We are back! From the most adventurous holiday I have had to date. Faced some fears, ticked off some bucket list items and saw unlimited amazing scenery! (please click on linked places for websites and more info...........most costs will be recorded at the end of each day and final costs at the end of article.. skip to end link)
ITINERARY: Auckland airport, Waitomo, Hobbiton, Rotorua, Taupo, Napier, Wellington, Christchurch, Kaikoura, Franz Josef, Wanaka, Lake Tekapo, Milford Sound, Queenstown.
Day one : We left from Gold Coast, Australia airport and landed at Auckland airport around 11:30pm. We didn’t include Auckland city in our itinerary so we stayed at Airport Palms Motel which was nice and close to the airport. We rented our car through go rentals and they have a courtesy bus that picks you up from the airport and takes you to the Sudima Hotel to pick up your car. (We took plenty of photos of the cars scratches and marks just in case but was not needed) it was a very smooth and easy transition especially at midnight in the rain. Airport Palms was only a 5min drive from there. I would use Airport Palms again....staff are very friendly, rooms are clean with toilet and shower and there is a pub nearby if you still up for a few after your flight.
Be a tourist and Pick up one of these mags on your way through airport. They have a few great discounts and exploring ideas 👍
Our little friend “Hekkas” for north island..great little Toyota Corolla 👍
Flight to Auckland : $187 each
Car rental for 5 nights north island: $187.50 each
Airport palms hotel : $115.98 ($58 each)
Day two.
We anticipated a big day today with two experiences and plenty of driving but it went super smoothly, we didn’t feel rushed and it was an amazing day!
Drove about 1hr 20min from airport palms hotel to waitomo for our Spellbound glow worm cave tour. We had Jimi as our host and he was great! Once you get to the tour base you jump in a van with about 9 others in your group and drive about 20min to the farm where the caves are. (You will drive past the main waitomo cave tours that most people go through and it has masses of people. I don’t think that your would feel as personal and have heard you get rushed through the caves for the next group behind you)
Spellbound gives you the best of two caves: you arrive in the middle of some beautiful country and walk down into a limestone cave. Just be wary.....when you are on your way back through the cave your guide will choose whoever is at the front to guide the group through complete darkness for about 50mtres with just the help of the handrail and each other's shoulders! After the first cave you are given a toilet break, some coffee and bikkies then led down to a cute little creek where you collect your helmets for the Glowworm cave. The helmets are mainly just used for the headlamp as there are no lights inside this cave. As you walk through the cave and admire the amazing clusters of glowworms with your lamps turned off, you reach the boat/raft you jump in and are slowly drifted through the cave as you admire the thousands of glowworms above you. The best way to describe it is it looks like a river of a billion stars above you but so close you could almost touch them!
Once you are out of the caves you finish up with an stroll up the hill with amazing views back to the van to take you to the tour base.
walk back to the van was just spectacular!
Once we got back to Spellbound base we jumped back in the car and drove another 1hr 20min to Hobbiton Movie Set for another tour! Jan was our host and she had been a tour guide at the movie set ever since it opened. Once you get to the tour base you jump on a large bus for an 8min drive to the Hobbiton farm. You are guided through all the hobbit holes (not inside them since they are all just movie props for the outside footage). The scenery is amazing around and some of the information about the set is really interesting. For example... the plum trees on set are actually lime trees that were stripped and plum like leaves were individually placed back on since real plum trees did not look the way they wanted. At the end of the tour you get to relax in the Dragon Inn with a free beer, cider or unalcoholic beverage and sit by the fire.
A visit to the cafe at Hobbiton tour base is a must.. give the vegetable panini a go!! I had no idea what a panini was but it was delicious!!!
From the Hobbiton movie set we drove an hour to get to Cozy Cottage Holiday Thermal Park in Rotorua and checked in. We were really happy with the accommodation. It was a cute little unit with a short distance to the toilets and showers. There were natural spring hot tubs to use and you can put a $10 deposit down for a shovel and walk to the lake through the park and dig your own hot water spring pool. (please note the water coming through is actually super hot and it is best to dig close to the lake water so you can cool it down with cold water)
Spellbound Cave Tour $75
Hobbiton Movie Set Tour $79
Cozy Cottage thermal park $136 for two nights ($68 each/2nights)
Brekkie - The Village Cafe went halves in a bacon n egg roll (bap they call it) $10 each for roll and coffee
lunch - Hobbiton Cafe went halves in a vege panini ...$10 each with a coffee
dinner - Eat Street: Mac's Steakhouse - steak and lamb shank meals and shared them $30 each for meal and drink
Day 3
This morning we got up and cooked brekkie at our unit and ate in the holiday park. We then headed off to the Polynesian Spa for some relaxation in the natural hot pools. Priest pools for muscular healing, Alkaline pools for skin.. all between 39 and 42 degrees. The views are amazing from the front two pools and there is a shallow stoned walkway by the lake for a reflexology walk. (can i just note that I was recovering from bad sinuses and had no sense of smell so i can not explain or complain about the smell... it sure made Rotorua a lot more enjoyable :) )
After feeling completely relaxed and rejuvenated we went off to the Whakarewarewa Living Maori Village. ( We really wanted to experience a hangi and maori culture and with much research we decided this was the most genuine out of them all) We payed $63 and that included a tour, watching the geyser and a hangi . We thoroughly enjoyed the tour and the meal was delish!
After the Maori village we stopped at Countdown (NZ version of Woolworths) and stocked up for a picnic dinner. After getting a little lost looking for a great spot, we found Hannah's Bay which ended up being a perfect spot on the lake for a sunset picnic.
We waited for it to get dark then headed to Redwood Treewalk as we wanted to experience the 23 suspension bridges at up to12m high at night with the amazing giant lanterns scattered throughout the forest. It was pretty spectacular and you took the path at your own pace with no guide.Photos do not capture the beauty of this place at night time. If you are going to do the treewalk i highly recommend doing it at night.
Polynesian spa $30
Whakarewarewa village $63
Redwood Forest $25
brekkie - part of Countdown shop
lunch - part of tour
dinner - part of Countdown shop
accom - as above
Day Four
It was time to get on the road again and headed out of Rotorua. We drove half an hour to Kerosene Creek, a beautiful swimming hole with a waterfall with the bonus of the water being warm from the hot springs!!
This was one of my favourite parts of the trip...But i am a sucker for waterfalls and swimming holes :)
After our swim we jumped back in the car for another 40min drive to Huka Falls in Taupo. We pulled over at a 'lookout' thinking what could it be looking out onto and got a surprise at this waterfall. It really is worth stopping anwhere there is a pic of a camera sign.
We stopped up the top at the Huka Falls lookout for some great scenery, but the real gem was down the bottom where you get closer to the falls. The force of water coming from the rapids is extraordinary! video link and video link
We needed to be at Napier for the night so we headed into town, we found a little picnic spot on the way at Hipapatua Reserve (the ducks are very friendly)
An iced coffee at cafe Baku, some tourist shots and my favourite store here .....TRADE AID
Then after a big day we tackled the 2hr drive to Napier. With all the amazing scenery you really don't notice the distance driving in NZ.
We checked into Shoreline Hotel... our accomodation for the night in Napier. This was a great sized unit and probably one of our fanciest with the surprise of a spa bath :) We had a wander through town and admired some of the wall art the town is known for ....
We made the most of our room and got takeaway from Bangkok House in Napier (Pad Thai and mixed entree to share: really good food!!)
kerosene creek - free
huka falls - free
shoreline hotel - $110 ($55 each)
dinner at Bangkok House - $12.25 each (we shared a meal and an entree)
Day Five
We got up nice and early to go for a wander down to the beach before our next adventure. The weather has been amazing!
It was time to head to our next adventure....winery hopping by bicycle! I actually don't drink wine at all but it sounded fun and im always up for trying new things. We hired a bike for $45 from bikeabout tours (i think) and they give you a map and off you go through the streets of Napier visiting the wineries and if you want... a chocolate making stop :) The first stop was the Mission Estate Winery and for $5 you get a free glass with you tastings. (They don't mind if you tip it out if you don't like it)
next stop on our trail was church road winery... we kinda had our taste of wines so just had a peak in and went on our way.....
We brought some picnic food with us and the lady at bikeabout told us about a great picnic spot we could stop on the way. We found the historic reserve and climbed the quite steep hill to get to the top for our picnic. It definitely was worth the hike :)
After our picnic we did the extra little hike to visit the Silky Oaks Chocolate Cafe... you can watch them make chocolates and buy some from a great selection of little treats! It was then time to ride on back to the base and set out for our next big drive.....
Next venture.... 4hr trip down to Wellington (yes its still the same day)
We had a detour along the way but i got really excited when i found the windmill farm!!
We arrived in Wellington ... checked into the Dwellington Hostel (backpackers with character, friendly staff and free brekkie)... walked into town and hopped on the cable car up to check out the botanical gardens (pretty small but worth it if you are a garden lover) We wanted to check out the space place but if was closed.
Then we headed out for a drink and dinner at Mish Mosh with a great mate that moved to Wellington. :)
winery tour $45 plus $5 for a tasting
cable car ride wellington $7.50
Mish Mosh pizza and drinks shared $25
Dwellington Hostel $80.48 ($40 each)
Day Six
We spent the day in Wellington before flying out to Christchurch this afternoon.
Te Papa museum... the Gallipoli Exhibition was extraordinary.. the information displayed in an interactive manner and the displays of the men and women of war 3x actual size but with the most intricate detail they seem life like up close.
SHAKE - we wanted to ride the croc bikes on the docks but didnt have enough time but we made sure we had time for one of their shakes!!
Next stop...Weta Cave Tour : if you are interested in movies at all this is a must visit! You are shown how all the props are made and can even touch and feel some of them.. sorry no photos for most of this experience .. no photos are allowed as the props are not owned by Weta.
This tour was super interesting and i would love to tell you everything i learnt but don't want to spoil it for ya!
Had a late lunch at the Sports Bar in Wellington and jumped on the 6pm flight to South Island ( Chistchurch)
Landed in Christchurch about 7pm and checked into Juicy Snooze Hotel (the one with the pods and hammocks) it is super close to the airport and super clean and modern however if I did it again I would get a cheaper hostel closer to town.
We had dinner at 'Little High Eatery' its amazing for atmosphere and food. You can get a little something from different food joints and eat anywhere in the place. We had the Milkman chicken burger from 'Bacon Brothers' and the prawn dumpling and karaage chicken from the Asian booth opposite. It was all amazing!!!
TePapa museum - free
unicorn shake - $6.80
Weta Cave Tour - free tickets from friend
Juice Snooze Hostel - $133 ($66.50 each)
Little High Eatery - $15 shared everything
Day Seven
We had a few hours in Christchurch so we googled a nice place to have brekkie and found a cute little local cafe called 'Bunrunners Cafe' . We shared an eggs benedict and gave the (what i heard to be a New Zealand thing) cheese roll a go. Eggs benedict was amazing and I'll let you give the cheese roll a go...we were pretty full after brekkie.
We went for a stroll through the Container Mall ( a few shops set up in shipping containers since the earthquake) Found my fav 'Free Trade' store again and bought a chrissy pressie for fam.
Before we headed on the road again we did a quick detour for an art show we saw a flyer for at brekkie..it was pretty small but pretty cool to see the 'trash to treasure' displays.
Next big roady was 3hrs to Kaikoura...keep an eye out for current traffic conditions. The coast road was supposed to be open on Fridays but is now closed and only open sat and sun as they have deadline to get it finished.
We stopped in for lunch at the 'Encounter Cafe' that you see just as you hit the beach before turning left to go into town. We shared a vege bread and quinola salad and their Berri Smoothie is delish!!
We were super lucky to have clear skies and the view was amazing from the beach of the snow topped mountains!
We headed out to find our accommodation for the night.. I was super excited for this one as we were staying at Wacky Stays in an old truck :) It did not disappoint, the accommodation was really different and fun to stay in. It was equipped with a kitchen, shower and toilet all inside the truck.
They have a few other awesome different accommodation types to stay in. (train, tipi and wagon).They also have a farm attached to the accommodation that you have free entry to. What could be better than feeding llamas with amazing mountains around you!
Brekkie - 'bunrunners cafe' shared eggs benedict, cheese roll and coffees $15.95 each
Lunch - 'encounter cafe' shared vege bread and quinola saland and smoothies $9.75 each
Dinner - 'The Whaler' shared wedges with prawn and scallop sticks and drinks $15.75 each
Woollies shop for picnics $16.50 each
Beer at The Pier Hotel $8 (great view, great casual pub, can sit across road near the water)
Vodka at Groper Garage $9 (great pub, outdoor fireplace, couple games of pool)
Wacky Stay accommodation $154 ($77 each)
Day Eight
This morning we were excited for the Kaikoura seal swim! We had one last visit to the farm then checked out and headed into town for a stroll until the seal swim booking. Unfortunately the weather was a bit gloomy and rough to go out to swim with the seals so the company cancelled. They gave us plenty of notice and gave us a full refund. I would definitely book again through this company.
We said goodbye to Kaikoura and even though we did not get to swim with the seals we were happy to take the trip out for the wacky stay accommodation.
We hit the road for a 6 and a half hour trip to Franz Josef.
It sounds like a big drive but sharing the driving and admiring the constant scenery, it was a fun drive.
We stopped for a picnic lunch on the side of the road at Deer Valley. A great little spot with a creek to explore :)
We arrived at Franz Josef and checked into the Chateau Franz Backpackers (nice small room, great hostel with character). It was awesome to see the snow capped mountains in the background of this cute little town.
We went to "the Landing' restaurant in Franz Josef for dinner and we each ordered the venison stew (delicious!!!) w/garlic bread to share. We also ordered a cocktail each that didn't make it to the bar so we were given them on the house for being forgotten :)
Brekkie - eggs and toast FREE supplied by wacky stay
lunch - picnic FREE part of yesterday grocery shop
dinner - $21.50 each at "The Landing"
Chateau Franz Backpackers - $76.91 ($38.45 each)
Day Nine
This morning we headed off for the Franz Josef Valley walk. Its is about 1hr and a half return and that is taking your time and stopping for lots of pics. It's a pretty easy walk with a short incline on the way back that some of the elderly had trouble on. The glacier has retreated a fair bit of the years, however still very much worth the walk!!
From Franz Josef valley walk we headed straight towards Wanaka for tonight's sleepover. It is about a 3hr 40min drive if you don't stop but we stopped at few amazing places on the way.
Stop 1: Bruce Bay - had a picnic on the beach of white glittery rocks (literally looks like glitter). This is also the spot where everyone that visits joins the rock pile with one of their own from the beach (bring a pen!)
There is a coffee van a couple hundred metres up the road to get your coffee fix....
Stop two - knights point lookout. Again we stopped at another sign that showed a photo opportunity.. as we parked some visitors mentioned there were some dolphins playing out on the ocean. We were excited to see a large pod of dolphins playing extremely close to shore ! the view from the lookout tower is also a stunner!.
Stop 3 - Last stop before Wanaka was one of my favourites! 'The Blue Pools' They are as amazing as the photos show online! There is a sign to let you know where to pull off the road. It is about a 30min walk return and there are no toilets so empty that bladder before you get here, and bring the aerogard (sand flies are quite thick if you go down to the water) I had to go in no matter how cold it was but i'm a sook when it comes to jumping off bridges so i not so gracefully dived in from the bottom. The water is obviously extremely cold but im glad i did it and i actually felt quite warm when i got out.
Final stop for the day.... Wanaka..I love this town!! I had read that there isn't much apart from the 'Wanaka tree' but it really is a groovy little town on a lake. I would describe it as a miniature Queenstown without all the adrenalin attractions, so nice for a quite few days.
We checked into the Wanaka Kiwi Holiday park into a little basic cabin about 10metres to the amenities.
Of course our first stop was the famous tree and it was pretty cool...it is a bit smaller than i expected as it is dwarfed by the massive trees on shore, but it is pretty unique!!
It was about 8:30pm (still plenty of daylight left here in NZ) and we were told by the staff at the caravan park that the Boa Boa fish n chip joint is good so we grabbed a basket to share and sat by the lake for dinner. (just don't sit near the ducks they are pretty quick to swarm your food)
Delicious ice-cream from just behind the fish n chip shop...
Brekkie = free from Franz Josef Backpackers
lunch = Free from Woollies shop
Dinner = $7.50 shared mixed basket
ice cream $5
coffee at Bruce Bay coffee cart $5
Wanaka Kiwi Holiday Park $79.80 ($40 each)
Day Ten
Our aim tonight is Lake Tekapo, yes it is a bit of back tracking but there were a few things we really wanted to see and do there. But before we hit the road we enjoyed Wanaka a bit longer.
Lavender Farm Wanaka - $2 entry.. great if you are a lavender fan .. we enjoyed the giant garden games and animals! There is a gift shop with some great lavender products and you have to give their lavender and manuka honey ice cream a go....just cause.
Puzzling World Wanaka - $20 entry for the illusion rooms and maze. You could spend a couple of hours here, the illusion rooms are really fun and interesting and the maze is quite challenging (the easy one will take between 30min to an hour to complete but there is emergency exits if you get over it)
After these activities that are just a couple of km out of town, we drove back into town for lunch. 'The big fig' is a must visit...it is a cafe near the lake and we had the choose your own mix for $10 (I had beef cheeks, roast potato, kumara and beetroot salad) it was amazingly delicious! We got it takeaway and went to Beanie Cafe for a coffee (another great coffee!)
We've had our coffee hit so it was time to hit the road for a 2hr15min drive to lake Tekapo. We couldn't get any accommodation in Lake Tekapo so I found accommodation in Omaramu which is half way to Lake Tekapo which meant in the morning it would give us an hour's less driving. We timed it well to arrive at Omaramau at 2pm for checkin, we settle our stuff in then headed straight onto Lake Tekapo for the afternoon.
Mackenzie Horse Riding Lake Tekapo - This is one of the top 4 things i did in NZ!! We did the 1hr lake view trek $80 and it was spectacular! I am not a confident horse rider (only been a couple of times as a child) but the horses are great and the guides are friendly. The trek takes you through the pine forest with some steep hills to go up and down that got my heart racing a bit. Then you head down to the lake and walk through the water and give the horses a rest before we head back to base in a loop.
Lupins - another must see in Lake Tekapo if you get here in the right season. We were lucky enough to be here at the peak of Lupin season in mid November.
We had dinner at Kohan restaurant as it had very high reviews and recommended by our horse riding guide. It was amazing! the venue ahs a great view of the lake and mountains and the food is delicious! I had the Kohan bonte box (rie, raw salmon, raw white fish, crumbed chicken, crumbed prawn, cooked salmon, japanese omelette, miso soup and free green tea)
Tonight we did the Tekapo Stargazing $80- it was a cloudy night so we only got to see the moon through the telescope and they said they have quality footage in case it rains... i wasn't impressed by the footage and our guide must have been on his first day because it was pretty bad. However the tour ends with a lay in the hot pools in hammocks so you can relax and look up at the stars and this was quite enjoyable.
It was a very late 1hr drive abck to our accommodation in Omaramau so I kept Bri focused with some driving games.
Brekkie - free from woolliees shop
lunch - $10 at the "fig cafe"
Dinner - Kohan restaurant $28.50
lavender farm $2
Puzzling world - $20
Horseriding $80
stargazing $80
woollie shop $13
Day Eleven
We left from our accommodation in Omaramu and started our 4 and a half hour journey to Te Anau Downs, where we plan to stay for our Milford Sound experience.
Our stops included.......
Lindis River Rest Area - nice creek no facilities
Cromwell giant fruit signs - cause when you see giant fruit you just have to stop for a photo right!
Kawarau Gorge - nice view of river and mining tourist spot if you interested
The Roaring Meg - hydro electricity station
Shotover River - short walk (maybe 50mtrs) down to this bridge with great view
Kingston River - for lunch (had a pie that wasnt hot and not that great...maybe cause im used to some pretty great aussie pies at home. (no photo)
Lake Te Anau - just before you get into town. Nice lake to have picnic at or just chill for a bit. Plenty of grassy areas.
We checked into Fiordland National Park Lodge, another great accommodation we were very pleased with. Self contained kitchen and bathroom and a great view from our room .
brekkie - shared eggs benedict and a coffee from the Wrinkly Ram Omaramu $16.50
lunch - pie and iced coffee at Kingston Corner Cafe and Bar $12.80 (nice iced coffee, bad pie)
dinner - Free (from woollies shop)
woollie shop $25
Fiodland National Park Lodge $115 ($57.50 each)
Day Twelve
We left our accommodation about 6:30am for a 1 and a half hour drive to Milford Sound for one of my favourite activities!
Roscos Kayak Tour - we did the Sunriser Classic which was perfect because you get the calm waters and no wind in the morning. We finished around 12 so it was approx a 3hr tour. I can only say this is a must do!! The company and the guide was great! We saw penguins and a very rare sighting of a leopard seal! You are completely safe in the double kayaks even with the bit of wake coming from the tour boats.
...and you get to wear the most groovy thermals supplied by the company lol
After our magical kayak tour we had a 4hr drive to Queenstown...
We checked into Base Backpackers (great spot and rooms!!), wandererd through the town and popped into a couple of bars for a drink then kept an eye on Fergburger for a drop in the line and grabbed a couple of burgers to share. They are pretty good but I would not rate it above our aussie Grill'd Burgers.
Brekkie - Free (woollies shop)
lunch - Free picnic (woollies shop)
Dinner - Fergburger $13.50
Heinekein $6
arancini balls and a berry cocktail at Cider House Quenstown $11.50
Coffee $5
Base Backpackers Queenstown $131.85 for private room ($65.90 each)
Roscos kayak tour $155
Day Thirteen
Queenstown day -
Shotover Jet: A great thrill and out of all the jet companies in Queenstown we chose shotover as it is the only one that goes through the canyon with the thrill of getting super close to the rocks and the 360degree turns are a blast!! You are given a spray jacket and life vest.
Onsen Hot Pools - Book this early guys!! It is very popular and during some periods you need to book months in advance. It is a private room with a large spa and shower in your room. You also have a colder water hose option to add to the water if you get a bit hot. The view is spectacular! We actually have a view of part of the river where the shot over jet goes.
We wanted to treat ourselves and stay in a fancy hotel for our last 2 nights so we checked in to the Rydges Hotel Queenstown opposite the lake. The view was spectacular and it was great just being able to cross the road to the lake, however the quality of the room was no different to the Backpackers and caravan parks we have been staying in.
Brekkie - bacon and egg bap at bakery across from base backpackers.. really good!
lunch - 2 sushi rolls $3.80
arvo snack - amazing anchos at Coyote Grill , 1166 shotover st $13.50
Dinner - delish seafood pizza at fat badgers $13 (if you have a larger group buy one of their massive pizzas)
Shotover Jet - $151
Onsen Pools $47.50
Rydges - $410 ($205 each for two nights)
Day Fourteen
Our last full day left in New Zealand and we went out with a bang.....
Heli Tours - browsing through bookme.com and came across a half price special for a heli tour so we booked in with excitement! It was the arrival flight and went for 25min. They have a free courtesy bus and we were picked up by our pilot, Ben, who was super friendly and made us feel very relaxed and not as nervous on our first helicopter flight. I am now addicted, the flight was amazing!!. You feel totally safe and we landed on one of the mountains nearby. Ben takes some great shots with your camera with your travelling buddies.
After our helitour we headed up to lunch with our Skyline Gondola, lunch and 5 luge ride package deal.. The gonodla is great fun to ride up and down and the lunch was delicious. You are supposed to pay $20 for a window seat but somehow we were upgraded for free!!! The luge was super fun and would be great for all ages. you have complete control how fast or slow you go and there are two tracks to choose from.
Tonight we headed out to a few bars, my fav was the Ballarat Trading Co. It looks a litle fancy during the day but at night they have a great band to have a dance to.
Brekkie - buffet at Rydges: FREE after complaining about broken shower in room
lunch - Buffet part of gondola package
dinner - maccas at midnight (classic after pub grub)
Heli tour $150
Skyline gonola, lunch a luge rides $98
coffee at "The Exchange" cafe $4.50
Day Fifteen
Home time... hope you enjoyed following our road triip!!!
Total Petrol $246.82 each (2 drivers)
Total kilometers travelled 3198km
Flight Gold coast to Auckland $186.50each
Total car hire $750 ($325 each)
Flight north island to south island $83
north island petrol $72.59 each
north island accom $221 each
north island activities $358.50
north island meals $161
south island petrol $174
south island accom $581
south island activites $704
south island meals $349
bookings made through...
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