Itinerary

 

SDSU Agricultural Students Study Tour to New Zealand

May 2023

Itinerary

 

A tour designed to provide participants with a comprehensive overview of New Zealand agriculture. The group will meet with leading farmers and decision makers in the agricultural industry. As well there will be the opportunity to enjoy the culture of this island nation.

 

Tuesday 9 May Arrive Auckland                                                                                                 D

Early morning arrive and proceed through customs and meet your New Zealand Guide.  Enjoy an orientation tour of Auckland and the city sights.  Auckland is named the ‘City of Sails’ because it has more boats per person than any other city in the world. Visit the Auckland Museum, which has a magnificent display of Maori artifacts and New Zealand natural history.  After lunch at leisure at the Museum Café, check into your accommodation with an opportunity to freshen up and recover from your international flight.

Late afternoon, regroup for a short agricultural briefing and an overview of the upcoming tour.  This evening, visit the Observation Deck in Sky Tower followed by dinner at a local restaurant.

Overnight Auckland

 

Wednesday 10 May Auckland – Hamilton                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Travel to Pukekohe for an overview of the vegetable industry and to visit the biggest potato producer in the country. From here we travel to Hamilton to visit Gallagher, a developer and manufacturer of many animal management solutions. Dinner at leisure.

Overnight Hamilton

 

Thursday 11 May Hamilton – Rotorua                                                                                       D    

Visits today include a farm merchandise store and a dairy farm owned by a former Fonterra shareholder councilor to learn about New Zealand’s biggest agricultural export industry.  The sharemilker on the property emigrated from the USA. Before leaving the Waikato, visit Hobbiton, the location for one of the movie sets for Lord of the Rings.

Continue through the Waikato and over the Mamaku Range to Rotorua known as the ‘thermal wonderland’. This is a region of thermal activity, Māori culture, and forestry.

Dinner in the Skyline Restaurant that overlooks the city.

Overnight Rotorua

 

Friday 12 May Rotorua                                                                                                               D    

An opportunity today to see how important tourism is to the New Zealand economy and to learn about Maori culture and development.

Visit the Agrodome, a unique “agritourism” venue for a very entertaining farm show where you will see a range of sheep breeds and working dogs including the New Zealand bred huntaway. Learn about Māori Trusts and Incorporations with a visit to Tumunui Māori Lands Trust. Visit the 60-bail rotary shed which has a GEA milking plant with automatic cup removers.  The 60 x 12m rectangular yard can hold 600 cows.

This afternoon visit Te Puia – the Whakarewarewa Thermal Reserve and the Maori Arts and Crafts Institute where you will see the Maori carvers at work and then explore the Maori buildings.  As you are guided around the Reserve you will see boiling mud pools and the mighty Pohutu Geyser.  There will also be the opportunity to see the rare “Kiwi bird” – New Zealand’s national symbol. Enjoy a “Maori Hangi” traditional feast and cultural experience followed by seeing the geyser terrace and night bathed in coloured light.

Overnight Rotorua. 

 

Saturday 13 May  Rotorua – Tauranga – Te Puke - Rotorua                                                     L     D

Depart Rotorua this morning and head north to Tauranga. Visit the Tauranga Farmers Market which is an Incorporated Society and was established 19 years ago.  It’s purpose is to enable food growers and producers to sell directly to the customer. In the last few years, there has been a growing awareness of where our food comes from, and how far it has traveled (food miles) and what chemicals and methods have been used in growing that food. The market allows consumers to meet with producers and have conversations about their product. Time at leisure at Mount Maunganui before visiting an orchard in the Te Puke area. Return to Rotorua this afternoon.

Overnight Rotorua 

 

Sunday 14 May  Rotorua – Marton                                                                                          LD

First visit today is to the leading Kairuru Polled Hereford Stud. 180 hectares of flats and hills, 100 Hereford stud cows, 450 cattle and 600 to 1,000 sheep.

Lunch in Taupo.

Travel south to Marton where you meet your homestay hosts and transfer to their homes.

Overnight Homestay

 

Monday 15 May  Marton – Wellington - Christchurch                                                           BD                                                                                                                                                                       

                        Depart your homestays this morning and head south to the capital of New Zealand, Wellington. Lunch at leisure on the waterfront and city sights including Te Papa Museum.  Visit Beef + Lamb for an overview of the meat sector and the role of Beef + Lamb for farmers in NZ. This evening fly to Christchurch and check in to your accommodation. Dinner in hotel.

Overnight Christchurch

 

Tuesday 16 May Christchurch – Hawarden - Ashburton                                                          D                

Visits Tawhai Gotland Sheep Stud. Mating this year approximately 700 purebred, registered suffolk ewes and ewe hoggets.  Tawhai Suffolk Stud is one of the largest suffolk studs in New Zealand. They are able to cull hard, keeping 100 2th rams for sale as sires for commercial and registered flock use.  This afternoon we visit another property (tbc). Continue south to Ashburton for overnight.

Overnight Ashburton

 

Wednesday 17 May Ashburton – Alexandra                                                                           LD    

Travel via Geraldine and Fairlie, and over Burkes Pass into the Mckenzie basin.

Lunch on the iconic Haldon Station.  22,000 hectares, 8,000 superfine Merino sheep, 1,000 cattle (Hereford and Angus studs), 6,000 Red deer.  Discussion on the management of this high country station, tour of the property and inspection of livestock.  This afternoon leave the Mckenzie country (named after a notorious sheep stealer), via the Lindis Pass. Travel past the town of Cromwell and Lake Dunstan to Alexandra. Dinner in your hotel.

Overnight Alexandra

 

Thursday 18 May  Alexandra – Te Anau                                                                                  BD    

Replacement visit TBC – Earnscleugh station are away.

From here travel through the Kawerau Gorge to Queenstown and then alongside Lake Wakatipu into Southland. Dinner tonight in your hotel.

Overnight Te Anau

 

Friday 19 May  Te Anau                                                                                                               L

                 A day to discover magnificent Doubtful Sound. Travel by coach a short distance to Lake Manapouri followed by a catamaran cruise from Pearl Harbour to the West Arm. From here you board a coach for a trip over Wilmot Pass to Deep Cove where you embark on another very comfortable catamaran for an unforgettable cruise on Doubtful Sound taking in the beautiful alpine scenery.  Travel back over the Wilmot Pass to West Arm and return across Lake Manapouri and then by coach to Te Anau.

Overnight Te Anau

 

Saturday 20 May  Te Anau – Lumsden/Invercargill/Gore                                                         D

This morning travel over part of the Southern Scenic Route for a very interesting visit to another of New Zealand’s iconic properties, Mt Linton.  A large high country station of 13,365 hectares with Angus, Texel and Suftex studs.  

Potential homestay in Lumsden area. If not accommodation Invercargill/Gore. If no homestay a farm visit in Te Anau in the morning followed by Mt Linton in afternoon.

Overnight TBC

 

Sunday 21 May  Lumsden / Invercargill/Gore – Oamaru                                                        BL

Morning TBC depending on homestay.

Then drive to Dunedin, named the ‘Edinburgh of the South’ due to its Scottish heritage.  After a brief stop in the city, drive through North Otago hill country to Oamaru with a stop at the intriguing Moeraki Boulders en route.  An excursion this evening to see the Blue Penguins which come ashore at dusk.

Overnight Oamaru

 

Monday 22 May  Oamaru – Ashburton                                                                                   LD

Travel north to Ashburton. Arrive midday to visit a fully irrigated 1900ha arable and vegetable farm. Harvesting begins on ryegrass in January and finishes with potatoes at the end of May. Finish approx. 9 to 11 thousand sheep annually for CMP. Also graze 1 to 2 thousand lambs for up to 4 weeks in October for a nearby station.

The farms are irrigated by 24 centre pivot and lateral irrigators with three guns used for dry land corners and they are also starting to use underground drip irrigation on dry corners where water is extracted from 13 underground bores, all in excess of 150m deep.

Crops include Potatoes 350ha, Onions 160ha, Wheat 500ha, Ryegrass 340ha, Clover 120ha, Seed Carrots 82ha, Hybrid Beetroot 40ha, Hybrid Rape 22ha, Kale 25ha, Linseed 11ha, Potato Lease 125ha. Lunch on the farm.

BBQ dinner in hotel this evening.

Overnight Ashburton

 

Tuesday 23 May Ashburton – Depart

Visit an award winning dairy farm and meet with the sharemilker.

 

Drive to Christchurch and tour the ‘Garden City’ which was devastated in the February 2011 earthquake, the CBD is now being rebuilt.  Time at leisure before transferring to the airport for your flight.

 

 

B = Breakfast   D = Dinner  L = Lunch

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