A Different New Zealand

Queenstown and Rotorua

Why is a blog focusing on “a different New Zealand” writing about Queenstown and Rotorua, you might ask.  I’m not going to talk about what to do in those places; that’s covered just about everywhere else.  Instead, let me mention a couple of good places to stay and some great places to eat.

First, Queenstown.  In terms of where to stay, let me make a suggestion.  Check out the Millbrook Resort in Arrowtown. 

Regular prices can be high, but sometimes they have really good deals.  The Millbrook Resort was recommended to us on the basis that every place in Queenstown is expensive, but not all of them are good.  We were lucky that Millbrook had specials the four days we wanted to stay there.  The rates are sometimes $600 night or more, but the rates were less than half that the days we wanted to stay.  While that may seem like a lot, it wasn’t that much more than other Queenstown hotels, and it was well worth it.  Also, staying in Arrowtown (as opposed to Queenstown) is good for seeing things outside of Queenstown, like Central Otago (which I highly recommend).

Wellington

In 2011, Lonely Planet called Wellington the “Coolest Little Capital in the World,” and it still is, as well as possibly the windiest.¹  In addition to the normal things of Te Papa, Old St. Paul’s, a cable car ride to the Botanic Gardens, Cuba Street, Zealandia, etc., I thought I would mention some of the less standard things to do in Wellington, at least for a non-Kiwi tourist.

First, take a tour of the Parliament Buildings.  The tour shows not only how they are trying to make the buildings earthquake-resistant, but also the growth and history of New Zealand’s democracy.  Important fact: New Zealand was the first country to give women the vote, doing so in 1893.  The British influence is still strong.  In a hallway in Parliament, there is a painting of England’s Glorious Revolution of 1688, 152 years before the Treaty of Waitangi was signed.

The Parliament Buildings consist of two buildings.  One is Parliament itself, which is what most of the tour covers. 

Northland

When people think of Northland, they usually think of the Bay of Islands, Waitangi, and the Ninety-Mile Beach.  Or maybe the kauri trees on the west side of Northland.  Let me mention some of the perhaps lesser well-known things to do.

The first is to find a place to stay on the water (generally on the east side of Northland) and enjoy the beach.  We found a great place in Coopers Beach and went kayaking, as well as just walking and sitting on a very peaceful beach.

Right next to motel where we were staying was the Rangikaiti Pa.  It was a pre-gun powder pa; i.e., the style used by the Maoris before they started buying guns from Europeans, which they started doing in the early 1800s.  According to the DOC, it “is an example of the ‘wedding cake’ style of pa formation.”  Here is a picture from the top of the pa.

Auckland

One might not think a blog on “A Different New Zealand” needs an entry on Auckland, but I want to mention several things we did that you might not otherwise think of.

First, we did the City Centre Ramble suggested by the Lonely Planet North Island guide (2012 edition).  (You might be surprised that a country of only 4.4 million people would need two Lonely Planet guides, one for the North Island and one for the South Island, but there is so much to see and do, that it makes sense.  Also, having two guides makes each of them smaller, which makes for traveling.)  The Ramble took us all the way from St. Kevin’s Arcade on “K Road” (i.e., Karangahape Road), through Myers Park and down to the harbour.  It was a very nice way to get acquainted with central Auckland.  And when we got to the harbour, there was a Fritz’s Wieners stand.  The bratwurst wasn’t the best I ever had, but it was good, even if the mustard selections were a little limited.

Napier: The Art Deco City

Napier calls itself the Art Deco City, and it is fair to do so.  An earthquake and fire devastated the city in 1931.  When it was rebuilt, it was done so mostly in the style of the day: Art Deco.  To the delight of architecture buffs, and Art Deco fans, around the world, it has mostly kept those buildings.  It has not only kept them, it has maintained them.  Which makes for a great visit.

The Art Deco Trust offers a number of guided tour options.  We took the two-hour afternoon tour, which was by far the best value.  It was also a great way to see the city.