Mark Everard is one of New Zealand’s most experienced private guides, with over 20 years experience travelling through New Zealand with international visitors, his clients have included sheiks, oligarchs, royalty, celebrities, business leaders and politicians, he truly knows New Zealand like the back of his hand and uses his extensive knowledge to facilitate world class travel experiences for clients.
Mark also owns and operates an executive offsite event management company called Adrenalin Group Ltd, providing him the opportunity to crossover his learning’s from guiding into the domestic corporate market. “We specialize in providing leadership teams with inspiring venues, healthy cuisine, and quality service”.
We had a chat to Mark about his experiences showing international guests around New Zealand, as well as getting his advice on arriving ready after a long haul flight.
My parents migrated to New Zealand from England not long before I was born. My early memories are of weekends and holidays spent exploring New Zealand with them. I believe this is where my sense of adventure and passion for our great country originated.
I moved to Queenstown after completing a Business Degree so I could pursue my passion for adventure sports. While down there I was asked to guide for a global inbound tourism company. It proved a natural fit for me, combining my love of New Zealand, passion for the outdoors and a strong interest in serving people.
My job involves creating unique experiences for clients based on an understanding of their expectations and holiday preferences, showcasing the best of what New Zealand has to offer. I work closely with a network of trusted service providers to deliver clients overall experience.
As well as meeting people and hearing their story, I really enjoy seeing the positive effect New Zealand has on people. It is a country that can really touch a person’s soul. I think New Zealand’s intrinsic goodness is one of our biggest assets and one that we all have a responsibility to preserve; intrinsic goodness being our countries, beauty, variety, culture, and experiences.
I always hear visitors comment on just how genuine and friendly the people of New Zealand are, they feel safe here. This combined with New Zealand’s nature, quality of cuisine and variety of landscapes and experiences makes for a very positive travel experience.
There have been so many interesting people that it is impossible to narrow it down to one person or group of people. Instead for me it has been a huge learning experience almost like putting together a jigsaw puzzle on how the world works with each person contributing. I feel very lucky to have met the people I have and the resulting relationships, experiences and learning’s.
For our clients we generally see their first day as a day of acclimatization, we want them to feel comfortable as soon as possible, that feeling that they are in a safe place surrounded by people that have their best interests at heart.
I would recommend a meal that has a high water content to keep them hydrated throughout the flight. Fresh fruit and vegetables are a great option as they are packed with nutrients to ensure your body has the vitamins it needs to get going once you land in your destination.
I find the best way to hit the ground running is to adjust your body clock to the local time as quickly as possible and ensure I get good first night sleep. I also like to keep the 1above tablets on hand to help with any jet lag.