This year we celebrated our wedding anniversary with a trip to New Zealand, Tahiti, Guam, and Japan. This post is all about the twelve days spent in New Zealand. Twelve days is definitely not enough time to see the country but it’s what we had, so we made best of it! Our itinerary was:
North Island
– Days 1-6
Auckland
Waiheke Island
Piha
Rotorua
South Island
– Days 7-12
Blenheim
Kaikoura
Christchurch
Queenstown & Milford Sound
Getting There
I purchased one way Southwest tickets from Atlanta to Los Angeles and redeemed American Airlines (AA) Advantage miles for two one way flights on Air Tahiti Nui from Los Angeles (LAX) to Auckland (AKL) This meant a short stopover, no plane change, in Papeete, Tahiti on the way to Auckland.
Once there, we took three domestic flights within New Zealand. The two on Air New Zealand were Auckland – Blenheim and then Christchurch – Queenstown. Our final domestic flight was Jetstar Queenstown-Auckland. If I had it to do over, I would switch out the Jetstar flight for Air New Zealand again. Jetstar is a low-cost airline with a pattern of delayed flights.
Accommodations
On the north island we primarily stayed in IHG properties, with one night at the Four Points by Sheraton in Auckland upon first arrival. On the south island we primarily stayed in Hilton properties with a one night stay in a bed & breakfast.
Four Points by Sheraton Auckland
Location: The hotel is located in the central business district of downtown Auckland. It’s a great location a few blocks from the water, Sky Tower, and shopping and restaurants.
Atmosphere: The lobby is welcoming and seems relatively new. There is an aroma pumped into the air that was a bit stifling for me, but the ambiance is polished and quiet.
We had a King room on the 8th floor. It seemed small, but it was well appointed and comfortable. No bidet in bathroom. It would be great if all hotels would add bidets to their en-suite bathrooms, even if just the handheld feature.
Service: We did not try any of the food so can’t comment on that. The front desk personnel did not acknowledge Marriott Bonvoy elite status nor did they properly explain the benefits granted at the hotel.
Crowne Plaza Auckland
Location: The hotel is located in the central business district in downtown Auckland. Great location a few blocks from the water. The Sky Tower is across the street. Plenty of restaurants and shopping nearby.
Atmosphere: It seems like a convention hotel. It’s large and the lobby is welcoming although a bit outdated.
We had a regular queen room on the 23rd floor. We could see the Sky Tower from our window. The room was a nice size and well appointed with slippers, robes, and mini bar. No bidet in bathroom.
Service: The front desk personnel acknowledged IHG elite program status and explained all the benefits that applied. At check-in, I mentioned that we were celebrating our anniversary on this trip and the staff kindly had a bottle of sparkling wine delivered to the room. Outstanding gesture!
Holiday Inn Rotorua
Location: the hotel is located a little outside of city center but right next to thermals.
Atmosphere: the lobby is large and familiar in the way old school Holiday Inns are a bit familiar.
We had a thermals facing double queen room on the second floor that overlooked the pool too. The room was clean with crisp bedding.
Service: The front desk personnel acknowledged IHG elite program status and explained all the benefits that applied. I mentioned ahead of time that we were celebrating our anniversary on this trip and the staff kindly had a dessert tray delivered to the room. Really lovely!
Lemon Tree B&B – Kaikoura
First, location: The property is located in a residential part of Kaikoura a little before approaching the town centre. The back of the property has views of the beach and ocean down below.
Second, atmosphere: tranquil and garden like. Check-in was easy.
We had the Sunflower room, a room that offers 2 queen beds in the bedroom and a separate living space with a table, 2 chairs and a small love seat. This room does not have ocean views. The room was very clean with crisp white linens on the bed.
Third, service: everyone we encountered was friendly and welcoming. Breakfast was delivered to our room at the time we preselected.
Chateau on the Park – A Doubletree Property by Hilton
Location: The hotel is located a little outside of city centre but near the botanical gardens.
Atmosphere: I think the hotel design is supposed to reference a European chateau. Maybe? The grounds are beautiful with many plants in bloom in December so the gardens were lush with flowers.
We had a king room on the first floor that overlooked gardens and pool. At check-in we were told this was a ‘deluxe’ upgrade but that only made me wonder what a ‘regular’ room is like because the king room did not seem to have any special features.
Service: The front desk personnel acknowledged Hilton Honors elite program status and explained all the benefits that applied. I mentioned ahead of time that we were celebrating our anniversary on this trip and the staff did not acknowledge this or do anything special. The internet was disappointing. It was difficult or impossible to connect at times. We had breakfast at the hotel and the spread was expansive with a lot of different options to choose from.
Hilton Queenstown Resort & Spa
Location: The hotel is located on the lake, near the airport, and the Remarkable mountains, but about 20 minutes away from Queenstown city center. There is a $5 water taxi that will shuttle you from the hotel to the city center. There are scenic walking trails nearby and a few shops but the majority of shopping and restaurants are in town.
Atmosphere: Posh and sophisticated with a scenic backdrop of the lake. There’s a lot of dramatic dark wood and scarlet colored couches in the lobby.
We had a king room on the main floor (which is the 4th floor) that had a lake and mountain view. The rooms here are a nice layout – there’s a separate sitting area with a small couch and chair along with a fireplace. Then there’s a step up into the bedroom area with a large bathroom that runs the full width of the room located behind the bed. The room also had a small balcony so you could sit on stools outside.
They have a heated pool and hot tub on site along with a sauna and steam room available for all guests. The hot tub does not appear to have working jets so you just sit in a warm, still bath.
Service & Food: The front desk personnel acknowledged Hilton Honors elite program status and explained all the benefits that applied. I mentioned ahead of time that we were celebrating our anniversary on this trip and found a bottle of wine and box of chocolates in the room upon arrival. We were welcomed back every day to our room with some sort of handwritten note with a towel animal. Internet worked well.
We had breakfast at the hotel and the spread was expansive with a lot of different options to choose from. The service at breakfast was also outstanding as they were very attentive to removing plates and checking to see what we needed, and offered complimentary barista drinks (lattes, etc) because we were celebrating an anniversary.
Overall, it’s a great hotel and it was my favorite stay on this trip.
Activities
We packed a lot into a short amount of time. For most of the trip, every day except for the 3 days in Queenstown, we had a rental car so that definitely helped.
North Island
In Auckland, we walked the harbor and Queen St districts and visited Mt. Eden which has great views of the city skyline. From Auckland, we ventured out on day trips to two places:
Waiheke Island – We took the Sealink Ferry, booked ahead of time for an 8am departure. We visited three wineries (Mudbrick, Man o’ War, and Tantalus). The island is scenic with great views almost everywhere you go.
and
Piha – we spent a few hours at the beach and then went to see Kitekite Falls.
We drove from Auckland down to the Wai-o-tapu Thermals. This is a neat place with a ‘champagne’ pool and neon green pool. This area, along with Rototua, is full of thermals, so we spent some time soaking in the pools and even visited Kerosene Creek, which is a, completely free to visit, creek that is about 88 degrees Fahrenheit with small waterfalls you can sit under that feel great. So relaxing and therapeutic. Speaking of relaxing, I also visited the world-famous Polynesian Spa in Rotorua. This was a real treat. I chose the Pavilion Pools circuit for a lovely Friday morning. The Pavilion pools consist of 5 warm soaking pools, three alkaline and two acidic, along with a reflexology walk to stimulate pressure points on your feet. The entrance fee for this section was $30 NZD. There are lockers and a small café onsite. The facilities are clean and well maintained and most of the pools have lake front views. It’s very peaceful and serene.
While I was at the spa, my two travel companions went to see the Redwoods Treewalk, which they reported as being an amazing visit as well. After our separate morning experiences, we joined back up to visit the Waitomo glow worm caves. I have never seen anything like this. We entered a dark cave and were able to see thousands of small glowing green lights – these are tips of the glow worms, which we learned are about the length/size of a matchstick. We were not allowed to take any pictures in the cave. We did the one hour tour which was a bit short, but it was really an amazing sight.
South Island
After six days on the north island, we flew from Auckland to Blenheim, which is the gateway to Marlborough otherwise known as the New Zealand home of Sauvignon Blanc. We visited Wither Hills, Villa Maria, and Cloudy Bay wineries for tastings. I ordered a few bottles from each place and had them shipped back home to the USA.
After wine country, we headed to Kaikoura originally for whale watching. The drive from Blenheim to Kaikoura is scenic through mountains and along the coast with many twists and turns. In Kaikoura we ended up not taking a whale watching tour but saw two orcas swimming from the shore! We explored the Kaikoura peninsula and enjoyed the coast and then continued driving down to Christchurch. In Christchurch we saw the 185 Chairs exhibit, which memorializes those lost in the 2011 earthquake, and visited the Botanical Gardens which are free to enter.
In Queenstown, we took a Real Journeys overnight cruise on the Milford Mariner to Milford Sound which included a six hour bus ride with hotel pickup. The drive to Milford is absolutely amazing and special with so many scenic views and things to see. Along the way, we saw Mirror Lakes and the Chasm. We thought the drive to Milford was more scenic than the destination.
We also don’t recommend the overnight cruise. I don’t think we saw anything different or special by spending the night on the boat. The boat departed at 4:30 and after a 30 min ride, anchored in Harrison Cove. We stayed there for the night, although there wasn’t much to see there. You could kayak or ride in a tender craft. After the small excursion, dinner was served. It began with a choice of soup served at the table and then each table served themselves at the buffet. A choice of desserts were served buffet style also. After dinner there wasn’t much to do so I just went to bed. In the morning, breakfast was served between 6:45 and 7:30 and then the boat headed out of the sound into the Tasman Sea. Turning around and coming back into the sound treated us to some beautiful views that are worth seeing, but I don’t think we needed to spend the night to see them. There are 2 hour cruises that tour the sound and allow you to return to Queenstown the same day.
In Queenstown, we also visited the Skyline which is a gondola ride to the top of a mountain allowing great views of both the town, lake, and surrounding areas. We had dinner at Stratofare which we enjoyed.
Food
Auckland – Auckland Fish Market: I love the variety here, there’s something for everyone in the many individual food establishments located within the market. I enjoyed New Zealand green mussels here.
Waiheke Island – The Local: we had excellent fish and chips (both fried and grilled fish).
Waitomo – Huhu Café: delicious pan fried fish and fresh gnocchi.
Kaikoura – The Pier Hotel: this is where I had my first ‘crayfish’ or New Zealand rock lobster. It looks like lobster without the pinchers. It comes with two sides for a reasonable price and it was delicious!
Christchurch – 5th Street restaurant was such a memorable evening! There are small, medium, and large plates to choose from. We ordered pan fried shrimp, broccolini and kale, crispy potatoes, risotto, and ribeye (see all the pics of our food here). We sat at the ‘chef’s table’ which is really 4 bar seats in front of the kitchen. This seating totally made the experience. The sous chef spoke with us and answered questions all while doing his job of cooking. He took our orders and we saw the chefs preparing our meal which they then presented to us directly. Chef also allowed us to try one of the medium plates, the zucchini fritters, on the house. Eat here.
Queenstown – Stratofare at the top of the Skyline. This is a buffet but it’s a fancy buffet with good quality items to choose from.
Departure
We flew Jetstar back from Queenstown to Auckland to depart New Zealand on an Air Tahiti Nui flight back to Papeete, also booked with AA miles. New Zealand was the first stop on this trip so our next destination was a three day stay on the island of Moorea in French Polynesia.
Thank you for sharing 💜 These views were gorgeous!