Blogs from Bay of Islands, North Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 3

Firstly my apologies for being so tardy updating this blog and publishing it, New Zealand is such a fab country that we have been busy trying to get our absolute fill of it. We arrived in Auckland early morning to blistering sunshine and started our long (6hr) drive to Doubtless Bay in the Northland. I wanted to stop off and see the famed Hundertwasser mosaic toilets and have to say I was underwhelmed and don’t know what the hype was about. Kindly; it seems, Liz and Lesley lent us their holiday rain cloud and we drove into a sub tropical storm which rather stunted our plans for the first couple of days. We had booked into a small villa overlooking Cable Bay and had fantastic views for the first half hour and then the storm pulled ... read more

Common dolphins Bottle nose dolphins Back to Andy and Elise’s Went to Tutukaka to look at a boat with Andy Dinner at a Thai... read more

Our second week in Bay of Islands and our last week in New Zealand was super fun and relaxed! We cooked most our meals in so enjoyed cheffing up oysters, mussels, fish, steak and burgers. The barbecue was great to have and helped us keep on budget! One day we took the ferry over to the mainland and drove about 30 km north to the town of Keri Keri which is known for its oranges, kiwi fruit, vegetables and wine. Here we visited the Stone Store which is New Zealand's oldest stone building dating back to 1836. We also took the Keri Keri River Track leading to the beautiful Rainbow Falls. All in all, it was a great day! A highlight for us this week was the dolphin sighting cruise. And yes we spotted lots of ... read more

" We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us" . Anonymous Flight NZ 102 lifted lazily into the skies above Sydney and with, Auckland our destination, the prospect of visiting a new country took hold. We had done a lot of research on New Zealand in the week spent in Sydney but the wonder of travel is that it will be different to the picture framed in one's mind. As flights go this one on Air New Zealand was uneventful as we had a two row window/aisle seat so no one alongside to test us with quirky or strange mannerisms. A relatively short flight of about two and a half hours and the approach into Auckland confirmed that we were indeed arriving in the land of the long white cloud. Most ... read more

Geo: -35.1813, 174.199We stopped by Tahunanui Beach in Nelson in the morning before returning the rental car at the Nelson Airport. The car was returned scratch free after focusing on staying in the left lane for 3 days!Our flight took us from Nelson on to the Bay of Islands in the northern region of the North Island of New Zealand. We flew into Kerikeri, took a shuttle to the wharf in Paihia, and then a water taxi to Russell. The Bay of Islands is a subtropical micro-region known for its stunning beauty & history. For those that love beaches and water activities, it's paradise. It encompasses 144 islands between Cape Brett and the Purerua Peninsula and includes the boutique towns of Opua, Paihia, Russell and Kerikeri.We stayed at the Duke of Marlborough Hotel, which was the ... read more