09 Jun 2022
We, and our two teen boys, were searching for a hard-to-find combination: we wanted to see the sights, but also experience the culture. We wanted the kind of experience we would have if we were visiting our cousins in New Zealand, yet not be too closely nursed. Ceillhe (pronounced “Kay-lay”), her husband Neill, and her sister Kristi did exactly that. Ceillhe managed a dynamic itinerary that adjusted depending on the weather and openings (businesses were still transitioning post-COVID) and gave us the tour of literally a lifetime. It is no wonder their business has received multiple country and international-level awards. Mixed in with traditional tourist-type experiences, like seeing Rotorua, or flying over Taupo in a helicopter, we had a chance to get to know them and Ceillhe/Kristi’s Maori heritage. When a traditional Maori cultural mixer was nixed (COVID again), they even opened their home to us and shared a home-cooked dinner with us. We left the trip with incredible memories and new friends.