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Trip to New Zealand

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I am trying to plan a 3 to 4 week trip to New Zealand and possibly Fiji. Any thoughts or help would be greatly appreciated.
12 years ago, August 24th 2011 No: 1 Msg: #142343  
I will be graduating college in December, and I am finally getting an opportunity to travel. I am pretty set on a trip to New Zealand and possibly Fiji starting in late December and running about a month. I have traveled to Italy and Japan, but this will be my first time traveling alone.

I am kind of going into this blind so I would like to gain as much information about the two destinations as possible, and be able to have a basic plan. Any information regarding hostels, great things to do and see, and past experiences would be very helpful. Reply to this

12 years ago, August 26th 2011 No: 2 Msg: #142390  
B Posts: 11.5K
Hi darcstar,

Welcome to TravelBlog.

What to do in NZ is a popular question :-) Here's a few links from earlier threads on the topic;
South Island Hidden Gems

24 hours in Auckland

New to New Zealand -- help

Also, the blogs of thetravelbugtribe and AfricaBound are well worth checking out, they have some great entries from NZ. Reply to this

12 years ago, August 26th 2011 No: 3 Msg: #142408  
Thanks I'll check those out. Reply to this

12 years ago, August 31st 2011 No: 4 Msg: #142612  
Hi, The links above are great but you can check also
Tripadvisor New Zealand. This si one of the most popular websites for traveling. Fiji is also a very beautiful place. For both of the places you intend to visit I'd like to recommend you to book <snip>accommodation in advance
[Edited: 2011 Sep 02 10:58 - Jabe:6222 - No URL drops on forums, please.]
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12 years ago, September 2nd 2011 No: 5 Msg: #142667  
Darcstar8 welcome to Travel Blog!

I have been to New Zealand twice, once for 4 weeks in 1990 and for 4 weeks in 2008. Next time I will plan 8 to 10 weeks.

New Zealand is beautiful and amazing. In my opinion this is one of the best places to travel alone. I was alone on my trip in 1990 and made several friends. One of which I am still in contact with. The hostels will allow you to make friends from all over the world.

I believe the most common misconception or lack of knowledge that people have when visiting New Zealand for the first time is that they do not realize how long it will take them to travel from one location to the other. They have some nice roads but they are rather narrow and i think all of them go winding through some mountain. Up and down, twist and turning around the mountain. Not a single straight road in the country. So-- it takes longer than you think it would to get from one place to another.

You will find unlimited hiking, biking, and nature to explore.
More sheep than people.

Take a look at our page. We have 3 blogs from NZ

Beauty 'Round Every Bend

Nosing about on the North Island

Scones are woefully underrated!!!

One of my favorite places is on the south island, a town called Kaikora. The mountains meet the seashore and it is lovely. It is a good place for whale watching. There really is not a location in New Zealand that we dislike. Friendly people and beautiful country. We could sit and tell you stories for hours.

Speed boats and bungy jumping in Queenstown, scuba diving the Bay islands. Hiking, hiking, hiking. Beauty around every corner. Lovely architecture.

Fiji consist of about 300 islands of which most have no inhabitants. The main island is nice but I recommend ending your trip with a few days on one of the smaller islands laying by a pool. We stayed on Matamanoa Island. It is a small island with only one resort on it. Great diving and snorkeling. It is a bit of a splurge. Do some research to figure out what you are looking for as several have only one resort on them. The one we picked didn't allow kids under 14. Some are family oriented..... you get the idea.


[Edited: 2011 Sep 02 04:17 - D MJ Binkley:42569 ]

[Edited: 2011 Sep 02 04:20 - D MJ Binkley:42569 ]
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12 years ago, September 4th 2011 No: 6 Msg: #142787  
Please go to my blog on here under "use2bbandman"......my wife and I were in NZ for six weeks this past March/April.....and, we used hostels 90%!o(MISSING)f the time. Tons of posts and pictures....and information about hostels, cafes, things to see and do. We spent 3 weeks on each island, traveling by rental car. If you have any questions, PLEASE feel free to email me: <snip>

John Howser
[Edited: 2011 Nov 27 18:56 - Jo Trouble:16935 - Email address removed - please contact via private message.]
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12 years ago, September 14th 2011 No: 7 Msg: #143243  
B Posts: 128
Hi, congratulations on your upcoming graduation! Travelling alone in NZ is very safe I think. Plus, you will meet lots of people in hostels so you won't be travelling alone for long I'm sure!

There are some great recommendations already on here, but I would also recommend checking out the NZ Tourism website, 100%!P(MISSING)ure NZ, which has a huge amount of information about things to see. Plus, as people have already pointed out, other Travelbloggers will give you real-time and honest accounts of what they did. I really enjoyed reading Livingthedream's account of his travels in NZ.

What specifically are you interested in? Feel free to message me if you want specific advice - I live in Auckland currently, and have travelled almost everywhere in my own country!
[Edited: 2011 Sep 14 01:50 - RJT:54638 ]
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12 years ago, September 14th 2011 No: 8 Msg: #143294  

In response to: Msg #143243

Hey RJT. For some reason my computer will not let me message you.
I am kind of going into this whole thing without any direction, and would love to hear any suggestions you may have.
My flight leaves la on 1/3 and I will e arriving in Auckland on the 5th. I leave auckland on my way to nadi fiji on the 28th. My plan is to be outdoors as much as possible. Whether that's hiking or sea kayaking I'm really down for whatever. Small intimate towns would be awesome. I may also be looking at working at a farm through wwoof.
I guess what I am really trying to decide is after I spend a couple of days in Auckland which way to head next.

Thanks
Jacob Reply to this

12 years ago, November 27th 2011 No: 9 Msg: #147859  
B Posts: 128
Hi Jacob - sorry this is a very late response!

Generally speaking most visitors to NZ absolutely love the South Island scenery. Since you will be here in January you will be travelling in peak time, as this is when NZers mostly take their summer holidays too, but I'm sure you'll still be able to find a quiet spot. So to head down South from Auckland there's several options. A flight to Queenstown, which won't be cheap but will only take about 90 minutes. Otherwise it's long way by car or bus which would be a fantastic trip as you stop off on the way at various places. I particularly love the Abel Tasman, which you can hike or kayak through. It's at the top of the South Island, starting near Nelson, which is another one of my favourite places as well.

Queenstown is tourist central, but don't let that put you off because it's also a lot of fun. Not a cheap place to visit though! The scenery is spectacular, and there's plenty of outdoor things to do, plus plenty of places to find a party.

Another option is to head north of Auckland. The beaches on the east coast are truly stunning, and there are lots of very cute little beach towns dotted up and down. It's a very busy time of year, but a lovely atmosphere, and you would certainly get the real "kiwi summer" experience. I recently went away for a weekend to Matapouri, which is about 30 minutes drive from Whangarei, just over 2 1/2 hours from Auckland, and was blown away. I loved it! Perfect weather, gorgeous beach, laid back little town. But definitely not a party town!!

Also north of Auckland on the other coast are equally beautiful beaches, but these are the rugged west coast beaches, black sand and very dramatic scenery. If you head that way I recommend going to the Kauri forest and visiting Tane Mahuta.

It won't be hard to find a place to work through wwoof whereever you end up, north or south, they are dotted all over.

I will be on holiday in Mexico, otherwise I would suggest having a welcome drink in Auckland. Hopefully some of this is helpful. Have an amazing time!

Rachael


In response to: Msg #143294 Reply to this

12 years ago, November 27th 2011 No: 10 Msg: #147882  
While in NZ check out the glow worm caves. They are rather unique. I doubt they will be one of the top three things you see but you will be glad you took the time. Reply to this

12 years ago, November 27th 2011 No: 11 Msg: #147896  
B Posts: 11.5K
This is the site for the Waitomo Glowworm caves that MJ mentioned above. Reply to this

12 years ago, December 7th 2011 No: 12 Msg: #148446  
Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Does anyone have any information on the process of purchasing a car? I heard they can be pretty cheap, but I am kind of confused as to how everything works. Anybody gotten one before? Reply to this

12 years ago, December 7th 2011 No: 13 Msg: #148447  
B Posts: 11.5K

In response to: Msg #148446

TradeMe is a popular site for buying and selling pretty much anything here.

Hostel noticeboards could be an option too. You might get lucky and time your trip when someone else is needing to get rid of a car.

I'd also check out Couchsurfing - the CS group here in Auckland is quite popular, and travellers and locals alike often advertise for travelmates.
Are you already in Auckland? Reply to this

12 years ago, December 7th 2011 No: 14 Msg: #148502  
No. I will be in Auckland on January 5. I planned on staying there for maybe 2 days just to find a ride, and to kind of figure out a direction. Reply to this

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