Fullers GreatSights is a major

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

company based in Northland,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. Today it is Northland's largest marine tourism operator with a wide range of cruises and land tours.

History

In 1887, Albert Ernest Fuller launched the "Undine" sailing ship in the

Bay of Islands The Bay of Islands is an area on the east coast of the Far North District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is one of the most popular fishing, sailing and tourist destinations in the country, and has been renowned internationally for its ...

to deliver coal supplies to the islands within the Bay. With the fitting of a motor in the early 1900s, Fuller was able to deliver the coal and essential supplies to communities as far out as

Cape Brett Cape Brett Peninsula ( mi, Rākaumangamanga) is a long peninsula in the Bay of Islands, in the Northland Region of New Zealand. The head of the peninsula is Cape Brett itself (also known by the Māori, ), a promontory which extends north into ...

. In 1927 Fuller acquired the "Cream Trip" from Eddie Lane – with the facilities on board to transport cream from the islands, and by the 1960s, the well known ‘Bay Belle’ started this run. Although a modern catamaran now takes this historical route (The Cream Trip), the Bay Belle continues to transport visitors and locals between

Paihia Paihia is the main tourist town in the Bay of Islands in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is 60 kilometres north of Whangārei, located close to the historic towns of Russell and Kerikeri. Missionary Henry William ...

and Russell throughout the day. The company expanded to Auckland and became Fullers Corporation. In 1989 Fullers Corporation split into the Bay of Islands company and the Auckland operations, which were taken over by what is now Fullers Group. In December 2008 Fullers Bay of Islands was rebranded Fullers GreatSights to bring it in line with InterCity Group's parent sightseeing brand of GreatSights New Zealand. It offers a range of Bay of Islands cruises and day tours around the region and operates passenger and vehicle ferries between Paihia and Russell/Opua and Okiato. In 2019 InterCity Group rebranded as Entrada Travel Group, to distinguish itself from its individual operators. In July 2021, Entrada Travel Group sold Fullers Greatsights to New Zealand based marine tourism operator, Explore Group. Explore Group operates cruises and tours in the Bay of Islands and Auckland and also operates out Hamilton Island in Australia. The Company was renamed to Northland Ferries Limited on the 2nd of August 2021 and spun off, the remaining fleet still operates under the Fullers Greatsights Brand. The company has been mostly integrated within Explore Group Ltd. Northland Ferries now operates the Opua-Okiato and Rawene/Narrows Car Ferry services, and the Paihia-Russell Passenger service.

Vessels

The Fleet of Fullers Greatsights Includes: *Dolphin Seeker — 23.4 metres, Built in 2001 by Q-West Boat Builders of Whanganui for Kings Tours & Cruises. *Te Maki — 23.9 metres, Built in 2017 by Challenge Marine of Nelson for Fullers Greatsights. *Te Papahu — 17.7 metres, Unknown Builder or Year of Construction *Island Adventurer — 12.6 metres, Built by Naiad. Former Vessels: *Bay Belle II — 16 metres, Built in 2011 by Gough Brothers of Invercargill for Fullers Greatsights. Transferred to Northland Ferries in August 2021. *Tangaroa III — 19.8 metres, Built in 1999 by Cercia and designed by Teknicraft. And is now called 'Picking Daisies'.

References

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External links

Fullers GreatSights
(official company website) Transport companies of New Zealand Tourist attractions in the Northland Region Bay of Islands New Zealand companies established in 1886 Transport companies established in 1886