New Zealand in a Nutshell - Part 1
A very rushed van trip through Nz. In a van. With a toddler...
What you need to know first: New Zealand is magical and it’s not too near.
Before I met my husband Tom, I’d never been to New Zealand…
I remember once, when washing dishes in a cafe in Byron that doesn’t exist anymore (it burnt down. Not my fault) being offered a free return ticket over and I declined - my reason being that I’d rather stay and go to a party rather than somewhere which was the same but colder. New Zealand is not the same, but it can be colder. NZ is constant awe in its nature, yet quiet humbleness in its people. To compare it to other countries would be confusing; as one moment you can say it’s Tahiti, and the next Switzerland. It is waterfalls and white (and black) sand beaches, it’s mountains and caves; it’s cheesy scones and good coffee, feijoas and figs falling off trees and the cheapest avos this side of the Tasman.
Why a Van? Why with a two year old?
Because it’s arguably easier. Definitely better.
We decided we’d all go to the North Island of NZ relatively last minute to attend the wedding of one of Toms best friends. Tom and I used to do a van trip on the SouthIsland every year and we wanted to do one again, this time with our boy Sunny. It’s a lot cheaper travelling in a van; this one was just over $2k for 10 days including insurance. Plus the limited space means you’re only buying the essentials for meals which really saved us a lot because 2 members of this family absolutely love treaties. With a van, you’re also forced to be organised and tidy so it made us get into a rhythm each day of packing up, washing dishes, putting things away etc. Most importantly though, you’ve got your home with you; so you can adventure anywhere, at any time, and have no reservations about returning. You wake up and go to bed as the sun does; you read more, talk more, and look up and around more. The freedom you feel from this kind of travel is something I always try to hold on to when it’s over.
The wedding gave us a date and destination that we needed to plan our route, which was a little bit random to what we would’ve done otherwise. We picked up our van in Red Beach, about an hour from Auckland International airport and started our roadie…
Just give us the route, ya rambler.
Here’s the path we took:
The Coromandel - a peninsula of small coastal towns and beaches, each more beautiful than the next. There’s surf, there’s fishing, there’s natural hot pools. There’s incredible nature walks and (very) good cafes, and incredible camping spots on the beach to wake up to.
Our top picks in the Coro: Hahei (for the adventure to Cathedral Cove) , Hot Water Beach (for the natural hot pools on the beach - you rent a shovel and dig your own hot pool), Otama (for beachy vastness).
Eat out at: Calenso, Lukes Kitchen
Surf at: Ask the locals. I might get killed if I share that
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Taupo (pronounced ‘toe-paw"‘) - a central town which sits on the edge of Nz’s biggest lake. Hiking, fishing, water sports and more.
Top picks: Gollam Falls - incredible waterfalls and freezing water (go on do it, jump in. It makes you feel so good). A look at or climb to Mt Ruapehu and/or Mt Tongariro. Play on the lake at Taupo.
Tip: We stayed right on the water at the Top Ten Caravan Park in Motutere. This is about half an hour from Taupo, but meant we were closer to the mountains and waterfalls than if we stayed directly in town (plus, it’s so much prettier staying right on the water).
Hawkes Bay - known for its beaches and wineries.
I’ll take a little pause on this one as we were here for a wedding and spent two days dancing and hungover. However there’s great little coffee spots, two huge playgrounds and so many wineries that its worth a stop. I’d also recommend doing the Te Mata Peak hike -absolutely stunning.
Raglan - small town, big waves, best vibes.
With sore heads we made our way to one of Toms favourite places (we stopped for an overnighter back in Taupo to give Sunny a break with driving time). Raglan is beaches on beaches of good surf, arguably the best bakery food of NZ, extra good coffee, with traces still lingering of a bygone hippy era.
Best Coffee: The Raglan Roast (down a little lane in the middle of town).
Surf at: Manu Bay. I cant say anymore or again, I may never be heard of again.
Tips: Visit Bridal Veil Falls, Hire kayaks at the wharf and go for an explore to the nearby island, and if there’s a gig on at the Yacht Club go and have a dance it’s such a friendly, fun vibe.
Extra Tips
There are so many good campsites and caravan parks but you can’t go wrong with Top Ten Holiday Parks - they’ve always got great facilities, kids stuff, and friendly staff.
If you can, have more time. Had we had more, we’d have explored the far north - toward the Bay of Islands and Northland (where a lot of Tom’s iwi is from); but we were happy with the route we took and what we did. We definitely felt well travelled and full of good stuff by the end of it.
We got our van through Camplify, and they’re offering readers $100 off when they use code BONUS100 when they click on this link.