New Zealand

Whenever I travel I try to stay in local places, or fun places… Here is a list of places I stayed in New Zealand:

• Taumanunui – Bradley’s Garden Bed and Breakfast  –  This was the nicest bed and breakfast.  The grounds are amazing, there is a spa, garden and views out the ears!  The owners are super nice and friendly.  The room was quite large with a nice bed with amenities including a coffee bar and refrigerator.  It is outside of town in a wonderful rolling green hill setting.  I highly recommend this wonderful bed and breakfast.

• Taihape – Aspen Court Motel  –  A nice clean small hotel located in Taihape.  Reasonably priced and a very helpful owner.  The room was large, very clean and full of amenities including a coffee bar and refrigerator, including a very large spa tub.  Just outside of the downtown area there are some fun places to eat in town.  Specifically Le Cafe Telephonique was a nice little spot with very good food.

• Blenheim – Chateau Marlborough  –  A large hotel located just outside of the downtown area.  The room was large clean, and nice  with good amenities including a coffee bar and refrigerator.  The staff quite helpful.  The breakfast was a little overpriced but alright.  There are better options in town.

• Fox Glacier – Fox Glacier Lodge  –  The owners of the Fox Glacier lodge are quite accommodating.  They waited up until 11pm for us to arrive and made check in quick so we could rest in the room.  They were even so kind as to make sure we had eaten dinner and offered us some of theirs!  The room itself was large with good amenities including a coffee bar and refrigerator and quite clean.  There were two rooms, one bed room and one main room both with beds.  The location was quite good as it is right in town and Fox Glacier is a small town.

• Christchurch – Airport Palms Hotel  –  The Airport Palms is a larger hotel consisting of several buildings housing 4-5 units each.  The room was normal sized and clean with good amenities including a coffee bar and refrigerator.  The shining star of this place is the owners.  They were so helpful, going out of their way to make sure that we had what we needed as well as recommending places to eat and arranging taxis for the airport.  Location could be better but it isn’t far from downtown or the airport.

New Zealand is the land of out door adventures.  Here is a brief rundown of the things I did:

• Waitomo Glow worm caves  –  If you are going to New Zealand you should make an effort to see a glow worm cave.  Not only can they be amazingly mesmerizing to look at but if you chose the more adventurous tour they can be very exciting as well!  A truly unique experiance is the black water rafting…..  something you just have to try for yourself…  BLOG POST
• White water rafting on the Rangitikei –  Fun people make for a great boating experiance.  River Valley Lodge provides some of the most fun raft guides I’ve had in a long time.  The river itself is world class as you tumble down rapids and small waterfalls not to mention the amazing topography.  Not as difficult as some rivers I’ve rafter in other countries but still worth a half day adventure! BLOG POST
• Tonogariro Alpine Crossing  – 12-13 miles of amazing views, impressive topography, and hiking in the shadow of a volcano?  Sign me up!  This is a tough steep hike but doable by someone in reasonably good condition.  Be prepared if you go though as it can be quite cold at the top.  BLOG POST
• Adventure Caving – Adventure caving on the south island is a true exciting experience.  You can get in a cave the way they should be experienced: as an explorer.  Underground Adventures does a great job allowing you to push your limits underground.  Warning though, this is not for the non adventurous. BLOG POST
• Hiking at Fox Glacier  –  What an impressive place!  You don’t want to miss the experience of seeing a thousands of years old sheet of ice that is larger than a small city!  My advice would be to arrange a tour though as you can’t get all that close without a guide.  BLOG POST
• Swim with dolphins – I put this in my skip it section as well.  I just wasn’t for me.  The water is cold and you barley see the dolphins.  I would recommend taking the harbor cruse instead so you can stay warm and enjoy these amazing creatures as they dart around the boat.

New Zealand is a land of many natural wonders.  Here are a few of the ones i saw:

• Red Crater (Tonogariro Alpine Crossing)
• Mt Doom (Tongariro Alpine Crossing)
• Fox Glacaier
• Rangitikei River
• Everywhere we drove on the South Island was breath taking!

New Zealand has so much to offer it is tough to narrow down the things that were amazing.  Here is a short list of things I think you should see while in India:

• Adventure Caving – It was one of the best cave experiences I’ve had.  This was a raw cave experience where you will get down and dirty in the cave.  You move through small spaces, climb underground waterfalls, repel into the cave, and traverse large crevices.  Definitely worth doing.  However it isn’t cheap.  BLOG POST
• Glow worm caves – We did the adventure tour at the Waitomo glow worm caves.  It was super fun but very different from the adventure caving done later.  Repelling, zip lining, black water rafting and a little climbing done here.  The glow worms make this an don’t miss experience.  Doing the more adventurous tour with help you get out of the large groups and into the farther back regions of the cave. BLOG POST
• Tonogariro Alpine Crossing – 13 miles of amazing scenery, crazy geology, and thermal vents.  Be ready, this isn’t an easy hike.  It gains 3000+ feet in the first 4 miles.  You also should make a reservation to be picked up at the finish before you start.  You can park your car at the finish and take the shuttle to the start.  That way you don’t have to worry about time constraints.  Here is the company we used: Mountain Shuttle  Make sure you bring plenty of water, sturdy hiking boots, snacks, and warm weather gear for the top. BLOG POST
• Fisherman’s Wharf restaurant in Lyttelton.  The local fishermen take their catch to this place.  The seafood is excellent.

As with every trip there are always things you wish you hadn’t wasted your time doing.  Here are a few:

• Swimming with the Dolphins in Lyttelton.  The water is freezing cold.  So cold that even a 9mm wetsuit can’t keep you warm.  Although there are a lot of dolphins in the bay they aren’t interactive.  You don’t get to touch them, and even having them swim near you is a lottery game.  Because you are at eye level with the water it is very hard to see them as they swim by.  You would be better served observing them from the boat where you can seem them swim around the area.  The company we used is called EcoSeaker (they did an excellent job) and they offer harbor cruises in addition to offering swimming experiences.  I recommend the cruise.
• Fox Glacier free hike – Although you can see the glacier it will be from 450m.  It is impossible to get any closer on your own.  If i could do it over again I would hire a guide so that i could approach the glacier and actually get to see it.  Or perhaps use one of the helicopter tours to actually land on and walk around on the glacier.

A few parting thoughts:

• You do not need to get your Visa in advance.  Although upon entry they do have strict quarantine standards.  If you are carrying camping or hiking equipment (including tents, boots, sleeping bags and more) they will want to look at them so when packing make it easily accessible. There was also no entry fee.
• There is NO tipping in New Zealand.  They are very proud of the fact that they pay their employees a fair wage.
• Prices are fixed in New Zealand.  We did not encounter any areas where you would bargain.
• They drive on the left side. If you aren’t comfortable driving a right hand drive car then don’t rent one.  The roads are windy and rain makes them quite slick.  Although driving is a WONDERFUL way to see this amazing and beautiful country.  We used Jucy Car Rental because they had no relocation fees. Although we got a better price from a third party website.
• Camper Van – This is a very popular option in New Zealand.  Everything from small vans to full on campers are everywhere.  This is a great option if you don’t mind doing it as you can go wherever you want when you want and stay where you want.  New Zealand is very camper friendly.
• Hop on Hop off – The bus system is extencive in New Zealand.  There are also inexpencive places to stay all over (hostles).  You could easily travel here on a very minimal budget.
• Book the interisland ferry in advance.  We used the interislander  for our ferry experience.  It was VERY full and if we hadn’t booked it weeks in advance we wouldn’t have gotten on.  They do have a restaurant as well as a gift shop and bar.