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Travelling with Kiwi Experience

Travelling with Kiwi Experience
Since we’ve come back from our backpacking trip in New Zealand one of the things I have been asked most frequently is how we travelled around. The simple answer is by bus; more specifically the Kiwi Experience bus which we discovered in the STA travel brochure. Initially we liked the idea of travelling in a camper van but a bit of research suggested it was going to be much more expensive for just two of us and whilst in some ways we would have more flexibility, in other ways we would have less. Kiwi Experience is very much what you make of it and I feel like we learned more about it on the trip than we had done in advance. View Post

Top 10 New Zealand Experiences

Top 10 New Zealand Experiences
I wrote a lot of posts about New Zealand whilst we were away, and each place that we visited contained new highlights and things that I’ll remember forever. When people ask what my favourite things to do and places to see were, I have some obvious memorable moments. However, the more I think about a certain place, the more I remember and usually end up decided that that was a highlight to. So, to make things a little easier. Here’s my New Zealand top ten that I’d recommend to anyone travelling there. View Post

Wellington

Wellington
I’ve heard Wellington described in a few places as the “coolest little capital in the world”. I’ve been to quite a few capitals I’d describe as cool so I’m not entirely sure how true this claim is but I did really enjoy Wellington and, like the majority of places I’ve visited in New Zealand, could easily have stayed for longer. View Post

River Valley Lodge

River Valley Lodge
River Valley Lodge is a lovely lodge that is in the middle of nowhere but surrounded by some stunning scenery. It’s a little bit off the beaten track (there were very few people staying there who weren’t on our bus) but worth seeking out. View Post

Great Lake Taupo

Great Lake Taupo
Great Lake Taupo is New Zealand’s largest lake which also happens to be a caldera (sunken volcano) which is still active. The average depth of the lake is 100m and in some places you can see the water bubbling but it isn’t hot enough to warm up the entire lake. We both really liked Taupo (pronounced toe-paw) and there is plenty to keep you occupied for a few days. There is also quite a strange mix of activities – you can do all the adrenaline filled activities but there are also quite a few retirement homes. View Post