Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles — Attraction in South Island

We caught the Abel Tasman Sea Shuttle from Awaroa to Totaranui after walking the Abel Tasman track for the day. We were a group of 8 ranging in age from 20 to 80 years old. We followed the directions from the Pizzeria which bring you out at the opposite end of Awaroa beach from where both Wilsons and Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles pick up passengers (about 800m away from the ramp onto the beach). Unfortunately there is no marked place for pickup, so we waited where we thought the map on the ramp to the beach indicated. As the shuttle approached the beach it was obvious we were about 100m away from the actual pickup point so we started walking towards the boat. The fastest of us were about 50m from the boat as it pulled up the walkway and started to leave. Had they not waved and yelled we would simply have been left behind with no way of getting back to Totaranui. I am shocked that no effort was made to look for the group of 8 (we were the only people on the beach remotely close to the boat) that had prebooked the taxi and that they were so quick to leave us behind. We witnessed another company make a genuine attempt to find missing customers who had prepaid on the ride from Totaranui to Tonga Quarry so we know other companies are more compassionate. It didn't help to be told when we reached the boat "but we always leave from here" when this is your first time being picked up at an unmarked spot on...

Friendly and helpful company to deal with. We booked over the telephone and the process was seemless.

The ramp from the beach onto the boat was very handy as one of our party was post surgery and unsteady on their feet especially on uneven terrain.

The trip up and around the Abel Tasman NP with associated commentary was beautiful and informative and funny at times, thanks to the skipper and crew.

The top deck offered amazing views and great photo opportunities whilst the lower deck was better for the wetter and more volatile sea conditions.

One thing we had not factored in was returning to Kaiteriteri at low tide which resulted in the boat landing further down the beach. This meant there was a long walk from the boat to the street, across sand and a water crossing and for our injured party this proved difficult and unnerving. Anybody with reduced fitness/injury or not steady on their feet should bear this in mind and ask what provisions are in place or when the best time to travel is to avoid these hurdles.

All in all though a fabulous excursion and highly...

Dreadful company with rude and arrogant staff. All they did was laugh when we tried to complain about the service we had received. Worst of all, they just abandoned an elderly gentleman and his wife on the beach as they were a couple of hundred yards short of embarking, (I'm sure they will claim times/ tides as a reason) but it seemed such an unnecessarily horrible thing to do - but which sadly seemed to sum up their attitude. It would seem that staff on the ground are confident in their knowledge that their managers do not care about their attitude and dismal customer service, otherwise they just wouldn't behave the way that they do. We had such high hopes for this trip and this company made it such an unpleasant experience. The Abel Tasman NP is a lovely place to visit, just make sure that you experience it with a different company. I would not recommend using...