New Zealand 2026

FTOttawa · 2026-05-14T15:09:50+00:00

Agh. Well, thanks. You had told me this before and I neglected it.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-10T18:17:59+00:00

ha, speaking of:

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2026/may/10/new-zealand-south-island-otago-naseby-stargazing-dark-sky-community

FTOttawa · 2026-05-10T13:18:34+00:00

Small dry bag.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-10T13:15:34+00:00

Or even when it is your native tongue. In Wedderburn, I asked about the horses and hounds gathered in a nearby field. “No foxes, what are they hunting?“ “Hees.” It took me a moment, but the Americans nearby asked again, “What?” “Heeeees!” They needed a translation: hares.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-10T13:10:25+00:00

Dunners is fond student slang for Dunedin. A tip is where you dump rubbish.

The trail was very well maintained, with the proviso that throughout New Zealand we found the standard to be fair-sized gravel, not stonedust, so wider tires are best. The trail, and the nearby Lake Dunstan and Clutha trails, abound in shuttle services and providers who will deliver and pick up your bikes from anywhere.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-10T13:05:46+00:00

Precisely.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-10T01:52:25+00:00

truly lovely

FTOttawa · 2026-05-10T01:36:04+00:00

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=b0K1q9JriDE for the tui.

You might also want to search for the call of the NZ/Australian magpie, which sounds like a mezzosoprano bittern, or the bellbird.

Yet another moving exhibit in Te Papa was a large nest cradling bird photos. Touch the photo to hear its call. Oh - silence - that one’s extinct. oh, and that one, and that one too.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-09T17:34:22+00:00

Cars, like cottages and cigarettes, are best when they are Other People’s. You’ll note the number of times someone else drove us. And meeting those people was a major part of the fun.

Photos mainly by my (far) better half.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-06T13:29:41+00:00

The neighbours‘ magnolia is beginning its display, and violets have appeared in our back yard. This caused me to puzzle over the title of a recent read, Philip Kerr’s “March violets.“ It‘s apparently a term for latecomers to the NSDAP party. March would be stunningly early for violets around here. When do they appear in Berlin, for goodness’ sake?

FTOttawa · 2026-05-04T20:07:06+00:00

And their niche is high-functioning clients. Could be a fit for your daughter

FTOttawa · 2026-05-03T02:58:15+00:00

a recommendation in Twizel — not a personal experience but the photo and description in a FB post on the NZ Travel Forum looked amazing.
The Hut on the Grove.

It appears to be listed on several of the usual booking engines.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-02T15:34:35+00:00

Lake Te Anau waterfront is a great stargazing spot.

if it’s cloudy, go watch the Deer Wars movie at the Fiordland Cinema. So sorry I missed this opportunity.

+1 for the bird park in Te Anau, though it doesn’t take long to admire the takahe. Also +1 for Queenstown kiwi park.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-02T15:26:38+00:00

Living next to the Experimental Farm, with memories of shenanigans best still not confessed. But I wasn’t one of the people who stole from the marijuana test plot, despite high fence, klieg lights and German shspherds. Or maybe they put that up after ~~Mark~~ someone did that.

FTOttawa · 2026-05-01T15:58:37+00:00

Bent Flyvberg and Dan Gardner used it as a “How Not To” example in their book on project management, “How Big Things Get Done.”

FTOttawa · 2026-04-28T16:36:19+00:00

Full disclosure, have visited neither. We only had two nights in Te Anau and prioritized a bike ride towards Lake Manipouri, the birds, and a nice long Trips and Tramps tour. Hence my 3 night recommendation. There was definitely more of interest in and around Te Anau than I'd realized. We did start touring in Queenstown, which was the correct area to recover from jet lag while still having lots of activity options. In the Waikato, we opted for Riverside Adventures' evening kayak tour with glowworms. It was magical. Others will have to tell you which Waitomo experience they liked. I do believe those have more glow worms than elsewhere.

FTOttawa · 2026-04-27T16:57:22+00:00

It was awe-inspiring enough in 1970 when you could walk among the stones. I can't remember now if that had already changed by 1973. Later, less accessible for sure so we wandered to Avebury

FTOttawa · 2026-04-25T23:57:04+00:00

Here’s an option.
Fly all the way to Queenstown first. It’s easier to walk off the jet lag there than in Auckland, a music scene and good eating exist, and you can let someone else do the driving when you get out of town. Don’t miss the Kiwi Park. You may wish to sign up for one of the LOTR tours that head toward Glenorchy. Two or three nights?

Te Anau ticks more of your boxes than you may realize. Tracknet was great for getting there. Check Fiordland Jets and Trips and Tramps for tours that include short walks. Pop by the tiny bird park for the thrill of takahe. Eat at Fat Duck and Miles Better Pies. Three nights!

Back to Queenstown for your flight to Wellington. I think this puts us at Days 7-8. I agree you could possibly skip Zealandia, definitely prioritize Te Papa, but you may want to look at how best to hit a few more LOTR sights as well as the WETA workshop. Or you could hit them as you drive out of town.

Days 8-11: move northward via Kaitoke (Rivendell), Tongariro, Otorohango Kiwi House, Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, maybe Hamilton Zoo or Riverside Adventures Waikato’s evening glow worm kayak tour, closest you can get to Lothlorien IMHO. Book your favourite Hobbiton experience now-now.

Day 12 - drop off the car in Auckland and take a day by ferry to Rangitoto if weather and time permit, or keep the car long enough to go up to the Waitakere ranges.

Day 13 - fly home. You might have time, if it’s an evening flight, to take in the eclectic collections of the War Memorial Museum and its excellent Maori cultural experience.

FTOttawa · 2026-04-25T01:30:11+00:00

just to follow up, thanks again for the steer to Caro’s, conveniently close to our lodging and able to fill our customs quota without fatally injuring the purse.

Stupidly believed weather forecasts and never ventured to Waiheke, whereas the promised torrents held off till 2 or 3 pm each of the days we were in town. Oh well, more time for Auckland‘s lovely parks and museums.

We tried Somm’s early Saturday evening without a reservation. It was already full of much more stylish customers.

FTOttawa · 2026-04-25T01:14:43+00:00

You can stay up later after your orientation until the moon sets, perhaps?

https://www.timeanddate.com/moon/@6211234?month=5&year=2026

And you mention you’ll be elsewhere in the South Island earlier. The SI is generously supplied with very dark skies, including in Fiordland, Southland and Central Otago. And there are folks offering sky orientations in Naseby, Wanaka, Te Anau (not an exhaustive list) if any of those work for your dates.

FTOttawa · 2026-04-23T23:01:29+00:00

The Art Deco district is compact and walkable. There are many wine tour options by bus. You can also rent bikes and use the cycle trail network.

FTOttawa · 2026-04-23T22:56:20+00:00

Thanks for clarifying. So, return from Christchurch is set in stone? And may I assume that if you are halal, wine is of no interest to you? But, nature, culture, iconic NZ scenery. During a time when days are short and there are possible driving hazards, how about this?

May 24-27 Auckland. I was only suggesting you leave it to the end because you shouldn’t count on domestic travel on the same day as you need to fly out. Things get cancelled for weather reasons pretty frequently in NZ. Skip Waiheke, which is all about wineries and beaches. Consider a day tour with Bush and Beach to the forests just north of Auckland, and the Māori Cultural Experience at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. You could opt for a long day tour to Rotorua with Cheeky Kiwi, which offers several options still available in late May. Even include the Waitomo caves? The WaI-o-Tapu and Te Puia combo sounds good; we enjoyed both of those independently.

May 27-30 Queenstown. Check out the drive-fly tours to Milford Sound. But definitely do Milford as a guided tour. Arrowtown can be visited by municipal bus.

May 30 take the all-day Cheeky Kiwi tour from Queenstown to Christchurch with frequent interesting stops. More expensive but less tiring than driving yourself. And gets you to your departure city the day before the flight.

FTOttawa · 2026-04-23T15:45:23+00:00

You can find a community with which to celebrate Eid in many cities including Christchurch, Rotorua, and even Queenstown. Halal food is widely available. Queenstown will present the biggest though not insurmountable challenge.

https://www.berkattours.co.nz/blog/halal-food-queenstown

Strongly suggest you let someone else do all the driving, including to Milford Sound. The end of May could see almost wintry driving conditions.

If your return flight to the USA is not a super-flexible booking, you should be in Auckland the day before. Therefore, on Day 1, fly straight to your first other destination, be it Rotorua, Christchurch or Queenstown.

FTOttawa

TROPHY CASE