[wobbler]

Hi All, We will be coming over end of Feb for 2 weeks and we have hired a motorhome for four of us to travel round the NI. We have 2 small ones with us, 3 and 5 yr, so most of the bungy, zorbing, tramping, jet boating bits are out.

Anyway this is our 2 weeks route (so far):

2d AUkland
1d Waihi Beach (Karangahaka gorge)
1d Tauranga (Dolphins - OK for small ones?)
2d Rotorua (things to do with hot mud and stuff)
1d Turangi (See volcanos, craters of moon)
3d Wellington (Sites of Wellington, Kapati coast, Kaitoke Park, seal colony)
2d New Plymouth (Waitomo Caves, Marokopa Falls)
2d Tawharanui Regional Park (Nr Aukland, chilling before flight)

Some where along the way we also want to get a sense of NZ, ie meet and talk to as may Kiwi's as we can. Visit some suberbs, the supermarket, the odd school, an agent or two!?

Any suggestions for places to visit or hangout with small ones, would be most welcome. We love beaches and the children love interacting with animals and the nature bit. Any better places to visit too? Is ths too much or should we just make it up as we go along ;)
Thanks

[Smiler]

We did our reccie trip in just under a month on a similar route. We did spend 5 days in Hawkes bay though and several days in Welly and Auckland while OH made job contacts.

There's just the two of us and I don't think I'd want to try and cram all that in with littlies in tow. The roads are a lot slower here and it does take longer to get anywhere, especially on the twisty roads.

Not trying to dampen things down but I'd concentrate on looking at places where you want to settle, with some fun stuff thrown in. You can do the tourist stuff later. Will you have to check out jobs while you are here too?

On the plus side in Welly there is plenty of stuff for kids. Te Papa is FAB! So is Karori wildlife sanctuary. The botanical gardens is fun because you take a cable car ride up and get great views when you get to the top.

There's excellent beaches all the way up from Welly to Kapiti. :clap When you get up to Wanganui and NP, they are black volcanic ones.

HTH.

[wobbler]

Thanks for the reply - I will talk to some people about jobs but it may well be another 18months before we actually come over (if we do) so I am not sure how valuable that would be.

I am worried about the driving as we really do not want to spend too long traveling as the small ones start to revolt after about 90 minutes!

Hum may be cut out Tauranga - as the kids are too young to be allowed onto the boats?
Plus i believe Waitomo Caves are nearer Rotorua than New Plymouth?
Finally Turangi might be tricky.

So perhaps a better question is there some where good to stop off (or stops) as we travel back up from Wellington to Auckland given we will already stopped off at Rotorua/Taupo on the way down?

[TFR]

Can't emphasise the travelling time enough (as above). Give yourself an average of 50kph ish on NZ roads. Some roads are extreme! :)
We struggled to fit everything we planned in because it took longer than we expected to get from A to B. Having said that - what you find along the way is all part of the adventure :) - it's good to have a rough idea though, just don't expect to do everything. If you're flexible you'll be fine.

[Mexican in NZ]

I will recommend to go to Paradise Valley Springs in Rotorua, is a park where u can interact with the animals thay have here is the website you can visit to have a better understanding of the place: http://www.paradisev.co.nz/
ANd if u want to have a close encounter with the native fauna of new zealand i will recomend the Rainbow Springs Valley Park here is the website: www.rainbowsprings.co.nz
Believe me you will love it in NZ just by looking at the wonderful scenary when you drive up or down is amazing!
Wish you the best,
Adriana

[Smiler]

I forgot about Staglands in Lower Hutt, near Wellington.

www.staglands.co.nz (http://www.staglands.co.nz)

[wobbler]

Thanks for all your replies. We are flexible so will be happy to take advise as we travel.

If we want to see the Turangi NP ie trundle around volcanos is that practical with the small ones and a motorhome. IE may be as a stop over between taupo and Wellington? Is there a better way of doing it?

[Tia Maria]

Wobbler wrote:

Some where along the way we also want to get a sense of NZ, ie meet and talk to as may Kiwi's as we can. Visit some suberbs, the supermarket, the odd school, an agent or two!?

and

the children love interacting with animals and the nature bit



Try a visit to Kelly Tarltons in Auckland:

www.kellytarltons.co.nz

It would combine nicely with a trip to look round the suburb of Mission Bay:

www.missionbay.co.nz

They are only a couple of minutes apart, so would fit in with a tight schedule. Someone from that area might be able to fill you in on schools, estate agents etc and it seems like a really nice suburb to check out. It also has a beach, park and ice cream shop - so all the essentials.

I live in Devonport in Auckland which I think is a great place. So if you find yourself at Auckland viaduct, you can take the ferry and be there in 15 minutes:

www.devonport.co.nz

www.devonportdirectory.co.nz.

Its a good spot to check out if you are considering living on the North Shore of Auckland and its also a popular tourist destination. Do PM me if you need any extra details.

Also for the kids there's butterfly creek near the airport:

www.butterflycreek.co.nz

I've not been myself, but heard good things about it. Or the zoo:

www.aucklandzoo.co.nz/index.php

One word of warning when my SIL came to visit she had to wait ages to get her campervan which set her back by half a day, which really does make a difference when you're trying to fit everything in. Also she wasn't too impressed with her campervan, and kept popping back to get things like pillows and even stayed one night in a motel just to get a good nights sleep.

Might be worth starting a thread asking people for campervan tips!

Hope this helps

Cheers

Tia

[wobbler]

Thanks - good usefull stuff. Had not thought about campervan 'problems'. we are going with Britz which is one of the largest groups. So i hope they will be OK.

[Questor]

Nga Manu nature reserve near us in Waikanae is great - and cheap!

www.ngamanu.co.nz

[Oregonkiwi]

Tawharanui Regional Park is lovely but I wouldn't recommend taking a motorhome there, the last few kms of the road are very narrow and twisty. But there are plenty of other beaches closer to Auckland for you to enjoy.

Another place to visit in Auckland might be Cornwall Park and One Tree Hill (basically the same place). There are usually some sheep around in the park for the kids to look at, and on the Manukau Road side of the park is a big playground which is very popular, so that could be a good place for your kids to play with other kids.
http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/whatson/places/parks/onetreehill.asp

Before we left America we did a 5500-mile 3-week road trip with our two year old, and what helped keep us all sane (besides frequent stops at cheap toy stores) was hunting out playgrounds in small towns we were passing through. I liked doing that because as well as a play break, we got to see things and meet people that we wouldn't have if we'd stuck to the main highway, and get a little glimpse of daily life.

have a great trip!

[Nathan]

Here's an addy for a driving time calculator between major towns and cities.
http://discovernz.co.nz/driving/smlcalc.html
I don't know how accurate it is, but perhaps someone else can advise.
Surely, it doesn't include child breaks!

[wobbler]

Thanks sound advice. Only 2 weeks or so to go then I will be able to find out myself! We 2 often stop off at the small parks as we travel around cornwall on our UK Hols. And it is true that you do eet the locals that way.