- Visit the World's Biggest Polynesian Market: Why go all around the Pacific Islands when you can get the best of it in the comfort of an Otara parking lot? Go hungry and feast on island goodies, smell the smells, and buy beautiful tapa cloth and top-notch Polynesian weaving.
- Swim with Sharks: You've got to be keen, I admit, but this can be done in perfect safety. Along with those charming, perfectly harmless tropical fish in the Poor Knights Maritime Reserve, you can come face to face with Jaws's South Seas cousins in a tough metal cage. Gisborne offers a similar knuckle-biting thrill.
- Visit a Maori Marae: Experience the hongi (the formal nose-to-nose Maori greeting), see deeply moving song and dance performances, and eat from a traditional underground hangi (oven). Do this in Rotorua as part of an organized tour experience, or seek permission to visit one of the dozens of East Cape marae (village common).
- Take the East Cape Road: Journey back in time as you travel the last remote outreaches of the Pacific Coast Highway. It's a feast of living Maori culture, stunning coastline, empty beaches, stockmen herding sheep on horseback, wild horses, and roaming stock (drive carefully) -- and it's the first place in the world to see the morning sun.
- Do the Eastern Bays Scenic Mail Run: Get a feel for real rural New Zealand as you whiz around lonely, unpaved roads delivering mail to far-flung farming families. Hear all the latest community news firsthand and see some stunning landscapes in the bargain.
- Whale-Watch in Kaikoura: When a mighty sperm whale flaps its tail at you, you won't forget it in a hurry. These big sea monsters come to this particular stretch of water for a marine habitat rich in their kind of plankton. Don't be surprised to see dolphins aplenty, too.
- Eat Bugs and Beetles at the Wildfoods Festival: Prime yourself! You'll need culinary fortitude for this mind-boggling event -- you could be served up anything from wriggling grubs to the unmentionable body parts of a number of wild and not-so-wild animals. The West Coast at its most rugged best.
- Drive into Skippers Canyon: Relive the pioneer days as you make your way into one of the hottest old gold-mining areas via a treacherous road guaranteed to take your mind off any other troubles you thought you had! Take a bungy jump while you're here -- if you dare. One thing's for sure -- it couldn't be any worse than the road.
- Stalk Kiwis at Night: And I mean the birds! Get ready for surprises on this little southern adventure. It's the only place in the country where you can creep about lonely beaches at night with flashlights and stealth and not get arrested! At the same time, you'll be one of the lucky few who get to see a wild kiwi foraging for its supper among the seaweed.
New Zealand Travel Experiences
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NZ South Island
We are having a wonderful time here in NZ with Pauline and Tony, but we are having a terrible time finding computer time - we are all tal... Continue reading »
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Hints and Tips - New Zealand
Here are a few hints and tips regarding NZHere is my list of places to visit in New Zealand, obviously biased towards those travelling wi... Continue reading »
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New Zealand - South Island
New Zealand has got to be one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. The scenery is indescribable...and will take your breath away!... Continue reading »
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Taranaki
Today we are in Hawera, in Taranaki, spending a couple of nights with Evan’s friend Andy. We had a lovely bbq last night, braving the win... Continue reading »
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New Zealand: Campervan - Taupo/New Plymouth
After staying the night in Auckland we were picked up from the Hostel by 'Explore More' who we were hiring a campervan off for the next 3... Continue reading »
