New Zealand

[BJ Ernest]

My partner and I are heading to NZ for 2 weeks in early July.
We'll most likely spend our time on the South Island as I really want to snowboard out of Queenstown for 4-5 days minimum but outside of that we're pretty free and easy.
Has anyone been there? Recommendations of places to see, stay and fun things to do!
Look forward to seeing what others have done

[The Dark Knight]

I've been to NZ 8 times, my mums a Kiwi so we go over there and visit mums family every 2-4 years. Our last trip there was 2009/2010 and mum wants to go back there this christmas/new years.

We've spent most of our trips on the North Island as most of my family lives in Wellington and my aunt and her family lives in Tauranga, which is a beautiful spot while dads best mate used to live in Auckland after moving from Adelaide originally. Personally I hate Auckland, it's a massive hole IMO. On the North Island we've also visted Rotorua, Napier, Hastings, Havelock North, all these places were really nice and a pleasure to stay at. Also went to Hobbiton which is located outside the North Island town of Matamata. Rotorua's hotbaths were a highlight as was Napier and Hastings beaches, we were lucky to get some nice weather when we where there on our second to last trip to NZ.

As for the South Island, off the top of my head I've been to Queenstown, Dunedin, Christchurch, Graymouth, a little place call Hamner Springs which had some beautiful hot baths and Fox Glazier on the Western side of the island. Queenstown was awsome, absolutely loved it there. I went Bunji Jumping there which was brilliant and jet boating with my brother which was expensive and pretty tame we both thought. Also went to the luge there too which was lots of fun. There's a luge on the North Island too, located outside of Rotorua. Dunedin was a nice spot but very cold, the chocolate factory there was the highlight for me and there's pretty cool sports museum there too. Christchurch was beautiful, very green but no idea what shape it's in now. Definitely hit up the Hamner Spring Hotbaths, they were great.

Hope this helps.

[Yardy Lard]

Been lucky enough to go twice to NZ playing cricket. Both tours were for nearly 2 months, and we did both Islands.

Luckily, one of my good mates is getting married next February, and I am going again to Auckland. The wedding is at the Estate Church Bay, which is part of the beautiful Waiheke Islands which is just a short ferry ride, off Auckland. Luckily again, we are staying for an extra 3 weeks, to catch up with all our old Kiwi friends on the North Islands, and if time permits on the South Island. We toured by car on both tours and will definitely be driving again, as I believe we saw just about everything when driving and could go off the beaten track.

Both Islands are terrific. Both contrasting however, The North Island has Auckland, Hamilton, Whangeri, Bay of Islands and the Hole in the Rock (must see), Napier, Hastings, Rotura, Wellington, Palmerston and a place they make the famous Kiwi drink - L&P, called Paeroa, which holds special memories. All of the places are lovely

South Island is glorious and very scenic. The Otago Valley is wonderful and also, the mountains just outside of Christchurch.

Cant beat Queenstown. So much to do and one of the most beautiful places, that I have seen anywhere in the world. Milford Sound is one of the natural wonders of the world, and I still cant explain the mirror lakes and magnificent waterfalls on the drive into Milford via the Homer Tunnel. Jump on a ski plane at Mt Cook Airport and go to the top of the Franz Joseph Glacier. The Mt Cook Hermitage is fantastic. Dunedin and Invercargill. Lake Te Anau was magnificent.

Only great memories from the two tours and we did a lot and saw a lot. Can't wait to get back there. I can say you will need at least 3-4 weeks to really see much of both Islands.

[woodublieve12]

Been lucky enough to go twice to NZ playing cricket. Both tours were for nearly 2 months, and we did both Islands.

Luckily, one of my good mates is getting married next February, and I am going again to Auckland. The wedding is at the Estate Church Bay, which is part of the beautiful Waiheke Islands which is just a short ferry ride, off Auckland. Luckily again, we are staying for an extra 3 weeks, to catch up with all our old Kiwi friends on the North Islands, and if time permits on the South Island. We toured by car on both tours and will definitely be driving again, as I believe we saw just about everything when driving and could go off the beaten track.

Both Islands are terrific. Both contrasting however, The North Island has Auckland, Hamilton, Whangeri, Bay of Islands and the Hole in the Rock (must see), Napier, Hastings, Rotura, Wellington, Palmerston and a place they make the famous Kiwi drink - L&P, called Paeroa, which holds special memories. All of the places are lovely

South Island is glorious and very scenic. The Otago Valley is wonderful and also, the mountains just outside of Christchurch.

Cant beat Queenstown. So much to do and one of the most beautiful places, that I have seen anywhere in the world. Milford Sound is one of the natural wonders of the world, and I still cant explain the mirror lakes and magnificent waterfalls on the drive into Milford via the Homer Tunnel. Jump on a ski plane at Mt Cook Airport and go to the top of the Franz Joseph Glacier. The Mt Cook Hermitage is fantastic. Dunedin and Invercargill. Lake Te Anau was magnificent.

Only great memories from the two tours and we did a lot and saw a lot. Can't wait to get back there. I can say you will need at least 3-4 weeks to really see much of both Islands.

Did this last week... Really good, quite rough too so it was fun getting out there in the jet boat... However one of the engines running out of petrol on the way in wasn't too good...

I was only on NZ for 6 days, up in the nth island. Realli liked it... Went to the caves with the glow worms which was good. i think its waitamo??? only problem with NZ i found was i bloody have trouble pronouncing the name of the places i went to...

[The Dark Knight]

Did this last week... Really good, quite rough too so it was fun getting out there in the jet boat... However one of the engines running out of petrol on the way in wasn't too good...

I was only on NZ for 6 days, up in the nth island. Realli liked it... Went to the caves with the glow worms which was good. i think its waitamo??? only problem with NZ i found was i bloody have trouble pronouncing the name of the places i went to...

Yeah mate the Waitomo caves, they are pretty neat.

[woodublieve12]

cheers mate...

I also forgot to mention the luge at rotorua... Had a blast doing that!! certainly get some speed on those... Plus you get a really good view of rotorua from there...

[The Dark Knight]

cheers mate...

I also forgot to mention the luge at rotorua... Had a blast doing that!! certainly get some speed on those... Plus you get a really good view of rotorua from there...

How good it the luge?! Bloody awsome. Been there twice, on our second to last trip to NZ they had no cameras above the gate so we kept jumping the gate instead of putting our tickets in to get free rides. Spent pretty much the whole day there.

[woodublieve12]

cheers mate...

I also forgot to mention the luge at rotorua... Had a blast doing that!! certainly get some speed on those... Plus you get a really good view of rotorua from there...

How good it the luge?! Bloody awsome. Been there twice, on our second to last trip to NZ they had no cameras above the gate so we kept jumping the gate instead of putting our tickets in to get free rides. Spent pretty much the whole day there.

Luge was bloody awesome.... Nearly stacked it several times... One of the highlights of the trip.
I went over to NZ with no real expectations for the trip because i never really thought of going over there, wasn't far enough away for an overseas trip, but got some real cheap flights, $430ish return from adelaide, couldn't say no to that... And from the little bit i saw i would definitely go back.
one thing that surprised me over ther was how many american franchises are over there. I'm not just ttalking bout burger king and macca's

[BJ Ernest]

Some great ideas and plenty to ponder on. Whether to extend the trip if possible although im trying not to miss more than 1 game of footy but could always be pushed to 2 if needed

Most likely to do the south island, with maybe 3-4 days in Auckland with friends (so possibly head out on a day trip or 2 from there to do some stuff.

Keep em coming though, loving the input!

[fathersonsfl]

Some great ideas and plenty to ponder on. Whether to extend the trip if possible although im trying not to miss more than 1 game of footy but could always be pushed to 2 if needed

Most likely to do the south island, with maybe 3-4 days in Auckland with friends (so possibly head out on a day trip or 2 from there to do some stuff.

Keep em coming though, loving the input!

Gee has Bazza mellowed in his old age?

I remember a few boys going away on holidays when he coached me in the early 90's and he nearly blew a gasket!!

[saintal]

Spent two weeks in January touring around some of the South Island in a campervan. Beautiful country. Some thoughts/highlights-

Lake Tekapo- worth a quick stop. Amazing backdrop/scenery.
Mt Cook- Loved the campsite here. Walk through the Hooker Valley was great.
Lake Wanaka- Worth a night’s stay.
Queenstown- Plenty to do. Skipper’s Canyon was magnificent. Jet boat fun. Moke Lake a perfect camping spot. Gondola/luge/indoor mini golf all fun.
Glenorchy- Take the drive out to Glenorchy. Scenic.
Te Anau- Walked some of the Kepler Track.
Milford Sound- Superb drive, especially after rain. Marian falls are worth the detour, as were Humboldt falls. Kayaking around Milford enjoyable.
Fox Glacier- Do a tour if you can. A definite highlight.
Kaikoura- Swimming with dolphins expensive but worth it. Lots of sea-life. Eat some crayfish.
Picton- Didn't see much of the North but did the Queen charlotte drive.
Christchurch- Depressing. Have to feel for the residents/businesses. Devoid of any life at the moment.

Unfortunately two days of rain washed away a bridge just south of Greymouth when we were there, so we didn’t make our way all the way up the west coast as planned (had to turn around at Franz Josef and backtrack to Wanaka and then onto Kaikoura..pain in the #%^& )

[Big Phil]

Albeit 4 years after we got married, my wife and I are finally going on our honeymoon, with a 14 day tour of New Zealand, leaving Boxing Day...

Looking forward to it, looks like it is a beautifully scenic country. Main tour is on the South Island with a couple of days on the North Island, also...

Really looking forward to it and completely have the travel bug now after just getting back from my first overseas trip, to Europe, back in August...

[bulldogproud2]

Albeit 4 years after we got married, my wife and I are finally going on our honeymoon, with a 14 day tour of New Zealand, leaving Boxing Day...

Looking forward to it, looks like it is a beautifully scenic country. Main tour is on the South Island with a couple of days on the North Island, also...

Really looking forward to it and completely have the travel bug now after just getting back from my first overseas trip, to Europe, back in August...

Good to hear, Phil. I know that Mags loved the Europe trip and you guys are going to love your honeymoon.
Will just be back from NZ myself then - doing a cruise down the east coast just before Christmas.

Cheers

[Q.]

@saintal and others

If I were to drive from Picton to Queenstown via the west coast, what would be some must see places and what is a realistic time-frame to do it in?

[The Dark Knight]

@saintal and others

If I were to drive from Picton to Queenstown via the west coast, what would be some must see places and what is a realistic time-frame to do it in?

Fox Glacier would be a must see place.

[saintal]

@saintal and others

If I were to drive from Picton to Queenstown via the west coast, what would be some must see places and what is a realistic time-frame to do it in?

Unfortunately our journey up the West Coast was terminated at Franz Josef, as torrential rain had washed out a bridge near Graymouth and it wasn’t going to be repaired in time. We had to double back to Wanaka and head up north via the East. So I cant give you too much advice.

My earlier post more or less summarised our itinerary. As far as the West Coast goes Fox Glacier was fantastic. We did a half day tour. You can do full day tours and flights also, but certainly half day was sufficient from our point of view. We walked to the bottom of FJ Glacier, but if you’ve seen one you probably don’t need to see the other. So apart from the two glaciers didn’t get to see much else on west coast. Jackson Bay is a decent enough detour if you have time to kill in Haast, but is sandfly capital.

One the beauties of NZ is the amount of daylight on offer each day (especially down south), so you can fit a lot into a day if you're motivated to do so.

[Pag]

Albeit 4 years after we got married, my wife and I are finally going on our honeymoon, with a 14 day tour of New Zealand, leaving Boxing Day...

Looking forward to it, looks like it is a beautifully scenic country. Main tour is on the South Island with a couple of days on the North Island, also...

Really looking forward to it and completely have the travel bug now after just getting back from my first overseas trip, to Europe, back in August...

Good to hear, Phil. I know that Mags loved the Europe trip and you guys are going to love your honeymoon.
Will just be back from NZ myself then - doing a cruise down the east coast just before Christmas.

Cheers

Would love to hear what you think of the cruise mate, looking at doing it next New Years.

[Big Phil]

NZ was awesome - absolutely loved it...

The only thing I was disappointed about was bad weather in Franz Jospeh, which meant our planned helicopter flight and glacier landing was cancelled...

Loved the cruise on Milford Sound and played golf in Queenstown, which was simply awesome...

My wife wants to move to NZ !!!

We'll be back there, for sure...

[Q.]

Just got back from 3.5 weeks in NZ, had a blast.

Spent the first week in Auckland and Wellington catching up with friends and acquaintances, unbeknownst to me we were put up in a $5mil beachfront property in Stanley Point during our Auckland stay which was pretty ******* sweet. Gotta say though, I preferred windy Welly as a city.

Drove anti-clockwise around the south island for the rest of the trip. Highlights are the usual suspects - seal spotting in Westport, sunset at Hokitika beach, trekking Fox Glacier, bungy jumping and paragliding in Queenstown, eating a shit ton of food in Dunedin.

The real highlight was NZ beer though. The country is not short of microbrewery's and not-so-micro-brewery's. My faves were Monteith's Double Hopped IPA, Speight's Porter & Mac's Sassy Red. So many to choose from though. Beer paradise.

I guess the only downside was the cold, and sometimes wet, weather. But then I saw the Adelaide heatwave and didn't complain anymore, even if I had only packed one jumper and two pairs of boardies that went virtually unused.

Highly recommend NZ. It's a piss easy country to get around in and the sheep-shaggers are a pretty good lot.

[godoubleblues]

NZ was awesome - absolutely loved it...

The only thing I was disappointed about was bad weather in Franz Jospeh, which meant our planned helicopter flight and glacier landing was cancelled...

Loved the cruise on Milford Sound and played golf in Queenstown, which was simply awesome...

My wife wants to move to NZ !!!

We'll be back there, for sure...

funny about that, we were there a few years ago at Franz Josef, a group of us doing the chopper flight to the glacier, sitting in the chopper ready to go, blades turning and it gets canned becoz of the weather. It fined up just nicely after that and we walked out to the face of the glacier, still had a great time though