Some details on New Zealand in January
 

After lurking here for months, I have put together an exciting plan for our family trip through NZ from December 31 to January 15th. I am now down to filling in the blanks with some questions about planning our activities. I hope my dear Fodorites can help. We are a family of 4, with two college-aged boys. We are mostly planning outdoor activities, and love the road trip part of traveling. So here are the details:

We arrive in Auckland after 5 p.m. on New Year's eve. Will there be any shops open that evening or New Years Day to supply ourselves with road trip food and beverages? Will we have trouble finding restaurants on New Years Day? Any ideas for fireworks viewing there. We will be staying just the one night at the Quadrant in town.

My son is set on Zorbing. The only day we will be in Rotorua is New Years. Will we be able to get in to do it? Can tickets be bought in advance?

Recommendations for wineries in the Queenstown area? We will be there for several days.

Can we plan Kawarau River rafting when we get there, or does it sell out in advance. I am concerned about gauging the weather first. We will be there around Jan. 12-14. I have the same concern about an afternoon cruise tour on Milford Sound. Can we just drive there and get on if we go for the later afternoon tour, as we will be staying in Te Anau?

And last but not least, we would like to hike the Tongariro track around Jan 4 or 5. What are the chances the weather will be ugly then? Do we need to book transportation in advance?

Sorry so long. I am getting very excited about this fabulous trip! Thanks to all!

re Zorb - I don't know whether or not you have checked this site out - http://www.zorb.com/zorb/rotorua/

I would recommend booking what you can now as it is the NZ school holidays until around 31 January.

I'm sorry I can't help with your other queries. Good luck with your finishing touches.

Recommendations for wineries near Queenstown:

Amisfield - wonderful Pinot Noir and a nice bistro with highly regarded food

My favorite nearby wineries are actually in Cromwell - Mt Difficulty (good place for lunch too) and Carrick (Bannockburn)

Great suggestions above. I would like to add Akarua, Chard Farm, Kawarau (organic wines), Peregrine, and Felton Road (you might need an appt. here, but we were able to just walk in several years ago), to the list of Central Otago wineries.
Pinot Noir is the star here, but the rieslings (dry) are also great. Mt. Difficulty also makes a beautiful Pinot Gris.
http://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/a200902152.html

Map and list of Central Otago wineries:
http://www.otagowine.com/otagowine/winetrailmap.html

There is a New World at Victoria Market in downtown Auckland, normally open til midnight. They have a shopper shuttle til 7pm http://www.newworld.co.nz/sites/defa...sTimetable.pdf

There is also a Foodtown on Quay Street near the Britomart, but I will warn you that with the oneway streets it is horrible trying to get into their parking structure!

If you are picking up a car at the airport there is a big airport shopping center with a Foodtown and a Warehouse.

Sorry not sure about the hours but I notice New World has a contact us link on their website if you don't get a Fodorite response.

Thanks for all the excellent tips! I knew I could count on you all. Can anyone give me insight on the Kawarau rafting? Thanks again!

Oh sorry. Well obviously no one can guarantee the weather but generally in January it is pretty good east of the Remarkables where Queenstown and Kawarau is.

I was there last year in January when they were having awful weather over most of NZ and it was sunshine almost the entire time around Queenstown.

And I imagine you'll be getting wet anyways..and the water is cold! The Dart River Valley is also pretty special. I might favor the "funyaks" or one of the other Dart River safaris over the Kawarau Gorge since the former is harder to access and you can see bits of the latter from the road.

I expect you would need to book a canoe or raft trip ahead. I tried to get on a funyak with a day's notice and they were sold out.