I took the Overlander for just a short portion of the journey but for those few hours it was amazing! The staff are really friendly and helpful, and will answer any or all of your questions, the food is wonderful, the seats are really comfortable and the other passengers were lovely to talk to. The service is also very organised,... More

A must do if you like travelling by train and have 12 hours to spare. Carriages are looking tired and worn but they were clean and the seats comfortable. Carriages were kept clean and tidy during the journey by friendly and efficient staff. In fairness to Kiwi Rail I believe they are soon going to upgrade the rolling stock and... More

May be a long journey but something you have to do at least once. Was a great experience, so much to see. More

This trip is worth doing for the Raurimu spiral alone! We started in Paraparaumu and finished in Auckland. Staff are excellent and very knowledgeable - really good commentary for most of the trip. Good stop for lunch - luckily as the food on the train is fairly predictable - you won't go hungry but it's not exciting - good cafe... More

I took the train from Wellington to Auckland. Beautiful landscapes along the journey especially after leaving Wellington region and before going to the Auckland region. Basically the seats on the right hand side have better views ;-) Don't forget to plan ahead and prepare yourself for getting a spot at the observation deck where you can have a great view... More

We travelled from Auckland to Welington (12 hours) and found 70% of the journey interesting. If you're not into scenery though you might definitely think about an alternative way of travelling. It's definitely a relaxing, no pressure way to travel. If you're going to do the full trip you need to plan ahead and be organised with drinks and food.... More

We were blessed with fantastic weather and every look out of the window was a postcard worthy view. Lovely, helpful staff who really cared and wanted to make your journey the best experience it could be. Was reall pleased with the range of well priced food on board. The lunch stop at National Park was magestic and we thought the... More

Take the plane if you're not a train enthusiast - its got nice views etc in most places but I just found it boring by the time we were a few hours shy of Auckland. Too long. I wouldn't do it again. More

Am something of a Rail enthusiast, and as such have experienced many World-wide rail Trips. I consider this Trip to be one of the most spectacular I have been on, mainly because of the engineering achievements in such rugged terrain. More