Student Group FAQs

How much time is required to book group farmstays?
At least two weeks notice is required for group farmstay bookings. Bookings inside two weeks are handled on a case-by-case basis.

Why do people in New Zealand become farmstay hosts?
The key reason for becoming a host is that the hosts genuinely enjoy meeting people from other cultures, and are happy to share their homes so that overseas visitors get an insight into New Zealand everyday life on a farm.

What is the farmstay inspection process?
Rural Tourism staff visit all prospective host families’ properties and review long time hosts on a regular basis to ensure the quality of accommodation, service and experience offered to all Rural Tourism clients. The following factors are all taken into account when inspecting properties:

Guest Bedrooms:	Quality of the bedrooms, the bedding, linen, heating, cleanliness and location in the house.
Bathroom Facilities:	Quality and cleanliness of shower, bathtub and toilet. Location of toilet (in bathroom or separate), quality of accessories offered such as soap and shampoo.
Overall House Ambience:	Cleanliness and quality of carpets, wallpaper, and furniture. Outside house appearance, state of gardens, state of fencing, farm buildings and facilities.
Vehicles:	Cleanliness and condition of family car used to transport guests to/from the meeting point.
Location:	Proximity to the nearest town, proximity of closest neighbours.
Special Attractions and Activities:	Presence of house pets, possession of luxury items such as tennis court, swimming pool or spa pool for guest use.
Farm Experience Available:	The kind of farm experience which is offered, safety requirements on site. Access to neighbouring farms, Able to host throughout the year rather than just seasonally.
Hospitality:	Check of host families’ personalities and friendliness. Willingness to hosts all nationalities, willingness to host 2, 3, or 4 guests, and willingness to host both sexes. Confident at cooking. Agree to all rules and stipulations as advised by Rural Tourism.

What are the limitations of host families during farmstays?
A farmstay experience should not be confused with staying in a hotel. Guests are staying in a real life family home and hosts are opening their home to allow overseas visitors to enjoy the opportunity. Hosts are not staff who are expected to look after guests 24/7.

Why do farmstay hosts sometimes suddenly change before I arrive?
Rural Tourism farmstay hosts are all from the local farming community. The reasons for cancellation or amendments are nearly always personal reasons, such as sudden illness or family reasons. Rural Tourism respects the privacy of the host family, so it is sometimes not possible to provide such details to the client. .

It is important that the tour organisers and/or schools are advised at the time of planning and during the briefing to parents that such changes do occur and are unavoidable. They should also be advised that any replacements hosts will offer the same wonderful farmstay experience to their guests.

Can I obtain detalied information about my farmstay hosts in advance?
Due to the law governing the New Zealand Privacy Act, the amount of information able to be advised about individual host families is limited. Information given by Rural Tourism covers the key points about the Farmstay destination and host family, but cannot be elaborated on further due to the Privacy Act. Similar Acts cover Privacy around the world.

Are late check outs possible?
Late Check Outs are available up to 1.30 pm on the day of departure. Additional charges apply.

Can the teachers visit the student's farmstays?
Inspection visits to student’s farmstay locations are welcomed and give the teachers a real insight in to what students can enjoy during their farmstay experience. However some rules do apply so that the duration of the visit and number of teachers visiting at one time does not impact on student’s enjoyment of their New Zealand farmstay or the plans of the host family for activities during their stay. We suggest:
• Maximum 30 minutes per host
• Maximum 2 properties per school
• Maximum 5 teachers per visit

Can teachers stay on farmstays too?
Teachers are certainly welcome to stay on farms, as this is a good experience for them too. Student bookings will be the first priority, and teachers bookings will be booked if hosts are available after student bookings have been made. Unfortunately, on rare occasions, we may not have enough hosts for teacher’s bookings, and will try to advise you at an early stage if this is likely to be the case. All teacher’s farmstays are booked on a dinner, bed & breakfast basis. For bookings of 2 nights or more, lunches on the middle days will also be required (additional cost). Please note sightseeing and additional tours are not our host’s responsibility, and have not been included in the cost. If teachers wish to do additional sightseeing activities during their farmstay, this will need to be pre-arranged prior to their arrival.

Is transportation available for teachers/tour escorts?
Teachers or tour escorts that require transportation to other locations during their farmstay will need to make their own transportation arrangements.

Does anyone from Rural Tourism accompany the school visits/technical visits?
Rural Tourism aims to source suitable school or technical visits venues as requested. Staff at each such visit’s venue will be briefed on the requirements of the group based on the information provided by the tour company/organiser. RTH staff do not accompany tours during their visits.