Willy was a very entertaining driver and tour guide. Had a great day out and experience. Beautiful scenery. An enjoyable day. One small downer was the toilets at some stops could have been maintained better.

Driver wouldn’t stop talking. Food and venue was awful to eat at. Day was far too long to visit one lighthouse, awful food, short session bodyboarding and drive on beach. The driver could not be understood on the coach tannoy.

The views were very good and the driver was good at navigating the tricky, hilly, and switchback roads. That's the good part and the reason we gave it 2 stars rather than 1 star. The bus was old, uncomfortable, noisy, and had no bathroom. The tour was supposed to be 10 or 11 hours and it took us 12.5 hours from the time we got on until the time it was over. The tour started for us at 7 AM and it was just after 2 PM until we stopped for lunch. Lunch was very bad, we had fish and chips with very little tasteless fish and of course chips which were OK. The beach front place we stopped was a camping/RV park and the food servers were not prepared for the 90 plus (2 buses) that came within minutes of each other. We were seated directly behind the bus driver so we heard him radio in our food orders and the time we would arrive at least 30 minutes prior to our arrival, still the food was not ready when we got there. My wife and I were fortunate that we were one of the first people to get in the food line and we had our food after about 15 minutes. We left there about 30 minutes later than planned because of the food delay. Pretty much every stop was longer than announced causing the extra time taken for the entire tour. The 90 mile beach was interesting and only one of the two buses got stuck in the soft sand. The second bus had a tow rope used to help get the other bus unstuck and we continued onward. They have the equipment to surf down the sand dune, but the dune was only about 15-18 meters high. I mentioned the driver was good at his driving part, but he had this habit of almost constant talking over the speaker system. It was hard to hear and understand due to the bus noise which may have been bad for us since we were at the front of the bus. We did learn the driver came from a family of 6 brothers and 7 sisters and included 3 sets of twins... he has a twin sister. We also learned how many avocadoes his tree produced for the last 4 years. He sang 3 different songs over the speaker system in his native language which we could not understand. The rest of what he said was not understood by us (no doubt a good thing), but we learned very little of New Zealand history from him. In summary... The sights were good, but the time it took and what we had to put up with were not worth it. Venture on this trip if you like, but we think pictures from the internet would be a better choice. We both wondered what the tour would be like in a small van rather than a large bus.

Fantastic day! We booked the Super Cruise Including Hole in the Rock from Paihia. Captain Prince Marty was very knowledgeable about all the islands and was incredibly passionate throughout the whole trip he really does enjoy his job and this makes for an extra fun voyage! Luck and his expertise meant we got to see a pod of dolphins on the way to Otehei Bay and a pod on the return journey. 🐬🐬 We also got to see a Marlin & a solo blue penguin. Conditions were great and we were lucky enough to pass through the Hole in the Rock which was very exciting. Thank you also to crew members Ella & Vinny for looking after us and sharing your enthusiasm for the Bay of Islands.

We went out on the cream trip with dolphins full day tour today. Marti and his team were brilliant. Marti was both funny and informative in his commentary. He gained information about a whale breaching and we managed with his assistance to have the honour of watching the whale breach.

Great trip. The driver Barrry was very entertaining. He was funny and had great stories to tell. Scenery was nice. Lunch was small, 2 small pieces of fish and a bit of chips so bring your own snacks.

Our family enjoyed the cruise tour. Beautiful surrounding islands and scenic views. The stop-over at the Bay of Islands Kayakings was great and our grandchildren and we adults enjoyed it. Regretable we could not see any dolphine which was supposed to be the highlight.

Very professional staff and outfit, flexible when we had to change departure times, great onboard narrative by the captain (Felix), including both history and wry humor. We took the four hour cruise which was enough for us (originally we were booked on the 7 hour cruise which visits a few more islands and has a 3 hour instead of 90 minute stopover at Otahei). Our cruise included a stop at Otahei island and a trip out to Hole in the Rock. Conditions allowed for the boat to actually go into the sea cave at Hole in the Rock part way but not all the way through the island, which was still plenty cool. The bay itself is incredibly scenic and much is protected from the wind, which of course picks up when you emerge into the open South Pacific Ocean to see Hole in the Rock. Mornings tend to be calmer. A little cafe is on board and also toilets; very comfortable padded seats inside the boat and lots of outdoor seating. The captain was clear before we launched that conditions were changeable and we might not be able to go to the Hole in the Rock with winds at 35 knots or more, so people could choose to disembark before the cruise and reschedule or get a credit. Fortunately, as it turned out, this 830 am cruise (which stops to pick up passengers at 9 am at Russell) was able to have good calm morning conditions and we thoroughly enjoyed the trip. You can get off at Russell on the way back and see the town and just catch a water ferry back to Paihia at your convenience. This allowed us to skip the 90 minute layover on Otahei Island, which has a small cafe and easy hiking trails, to spend our limited time exploring Russell. Very pleased with the trip and captain!

Good tour but too short on the sand dune. The driver were really interesting ! And the cape reinga was really pretty. Maybe not too much for the lunch

We loved our day exploring the far north. Barry, our driver and guide, was exceptional - great stories, highly knowledgeable, wonderful orator, amusing, thoughtful to each and every guest. It’s a great way to experience this stunning part of the country and we got so much more out of it compared to driving it ourselves. Well worth it.

A gorgeous day on the water. There was a commentary with a bit of history about sailors, farming and conservation in the area. Fun squeeze through the hole in the rock and a tribute to the lady of the sea. Fun atmosphere, safe and comfortable. Dolphin pod swam by. Worth every moment.

It was a fun day right from the start. Mainly due to Barry our driver who kept us in stitches with his funny stories. There was plenty of time to look at what we wanted to. I would highly recommend this trip. A big thanks to Barry for keeping us smiling.

Awesome time. A big day but well worth it. Barry was an awesome tour guide, the best tour guide I have ever had. We had the steak and cheese pie which was awesome.

For me, definitely worth it. I had been driving in New Zealand, not easy, wrong side of road, turns, pulling out into traffic etc. I had limited time in the area, so this was a perfect fit. Saw the areas I wanted to see and left the driving to someone else. He was an amazing driver and knowledgeable. 90 mile beach blew me away, other than the grand Canyon, I've never seen anything so expansive. I also did the morning boat tour with the company as a combo. Once again, totally worth it. I decide last minute to do the combo which meant I had to drive to Auckland the day I did the cruise, no problem. So glad I did them both!!

Great trip, fun guide, Willy. A good way to go to the far north because you don’t have to drive yourself! I had the salad for lunch and it was good. I was picked up in Coopers Beach.