Flight: ZRH - LAX / Duration: 12h / Departure ZRH: 10:00h / Arrival LAX: 13:00h
Spent night at Airport Park View hotel for 38 US$. The hotel is about 20min drive from LAX airport. There is a free shuttle service available. Bookings can be done at the tourist information desk in the arrival hall.
Flight: LAX - AKL / Duration: 14h / Departure LAX: 11:00h /....
08.02.01....Arrival AKL: 21:00h (missed a day due to passing the international date line)
Spent night at Airdale Hotel in the heart of downtown Auckland for 110 NZ$. There are busses from the airport to the hotels for 13 NZ$ a person. The hotel reservation can be done at the tourist information desk in the arrival hall.
Went to the Australian embassy to apply for a tourist visa. The procedure takes about 10 working days for citizens who are not treated electronically. Be prepared to queue up for about two hours.
Walk through the Auckland Domain Park. New Zealands famous huge ferns are to be found in the rain forest valley of the park.
Visit the War Memorial Museum in the same park. This museum contains a lot of Maori culture like ships, carvings and houses
There is a Maori show taking place every two hours. The Maori dancers and singers show their famous haka (a war-dance)
Spent evening hours on the Sky Tower. There is a superb view over the city of the sails (and volcanoes). The entry costs 15 NZ$ per person.
Transfer to the airport by taxi for about 40 NZ$.
Flight: AKL - CHC / Duration: 1h / Departure AKL: 10:00h
Rent a car at Auto Rent for 564 NZ$ for 10 days. We could do the reservation at the tourist information desk. There were only about 5 cars left.
Trip from Christchurch to Oamaru (200 km)
Arrival in Oamaru at 16:00h
Spent night at Motel Avenue for 65 NZ$ (one of the cheapest offers)
Excursion to the Dwarf-Penguin colony at 21:30h. The colony is a few hundred meters south of town at the coast. The birds come ashore after sunset before it gets dark
Trip from Oamaru to Invercargill (400km)
Stop at Moeraki coast shortly after Oamaru. The beach is full of round pieces of rock called Moeraki Boulders. These phenomena cannot be explained geologically.
Excursion to Otago Peninsula at Dunedin.. There is supposed to be a lot of wild animals on the peninsula. Unfortunately we did not encounter any. There were no albatrosses breeding at this time of year.
30 mins. hike to the Matai Falls at the Catlins. Nice fern forest but falls are not spectacular.
Cathedral Cove was not reachable due to high tide
Catlins have some interesting bays but all accomodation was booked up, therefore we had to keep on driving past these spots.
Arrived in Invercargill at 19:00h and spent night at Townsman Motor Lodge.
Trip from Invercargill to Te Anau via Riverton, Tuatapere and Manapouri (200km)
The south coast can be compared with the west coast. The shore-line is packed with driftwood. Fog-banks give a touch of surrealism to that coast.
The suspension bridge at Clifden is a nice place for a short stop.
Lake Manapouri is one of the Southern Alp lakes. They are usually quite long but not too wide. There is hardly any settlement around. Even roads are rare. Usually there are one or two boats available (for tourists). As there is hardly any water traffic existing, seaplanes are quite common.
Arrived in Te Anau at 14:00h and spent 2 nights in Garden Park Motel a few meters away from the seafront.
Te Anau is a growing tourist-resort, especially used as a base for trips to the fiords.
Excursion to the Milford Sound (200km / returntrip)
On the way between Te Anau and Milford Sound there's a few spots which are worth to have a stop and take some pictures. The last part of the road after lake Gunn is quite spectacular. The landscape gets rather alpine before you enter in the Homer Tunnel which is rather narrow, dark and has an incredible gradient. After that, green steep mountains appear and after a few hairpin bends you enter rain forest.
The 2hour boat-trip on the Sound costs 45 NZ$ and is absolutely recommendable. The waterfalls and the nearly vertical slopes of the mountains are very impressive.
The walk after the boat trip to the nearby Bowen Falls takes about half an hour there and back. Be aware of thousands of sandflys.
There is another walk to the Chasm on the way back. The Chasm is a narrow deep canyon in dense rain forest. You can see how the water works out its way through the rock.
Another stop is at the mirror lakes, which are a few ponds having turquoise blue water. If there is no wind, they serve as mirrors to make one's morning toilet.
Trip from Te Anau to Queenstown (200km)
Arrival in Queenstown at 13:00h
Spent night at Goldfields B&B for 90 NZ$. It was not easy to find accommodation in Queenstown.
Excursion to Shotover river, Arrowtown and the Kawarau suspension bridge. Jetboat riding is a famous tourist attraction. The boats rush through the narrow Shotover canyon nearly hitting the rocks. Arrowtown is supposed to be a ghost town but isn't at all. The western style town used to be inhabited by gold miners. Nowadays it is crowded with tourists. The Kawarau suspension bridge is where bungee jumping was born. Interesting to watch people jumping from the bridge. Some good jumpers even hit the water.
The excursion to Bob's Peak by cableway is a must. The view over Lake Wakatipu is breathtaking.
Queenstown has some streets packed with restaurants, bars and cafes. People are sitting outside in the evening hours having a few drinks and have a chat about their daytime adventures.
Queenstown is a place where you can spend a lot of money, it's trendy....But it is not for what I would go to New Zealand.
Trip from Queenstown to Haast via Wanaka (300km)
Spent two hours in Puzzling World in Wanaka. There is a maze and a fascinating exhibition about tricks of the senses. In inclined rooms the billard-balls seem to roll upwards and it appears that people fall over. The maze has four towers, one per angle. These towers have to be reached before finding the way back out. The turn easily takes 45 minutes or more.
The land before the Haast pass is quite dry. On the other side there is a complete change. The valley is covered with rainforest. Waterfalls are all everywhere. And rain is pouring down. We reached the Wetcoast....sorry Westcost.
Haast is a small settlement with a few houses, two hotels ..or three and a pub.
Spent night at Heritage Motel for 110NZ$
Excursion to Jackson Bay and drive up to Greymouth via Fox and Franz Josef(400km)
There is a romantic jungle path at Jackson Bay which leads to the cost on the other side of the peninsula. Jackson Bay is another settlement but looks much poorer than Haast. There are some huts, a ship wreck and a few caravans which will never go on the road again.
The coast up to Greymouth is wild and packed with driftwood. The two famous glaciers, Fox and Franz Josef, are a bit disappointing. Can't say which one is more interesting. The wheater was bad, clouds were hanging deep. An interesting aspect is the subtropical rainforest in front of the glacier.
Stayed over night at Paroa Motel near Paroa Beach for 89 NZ$ 10km away from Greymouth
Trip from Greymouth to Kaikoura via Lewis Pass and Waiau (300km)
Gold miners town Shantytown is not worth a visit. It is too kitschy.
The change of vegetation on the Lewis Pass is quite amazing. Cows are grazing on green meadows at the western part and the eastern side is completely dry, yellow and brown colors predominate
Spent 2 nights in Kaikoura at Boat Shed, a bungalow at the Esplanade.
Whalewatching in the morning.
Modern jetboats bring tourists to the spots where whales have been sighted. The price of the trip is 90 NZ$ per person. Children pay a bit less. The Sperm Whales can be found with the help of hearing-sensors. The animals produce a noise which can be compared with jumbo jet engines. Therefore it is possible to make them out from distances of a few kilometers. Unfortunately there is not much to see. Almost 99 % of the animal is under water. The whale spends 50 minutes diving and turns up on the surface for about 10 minutes. Before it disapears completely, it raises its tail out of the water. And this is the moment where all cameras have to be ready to shoot. Whales are lone animals. On a 3 to 4 hour trip you can see about 1 to 3 animals. Dolphins might accompany the boat. They are jumping and demonstrating their tricks in front of the boat as if they were in a circus.
Hike over the riffs to South Bay in the afternoon and back on the shore walkway. The way there takes about 1hour and back about 2 1/2 hours. As the tide was still quite high, there were no other people at the coast. Therefore dozens of seals were taking a siesta on the beaches. Usually they try not to stay too close to humans, unless they are in the water.
Missing information for this day. Suppose we drove to Christchurch and spent a day there.
20.02.01Flight: CHC - AKL / Duration: 1h / Departure CHC: 11:00h
Rent a car in Auckland at ARF for 54 NZ$ a day. The company is ok, but far away from the airport, and they do not offer transportation back there. A taxi costs about 30 NZ$.
Trip from Auckland to Whangarei (200km)
Spent two nights in Motel Casablanca for 80 NZ$ (Big appartment and good service)
Roundtrip: Whangarei - Dargaville - Omapere - Kaikohe - Kerikeri - Paihia - Kawakawa - Whangarei (300km)
The Kauri trees at Waipoua Forest Sanctuary are quite impressive and worth to visit. A Kauri tree can get the age of up to 2000 years, height of about 50 meters and a diameter of 5 meters. People used to cut most of the Kauri trees in the early days, therefore there's not many left. Impressive is Te Matua Ngahere, the so called father of the forest.
At Omapere, shortly after leaving the forest, there is a fantastic view to the sand dunes at the other side of Hokianga Harbour.
Bay of Islands is very touristy and well populated. And the bay is plenty of sails. In Paihia it is worth renting a sea-kayak for 10 NZ$ an hour and explore the nearby islands. The water is amazingly warm as in other parts of North Island.
In Kawakawa the austrian artist Hundertwasser built a public toilet at the main street in the small town. It is recognizable by its peculiar pillars.
Trip: Whangarei - Orewa - Devonport - Orewa (200km)
Visited Devonport and took a ferry to downtown Auckland where we picked up the passport at the Australian embassy. There is a superb view from Devonport to downtown. It is also worth taking a ferry and take a few pictures of Aucklands skyline.
The beach in Orewa is quite ok. As Orewa is about 20 km north of Auckland, it is one of the closest beach resorts. To get to the airport might still take about 3 hours drive as you have to cross the city from north to south.
Spent one night in Beachcomber Motel right accross the beach avenue.
Trip from Orewa to Waitomo Caves via Auckland (200km)
Visited the Kiwi house in Otorohanga for 12 NZ$....Just to have seen the animal. If people in New Zealand talk about Kiwis, they refer to the bird which has a long beak, round body, cannot fly and is active at night. It is the symbol of New Zealand. Their citizens are called Kiwis. The fruit is not as important as the animal. It is mostly used for export. 'Kiwis' are not actually Kiwi consumers. And the business is in a crises as other countries started its cultivation.
Hills and hollows, rivers which appear and disappear characterize Waitomo. There are caves all everywhere. We did the Blackwater Dry tour which includes transport to a cave quite away from the most touristy places and a boattrip through the underworld. Over us a starry sky of glowworms. The trip cost 35 NZ$. By the way, staying 1 hour in the cave includes a 20 minutes coffee break.
Spent night in Glowworm motel at Hangatiki, about 10km away from Waitomo.
Trip from Waitomo Caves to Rotorua via Taumarunui and Taupo (300km)
On road 41 between Taumarunui and Lake Taupo there is a fascinating view to the volcanos Mt. Tongariro and Mt. Ruapehu
Lake Taupo is a big expance of water. The Huka Falls in Taupo are worth a visit.
In Orakeikorako there is a thermal area called hidden valey. It is a bit smaller and has less tourists than the popular areas near Rotorua. But there's almost everything available which takes part of a thermal area: sinter terraces, mud pools, geysers and a cave.
Rotorua is the thermal center of New Zealand consisting of hotels, hotels and thermal baths.
Spent 2 nights in Motor Inn for 49 NZ$ a night. This was the cheapest place we have been to, but still offering all facilities of a standard motel. Even a spa (whirlpool) was available.
Excursion to volcanic sites of Rotorua region
Waiotapu Thermal Wonderland is one of the highlights of New Zealand. The lakes and pools and rocks are of different colors depending on their chemical composition. The most fascinating spot is champagne pool in a basin of red rock. At 10:15 am. there is an eruption of Lady Knox geyser. One of the park-guards fills the crater with washing-powder which helps to break the 'wall' of the surface liquid against the high pressured boiling water underneath. After a few minutes of bubbling and lathering the hot water is being spewed out in a huge fountain. The geyser has been discovered by prisoners who went to wash their cloths at the thermes. Lady Knox was the wife of the prison manager and was impressed of the spectacle.
Trip around lake Rotorua with a stop at the Agrodome where there is a zorbing ground besides other activities.
Trip from Rotorua to Hahei via Bay of Plenty (200km)
There are a lot of Kiwi fruit plantations along the coast. They are similar to vineyards framed by 10 meter high hedges.
The coast at Hahei is fantastic. Beaches are in small bays reachable through narrow paths with stairs down the rock. Small waterfalls serve as showers. The most famous beach is Cathedral Cove. A cave connects the two beaches. The hike takes about one hour from Hahei.
Spent two nights at Haylyn for 80 NZ$ a night. This was the highlight in accomodation. The view from the hotel over the bay is unbeatable.
Spent a few hours at the beach in the morning
Crossed Whitianga Harbour by ferry and had lunch in Whitianga
Drove to Hotwater Beach to participate at the thermal spectacle which takes place at low-tide ( 5:30 pm ). There is a small spot at the beach where there are hot water springs. The springs are usually under water except about one hour during low tide. People dig holes with spades which are available at the hotels in the area. The thermal water combined with sea water reaches an agreeable temperature of about 35° C. People relax in the natural pools until the tide starts flooding the area again.
Trip from Hahei to Auckland via Coromandel and Thames (200km)
The western shore of Coromandel is not as spectacular as the eastern side. There are no beaches and the sea is still. It is worth to drive along the coast from Miranda to Auckland instead of taking the motorway. There are a few spots to take a break and have a swim.
Spent night at Auckland Motor Lodge which is in the suburbs of Auckland, nothing spectacular but close to ARF car rentals.
Flight: AKL - SYD / Duration: 3h
Spent 5 nights in shabby backpacker called Alfred Park Accommodation near Central Railway Station. A room with 3 beds without bath cost 99 AU$. The backpacker has a free phone number at the arrival hall at the airport and offers free shuttle service (but only the way to the 'hotel'). At first glance, it seamed to be a nice inexpensive hotel at a central place, but...Anyway we could not change because all Sydney was booked due to the Mardi Gras parade.
Bought a 5 day travel pass for 36 AU$ per person which allowes you to travel by train, bus and boat within Greater Sydney area.
Went to Circular Quay in the evening and took pictures of the opera.
Excursion to Waratah Koala park. Actually it is not allowed to take the Koalas in your arms as it is shown on the advert. At least there is free access to the Kangaroo enclosure and the animals can be fed.
Had dinner in China Town. The restaurants put their tables outside where you can eat and watch people passing by.
Excursion to Olympic City. All these modern stadiums appear sterile and abandoned. It is like a modern ghost town.
The famous Mardi Gras gay parade is a bit disappointing compared to other less famous events like the Street Parade in Zurich.
Excursion to Manley. Stayed at the beach all day. The waves were incredibly high. For non surfers there was only a narrow section allowed for swimming. At 3 pm. the sea access has been closed entirely by the baywatch team which was busy all day with blowing their whistle or shouting at swimmers who broke the rules.
Had dinner at Hardrock Café.
Went to Bondi in the morning. It was a cold and windy day. Therefore the beach was quite empty.
Handicraft shopping can be done at Pitt Street or at the Rocks. Latter is better in quality. Aboriginal art is quite interesting. They have beautiful paintings.
Flight: SYD - LAX / Duration: 14h / Departure SYD: 11:00 am. Arrival in LAX at 07:00 am at the same day.
Spent a few hours at Airport Park View hotel for 38 US$.
Flight: LAX - ZRH / Duration: 12h / Departure LAX: 15:00.
Arrival ZRH in late morning