Our Customer Reviews

Firstly, I’m super glad I took the Kiwi bus for the time that I did. However, I’m also glad I left the bus and embarked on trips of my own to new destinations away from the ‘hop on, hop off bus’. I travelled on The Funky Chicken pass, from Auckland down to Queenstown and part of the way back up to Wellington. It was on the way back up that I branched out more. Taking independent trips to Kaikoura, Whanganui, New Plymouth, Paihia and Whangarei. Lots of the places on the trip were more enjoyable because of the company of the bus and because of the amazing tour guides who on the most part give great insight into the stories and the heritage associated with the amazing landscapes around you. I also was able to reach places difficult to get to via public transport - like River Valley, one of my favourite bits. Cowboy was by far my favourite driver with the friendliest manner and the most informative commentary. He charmed us all! Stretch comes a close second with a fab grasp of the Maori culture and a nice chilled bus vibe. If you’re looking for the security of a group and garaunteed accommodation then this is the tour for you. It’s easy to make friends and turn yourself on autopilot some days when you’re not up for making travel plans. However its often a very young Brit/German crowd and can feel a little ‘schooly’ at times, especially in peak season. You get on and off the bus as a large group and it can be hard to feel independent... you don’t meet enough kiwis for a start! All in all 100% worth it but I won’t be taking a trip like this again purely because it doesn’t push you out of your comfort zone. I didn’t realise this was something I needed.

Really fun, amazing people but not quite as hop-on, hop-off as it seems. We were highly recommended the experience, and for good reason but if you want to get off the beaten track, you need to take your own initiative. Also, if you plan to stay more days than the ‘minimum time’, PRE BOOK YOUR ITINERARY - especially during high season. You can’t be as spontaneous as advertised, but overall I think it’s worth it.

I travelled New Zealand with Kiwi Experience for 3 months. It was the best way to travel the country because you can hop on or off wherever and whenever you want. I got to see so many beautiful places and meet new people from around the world!

The best holiday...... so much to see and do. The Kiwis are such friendly helpful people.

We bought the ticket a few months ago and all in all we are happy about it!

I didn't know much about Kiwi Experience before I booked but I honestly had the most amazing time - met some incredible people, stayed in some awesome places and had the most incredible adventure!

The trip with Kiwi was awesome. We really enjoyed all the services - all the clipboards - where you signed up for accom. and activities. It was nice with some knowledge about the landscape and cities. The drives could sometimes be a little long with too many stops for hikes/photos/shopping. The bus is TOO COLD: wear long pants and a jacket if you don't wanne get sick. But overall really awesome and nice that you have everything you need to know in the Kiwi Ex app. :) Would def. recommend!

Decided to go to new Zealand alone and was the best decision I could have made. Met so many great people along the way.

Cuddles was the best driver ever! Was super helpful and a cracking sense of humor, he was always giving us special tips and went the extra mile to make sure we made the most of our kiwi experience. I was so glad to have him again on the South Island.. Amanda was also very nice and explained everything clearly. We had a driver from Wellington to Kaiteriteri on the 4th February who was extremely rude and passive aggressive. He was reluctant to help us and very patronizing

We found it really easy to book accommodation and activities through the KE. The worst thing about the experience is that during peak season it’s not the hop on hop off adventure it’s described as. We had Josh (with the beard) as our driver for a stretch and he was brilliant, we were really sad to leave him! He was really helpful, funny & genuine. We also had Ninja for the stretch into Queenstown and again he was one of our favourite drivers as he was so helpful, not to mention he had a great playlist! Grant on the bottom bus, Deep South section, was another great driver & really made the trip