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These pages are intended to show how easy it is to organise your own walking trip in new Zealand.
It is also inexpensive compared to organised walking groups. The walking holiday (16 days in New Zealand )described here cost under UKP 1500 per person for two people sharing. That is all costs including flights, car hire for 16 days, car fuel, accommodation, all meals, entry into attractions etc. We booked our flights with Air Singapore direct through the Internet, flying via Singapore to Auckland, New Zealand. Select a flight that arrives in the middle of the day. It is much better to arrive in daylight after a long flight, than to arrive in a strange city at midnight. There was plenty of space on the flights. (we may just have been lucky)and many people slept stretched out on a row of seats. In flight service is excellent, with two meals on each leg of the journey and snacks in between. My gluten-free meals were excellent and varied. It is best not to accept the (free) wine on offer but stick to water and soft drinks. Hot moist towels are brought round before meals - so many touches of luxury in the economy class!
Important note for walkersWalking boots (and possibly other outdoor gear ) are checked with great care by the quarantine officials at the airport immigration. Make sure all your gear is meticulously clean without a trace of anything in the tread of your boots. make sure your walking gear is packed where you can easily extract it from your bags for inspection.We booked are our hire with Thrifty Car Hire, again through the Internet. Look out for their advertised special offers. They pick you up at the airport and take you to their base a short distance away. Formalities were quick and efficient. Chech your care with care - I rejected the first car because one of the tyres was rather worn - but they were happy to replace the car with another. The cars were clean, less than 6 months old, and well looked after. If you are not used to driving an auomatic car, take time to read the instructions, and ask them to show you the basics. We arrived at midday and went first to the Auckland Botanic Gardens. I find that walking in the bright sunshine helps reset your body clock. We then drove on to our accommodation in Devonport. The motorways through the heart of Auckland are the only very busy roads in the country. They are also being redeveloped - and are best avoided in the rush hour! The motorway exit for Devonport was not well signed, and if we had not been looking out for it might have missed it. Important tip for locating accommodationWe booked our accommodation beforehand through the Internet, and using the address provided were able to locate the street or road using the multimap.com website. We took a printed out copy with us that showed the route to the accommodation and the street names round about that address. This was invaluable.Our itinery was as follows:
WarningsMany people spoil their holiday by trying to do far too much. You cannot see the whole of New Zealand in a short holiday, but you can enjoy a small part as we have done.Avoid travelling away from Auckland on a friday afternoon or evening. The roads are very busy with cars and trailers trying to get to their coastal retreats for the weekend. Avoid the Auckland rush hour on the roads. Advantages of Bed and Breakfast and a hire carMost Bed and Breakfast establishments are extrememly spacious, luxurious and friendly. Your hosts are opening their houses because they enjoy having visitors. Not because they want to make a lot of money from you.Your hosts can be excellent sources of information about the best places to visit, eat, etc. Bed and breakfast and a hire car can be a lot less expensive than a camper van! Many car parks for walks have warnings about not leaving valuables in your car. If you are staying B&B leave all your luggage there while you explore with complete peace of mind. You won't have the same peace of mind with a camper. Extra map data is copyright Peter Thomson. Scripts are copyright of the original authors.
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Walking in New Zealand |