nikidi

just found out that the whale watch tours dont allow children below 3 years..and the dolphin encounter minimum age is 5 years.these tours were the main reasons for our stay in kaikoura.

melnq8, need help with the route please!! -

is it still worthwhile to drive to kaikoura to take arthur's pass to punaikiki or can we get on to it from nelson surrounds?

also as we are giving up 2N at kaikoura, we would like to visit dunedin for penguins and albatross. how would this fit in.

where else would we get a chance to see some dolphins?

finally when i thought the route is finalised this comes up

mlgb any thoughts?

niteshchandra

Punakaika from Nelson is absolutely doable.. infact you are avoiding the roundabout.. Look at the map (www.wises.co.nz), you do miss out on the scenic Trans Alpine though!

some have reported occasional dolphin spotting in Picton/Marlborough, but it's not a given.. but, then again, wherever they are, these will have age limits for sure.. so, tough luck there..

Abt Dunedin, and the change of route, I guess you could go there after Te Anau and then make your way to Mt Cook from there, not altering your itinerary all that much..

mlgb and melnq might obviously offer more creative suggestions (I am going strictly by the map)!!

nikidi

or maybe we can take turns in taking the tours in kaikoura!, rather than adding another 4 hour drive to Dunedin?

many say that dunedin/otago peninsula was disappointing..
need to research more on this.. (if only i had not skipped over dunedin and surrounds in all those trip reports i read

mlgb

If you are around Christchurch maybe you could do one of the Akaroa catamaran cruises. They allow children, although the dolphin swim boats do not. There is a pretty much full time pod of Hector dolphins in the harbor do come up quite close to the boat.

There is a relatively fast route to Dunedin from Te Anau, about 5 hours via Gore, but I don't think it is very interesting. If you have the time to spend a night along the way, the Southern Scenic Route is better. I usually stay in Invercargill (I like towns like that and love stopping in to see the tuatarium) but this is a spot where you might find a farmstay, between Invercargill and the Catlins. There are opportunities for short walks and penguin hides. Supposedly you can sometimes see dolphins off shore, but I've never been that lucky.

Not the best map but it shows the route:
http://www.southernscenicroute.co.nz/Map/Default.asp
Travel times
http://www.southernscenicroute.co.nz...-distances.asp

You can also get to Dunedin by going east from Cromwell, but I think the southern route might be more interesting for kids.

You can get pretty quickly from Dunedin to Mt. Cook by going via Oamaru. Quick stop at the boulders in Moeraki (and if you like fish, the restaurant Fleur's Place in the harbor..reservations mandatory. Very casual kid friendly but total foodie mecca)

If you didn't see the yellow penguins (or if you just love penguins) Oamaru might be your last night before heading to Mt. Cook so you can see the little blues.

http://www.fleursplace.com/
http://www.penguinplace.co.nz/tour2.htm


Ideally I would want to scavenge 4 nights from somewhere, but I think you need at least 3:
Optional: 1 night somewhere between Te Anau and Dunedin (Perhaps drop the last night in Te Anau or take it from Wanaka)
2 nights Dunedin/Otago Peninsula At least a full day for the Otago Peninsula. A second day if you also want to go to the Penguin Place, and the kids I also think the Cadbury factory is a must see. (from Kaikoura)
After you are done with the Otago Peninsula, continue up coast a few hours to spend 1 night Oamaru to see the little blues.??
Then pickup Mt. Cook the next day.

nikidi

actually the penguins would be the main attraction in dunedine/oamaru for us. but would still ove to keep the arthur's pass route in the itinerary.

any suggestions for that.

also read

nikidi

thanks for the info mlgb. not sure whether we have time to do the southern scenic route though.didnt know about blue penguins.(only knew of philip island in aussie -so this is a good alternative)

niteshchandra, ur route makes sense - we have crossed off the option of split tours in kaikoura - it just would not be as much fun!so i guess its either just see the seal colony and moveon or do dunedin/oamaru instead!

also read about pohatu penguins in akroa, in a posting by mlnq8. are these comparable to the blue penguins in oamaru? if so we can do a day trip from CH instead of dunedin.

if we do dunedin instead of kaikoura, then we will drive from te anau to spend 1N at dunedin (royal albatros and yellow eyed penguins) and 1N oamaru(blue penguins) and drive to mt cook. seems a bit rushed though!

can some one advise me the best route to still keep in arthur's pass (or part of it) can it be part of the drive from mt cook to CH?

and the best route for teanau/dunedin and the driving times.

thanks so much...

Melnq8

The Pohatu Penguin tour may not be the best choice for kids your age. It involves a fair bit of walking and crouching in silence. I suggest you check with the tour operator for details:

http://www.pohatu.co.nz/penguin-tours.wse

Dianz

Hi, sorry to butt in but was having a read and wondering if your girls might enjoy seeing the penguins (and other marine life) at Kelly Taltons?

http://www.kellytarltons.co.nz/

Since you have to spend two nights in Auckland anyway that could be a way to kill two birds with one stone (no offence to the penguins!). Also a ferry ride might be fun (maybe out to Waiheke or even over to Coromandel if you can spare a whole day) and there is always the possibilty of seeing dolphins on these (Auckland based again). Or Tiritiri Matangi (Island) could be a day well spent and you'll get to see some of our endangered birds well there. Here's a link to one of the ferry services:

http://www.360discovery.co.nz/

Have a great holiday!

nikidi

melnq8, the route you suggested before was perfect for us..but now if we are not going to kaikoura..is it better to go nelson via murchison,westport to punaikiki..or is arthur's pass worthwhile to do the extra drive via kaikoura - arthur's pass to punaikiki.
or is there any other way to incorporate arthurs pass into the itinerary.

also what is the best route for te anau dunedin/oamaru to mt cook.

thanks a million..

niteshchandra

nikidi, do you want to go to arthur's pass or do you want to go the Tranz Alpine route, upto Arthur's pass? might have different solutions..

niteshchandra

might be possible - greymouth to arthur's pass, and then back to the glaciers.. a slightly long detour, though!! Maybe staying a night may make it worthwhile.. Melnq, mlgb & other experts, any thoughts?

nikidi

tranz alpine..well only if it is worth the exra drive!!

melnq/mlgb - would appreciate you thoughts on this (nelson onwards route) and the route to dunedin/oamaru - mt cook

niteshchandra

would be brilliant if you could post the revised (tentative) itinerary..

nikidi

1N aukland, 2N rotura,2N wellignton,3N nelson(upper mot.),(day at blenheim),1N punaikiki,2N fox/franz glaciers,1N wanaka, 3N QT, 2N te anau, 1N dunedin, 1N oamaru, 2N mt cook, 2N christchurch, 2N auk.

niteshchandra

are those 2 extra nights in Auckland at the very end sacrosanct?

niteshchandra

Faced with the same problem ourselves on our upcoming trip, we have decided to fly from Nelson to Christchurch late evening to stay overnight and then board the 8:15 a.m. train to Greymouth. This has been made possible courtesy Air New Zealand offering us special prices if we make our international flight through them; and we are receiving a pretty wonderful deal even on our international flight!!

nikidi

mlgb, mlnq8 - awaiting ur expert advise!!

"is it better to go nelson via murchison,westport to punaikiki..or is arthur's pass worthwhile to do the extra drive via kaikoura - arthur's pass to punaikiki.

or is there any other way to incorporate arthurs pass into the itinerary.

also what is the best route for te anau dunedin/oamaru to mt cook.

nikidi

sorry, not "arthur/s pass the tranz alpine!!"

niteshchandra

May I suggest- 1N aukland, 2N rotura,2N wellignton,3N nelson(upper mot.),(day at blenheim),1N Christchurch (via a Kaikoura stop, if you like!),1N punaikiki,2N fox/franz glaciers,1N wanaka, 3N QT, 2N te anau, 1N dunedin, 1N oamaru, 2N mt cook, 2N christchurch, 1N auk!!

An interesting tour could be- from Nelson, reach Picton to catch the TranzCoastal at 1 PM to take you to Christchurch. Staying the night, catch the TranzAlpine in the morning and head off to Punakaiki from Greymouth. You are letting go of 1N in Auckland in the bargain in the end.

nikidi

need to have more time in auk due to visiting extended family there.
after much thought, decided to go with the original route and drop dunedin/oamaru(and hope to see the penguins in Philip island).

there is a wings over whales tour that allows infants. 30mins flight which actually maybe a better way to see whales??any ideas on this? (is mlgb/mlnq8 by anychance on another trip to nz? they've been pretty quiet!)

even fox doesn't allow kids to do the fox 1/2 day hike - so i guess we have to do some activities separately and make the best of it!