Travel: New Zealand

[sparks]

those with kids in tow, may like to check out this website too : http://www.kidzgo.co.nz/


If you're going with kids, SI would be more fun. I went last year with my kiddos. We only managed to cover lower half of SI with 10D9N self-drive itinerary. If you are driving, make sure you have ample rest before driving. Driving distance is long between towns. The roads are narrow & there are no road dividers in between which makes it rather hazardous (in SI). Try not to stay in Christchurch as there are warnings abt possible earthquakes.

Anyway, we are going to do the upper half of SI in Jan! :boogie:

[kohbee2.06303gmail.06303com]

Back from 12 days in New Zealand North Island. Still having jet lag (that explains the early morning post...) Will provide some of my thoughts in the following posts. Hope it helps in your future travel plans.


The 10 hours on the plane is tiring and luckily for us, we were able to sleep on the flight. We travelled on Jetstar economy. It is ok but maybe can consider business class for more comfort if you are willing to pay more.

The weather is cold (for Singapore standard) when the wind blows. I suppose it will get warmer in the later part of December/January. Most of the time, we have to wear windbreakers and long pants. Better to have sunblock, moisturiser and lip gloss ready as the air is dry. Even though it is cold, the sun is shining brightly (it is bright at around 5am and gets dark only at around 8.30pm). There are days when it is sunny in one place and rainy in another. So good to have umbrella/raincoat handy.

The people we meet are very friendly and helpful. We can see that they take pride in their work and would try their best to help. Food is slightly more expensive but it will depend on where you eat. Good thing is that the price quoted on the menu is what you actually pay. So if the budget is tight, just have to look for cheaper cafe and not at restaurants if there are any. We did try to buy food at the supermarket to cook at the service appartment. But it was a hassel and time consuming. Another alternative is cup noodles and takeaway fast food. I must say that their supermarkets are well-stocked and fresh (unlike some in Singapore). Can't resist taking a photo at the supermarket (although not supposed to)

http://i39.tinypic.com/33l0z2e.jpg\">

[kohbee2.06303gmail.06303com]

Let me give some description of the places we visited.


Auckland is a nice clean city (in fact, everywhere in NZ is clean). Modern and not too crowded (only about 1 million people). Can easily walk around safely. Didn't take the public transport but looks easy enough. Can always ask around. Maps are found at bus stops (which I hope Singapore can learn from them). Every big town would have info centres (called i-site) where you can get maps/brochures. Like I said before, everyone we meet is friendly and willing to help.

Spent a day at Waiheke Island. The ferry ride is about 40 mins. It was nice and sunny when we were there. Prebooked a tour earlier, so no problem moving around in a bus all to ourselves (10 of us). Graeme brought us to the scenic spots and had a bit of free wine tasting too. http://www.aroundwaiheketours.co.nz/

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Did go up the tallest structure there - Sky Tower (you can't miss it) Nice views from the top (but its expensive, not really worth it if you don't have the time). We ate at the Food Alley in Albert Street (their version of a food court). The taste is not really that great ...

Out of Auckland, we did self drive. Our drive along the Coromandel coast was scenic. There are stops along the way. The roads are single lane each side (most NZ country roads are like that) and with lots of bends. You can get an idea with the photo below. Actually it is ok driving there. Just keep to the speed limits (although I must admit I speed a little..) Do be alert and not be distracted by the scenic views. (I wish sometimes someone else can be driving...). The signs are quite clear and with the help of GPS, navigating is not much of a problem.

http://i44.tinypic.com/2hfures.jpg\">

I must make a special mention for Waterworks ( http://www.thewaterworks.co.nz/index.html )which is a bit out of the way (along a gravel road) but worth going if you have the time. They have interesting stuff for play (be prepared to get wet). We rate this place our favourite place in NZ (for children and those who like outdoors). Spend the time exploring the place and playing. We wished we can have more time there. They have interesting signs like the one below too. Liked the last forecast best

http://i41.tinypic.com/33nfe5u.jpg\">

[kohbee2.06303gmail.06303com]

The train ride at Driving Creek Railway is quite interesting if you like trains and scenic views. The train driver/guide is very good. http://www.drivingcreekrailway.co.nz/Introduction.cfm


Tried the Glassbottom boat tour ( http://www.glassbottomboatwhitianga.co.nz/ ) around the coast in Coromandel. The scenary was nice but was a bit disappointed not to see much fishes (do not expect any corals as there aren't any in NZ). Only saw a grand total of 2. While we were there, there was algae boom. So it is a good idea to check with the tour before booking. Not really worth it. But at least, I get to see the Catherdral Cove.

The Hot Water Beach is worth going. http://www.mercurybay.co.nz/activities/hotwaterbeach.php . Lots of people there during low tide. And the water is really hot. Quite a strange feeling to have hot steaming water and bubbling hot coming out as the waves are coming in and the sea breeze blowing.

Spent the night at Tairua which is a small town. Nothing much to do really. But did have a nice trip up Paku Hill. The climb up to the top of is a bit challenging for some but worth the 360 degree view.

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We drove down to Tauranga. Along the way, we passed the town of Katikati which has nice murals on their buildings.http://www.katikati.co.nz/

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Didn't spend much time in Tauranga (the place where the container ship got stuck on a reef) as we were rushing to Matamata for the Hobbiton Movie set. Sorry can't post any photos as we were not allowed to until the movie is out. But I would have given this place a miss unless you are a fan of Lord of the Rings.
http://www.hobbitontours.com/Hobbiton-Movie-Set-and-Farm-Tours/HOME_IDL=2_IDT=2004_ID=11904_.html

Next stop is Rotorua which is the place most people would go in North Island. I was a bit worried about the smell (from the sulfur in the region) but actually it is quite bearable after a while. It also depends on where you are and wind direction. I would recommend a visit to the Redwood forest (and its free)
http://www.redwoods.co.nz/planyourvisit.php#HowToGetThere
The trees are really tall. Walking through the forest gives me a sense of nature and its wonder.

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Another free place worth visiting is Kiurau Park. http://www.itravelnz.com/listing/kiurau-park-rotorua.html
If you just want to have an idea of the thermal activity in the area, this would be the first stop. They even have an area for soaking feet in after the walking...

We were lucky to be there on a Thursday as they have a \"pasa malam\" on Thursday night. The food there is quite good actually and there is music too. Right in city centre too.

The usual places are a bit touristy but its worth visiting.
Agrodome http://www.agrodome.co.nz/ . The sheep show is quite good. I was hoping to see more fruits on the farm tour though...
Skyline gondola rides are ok. We enjoyed the luge ride down (a bit scary on some places) http://www.skylineskyrides.co.nz/rotorua/ ... I didn't do the one in Sentosa but I heard from someone that the one in Rotorua is much better.
Didn't do any Maori shows. So can't comment on that.
Wai-O-Tapu is worth visiting if you are keen on thermal volcanic formations. I was a bit disappointed with the geyser show. Thought that Lady Knox Geyser would shoot higher that the 5 m which we saw... A warning about the walking we need to do around the park. Not that suitable for older folks. http://www.waiotapu.co.nz/

There are other activities in Rotorua but we didn't have time or budget for it.

[tankee]

you did not go take the Luge at Rotorua? :yikes: :yikes:

[kohbee2.06303gmail.06303com]

tankee:

you did not go take the Luge at Rotorua? :yikes: :yikes:

Yes we did take the luge at Rotorua. Originally we just wanted to try once. But we had so much fun we had another go at it!

[kohbee2.06303gmail.06303com]

The view of Huka Falls over a pedestrian bridge is quite amazing. We happen to see the cruise boat and jetboat at the base of the falls and wanted to try the jetboat ride. Unfortunately, it is already fully booked for the day so didn't have the chance to try. http://www.hukafalls.com/


We spent more time at Huka Honey shop instead. http://www.hukahoneyhive.com/

Our next stop was at Napier which was another 2 hours drive south of Taupo. We visited Hastings Farmers Market where we had breakfast. There farmers set up stalls to sell their products in a relaxing atmosphere.
http://www.marketground.co.nz/clubsite.asp?siteid=10577&pageid=35308&pagetypeid=1

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We drove up to Te Mata Peak to have a nice view of Napier/Hastings. The road up has lots of bends and have to be careful of cars from the other direction.http://www.aatravel.co.nz/101/info/Te-Mata-Peak.htm

Cape Kidnappers is famous for the garnet birds colony. But since it is high tide, we were not able to explore the place.

We had lunch at the Silky Oak Chocolate factory. It has a chocolate museum http://silkyoakchocs.co.nz/

There are many wineries around the area. We visited the oldest one
http://www.missionestate.co.nz/

http://i40.tinypic.com/2zjb8zo.jpg\">

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Of the 8 service apartments we have stayed in during our 12 days trip, the best must surely be Tarata Fishaway. http://www.tarata.co.nz/ We stayed in the tree house lodge which has a great view of the canyon. It was a remote place and at times wondered if we are going to the correct place. But once we were there, we realised that we should have booked 2 days there instead of 1.


The owners were very nice, bringing us around his \"paradise\". We decided to change part of our itinerary for the next day to fit in a rafting trip down the river. It was a memorable experience rowing down the river between the canyon with clear blue sky above. There was a trek to a hidden waterfall where we had to walk in the cold flowing water.

Those who are into Lord of the Rings would be interested to know that part of the Rangitikei River was used in the the movie. I felt like I was Frodo canoeing down the river...

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It was lucky that we decided to fit in the rafting activity instead of driving up to Whakapapa village to have a close look at Mount Ruapehu (tallest mountai in North Island) and Mount Ngauruhoe (Mount Doom in LOTR) because it was raining in the afternoon and the mountains were covered in dark clouds.

We managed to join the last tour at Waitomo Glowworm Caves. http://www.waitomo.com/waitomo-glowworm-caves.aspx . The guide (Mark) was excellent. Very clear in his explanation and caring for the group. Well worth the experience. Having been to firefly tour in Malaysia, this glowworm cave experience is different. The glowworm cave experience is more like looking up at stars in the sky while fireflies along the river is more like twinkling Christmas trees at the side.

We were so late in to our accomodations at Woodlyn Park http://www.woodlynpark.co.nz/ that the reception was closed and the keys to our Hobit rooms are in the doors (it is common in NZ to just leave keys stuck in motels as they trust you).

http://i41.tinypic.com/2gxmohe.jpg\">

It was another long drive back to Auckland. Just a word of caution about driving. Do be alert all the times and keep to a constant speed in straight stretches of the motorway. Be patient if you happen to be stuck behind slow moving vehicles. There will be passing lanes for you to overtake. I hardly see any overspeeding (in fact, I am guilty of more traffic violations than I see others doing it, my excuse is that I am not used to their rules, but that is not really a good excuse). Those times I made mistakes, I was lucky I did not cause any accidents.

I realise that Singapore drivers are generally not as gracious on roads and cut in whenever they can unlike my experience in NZ where they keep to their lanes.

Another thing is that - don't drink and drive. Although there are lots of wineries and beer is cheap. Don't risk it. The police there have road blocks to check on drivers. I have gone through one myself.

Finally, good luck in your travels in New Zealand. Have fun!

[Small Bell]

Hi! JR, enjoyed reading your NZ trip! I also just returned fr NZ Auckand, not switch not SIN time yet. Did you went to Cape Reinga?

[kohbee2.06303gmail.06303com]

Small Bell:

Hi! JR, enjoyed reading your NZ trip! I also just returned fr NZ Auckand, not switch not SIN time yet. Did you went to Cape Reinga?

Glad you enjoyed reading it. Maybe you can tell us your experiences too.

No, we did not go up north of Auckland. I heard that the Bay of Islands is quite nice but decided not since it involves driving up and coming back the same road. We also wanted to go to Gisborne but it is out of the way. So too is Taranaki and Wellington. We have to give those places a miss.