A 10 Day Voyage on board Spirit of New Zealand is a life-changing experience - unlocking your potential, leaving you ready to face your future!
This programme is the best way to up your courage, unlock your potential and make lifelong friends. The Spirit is about overcoming ALL obstacles, and this starts now. Start your adventure today.
You’ll meet 39 other young kiwis from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures. Over 10 days you will come to depend on each other, learn tolerance and acceptance and create close and lasting bonds. Once you leave the ship you are connected to the Spirit community for life! You’ll have the opportunity to return as a crew member and share your experiences with others.
On Spirit, you’ll improve your communication and leadership skills and learn the importance of self-awareness and being a part of a team. As you face the various challenges your confidence will increase as you increasingly move outside of your comfort zone.
Be aged between 16-19 years (must not have had 20th birthday)
Meet the medical criteria of the voyage
Agree to the code of conduct / terms and conditions of the voyage
The cost of a 10-day voyage is $2995.
A deposit of $500 is required in order to secure your chosen voyage. The remainder of the voyage fee needs to be paid in full 12 weeks prior to your voyage departure date.
WAYS TO FUND YOUR VOYAGE:
We understand that for many participants, finding the money required for a 10-day voyage may be your first challenge. Previous participants have taken on part-time jobs, asked friends and family for help or spoken to local organisations to financially support them.
APPLY FOR A FUNDED CONTRIBUTION TOWARD YOUR VOYAGE:
We work hard to keep the cost down but appreciate finding the funds can be a challenge for some people. Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, in some cases we can offer a contribution towards the cost of a voyage. Every few months we open applications for which you can apply for help with the cost of a voyage. There are a few options you may be considered and eligible for.
I made so many amazing friends and formed deep connections with people. I made countless incredible memories that I will never forget, and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat! I have gained so much strength and resilience after dealing with multiple challenges and facing my fears. Im so grateful for the experience because it helped me grow so much as a person.
Head to our voyage information page to find travel information for getting to and from the ship.
You can find all the information you need to know about your voyage including a link to the gear list on our voyage information page.
Participants can undertake ocean-based adventures for their Adventurous Journey as well as their Residential Project. Just select that you are completing the voyage for your Duke of Edinburgh Award when you are booking your voyage. Then once you've returned you'll need to login to your online record book on the Duke of Edinburgh website and write a report about your voyage. You will then send the report to us for approval.
All the info on what to do will be sent to you when you return from your voyage.
We strongly suggest that if bringing a camera onboard, you equip yourself with a dry bag for the safe keeping of your camera - please remember you are within a wet environment. Please bring your camera charger with batteries.
No sailing experience is required. Sailing is just one part of the voyage. Each sailing has a team of experienced sailors. Be prepared to help!
Every voyage is different and it will often depend on weather. We have a live ship tracker on the home page of our website.
The ship typically has the capacity to house 40 participants and 13 crew overnight.
Unfortunately due to the size of the galley onboard the ship, we cannot cater for young people with coeliac disease or those who are likely to have an anaphylactic reaction eg. Food, Stings, Medicines.
We can cater for vegetarians and for gluten or dairy free diets.
Participation on a voyage involves physical effort and exposure to greater than usual risk. We minimise risks by being a responsible and professional organisation with high standards of safety and discipline. You can find more about our voyage safety here.