IT'S ME AGAIN!
 

Hi Folks
Sorry that I have not been responding to questions on NZ as I have in the past but I have been rather busy.

To my Fodors friends who have dropped in for coffee when visiting NZ greetings and we are all well down-under.

I have been busy round the lodge and the vineyard most of the year and recently we picked up another Tourism Award so we must be doing something right!

At present we are enjoying spring time with the temperature jumping up to round 20 degrees C in both the North and South Islands. Loads of blossom on the trees and bud burst on the grapes. Also, as I mentioned on another posting, we are having an internal airfares war between Qantas and Air New Zealand so it is a great time to make a few online bookings.

With the way our dollar is going up I think you should come sooner rather than later!

Take care and if you need any friendly help you know where I am.

Warm regards

Kerry

Good to hear from you again...I'd been ready to post a question...where's KerryGuy?
You were so very helpful to me in planning my last trip to NZ in Nov, 2001. We had a wonderful time and followed a lot of routes you mentioned. We're back again in April,2004 to SI for about 11 days and then on to Oz for 8 weeks.
Again, good to see your name up there. Formerly I was Suzie

Very subtle advertising there, Kerry.
Go for it, we need all the tourists we can get.

Hi Kathy
I have seen your name appearing recently. I'm a long term Fodors "adviser" along with Alf. I'm sort of the NZ end. However before you jump to conclusions, my prime motivation is to see that visitors to NZ have a safe and enjoyable holiday. I do have the professional background to back up my recomendations having, in addition to a professional life in education, been involved in the travel industry for 15 years both as a contract marketer for airlines and the owner of a travel company. In my former role I was extended wonderful hospitality in both Canada and USA. Now in retirement I get a great deal of pleasure out of using my expertise to assist vistors to NZ.

One thing that does drive me is that I have had two friends killed on our roads by tourists who had under estimated the demands of driving on the wrong side of the road under NZ conditions.

I also get to share a cup of coffee or a glass of wine with one or two of them or to give them a bed for the night.

In the course of working with individual traveler I have prepared a number of different itineraries for both the North and South Island and rather than type away here for hours I simply reconstruct them to suit the individual. During last year I was doing two to three itineraries every week - keeps me from drinking too much wine from my other passion - my vineyard!

The only reward I asks is to hear that they have had a great time and made it safely back home.

I'm sure Kathy that you will also get to meet some wonderful visitors to NZ.
Keep up the good work.

Kerry

It was meant to be a bit of encouragement Kerry to get the folks down here. Don't take yourself so seriously. You gave yourself away, busy round the lodge indeed -
Also thankyou, in the course of my work in the tourist industry I have met many many visitors over the last 20 years and overseas as well.
However I don't propose to detail my CV on this board, lets just say that I know and am told constantly even by travel agents I am far better informed than many travel agents here who are employed with no experience or knowledge of NZ and then paid peanuts to give bad advise and bang out a few tickets for flights. You may know that flight is in their name and experience is not their game.
Carry on the good work.

Hi Kathy

Great - we are both in total agreement.

The travel industry is certainly suffering and when I saw the help that people needed (from their questions in this chatroom) I realised that the Internet was partly to blame and therefore had to provide at least an attempt at a solution. By that I mean a lot of people are buying air tickets online and not getting even the limited advise they got previously from travel agents.

Also the airlines have forced the margins on tickets down so that most agents are only getting 5% on sales. A few years back as a wholesaler and specialist travel company we were getting 18% on ticket and sure we could give out good advise and we could visit all our properties.

But that is now all in the past.

I certainly view tourism as being important and it is our second biggest export earner after the dairy industry. I guess that gives away what I have been doing for the past year - trying to stir up our regional tourism into action.

Between you, me and Alf plus all the people that have visited NZ, I'm sure we can get them on the right track.

And if you are in the area do drop in - I love to talk about tourism and visitors to NZ.

Sorry Suzie I almost forgot to say "Hi" Great to hear from you and come back soon.

Warm regards

Kerry

Without being rude or uncaring... sorry to hear about your friends - but how hard can it be to drive on the other side of the road? I did so in a vist to Britain for 2 weeks without a problem. My only "oops" was in the parking lot where there were no visual cues to remind one.

Is there a specific "oops" that we other-siders are prone to that we should watch for? Were these accidents on winding country roads, no centre line, left/right hand turns, traffic circles, or something specific?

I'm planning a NZ/Aus. trip and I'd like to know what I should keep myself alert for...

I did note in London, that the instinct to look one particular way is much more ingrained than we think. The "Look Left" is painted on the streets there for a good reason.

Hi MD
Please take the comments I make in this as they apply to yourself - you may not have any problems.

Once you leave Auckland motorway system which extends for about 40 kms north and south, you will find tha the bulk of the roads are undivided tar-sealed surface with just a white line between you and the oncoming traffic. Our road engineering while not third world by any means does lack in good design with things like incorrect camber. We also lack passing lanes in many areas.

Add to that some of our bad Kiwi driving habits like tail-gating and lack of attention at interesection plus as a result of immigration which is put a number of new drivers on the road all contributes to increased difficulty for visiting drivers. We also have a large number of heavy trucks on the road and increasing as rail fails to provide a viable alternative.

Now I'm sure I will get a flood of people writitng to say that they found it OK in NZ - GREAT.

Most of the tourist driver problems occur through failing to keep left especially in a crisis. Momoments like crossing the centre line on the brow of a hill. Another bad area are country roads without any markings - we have a number round here.

The answer is to keep alert and to practise an emergency drill of pulling your left hand down. Don't try to drive too far in a day - as one visitor said "our roads are deceptively long". Take a break when driving and enjoy your NZ vacation.

Kerry

Kerry, Do you have your travel suggestions post somewhere. We will be traveling in NZ the first 2 weeks in December. I am trying to decide how long to spend on the North Island before heading to the South. I was thinking perhaps 3 days. What do you think?

Hi Freida

Drop me an e-mail and I will send you a copy of a couple of 3 and 4 day North island itineraries that I have planned out. I'm half way through constructing a web site for them but I still like to make them personal.

Give me a few details of your interests and real wants. Like one Fodorite I helped who wanted to shear a sheep and do black water rafting - all in one day! Yes he managed to do it!
You can get me on [email protected]

regards

Kerry

Frieda
Visiting for three days in the north island would be like visiting New York for three hours.

Hi Frieda
Despite what Kathy has said you can still see a lot in three days and have a memorable experience.
Here is a rough starting point that takes in the central North island in a loop. Three nights (4 days is the minimum that I would recommend

ITINERARY for FRIEDA
North Island section

Day 1 Arrival Auckland to the Rotorua
Arrive Auckland Airport clear Customs; collect rental car and head south on SH 1 to Hamilton and on to Tirua then SH 5 to Rotorua. (a 3 hour drive)
Look round Rotorua and go to the Rainbow Springs and Agro dome then on to Whakarewarea (if short of time drop this in favour of Waiotaupu) Stay the night in Rotorua. Take in a Maori cultural show ? recommend Tamaki Village

Day 2 Rotorua to Taupo to National Park
Depart Rotorua on SH 5 stopping at Waiotaupu thermal area, view Huka Falls (1 hr drive) continue to Taupo.
Drive on SH 1 south to Turangi then SH 41 for a kilometre then SH 47 to National Park Great view over Lake Taupo and later to the mountains. Drive approx. 100kms (90 minutes)
Take a walk (short hike and a chairlift ride up the mountain ? Mt Ruapehu Accommodation National Park


Day 3 Tongariro National Park to Waitomo to Auckland
Continue on SH 47 to National Park then proceed north on SH 4 to junction with SH 3 then on to Waitomo. (2 hrs drive)
Do Caves experience (may want to do Black Water rafting and abseiling.). Travel north on SH 3 to Hamilton then SH 1 to Auckland 200 kms (2 hours drive) Take evening flight to Christchurch.

If you can add in another day I would spend it in Auckland going down the harbour to Waiheke Island and cruising the gulf.

Add another day and I would have you visiting the beaches of the Bay of Plenty.

I would not consider the Bay of Islands as it is a 2 day journey up and back plus as least a day there - you can see almost as much with an afternoon on the Hauraki Gulf out of Auckland.

Well its a start. If you want help with the South Island just let me know.

Kerry

Hi Kerry,

Your intro caught my attention and after reading through your information, prompted me to email you.

I have a two week trip planned in late January/early February of 2004 and am struggling with accomodations in Auckland for two nights. Any suggestions? Then, a friend and I are heading up to Pahia for 5 nights to relax, sightsee, etc. Do you have any itinerary suggestions for touring around Northland from the same point each day? Our cottage is in Mangawhai. Any help on the above subjects would be most appreciated.

Hi

Delighted to help if I can.

What level of accommodation are you looking for in Auckland? What do you want to pay per night? Will you have your own transport or are you using buses in Auckland?

Your trip North has me a bit confused! Your 5 days in Paihia and then you mention Mangawhai. The two places are about 180 kms apart. Give me a few more details.

Regards

Kerry

Thanks for your reply. We're trying to locate some service apartments or the like, with separate beds in Auckland (we'll need to do laundry). We'd love to be by the water. I've found a place, Newton 121 Service apartments, but am having trouble getting better photographs. Would you recommend I keep looking or is it a good place? We'd like to spend less than $300NZ per night.

I guess I didn't realize that Paihia and Mangawhai were that far apart. When I've discussed with people that we're going North, they automatically assume Paihia. We're booked at the Milestone Cottages in Mangawhai. The person I'm meeting up with (my mother in law) wants to go to 90 mile beach and various places north as she's never been there before. Is it possible to see those places from our accomodation?

We are pretty active people and are up for some kayaking, hiking, and beach time relaxing. She picked the lodge and the number of days and I'm just tagging along and trying to get as much information as possible. I realize that we're in for a bunch of driving (we will have a car) either in Auckland or before heading up to Mangawhai. We live in Colorado so driving 180km is about normal, weekend driving for us.

Boy, am I glad I found you. I guess one doesn't realize how things are laid out from a map. I'd love to hear some suggestions on things to do and places to see.

Thanks again.