LMcDowell

After my brother and his family got back from an awesome trip to New Zealand last March, my husband and I started talking about adding it to our trip we were considering to Fiji. It seemed like they could be tied together, seeing as we were coming from SF, they are 'close'.

I love to research trips and working at a travel company, I knew others who had been to NZ or Fiji before and got a lot of advice from them. Really the NZ part I took the advice of my brother as we have similar traveling styles. He has a little one though, so his family rented a campervan to drive around, my husband and I prefer hotels.

Note: I reviewed all the hotels, restaurants, activities, etc on TripAdvisor so there will be some areas where I just include the link to the review - this would get ridiculously long if I included all the reviews, but at least those who are interested, can click to read more. I get pretty detailed in the actual reviews.

Day 1: Sat pm, SFO-Auckland. We were using miles to fly Air New Zealand and used the lounge beforehand (they use the EVA lounge). It was fine, nothing amazing, but good enough. They actually had pretty good food, as far as a cheese selection and some breads, at least that's all I had, Most seats were taken as the lounge isn't too big. Unlike the United lounge, they don't have plugs at every chair.

Boarding was a bit chaotic, but we got on pretty fast and had 2 great pods next to each other. We were in the front of the plane (but not upstairs) and the first few seats don't have storage above, which means each person went on seat back to store their stuff. We didn't have a problem, but others got annoyed.

We really enjoyed our flight. The service was excellent, the food was pretty good and the bed was comfortable enough, but my husband said there's a lot more room in Singapore's first class. I won't complain though, it's sooo much better than coach! The time difference from SF isn't bad at all - only 3 hours (well, plus a whole day), so you wake up and your body isn't too far off. The big problem was that the entertainment system did not work. They tried multiple times and for us, we ate dinner and went to bed so it wasn't a bit deal, but they gave us each a $100 gift certificate to use at duty free so it worked out. We just bought wine which we drank throughout our time in NZ.

Day 2: Mon (you lose a full day) Auckland-Queenstown on ANZ
In Auckland, we walked between the international and domestic terminals, which I'd recommend instead of waiting for the bus. It's not more than a 10 minute walk (if you're not carrying big bags, children, etc) and the fresh air is nice. Note, they didn't call any status levels on the domestic flight - usually we stay seated until they call that, but they didn't, so we walked to the front and people were so nice, they just let you right in. I really like the domestic flights on ANZ - they give you snacks, or in this case, one of 2 options for breakfast - their safety videos are the best. Note, there was no business class.

The flight into Queenstown will probably be one of the most memorable I ever have. Absolutely stunning, if you can fly into Queenstown, you definitely should. This airport is small and we deplaned down stairs, basically turned the corner into the car rental place and after a short walk, were in our car. It's not confusing at all, and you're literally in the town of Queenstown in about 10 minutes, just following the lake. We drove around for a while to get oriented, then walked around Queenstown Gardens for a bit which was lovely, but not much to do.

We then went to Pategonia for a coffee and churros - 'so good!' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

Before heading to Aggie's for lunch - not sure I'd recommend, but 'good affordable fresh seafood' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

We walked around town and stopped in a few activities storefronts to decide what we wanted to do over the next few days in town. Then we headed to our hotel to check in.

Pounamu Apartments, Queenstown, stayed for 2 nights. Excellent! 'Great Option for Queenstown, Outstanding Staff' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

With the help of the hotel, we then went to do some activities that afternoon - the luge and zip lining!
'Best Spot for Great Views of Queenstown' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html
'Fun Activity w/Great Views' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

We then headed back to the hotel to enjoy some of our duty free wine with spectacular views over the Remarkables before heading to dinner at Flame. Which was good, but not fantastic:
'Excellent Value, but the Food is Average' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

We quickly discovered that taking cabs in Queenstown is expensive.

Day 3: Tue, Queenstown, Lord of the Rings Tour of Glenorchy.

I've never seen LOTR, nor do I have any desire too, but my husband wanted to do this and it sounded like we'd get to see great scenery regardless, luckily we did and I would highly recommend the tour:
'Great Tour, Even if Some in Your Group Don't Like Lord of the Rings' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

In the afternoon, we headed out to Gibbston to do some wine tasting. This area is beautiful and we were also pointed to another spot from LOTR, which is on the turnoff to visit the winery that is the right turn right after the left turn to go the bungy jumping bridge - sounds confusing, but there aren't many roads in NZ, that should be enough to get you to an amazing view! Oh and by the way, GPS is not necessary here, we got by fine with just maps (and that actually includes NO arguments over directions!)

Our best meal of the trip was at the Wine House - it's not on Trip Advisor so I actually didn't review it yet. But my husband got gnocchi with duck and it was amazing. I ordered corn fritters and they were also very good. We got a bread plate to start, very high quality ingredients and the location is lovely. I highly recommend having a meal here. We then visited Gibbston Cheesery, which was fun and we got some stuff for our picnic during a hike the next day. We stopped at Amisfield for a tasting, the wine was just okay. We then headed out to Arrowtown, which unfortunately, even at 4:30pm, was pretty dead and everything was closed. We then took an alternate drive back to Queenstown so we could see what they call 'Our Road to Mordor' from LOTR which is on the way to the Skipper's Canyon jetboat (same road). It's a bit of a drive up the hill, but it offers stunning views.

Day 4 - Wed - Queenstown-Te Anau/Kepler Track hike

We ate at Halo this morning before heading out of town, pretty good food. 'Nice Spot for Breakfast' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

We then drove along the south side of the lake over to Te Anau. The roads are easy to follow, the views spectacular, but not much in between. Make sure to fill up gas in the main towns, you never know how long it will be before you can get it again. We lucked out and saw the old steam train going by and my husband got an awesome pic. The drive was maybe 2, 2.5 hours. We went straight to the visitors center where you can book hikes, but despite what the Lonely Planet book said, if you're just doing a day hike and not trying to stay overnight, you don't need to book anything.

We drove towards Manapouri and stopped off at the Kepler Track to do some hiking. We did the Rainbow Reach which was about 3 hours and despite the light rain, you're walking almost under a canopy so we didn't get wet anyways. Once we made it to the beach, the sand flies were bad though, so we couldn't even eat there. They say not to leave much in your car as there can be break-ins. For lunch we had our snacks we got at Gibbston Cheesery.

We then drove back to Te Anau and just made the boat to the Glowworn caves. I was skeptical but this turned out to be fun - still expensive so if you're debating, I wouldn't say it's a must-do, but still pretty cool. 'Actually Pretty Cool and the Boat Ride is Great' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

We made it back just in time to eat at Mainly Seafood right on the lakefront in Te Anau. 'Great Find, Really Fresh' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

We then checked in to our lovely B&B, Dunluce B&B: 'Wonderful Place to Stay near the Sounds' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

...more to come

Melnq8

Enjoying your report LM. I assume you know that you can add businesses to TA? We also enjoyed the hike to Rainbow Reach and have fond memories of our hot chocolate from Patagonia...

I look forward to the next installment.

LMcDowell

The next day we headed out to Milford Sound - the weather wasn't great, but we didn't have another day to go so we decided to just go anyway. Unfortunately the fog and clouds were pretty low, so we weren't able to see nearly the views that you normally would. Definitely get gas before you leave Te Anau - there really is nothing between there and Milford Sound. We also brought some food, there is a restaurant once you get to Milford Sound, but again, nowhere else to stop for food along the way.

As we were ascending, the rain started turning to hail/snow - we had no idea it was going to be snowing but continued on until just before the bridge - our car didn't have chains and at the time the roads weren't clear, so we didn't want to risk it. We stopped, turned around, and went down a few minutes to wait it out and see if it got better. We waited about 30 minutes when it looked like it was clearing and then went back up - it was still snowing a little, but there was a plow clearing the road, so even in our small rental car, we were okay. Also note that the tunnel is the highest point, once you go through, I think it's only about 20km and it's all downhill into the sound. Again, we missed out on great views, but did see a lot of waterfalls. Many people told us that it's sometimes better when it rains because you see so many waterfalls - and that part was true, we saw hundreds!

We continued down to Milford sound, it's definitely impressive, but because we were going on the boat the next day and the weather still wasn't great (it cleared for about 15 minutes so we did get a good photo), we decided not to take the cruise there. on our way back, we stopped at the Chasm, which is highly recommended. Very short hike, maybe 10 minutes, but awesome views.

That night, back in Te Anau, we ate at the Redcliff, which was pretty good, especially as there aren't many great options in that town: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

The next morning we checked out of the Dunluce and headed over to Manapouri where we parked our car during the overnight cruise. The parking was safe and not too far from the visitor's center where you check in for the cruise.

The cruise was awesome and I highly recommend going with Fiorland Expeditions - much more intimate experience than the other options. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

Again, we didn't get great weather, which is detailed in the review, but what can you do. It was still a really nice voyage. We got back around noon or 12:30 and then drove back to Queenstown where we had lunch at Ferburger - very overrated: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

That afternoon we did a jet boat ride, also highly recommended for Queenstown. It was a lot of fun. we did the Shotover Jet and while it's the most well-known one, when we talked to our hotel, they recommended the Skipper Canyon one. This one was already booked through so we just went with shotover and while the ride is only about 20 minutes long, it is crazy, enough of a rush for us, not being too scary.

That night we stayed at the Rees - a new hotel a little bit further out of town, although I think you could still walk as there was a lakeside path - we didn't do this though. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...th_Island.html

The next morning we took a flight from Queenstown to Auckland and then Auckland to Nadi. Note, for domestic flights, you can bring liquids, but they do need to need to be 3oz or less for international.

Our flight to Nadi was on Air Pacific, but it was a bit delayed. They said they were still loading stuff on the plane, but it took forever, about an hour and a half and led us to miss our seaplane out to the islands.

Anyway, back to Air Pacific. It was fine, but LOTS of kids - Fiji is a big family destination for Australians, so expect lots of crying babies, noisy kids, etc. Entertainment-wise, there were a few TVs showing a movie about Fiji. They served boxed lunches and they were okay - a chicken sandwich, salad, a fruit cup, most I didn't eat, but it was average enough. They do give free wine. I would avoid the exit row as the seats don't recline.

When arriving in Fiji, the line is quite long for immigration, but there is a line for families too. Once you exit, you get your bags and then most people had their transfers waiting for them right there. We were able to change our seaplane to the next day so we headed to the Sheraton for the night. We also came back and spent another 2 nights at the Sheraton. It's a 'nice resort, but very family-oriented.' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...Viti_Levu.html

The next morning we got a cab over to the seaplane. We loved Turtle Airways. The office looks a little janky - be prepared to pay in cash if you want to avoid a credit card surcharge. They will weigh you and each of your bags and you'll probably only be able to take one small bag with you - they'll bring everything else on the next flight which is usually only an hour later. The pilot was great and flew low did a little bit of a tour so my husband could get photos. I highly recommend taking a seaplane one way to get that perspective.

more to come...

LMcDowell

We spent 4 nights at Navutu Stars (extending by a night b/c we like it so much). From start to finish, everything at this hotel was amazing. Review here 'A Dream, Highly Recommended' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...a_Islands.html

We went diving at 4 different sites and our favorite was Cabbage Patch - amazing coral! It was a bummer to have to pay F$50 per person return to get over to the dive site each day, but it is what it is, you don't really have another option unless you stay at the dive resort, which definitely isn't as nice.

We took the Yasawa Flyer back from the islands to Denuru. Overall a good experience, but watch out for theft. Review here: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...Viti_Levu.html

There are really nice views from the marina and lots of food options so we stayed for dinner. We ate at Cardo's which really wasn't that great 'Good Cocktails, Subpar Food' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...Viti_Levu.html

After dinner we headed back to the Sheraton and checked in for 2 more nights (review above). While staying there, we dined at the Cross Restaurant 'Some Hits, But Far from a Top Restaurant' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...Viti_Levu.html

and at Flying Fish 'Good Option for Denauru Island' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...Viti_Levu.html

We took a red-eye flight from Nadi-Honolulu (on Air Pacific) as it was more direct than going back to Auckland and we were able to use miles on the HNL-SFO leg. The red-eye actually wasn't bad as the plane was really empty so many people go a full row to themselves.

We arrived about 5am to Honolulu and took a cab to the Royal Hawaiian hotel. We weren't able to get a day rate so used points for the one night stay. We had talked to Starwood before so that we could check in early (by about 6am) and then we just left the hotel around 6:30pm. It's a really nice hotel, great location for the beach and for shopping, dining, etc. Review: 'Excellent Service, Lives up to Luxury Collection' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...hu_Hawaii.html

We walked down to Cheeseburger in Paradise for lunch, which was actually better than I remember. 'Great Spot, Good Burgers' http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...hu_Hawaii.html

One downside is that at the Mai Tai Bar, you have to drink your drink there - you can't take it to the beach which means you can't have drinks in your lounge chair, pretty disappointing.

That night we took a cab to a sushi place near the airport, that I had read about on a local's food blog. It was so good! It's call Mitch's Seafood. It's definitely in a less than desirable neighborhood, but a true fine. I would recommend reservations as the place is small, but they were so accommodating as we came with our suitcases. Then even called us a cab so that we could get to the airport (it was very close, but you can't really walk there).

We were then on the red-eye back to SF. It was a nice plane with a big business class section. We fell asleep and before we knew it, we were back in SF and unfortunately our 2-week vacation was over

My husband said it was our best trip yet, which I think says quite a bit as we use all 5 weeks of our vacation each year. I highly recommend the New Zealand-Fiji combo and while you can easily spend 2 weeks in NZ alone, I think it's nice to just do a part of it. I'm sure we'll go back, maybe in combination with a trip to Australia. Fiji was awesome, but whatever you do, make sure to go out to the islands - it's a world of difference if you just stay on Denauru island. Don't get me wrong, the Sheraton was nice, but being out on the islands is so much more isolated and really feels tropical. As for NZ, we lived in Switzerland for several years and NZ is the only place that was comparable scenery-wise. All in all, it was a great combo and was an awesome trip.

Songdoc

Wonderful report! Thanks for posting. Sounds like a great trip.

I'll bet that a friend of mine was your Nomad tour guide to Glenorchy. Do you recall if her name was "Fran?"

I'm just back from a wonderful NZ trip and will be posting a report soon.

britomart

Thanks for the trip report, I enjoyed it. We also ate at Redcliffe and thought it was the best meal of our trip, but ordered different things than what you ordered. We really liked Fergburger and went there twice, tried the lamb on the second trip and enjoyed it much more.

LMcDowell

Songdoc, yes, I think our Nomad guide was Fran, she was great! She seemed to know everything about the area.

Fahad

Hmmmmm Nice...

Fahad

ohhhhhhhh

Melnq8

Slow night Fahad?

tomarkot

LMcdowell, we've really enjoyed your trip report! We've leaving in three days for Sydney, South Island, NZ and Fiji.
We're printing your report to have your suggestions on hand. Thanks so much for sharing them.

One question that has us perplexed: luggage fees. Our trip has been planned through American Airlines, with their "One World" Partners. Do you remember if there were issues with luggage on Air Pacific to Nadi? Did you have to pay luggage fees? We're finding that part of our itinerary is also on Jet Star, and for those segments we understand that we'll have to pay for luggage. Yuck! We fly on Jet Star from Christchurch to Auckland, and then change over to Air Pacific for our flight to Nadi. We're now wondering about their charging us for luggage also. (The hidden charges of flying!)

Any information you, or any other readers, can share would be helpful. We've placed calls to American Airlines, who then shifted us to Qantas, who referred us to Jet Star. . .and we never have gotten clear information.

tomarkot

LMcdowell, we've really enjoyed reading your report. Sounds like you had a wonderful time. We just returned from a month+ trip in part of AUS, South Island, NZ, and Fiji, and are in the process of writing a report.

We, too, booked our whole itinerary with American Airlines with their "One World" partners, and had some of the issues as you suggest anticipating luggage fees. Unfortunately, we were traveling in economy class. We ended up making calls to each airline prior to our trip. The only segment on which the agent gave us a hassle was the Air Pacific flight from Auckland to Fiji.

beanweb24

Bookmarking