We have booked our gap year via an amazing travel company called Gap 360. I have traveled via this company before so had zero hesitation to book with them again. The trip we are doing is called the Global 360, you can customise the trip to suit you which is what me and Tim have done. The fourth stop on our trip is New Zealand (14/10/2023-TBC)...
With Gap360's Global 360, we get a 12 month travel pass for New Zealand although they offer a loose itinerary where we can cover everything in around 30-38 days.
We will arrive in Auckland, visit the Parry Kauri Forest Park and travel to Paihia where we will get a hostel for the night. From here we will do a round trip to visit Cape Reinga and see the Te Paki Stream. We will spend another night in the same hostel in Paihia. From here its back to Auckland to swim with Dolphins!
(Pictures from: Stuff , Trip advisor, experience oz)
From Auckland we move on to Hahei where we visit a hot water beach and relax for the evening in our beachfront accommodation. The next day will be spent exploring Cathedral cove via Kayak! I'll be an expert Kayaker by the end of this trip...
(Pictures from: Kayak tours, Pandotrip, Stray travel)
Next st0p is Rotoria where we are visiting the Hobbiton set (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). This is another massive one on my bucket list and even just thinking about the fact I am going there gives me goosebumps. My first and third tattoos were Tolkien inspired ones. I am a very big fan of the Hobbit and Lord of the rings. The Hobbit is one of my all time favourite books. After exploring the set we will get a hostel for the night in Rotoria before moving on to Lake Aniwhenia where we will have a Macri guided tour.
After Lake Aniwhenia we visit the Huka falls, lake Taupo and have a rural overnight stay at a farm in Whakahoro. The next day is spent exploring Whakahoro by horse before settling down for the evening in another local hostel. From here we go to Raetihi via Tongariro national park and spend the night in a historic nurses home.
(Pictures from: everything new zealand, Kirsten captures, pure new zealand)
The next stop is Wellington where we've got a few days to fully explore. Wellington zoo is a definite must see for me, we've also got cable cars, botanic gardens and Zealandia on our list! We then get the early ferry over to Marahau where we can enjoy the Marlborough wine making region and Abel Tasman national park. From here it's on to Franz Josef, via stunning rugged west coast setting with wild seal colonies! Once at Franz Josef we will enjoy a Glacier walk, the west coast wildlife centre and maybe even splash out on a helicopter tour of the glaciers.
(Pictures from: Moatrek, Stuff, globe trotting)
Wanaka is the next stop via Lake Matheson and Lake Hawea. Then its from Wanaka to Queenstown! We've got a few days in Queenstown which is good as there's a lot we want to do, such as:
walk up mount iron
skyline gondola
skyline loop track
kiwi birdlife park
Frisbee golf
Lake Wakatipu
Next stop is Gunns camp where we will do a milford sound boat cruise. The next morning we are off to Invercargill to do the gantry walk and a Sea lion, Dolphin and Penguin boat spotting tour! We then loop back around to Queenstown and move on to Aoraki. We explore Aoraki via a 4 wheel drive tour before moving on again to Rangitata. Here we visit Lake Tekapo and hike up to Mt. John.
(Pictures from: Flying Kiwi, Pure New zealand)
Time for some more Horse riding but this time in Christchurch. We then move on to Kaikoura after some Whale spotting and swimming with Dolphins. We have time to squish in a visit to some more wild seal colonies before catching the ferry back to Wellington and spending the night relaxing in a hostel. We are up bright and early the next morning to get back to Auckland. From here me and Tim will head to the airport to catch a flight to California to start the last leg of our epic gap year.
Have you visited New Zealand? If so, what do you recommend? What is a must see, must do activity? What food do we have to try before leaving? Let me know down below or message me on Instagram @bilbo.h
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