As much as we wanted to do both islands, we only had time to visit the North Island. We took day trips to Hobbiton, Piha Beach and Rotorua.
We had no plans, we just wanted to be anywhere else but home for just a moment.
Auckland
The CBD had a beautiful skyline that you need to capture with your eyes and your camera. Auckland was familiar enough feel like we hadn't left Sydney. One quirk we did enjoy was seeing people driving and parking on the footpath...Auckland locals, is this a thing??? Is that normal?
Hobbiton
This was the only pit stop on my agenda. I'm not a big LOTR fan, but I did enjoy the films. Seeing the sets and hearing the stories about the creation of Middle Earth was just a bonus to my NZ experience.
But driving into Matamata itself was just so beautiful! Seas of green with sheep and cows left and right. The drive to Middle Earth was worth every kilometre.
Rotorua
The town surrounded by volcanic spurs is also home to The Redwood Forest. It was a fun tree-to-tree walk with tree routes that fit all adventure levels. It was a fun immersive track.
The sulfur site of Rotorua did smell, BUT as a budding GeoTeacher, I wanted to see and learn more about what I was teaching my students. It was a really interesting site.
Piha Beach
The North Island is beautiful with great spots to just drive to and enjoy. One spot that the weather didn't dappen was Piha Beach. It's known for it magnificent rock formations:
Overall, New Zealand is worth the visit and I cannot wait to see what the South Island has to offer!
Next: Staycation: Japanese Escape in the Mountains