I'm new here and see some good ideas. <BR><BR>New Zealand strikes me as being an interesting place to visit, but based on what research I've done so far, to see much looks like we'll spend our holiday behind the wheel because there's no real train service and who wants to pay those big bux to fly from point to point? Am I correct?<BR><BR>Also, Aukland looks like it's a "business" city with nothing to really do on weekends. Am I correct?<BR><BR>Finally, I get the impression that one should avoud South Island in the "winter" months of May through August because of the rain and cool temps. Am I correct?

Listen, I just got back from a month long trip to Australia and New Zealand. First off, I loved New Zealand and I liked Australia. Would go back in heartbeat to both places. We were in the South Island -- Christchurch and Queenstown from July 26 to August 2 and while it was very cold the entire time -- coats, leggings under pants, scarf and mittens and hats, the sun shone most of the time and we had a blast. If you like some adventure, there are tons of things to get into in Queenstown. We bungy jumped, para-glided, luged, cruised on lakes and went to Milford Sound, which is stunningly beautiful. <BR><BR>We bought a boomerang pass from Qantas and it was quite reasonably priced and quicker than driving/coaching/training. Call the airlines and see what they have to offer. Qantas has boomerang passes and Air New Zealand has some type of similar thing.<BR><BR>Christchurch and the Cantebury Plains are lovely and we had but one day of rain.<BR><BR>Actually, it rained pretty much every day while we were in the North Island. Didn't bother me, though, as I love the rain. I rented a car and drove around that island the last week we were there. That was interesting, as I'm from the States and we drive on the RIGHT side of the road, thank you....<BR><BR>Just go and have fun. You'll love it.<BR>Feel free to email me direct if you have other questions.

Jack, your facts are right about driving and weather. <BR><BR>As Sherita says, don't let that stop you. Just the sheep blocking the road every now and again.

BerryBerry, welcome back.<BR><BR>They must have let you back on the Forum! <BR><BR>OUR PROTESTS WORKED! Congratulations, buddy.

You're so right, we have nothing to do in Auckland on weekends. We go out brunching at the hundreds of fantastic cafes we have, we go sailing on the harbour and watch the Americas Cup boats practising, we go hiking through the beautiful rainforest in the hills behind Auckland, we go beach combing and swimming, we go out to our numerous and lovely islands, we play golf, we go to live shows and concerts, we go to the sunday markets and have a ball with all the different ethnic races Auckland has, we go wine tasting, cheese tasting, honey tasting, sometimes we even buy some. We go shopping as all our shops are open saturday and sunday all day, I wish there was a four day weekend.