I love New Zealand
Jared and I love New Zealand...last time we went we said we would be back. So when Jared's mother said she wanted to go we were more than happy to oblige. We decided to do a mix of new items and some of our favorites. We had 11 days made up of the three things we love most about New Zealand:
Food
You wouldnt normally think of New Zealand when you think of foodies but believe me they have their fair share. We enjoyed a day tour of Waiheke island off of Auckland for wine tasting, an amazing lunch, beaches and of course views. And Auckland had a lot to offer for dinner too. We chose Moonsoon Poon, an amazing Indian restaurant which didnt let New Zealand's reputation down. (New Zealand has the best Indian and I cant figure out why). Then there is the famous Winnies Pizza and Fergburger in Queenstown. Even little old Dunedin in the far south coast didnt let us down with a few good boutique pub eateries; Art N Craft Pub and Ratbags with traditional modern cuisine and more delicious pizza. Mmmmm.
Beautiful landscapes
New Zealand is beautiful. The North Island is all about its volcano origins. There are hot pools and geyser parks all over. But best of all we spent Christmas Eve climbing the Tongariro Alpine Crossing across gorgeous volcanos, craters and emerald lakes. Its a long day hike but worth every inch of beautiful ground it traverses.
Then the South Island is all about the Southern Alps, glaciers and lakes. Queenstown is the center of this and after enjoying the lake views and tearing ourselves away from the shopping, we also made time for a picturesque hike to the Rob Roy glacier in the Mount Aspiring National Park and a drive to the beautiful glacier blue lakes of Lake Tekapo which are covered in gorgeous wildflowers every December. The wildflowers are just as much of the draw as the rest of the beautiful landscapes.
Also on the South Island is the east coast, full of nature. We headed here to Dunedin for a scenic railtrip through the Taieri Gorge and the Otago Peninsula. It wont let you down. We climbed down to one of its many beaches and walked past five different yellow eyed penguins frolicking in the sand and sea and a sea lion taking a rest!
Adventure
New Zealand is best known for its adventure sports and it certainly does them well. We packed in as many as we could: zorbing, jet boats, and even bungy jumping. Something everyone should try once!
Food
You wouldnt normally think of New Zealand when you think of foodies but believe me they have their fair share. We enjoyed a day tour of Waiheke island off of Auckland for wine tasting, an amazing lunch, beaches and of course views. And Auckland had a lot to offer for dinner too. We chose Moonsoon Poon, an amazing Indian restaurant which didnt let New Zealand's reputation down. (New Zealand has the best Indian and I cant figure out why). Then there is the famous Winnies Pizza and Fergburger in Queenstown. Even little old Dunedin in the far south coast didnt let us down with a few good boutique pub eateries; Art N Craft Pub and Ratbags with traditional modern cuisine and more delicious pizza. Mmmmm.
Beautiful landscapes
New Zealand is beautiful. The North Island is all about its volcano origins. There are hot pools and geyser parks all over. But best of all we spent Christmas Eve climbing the Tongariro Alpine Crossing across gorgeous volcanos, craters and emerald lakes. Its a long day hike but worth every inch of beautiful ground it traverses.
Then the South Island is all about the Southern Alps, glaciers and lakes. Queenstown is the center of this and after enjoying the lake views and tearing ourselves away from the shopping, we also made time for a picturesque hike to the Rob Roy glacier in the Mount Aspiring National Park and a drive to the beautiful glacier blue lakes of Lake Tekapo which are covered in gorgeous wildflowers every December. The wildflowers are just as much of the draw as the rest of the beautiful landscapes.
Also on the South Island is the east coast, full of nature. We headed here to Dunedin for a scenic railtrip through the Taieri Gorge and the Otago Peninsula. It wont let you down. We climbed down to one of its many beaches and walked past five different yellow eyed penguins frolicking in the sand and sea and a sea lion taking a rest!
Adventure
New Zealand is best known for its adventure sports and it certainly does them well. We packed in as many as we could: zorbing, jet boats, and even bungy jumping. Something everyone should try once!
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