DAY 1 - After picking you up from home (all part of the Hinterland service) we arrive at Tauranga Airport to check in for our direct flight to Christchurch. On arrival in the Garden City, we will board our coach for the short journey to the first of our “aviation” themed destinations, the Air Force Museum of New Zealand at Wigram.

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Grab a bite at the Contact Café, located alongside the historic aircraft with views across the former Wigram airfield to the Port Hills, before our guided tour. Suitably replenished it's time for an in depth “behind the scenes” tour, which offers access to the restoration workshop as well as the reserve collection of aircraft, vehicles and engines, not normally open to the public.

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Departing the museum, its just a short drive to our Christchurch hotel where we will dine together this evening.

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DAY 2 - Leaving Christchurch, we head south along SH1 to Ashburton, which has a strong aviation history. The town was a training centre in World War 2 with 50 Tiger Moths based here.  We visit the Ashburton Aviation Museum which houses a collection of over 20 aircraft including the Devon, Vampire, Harvard, Harrier GR3, Canberra B2 Bomber Cockpit, Meteor, Zlin, DC3, Vampire and Tiger Moth to name a few. We will also be able to visit the aircraft restoration workshop. 

 

We continue to Omarama, our base for the next 4 days with a stop for lunch in Geraldine on the way at the Barkers Foodstore and Eatery, another NZ icon. Following lunch (your cost) we travel further inland, through Burkes Pass and into the legendary Mackenzie - an area of great wide-open spaces, the highest mountains, awe-inspiring glaciers and vivid turquoise lakes.

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We take a break at Burkes Pass – chance to browse the quirky Three Creeks Arts and Crafts Shop - housed in the old General Store. There is also a 1950s service station and a blacksmith shop and trading store. The shops provide a wealth of art works, crafts, giftware, retro collectibles, wooden furniture, and more. 

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Our route travels past Lake Tekapo with its famous Church of the Good Shepherd, Lake Pukaki where we should have views of Aoraki / Mount Cook before arriving at our hotel at Omarama.

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Day 3 - Today is the practice day of the Warbirds over Wanaka International Air Show (acclaimed as one of the world's top four Warbird airshows), which in 2024 celebrates 36 years of operation. Started by aviation entrepreneur Sir Tim Wallis in 1988, this is now a biennial centre piece of Central Otago’s tourist attractions with around 50,000 attending this amazing showcase of all things aviation.

 

Our GOLD PASS tickets offer us the best 3-day experience – with great seating in the grandstand situated directly in front of the runway. An attached large marquee and hospitality area offers a range food and beverage options to purchase. Complimentary tea, coffee and water are available to us throughout the show.

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GOLD PASS holders also receive an airshow branded bag, gold cap and badge, an airshow programme, a voucher for one free drink and free entry to the Warbirds and Wheels visitor attraction (see below). You will also be able to mingle with the pilots, get autographs and walk the flight line on Saturday or Sunday.

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Sadly the Warbirds and Wheels museum has now closed, so we have scheduled a visit to the National Transport and Toy Museum, with over half a century of collecting and striving to preserve pieces from the past, the National Transport and Toy Museum boasts rare and unusual aircraft, cars, trucks, motorcycles, fire appliances, military vehicles, boats and tractors. Now with over 70,000 toys on display, there is something for us all to re-kindle our childhood memories.

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The National Transport and Toy Museum is situated alongside the airshow may be of interest and can take a whole day to explore fully. This fascinating museum houses one of the largest private collections in the world, with over 600 vehicles, including classic cars, motorcycles, fire appliances, military vehicles, buses, trucks, tractors, construction gear and boats. There are also 20 civilian and military aircraft from the 1930’s to 1990’s as well as a collection of over 60,000 toys. There is something for everyone, such as clockwork and battery powered toys, dolls, teddy bears, pedal cars, remote control models, money boxes and 1,000’s of scale models.

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Friday is practice day so there is no airshow scheduled, but all ground displays are open and Warbirds, civil and military aircraft will be conducting practice displays in preparation for the following days.

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Day 4 - Today is Airshow Display Day – which commences at 10.00am. We will make an early start to arrive in good time.  Spend the day making full use of your Gold Pass privileges, really enjoy the amazing flying displays and also get close to the aircraft and displays on the ground. The finale each day is worth waiting for as aircraft attack the ground based enemy - with plenty of large pyrotechnics going off. You can also expect to see the RNZAF here celebrating their 85th Anniversary. If you want to keep abreast of the flight program leading up to the show then see the official airshow website.

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Day 5 - The final day of the air show.  The program today replicates the one we saw yesterday but there may be a few additional aircraft flying due to operational issues the day prior. If you have had your fill of planes, then we will have a few options available that you could opt for (some additional charges may apply) while others attend the show.

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Or you may want to just relax at the hotel and “do your own thing” today before we meet up again this evening for dinner, our last night in Omarama.

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Day 6 - Today we leave for Christchurch and our direct flight back to Tauranga. Plenty of time to see sights along the way, maybe enjoy a pie at the famous Fairlie Good Pie Shop. Our early evening flight will  give us time in the afternoon to explore Christchurch City before we depart. 

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