A unique insight into the world of famils!
One of the great perks of my job is to reward agents for their hard work. These rewards can come in many different forms such as coffees, lunches, gift vouchers and famils. Famils offer the greatest insight to our products and allow agents to get a first-hand experience of a destination and learn all the ins and outs of our products in great detail, which they can use to provide first-hand experience to their clients. When it is my job to take or participate in a famil, it is as much a learning experience for me as the agents I bring with me. No matter how many times I visit a destination I always seem to learn or experience something new. My recent famil to Queenstown in New Zealand was no exception.
It had been over 11 years since I had last been to New Zealand’s adventure capital. As soon as I landed at the airport and disembarked the aircraft I took in the view of the Remarkables Ranges and memories started to return of my last trip to Queenstown.
Queenstown
Our first day consisted of a cruise on board the Steamship the TSS Earnshaw which took us from Queenstown on a 45 minute scenic journey to Walter Peak. Once we arrived we enjoyed the fantastic views, stopped for some quick photos and the headed back to enjoy one of the most delicious buffet dining experiences at the colonel homestead.
TTS Earnshaw
On day two we set off to visit Milford Sound. Although the weather was not on our side we soon found out that Milford Sound is even more magnificent in the wet. The constant rain over the past day or so meant there was more waterfalls at Milford than normal. My favourite experience from Milford Sound was getting what is known by the locals as a rejuvenation shower. This involves standing, generally with your arms extended up high out on the deck as the cruise approaches a waterfall and letting the mist from the waterfall engulf you along with the entire boat.
Mildford Sound
Day 3 was all about adventure. The morning kicked off with a hotel breakfast before being picked up by the Shootover Jet crew. The Shootover Jet is definitely one of the must do’s in Queenstown. Even if you aren’t an adrenaline junkie the Shootover Jet will no doubt get you in to the adventure spirit. In order to keep the adrenaline pumping we all went for a quick ride up one of the many mountain peaks to a where we all got see in a breathtaking view of Queenstown. This was only the start of the amazing views when we all realised that we were all about to go for a ride in a Helicopter to the Skyline restaurant. When we arrived at the beautiful Skyline restaurant that overlooks Queenstown, we were all given passes to go experience the Luge track. Some attendees myself included embraced our competitive nature and raced around the track as fast as we could.
The Luge
After taking a gondola ride back down to Queenstown. We all enjoyed some free time to explore city centre. The final event to top off the amazing few days in Queenstown was hosted by Gibbston Valley Wineries. We were invited to a 5 course meal with matching wines inside there man made wine cellar. It was great way to finish the famil and all attendees really enjoyed the dinner and local wines.
Gibbston Valley Wines
It is sometimes hard to know whether the itinerary you have created for a famil really inspires the agents to become advocates for you product upon their return. Although I was not involved in creating the amazing itinerary for this famil but I thoroughly enjoyed myself and I hope the agents and my colleagues that joined me did as well.
Explore the range of AAT Kings holidays to the South Island of New Zealand.
