JASON'S RECENT SELF-DRIVE MINI TRIP OF WELLINGTON - AUCKLAND WEST COAST NEW ZEALAND:

DAY 1: Arrived on NZ754 Sat 05Aug MELWLG 1825/2355

Wellington:

I arrived around midnight on a Saturday night to a wet and windy Wellington, capital city of New Zealand and one of my favourite places on earth. A short taxi ride of around 20 mins and NZD$25.00 later, I arrived at the Novotel Hotel Capital Wellington.

Fact: According to the latest population estimate in June 2006, The Wellington region (including Kapiti, Porirua, Hutt Valley and Wairarapa) has the third highest population, containing 11.3% of New Zealand's population. Wellington city has 183,500 and the entire region totals 451,400.


Nightlife: I decided as it was a Saturday night that it would be a great time to experience Wellington’s nightlife at it’s busiest even though the winter rain and 10 degree celcius temperatures may have driven a few people away. I never felt uncomfortable walking around the city and it felt quite safe and friendly even at this late hour as people were out partying. Wellington has a great pub scene with a number of Irish and English style pubs to have a few pints of New Zealand’s great local ales. New Zealand has also excellent local white wines due to it’s climate.


Fact: Drinks generally cost between NZD$7-10 for beer and spirits etc. There is no tipping required in New Zealand and the taxes are included in all the prices! The NZD$ will give you about a 20% saving compared to the CAD$.

The pubs and clubs are mainly concentrated in an area called Cuba St and Mall and also along Courtenay Place (5 or so blocks away) which also houses many restaurants and funky cafés. There is a brilliant cinema complex on Courtenay Street too called Reading Cinemas that has Gold Lounge seating which are comfy recliner lounge chairs and delivery to your seat of drinks and food etc.











Cuba St Mall

DAY 2:

Wellington:

Attractions:
















It's ridiculous how much there is you can do in Wellington! Rain or shine it is always fun and interesting to walk the streets of the downtown core where there is great shopping and fantastic museums and galleries. An absolute must-do is Te Papa which is the national museum of New Zealand. You can return to this museum each year and it will have changed as it has different displays and exhibits all the time. I have spent whole days there and I think it has to be one of the best if not largest museums in the world.











Te Papa

A stroll along Lambton Quay looking into the many stores and then a quick cable car ride up the hill taking you to museums, botanical garden and brilliant views over the city is something I always make time for. The Museum of Wellington City & Sea is also a worthwhile visit located down by the water downtown as it’s very interactive exploring Wellington’s distinctive character from first settlement by Maori’s to the present. There are many more museums, historic buildings, public galleries and great theatre productions that show in restored heritage buildings. Much of the Lord Of The Rings filming was done in sets constructed around the Wellington area and in natural areas such as Mt Wellington and Kaitoke Regional Park (neat Upper Hutt just north of Wellington). The city and area is beautiful, exciting, cosmopolitan yet quaint and is always a pleasure to visit even in the driving rain and windy conditions of the middle of winter. I would recommend a minimum 3 nights stay in and around the area.

DAY 3:

Wellington - Ohakune:

Fact: Breakfast is not a big event in New Zealand or Australia generally and will often cost between $10-20 for a basic to fully cooked breakfast. Coffee is normally ordered by asking for a “flat-white” or “long-black” etc and you get used to this ordering style as you go along! It is also often not bottomless so you pay per cup.

I picked up my rental car (ask me for my recommendations of car rental companies) around 10.00am and departed Wellington heading North-West in the driving winter rain.

It's easy to to get out of Wellington as they have a great motorway system and in minutes I was travelling the maximum speed limit of 100km and hour on the way up the North-East coast. I drove by the pretty seaside towns of Porirua and Paraparaumu and didn’t stop due to the very heavy rainfall. Many of the coastal towns along this route were prominent in the movie “The Last Samurai” filmed recetly. I continued up for about an hour and a half until I hit the inland city of Palmerston North. The city has a population of 75,000 and is New Zealand’s 5th largest city. It ‘s mainly good for it’s educational and research institutions. I parked in thye centre of town and went for a brief walk and thought it was a pleasant town but not overly exciting.

Main St - Palmerston North


It was getting late as I arrived into the town of Wanganui about an hour later. It was pouring with rain and getting dark however I could still see how pretty this town of 40,000 people was! It’s one of the oldest provincial cities in New Zealand and has many historic buildings and cute cafes and pubs and galleries on Victoria Avenue which is recognized as one of New Zealand’s most attractive main streets. Gaslights, wrought-iron garden seats, palm & plane trees line the downtown area. Wanganui in the Maori language means “expansive river mouth” and and it is nestled alongside the huge Whanganui River which houses a 100 year old paddle steamer. The river is the setting for the recently filmed New Zealand movie “The River Queen”. It’s also close to the ocean and really is only a 3 hour drive from Wellington! I loved this place which was totally unexpected and I was just a little upset that I couldn’t spend more than a brief tourist drive around it and a short stroll with my umbrella through the main street. I will recommend this town to anyone in this general area to at least overnight if not for a few days!

Victoria Ave - Wanganui



As I drove on towards Ohakune on Highway 4 it was getting darker and darker and this is not a trip I would recommend to do in the pouring rain and darkness. There was lots of flooding on the road as I drove over the mountain range however in the diminishing light I could still see how pretty this drive would be in daylight.

Road to Ohakune from Wanganui

I arrived at Tairoa Lodge, my hosted Guest House for the night around 6.30pm. The hosts of the property that is 5kms out of the town of Ohakune, Liz and Alec were awaiting my arrival and promptly offered me a glass of Red Wine and to join them for dinner. I immediately realised how hospitable they were and how comfortable the overnight would be in their lovely modern home. All the bedrooms have their own ensuite bathrooms with under floor heating (a feature I’m a huge fan of)! They have a large open planned lounge/dining room with a huge open fireplace and a large outdoor hot tub, both areas great for relaxing in! Liz and Alec really know the area and wont hesitate to show guests around whatever their interests.

I decided to decline my hosts kind offer to eat with them (accepted a glass of wine though) and decided instead to check out the town of Ohakune for dinner and entertainment considering I only had one night here.

I drove into the town of around 1400 people known as the carrot capital of New Zealand and in the winter, known as the apre’s ski capital of the North Island. It was fairly busy night despite the pouring rain as it was in the middle of the ski season and Mt Turoa Ski area was only a short drive away into the mountains. I had a great pizza in a small family run Italian Restaurant and then drove up to the Powderkeg Pub & Restaurant only a few minutes out of town where a great open bar setting with a fireplace was. Most of the younger people in the town come here and it’s where the Lord of The Rings crew stayed when they were filing scenes of “Mordor” (Mount Ruapehu) nearby. I enjoyed my evening there and drove back to Tairoa Lodge and enjoyed my heated blanket and a very nice and peaceful sleep.

DAY 4:

Ohakune – New Plymouth (Taranaki):



















I awoke early so as to have a full day of traveling on the road again and Alec was up waiting to cook me a hot breakfast. The eggs were perfect as too was the coffee and the hospitality he showed me and I left with thanks to my hosts and feeling refreshed after a very pleasant if not too brief a stay. I would not hesitate in recommending Tairoa Lodge or Lodge style accommodation to anyone coming out to this part of the country.












Tairoa Lodge Common Room & My Guestroom with ensuite



I drove through the little town of Ohakune after a brief visit to the Visitor Centre there which is highly recommended for it’s model of the whole volcanic region which I took a picture of below. It shows you just how interesting this whole region is.
















I drove off into the fog and rain through the town called “National Park” and into the Tongariro/Mt Ruapehu area which covers an area of 800 square kilometres in the centre of the North Island. 1 hour later and I was driving alongside volcanic rock and to the base of Whakapapa Village at Mt Ruapehu. I would not suggest doing this drive during the middle of winter as the clouds hug the volcano/mountain and you cannot see anything! At the village is the Bayview Chateau Tongariro a beautiful 19th century hotel offering 115 well appointed rooms, tennis courts, a 9 hole golf course amongst other facilities.














Bayview Chateau Tongariro


I drove to the top of the Whakapapa Ski Field Road and found it snowing up there near the peak of Mt Ruapehu which is 2797 metres high. Although Mt Ruapehu is an active volcano it has thousands of visitors each year, mainly due to the skiing opportunities in the winter and the great hiking trails like the Mt Ruapehu track and the famous Tongariro Crossing Track often heralded as New Zealand’s most popular one day trek. The area has taken on wider appeal around the world too lately due Mt Ruapehu stepping in for “Mordor and Mt Doom” in the Lord of The Rings Trilogy. I thought for what I could see through the low cloud and snow that is was a fascinating and beautiful area and somewhere that people could spend time just enjoying nature.

I drove on along highway 4 north and then turned west onto highway 43 known as the “Forgotten World Highway” about an hour later. When driving from Mt Ruapehu area westward it’s important to leave lots of time for the drive. Not only is it beautiful countryside, rolling hills and mountains and farms and sheep and lakes etc, but part of the road once you turn west is unpaved. In heavy rainfall it tends to fall apart a little and I found many delays and many road works going on so this 30min unpaved section took me almost 2 hours! Again, middle of the winter is not the greatest time to travel however I do highly recommend the drive as not many people are on it even though it’s a long day’s drive.

I arrived into the well-named town of Stratford (after Shakespeare’s birthplace in England) just as the sun was going down around 4.30pm. This nice little town of pretty parks and gardens is also well known for New Zealand’s only Glockenspiel Clocktower and the town houses approx. 5,300 people. It is also the gateway to Egmont National Park and Mount Taranaki. The snow capped mountain 2,518metres high dominates the skyline and offers 320kms of scenic walkways and breathtaking views of Stratford, New Plymouth and the entire western coastline. It’s a stunning mountain and deserves a lengthy visit as does the entire Taranaki region recently known for it being the location for the filming of “The Last Samurai” with Tom Cruise.

I drove on as it was starting to get quite dark for about another 30mins until I arrived in New Plymouth, the main city in the Taranaki region and home to a population of approx 48,000. This city is right by the ocean and with the backdrop of Mt Taranaki and is rich in the arts, dining, sports and outdoor lifestyle. I found a hotel and then went for a wander through the city centre as it had stopped raining finally and noticed that it had many restaurants and pubs and I decided on the Irish Pub for dinner which was pretty good. It seemed like a pretty happening place and I got a good feel from it all. I returned to the hotel and had an early night.

DAY 5:

New Plymouth (Taranaki) -Auckland:

I woke early the next morning to sunshine finally and checked out of the hotel and drove back into the centre and parked by the 7km coastal walkway area that runs from Port Taranaki to the Waiwhakaiho River Mouth. In that area is Puke Ariki, an innovative museum/library/information centre complex adjacent to the sea which has become the city’s hub and is well worth a visit. When I stood along the ocean and looked back to the city I could see Mt Taranaki towering over it, an image I saw over and over again as I drove north along the coast on Highway 3 bound for Auckland. The first hour or so out of New Plymouth on this road along the coast offers plenty of opportunities to pull over and look back at the coast and New Plymouth and Mt Taranaki in the distance. It’s a great little drive and would be enjoyed better travelling in the other direction North to South than the way I was doing it.

Mt Taranaki over New Plymouth & Puke Ariki Centre

Along the way there is a turn off into an area called the White Cliffs Walkway and it’s about a 20min drive off the main highway. It’s a sensational area for hiking with breathtaking views of the rugged coastline of the area and you even pass by the odd seal lying by the trail as I did when I walked just a few minutes of it!

White Cliffs Walkway & Seal by the walkway

This whole drive should be enjoyed with plenty of time up your sleeve and not when you leave yourself a 6 hour drive on your final day to get to the airport at Auckland! I drove another couple of hours of not quite as exciting countryside as the highway moved inland and it was basically farmland after another and then I took a turn off to Waitomo home of the Waitomo Caves and a major adventure capital area of New Zealand. Waitomo township is what you drive into first and has a wide array of accommodations from on site cabins to dormitories, hotel rooms and even staying in a hobbit house or an airplane or a train carriage! A short drive up the road from the town is Waitomo Caves, a famous labyrinth of glow-worm caves 30 million years in the making. This is an adventure capital for sure as in the caves you may go black water rafting which is a mixture of explore the caves by abseiling, walking or floating through them! Above ground there are horse treks and some very fine hiking trails in this pretty area. I unfortunately ran out of time in Waitomo and could only do a quick overview visit of it all but it is a place I would love to return too and would recommend highly to others.

Waitomo

I left Waitomo and drove straight through the city of Hamilton as I have never found there to be anything of interest there and made my way to the Auckland Airport for my 7.15pm Air New Zealand flight bound for San Francisco. The car rental company required me to drop it off at Rennie Drive a few minutes from the airport as many of the car rental companies require. I was a little worried about being late for my flight however the service was great when I arrived at my car rental depot and they drove me to the airport in their van right away.

SUMMARY

I really enjoyed my central and west coast of the North Island self-drive and I now know how much there is to offer the visitor. It is so incredibly stunning and beautiful and is completely different to the rest of New Zealand. If enough time is allotted it can be a relaxing and an exciting destination all in one.

Air New Zealand were once again fantastic and on-time!