New Zealand's North Island - Pt. 2

 

Continuing on our exploration of New Zealand's North Island, we head up the east coast from Wellington.

Napier

After a 1931 earthquake razed the city, Napier was rebuilt and has maintained its 1930s Art Deco look. Art Deco buildings are everywhere and it's fun to walk around and pick them out. There's a guide that provides more information about each building and there are lots of boutiques and restaurants to visit while you're exploring.

Don't miss funky Opossum World … it's not Art Deco, but it's a hoot (unless you're a possum, that is).

East Cape

East Cape is the easternmost point in New Zealand and the Maori influence is strong here. We drove the Pacific Coast Highway through rural, little Maori villages with traditional meeting houses, lovely churches and exquisite carvings. For other Maori experiences, partake in a hangi (feast prepared in an underground oven), watch a Maori haka (dance) or spend some time in Rototua.

St. Mary's Church in Tikitiki shows its Maori influence with carved pews and traditional woven mats, tukutuku, on the walls.

The East Cape Light sits high on Otiki Hill. There's a path that leads to the top of the hill and the lighthouse which is touted as the “first lighthouse in the world to see the sun” each day.

Auckland

As New Zealand's “big smoke”, unless you come in by boat, this is probably where you'll land and begin your travels. Hotels, restaurants, car rentals, money exchange … anything you might want or need as a traveler is easily found here. It's recently been named as one of the top 10 cities in the world to visit by Lonely Planet. We liked it, but in all honesty, we prefer the countryside instead of the city. That said, the Sky Tower is awesome, though we didn't do the Sky Walk nor any bungee jumping. There are museums, aquariums, shops and lots of tours including several to Great Barrier Island.

Great Barrier Island

This is one of those “you can't miss” places, but we missed exploring it due to weather … three separate times. Everyone's who has visited has raved about it.

Things to try when you're on New Zealand's North Island …

Fish'n'chips – Some say the best place for fish and chips is the Mangonui Fish Shop and Takeaway in Mangonui. We thought it was good, but not great, but then we're not big fish'n'chip fans.

Kauri souvenirs – You'll find all sorts of wooden souvenir bowls and trinkets made of this native New Zealand wood. We always try to take a little distinctive piece of each country we visit with us (when it's legal, that is).

Maori something – a tattoo, perhaps? Or maybe one of their intricate designs in fabric, jewelry or carvings. Maori designs are very symbolic, so choose carefully.

Tui Beer – Tuis are native New Zealand birds and Tui is the beer of choice in New Zealand. It's available just about everywhere. They also have entertaining TV ads and billboards.

Wool & possum fur – Possums are a nuisance in New Zealand. They eat and defoliate all the trees. Kiwis hunt them, but use their fur in a mix with wool. The result is incredibly soft and warm. Look for gloves, socks and most any knitted item in this unlikely possum/sheep combination. All things wool, including lanolin lotions, are good New Zealand takeaways.

Long blacks and flat whites – The coffee culture in New Zealand is alive and well. Long blacks are black coffee and flat whites are similar to a latte with an artistic flair. The better baristas draw an iconic New Zealand fern into the foam. The coffee tastes the same … the nomenclature's a bit different.

New Zealand Wines – If you're a wine drinker, try the wines here. We especially enjoyed the whites ... Sauvignon blanc and Pino Gris topping the list. They're wonderful. Visit a vineyard in your travels.

Check out 101 Must-Do's for Kiwis. And, of course, our website.

And if you think the North Island is great, join us over the next couple of weeks as we talk about Kiwiana, all those things that are unique and quirky about New Zealand. Then we'll visit the South Island and see our first kiwi bird, explore wild Fiordland and tussle with some territorial sea lions. It's spectacular!

New Zealand's North Island - Pt. 1

 

The first Maori explorers named this country Aotearoa, Land of the Long White Cloud. If you're like many Americans, New Zealand sounds like a pretty exotic place to visit, but honestly, most folks aren't really quite sure where it is … somewhere “down under” and near Australia. When we tell them this little country is comprised of two islands, considerately named North Island and South Island, and that it's southernmost point is considerably south of Tasmania's southernmost point, they're always surprised.

We arrived in the springtime (November) in the tiny town of Opua, the first Customs/Immigration port on New Zealand's North Island. It's a major yacht port and we found that the Northland region was a wonderful place to begin our travels and get some boat work done. It was a fine introduction to the friendly, laid-back Kiwis and the native Maori culture.

Our travels on the North Island involved borrowing or renting a car for some inland trips, but mostly visiting port towns by boat. That's okay, because New Zealand has some 8,700 miles (14,000km) of coastline … ranking it #10 in coastline mileage for all countries in the world. (The USA is #9, by the way, and Canada is #1). As always, we didn't get everywhere and we didn't see everything (a reason to return), so we can only comment on what we actually saw. We used Lonely Planet New Zealand as our travel guide.

Here's a list of our favorite spots to visit on New Zealand's North Island ….

Bay of Islands

The Bay of Islands is known for big game fishing, sailing, and much, much more. You will need a boat to get to many of the 150+ islands in the Bay of Islands, but there are lots of tours available from Paihia or head to Opua and see if you can bum a ride with a yachtie. There are hiking trails and camping on some of the islands. Our favorite island was Urupukapuka … it was glorious.

The little town of Russell is quaint and fun and shouldn't be missed. You can drive there, but it's more fun to take the ferry from Paihia. A little trivia ... in 2006, the Bay of Islands was found to have the second bluest sky in the world (Rio de Janiero, Brazil was #1).

The Waitangi Treaty House is located here in Paihia. If you're interested in Maori culture, this is a great place to visit.

Cape Reinga

At the northwesternmost tip of New Zealand, the Pacific Ocean waters meld here with the Tasman Sea and you can actually see the turbulence of the water at the meeting point. There's the Cape Reinga Lighthouse, outstanding views, some great walks and the dunes of the 90 Mile Beach aren't far away.

Waipoua Forest

We love the redwoods and giant sequoias of the USA, so we were very interested in exploring the Kauri Coast and seeing the giant kauri trees of New Zealand. At the Waipoua Forest, you can see among others, Tane Mahuta, Lord of the Forest, and the largest and one of the oldest living kauri trees in New Zealand. Estimated to be ~2,000 years old, this magnificent tree stands 166' (51m) high and definitely lords over the forest. The easy trek along well-kept tracks through this native forest is great for seeing not only kauri trees, but lots of other native flora and fauna.

New Plymouth

With Mount Taranaki as its backdrop, New Plymouth is a gem of a city on New Zealand's wild, unprotected west coast. It's a walking city and fun to explore.

We particularly loved Pukekura Park with its botanic gardens, a zoo and miles of walking trails. There's even a glow worm cave. The scenic coastal walkway is 7 miles (11km) long with great views of the Tasman Sea.

Wellington

Windy Wellington is New Zealand's capital city and it's wonderful. The Te Papa museum has to be one of the best museums we've ever visited and entry was free. We went back three times.

The city is vibrant with lots to see and do. Try taking the cable car up to Kilbourn for great views of the city below. Walk through the Botanic Gardens. Check out the Bee Hive, the nickname for the government center. There are sculptures, parks and pubs galore.

Explore more of New Zealand's North Island with us tomorrow... check back.