My Five Favorites: New Zealand
My husband and I were blessed to spend three weeks road-tripping around New Zealand for our honeymoon in January. As soon as we got home everyone asked what our favorite thing was. I found this question really hard to answer because the entire country is gorgeous and we had an amazing trip — but looking back — these are the things that stick out most in my mind.
Cape Reinga
Cape Reinga is the northern-most point of the North Island of New Zealand. We had not originally planned on going all the way up to see it, but our friend who has lived in NZ on-and-off for years told us it was worth it — and boy was he right! There is a lighthouse with a concrete path that is easy to walk to, but we also opted to walk some of the little footpaths in the surrounding hills. The water is crystal-blue and you can see for miles. In the distance you can actually watch the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea colliding. In Māori, the language of Indigenous New Zealanders, the place is called Te Rerenga Wairua and is believed to be where a person’s spirit comes to be cleansed after death and where they continue to their afterlife. Standing on those cliffs and looking out over a seemingly endless ocean with the wind whipping around your face, it’s easy to see why this is a place of great spiritual importance.
Hiking to Franz Josef
We did a lot of hiking in New Zealand, but my husband and I both agree that our favorite hike was the Roberts Point Track that takes you to an observation deck overlooking the Franz Josef Glacier. The track says its a five hour return, but it took us around six after we took a few breaks on the way up and had a picnic on the observation deck at the top. While the view from the top is nice, the journey is what made this such an incredible hike. We crossed swinging bridges, hopped rocks over fast-moving streams and waterfalls, did some very vertical climbing and enjoyed some of the most refreshing mountain water either of us had ever tasted. This was the most strenuous of the hikes we did, but it was absolutely worth it.
Freedom Camping
Renting a camper van was the best decision we made when planning our Honeymoon. The camper van gave us so much more freedom on our schedule and we never felt rushed to get anywhere. It also allowed us to take advantage of freedom camping. While most nights we would try to find camp grounds where we could get a hot shower and hook up to electricity; some nights we would find spots to park and spend the night in the wild. These ended up being our favorite nights, as we generally had gorgeous views and could really enjoy the world around us (and bonus: it’s free!) We freedom camped on the side of a mountain overlooking Akaroa, next to crystal clear lakes and under the brightest stars I had ever seen.
Hang Gliding
Our last few days we stayed in Queenstown — where our aforementioned friend used to live and work as a hang gliding instructor. Upon arrival we connected to wifi and messaged him to see what we should do that day. Ten minutes later he called to tell us we were going hang-gliding at 1pm and everything was already taken care of. I’m not a huge fan of heights so upon hearing this I immediately broke out in a cold sweat and my heart started pounding, but I was determined to go no matter what. A couple of brewskies at the Fat Badger calmed my nerves and at 1pm we hopped in the transport van and headed up to Coronet Peak. The guys at Coronet Peak Tandems were amazing and kept me calm and laughing throughout the lead up. Then before I knew it I was running off a cliff and sailing through the air! All of my nerves evaporated and I was just focused on how beautiful the world around me looked. It was honestly incredibly peaceful and 15 of the most memorable minutes of the trip.
Hobbiton
Hobbiton was by far the most “touristy” thing we did in New Zealand, but I’m so glad we did it! Located in the North Island near the town of Matamata, Hobbiton lets you walk into the world of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. While it is basically just a guided tour of the hobbit holes around the fictional town, I found it really fun and interesting. Our tour guide was excellent and gave really fun anecdotes and behind-the-scenes tidbits. (For instance: a local brewery made a special ale that was extremely low in ABV for the birthday party scene at the beginning of Fellowship. The locals playing the hobbits were encouraged to drink and party, but were not told the beer was basically flavored water. As the night and filming wore on, the hobbits started acting more and more tipsy as the placebo affect of the fake beer took hold. This gave the final cut in the film a much more realistic festive atmosphere!) At the end of the tour, we got to drink a (very real) beer from the Green Dragon — the only brew for the brave and true!
Honorable Mention
Ruakuri Cave
New Zealand has a ton of glow worm caves. Waitomo is the most popular of these, but I preferred Ruakuri just up the road. Ruakuri is a much longer tour, there are multiple places to view glow worms and you get to see the Pretties — the cave where Golem lives for a time. Our tour guide was fabulous and knowledgable, making it way more fun than a standard tour. Plus this beautiful cave is completely wheelchair accessible.