Testimonials from:
Jacqueline Stevens (2008)
Maureen (2008)
Bruce Pearlman & Ellen Segal, Washington D.C.
Frank and Diane
Just returned from collecting John Banham from Heathrow.
I would like to thank you for making his holiday so successful. I have to say I really thought he may have taken on more than he could cope with. He is in great spirits although very tired from travelling and time differences.
He really sang your praises and said that you both made the holiday what it was and hopes you continue to build it up and he has the chance to return. All his comments about the places he visited really made feel I should overcome my fear of flying and come over to see for myself. We are going to have a viewing of all his pictures etc. in a couple of week (all your handy work I gather) and I'm looking forward to that.
Once again, Thank you for taking such good care of John. John said he will be in touch soon.
Regards
Jacqueline Stevens.
I had a week's leave available in the first week of July 2007 as I was going from one job to another, so decided to take a holiday in the South Island. I hadn't seen much of the South Island so I was keen to pack in as much as possible! I contacted Frank and explained that I use a motorised wheelchair and wanted to keep the accommodation costs down as much as possible... he had about five weeks to organise an itinerary... he rose admirably to the challenge.
The travelling party comprised of my friend Adrienne, my caregiver Maire, myself (and Frank). The journey began with an early rising to catch the Ferry to Picton. It was pouring with rain (well it was the middle of winter) but at least it was a smooth crossing. We then travelled to Nelson via Queen Charlotte Sounds Drive which was just gorgeous. On the way we stopped and collected mussels off the rocks (well I directed), which Frank cooked in white wine that night for dinner. It was our good fortune to discover that Frank is also a Chef!
The next day we went over the Takaka Hill. We stopped and Frank and Maire went on a tour of the Ngarua caves while Adrienne and I sat in a little shop enjoying the view and finding out about the region. The rest of the day consisted mainly of driving and sightseeing, going right around to Farewell Spit. Day 3 we spent looking around Nelson including a stop at the Höglund Art Glass Centre, and the World of Wearable Arts and Classic Cars.
From Nelson we went down the West Coast to Greymouth. The drive down the West Coast was spectacular! Stops included a seal colony and the Punakaiki pancake rocks. The next day we watched with fascination and admiration as a carver worked a piece of greenstone. Then it was off to Christchurch over the Arthur's Pass. The scenery was stunning! Our stop at the viaduct lookout was entertaining with the cheeky keas performing well for their adoring fans.
By the time we got to Christchurch our group was pretty tired so instead of having another day of travel we changed plans and spent the day looking around Christchurch (shopping of course!). Our itinerary (and Frank) was flexible so that we were able to decide day by day what activities we want to do and where we wanted to stop.
After a pleasant day in Christchurch (albeit that the weather was wet and bitterly cold) we made our way north via the east coast. When we got to Greta it was snowing and as I hadn't been in snow before we all piled out on the side of the road for a brief play. The snow made the area look really beautiful, just like a Christmas card! Next stop was Kaikoura (somewhat brief as it was very cold and wet. We did get to see another colony of seals where Frank and Maire got up quite close to them.
Our final stay was in Blenheim. The day was beautiful... clear and crisp. Just right for going to a market and having a look at the shops. Then it was off to a couple of wineries, having lunch at one... sitting in front of an open fire... ahh! This was topped off at the chocolate factory before finally heading back to the ferry for Wellington.
I find it difficult to get a holiday because of transport issues and needing personal care assistance. Frank made things very easy for me, organising the itinerary and accommodation. He gave suggestions of things we might do (and our group had ideas too). If we spotted something on the way that we were interested in he happily stopped. Above all, Frank was great fun to have as our travel guide and companion. I certainly would not hesitate to go with Frank again, and highly recommend him to people who need support to go on holiday!
Thanks Frank
Hi Diane and Frank,
Thank you for making our trip to N. Z such a success and enabling us to visit venues we would never have got to otherwise. Also for your patience and energy. We would not hesitate to recommend you. You will be as relieved as I am to know that Patrick had a new watch for his birthday !! Hope to see you again.
Yours Maureen.
My mother and I had the great good fortune to be able to travel to beautiful New Zealand last March. When we were planning our trip we needed to find a special tour company because mom and I don't fit the typical tourist profile. I am a 59-year-old female paraplegic who uses a manual wheelchair and mom is an 89-year young senior citizen. It was our good luck to find Allan and Shona Armstrong of Accessible Kiwi Tours.
They had just the specialized tour service to meet our needs.
Allan requested input from us about where we would like to go and what we would like to see, and then he put together a trip designed specifically for us. Mom likes to stay in B&Bs and Allan booked some very nice B&Bs along our route.
Originally we had planned a 14 -16 day trip but when Allan suggested we wouldn't be able to enjoy both islands in that amount of time we increased our stay to 22 days and we were very glad we did.
We had a wonderful time touring New Zealand with Allan and Shona. If you plan to visit New Zealand and you have special needs, we recommend that you contact Allan and Shona Armstrong at Accessible Kiwi Tours ( http://toursnz.com ). They are friendly and caring people who provide individualized care and service for their clients.
Thanks to Allan and Shona we came away with an in depth understanding of the spectacular beauty of New Zealand and an "up close and personal" introduction to its charming and friendly people.
My wife - who is in a wheelchair - and I used Allan's services in the North Island of New Zealand in April, and we wished we could have used him throughout our entire trip. He is knowledgeable, personable, flexible, and a pleasure to work with. One of his strongest points is his ability to let the travellers set the tone as to how much they wish to do, and how strenuously. Allen then builds upon that to maximize the number of things you can see and do and still have a lot of fun.
We utilized a number of providers throughout our trip to NZ and Australia, and Allan was clearly the best of the lot. We feel very lucky to have found him. We know that the trip would certainly have been less rewarding without him. We would recommend him without hesitation to anyone with any level of disability - and even to people without disabilities!
Sincerely,
Bruce Pearlman
Ellen Segal
Washington D.C.
USA
Dear Allan
You asked us for a few words for your web page, it is difficult to put into a few words the marvellous time we spent with you here goes:-
We arrived in New Zealand from the U.K. very apprehensive and very tired to be met by Allan with an enormous smile and personality to match. The following day we met Shona then our holiday began. Needless to say we had a wonderful time very well organised with attention to every detail, no obstacle to large for them to solve. They certainly made it "a holiday of a life time" we came home having made two friends for life.
Bye for now
Your U.K. connection.
Nigel June and Collin
I've had MS for 20 years and though not severely disabled I can no longer travel on conventional package tours. Allan & Shona made My Dream Come True when they escorted me round their beautiful country. From the moment they met me off my plane I knew that I was in safe hands and that I could trust the impression of reliability and straightforwardness I had gained from my initial e-mail and telephone contacts with them. If you are looking for a company that can provide the level of care and attention that you specifically require, that will provide knowledgeable guides who will also be friendly companions you need look no further - Accessible Kiwi Tours ( New Zealand ) Ltd tailor-made a Holiday of a Lifetime for me and they will do the same for you.
New Zealand : A Holiday of a Lifetime by Pat Guy.
This Spring I spent four wonderful weeks touring round New Zealand. I have been writing to my pen friend there for 14 years but as years went by it seemed less likely that we would ever get to meet. I have had MS for more than 20 years and though I'm still able to walk short distances I use an electric scooter to get around and have to pace myself against the onset of fatigue. Winifred also has MS, she is a lot older than I and is now very severely disabled.
Then early last year I noticed a reference in 'Disability News', the newsletter of the Cheshire Disabilities Federation, to a company that could provide escorted tours of New Zealand for elderly and disabled people but I didn't follow it up because I couldn't see how I could afford such a trip. I upgraded my computer and added a modem attaching myself to the Internet. One of my first searches was to find what was on-line about New Zealand; I found the NZ Tourist Board WebPages with a list of NZ based tour operators and narrowing it down to those specialising in tours for the disabled found 2 companies, one of which was the one I had recently read about.
Then my father died and in the summer I learnt that I had inherited some money from his estate, more than I'd anticipated, and I determined that I would go to New Zealand. I eventually settled on Accessible Kiwi Tours ( New Zealand ) Ltd run by Frank & Diane Boonen. Allan did send me some information about themselves & the company as well as a number of brochures by 'snail mail' but apart from one or two telephone calls all arrangements were made by e-mail via the Internet.
So, in March I flew to Christchurch taking with me my BEC Budget scooter. Allan & Shona were there waiting for me and my first impression was of friendly, smiling faces, warm welcoming personalities and I immediately knew that we would get on well together. They were going to act as my guides & companions, make all arrangements, bookings etc and generally handle all the hassle leaving me free to enjoy my time in New Zealand. We were to travel in Allan's camper van, registration number TLC 4U; they slept mostly in the van while I stayed in a mixture of B&B and motels.
New Zealand is just as beautiful as everyone says it is. There's very little traffic on the roads so it's very quiet, everywhere is very clean, the people are very friendly and food, meals and petrol cost less than at home. They drive on the left and though the vegetation and the colours are different I was reminded very much of the scenery in Scotland and the Lake District; only the fact that the sun went across the sky the 'wrong' way told me that I was not in an unfamiliar part of the UK.
Allan has been providing customised tours for people with varying degrees of disabilities for 9 years so he knows where to go, what there is to see and how to get the best out of each place. In South Island I saw the turquoise water of Lake Tekapo, visited the resort of Queenstown where I took a solo paraflight 300feet above Lake Wakatipu and went for a cruise on the steamship Earnslaw. I flew in a 6 seater plane over the magnificent mountains of the Southern Alps to get to fjordland where I went for a cruise on Milford Sound out to the edge of the Tasman Sea and back. Serene and breathtakingly beautiful this is a 'must' for anyone visiting New Zealand. We went to glow worm caves, glaciers, hot springs, virgin rainforest and, one of the highlights for me, out to sea to watch sperm whales before crossing by ferry to North Island.
The capital city, Wellington, has wooden Victorian buildings on the steep hillsides that confine the harbour. I spent a fascinating afternoon in the Te Papa museum which has an extensive Maori collection and impressive galleries with inter- active displays. Travelling north we went to a winery, I saw kiwis ( in a nocturnal house ), I stayed at one of the orchards that supplies Royal Gala apples to Tesco, and we passed Mt Ruapehu the highest and most active of New Zealand's volcanoes before arriving at Lake Taupo, the largest lake, at the heart of North Island. Then to Rotorua with its boiling mud pools and gushing geysers and the ever present sulphurous smell of bad eggs. I stayed on the Bay of Plenty and the remote Coromandel Peninsula which has some of the finest coastal scenery and beaches.
Northland is the finger pointing north from Auckland where we drove through the forest of impressive kauri, some of the largest and oldest trees on earth, and across to the spectacularly beautiful Bay of Islands. Historically significant as the cradle of European settlement it is the stunning coastal scenery that now attracts visitors. The five hour Cream Trip Supercruise is a 'must' and though I didn't see any dolphins I wasn't disappointed in the beauty of the islands and the deep blue water of the South Pacific. More than a quarter of New Zealand's 3.5 million people live in Auckland, a city built on more than 50 volcanic hills and surrounded by water and it was from here that I flew out of New Zealand at the end of an unforgettable holiday and experiences which were well worth the 36 hours spent travelling half way round the world.
And yes, I did see a lot of sheep. But best of all I stayed one night with my pen friend Winifred. It was wonderful to meet her at last, we simply took up in conversation where we'd left off our last letters.
Patricia Guy, Cheshire, UK
This past winter, Debra Briscoe of Easy Access Travel in California escorted 3 of her clients on a two-week trip to New Zealand. She hired Allan and Shona Armstrong of Accessible Kiwi Tours to take the group around and make all the arrangements. Debbie had previously met Allan and Shona at a conference for The Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality in Florida in 1997. From that time, she knew she wanted to bring clients to New Zealand with the help of the Armstrongs. When they landed in Auckland, after 14 hours of flying, she immediately knew she had chosen the right people. The group was met with smiles and hugs which lasted the entire trip!
The little group was comprised of the following--two women using electric scooters, one woman with developmental disabilities using a manual wheelchair and a young man with developmental disabilities. Ages ranged from 31 to 77 but everyone got along famously and had a fabulous time. The days were filled with wonderful sights and scenery, meeting lovely people along the way, shopping for souvenirs and eating as they travelled from Auckland to Queenstown. A definite highlight of the trip was all the wonderful people, including friends and relatives of the Armstrongs, who greeted the group in the different cities and towns. When asked to describe her trip upon her return home, Debra commented that being in New Zealand was like being wrapped in a big hug for two weeks. All the people were so warm and loving and made everyone feel so welcome.
It was truly a trip that will be remembered for a lifetime and thought of with fond memories by all. As spectacular as New Zealand is on its own, it's beauty was enhanced by the love and care that Allan and Shona put into making this trip a dream come true for all who participated.
