yes. When we boarded the return, we were NOT on a different side, we were looking at the same overgrown brush or hillside we'd looked at on the way to Greymouth. Meanwhile across the aisle was a couple taking a table playing cards, eating bluebird chips, and not even looking outside at the amazing scenery. I asked Great Journeys why we were lied to and they did not apologise, but said that many people prefer to have the same both ways, which I called BS on, who in their right mind would want the same experience, especially on the less scenic side of the train, twice, and when paying $1600 for the privilege? an idiot or a blind person I'm guessing. So just be aware, the desk will lie to you, make sure they absolutely check, cos it seems they aren't changing their policy in ensuring you are put on different sides of the train. They will also continue to bombard you with emails even months after you're repeatedly unsubscribed and not given them permission to email you marketing material. Frankly, I never want to use them again as I simply do not trust that I'm going to get my money's worth.

The North Island line was delayed by over an hour, without any explanation. It’s 7:30pm now and I’m still stuck waiting by the roadside. This is really disappointing. I looked up some reviews online and found that their on-time rate is less than 6%. This is incredibly frustrating for anyone on a tight schedule!