Saturday, 8 September 2012

Travel To New Zealand For The Holiday Of A Lifetime

By Kerri Turner


The decision to travel to New Zealand is easy. Aotearoa, as New Zealand is also known, might be small but it has a stunning range of natural features ranging from mountains to sandy beaches and from deserts to lush virgin forest. It offers huge variety for the adventure tourist while the traveler that prefers to be more relaxed will love the easy pace of life.

Lovers of water sports will find New Zealand to be a haven for sailors of all types. There is superb fishing available, ranging from river and lake fishing to game fishing for tuna. And divers will enjoy the abundance of ocean species to be found beneath the waves. Wine enthusiasts are not left out as the country is home to some of the finest wines in the world.

Most visitors arrive by air, landing in the North Island city of Auckland, the City of Sails. A multi-cultural city of over one and quarter million people, Auckland is New Zealand's largest. It has a magnificent harbor where enthusiasts enjoy water sports from yachting to windsurfing to fishing all year round.

For great views of the city, a walking tour of the harbor bridge is hard to beat although a trip to the top of the Sky Tower is a major contender. The brave might like to try the "sky walk" around the outside of the tower 192 meters above the ground or else try a bungee jump. Others might prefer a game of chance in the casino.

For anyone wanting to learn about New Zealand's history, a visit to Auckland's War Museum has to be on the agenda. It tells the story of the country and explains its place in the Pacific community as well as housing one of its most important heritage libraries. A visit to the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, that overlook the Bay of Islands, where the Treaty of Waitangi, the document that effectively led to the establishment of modern New Zealand, was signed.

Before leaving the North Island, visitors should make the journey to Rotorua. There, they will find a hotbed of geothermal activity with mud pools, geysers and sulfur-laden air along with lakes abounding with trout. Also not to be missed are the glowworm caves of Waitomo and the magnificent vineyards of the Hawke's Bay region.

Across the Cooke Strait lies the South Island where the Southern Alps mountain range and the adventure playground around Queenstown beckon. Sited on the shores of Lake Wakatipu in the shadow of the Remarkables, Queenstown serves as a base for sightseeing, skiing, fishing and horse trekking. The more adventurous, meanwhile, will find bungee jumping, sky diving, white-water rafting and jet-boating close at hand.

A drive through wonderful countryside will take the visitor to Te Anau and the Fiordland National Park. There, a sedate cruise through the sounds will afford views of magnificent waterfalls, imposing rock faces and aquatic wildlife. But, from Queenstown it is also possible to drive to the Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers, where visitors can take a walking tour to the glaciers or maybe a flight by helicopter or fixed wing aircraft with a snow landing in the mountains.

Of course, anyone that makes the effort to travel to New Zealand will not go away disappointed. Those looking for peace and relaxation will find themselves lost in the magnificent scenery. The adventurer, on the other hand, will find plenty to whet the appetite. Simply put, there is something for everyone.




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