WEST COAST TRIP

The first of our Familiarisation Visits was a three day trip to the West Coast, to experience adventure tourism companies such as Fox Heli Services, Fox Glacier Guiding, and Adventure Kayaks.

We set off from Queenstown Resort College at 2pm and prepared ourselves for a 6 hour drive to Fox. We stopped off at Makarora Cafe to have dinner, then hit the road again for another 2 hours until we finally arrived at our hostel in Fox. We had an early night in preparation for our action packed day the next day.

FOX HELI SERVICES

The first trip was with Fox Heli Services and a flight up onto the Fox Glacier. This was the first time I had ever been in a helicopter so I was extremely excited. What an amazing experience that was! The scenery and weather were beautiful, not a cloud in the sky and breathtaking views of the mountains glacier and sea surrounded us. The customer service from the driver and the pilot were very good. Both staff members were welcoming, polite and friendly. They were more than happy to help us with answering questions and queries. This made the trip more memorable as I felt as though the staff really cared about the customers.

LAKE MATHESON WALK

After the exhilarating ride on the helicopter, we went on a short scenic guided walk around Lake Matheson, with our Department of Conversation Guide Cornelia.

The walk was very peaceful and calming, but made very interesting by the extent of our guides knowledge. She was incredibly informative about the local area and the history behind the glacier and our surroundings. Her interpretation was great as she made it interesting for teenagers by making jokes and having casual conversations with us. Similarly with the Heli services staff, Cornelia was great. She was friendly and professional. I really enjoyed the walk and would recommend it to any individual! (Picture by mkiwi.com)

FOX GLACIER GUIDED HIKE

To finish up our action packed day we had a guided Hike onto Fox Glacier which was another amazing experience. We met our guides Rodger and Dan who talked us through the safety rules, the functions of the company and showed us around the office.

 (Photo by Craig potton, prints.co.nz)

It was great to see this as it gave the class an idea of what goes on behind the scenes of the company, i.e. writing down any hazards or warnings on the glacier, weather reports, rescues, and emergency procedures. This was really good service management as it showed the company was prepared and thinks ahead in case anyone is unprepared. It shows willingness to help and responsiveness. 

Our head guide was brilliant. He knew absolutely everything about the local area which made the walk really interesting. The beautiful surroundings of the Fox glacier combined with the excellent customer service experience made this excursion one of the best. I had a fantastic time on the ice as did my classmates.

KAYAKING TRIP

Our final activity on the west coast was a three hour Kayaking trip on Lake Mapourika. This I was really looking forward to as I have been on some fantastic Kayaking trips.

In relation to all the other excursions, Ben was also a fantastic guide. He knew how to communicate with the teenage age group by telling us jokes and personal stories, but did it in a professional way. He was also very knowledgeable about the area even though he was American, which I thought was really impressive! He made the tour exiting and interesting, by taking us to different areas of the lake and was great motivation and help when some class mates began to get tired. This is what made the trip so enjoyable and fun.

SUMMARY

Overall, our trip to the west coast was brilliant. We got the opportunity to sample some great products and services that adventure tourism companies can offer and had a great time doing it.

The main thing that stood out from all the companies was the great customer service. Everyone was friendly, helpful and very professional. I would recommend any tourist or holiday maker to do all of these activities, as they are very enjoyable and memorable.