New Zealand

(A cappuccino fuelled Road Trip with a plane, train and a ferry ride)

When the Polynesian settlers arrived in the 13th century they called this land AOTEAROA. AO = cloud; TEA = white; ROA = long. 

Margaret has already done such a good job by reporting on this trip day to day with postings and photos on her Facebook page, that many of you have remarked it was like you were on the trip with us, travelling from place to place.

London to Auckland via Singapore 
= 11.974 miles (a 13 hour time difference)

That job done I'm going to make this blog more of a highlights review and factual record rather than go over territory already covered.

First off I should say as a 'once-in-a-lifetime' (maybe) visit we had planned to see as many of the popular places as time allowed. A guide book listed Top 10 Sights, 7 of which we managed to see. Our intended itinerary went pretty much as planned, with us missing only Fox Glacier due to a road closure with Waitomo caves and Mt. Manriganui bypassed due to time spent elsewhere.

(Above) A very basic map - more detail to appear in each island section

NEW ZEALAND has such incredible variety is such a small area. >>>
Not only mountains, glaciers, fiords, geysers & thermal areas, volcanos and dramatic rivers but also rolling fields of grasses and farmland, evergreen forests and stunning lakes of many colours. And some amazing roads to travel on to see all this breathtaking scenery.
One minute it reminded us of Scotland, then Switzerland and Austria. Margaret said it was like Cape Town and California. Then it was Norway and certain parts of Turkey and often it was like England - all rolled into one.

OUTLINE:
Our trip had been researched and planned for some considerable time. In the case of the motorhome we went back to a company we'd first discovered in 2011, when a shorter 3 week holiday had been mapped out, only to be put on the back burner when circumstances changed.
The Plan this time: Stop off in Singapore; spend a few days with friends Eileen and Tim in Auckland; fly south to Christchurch; motorhome for 16 days; stay with Margaret's cousins near Christchurch; travel back to North Island; finish as we started at Eileen and Tim's.
South Island was a contrasting experience to the North. Mainly because the motorhome and camping travel was very different to the hire car and airbnb accommodation on the North Island.
It was all fantastic (or awesome, if you're a local) with many highlights as detailed here. Click on the links below to travel there, or simply stroll down the page in your own time.
There's a lot to see ... hope you're in for the long haul.

6 week trip (February 12th to March 25th) > including Singapore click on name

Links (jump to sections)
➣ SOUTH ISLAND - map - highlights - photos & videos
➣ NORTH ISLAND - map - highlights - photos & videos
➣ CONCLUSIONS: Questions + Photo Gallery