I only spent about 5 days in North Island but it seems like I've traveled to so many places as my schedule was quite packed. You can too if you wish to explore more just like me!
Hamilton
Hamilton is a city like Auckland but only less hustle bustle hence, a perfect place to live in if you ask me. We were so blessed to have our host family in Hamilton, not only is the location central hence, we do not have to shift our stuffs around so much while travelling but our host family treated us so well and warm. They even prepared us dinners every night we were there!
We did not spend much of our time here besides strolling around the park and city at night.
Matamata
Attraction:
Hobbiton and its hobbit holes. Personally, I felt that Hobbiton is overpriced at NZD 80 which comes with a drink at the end of the tour. Unless you are a big Hobbit fan, there really isn't much to crazy about here.
Food:
Green Dragon Inn is a famous hobbit hang out spot. The warm and classic interior is something that I truly enjoy. Unfortunately, you can only visit this place if you take the NZD 80 tour. 4 choices of free drinks to choose from: Black Stout, Apple Cider, Beer and my personal favourite is their Ginger Beer. They are very famous for their Beef Onion Pie too which tastes good. On the other hand, I do not really fancy their Cold Pork Pie.
Waitomo
We traveled from Matamata to Waitomo which takes about an hour journey and we never regret it.
Attraction(s):
Waitomo Gloworm Caves. I wish I could show you the beauty inside the caves but unfortunately, no pictures are allowed inside the cave. For NZD 50, you will experience a chilling walk around the limestone cafe and be transported out through a boat witnessing the beauty of gloworms. Fun fact: The whole cave business is being managed by the founder's family descendants. Great tradition isn't it?
Waitomo Walkway. There are several walking tracks which you can hike after your tour at Waitomo Caves. We picked one that took us about 30 mins(one way) to hike up to Waitomo Look Out Point. It was a nice walk surrounded by cows (and dunks!) Still, the weather was great and the dunks doesn't affect the walk at all.
Taupo
As you already know, Taupo is famous for it's bungy which I did not went to as my mum was screaming her lungs out just by seeing others doing the jump.
Attraction:
Taupo Rapid Jets does not allow camera on board hence, no pictures of the ride. Basically, it's a speedboat which does stunts on this beautiful lake! For me, I wish it was a little more adventurous and exciting but overall, it is fine.
Taupo Water Damp was 5 minutes from where I was. The water release 'show' has became a tourist attraction as it fills up the nearby lake really quickly and hence, more adventurous water sports can be done. You will want to be there slightly earlier before the water releases to get a nice spot.
Taupo Water Damp (Release Hours):
Summer release hours: 10:00am, 12:00pm, 2:00pm, 4:00pm
Winter release hours: 10:00am, 12:00pm, 2:00pm
Te Awamutu
My brother had a friend at Te Awamutu who owned a farm and Pop 'n' Good popcorn factory. The owner was nice enough to show us around his farm but as we were rushing to Rotorua, we did not manage to visit the factory. However, the farm itself was amazing!
Up and close with Mr Friendly Cow. His farm does not operate for meat but for dairy. The business was so high tech that being a milk and cheese lover, I am glad to know that female cows here are so lucky! This is because they will slaughter male bulls at 4 days old for a meat known as veal.
Attraction:
This popcorn cannot be found at just any supermarket as they only supply it to New World and even that, it is limited. Hence, you may want to drop by the shop if you ever passes by Te Awamutu. Besides popcorn, they do sell a whole lot of other varieties. You can check them out: http://www.daviesfoods.co.nz/
Te Awamutu Shop Operation Hours:
Tuesday - Thursday,
10am - 12pm, 1pm - 5pm
Rotorua
Here's the place where sulfur apparently stinks but I didn't quite felt that way. We spend most of the time here meeting friends hence, there isn't much updates about this place. All I know that Zorb and Hells Gate is famous here which is something I will be back for!
Attraction:
Redwood Forest. This is a free hiking trail made known for its Redwood. A nice place to walk around on a sunny day!
Food:
Picnic Cafe. I did a search for a spot for brunch at Rotorua and this came up. They do serve some good food but still, Governor's Cafe back in Dunedin is the best! Nearby this cafe, there are several restaurants around so you might want to survey other places nearby before coming here as this is not something you MUST TRY.
Auckland
The capital city of New Zealand! Well, there aren't as many high rise over there due to earthquakes but there is one Auckland Sky Tower.
Attraction(s);
Auckland Sky Tower. We did not went up for the tour as my brother did it once but do not find it fancy. However, we did went up to Sky Tower for dinner at Fortuna Buffet Restaurant. One of the most well-worth food I ever ate in New Zealand. For about NZD 50+ pax, we had a very fulfilling buffet of many good food such as lamb shank, pizza, Japanese food, desserts, free flow of caffeinated drinks and many more! Also, as you can see, the tower is definitely more outstanding at night.
Viaduct Harbour is basically a place where the rich and famous dines and stay, where superior boats and cruises park at the harbour, where people like us(tourists overall) go and take pictures! Not forgetting, it is a spot for fishing! However, do bear in mind that fishing in New Zealand requires licensing.
Viaduct Harbour is basically a place where the rich and famous dines and stay, where superior boats and cruises park at the harbour, where people like us(tourists overall) go and take pictures! Not forgetting, it is a spot for fishing! However, do bear in mind that fishing in New Zealand requires licensing.
And finally, you can just take a stroll around the city. It is the capital so there is something, somewhere for everyone! We manage to spot this purple tree somewhere there too!
Overall, New Zealand is one of the nicest country I've been. Not only that I do not have to worry(much much less worried) about my safety, the people were ever-friendly & less judgemental and weather was also pleasing although I have to admit that I do not like the extreme cold back in Dunedin. I felt so blessed to be able to travel there! I will definitely be back as there are so many other reasons for me to.
In the end, we only regret the opportunities we did not grab.
No comments:
Post a Comment