My girlfriend and I went to New Zealand and Fiji in September of 1997. Our package deal from Brendan Tours included air, eight days of a rental camper van and three "free" nights in Fiji where we upgraded to a resort.
After landing in Christchurch, New Zealand, we picked up our Maui camper van and headed straight for a holiday park. It was fun driving on the left side of the road while trying to shift a 5-speed on the column and negotiate the traffic roundabouts!
The camper van we got (2 berths) had everything you need - shower, toilet, refrigerator, microwave, stove, etc., so you can just park on the beach or anywhere you like. We chose to stay at holiday parks, where the average rate was between $12-13 U.S. They have power hook ups, water, kitchens, showers, laundry, etc. The only thing that wasn’t cheap was the gas - 91 Octane was $2.27 U.S. per gallon. The larger camper vans run on diesel which is cheaper at $1.36 a gallon, but they are more expensive to rent.
We woke up (without an alarm) at 5:30 the next morning and drove into Christchurch to see Cathedral Square and the Avon River area, then headed to the mountains. We saw Fox Glacier and took the heli-hike on Franz Josef Glacier, which was spectacular. They provide you with special boots with spikes and an ice ax. We hiked around and through the ice for over two hours. Megan, our guide, hauled around a pick ax and cut out steps for us on the steeper areas. One person in the other group fell in water in a crevice up to her shoulders and dislocated her shoulder, requiring a rather tricky helicopter evacuation. We lucked out with the weather. This time of year is actually better because in the summer, they get a lot of rain and it is harder to walk on the ice.
From Franz Josef, we headed north along the coast and arrived at the Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki just at sunset. We ended up in Westport at night and, while stopped on the side of the road looking at the guide book for a holiday park, a woman came up and asked us if she could help. She said "follow me" and led us right to a park entrance...great Kiwi hospitality!
At Westport we wanted to go cave rafting. The next morning our guide Pave picked us up at the park. We were the only two going (another advantage of going in the “off” season). We were fitted with full wet suits and lights. We hiked through the rain forest, picked up inner tubes and entered the cave. At the end of the cave you throw your inner tube on the underground river and float the rest of the way. After Pave shut his light off, we looked up and saw thousands of glowworms which looked like stars - pretty wild! After floating out of the cave, you end up on the Nile River and go over a few small rapids - a great experience!
From Westport, we drove to Picton where I reserved a ferry crossing to Wellington for the next morning. After crossing the Cook Strait (we slept through the rough seas), we headed north to Lake Taupo which is the largest lake in New Zealand, and is a remnant of a massive volcanic explosion.
The next Morning, we departed for Rotorua and arrived just in time to see the 11:00 show at the Agrodome. I know, it seems pretty dumb after seeing fifty million sheep along the way, to pay and see more sheep, but we thought it was worth it. They showed nineteen different champion breeds, did a shearing demonstration, dog demonstration, etc. - everything you wanted to know about sheep, and then some.
In Rotorua, we saw Hell’s Gate which is a highly active thermal area and includes the largest hot thermal waterfall in the Southern Hemisphere. We also went to a Maori concert and Hangi (an earthen oven resembling as large pit). A fire is lit to heat stones placed in the pit. Food in baskets, covered with wet cloth, is then placed in the pit, covered with soil and steamed to perfection. The food was great - it was like a thanksgiving feast. The concert was also very interesting. Instead of embarrassing a few people on stage, they had the whole audience get up and try the dance. I can now freak out my neighbors by doing the Maori war dance.
We took a gondola ride up to Mt. Ngongotha for a panoramic view of Lake Rotorua. At the top, they have several rides which we tried - one is like a bobsled and the other is like a luge, except they are both on rollers. The luge ride was a blast as you could go as fast as you wanted.
After driving to Auckland for one night, we turned in our trusty camper van and left for Fiji. We drove 1,176 miles in New Zealand. The most we drove in one day was 313 miles. As anyone knows who’s been there, driving takes longer because most of the roads are small and winding.
The weather in New Zealand started off great in Christchurch - not a cloud in the sky. After we crossed the mountains, we had clouds and rain off and on for the rest of the trip but the weather didn’t prevent us from doing what we planned. The high temperature probably averaged around 60 degrees F. The big advantage of going at this time of year is there are not a million tourists to run into, you can always get a spot at a holiday park and you don’t have to reserve the ferry crossing.
In Fiji, we stayed at Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort located on 43 hectares on Yanuca Island where we did some major relaxing. We did manage to snorkel, sea kayak and play table tennis. I was hoping to see the Banded Sea Krait, which is more venomous than the Indian Cobra, but settled for the marvelous fish and coral around the island. We missed the fire walking show by one day but our main goal on Fiji was R & R. That fire walking is all done with mirrors anyway!
The Fijian Resort was built in the late 1960’s, and has recently undergone a $5.3 million refurbishment. All of the 436 rooms have private balconies with sea or lagoon views. There is a nice nine-hole golf course, numerous activities available and the largest free-form swimming pool in the South Pacific.
The weather in Fiji was mostly sunny with highs in the 80’s F. The last day, it rained all day so we sat out by the pool under a cover until it was time to catch our bus to the airport.
We crammed a lot into a short period of time but it was still a great trip.