Kaikoura is a wonderful spot in New Zealand! A local…
We’re Going to New Zealand!
Rob and I just booked tickets to New Zealand for almost all the month of February! We’ll be there four weeks total, flying in and out of Queenstown where he is speaking at a conference.
I have no idea where else we should go or what we should see. My only exposure is through The Flight of the Conchords. Help! Have you been before? Would love to hear suggestions and ideas.
Travel poster for New Zealand
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My son lives there. Been twice. Great country, beautiful mountains and coasts.
Christchurch is a must. I was there before the earthquake but it is coming back. Here is a blog to follow and perhaps a place to stay there. I stayed there in 2010, great location wonderful management.
http://centrepoint.prohost.mobi/?t=l94hp3jmp6utmq7mmrbi1op6h7
They are also on Facebook.
More later.
Web address for New Zealand news.
http://i.stuff.co.nz.
Without the “I” for desktop.
We did a lot of driving. Allow extra time, not one straight road in the whole place.
Lots of great hiking both north and south island.
And I am planning a trip to Croatia thanks to your travel diaries.
Thank you Jean for all these tips!
Hiking there is called tramping, not trekking. My mistake.
“Tramping” sounds quite fun!
New Zealand is such a beautiful country! I went a few years ago with my husband and parents. We spent most of our time on the South Island. I wish we had had more time to spend at each place we visited, and also more time to also explore more of the North Island!
On the South Island we hit Queenstown, Arrowtown (cute little historic mining town very close to Queenstown), Milford Sound cruise in the fjords (a must!), Dunedin and Christchurch (beautiful cities), Kaikoura (whale watching and mountains), Abel Tasman National Park (gorgeous beaches and forests), Punakaiki (pancake rocks and beaches), and the glaciers near Mount Cook. On the North Island we hit Auckland, Waitomo Glow Worm Caves, and Rotorua (hot springs). Everything was incredible and I would recommend any and all of those destinations. Extra special highlights were a sheep farm tour near Queenstown and a wildlife tour in Dunedin.
Also, I agree with all of Jean’s comments, especially about the drive times. I had used Google Maps to plan our drive times, but because the roads are often not straight highways, a planned 4-6 hour drive would often turn into a 6-8 hour drive. Plus everything is so beautiful you need to make time for spontaneous photo stops! 🙂
Happy planning!
p.s. Thank you for your blog! I’ve been following it for years now and love it!
Thank you for the suggestions, Cheryl! Much appreciated.