New Zealand Tour

We flew out on Air New Zealand flights via Los Angeles. The long flight was one thing I was dreading with children age 6 and 10. I shouldn't’t have worried. There was so much for them to do during the two 12 hour flights, it went by quicker than expected. The touch screen TV with over 40 films on demand and games was used by all of us for most of the flight. The food was of a good standard and even the dreaded US transit went smoothly. On arrival we stayed in Sky City Auckland hotel, part of the Sky City Tower Complex which dominates the Auckland skyline. The hotel is a 3*+ rating with its sister property Sky City Grand offering true luxury in a very central location. The spa was amazing. I actually fell asleep during my massage! As this was a whistle-stop tour we only spent 2 days in Auckland and drove down South towards Rotorua. Rotorua is a real must for anyone visiting North Island. In addition to the thermal springs and geysers, it also has a real Maori village with obligatory war Haka and dancing staged daily. The hotel, Duxton Okawa Bay was on a lake shore and couldn't have been more perfect. The drive to Wellington was broken up by a one night stop in Napier in Hawks Bay country (best wine region of the North Island). Wellington is a big (relatively) modern city with an amazing Te Papa Museum in its centre, well worth a visit, and free! We drove our car to the port of Wellington and took a ferry across Cook straights. This was really easy as you drop off your car on North Island and pick up another one on South; a very efficient and smooth operation. As you near the South Island the ferry goes through Fjordland (Queen Charlotte Sounds) and the scenery is breathtaking, with calm waters and blue sky! Our first stop on South Island was Kaikora, the whale watching centre of New Zealand. Even though we had to get up early, everyone was so exited about the whale watching trip. There is only one company doing these, and they are very good. We managed to see 4 sperm whales on our 3 hour trip, with some amazing close-ups. It can get very choppy so you’ll need your sea legs on this one! After such an exciting morning we decided to stop at Hanmer Springs on our way down to Christchurch. What a great place, 12 Thermal Springs, all different temperatures, and you can swim or just sit in all of them. There was even a children’s pool with slides, which was a great hit with my two. Christchurch is called Little England and I can see why. The architecture and the layout is very European, our favourite of all NZ cities. The hotel in Christchurch was the Heritage, right in the centre with amazing family suites. It was bigger than the whole of our downstairs back home, I think! As we left Christchurch the drive took us across Canterbury plains towards Southern Alps. We had stopped so much, as around every corner the scenery was just so beautiful, picture postcard type of scenes! Our last stop was in Queenstown, the adrenaline capital of the world and the place where a first commercial Bungee Jump happened. We decided to take the safer option of a Shotover Canyon jet boat ride! Hurtling through a tight river canyon at 80 mph, some 10 cm away from the cliffs, is considered safer option here. Let’s just say we were shaken and stirred! My 10 and 6 year old wanted another go, straight away. Our hotel in Queenstown was the Gran Mercure Hotel St Moritz. We had a great family room with lake views and the food was great. The hotel catered for children although not many were there when we stayed. Queenstown was a great place to finish our New Zealand adventure. We can’t wait to go back!