eng3

Wright's hill fortress


I said "in (or withing day trip of each city)". Waitomo caves are within daytrip distance. Yes the gondola in auckland was a typo.

Of all the cities, do any have night markets (ie. multiple quick food options gathered in one place) on a weekday night? What about general markets (selling crafts and food) during day or night during a weekday? The only ones I've found are on fri, sat or sun.

Eltham

Mwenenzi

OK. I used to live in Karori, Wellington and know of it.
But will not be open in March when you are in NZ

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrights_Hill_Fortress
Wrights Hill Fortress - Wrights Hill Fortress

There is another WW2 former coastal artillery battery on Godley Head near Chc.

eng3

Unfortunately no, I already googled. I wouldn't post a question if I didn't already search for an answer and come up empty. Looks like you just confirmed my suspicions.

Thanks for the info, I haven't gotten down to the detail of looking at opening hours yet

CPMaverick

Seeing little penguins is indeed something unique to do in this part of the world. Great suggestion for the OP, who seems to be seeking unique activities. Sorry it is a bit of a nitpick, but they aren't rare, in fact quite common across the southern coast of Australia and Tasmania, as well as NZ.

JamesBigglesworth

CHC doesn't have much that is unique and it's a poor city that has been run down by the earthquakes and subsequent government ineptness in rebuilding. It is just one of those cities that has a lot to offer to live in, but relatively little in the way of tourist attractions that you can't find everywhere else in the world. If you're into "earthquake damage pron" then CHC *is* the one for you - it *can* be fascinating to drive & walk about the areas that were damaged and still not rebuilt.

The Antarctic Centre is nice for an hour or so, but expensive. Canterbury Museum really is one of the better museums in the world, but it's small. The Gondola is just a gondola up to a captive restaurant and the view is pretty, but pretty views overlooking plains and harbours aren't exactly unique. The container mall is simply painted containers converted into retail stores and cafes. Sure, if you live there it can be useful to shop/eat at, but it's nothing to mark it out for a visit if you're looking for unique. It's not that CHC is a bad city. It's just that it's not a "3 day see unique things" city.

eng3

I actually saw blue penguins when I was outside of melbourne. I actually only saw one, a bunch were supposed to come out but it ended up just being one for some reason. I wouldn't mind trying again.


thanks for explaining, that helps alot.

The issue I see now is I definitely want to see a glow worm cave.

Two possible schedules
Going to queenstown
Day 1: Arrive in AKL, then fly to ZQN.
Day 2: Day tour to Te Anau and see caves
Day 3: Day tour to Milford Sound?
Day 4: ...

Not going to Queenstown:
Day 1: Arrive in AKL 9am, dont know what to do the rest of the day
Day 2: Day tour to waitomo caves, afternoon flight to somewhere else
Day 3: ...

If I don't goto queens town, that first day is pretty much entirely wasted unless I can find something to do in auckland. I even looked at going to waiotapu but that is also a day trip. If I could find a way to go after my arrive (like leaving at noon), I'm sure I'd have enough time to see waitotapu or waitomo cave and just get back a little late. The problem is that buses seem very infrequent leaving too early or late. A taxi would be way too expensive for me and I don't feel comfortable driving. Because of this, I'm feeling like zqn is my most efficient option. The only option I haven't fully explored is hiring a driver but I think that will also be too expensive

Mwenenzi

There are some posts in this thread that may interest you.
Muddy Boots in First Class: New Zealand (CX/NZ J, SQ/NH F)

CPMaverick

My recommendation is to fly to ZQN. You can probably get there while it is still daylight, go up the gondola to take in the view, before you crash for the night. It's also one of the most beautiful airport approaches in the world (if it is clear enough).

The second night, spend it in Te Anau. Schedule a Milford sound tour that day. Why? Because this is weather dependent. If it is foggy, rainy, or otherwise poor conditions, you can go to the caves instead and reschedule Milford for the next day. The caves are good anytime.

I imagine if you tell a tour agency you want to include the transport, sound cruise, overnight, and caves, they can handle it. And logistically going back to Queenstown for an overnight just to return to Te Anau is a lot of extra time on the bus/shuttle.

eng3

Thanks for that idea, i had not considered spending the night in te anau. Why not just head over (after the gondola ride) and stay in te anau the first night and get a jump on day 2

I was just looking into the possibility of spending the night in rotorua so I could see the waitomo caves day 1 and waiotapu day 2. Unfortunately I would have to book a private tour which is getting to be quite expensive.

Eltham

eng3

Looking at flights and buses, I think it is doable.

Intl flight arrives at AKL 8am. There is a 10:30am - 12:30pm flight to ZQN. Ofcourse there is a risk with separate tickets. There is a bus to te anau at 4:40p from the airport, 4:25 from some place in town. Alternatively, on my last day, I can switch hotels and stay in queenstown and just do the skyline then. Ofcourse then the first day is a complete waste, although all of my NZ travel would be out of the way.

Looking at my other options (not going the queenstown), the first day would also be a waste. I COULD go see rotorua but I'd cost me like $1000 for transportation. It seems that public transit options are very poor. There are buses but the are very infrequent and times are not spread out very well (mostly morning around the same time). I guess every drives in NZ? I guess the average tourist takes organized tours, pays a fortune for a private tour/taxi or drives themselves. For someone like me who takes short trips and doesnt want to waste a minute, there does not seem to be alot of options other a private tour or driving myself. I normally would not driving but I've never driven on the other side of the road before.

brenrox

Sadly there are too many people who come to NZ "not wanting to waste a minute" and fresh of a long-haul flight hiring rental cars and causing havoc on our roads which they are not accustomed to. At anyone time in our small country there are 30-40000 rental cars on the road, so I certainly wouldn't discount this option, as it sounds like something that would suit you; similarly, plenty of us Kiwis go to the USA and drive "on the other side of the road" just fine, so I am sure you'd be fine if you take your time. Glow Worm caves aren't exclusive to just a few parts of NZ, there are even some secret ones 10km from AKL airport I wouldn't spend 1k just to go visit ROT...flying to ZQN and then driving via Wanaka and Tekapo to CHC I think you'd love.

Mwenenzi

You could fly to TRG or ROT from AKL

I would not recommend coming off a night flight and driving immediately and when not used to right hand drive. Is this a long haul flight?

eng3

If bus services were better, there would be less tourists in rental cars.

I will be coming off a long haul flight to AKL. Although I've gotten pretty good at adjusting to jet lag prior to arrival, I will still be tired from the flight. I'm ok going out sight seeing but I would not feel too comfortable driving around. There is a bus and even a flight to ROT from AKL but neither would get me in time to see waiotapu so the whole day would still be a waste. My flight arrives at 7:55am so I don't want the entire day to get wasted. I will look into other glow worm caves. That is really what has been forcing me to queenstown.

I didn't realize the glow worm tour was only 2hrs from te anau so now that i look at it, I can actually do it my first day.
8:00: arrive at AKL
10:30-12:30: Flight to ZQN
12:30-16:40: skyline gondola?
16:40-19:15: Bus to Te Anau
20:15or21:30: Tour of cave
That still allows two days for milford sound, but I need to find something to do the other day.

Or I could even go see CHC or WLG Day 3 morning and Day 4. I could get to CHC by around noon and have til after 6pm the next day. Or get to WLG by 3 and have til 4pm the next day. It makes the schedule alot more tight but I prefer to see more of NZ.