About Chris Jolly Outdoors

Chris Jolly

The Founder

As a young child fly fishing the shores and small stream mouths, I began to develop an affinity with my surroundings that has lasted a lifetime. My parents were not fishermen or outdoor sports people but loved the area for other reasons, and I had to go through the rather painful process of teaching myself to fish but I was never happier than when marching along the beach to Mission Point or nearby with a rod in hand and full of expectation.

How fortunate was I some twenty years later to find myself and my family living nearby the Lake, spending many memorable evenings after work anchored at the mouth of the Tauranga Taupō river amongst local Maori fishermen, many of whom would be friends for life.

The fun and reward in coming up with new and exciting products are limited only by imagination, guiding guests with a sense of adventure to experience the authentic kiwi outdoors  “Let us create your outdoor experience of a lifetime.”

Simon Jolly

General Manager

My history has always been about adventure.  I spent my youth with either a rod or rifle, skis or scuba in hand, which developed my love and need for the outdoors.  I started working on boats from the tender age of 12, (trying to impress the adults with my bartending skills) and growing up in Taupo was something special.

As soon as I was old enough I sat my skippers ticket and I’m sure many clients were amused ( if not bemused) by an 18-year-old driving the party boat and singing karaoke, doing everything possible to ensure the clients had an amazing time with us on the Lake.

Having spent 20+ years as a deer hunting guide, thousands of hours chasing game fish and diving around the Pacific, or being in one of the many spectacular rivers fly fishing, my passion has always been about being out in the open. Being able to share my love of the outdoors with everyone and the people I love is just so special.

Manaakitanga  –  Unparalleled hospitality

Our customers are key.

Our customers are at the heart of everything we do and every decision we make. We respect and care for each and every client, making sure that we act with the highest level of professionalism and integrity in all of our interactions. We always deliver our experiences with smiles, enthusiasm, knowledge, fun and passion.

Nothing is a problem at Chris Jolly Outdoors and we will go above and beyond to exceed expectations every time.

Whakawhanaungatanga  –  We are family

We are all in this together.

We were founded on family values and strive to continue to nurture a sense of family/whanau in all aspects of our business – providing everyone with a sense of belonging.

We embrace our visitors as family/whanau and invite them to connect with us and our natural environment in a meaningful way that extends well beyond their very first experience.

Your wins are our wins and we celebrate together.

Aroha  –  We love what we do

We live and breathe our natural environment.

We have a natural taste for the Kiwi outdoors and pride ourselves on our unequalled knowledge, expertise and safety rating in providing experiences of a lifetime in our surrounding environment.

Our passion and love for the outdoors enable us to deliver truly authentic experiences that connect people with place.

Aumangea  –  We are resilient and innovative

We are proactive and not reactive.

We have a “never give up” mentality and adapt to any obstacles that come our way.

We are agile, always seeking new ways to continuously improve our performance.

Tiaki  –  Legacy

We are kaitiaki of our moana and awa.

We are the guardians of our environment and community, it is our duty to protect our home for generations to come.

We care for our people and place. Providing pathways for our customers and children/tamariki to connect with the outdoors and share in our collective knowledge on how to preserve our natural treasures/taonga.

We strive to positively contribute to our local economy and community – honouring the legacy on which we are founded, whilst inspiring a new generation of guardians/kaitiaki.