We are a family of 2 adults and 2 kids of ages 8 & 14 respectively. We need suggestions for places to visit on both North and South Island for 3 weeks. We plan to hire a car and are fond of outdoor activities, mountains and beaches. We are planning to visit during end of April and would like to have some information about the weather and also if we can get better deals for accommodation(self contained) since this is supposed to be low season. Looking forward to your suggestions.

We spent 10 days on the North Island in late April last year (not used to thinking of 2004 as last year yet!). The weather was mostly sunny; we were drizzled on in Egmont National Park, but the only day it rained was our last day in Auckland.

Our itinerary (you can read a trip report elsewhere in this folder called "10 Days on the North Island" or something along those lines) was:

Day 1 Arrive in Auckland; drive to Whakatane
Day 2 Dolphin swim in Whakatane; drive to Rotorua for Maori concert/hangi at Te Whakarewarewa
Day 3 Explored Rotorua a bit; drove to Waiotapu Geothermal Wonderland, through Taupo and on to Tongariro National Park
Day 4 Tongariro - we'd planned to do the crossing but the mountains were socked in by cloud, so we opted for a shorter hike and drove to Wellington
Day 5 Wellington - Te Papa Museum and exploring downtown
Day 6 Wellington - hiked on Mt. Victoria and visited Lord of the Rings sites in the city; drove to Kaitoke Regional Park and on to Wanganui
Day 7 Wanganui to Egmont National Park for hiking
Day 8 Egmont to Waitomo - cave tubing with Black Water Rafting
Day 9 Waitomo to Auckland - took the ferry to Devonport and did a walking tour
Day 10 Auckland Museum and home

You should be able to get good rates for accomodations.

Lee Ann

Thanks for your reply. Need to have some information about the weather during end April to beginning of May. Also would like to know the places to visit in Souh Island especially with kids.

Some South Island ideas for kids (we are planning a NZ trip as well)

Antarctic Center in Christchurch
Puzzle World in Wanaka
swimming with dolphins in Kaikoura
panning for gold on West Coast of S. Island
viewing wildlife on Otago Peninsula near Dunedin
jet boat ride/rafting in Queenstown

Make sure you obey speed limit while driving . Speed cameras are everywhere. Your credit card gets automatic penalty.
South island lovely. Ferry ride between islands for car and adults is costly. Check it out if planning on driving from north to south.

>>Thanks for your reply. Need to have some information about the weather during end April to beginning of May.<<

I did mention that it was sunny, with some drizzle toward the end of the trip...

To be more specific, we left Los Angeles April 18th and returned the 29th.

I thought the weather was fairly warm on the North Island; I wore T-shirts most of the time and was very comfortable. I brought along long-sleeved shirts for evening, which were warm enough for me. I also brought a polarfleece pullover, but only wore it a couple of times. I remember putting it on during the day in Tongariro National Park because it was a bit chilly up on Mt. Ruapehu.

Does that help a little?

Lee Ann

We are having a beautiful summer at the moment and looks as though it could go on for a while. The Karori Wildlife Sanctuary in Wellington is also a great trip.

Bonham - FYI - you'll be in NZ during school holidays, so you'd best book your lodging in advance, especially in heavily touristed areas.