4 -5 weeks in new Zealand, 2 dcs, what would you do....

[toomanywheeliebins]

We have been lucky enough to manage to work ourselves a long holiday before my eldest starts school and will forever be tied into school holidays. We have saved hard for this and have decided on NZ as it such a long way it seems worthy of a big trip.
Going in March. Two children four and two years old. Thoughts and recommendations of places to visit and stay really welcome.

( as well as how to survive the flights with the kids shudder

If you are flying via Singapore it's worth noting that there is a swimming pool in Singapore airport. Pack some swimming things into your carry on luggage. Towels and a sachet of shampoo are included in the entry price. It's the best thing for dealing with cranky toddlers during a 3 hour stopover.

We had a motorhome for about 6wks, flying in and out of Aukland in March 2011. Children were 6&3.
We found it a good way to travel with the children, but campsites charge you per person, some did and some didn't charge for children.
We headed south down the west side of the north island, can't remember all the names of the places we stayed but we didn't book in advance. We had a book of campsites from the hire company plus the dept of environment campsites list. We did the gloworm caves on the north island, Wellington museum was good, ferry to South Island - I've never been so sea sick! South Island we went to the farewell spit and Whangeri beach where we saw baby seals up close. We did a quad bike tour, we went salmon fishing, we found "treasures" on the beach. We stayed in grey mouth which had a good swimming pool. Frank Josef glacier and the other one! Hot spring pools, wanaka, puzzle world, queens town - the Hakka show was good and the campsite was right in town so we could walk into town. We hired bikes, we went up the hill in the cable car and did the luge buggies at the top. We stopped at waterfalls and went to Dunedin.
I agree with the poster that said the penguins were annoying, wait for ages and then you can't see them because it was dusk. We ate the best cheese I've ever eaten in Dunedin at a cheese factory. Albatrosses were a let down too!
Whale watching - I'm the only person who wasn't impressed I think, the dolphins were better!
Then we went back to the north island to Rotarua, Hamilton, bay of Islands.
Weather - it was like British autumn, quite damp really.

oh yes, the albatross colony at Tairoa Head an hour from Dunedin. They ARE spectacular but you don't need to pay to see them flying - if it is windy they will be flying above it and if it isn't, they won't!

just leave a donation.

We saw more albatross on the whale watching trip.

Ooh that reminds me, we had a great cheese and wine tour of a factory near Queenstown/Wanaka. Close to the original bungee jumping place.

The Maori evening in Rotorua was good, and something the children would enjoy too.

Friends also recommended going to the Catlins on the south coast of the South Island for amazing wildlife and unspoilt scenery but we didn't have time to drive down that far.

I lived in NZ (Wellington) for a few years. If you are in Wellington waiting for the ferry to the South Island Te Papa is worth a visit and the views over the harbour from the top of the cable car or the top of Mount Victoria are good. If it's a weekend and the weather is nice have a walk along the harbour and stop for brunch.

We loved doing trips over to the South Island and would recommend the following:
Milford Sound staying in Te Anau as the journey is shorter (Te Anau also has a glow worm trip).
Queenstown is great and the views from the top of the gondola are fantastic. The CaddyShack indoor mini golf in Queenstown is fun too and handy if it rains.
Driving in the South Island is amazing. I remember Arthur's Pass driving from the West coast over to Christchurch being spectacular. The West Coast is beautiful and if you are driving that way the Punakaiki pancake rocks are worth a quick stop and if you are looking for somewhere to stay for a night near the glaciers we preferred Hokitika to Greymouth and Westport.
We also stopped at a Wallaby sanctuary on the way from Dunedin to Christchurch - I don't remember which town it was in but we just pulled off the main road when we saw the sign as we wanted a break - it was just a lady's backyard with lots of wallabies but was a great stop. Sometimes it's well worth just following one of the tourist signs to break up a drive - we found a nice stop at a Kiwi Fruit farm in Te Puke in the North Island doing the same thing.

In the North Island I recommend the following:
Wai-o-Tapu geothermal park in Rotorua
Craters of the Moon outside Taupo is also worth a visit - the entrance fee is very low and I think it's probably better to do it before anything in Rotorua.
Napier Vineyards (we did a cycling tour round the vineyards which was great - I don't know if they have baby seats for the bikes though)
Auckland Zoo and the Sky Tower.

We went to NA on honeymoon, and packed in as much as we could in only 2 weeks using public transport. Things we did that small children might also enjoy:

• went up Sky Tower in Auckland
• Auckland museum -it's set in a park and had some interactive bits
• beaches, can't recommend specific ones as we were taken by my friend who lives not too far from Auckland
• Waitomo glow worm caves
• Rotorua, we went to Te Puia Maori cultural centre and thermal reserve and Hell's Gate
• whale watching in Kaikoura as most posters have recommended
• Antartic centre in Christchurch

Obviously there's lots of places we didn't get to though. Have a great time. It is a fabulous country, and we would love to go back except I can't contemplate the flights with small children.

Just want to thank everyone who came on here and posted. Going to spend some time this weekend sorting a plan and will come back here and post x

Wellingon Zoo, best little zoo in the world and fab for your kids ages. Also Te Papa, big museum in Wellington City Centre, again tons and tons of really cool stuff for little and big kids and all free. Have a great holiday, am v envious, NZ is a stunning place & very child friendly.

The wallabies are in Waimate between Timaru and Oamaru.

Christchurch is still lovely but be prepared it is still a post-disaster city.