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NZ ....3 weeks, 2400 miles, 14 hotels...and we loved it
Cast of characters: my husband and I and another couple. We are in our 60’s and have traveled extensively with one another.
We in NZ just short of 3 weeks. We drove 2300 miles and stayed in 14 hotels. Not for everyone but we LOVED it and wouldn’t hve changed a thing. We don’t’ like to lie on a beach and relax. We like to drive and see things along the way. We didn’t have a set itinerary an except for the first night in Auckland , 2 nights in Mt. Cook and 2 nights in QT we didn’t have any reservations. Sorry up front for any typos. I tried to clean everything up but might have missed some. Bought tickets on Air New Zealand July 1, 2010 jumbo 747 12 hr. flight $1056 for flight into Auckland and out of Christchurch $70 for flight from Napier to Christchurch Bought travel insurance for all 4 of us for $331. Leave LAX Oct 24, at 11:45 p.m. Arrive in Auckland at 8:40 a.m. They fed us again on the plane at 2:00 a.m. Interesting things about NZ: They always give you milk for your coffee when you check into a motel/hotel All the toilets are ½ flush full flush Food is very expensive Serve chutney will most meals They don’t have splenda Public bathrooms are plentiful…even in out of the way places NORTH ISLAND: OCT 26 Tuesday: AUCKLAND Stamford Plaza $127 all inclusive (SPEND FIRST NIGHT) Walked around the city, parks and went up the sky tower, strolled the viaduct and had lunch at one of the city café’s and dinner at “The Waterfront” restaurant. They had a nice pool and Jacuzzi at the hotel on the 10th floor which we used. Went to sleep at 7:15 p.m. and woke up at 3:30 a.m. OCT 27 Wednesday: Leave Auckland for WAITOMO 124 MILES 3 HRS Waitomo Caves Lodge Nice place with lovely hosts Colin and Janet. Very helpful. Their dog was Gypsy. Saw something very funny on the way. Someone had written on their wood fence which ran along the main highway “Ken Greenwood owes me $300, STILL waiting Ken”. Went on the Black Labyrinth Tour. Under water caves to see glowworms caves. You sit on an inner tube and float down these underground rivers. They supply you with a wetsuit, booties, helmet and a miners light so you can see. It was one of the highlights of our trip. Very exciting and the guides made it really interesting. If you wear glasses, and have the option of contacts…wear the contacts. I had my glasses on and it was OK but contacts would have been better. We had dinner fish and chips at Curleys bar. Fun place with locals and a pool table. OCT 28 Thursday: Lake Taupo Drove to Lake Taupo via the Tongariro National Park. It was cloudy so we were never able to see the peak of the volcano but its pretty country and there is a short hike that takes you to Tawhai falls which is really beautiful. Driving to Rotorua we stopped at Huka Falls and Craters of the Moon which are next to each other. Both worth seeing. Craters of the Moon is on a peninsula that is reached by boat and is not as spectacular as other thermal areas but still worth a visit. Lots of steaming mud pots….the sound is great. No tour buses visit here that I could see. Huka falls is very cool. The electricity generated here supplies most of the island. Took highway 1 from Taupo up to Rotorua. Visited the Museum (cool building but not much Maori stuff inside) and then went back to the hotel Wai-o-tapu (20 min south of Rotorua) very compact and colorful. to be continued..... |
OCT 29 Friday: ROTORUA Distinctive Hotel
Hennessey’s bar for dinner. Were looking for Pig and Whistle and went her by mistake which turned out to be better than the other. English pub with tons of atmosphere. Got a little rain in the evening;. OCT 30 Sat: Drove around Lake Rotarua (highly recommended) and hiked to Okere falls. Parked ourFound a water fall where rafts and kayaks were trying to navigate and watched the excitement. Steep and fast rapids. Took another hike at Hanurana springs too. Huge trout in the stream bed and a old redwood forest. There is also an underground spring and we saw 2 kids fishing for coins with a magnet. Drove to the blue and green lakes (not to impressed) and then went to the Kiwi encounter which was AMAZING!! I saw a kiwi chick hatch and it was very exciting. Larry and Robb went to the Polynesian spa for a massage. The kiwi’s are endangered, there are less there 70,000 in the wild because of imported predators (The brush tailed possum was introduced from Australia in 1837 to create a fur industry…they have now become a major environmental threat posed in NZ. They prey on native insects and birds eggs. Stoats were also introduced to control the hare population and are the biggest threat to the kiwi. This sanctuary collects kiwi eggs and chicks in the wild, brings them in and raises them until they are large enough to protect themselves from predators and then sets them free in the same area where they collected them. OCT 31 Sunday: Left Rotarua for Napier via highway 38 and our flight to Christchurch. (1 ½ hr. flight) It took us 6 hrs. to drive as it’s a very narrow curvy road with much of it being unpaved…..and it was raining. Not recommended. We walked around Napier to see the architecture. An EQ leveled this city in the 1930’s and it was completely rebuilt in the art deco style. (LEAVE AT 6:25 p.m. ARRIVE 7:55) Booked through air new zealand on line. Picked up our car Stayed at a hotel close to the airport and had dinner at Lone Star. Country western theme restaurant. Several of them around NZ. We drove 771 miles on the north island. SOUTH ISLAND NOV 1 Monday: Had breakfast and left for Mt. Cook that morning. Monday: Mt. Cook 2 nights: Stay at Hermitage $140 per night booked on line. Paid in full On the way to Mt. Cook we stopped at visit Lake Tekapo & Lake Pukaki both of which are an indescribably color. Just jaw dropping….a light turquoise green/blue. We had the luck of clear weather, Mt. Cook being in total sun the whole time we were there. Blue skies with no clouds . The Hermitage hotel sits right in the middle of this huge valley with the mts looming all around. We took a hike to the Tasman Glacier and then hiked a second hike to the the blue lake and up further still to the Tasman Glacier . This glacier started retreating 14,000 years ago. Had a terrific view from our hotel room of the peak and we had a first Kea visit on our patio. They are huge birds, one of the only alpine parrots in the world and are only on the south island. They are also endangered because they are ground nesters. They can be quite destructive and have been known to eat the gaskets off of the inside of a car door. We also saw Paradise ducks….one of the only female in the bird species to be more attractive them the male. We should have bought wine and beer before we went into the valley to our hotel as there are no grocery stores to buy anything once you get there. It would have been nice to sit on the patio with a glass of wine. The weather was about 25centigrade (77 degrees) during the day. We ate dinner both nights at the mountaineers Café which was really good. A huge window will views of the mountain. I had the curry with vegetables and rice and it was delicious. NOV 2 Tuesday: Mt. Cook: took a quick hike t eh kea point hike which took us about 1 return then the Hooker Valley Track which is supposed to be the most beautiful one day walk in the world. (so they say) Would have to agree. It’s a 4 hr. return if you start from the parking lot (which we did) Approximately 5 miles with 3 swing bridges, and one area that was climbing some rocks to navigate a trail over the side of a sheer cliff. There are hand rails so its not really dangerous but if you are afraid of heights you may want to turn back at that point. The trail ends at an alpine lake with icebergs floating and Mt. Cook looming. Pretty spectacular. The alpine lilies were blooming and there were wildflowers everywhere. 2 of the waiters from the hotel and father and son were from Iguazu in Brazil. Jael and Matteust NOV 3 Wednesday: Queenstown 3 nights : stay at the Novatel Lakeside. $130 a night The drive from Mt. Cook was beautiful with lots of stops along the highway to look at the views/ sights. One was roaring meg the Kawarau river which was spectactular….that word is used a lot in NZ. We stopped at the AJ Hackett bungee jump p which was really fun to watch although none of us wanted to do it. We go to QT in QT. Arrive in late afternoon (about a 3 ½ hr. drive) Many of the visitors we saw had rented a van which in hindsight would have been a good idea. It would have allowed us to make some lunches and have some snacks. Drove through hawkshead and gibbston vineyards. We stopped at AJ Hackett Bungy jumping bridge at Arrowtown and watched for awhile. $180 bucks a pop (NZ) and they have about 250 jumpers during the summer months. Had lunch at the “Stables” a historic restaurant in Arrowtown. With really good food and cool ambiance. We had an ice-cream at the little place on the corner and then went over the remarkable for some candy. These stores are really cool with lots of different types of candies that you’ve never seen before. Took us 6 hrs. to drive from Mt. Cook with lots stops along the way for photos and short hikes. |
NOV 4 Thursday:
QT stayed in QT at the Novatel which is a great location right on the end of the lake and in midst of the restaurants and town. . It reminded me of Vail. Walked about when we first arrived down by the lake. Dart River boat trip out of Glenorchy NOV 5 Friday: QT we had our dart river boat trip today and we drove to glenoarchy along the shores of Lake Wakatipu but it was raining and the trip was cancelled. On the way back we took a short hike to bobs cove.. Short 30 minute return hike and still raining lightly. Started back towards QT and decided to take a side trip on an unpaved road towards MOKE lake. Really scenic and fun. And at this point the weather had totally cleared and it was blue sky with a few puffy clouds. Lots of cows and sheep and rolling pastures, and a lake with guys fishing for trout. Beautiful scenery and a side trip that was a wonderful surprise. Robb and I played golf at jacks point a wonderful course on the other side of QT. Set alongside a lake with 11 oles on the water and the “Remarkables” on the other side NOV 6 Saturday: stayed in Te Anu. Left for Te Anu and Milford sound. Very steep road but not much traffic on it at this time of the year. Went through the Homer Tunnels which goes right through the middle of a huge mountain and all around you are waterfalls. This area gets up to 20 ft. of ran a year. Robb was blind when he went into the tunnel and couldn’t see a thing. The Milford road is extremely curvy ….lot so hair pin turns and Very very windy road Leave early for Te Anu (120- miles 2 ½ went our into the Tasman sea which can be quite rough they only get sun here 16 to 80 days a year ….tour whole day was blue skies and sunshine. hrs arrive in took the mitre peak tour and saw some southern bottle nose dolphin, fiord land crested penguins, beautiful waterfalls. Went to the underwater observatory which was mildly interesting. Had a late snack at the blue duck pub before starting back to teanu Took a fantastic 15 minute hike right off the road o the “Chasm” which is just unbelievable. The water is SO powerful huge rocks smoothed in weird shapes over time with gigantic logs shoved into the opening. Really powerful water. Not to be missed. NOV 7 Sunday: Franz Joseph Sunday night. Early Sunday morning we got up early to leave for the dart river jet boat. Had perfect weather. Blue skies warm temps. The boat went back on the river 21 miles with beautiful scenery. Then we drove towards fox glacier where we stayed Sunday night . this was our first glimpse of the Tasman Sea. Stopped at okarito beach and collected some driftwood and saw people fishing for white bait. These little tiny skinny almost translucent fish that they batter and fry into patties. Interesting birds called a weka looks a bit like a chicken… we stopped at some beautiful beaches with smooth white rocks covering them. Brought lots of them home. Stopped at several beaches one of the being ship creek where we walked around for awhile. A river rushes out from the sea in this area which was interesting to watch. the hike to the glacier took about 1 hr. and was a must do. Just beautiful and you can get really close to it. Lots of waterfalls and you hike through the glacial moraine walked to lake Matheson and ate at the café which was really really good. Mirror Lake was beautiful but never quite materialized for us. There has to be no wind at all. Then walked to the fox glacier. Another great hike to the base of the glacier. NOV 8 Monday: Greymouth: Stayed in Greymouth and had dinner at Ali’s. 1 week after we got home there was a mining accident a few miles from here and miners were killed. Beautiful beaches and coastlines here with great rock formations. NOV 9 Tuesday: stayed in Arthurs pass… in the morning before starting over the pass we visited Punakaki pancake rocks. The sea geysers /blowholes weren’t’ evident as the sea wasn’t really rough which it has to be in order to have the blow holes. But the pancake rocks themselves were really dramatic and worthwhile. Recco’d….jaw dropping coastline. Arthurs pass was a beautiful drive with lots of photo ops. We spoke to these 2 guys who were snaring Kea’s. one of them was getting his PHD in Kea communication. As the kea is also endangered, they are banding them, taking a blood sample and measuring their beaks to see how old they were. Took a hike to Bridal Veil falls. About 240 steps stopped at Castle hill wilderness lodge just to look around. A cool place but you need to be there for at least a few days, and very pricey. About $640 a night. NOV 10 Wednesday: decided to go to a little town 1 ½ hrs. south of Christchurch called Akaroa which turned out to be a great choice. Absolutely beautiful with a gorgeous harbor and interesting historic architecture. Cool old cemeterys a light house a beautiful pier wonderful restaurants etc. Many of the cemetery head stones were damaged because of the EQ (7.4) a few months before. Stopped at a really unusul place on the way called “Craig’s rocks” which were huge boulders formations formed by erosion of the lime stone. Definitely worth a stop. There is a trail that leads around the base. We spent about an hr. there and saw some teenage Maori kids practicing their fighting techniques. Akaroa Christchurch Botanical Gardens combo tickets for the tram + punting, drive up in the port hills for view of the city NOV 11 Thursday: left akaroa the next morning for Christchurch and stopped at Okaine Bay on the way. Beautiful beach with the best Maori museum we’d seen so far. Many artifacts and really worth while. When we arrived in CC we drove around a little and visited the Botanic Gardens. Got to the airport around 4 to drop off our car and catch our flight at 8:30 p.m. Arrive in Auckland at 9:50 Depart for home at 11:00 p.m. arrive in L.A. on Thurs Nov 11 at 2:00 p.m. HOME |
<They don’t have splenda>
<“Ken Greenwood owes me $300, STILL waiting Ken”.> You made me laugh outloud with those jaspertl! Sounds like you had a great trip - thanks so much for taking the time to post. |
What the hell is splenda?
The Crested Penguins were a plus. Glad you had a great time. |
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HA! you guys are great...thanks for your tolerance with all the typos. I read back over the post (after I posted it) and cringed!
Splenda....here is my sweetner progression. Sugar, sweet and low, equal and now all I can use is Splenda. It's the yellow package and it tastes just like sugar although my husband (pardon me) gets really bad gas from it. I'm addicted and carry it with me when I travel/ |
Jack's Point is fantastic isn't it?! Thanks for posting..never mind the typos.
Yes I noticed food in NZ getting more expensive. I think part of it is the Australian chains monopolizing the grocery business. If it isn't seasonal and grown in NZ you pay through the nose. A good reason to eat less! |
Hi
Always interested to hear what travellers have to say about NZ. We have Splenda in our accommodation business :) My one concession to artificial :) Okains Bay Museum is amazing isn't it? And yesterday we had 3 orcas playing in Akaroa Harbour. Hopefully not making lunch out of the Hectors Dolphins! www.akaroa.com for more information on the history & area. Hope you will come back & stay longer. Sue |
we were sitting having dinner on the water in Akaroa...beautiful evening great food and a nice bottle of wine and I commented that this was the most beautiful place that Id ever been (and I'm very fortunate to have been to lots of places) Akaroa is just sublime!!!
i love lamb (and I also love to eat them) We had lamb just one night because of how expensive it was $36. NZ I was shocked because there are thousands of lamb everywhere & I thought it would be more affordable. I was told that most all the lamb is exported out of NZ thus the expense. anyhoo....you guys have an absolutely gorgeous country. did I tell you that my husband took 8 hr.s of video and i took 700+ photos... working on my scrapbook tonight! |
Here is what I wrote almost exactly a year ago for food costs
Food costs?..at our exchange rates, fairly high. NZD prices about $3-$4 for coffee, $10 for continental breakfast, $15-$20 lunch, dinner mains in fine dining restaurants are $30-ish. Fish and chips should be under $10. I think I also had "restaurant" lamb once and venison once and they would have been in that price range. I was more on a fresh fish kick that trip anyways. |
mlgb...I remember reading your post. You were right on target.
i thought it was interesting (and smart) that although NZ is a premier destination for fly fishing, they don't serve trout in any of the restaurants. if you bring it in, they'll prepare it for you but you have to catch it and brings it. I asked about it and they said that if all the restaurants served it, there wouldn't be any for the fisherman. makes perfect business sense. |
jasperti, Thank you so much for your post. You did things that we missed and now I can't wait to go back! Cheers mate Kim
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Thanks for the great trip report, jaspeti! I gasped at the Splenda comment, and have already packed mine for the upcoming trip. Really--it's great to have an inside tip.
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Glad that you enjoyed our wee patch of paradise, jaspertl. Spread the good word. We could do with more overseas visitors.
On the matter of the price of lamb, we, too, are astounded that it is usually the most expensive thing on the menu here. I understand that there is more preparation time involved in rack of lamb, and similar presentations, but the price still seems to be unreasonable to us. Still like to eat it, though, especially when it is accompanied by a nice pinot noir. Rob. |
Another tip if you don't mind cooking is to just buy a lamb chop or two from a butcher and do it yourself. NZ beef is also delicious especially if you prefer grass fed.
It was almost impossible to find venison though. |
Venison is available (in a variety of cuts) in most supermarket butchery departments and from many small butchers in the main centres, mlgb.
Rob. |
hey Rob,
you bring up another subject dear to my heart. Wine we drink a lot of Zin's here in CA and I had a hard time with the Pinot's. I really wanted to like them but think I need to keep drinking and trying them to aquire a taste. They just seem thin to me.... there was a funny article in the LA. times. Folks were complaining about the vinters in the paso robles area of CA adding zin and cab grapes to the pinot Noir..."if you want to drink a cab then drink and cab, ditto, the zin's but leave our Pinot Noir alone!" |
Next time..will keep looking Rob!
NZ Pinots vary quite a bit from year to year some year smooth and light and some more robust Two that i like that you can find in the US are Mt Difficulty and Ata Rangi but don't expect them to be like a Zin or Syrah.If you like spicy wines there are some Pinot Gris and Rieslings to be discovered. Last time I visited NZ my friends requested a bottle of zinfandel. |
Usually, the venison is pre-packaged, so look for it that way, mlgb.
The pinots here do tend to vary a lot from region to region. The Central Otago wines tend to be a bit heavier and more "earthy" than those from further north, but there is a wide range in styles in each region too. I would always hold my glass out for another Mt Difficulty and, usually, for another Ata Rangi as well. Some of the second-tier wines from Ata Rangi are not quite so memorable, imo. Rob. |
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