New Zealand Itinerary Suggestions
May 15, 2016, 4:51 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 4
New Zealand Itinerary Suggestions
Looking forward to my first trip to New Zealand the main highlight will be the Milford Track, but have some holes in my itinerary and looking for some suggestions any help is greatly appreciated...
I have read through a decent amount of the info on here and came to the conclusion that many don't suggest spending a lot of time in Auckland...Although I also hear driving takes a bit longer, so I wanted to reach out and see what people would suggest for the start of my trip. I am open to renting a car to get to where I need to be as well. The challenge I see is getting back to Auckland to get my flight to Queenstown. Below is my Itinerary which I am going in November:
Day 1 - Land in Auckland, explore city/rest after flight from the USA
Day 2 - Waiheke Island? Might move this to before my Queenstown flight.
Day 3 - I am into photography/hiking and found this tour that might be interesting, not booked or anything so open to moving this around as well. http://tours.thelaughingchestnut.co.nz/
Day 4 - ??
Day 5 - ??
Day 6 - Early Flight(11am) from Auckland to Queenstown (Stopover on my original flight itinerary, might be the wrong wording) - Mainly a transit day
Day 7 - Explore Queenstown before Milford Track
Day 8-12 - Milford Track (Already Booked)
Day 13 - Open to Suggestions (Might need recovery in the end though)
Day 14 - Flight from Queenstown to Auckland to US
Again any suggestions would be appreciated, like I said hiking/photography are my passions, but I am open to anything that people think is a must as well!
I have read through a decent amount of the info on here and came to the conclusion that many don't suggest spending a lot of time in Auckland...Although I also hear driving takes a bit longer, so I wanted to reach out and see what people would suggest for the start of my trip. I am open to renting a car to get to where I need to be as well. The challenge I see is getting back to Auckland to get my flight to Queenstown. Below is my Itinerary which I am going in November:
Day 1 - Land in Auckland, explore city/rest after flight from the USA
Day 2 - Waiheke Island? Might move this to before my Queenstown flight.
Day 3 - I am into photography/hiking and found this tour that might be interesting, not booked or anything so open to moving this around as well. http://tours.thelaughingchestnut.co.nz/
Day 4 - ??
Day 5 - ??
Day 6 - Early Flight(11am) from Auckland to Queenstown (Stopover on my original flight itinerary, might be the wrong wording) - Mainly a transit day
Day 7 - Explore Queenstown before Milford Track
Day 8-12 - Milford Track (Already Booked)
Day 13 - Open to Suggestions (Might need recovery in the end though)
Day 14 - Flight from Queenstown to Auckland to US
Again any suggestions would be appreciated, like I said hiking/photography are my passions, but I am open to anything that people think is a must as well!
Last edited by joshs2004; May 15, 2016 at 9:00 pm
May 16, 2016, 4:44 am
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 4
~3 Hour 50 minutes Lay Over
Auckland to SFO United
Both flights are on the same itinerary/reservation, so I guess worse off I get an extra day in New Zealand?
May 18, 2016, 8:48 pm
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Northern Calif./Eastern Ida.
Programs: Amethyst Premier Plutonium Medallion
Posts: 20,629
on a morning INTL arrival to AKL, we then picked up our campervan and traveled by ferry to Waiheke Is. we arrived in plenty of time to visit 2 or 3 wineries that afternoon, then have a leisurely dinner before finding a campsite and getting set up for the night.
with two days free on the North Island before ZQN, I see two options from AKL. drive north, or drive south. driving into the Northland is focused more on beaches and the tropical environments. there are some lovely beach parks up there, good snorkeling options, ocean sailing, and nice saltwater fishing. driving south, there are opportunities for nice hiking (tramping!) around the Lake Taupo basin with the mountain range. in this area there are also some geothermal parks, whitewater rafting, horseback riding and mtn biking, and excellent freshwater fishing opportunities.
to drive from Taupo to AKL is approximately 3 hours, give or take. driving to the far Northland is about 3-4 hours, I would estimate. with only two days free, I would not recommend venturing as far south as Napier/Hastings, as this is at least a 6 hour drive back to AKL.
with two days free on the North Island before ZQN, I see two options from AKL. drive north, or drive south. driving into the Northland is focused more on beaches and the tropical environments. there are some lovely beach parks up there, good snorkeling options, ocean sailing, and nice saltwater fishing. driving south, there are opportunities for nice hiking (tramping!) around the Lake Taupo basin with the mountain range. in this area there are also some geothermal parks, whitewater rafting, horseback riding and mtn biking, and excellent freshwater fishing opportunities.
to drive from Taupo to AKL is approximately 3 hours, give or take. driving to the far Northland is about 3-4 hours, I would estimate. with only two days free, I would not recommend venturing as far south as Napier/Hastings, as this is at least a 6 hour drive back to AKL.
May 20, 2016, 10:33 am
#7
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 2
A below 2 hour drive South from Auckland is the WaitomioCaves, then Matamata for a Hobbiton visit, stay overnight in Matamata.
Looking forward to my first trip to New Zealand the main highlight will be the Milford Track, but have some holes in my itinerary and looking for some suggestions any help is greatly appreciated...
I have read through a decent amount of the info on here and came to the conclusion that many don't suggest spending a lot of time in Auckland...Although I also hear driving takes a bit longer, so I wanted to reach out and see what people would suggest for the start of my trip. I am open to renting a car to get to where I need to be as well. The challenge I see is getting back to Auckland to get my flight to Queenstown. Below is my Itinerary which I am going in November:
Day 1 - Land in Auckland, explore city/rest after flight from the USA
Day 2 - Waiheke Island? Might move this to before my Queenstown flight.
Day 3 - I am into photography/hiking and found this tour that might be interesting, not booked or anything so open to moving this around as well. http://tours.thelaughingchestnut.co.nz/
Day 4 - ??
Day 5 - ??
Day 6 - Early Flight(11am) from Auckland to Queenstown (Stopover on my original flight itinerary, might be the wrong wording) - Mainly a transit day
Day 7 - Explore Queenstown before Milford Track
Day 8-12 - Milford Track (Already Booked)
Day 13 - Open to Suggestions (Might need recovery in the end though)
Day 14 - Flight from Queenstown to Auckland to US
Again any suggestions would be appreciated, like I said hiking/photography are my passions, but I am open to anything that people think is a must as well!
I have read through a decent amount of the info on here and came to the conclusion that many don't suggest spending a lot of time in Auckland...Although I also hear driving takes a bit longer, so I wanted to reach out and see what people would suggest for the start of my trip. I am open to renting a car to get to where I need to be as well. The challenge I see is getting back to Auckland to get my flight to Queenstown. Below is my Itinerary which I am going in November:
Day 1 - Land in Auckland, explore city/rest after flight from the USA
Day 2 - Waiheke Island? Might move this to before my Queenstown flight.
Day 3 - I am into photography/hiking and found this tour that might be interesting, not booked or anything so open to moving this around as well. http://tours.thelaughingchestnut.co.nz/
Day 4 - ??
Day 5 - ??
Day 6 - Early Flight(11am) from Auckland to Queenstown (Stopover on my original flight itinerary, might be the wrong wording) - Mainly a transit day
Day 7 - Explore Queenstown before Milford Track
Day 8-12 - Milford Track (Already Booked)
Day 13 - Open to Suggestions (Might need recovery in the end though)
Day 14 - Flight from Queenstown to Auckland to US
Again any suggestions would be appreciated, like I said hiking/photography are my passions, but I am open to anything that people think is a must as well!