Aotearoa — The land of the long white cloud (North Island)
I do not remember what made us pick New Zealand (NZ) for our honeymoon, maybe it was the lord of the rings (which I forced my wife to watch). Nevertheless, the idea of NZ did not raise any ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’, like it usually does when we have to pick a movie on Netflix, so it had to be a good decision, keeping the sarcasm aside. We booked our flight from Seattle almost 8 months in advance for our travel in February at quite a decent price. Summer months in NZ (December to March) get exponentially expensive, hence the earlier you book the lesser is pricing bound to influence your decision and potentially miss activities, which SHOULD NOT BE MISSED.
It took us almost a month to plan and book our two-week itinerary. Although it was our honeymoon, nothing about it was honeymoon like, traditionally speaking. Our travel was intense and the activities were out of the comfort zone, to say the least. In fact, our cab driver who took us to the car rental at the Auckland Airport went on to give that judgement to my wife saying, “I think your husband has read all the wrong books on honeymooning.” That stung. My wife later told me that she thought folks have written all the wrong books on honeymooning, which made me a happy camper.
I digress; we built our itinerary reading all the great articles out there and talking to a friend who had been to NZ for his honeymoon. Although, I believe having surprises are an important part of travel but for NZ it felt like the more you know the better, and it will still manage to surprise you. We completely changed the itinerary we started with after a few weeks of research, case in point. On a broad level, we were covering both islands (North and South) with a slightly more time in the South. Within the island, we went for rental cars, which was much cheaper than rentals in US, easiest way to carry luggage and frankly our best decision. Across the island we booked a flight to save time and enjoy NZ from 30,000 feet, that’s what the airline’s tag line was anyway.
Day 1: Auckland
We had an overnight flight from Seattle with layovers in Los Angeles and Nadi, Fiji. Nadi was refreshing in the wee hours of the morning; colorful and warm. If you have some time, I recommend adding a couple of days in Fiji, soaking life at the beach. If you do not, do try the Fiji airways lounge. Their hospitability and comfort are addictive, almost made us miss our flight to Auckland. We landed at Auckland international airport around noon, got a temporary SIM card from Vodafone at the terminal which was active on the spot. Although we got some money exchanged at the airport, we realized later that the exchange rate offered by the numerous exchange centers in Auckland CBD (Central Business District or Downtown) was far, far better. Painfully better. Another thing to remember is that NZ has a strict bag screening policy for food and other restricted items and you cannot afford to lie. You will be caught and will have to part with 400 NZ dollars, without any exemption. It did not happen with us but here is a good article to prepare yourself.
We picked up our rental and left for our BNB in the CBD which was an hour away. We had only one night in Auckland so we planned the accommodation closer to the places we wanted to visit. After a quick refresher at the BNB, we left on foot and explored the heart of Auckland.
1) Giapo — An artistic ice cream shop which is known for their unique ice cream cones. It wasn’t just an ice cream shop, it was an experience. They only take in one customer at a time, walking you through the whole process of selecting your cone and flavor. They had a dark chocolate flavor which my wife fell in love with and left the shop with pumped up standards for her ice creams.
2) Mount Eden summit –A local recommended it and said it is the place to be in Auckland at sunset. We took an Uber which dropped us at the base of the summit, from there it was a 15 minute walk uphill with views panning out every step you take. We could tell you it was panoramic, picturesque but no adjectives would do justice to the view. Having lived in Seattle, we have seen our fair share of beautiful sunsets but this was different, it was powerful.
Later we settled for dinner at 1947 eatery, a theme based Indian restaurant in CBD. It had been a long day, but we had survived the jet lag and walked the streets of this beautiful, lively and multicultural city.
Day 2 and 3: Coromandel Peninsula (Hahei)
By 8 a.m. we were packed and ready to leave for Coromandel Peninsula and the excitement wasn’t measurable anymore. Our next 3 days were planned around the beautiful Coromandel Peninsula, Tauranga, Rotorua and Matamata and the weather was gracious, for most parts. Our first stop was Hahei, a beautiful beach town close to two of our spots, the Hot water beach and Cathedral Cove. The drive to our BNB was full of spectacular views of the peninsula, including the little towns we stopped enroute for gas or food. The best thing about gas stations in NZ is that they serve delicious meat pies. Those greasy little bites are a must-to-have there. We checked in to our BNB, took a breather, and were set to do some digging at the unique hot water beach, which was a workout in its own way.
3) Hot water beach — It is short beach with live digging going on throughout the day. The beach has a paid parking along with many parallel park spots on the road which are free. The beach has a café right next to the parking where you can rent a spade for the day. We dug for about 30 minutes, trying to hit the right spot that only a couple of folks managed to amongst almost fifty. After a while, it became a group exercise with a bunch of other visitors until we had a swimming pool ready and voila, hot water spots right in the middle of it. It was relaxing and one of the most exciting wonders of nature.
After enjoying our handmade spa for an hour, we headed back to our BNB for a quick change of clothes and some food. We had initially thought of covering the cathedral cove in the evening but it was close to sunset and the hike was almost 2–3 hours. We spent the evening exploring this cute town, picking groceries for the rest of the trip and enjoying live music at Hot waves café where an old school band was playing to our luck. There are a few spots in and around Hahei if you are looking for dinner but most of them close early by 8 p.m. so make sure to plan accordingly.
Next morning we enjoyed scrambled eggs at the porch looking over the gorgeous town of Hahei and the South Pacific Ocean. The day ahead was packed with a hike to Cathedral Cove, then driving to Tauranga where we had booked a night glowworm kayaking tour. Yes, you read that right.
4) Cathedral Cove — There are a couple of ways to reach cathedral cove. If time is limited then you can go for the water taxi which is available at Hahei beach every 30 minutes or so. However I highly recommend hiking all the way. We parked our car at Hahei beach and picked that as our starting point, but you can also take a shuttle to the Cathedral cove car park (car park is closed for summer months) and hike from there. The shuttle is available at the Hahei visitor carpark and near the Hahei general store. Hahei beach to the Cove’s car park adds a mile to the hike but the views are breathtaking. The hike is easy but has some steep inclines. Although the hike was just an hour and a half but we took more than twice the time, stopping for pictures and absorbing the view, awestruck! The weather was pleasant with a cool breeze compensating for the hike. The destination, however, was breathtaking, refreshing and magical. Particularly, the final descent from the hike onto the beach, when it opens to the cove made us skip a heartbeat! On our way back we took the shuttle from the cove’s car park after devouring some refreshments from a couple of food trucks situated at the car park.
Day 3: Tauranga
On our way to Tauranga we took pit stops at local fruit vendors which are scattered all across the North Island. The prices are unimaginably cheap and fruits are delicious. It also offers a peek into the vast agriculture landscape of NZ. We reached our BNB in about 3 hours and rested a bit before the next adventure of the day, which my wife was not looking forward to at all.
5) Glowworm kayaking tour — This was our adventure boost in North Island. NZ is known for some of the most gorgeous glowworm caves, especially in the North Island. This tour involved kayaking to a glowworm cave and that too in the night. I was thrilled about this tour and loved every bit of it, even though we were exhausted by the end of it. We booked the tour with Waimarino Kayak Tours in Tauranga which is part of an adventure park. The tour involved a bus ride up to lake McLaren with onsite refreshments, quick kayak training, a lot of nervous laughter (it is night Kayaking after all) and one of the purest wonders of nature. Kayaking itself, though tiresome, was a fun team effort and an amazing adventure. Unfortunately we do not have pictures for that evening due to lighting conditions but the adventure will always be glowing in our memories (see what I did there?).
It was almost midnight when we reached our BNB and sorted dinner. It was our third BNB in three days and tomorrow was going to be the fourth and the final day of fun filled activities and adventures of our Honeymoon in the North Island.
Day 4: Rotorua and Matamata
Day 4 was my favorite in the North Island. We were covering the town of Rotorua in the afternoon, diving into its rich Maori culture, geothermal activity and Mud baths. In the evening, we had booked a banquet tour of Hobbitton, the lovely hills of the Shire and were so excited to immerse ourselves in the fantasy of Middle Earth. If you did not get the reference, you are not authorized to read further until you watch Lord of the rings and The Hobbit. Just kidding. Not.
6) Hell’s gate — Our first stop for the day took one hour from our BNB in Tauranga. Hell’s gate is a geothermal park cum hot water and mud bath resort in Rotorua. This was our first traditional honeymoonish activity, just to check the box on record. The park offers a bunch of activities and tours highlighting the Maori culture and the relevance of Geothermal activity in NZ. They have beautiful Geothermal pools and active sites which is a treat for enthusiasts. For everyone else, there are beautiful Mud spas’s and hot water pools to relieve those travel pains and a nice tuck shop for after bath hunger pangs. We went for the Tikitere experience which took about 3 hours but can be extended to whatever time you like. You can also opt for self-guided tour of the park if time is limited. We entered the resort as two tired souls, deprived of a laid-back day but left rejuvenated and cheerful.
From the park, we drove around the beautiful lake Rotorua, taking in the view. Rotorua is another great place to stay with a bunch of spa resorts. We routed ourselves to Mamata and took a pit stop for lunch at a beautiful country side pizza place. It was only a few minutes later that the bright sunny afternoon turned into horrid rain, making the gorgeous green of the country side stand out, but also a worry about our next stop. We were clearly going for an adventure ☺.
It was still raining when we hopped on to the bus to Hobbitton from the check-in site in Matamata. Everyone in the bus was quietly praying to the rain Gods when the driver started playing some old movie scenes and the sound of Shire theme song. That set the tone for the journey; it was raining, we were going to the Shire, to Hobbitton and our hearts were filled with so much joy (had to be dramatic here).
7) Hobbitton — Magic lives in this place. The beautiful bunny hills, Hobbit holes, party tree, Green dragon inn was all so picturesque yet not a single picture we clicked did justice. The place has unimaginable details and warmth beyond measure. We wandered through Hobbitton for about an hour, not caring about the rain, hearing stories here and there from the friendly guides. The sun was setting in the place and we moved to Green dragon for Dinner. We had booked a banquet tour so there was a feast, and this was no ordinary feast, this was a Hobbit feast. If you plan to book a tour and believe me you should, go for the ‘Evening Banquet Tour’, it will be a worthwhile experience. After eating for God knows how long and how much, we ventured in the hills once again, but this time with lanterns. It was an evening to remember.
That night we stayed in Matamata which has a decent number of BNB’s for folks visiting Hobbitton. We woke up early morning to bright sunshine and gorgeous country all around. Matamata also has some great restaurants and breakfast/brunch places in their cute little downtown (CBD for NZ). We gobbled a few pancakes and chicken pie and headed straight to the Auckland Airport. This was it for our travel at the North Island. We were worried that our itinerary was too complicated and might leave us exhausted but it left us exhilarated and with some of the most beautiful memories. From here, the journey continued to the South Island, stay tuned to find out what happened next!
There are other great places in the North Island like to Waiheke Island (great for Wine lovers), Lake Taupo and city of Wellington, to name a few. Nevertheless, when planning NZ, read a lot because you might find things to do and places to visit that are just right for you, that’s how we went for it ☺
