One of the questions I hear most when we’re talking about the South Pacific is some version of this: “If we’re already going all the way to Australia, shouldn’t we just add New Zealand?” I completely understand the logic. You’re flying a very long way, the 2 countries look close together on the map, and combining them into one big trip feels like the smart move. But unless you have a lot of time, my answer is usually to pick one. I’m working on my Australia and New Zealand specialist certifications right now, and the deeper I get into both, the more convinced I am that they’re 2 completely different trips, and each one deserves enough time to actually enjoy it.
Australia is so much bigger than it looks
This is probably the biggest misconception I see when people start planning an Australia vacation. Australia is enormous. Staying in Sydney and saying you’ve seen Australia is like staying in New York City and saying you’ve seen the whole United States. A first trip on its own could include Sydney, the Great Barrier Reef, Melbourne, the wine regions, the Outback, or some combination of them, and every time you move between regions you’re adding another flight, another transfer, another hotel check-in, and another day spent traveling.
You absolutely shouldn’t try to see everything on your first visit. You should give Australia enough breathing room to pick a few places and experience them well. When New Zealand gets squeezed into the same itinerary, Australia is usually the first thing that gets chopped down, and suddenly what could have been an incredible Australia trip turns into a few nights in Sydney, a rushed stop somewhere else, and a flight across the Tasman Sea because it’s time for the “New Zealand part.” You can say you went to Australia, but you’ll have spent most of it on your way somewhere else.
New Zealand needs more than a few nights at the end
New Zealand may look smaller on the map, but I’d never plan it as a 3-night extension. One of the best things about New Zealand is the journey itself, and you want time for the scenery between places. You might start in Auckland and the North Island before heading south toward Queenstown, Fiordland, or the Southern Alps, and depending on the itinerary you could be driving, flying, or taking scenic routes where getting from one stop to the next is part of the fun. New Zealand rewards travelers who slow down. Tack it onto the end of an already-packed Australia itinerary and you risk turning it into a race from one hotel to the next, and that’s the exact opposite of how I want my clients to see it.
“But we’re already flying all that way…”
I know, this is usually the next thing I hear! Flights from the U.S. to this part of the world are long, so it feels logical to fit in as much as you can once you’re there. But there’s a big difference between making the most of a trip and overcrowding it. You’ve already put in the time and money to get across the Pacific, and spending the next 2 weeks rushing doesn’t make that investment go further.
I’ve watched this happen in Fiji. I had a client who filled every day of his trip with activities, even after I warned him it might be too much, and when he got home, the first thing he told me was “You were right. We did too much!” Now picture that same feeling spread across 2 countries and a handful of domestic flights. The way I approach luxury travel, you get the time and access to experience a place properly. I would much rather plan you an incredible 2-week trip through Australia where you come home feeling like you really got to know the country than cram both countries into those same 2 weeks and send you home needing a vacation from your vacation. And then we start planning New Zealand.
They feel completely different, too
Another reason I love keeping these trips separate is that Australia and New Zealand have very different personalities. Australia gives you cosmopolitan cities, gorgeous beaches, ancient landscapes, wildlife, Aboriginal cultural experiences, and the Great Barrier Reef, plus some really great food and wine. New Zealand is mountains, fjords, glaciers, and lakes, with Māori culture, beautiful wine regions, and drives where the road itself is often the best part of the day. When you try to do both at once, they start blending together into “Australia and New Zealand,” like they’re one destination. They each have their own pace and their own reasons to go, and they’re each worth a trip of their own.
When would I combine them?
There’s one big exception to my rule, and it’s time. If you have 3 or 4 weeks (or more) and you really want to experience both countries, we can absolutely have that conversation, because with enough time a combined Australia and New Zealand trip can be spectacular. Even then, we’d be selective. I wouldn’t try to cover every major Australian destination and both of New Zealand’s islands just because we technically could, and the goal would still be enough time in each place to enjoy being there. For most of my clients, who are working with something closer to 10 days to 2 weeks, I’d choose one country and make it incredible.
So which one should you visit first?
This is where it gets fun, because there’s no single right answer. If you’ve been dreaming about the Great Barrier Reef or Sydney Harbour for years, or you want a trip that mixes wildlife, cities, and wine, Australia may be calling first. If your dream vacation is mountains, road trips, adventure, and as much time outside as humanly possible, New Zealand might win. It all comes down to what you want to experience, which is exactly why I don’t treat either one as an add-on. Australia deserves that kind of planning, and so does New Zealand. And if both are on your list? Perfect. That sounds like 2 incredible trips to me.
If Australia or New Zealand (or both!) has been on your list and you’re not sure where to start, that’s where I come in. Book a complimentary consultation with me! We’ll get to know each other, I’ll walk you through how Susan’s Travel Services works (including what being a Virtuoso agency means for you), and we’ll talk about next steps.