Top New Zealand hotels
Queen Street & Downtown Auckland
35 Reviews If you want to shop or just look around in Auckland go to Queen Street. It is the major commercial area of Auckland CBD. It is a quite long street from the Upper Queen Street beginning at Newtown Road...
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City Center Christchurch
154 Reviews Update 26 November 2011 Having lost his stage - Cathedral Square - in the February earthquake, the Wizard had been out of action for many months. But now this Christchurch icon has regained his...
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Skyline Gondola and Restaurant Queenstown
46 Reviews my favorite activity..there are so many trails to explore, either by foot or biking. My favorite is "Skippers road" in the "skippers canyon" of course. It's easy to get to, for info ask people from...
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Mt Victoria Wellington
13 Reviews If you have no car or are not into hiking or just too short of breath to make a longish uphill walk, put the Mt. Victoria Lookout on your Things to do list of a weekday. Strangely enough, the Metlink...
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Skyline Gondola & Luge Rotorua
21 Reviews This is not to missed, fun for all the family, fast or slow it's up to you with beginner, medium and fast tracks! Take the Gondola up the top of the moutain which has panoramic views and enjoy riding...
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Cape Kidnappers. Napier
13 Reviews There are a lot of coastal wineries next to Cape Kidnappers, Elephant Hill, Clearview, Te Awanga Estate, and Beach House Winery. There's a good range from modest to not so, we had a fantastic day...
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Hole in the Rock Paihia
9 Reviews On the way back to town, the boat allowed a few of the insane passengers to venture into the freezing cold water to ride a net. Sorry folks, but I?m from a tropical country so I gave this a miss. The...
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Oneroa Waiheke Island
10 Reviews Every Saturday morning 8.00am - 1.00pm, the Island holds a community market at the RSA in Ostend. Lots of gifts, arts and crafts, second-hand goods, and even entertainment, organic produce, books,...
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Castle Hill Arthur's Pass National Park
4 Reviews You won't miss Castle Hill. About an hour out from Christchurch, along a fairly straight stretch of road, the weird rock formations of Castle Hill attract a more or less permanent huddle of...
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Climb the mount Mount Maunganui
8 Reviews There are also other routes for those that are afraid of heights which avoid the steep drops.. If you follow the 4x4 track it will also take you to the top, it is a steep climb but you miss the...
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Blue Penguin Colony Oamaru
6 Reviews Visit Oamaru for a Penguin evening in the Blue Penguin Colony. Those penguins nest in town close to the harbour. There is a little Blue Penguin Reserve/Visitor Centre. You pay about 8$ entrance. Go...
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The Big Sheep Wool Gallery. Tirau
3 Reviews When it comes to big sheep, I'm reminded of the one on the outskirts of Goulburn in N.S.W. but this is certainly a worthy challenger. Situated right beside the tourist centre it offers all sorts of...
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Beehive & Parliament Buildings Wellington Region
9 Reviews Free tours of Parliament Buildings operate every day, on the hour. Tour duration is 1hr. Weekdays commencing 10am, last tour 4pm; Saturdays and most public holidays commencing 10am, last tour 3pm;...
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Cathedral Cove Coromandel
5 Reviews We had seen Cathedral Cove on many documentaries, so we had to see it for ourselves! Cathedral cove is only accessible by walking or boat and it is a MUST VISIT if you feel you can handle the walk....
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Waitakere Range Regional Park. Auckland Region
12 Reviews Piha Beach is situated at the end of Piha Road going through dense native bush. Suddenly the road winds down to the coast. There are wonderful views over Piha Beach, divided through the huge 100...
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Bay of Islands North Island
4 Reviews This is a rustic and picturesque bay with many islands dotting. There are many tours including sailing in all kinds of vessels, being dragged in net, island cruising or dolphin watching. We saw wild...
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Bay of Islands. Northland
16 Reviews When visiting the Bay of Islands area we had to make at least one cruise to see at least a couple of the 144 islands. We decided to make the "Cape Brett Hole-in-the-Rock Cruise" with Fullers, leaving...
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Canterbury South Island
24 Reviews There are many reasons why you may consider adding Arthur's Pass National Park to your itinerary. For some, it makes a great coffee break between Christchurch and the West Coast of the South Island....
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Devonport Auckland
31 Reviews Devonport was one of the highlights for me when I went to Auckland. Located on the north shore it is just a 12 minute ferry ride away from downtown Auckland. (This is one of the best ways to see the...
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International Antarctic Centre Christchurch
24 Reviews A very realistic glimpse of life in the Antarctic region can be experienced at the very popular Antarctic Centre which is touted as the gateway to Antarctica. The museum cum amusement park of sorts...
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Jet Boating Queenstown
27 Reviews At Shotover River is known for it's jet boats. I passed on this experience having done it before on a Huka Jet near Huka Falls.This is a fast boat ride in shallow water and the driver comes very close...
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Parliament Buildings & Beehive Wellington
29 Reviews The Beehive is a Parliament office building located next to Parliament. It is shaped like, you guessed it, a beehive, and is a unique building that has seen plenty of controversy about its design....
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Wai-O-Tapu Rotorua
34 Reviews Wai-O-Tapu is one of my fondest memories of Rotorua, you get to see an assortment of Thermal wonders all around the same area, if you do not do anything else make sure you check this place out! Bring...
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Marine Parade Napier
15 Reviews Marine Parade, as the name suggests, runs along the sea front. The area is very nice. The fountain here, we only saw in the day time, but at night it is lit, I think in different colours. THE NEW...
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Haruru Falls Paihia
5 Reviews They're not really high falls by any means, but they are in a horseshoe shape, which is evidently rare, Niagra Falls being cited as the only other horseshoe shaped falls known. Beware of your...
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For a marvelous overview of the Maori way of life, their art and their culture this is the place to visit. The importance of the fern and the reason for its use as a symbol of life are fascinating and enlightening. The exhibits are well spaced, the walks around and the views from the lookout well worth the time spent here. The walk through the Rain forest is awesome!
If your an adventure seeker and/or an adrenaline junkie, then you must try sledging.Go to this website and learn more about it.Basically its like rafting that you go on class IV plus rapids. But without a raft or paddles. Your on a plastic boogie board with handles, fins and a hockey helmet with full face guards. If you have seen the episode of Amazing Race, this company was the company who did that challange.What a thrill! Word of serious warning: You have to honestly evaluate yourself to see if you can menatally and physically do this. If you can, then do it.SuperSize tip: There are natural hotspings and spa establishments around the area. Get dropped off to one after your adventure to soak your tired and probably bruised body. Enjoy!Kia Ora!
Described by Rudyard Kipling as the "8th wonder of the world" Milford Sound is situated 120km's north of Te Anau on the South Island of New Zealand. It is very much a top visitor destination and off the beaten path at the same time given its remote location.First settled in 1877, the original route to Milford weaved around the Darren Mountains and over the McKinnon Pass. The track is known today as the Milford Track (approx. 52km long) and was the only way to enter Milford other than via the sea. Milford Sound isn't, strictly speaking, a sound - it's a fiord. A sound is a river valley flooded by the sea, following a rise in sea levels. A fiord on the other hand, is a glaciated valley that has been flooded by the sea after the glacier's retreat. Milford Sound was not discovered until 1877 and by complete accident. A ship was looking for refuge from a storm when it went into what they...
Abel Tasman National Park is on the North Coast of the South Island. At 22,530 hectares Abel Tasman is New Zealand's smallest national park. The main towns to stay at are Nelson or Moteuka. I would recommend the latter as its closer.I was really lucky when I was there that the weather was beautiful. I took a water taxi from Marahau to Totaranui at the end of the coastal track . It was a 3 hour round trip and passed lovely beaches. Parts of the track came down to the sea and rounded the headlands.There are 8 huts in the park; 4 along the Coast Track and 4 Inland. There are also 20 campsites with a water supply and toilets. All Coast Track huts and campsites must be booked all year round. Bookings can be made online or by post, fax, email, phone, or in person at some offices. At Totaranui there is a campground with basic facilities; toilets and cold showers but no power. Bookings are...
South of Lake Taupo, in the Alpine region of Tongariro National Park, there is a reknown and exhilirating One Day walk, called the "Tongariro Alpine Crossing". So named because you are trekking on Mt Tongariro and traverse the expanse and levels of the many craters that remain there today.Many times this walk has been written up as One of the Finest One Day Walks. Judge for yourself, but remember to respect and heed the weather advice , and honour the mountain that can change in minutes.For more details and for more photos, go to my page here.(Be sure to scoll down on that page and view the linked travelogues which hold more worthwhile photos.)You will need adequate clothing and protection for this walk, it's not just a mere 'walk in the park'. Each year, almost, people have to be rescued or even die as a result in the weather turning bad.
Get a piece of plastic with 2 handles and go face first down rapids up to grade 4. Only a hockey mask to protect your head, a wetsuit and a life jacket. Hold on and prey!!Think white water rafting with no boat.Big rocks, bruises and much much fear.
If you enjoy hiking and have a reasonable level of fitness and agility, you may like some of our walking tracks. This one, The Kepler 60kms, is in the very scenic area known as Fiordland National Park. You can trek either direction, and it returns to the same point of finish/start. I recommend travelling to Luxmore Hut first and then to Iris Burn hut, not the other way. This means you traverse the tricky and steep staircase in the alpine section, going downhill not uphill.You go through a really nice variety of terrain ranging from Beech forest to alpine ridgetops to river valleys and lake fronts. All isolated places made more easily accessible by this great track.You can view my photos and report on my Kepler page.
Apart from being the national museum, it is situaed on the waterfront and is also a convention centre. While having our conference, we got a chance to look at some of NZs history. The souvenier shop has some unique & authentic Kiwi things to take home.
When we got to Rotorua, we had just 24 hours to pack as much into the day as we could. So we planned all kinds of adventures. To start off, we went to the Skyline rides on the mountain overlooking Rotorua. We were up there at 8:30AM and travelled up the gondola. We ate breakfast in the skyline terrace at the top of the gondola ride (they serve it all day), then we went mountain on the mountain luge. (see website). At 12:30, we left the mountain and our white water rafting guides picked us up at the base station for the gondola. We drove for about an hour and then spent 3 hours white water rafting in pristine, clean waters with not a building or person to be seen. Once we finished this, our river guides drove us to the base station for some late lunch and then dropped us off at the polynesian spa in Downtown Rotorua. What a way to end the day, in the sulphur baths. We soaked our sore...
After getting off the ferry head for the Picton Scenic drive. It should be marked on the map. Its basically a winding minor road that hugs the coast with great views of Queen Charlotte Sound. The sea and the sky are deep blue and there are lots of smal inlets and generally nice scenery.
Copthorne Hotel Commodore Christchurch Airport Christchurch
6 Reviews and 293 Opinions Prior to the earthquakes, I have always stayed in town at some renowned hotel chains. When I was...
SKYCITY Grand Hotel Auckland Auckland
7 Reviews and 434 Opinions The rooms and hotel in general were nicer than expected, and service was good. While this hotel may...
Browns Boutique Hotel Queenstown
1 Review and 170 Opinions Within stroling distance from the main town. Welcoming and homely. A warm cozey room admist the cold...
Reviews and photos of New Zealand attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for New Zealand sightseeing.
Q: Last time in NSW/Australia it was quite easy to find good parking-places for my small motorhome, partly INside the villages, but...
A: With "official parkinglots" I mean rest-area along highways and other roads, such "Rest and revive-places" that are announced along the bigger roads ! I also saw some of...
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