Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - New Zealand Highlights

Spent 2 weeks in New Zealand and would like to pass on some of our experiences. Started out in Christchurch(Flew from Sydney on Emirates Air. This was the 1st time we flew this airline and we were very impressed) Walking around the compact city itself was enjoyable. The botanical gardens were fantastic(much nicer than Wellington's) Also, drive to the gondola 15 minutes ouside town. The views from the top are great, well worth checking out. Drove to Akaroa - pleasant drive and worth a half day if you have the time. From CHC we drove thru Arthur's Pass to Hokitika. The drive is spectacular. Not just the peaks but the massive valley that the road parallels is stunning. Stayed at the Hokitika Heritage Lodge B&B and highly recommend it. The owners(Dianne & Chris were the nicest hosts we encountered on our trip) Hokitika is a pretty little town on the ocean but not much to do there. Dianne did guide us to a free glow worm sighting only 100 feet from the main road which was great(had not seen the glow worms to this point) Continued the drive to Franz Josef glacier. Walked the trail to the glacier and it's an easy one which is very beautiful. Very scenic walk thru a valley surrounded by jungle looking mountains w/numerous waterfalls. The glacier itself was very impressive. Continued our drive thru Haast Pass(very beautiful)again the road follows a massive valley(approx 3-5 miles wide w/multi-tongued rivers flowing toward the ocean surrounded by huge jungle-like mountains) Stopped in Wanaka for a cup of coffee. Small town w/a hip vibe to it....then on to Queenstown. Stayed at the Balmoral B&B. A 2 minute drive from center of town all uphill so a car is a must but the views from your bedroom/livingroom will leave your mouth open for awhile(stunning to say the least) Queenstown is a busy little town w/numerous shops/bars/restaurants packed into a 5 or 6 block area. The gondola ride is a must. The views of the town, the Remarkables, and the lake are just incredible. We did a side trip to Arrowtown which was very nice. It's an old mining town w/good shopping. Also did the Dart river boat excursion which was a blast. Not only was the boat trip alot of fun but they also show you numerous areas where they filmed Lord of the Rings. A good restaurant in Q-town was Solerna & Vino. Also worth checking out was a bar called Level 5 degrees(I think). It's an all ice bar so they suit you up 1st and then you sip on frozen drinks(very unique experience). We drove to the Milford Sound. Give yourself plenty of time since you will want to pull over numerous times for 100's of Kodak moments. The overnight boat trip on the sound was propably the highlight of our trip. The Milford Mariner was our boat and it was very well organized...it's impossible not to be truly amazed by this experience. Drove back to Q-town and flew to Nelson. Drove to Abel Tasman Park. We stayed in the town of Kaiteriteri. Very pretty little resort town on the ocean w/a nice beach. The ocean is always calm along here due to Farewell Spit protecting it from the westerly's. We took the water taxi and did the 3 hour round trip along the coast. It stopped at 1/2 dozen beaches along the way to pickup/drop off trekkers that were doing portions of the 32 mile coastal trail. The beaches are a deep gold color which we were told was due to the large amounts of granite along the coast that the ocean breaks down into sand. The dense vegitation comes right down to the ocean in numerous places and the water is a beautiful turquoise. From Nelson we flew to Wellington and stayed at the City Life Wellington which we highly recommend. Great location in the city and the rooms are suites(seperate bedroom, living/dining room w/washer/dryer) for the same price as a regular hotel. The city bus tour loop that runs every 15 minutes is a good way to see the various points of interest throughout town. Walking along Cuba Street for shopping was fun and the Te Papa museum was very interesting. The Botanical Gardens were OK(the gardens in CHC were much better). Flew to Auckland and stayed at the Great Ponsonby B&B. We enjoyed this B&B and this area of Auckland very much. Numerous restaurants and shopping all within walking distance and the city is a quick, inexpensive cab ride away. Recommend the ferry ride to Devenport. Nice area to spend the day. Good shopping and restaurants and also a hike to the top of a hill has great views of Auckland city and Harbor. A great restaurant in Ponsonby is Prego. We drove to the beaches on the west coast(the Gannett colony at Muriwai, Piha, and Karekare beaches) We enjoyed the drive through the beautiful landscape as much as the beach time on the black sand beaches. Piha beach is very scenic w/the jungle comming right to the beach, a river comming down from the hills flowing into the ocean and an outcropping of cliffs/rocks jutting into the ocean.