Blogs from South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 1172

We got up early for our drive and rang the bell at reception to check out, the chick was nowhere to be seen and after speaking to another punter we were told that she doesn't ever show face before 09:30, now that was no good to us as we paid a $20 key deposit and I wasn't leaving without it, helpfully the other punter offered us the $20 and said she'd hand the key in when reception opened and get the money back, we thanked her and hit the road. On the long road to Greymouth, about half-way, Fiona started panicking that the key deposit was in fact only $10, there's nothing we can do now though, so if we ripped you off by $10 in Nelson please get in touch so Fiona can appologise. The ... read more

Doesn't have quite the same ring to it as the Gerry and the Pacemakers number but the having sailed across both I can say that this one wins hands down. It was an early crossing so we had to be at the port for 7am, the boat left at 8am and it was so foggy that we didn't hit top speed for a while, the crossing took about 20 minutes longer than expected and we docked in Picton at 10:35. The views from the ferry were amazing and it was roasting when we landed so a quick change into our shorts and we were ready for the 2 hour drive to Nelson. Picton looks nice and we're back here in a couple of weeks so took the opportunity to nosey about a couple of hostels then ... read more

Right, I have 27 mins left before the cafe closes and I can't even remember what I have done on what day so I'll do a quick top ? list.... 1. Abel Tasman National Park This was amazing - no one told me that the beaches would be so amazing here. We went on a two day trip - one day hiking and one day kayaking - we camped on the beach and went kayaking right up to the baby seals. How gorgeous were they!!! The views were fantastic and the kayaking was easy. We went with the Sea Kayak Company and had a really chilled out guide. It cost the same amount as doing a freedom kayak so it was def worth it as B and I hadn't done any proper kayaking before www.seakayaknz.co.nz. 2. ... read more

Rolling off the car ferry into Picton, the port at the top end of the South Island, is like driving into a slightly different world. The fjord like scenery of Malborough Sound gives a slightly mystical introduction to a land of lakes, mountains and waterfalls - where sheep are many and people are few. No wonder that this has become one of the "must sees" on the international backpacker trail... A real frontier land wilderness. There are towns and villages scattered about, but they tend to be sleepy affairs with some of the regular facilities, a couple of bars, a cinema showing slightly out of date Hollywood films, and caravan parks and camp sites from the same era. The towns are really reminiscent of Britain of the 50s or 60s - politeness from strangers, slow service ... read more

4 days, of amazing views. 5 nights Freezing cold crampt tents with Mike me and Clarke all sharing a 2 man tent hmmmmm i am still not over your farts Clarke they are disgusting but i admit they did keep us warm so i thankyou. I made a vital error whilst in Queenstown preparing for this trek. I did'nt buy any boots and had to make do with a pair of old sneakers. Not a good idea, but i made it! the sneakers did'nt. You feel like you've hiked to the top of the world on some parts of this track, its truely beautiful, also surreal to be walking along the side of a mountain to look down and see clouds beneath you and planes flying beneath you. Gorgeous part of the world so clean & ... read more