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AAT Kings vs Grand Pacific
Compare the travel styles, pricing, destinations and popularity of AAT Kings and Grand Pacific.The Low Down
AAT Kings have partnered with Global Journeys since our inception, and as a result we have an in-depth understanding of all their trips, through both Australia and New Zealand. Our team have journeyed with them on 9 tours through New Zealand, Tasmania, South Australia, Northern Territory and Queensland. That close relationship also means we can deliver fantastic savings throughout the year. AAT King's core multi-day coach tours cater mainly for those over 55+, whilst their short breaks in the Northern Territory tend to attract a more diverse range of ages. All coaches are first class, and AAT Kings pride themselves on their tour guides - many of which have been with them for decades!
Grand Pacific are a little bit different - and enjoy sending more groups to New Zealand than any other Operator. Based in Melbourne, Grand Pacific's focus is solely on New Zealand, and it's this focus that allows them to massage their itineraries each season to continually improve and innovate. Grand Pacific were the first to introduce luxury small group tours (using specially designed business class coaches) as well as combined coach and cruise itineraries to New Zealand. In that regard many of the other Operators are in catch up mode. Catering for premium, affordable and luxury travellers there is something for everyone. At least one member of our team here at Global Journeys experiences touring with Grand Pacific first-hand every year, so just ask if you have any queries.
Stats
No. of Trips
102
No. of Departures
10,067
Avg. Trip Length
9 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$438
Accommodation
3.5 - 4.5 Star
Budget
Affordable & Premium
No. of Trips
25
No. of Departures
218
Avg. Trip Length
14 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$438
Accommodation
3.5 - 4 Star
Budget
Premium
Regions Explored
New Zealand
In Their Own Words
We asked the travel companies themselves why you should travel with them
Choosing AAT Kings for your Australia or New Zealand holiday guarantees you’ll benefit from the insider secrets, off-the-beaten-path destinations and authentic interactions with local characters that only 100 years of experience can provide. With over a hundred years’ experience in sharing Australia with our guests, AAT Kings holds exclusive access to some truly unique locations, secret trails and roads less travelled that add so much value to the overall travel experience.
At AAT Kings, our on-road staff are best in class. Our Travel Directors, Driver Guides and Drivers are hand-picked for their passion, experience, and enthusiasm for the spectacular countries we live in. There is truly no one better to share with you the best destinations across Australia and New Zealand. We have been perfecting our itineraries and products for over 100 years, so the benefits gained from travelling with us are unrivalled. With over 150 expertly crafted holiday itineraries to choose from, we offer something for everyone.
Grand Pacific Tours, the New Zealand Coach Holiday Specialist, provide a comprehensive range of all inclusive, value for money holidays offering a highly professional and personalised service to thousands of travellers every year. Taking a coach tour is the best way to make your holiday an unforgettable experience. From the time you arrive in New Zealand a friendly smile awaits.
As the market leader for New Zealand Coach Holidays, we have something for everyone! Travel in style on our Ultimate Small Group Touring series (maximum of 20 travellers) or our Signature Touring series (premium economy comfort on a full size coach with smaller group size of 32.) with itineraries to suit all budgets and interests. Choose from Signature; Cruise & Coach and Special Interest Tours, with over 200 guaranteed departures per year. We take care of it all leaving you to get on with creating incredible holiday memories!
Recent Reviews
4.5
Grace was very helpful in arranging the booking and final details. We had a group of 18 on our tour. We saw a lot of interesting places which were definitely worth visiting and it was an unexpected delight to see Lake Eyre full of water. The flies were bad, so a fly net is recommended even for April/May, and we only received an email from the AAT read more King tour guide about it after we had arrived there. Wilpena Pound and Arkaroola were definite highlights and extra nights there would have been desirable in hindsight. The 4WD jeep tour at Arkaroola accessed a very remote area and was spectacular. There were too many fries served at lunches and dinners (even at the winery lunch) for my liking, and I feel that the preordered meals lacked details (ie, chicken, beef, vegetarian). It would help if vegetarian indicated is it rice, pasta, salad? especially for the cost of the trip. Most breakfasts were at 7 am and departures at 745 am so there were no super early departure times. And Coober Pedy is definitely worth visiting.
Tasmania's Wilderness & Heritage tour with AAT Kings tour was a great small group tour. There was lots of room in our bus, they took us to really interesting places, accommodation was very comfortable. Lunches in wineries, the autumn colours were wonderful. Tour leader was informative . I would recommend this holiday for an enjoyable relaxing time away.
Fun tour and great sights. 0
Tastes of Southern Australia
Dawn and Gary, TX, United States, Mar 2026
We enjoyed this trip. The Great Icean Road was spectacular. We went to a reserve and saw multiple koalas in the wild. It was great to see the kangaroos and wallabies roaming around along the way. The tour director and bus driver were amazing. Kudos to Anna and Terry!!
Our New Zealand tour was well organised, very pleasant. All places we visited are of great interest. We would recommend future travellers to experience this tour.
Tour through the South of New Zealand 4
Southern Wonders
Leonardo and Francesca, Italy, Italy, Dec 2025
Booking on line with Global Journeys has been easy and very efficient, thanks to Tracey Standing helping us at every step of the procedure. The travel with AAT Kings has been enjoyable and well organized, inlcuded the comfort of the bus and the management of the bags, trhanks to the Travel Director Hope Horsley and the bus driver David. Lovely travellers. read more Good accomodations. Perhaps desirable some more stops to admire the scenery. We have appreciated vey much the option activities offered. We recommend the journey without any doubt.
I have done many bus tours in Australia and this was one of the best. I have also visited SA many times but had not spent a lot of time on the Eyre Peninsula. The, scenery, the places we visited, the experiences from Murphy's Haystack to visiting oyster farms, to having mouth watering food, were simply the best. The accommodation was good, the particular read more stand out was the hotel at Port Lincoln located on the waterfront. Liz our Tour Director was very professional in her management and organisational, along with her enthusiasm for the country side. Anthony the coach driver was as good as they come, there were no uneasy moments. Kings always do a great job. Well done.
4.7
Grand Pacific Luxury Small Group 9 Day North Island May 2026 0
Ultimate North Island
Janine, VIC, Australia, May 2026
This was my second trip with Grand Pacific, previously toured South Island May 2024, again luxury small group tour. Top quality company, luxury coaches and good itineraries. Great for singles and couples alike. Seat rotation is fabulous. I would've liked to have had time to enjoy a hot pool spa experience in Rotorua (although the hotel did have read more a small one) and a little more time in Wellington. But that means I can do another trip either alone or find a tour to do the things I want to do. No crowds, no rushing, great hotels/accommodation. Personal insight during the trip with a great coach captain. Highly recommend. Weather was great - a little rain on arrival in Bay of Islands and Napier.
In reviewing this trip, all I can say, is that all the arrangements that were made beforehand, the itinerary, places to visit , excursions, the accommodation, the number of people in the group, were all first class, including the coach captain. Everything went like clockwork, as smooth as anything. All our needs, information, everything we needed, was read more given with the least amount of fuss. I could not recommend the trip highly enough. As for Georgina's handling of my booking, that was mostly done by Hannah, but I am sure Georgina would have handled my booking in the same professional way as Hannah did . Thanks again for a wonderful trip, an experience I will never forget.
Worry free tour through South Island, New Zealand 0
Signature South Island
Marls & John, VIC, Australia, May 2026
Hannah from Global Journeys once again helped us with fantastic suggestions and ease of booking our Grand Pacific Tour. Everything was taken care of, we never had to lift a case or worry about any part of the tour. We had great accommodation, excellent meals and saw all the highlights of the South Island. Vicki our Tour Captain was amazing, nothing read more was too much trouble and Craig our coach driver was funny, very informative about places we visited and most importantly an excellent driver. Would highly recommend Global Journeys and Grand Pacific Tours.
Ultimate Grand Pac Experience 2
Ultimate Rail, Cruise and Coach
Michael & Rosemarie, NSW, Australia, May 2026
My wife and I have just returned to Australia after spending 19 nights on the Ultimate Rail, Cruise & Coach tour of New Zealand's North & South Islands (May 5th - 23rd) under the care and guidance of our excellent Coach Captain, Craig Cassidy. From the time of booking our trip to arriving back home, the experience & journey was absolutely fantastic. read more Our travel agent, Hannah Perry (Global Journeys) was attentive, prompt and helpful with our questions & preparations for the trip. From the point of arrival in Auckland, we felt privileged & valued and Craig very quickly made us feel at ease with the processes and logistics of small coach touring.
Whilst New Zealand in itself was spectacular, diverse and breathtaking, the curated activities & excursions combined with the wide range of optional extras, which dovetailed seamlessly into the tour, made the whole journey even more memorable and enjoyable. Accommodation standards and food quality were uniformly excellent and the extra level of care & attention we received, e.g. bags taken to and from our rooms, early or priority entries into attractions and the high level of relevant & interesting information from Craig meant that the tour was totally stress & hassle free.
Our small group of 20 bonded beautifully over the holiday allowing us to spend quality time together but also for individuals & couples to explore independently. We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Grand Pac involved in compiling this excellent tour, but with a special mention for Craig, in recognition not only of all the hard work we saw him do but the mountain of work he did behind the scenes - his professionalism, patience & humour were deeply appreciated. We will have no hesitation in recommending Grand Pacific to our friends & family. This trip will live in our memories for a very long time.
Whilst New Zealand in itself was spectacular, diverse and breathtaking, the curated activities & excursions combined with the wide range of optional extras, which dovetailed seamlessly into the tour, made the whole journey even more memorable and enjoyable. Accommodation standards and food quality were uniformly excellent and the extra level of care & attention we received, e.g. bags taken to and from our rooms, early or priority entries into attractions and the high level of relevant & interesting information from Craig meant that the tour was totally stress & hassle free.
Our small group of 20 bonded beautifully over the holiday allowing us to spend quality time together but also for individuals & couples to explore independently. We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Grand Pac involved in compiling this excellent tour, but with a special mention for Craig, in recognition not only of all the hard work we saw him do but the mountain of work he did behind the scenes - his professionalism, patience & humour were deeply appreciated. We will have no hesitation in recommending Grand Pacific to our friends & family. This trip will live in our memories for a very long time.
Bus tour of the South Island of New Zealand 0
Signature Best of the South Island
Julie and Robert, QLD, Australia, Apr 2026
The south island of New Zealand is just beautiful. We travelled over 2,500 km in 14 days, so we did see a lot of it. We really enjoyed seeing the small towns where we stopped for breaks along the way. The free time we had, to do our own thing, was great.
Ultimate South Island NZ came highly recommended to us by a previous traveller. It was everything she described and so much more. Seamless booking with Hannah from Global Journeys, who is always a delight to work with. There really is nothing in the world like the South Island. Dramatic, untamed and breathtaking. Travelling through the rugged, pristine read more wilderness was profoundly peaceful, like being in paradise. Late April was a perfect time, as outside the main tourist season, with snow capped peaks, trees transitioning to Autumn colours, crisp air and sunshine every day.
Grand Pacific took care of every detail with the tour well curated, organised and communicated. Our coach driver/tour guide Linda was outstanding, highly knowledgeable, personable and humorous. Luxury coach and premium accommodation, with delicious food throughout the tour. Lovely group of fellow travellers and small enough to not feel crowded. With a lot to see, there is a fair amount of travel everyday. Would highly recommend!
Grand Pacific took care of every detail with the tour well curated, organised and communicated. Our coach driver/tour guide Linda was outstanding, highly knowledgeable, personable and humorous. Luxury coach and premium accommodation, with delicious food throughout the tour. Lovely group of fellow travellers and small enough to not feel crowded. With a lot to see, there is a fair amount of travel everyday. Would highly recommend!
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