Fullers GreatSights Bay of Islands facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Fullers GreatSights Bay Of Islands

Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Travel and Tourism
Founded	1887
Founder	Albert Ernest Fuller
Headquarters	Paihia, Bay of Islands , New Zealand
Area served	Bay of Islands
Services	Cruises, land tours, transport
Parent	Explore Group Ltd

Fullers GreatSights is a big tourism company in Northland, New Zealand. They help people explore the beautiful Bay of Islands by offering many boat trips and land tours. It's one of the largest companies for marine tourism in the area!

The Story of Fullers GreatSights

The story of Fullers GreatSights began a long time ago.

Starting with Coal and Cream

In 1887, a man named Albert Ernest Fuller started the company. He used a sailing ship called "Undine" to deliver coal to islands in the Bay of Islands.

In the early 1900s, the "Undine" got a motor! This helped Fuller deliver coal and other important supplies even further. He could reach communities as far as Cape Brett.

In 1927, Fuller bought a special boat service called the "Cream Trip" from Eddie Lane. This boat helped transport cream from the islands. By the 1960s, a well-known boat called the 'Bay Belle' started doing this route.

Today, a modern catamaran takes over the historical "Cream Trip" route. But the 'Bay Belle' still carries visitors and locals. It travels between Paihia and Russell all day long.

Growing and Changing Names

The company grew and expanded to Auckland. It became known as Fullers Corporation.

In 1989, Fullers Corporation split into two parts. One part was the Bay of Islands company. The other part was the Auckland operations, which became Fullers Group.

In December 2008, Fullers Bay of Islands changed its name. It became Fullers GreatSights. This was to match InterCity Group's main sightseeing brand. The company offers many cruises and day tours around the Bay of Islands. It also runs ferries for people and cars between Paihia, Russell, Opua, and Okiato.

In 2019, InterCity Group changed its name to Entrada Travel Group. This helped to tell it apart from its smaller companies.

New Owners and New Journeys

In July 2021, Entrada Travel Group sold Fullers GreatSights. A New Zealand marine tourism company called Explore Group bought it. Explore Group already runs cruises and tours in the Bay of Islands and Auckland. They also operate in Hamilton Island, Australia.

The company that used to be Fullers GreatSights is still owned by Entrada Travel Group. On August 2, 2021, it was renamed Northland Ferries Limited.

The boats that used to belong to Fullers GreatSights are now owned by Explore Group. They still operate under the Fullers GreatSights brand. Northland Ferries now runs the car ferry services between Opua and Okiato, and Rawene/Narrows. They also operate the passenger service between Paihia and Russell.

Our Fleet of Vessels

Fullers GreatSights uses several boats for its tours and trips.

Current Vessels

These are the boats that Fullers GreatSights uses today:

• Dolphin Seeker — This boat is 23.4 meters long. It was built in 2001 by Q-West Boat Builders.
• Te Maki — This boat is 23.9 meters long. It was built in 2017 by Challenge Marine.
• Te Papahu — This boat is 17.7 meters long. Its builder and year of construction are not known.
• Island Adventurer — This boat is 12.6 meters long. It was built by Naiad.

Former Vessels

These boats used to be part of the Fullers GreatSights fleet:

• Bay Belle II — This boat is 16 meters long. It was built in 2011 by Gough Brothers. It moved to Northland Ferries in August 2021.
• Tangaroa III — This boat is 19.8 meters long. It was built in 1999 by Cercia. It is now called 'Picking Daisies'.