Any Mnetters in NZ.. ghosty..please?

[robinpud]

Dh will be working in Sydney from the end o January for a year. We have just booked flights to Sydney via Hong Kong and then into Auckland on the 30 December and flying out of Wellington on Jan 22nd. So we have a 3 week dream holiday in NZ. We are planning what to do as it will be a busy time there but can you suggest some child friendly things to do with our kids. Dh is a huge walker climber camper type so the scenery wil be fine for him but I think the kids will find it a bit overwhelming unless we have specific things planned to appeal to them.
The idea is to spend time on North Island and then cross to South Island. Thanks so much

Penguin watching just outside Dunedin was fabulous!
Boat trip around Milford Sound was spectacular (but very choppy!)

There is a great place where we skiied (August) but does things like rafting etc. in the summer, but I'm trying desparately to think of it's name. I'll come back later if I remember.

All of the above things/places are on the South Island.

Tell me more about the skiing place Little fish as dh gets a summer break in june time which would be great for ski- ing. South Island looks great. I like the lok of the SE coast bit with the Catlins and Otawa(sp?)

How old are the children?

Kingston Flyer (steam engine) near Queenstown in the South Island is fun though it doesn't really go anywhere IYSWIM!

Walter Peak (on the Earnslaw paddle steamer boat) in Queenstown is a great trip involving a farm with demonstrations and tea when you get there - not to be missed!

Te Papa museum in Wellington (North Island) has lots of interactive displays and rides that children love - great if the weather is rubbish!

HTH

I'll ask Dh when he gets home. It was somewhere near Queenstown & Wanaka, but I can't remember the name of the mountain.

Thanks Pegasus. Kids will be almost 10 and 6 by then. I had already got the Te Papa museum down so it's good to have that confirmed. The steamer sounds great. They are good about doing lots of outfdoorsy things but I think they will need simple trips like a ride on a train or a boat which don't necessarily come onto dh's radar.
I take it you are in NZ.. how easy is it to feed kids without it being a constant "kiddie's choice" menu. I can cope with chips and nuggests now and then but not constantly. We are likely to be off the beaten track so I am guessing that I will be feeding us. We are still deciding as to whether to get a camper van or camp or to stay in motels etc. Camper vans are £100 a day

I will write more later - but I will say this:

Book accomodation NOW. You are going away when NZ is on holiday and if you want a 2 bedroom place in central Otago you will find you already have limited options.

How old are your children?

Xposted about ages.

I would go for the camper van. $100 a day is a bargain compared to not finding a suitable place to stay.

Kids menus vary widely - Nelson was excellent, Christchurch has got better recently since a newspaper campaign. Wellington children just eat smaller portions of adult meals it seems. Just ask for what you want and most places will make it.

Threebob- I know!!!! I think we are most likely to camp or Rv. Are you talking about booking campsites or self catering accomodation? I was hoping we hd a couple of weeks before we needed to book camp sites although the guide book tells us so many times about the business of this time of year. Kids will be almost 6 and 10. We have so much to organise .. aaarrgghh

Threebob.. are you in NZ or have you done something similar?
I think campervan too, but dh is dealing with the loo that's for sure!

We are in NZ - I know nothing about RVs though. I know some campsites are already full, but I also know that others aren't. There are certain ones that are for "locals" and others for "tourists" in Jan it seems. The ones in your guidebook will be the right ones. Top 10 holiday parks are good quality.

A MNetter runs the one in Oamaru - I wonder if she is still around?

We booked out January holiday 2 months ago in a self catering cottage in central otago.

Ok.. am going down to dh now to kick his ass into gear... I will be checking for more tips though. Thanks everyone so far.

Hi robinpud,

I'm in the UK but am a NZer and we took our then 9 month old back for a holiday 18 months ago to Wellington and Queenstown, so can recommend child-friendly places around there. Food for kids should be no problem as NZers are very helpful and can usually cater for whatever you may need! :)

Oh, I can recommend a couple of other things to do with children that lots of people I know have done, though I have to admit that I haven't - whale watching in Kaikoura (South Island) and the Antarctic centre in Christchurch (South Island).

Thanks Pegasus, they sound just right.

Wellington Zoo is good for littlies, not too big so good for a few hours. They used to do elephant rides until Kamala died (I left 9 yrs ago) but they were getting another tame elephant and I loved it when I did it.
I'm from Wellington :) So am biased.
Great time of year to go btw :)
Skiing.
I'd recommend the Whakapapa slopes on Mt Ruapehu for littlies, great learner slopes, and the scenery in Taupo and the surrounding area offers wealth of things to do. Thermal baths, geysers, buried village.
If you head to South island your sh wil want the Milford Trail, possibly a glacier ( Fox's or Franz Josef)
Whale watching in Kaikoura if you can.
Also to get down south take the inter island ferry (wind permitting )
Oh I envy you I so want to go back

Thanks Piffle, more excellent tips. I had wanted to go to South Island first and then North Island to finish but we couldn't book the flights that way easily. Anyway I am finding more to do on South Island really. I am not sure about the thermal baths etc cos of the smell, dd has got a very sensitive nose so not sure she would cope with the general sulphorous odour.

My suggestions are coming little and often - sorry:

Willowbank Wildlife Reserve in Christchurch for an evening meal and tour, is the best place I have seen for kiwis. I love seeing kiwis.

They grow kiwi fruits in Te Puke.

The Otago museum in Dunedin is amazing and even if you have good museums at home you don't have them about our strange animals!

Piffle, Wellington zoo is still pretty good (small) for kids but there is no elephant. You will want to take your own food if you go there and bear in mind that it is on a hill so can be quite tiring. I am (was) a Wellingtonian but I don't think it is a must-see unless you have some time to kill.

I wouldn't bother with Wellington Zoo if you are going to spend a year in Sydney - you have heaps of time to go to the zoo there.

The Little Blue Penguins in Oamaru are lovely - but there are not as many in Jan as earlier in the season. I haven't been to the Yellow Eyed penguins but apparently they are good too.

Your dh could walk up the bridle path - the path the first arrivals in Christchurch had to take from the harbour over the hill - it takes me around an hour, but if he's fit it wouldn't take him as long. You and the children could get the gondola up and have a snack with a 360 degree view of a real volcanic crater, then drive through the tunnel and pick him up in Lyttelton.

The Hector's dolphins are very small and cute and you can swim with them in summer, or just get a boat trip and look at them.

The seals in Kaikoura are worth a look - they are free, and best at high tide, but don't get close, they stink and will honk very loudly at anyone that gets near them.

In Wellington I absolutely love Te Papa, the cable car, the botanical gardens. Ds adores getting the train, but that's because we don't have commuter trains in the South Island, so maybe not so much of a treat for your guys.

I wouldn't do the Antartic centre in Christchurch - I would do Kelly Tarltons in Auckland instead.

I'm sure I'll think of more later.

\link{http://www.blackwaterrafting.co.nz\black water rafting}

\link{http://www.staglands.co.nz\staglands near Wellington}

\link{http://www.hanmersprings.co.nz\non smelly hot pools in the South Island}

\link{http://www.doc.govt.nz/Explore/001~National-Parks/Nelson-Lakes-National-Park\Nelson Lakes}

\link{http://www.traveltip.org/travel_tips_search.php?country_id=128&r=1055\things to do around Wellington} The Pinnacles are a great walk, parts of it were used for filming Lord of the Rings.