I am a 24 year old female and am travelling on my own round the North and South island. I am not sure whether to go on an organised trip, for example the Kiwi Experience or to just hop on and off buses and decide my own route. I fly to New Zealand on 26th November and will be there for 3 weeks. I would like to do as much as possible. Any advise would be grately appreciated!

If I were in your shoes I'd stay in youth hostels, where you can hook up with other young people, get tips and join outings on an ad hoc basis. NZ is very popular with backpackers, for good reason, and you should meet lots of compatible people from Europe, North America and Australia that way. NZ is an easy country to get around in, and distances between cities and towns are not great by US/Canadian/ Australian standards, anyway.

Something many young travellers should know (not you, jess23, I'm sure) is that NZ Customs' sniffer dogs have very sensitive noses and they'll pick up the slightest residue of dope in the nooks and crannies of backpacks. No big deal (unless it's more than a slight residue), but it leads to a tedious search on arrival.

If you're not going to rent a car, the Intercity buses might be your best bet.

Kiwi Experience, from all I've read, seems to be geared to the young college student who wants to get drunk and sleep around. If you decide you want an organized trip, Magic Bus or Flying Kiwi might be a better option for you.

What do you like to do? Give us some ideas; the people here have a wealth of information!

Lee Ann

I basically want to see as much as possible in the short time i have, however I don't really want to be rushing around like mad. I love walking and generally just want to take in as much as I can.

We only visited the North Island, but highlights of our trip were dolphin swimming in Whakatane, black water rafting in Waitomo, hiking in Tongariro and Egmont National Parks, the Mai Ora concert and hangi in Rotorua, Waiotapu Geothermal area south of Rotorua, and Te Papa Museum in Wellington.

There are tons of lovely walks in NZ; check the Department of Conservation's website at www.doc.govt.nz.

Magic Bus and Flying Kiwi both offer nature activities if you'd like something a little more organized.

Lee Ann