Atomic Travel

Atomic Travel

33 Rankers Reviews

21 Face-to-Face

5 Buses

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Maps

Details

Feature Value Info

Organisation

Atomic Travel

Commercial organisation

Location

South IslandCanterburyChristchurch

Categories

  • OriginalBuses

Directions

To Office

Reviews

    • Efficient travel around the South Island.
    • Cheapest I could find around the South Island.
    • Good routes, willing to take bicycles.
    • Door to door service.
    • Tend to go door to door.
    Rating Count Percentage
    10/10 5
    15%
    9/10 6
    18%
    8/10 9
    27%
    7/10 5
    15%
    6/10 1
    3%
    5/10 3
    9%
    4/10 0
    0%
    3/10 2
    6%
    2/10 0
    0%
    1/10 2
    6%
  • 5.0/5

    We had booked Atomic Travel bus from Dunedin to Christchurch.

    Unfortunately we had entered the wrong stop in Christchurch whereas we had to go to the airport. We literally had no time to make other arrangements to do so as we had to check in for an international flight. Renju was our driver and upon explaining our situation to him, he was very considerate and kind to make an effort to drop us off to the airport. We’re so grateful to him for his help. We highly recommend Atomic Travel. They’re so professional and will also go out of the way to help you.

    Thanks Atomic Travel.

    Reviewed about 4 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Atomic Shuttles from Christchurch to Twizel Fantastic experience Brand new Mercedes Benz Sprinter Coach Superb service Couriered a wheel from Christchurch to Twizel The driver was brilliant and

    made the pickup so easy

    Thank you so much , what a brilliant service

    Could be very handy for rowers going to Lake Ruatanawha

    Reviewed almost 5 years ago

    Ken Patterson's avatar

    Ken Patterson

    Customer

  • 4.5/5

    Atomic Travel My wife and I made a return trip from Christchurch to Greymouth early Nov to visit family.After booking I read some negative reviews and wondered if we had made the right choice.

    Fortunately we did not experience any of the negatives expressed by some earlier reviewers. The fares were very reasonable at about 1/3 of the Trans Alpine Rail fare. Departure & arrival facilities were very easy to find, services were punctual. The shuttle buses were very new 16 seater Mercedes 4 wheel drive vehicles with comfortable seating & heating/ cooling .Comfort stops were brief but adequate. The drivers were friendly & helpful. They acted as drivers and did not provide a commentary of the passing countryside or landmarks which did not concern me at all but overseas visitors might have liked comments.

    My only negative comment was that the windows in the back half of the bus were covered with a layer of stippled material which greatly reduced the view of the

    very picturesque & often spectacular landscapes we passed through.

    It was a very comfortable trip which I would not hesitate to take again for Christchurch - West Coast travel

    Reviewed almost 5 years ago

    Stewart Drysdale's avatar

    Stewart Drysdale

    Customer

  • 5.0/5

    Have had many trips on the atomic shuttle between both greymouth and christchurch and Dunedin.

    All experiences have been great. The low costs of the buses and friendliness of the bus drivers have made the trips a cost effective travel method that I will continue to use for a whole lot longer.

    Cheers atomic travel 🍻

    Reviewed about 5 years ago and experienced in June 2019

    jeremy belsham's avatar

    jeremy belsham

    Customer

  • 5.0/5

    I am a frequent traveler, and have tried several different bus companies, but find Atomic Travel the best by a long way.

    Not only are they reliable but they are also highly professional and customer friendly

    Reviewed over 7 years ago

    NEW ZEALAND
    Jesse Alford's avatar

    Jesse Alford

    Customer

  • 5.0/5

    I travel with Atomic travel virtually every weekend.Ihave always found the staff who take my booking to be pleasant and will go out of there way to accommodate my travel plans.The drivers are always willing

    to help and are friendly and pleasant.Iwould recommend travelling with Atomic to anyone who wants to travel in the south island.Thanks Atomic Travel for the great service and experience I look forward to travelling with you again

    Reviewed over 7 years ago and experienced in January 2017

  • 4.5/5

    Hi. We travelled from Christchurch to Greymouth on Atomic travel as we had booked theTranss Alpine but as it was cancelled we then booked with Atomic Travel.

    We are so pleased we did. The bus was very comfortable, the driver I think has name was Mark was also really good and the scenery was amazing. We are actually really pleased that the Trans Alpine was cancelled as we felt we got a better view of the amazing scenery from the bus than what we would have got from the teain and it was so much cheaper!!. Highly recommend this trip

    Reviewed over 7 years ago

    NEW ZEALAND
    Isabella Ling's avatar

    Isabella Ling

    Customer

  • 1.5/5

    Atomic Shuttle, Christchurch Airport to Dunedin.

    A cheap amateur company, uncomfortable buses small seats, poor suspension, very unprofessional staff. Pick up; hope it doesn't rain! Bus stop in exposed location a 5 minute walk from airport with little shelter. Online booking said 7:15 arrival, booking confirmation said 7:20, bus arrived at 7:40. No apology from driver for being late. Driver told passengers he was picking 'you lot' up as a favour to other driver. En route to city driver told all passengers that the driver to Dunedin drives the bus back to Christchurch the same night = a 13 hour day minimum, and that he would be way too tired to drive a 13 tonne bus back. When we transferred from the airport van to the poor quality bus the driver demanded $10 cash more for each bag exceeding one per passenger (= money gouging). The take home message, take Intercity, the big corporate is on time, buses are comfy, they don't gouge passengers for extra bags and the staff are generally polite. Atomic Shuttles are third world, at best.

    Reviewed over 5 years ago

    Joe's avatar

    Joe

    Customer

  • 0.5/5

    I booked my bus online and plans had changed and asked for a refund.

    They don't do refunds so i paid $70 just for them to say they can't refund it back. Hopeless. Not happy at all I've also had bad experiences on the bus with my 5 year old girl where there is no windows air conditioning doesn't work, to the point she will puke up. Sometimes we don't even get a second break and breaks aren't long enough.

    Reviewed over 6 years ago

    Chanelle's avatar

    Chanelle

    Customer

    Hi Chanelle,

    We are very sorry to hear about your experience - we are all about our travel family and want to look after you! [I can't get your contact details via this review forum] so I could ask you to email info@atomictravel.co.nz with reference "Cam via Rankers.co.nz" plus your booking reference (if you have it) in the subject line, and paste your review above into the email and we will get your money back to you.

    Atomic has gone through new direct/management in 2019 and this is not how we wish to look after our customers so will aim to resolve this for you as soon as possible.

    Further your issues with service issues, thanks for your feedback here. We're working through service improvements and this is top of our list to resolve.

    Warm regards

    Cam

    atomictravel's avatar

    atomictravel

    Representative

  • 4.5/5

    Atomic are reliable, very funny & friendly but don't talk too much.

    They can drop you off at your accomdation. However on one short(ish) route they stopped too many times.

    Reviewed over 13 years ago

    IRELAND
    Joanne Byrne's avatar

    Joanne Byrne

    Customer

  • 5.0/5

    We had booked Atomic Travel bus from Dunedin to Christchurch.

    Unfortunately we had entered the wrong stop in Christchurch whereas we had to go to the airport. We literally had no time to make other arrangements to do so as we had to check in for an international flight. Renju was our driver and upon explaining our situation to him, he was very considerate and kind to make an effort to drop us off to the airport. We’re so grateful to him for his help. We highly recommend Atomic Travel. They’re so professional and will also go out of the way to help you.

    Thanks Atomic Travel.

    Reviewed about 4 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Atomic Shuttles from Christchurch to Twizel Fantastic experience Brand new Mercedes Benz Sprinter Coach Superb service Couriered a wheel from Christchurch to Twizel The driver was brilliant and

    made the pickup so easy

    Thank you so much , what a brilliant service

    Could be very handy for rowers going to Lake Ruatanawha

    Reviewed almost 5 years ago

    Ken Patterson's avatar

    Ken Patterson

    Customer

  • 4.5/5

    Atomic Travel My wife and I made a return trip from Christchurch to Greymouth early Nov to visit family.After booking I read some negative reviews and wondered if we had made the right choice.

    Fortunately we did not experience any of the negatives expressed by some earlier reviewers. The fares were very reasonable at about 1/3 of the Trans Alpine Rail fare. Departure & arrival facilities were very easy to find, services were punctual. The shuttle buses were very new 16 seater Mercedes 4 wheel drive vehicles with comfortable seating & heating/ cooling .Comfort stops were brief but adequate. The drivers were friendly & helpful. They acted as drivers and did not provide a commentary of the passing countryside or landmarks which did not concern me at all but overseas visitors might have liked comments.

    My only negative comment was that the windows in the back half of the bus were covered with a layer of stippled material which greatly reduced the view of the

    very picturesque & often spectacular landscapes we passed through.

    It was a very comfortable trip which I would not hesitate to take again for Christchurch - West Coast travel

    Reviewed almost 5 years ago

    Stewart Drysdale's avatar

    Stewart Drysdale

    Customer

  • 5.0/5

    Have had many trips on the atomic shuttle between both greymouth and christchurch and Dunedin.

    All experiences have been great. The low costs of the buses and friendliness of the bus drivers have made the trips a cost effective travel method that I will continue to use for a whole lot longer.

    Cheers atomic travel 🍻

    Reviewed about 5 years ago and experienced in June 2019

    jeremy belsham's avatar

    jeremy belsham

    Customer

  • 1.5/5

    Atomic Shuttle, Christchurch Airport to Dunedin.

    A cheap amateur company, uncomfortable buses small seats, poor suspension, very unprofessional staff. Pick up; hope it doesn't rain! Bus stop in exposed location a 5 minute walk from airport with little shelter. Online booking said 7:15 arrival, booking confirmation said 7:20, bus arrived at 7:40. No apology from driver for being late. Driver told passengers he was picking 'you lot' up as a favour to other driver. En route to city driver told all passengers that the driver to Dunedin drives the bus back to Christchurch the same night = a 13 hour day minimum, and that he would be way too tired to drive a 13 tonne bus back. When we transferred from the airport van to the poor quality bus the driver demanded $10 cash more for each bag exceeding one per passenger (= money gouging). The take home message, take Intercity, the big corporate is on time, buses are comfy, they don't gouge passengers for extra bags and the staff are generally polite. Atomic Shuttles are third world, at best.

    Reviewed over 5 years ago

    Joe's avatar

    Joe

    Customer

  • 0.5/5

    I booked my bus online and plans had changed and asked for a refund.

    They don't do refunds so i paid $70 just for them to say they can't refund it back. Hopeless. Not happy at all I've also had bad experiences on the bus with my 5 year old girl where there is no windows air conditioning doesn't work, to the point she will puke up. Sometimes we don't even get a second break and breaks aren't long enough.

    Reviewed over 6 years ago

    Chanelle's avatar

    Chanelle

    Customer

    Hi Chanelle,

    We are very sorry to hear about your experience - we are all about our travel family and want to look after you! [I can't get your contact details via this review forum] so I could ask you to email info@atomictravel.co.nz with reference "Cam via Rankers.co.nz" plus your booking reference (if you have it) in the subject line, and paste your review above into the email and we will get your money back to you.

    Atomic has gone through new direct/management in 2019 and this is not how we wish to look after our customers so will aim to resolve this for you as soon as possible.

    Further your issues with service issues, thanks for your feedback here. We're working through service improvements and this is top of our list to resolve.

    Warm regards

    Cam

    atomictravel's avatar

    atomictravel

    Representative

  • 5.0/5

    I travel with Atomic travel virtually every weekend.Ihave always found the staff who take my booking to be pleasant and will go out of there way to accommodate my travel plans.The drivers are always willing

    to help and are friendly and pleasant.Iwould recommend travelling with Atomic to anyone who wants to travel in the south island.Thanks Atomic Travel for the great service and experience I look forward to travelling with you again

    Reviewed over 7 years ago and experienced in January 2017

  • 4.5/5

    Hi. We travelled from Christchurch to Greymouth on Atomic travel as we had booked theTranss Alpine but as it was cancelled we then booked with Atomic Travel.

    We are so pleased we did. The bus was very comfortable, the driver I think has name was Mark was also really good and the scenery was amazing. We are actually really pleased that the Trans Alpine was cancelled as we felt we got a better view of the amazing scenery from the bus than what we would have got from the teain and it was so much cheaper!!. Highly recommend this trip

    Reviewed over 7 years ago

    NEW ZEALAND
    Isabella Ling's avatar

    Isabella Ling

    Customer

  • 5.0/5

    I am a frequent traveler, and have tried several different bus companies, but find Atomic Travel the best by a long way.

    Not only are they reliable but they are also highly professional and customer friendly

    Reviewed over 7 years ago

    NEW ZEALAND
    Jesse Alford's avatar

    Jesse Alford

    Customer

  • 0.5/5

    My friend and I used Atomic to travel from Queenstown to Clyde to begin our cycle trip on the Otago Rail Trail last year.

    They were very reasonable and prompt with pickup. The shuttle was fairly old and our driver didn't talk much. This year, we are doing another bike trip, this time from Mt Cook to Oamaru also known as the Alps to Ocean Trail. We have to hire bikes in Christchurch and travel with them to Mount Cook. We had two options - Atomic or Intercity. Atomic take two bikes per run only. Perfect. I call in May to book and the woman tells me that they take bookings 6 months out, so to call back early July. I did so only to be told that they don't take bookings till 3 months out. So I call back in September. No, she won't take our booking for November. Ring back in 6 weeks time she says. I explain that we need to book and confirm us with our bikes otherwise we can't do any of our trip. She couldn't have cared less! In fact she was so obstructive in her manner, that I booked refundable more expensive Intercity tickets. This company were extremely helpful, and booked us and tentatively, our bikes as long as the front wheel could be taken off so as to slide it in the hold. As of two weeks ago, Atomic who had booked us on their shuttle, still refused to confirm our bikes until closer to the time! So what was she waiting on that she couldn't give me the only two bike spaces they had? Who knows, but I am so glad we cancelled our booking. I thought maybe she just didn't like me , but it turns out this woman at Atomic has a reputation for being downright unhelpful and rude. As I write this, we are in a lovely comfortable Intercity Great Sights coach with our bikes safely stowed and with a friendly and professional driver. Atomic need to realise that there will be a large demand for passengers and bikes on this leg and they should offer a service that covers this, or at the very least, hire someone in their office who is helpful and friendly.

    Reviewed almost 12 years ago

    NEW ZEALAND
    Kiwigal's avatar

    Kiwigal

    Customer

    Hi there,

    I appreciate this reply comes a long time to late but Atomic is now under new management and we're working hard to ensure this service is improved. We currently carry up to 4 bikes per trip and soon hope to have this included in our booking system.

    Warm regards

    Cam

    atomictravel's avatar

    atomictravel

    Representative

  • 4.5/5

    Atomic are reliable, very funny & friendly but don't talk too much.

    They can drop you off at your accomdation. However on one short(ish) route they stopped too many times.

    Reviewed over 13 years ago

    IRELAND
    Joanne Byrne's avatar

    Joanne Byrne

    Customer

  • 4.5/5

    I have travelled with Atomic many times prior to getting my licence (3 years ago).

    I always found the Busses to be Warm, Comfortable, and some even had a TV/DVD player!

    I cant guarantee there is still TV/DVD players on their busses now.....but I'd hope they kept up with that lovely luxury!

    Reviewed about 14 years ago and experienced in February 2007

    NEW ZEALAND
    Tsmith's avatar

    Tsmith

    Customer

  • 4.5/5

    Good routes, willing to take bicycles.

    Polite driver/even good with difficult, awkward customers. Fair price.

    Reviewed over 15 years ago and experienced in February 2009

    UNITED KINGDOM
    SteveJones's avatar

    SteveJones

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    2nd most expensive after naked bus and drivers drive tooo fast and lady on phone is awful

    Reviewed over 15 years ago and experienced in September 2008

    UNITED KINGDOM
    Mark Coffey's avatar

    Mark Coffey

    Customer

  • 3.5/5

    Safe, little rough compared to coach but price makes up for it.

    Reviewed over 15 years ago and experienced in February 2009

    CANADA
    MattB's avatar

    MattB

    Customer

  • 3.5/5

    Door to door service.

    Not comfortable coach.

    Reviewed over 15 years ago and experienced in February 2009

    CANADA
    JeffO's avatar

    JeffO

    Customer

  • 3.5/5

    The driver drove a bit wild but I reached my target.

    Reviewed almost 16 years ago

    NETHERLANDS
    Elise's avatar

    Elise

    Customer

  • 2.5/5

    Excess charge for nothing.

    Slow!

    Reviewed almost 16 years ago

    CANADA
    Phil's avatar

    Phil

    Customer

  • 3.5/5

    Friendly staff and they drop you where you need to go.

    Reviewed almost 16 years ago

    UNITED KINGDOM
    Laura's avatar

    Laura

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    Good people.

    Excellent, friendly drivers and a reasonable schedule.

    Reviewed about 16 years ago

    AUSTRALIA
    Charlie's avatar

    Charlie

    Customer

  • 1.5/5

    Although they may take the quickest route from A to B, it is definitely the most dangerous.

    Their drivers go too fast and take to many chances.

    Reviewed about 16 years ago

    UNITED STATES
    Zane's avatar

    Zane

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    Efficient travel around the South Island.

    Reviewed about 16 years ago

    Amy's avatar

    Amy

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    Reliable time keeping, good value, friendly staff and informative!

    Reviewed about 16 years ago

    Sarah's avatar

    Sarah

    Customer

  • 2.5/5

    Really small shuttles that hurt your knees and they run late alot of the time.

    Reviewed about 16 years ago

    NETHERLANDS
    Esther's avatar

    Esther

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    They go to most of the places travellers like to visit in the South Island, New Zealand, for some really good prices.

    It just maybe needs more coaches to have several departures per day for each destination. (eg - one in the morning, then afternoon or evening).

    Reviewed about 16 years ago

    FRANCE
    Marie's avatar

    Marie

    Customer

  • 4.5/5

    Cheapest I could find around the South Island.

    Always on time. Good service, good number of rests and helpful drivers.

    Reviewed over 16 years ago

    GERMANY
    Toby's avatar

    Toby

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    Good, though a little bit uncomfortable seats - too small.

    And a little bit dirty. Service really good.

    Reviewed over 16 years ago

    KOREA, REPUBLIC OF
    Seungchul's avatar

    Seungchul

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    Great with bikes.

    Friendly drivers. Awesome pick up - drop off service.

    Reviewed over 16 years ago

    AUSTRALIA
    Nathan Perkins's avatar

    Nathan Perkins

    Customer

  • 2.5/5

    Old bus.

    Reviewed almost 17 years ago

    SWEDEN
    Maria's avatar

    Maria

    Customer

  • 4.0/5

    Tend to go door to door.

    More personalised service.

    Reviewed about 17 years ago and experienced in April 2007

    UNITED KINGDOM
    Will's avatar

    Will

    Customer