New Zealand

Christopher Gil

Having enjoyed a trip Down Under to Australia a few years prior, I decided it was time to explore its neighbor to the southeast, New Zealand. Let's just say that the superlatives I had always heard about New Zealand are true. Several more are appropriate for the country: spectacular, grand and pastoral readily come to mind. As for the people, accommodating, urbane and gracious are definite descriptions.

Many travelers attempt to lump Australia and New Zealand together as one trip, yet few would do the same by exploring the U.S. mainland and British Columbia at one fell swoop. New Zealand is worthy of a sole vacation. It differs from Australia in that it was not founded as a penal colony; rather, the initial Europeans to head to New Zealand in the mid-19th century were adventurous Brits looking to start a new life. They encountered a local population of Maori who had a well-structured society. The Maori comprise about 10% of the population today, and you will notice the language is still in use in geographic names and as a secondary explanation on signage. This contrasts with Australia, where the Aborigines were no match for the newcomers and today comprise under 1% of the population. The climate of the two nations differs, too. Australia has much warmer weather, with its northern reaches having a tropical climate. In contrast, only the northernmost reaches of New Zealand have warm weather, the remainder having a temperate climate, except for the colder mountainous regions. Wind is common in New Zealand, and the west side of the nation's southern reaches gets buckets of rain at up to 200 inches per year.

New Zealand comprises two islands, the North Island and the South Island. Together, they are about the size of California, so give yourself two weeks to explore, making choices about where to go. The country is relatively uncrowded with under four million residents and not many tourists, so you can often get lodging on a whim.

As most travelers, I began my exploration of New Zealand in the largest city, Auckland. This Polynesian-influenced city sits at the northern tip of the North Island and is where your U.S. flight will land. Spread over 60 inactive volcanoes, Auckland has a nautical flair. It is called the "City of Sails," and is where the America's Cup race departs. You can take a walk along the Downtown promenade to see all of the boats crossing Waitemata Harbour, with many moored at Westhaven Boat Harbour, just to the west of the city core. You can read the story of the city's maritime history on signs along the waterfront. Do note the nautically influenced condominiums and hotels. Also, be sure to visit to the New Zealand National Maritime Museum on Freemans Bay at the corner of Quay and Hobson streets (tel: 09.373.0800; http://www.nzmaritime.org). This museum offers a wealth of history, especially regarding the daring of the Polynesians who set sail for this remote land. The digitally produced, ten-minute film, "Te Waka," screens at the Pacific Discovery Theatre, telling this riveting migration story. There is also a replica of the steerage cabin of European settlers' ships, replete with simulated waves rocking the vessel that sent this motion-sickness visitor running for cover. You can also take a cruise on the grand Ted Ashby from its berth.

Take to the water yourself by boarding the ferry to Devonport via Fullers Auckland (tel: 09.367.9111; http://www.fullers.co.nz). Devonport is a charming town with a main street of Victorians. Head uphill from the small Downtown and climb the extinct volcano, Mount Victoria. The view back towards Auckland is phenomenal, as is the vantage point of the islands to the east. On a clear day, such as the one I enjoyed, the faraway Coromandel Peninsula is visible.

Reminiscent of Seattle, Auckland has a non-congested Downtown, with office towers spaced out rather than creating a canyon effect. The skyline is dominated by the Sky Tower, and Queen Street provides the main shopping area, stretching from the waterfront south. Nearby Albert Park sits atop a hillside and provides an aegis from the bustling city below. Flowers, palms, fountains and a statue of Queen Victoria adorn the center of the park. Just north of the park are my favorite streets of Auckland, Vulcan and High streets. These alleys have an old-time, European feel; they are perfect for grabbing a cup of coffee, a vegan lunch or to people-watch.

Two neighborhoods worth exploring are Parnell to the east and Ponsonby to the west. The eponymously named main streets of each enclave offer variegated eateries and the best nightlife in Auckland. The streets' boutiques offer interesting shopping, too.

I decided to see the diverse countryside of the North Island by rail, taking Tranz Scenic's Overlander on an 11-hour, daytime journey to the capital, Wellington, situated at the southernmost point of the North Island. Once past the suburbs of Auckland, rolling hills grow ever steeper until the volcanic Central Plateau is reached. Tongariro National Park is the stop here, where you'll see hikers depart the train, ready to begin their adventure. Generally snowcapped Mount Tongariro, Mount Ruapehu and Mount Ngauruhoe are also normally cloud-enshrouded, but this trio was visible on the day my train passed by, offering a dramatic sight of this rugged landscape teeming with dense forests. You may think the hills in New Zealand are rocky, but as the train draws closer, you'll realize that it's just another grouping of some of the country's almost 40 million sheep. As you approach Wellington, the train meanders along the Kapiti Coast, its azure waters glimmering in the distance.

Wellington, my favorite city in New Zealand, reminded me of a smaller, idyllic version of my adopted hometown of San Francisco. Denizens live in the forested hills surrounding Lambton Harbour, and a compact Downtown of serpentine streets was developed with landfill since there was no flat land. Nicknamed "Windy Wellington," the city has the worst weather of any city in New Zealand, as San Francisco does by California's tough standards. Both cities are also earthquake prone, hence the uplifted land mass creating all those view-laden hills.

Wellington's large waterfront has undergone a transformation of late, cozy parks with sculptures providing places for office workers to have their lunch while gazing at the harbour. The country's history museum is new Te Papa Tongawera (tel: 04.381.7000; http://www.tepapa.govt.nz). The museum was built on the waterfront next to a marina and wharf. In gracious New Zealand tradition, entry is free. Museum highlights include: a stroll through Bush City to see the foliage that once covered the entire country; South Pacific jewelry; New Zealander art; immigration history, also told via some rare documentary footage; and Maori Life, including an 1842 meeting house you may enter only after removing your shoes.

For a thrilling, fun experience, visitors should take the rare, 100-year-old Lambton Quay Street-car line, which departs every ten minutes for the ascent to Upland Street and the city's famed Botanical Gardens, established in 1868. The view from this vantage point is awe-inspiring. The gardens are planted astride the hilltop, with standouts being the 106 formal beds of the Lady Norwood Rose Garden and the more recently added, raised Treehouse Visitor Centre (tel: 04.499.1400; http://www.wbg.co.nz). There is also an old cemetery called Bolton Street Memorial Park, surveyed in 1840, where most early settlers are interred. Interestingly, part of this is a Jewish cemetery. Be sure to grab one of the free brochures, which details the story of each of these prominent Wellingtonian families. The neighborhood you see ahead of you is Thorndon, the old-money part of town, featuring large homes in a forested setting.

As you meander down Hill Street to Capital Hill, you are in the seat of the country's government. The grand Parliament Building, the Parliament Library, the National Library, the World War I/II Memorial and the Beehive are in these blocks. The latter is an architecturally controversial government workers' building that does look like its name suggests.

Wellington's nightlife is centered around the pedestrian mall of Cuba Street and the surrounding area. Theaters abound, complemented by places to eat and cafes in which to sip a coffee.

To get to the South Island, you must take a ferry, which accommodates vehicles, from Wellington on The Lynx (two-and-one-quarter hours) or The Interislander (three hours). The ride across Cook Strait is beautiful, similar to the Vancouver-Victoria route in Canada. Once you reach the Queen Charlotte Sound of the South Island, the land dramatically unfolds on both sides of the boat, reminding me of California's Central Coast. Islands and inlets dot this coastline until you reach your destination, Picton. This ethereal town features a number of quaint, historic bed and breakfasts offering views of the palm-fringed harbor and the striking sunset. There are good hikes in the grand mountains fringing the famed Queen Charlotte Sound. One is a shorter hike leading down to the beach at Bob's Bay; for the more adventurous, a five-kilometer hike takes you to The Snout. The views of forested islands and deep-blue waters below are dramatic.

I decided to head south down the Pacific side of the South Island, taking Tranz Scenic's Transcoastal. This five-and-a-half hour ride initially takes you across the sunniest part of New Zealand (2,400 hours of sunlight per year). This climate at Blenheim has led to a wine-growing region being developed, looking like California's Napa Valley must have looked in 1960.

Once the train heads to the coast, it runs right along the rocky shoreline of the Pacific, backed against the verdant Seaward Kaikoura Range. The next town is small Kaikoura, which does hold interest for whale-watchers. There are also seals on the rocks off the coastline here.

The train winds up in Christchurch ("ChCh" to locals), dubbed the most English of New Zealand's cities and its third largest municipality. Christchurch is situated in a swamp, ringed by mountains. The city's main feature is the Avon River, which winds its way throughout Christchurch. Huge Hagley Park encompasses much of the city's western reaches, highlighted by stately trees, lakes, lawn-bowling greens and the Botanic Gardens (tel: 03.366.1701).

The best gardens are the Rose Garden, the Dahlia Dell and the greenhouse featuring ferns and succulents. The Avon winds through this park, so "punting," a form of rowing, is popular as you pass ducks, footbridges and weeping willows (rentals are available from Antigua Boat Sheds at 2 Cambridge Terrace; tel: 03.366.0337).

Be sure to take a walk on the north side of Hagley Park in affluent Fendalton, a grand part of town where residences have riparian backyards. At the Rolleston Avenue eastern side of the park is the interesting Canterbury Museum (Christchurch resides in Canterbury). This edifying museum offers a great Antarctic Exhibit, for Christchurch is a staging ground for expeditions to our most remote continent. Next door is the lively Arts Centre (tel: 03.363.2386), with its working crafts studios where you can buy locals' art. Action-central of the city is Cathedral Square, fronted by the Anglican Cathedral. This is the crossroads of the city, and you'll often hear a certain renowned gentleman pontificating on politics in the afternoon. Cathedral Square is also the staging ground for tours of the surrounding environs, including a bus tour to the gondola that offers the ultimate, 360-degree city/Lyttleton Harbour/ Southern Alps view once atop the Port Hills, which are located 500 meters above sea level (tel: 03.384.0700; http://www.gondola.co.nz).

For nightlife, head to the northern reaches of trendy Colombo Street, where you'll find something to your liking.

There are two great trips from Christchurch. One is to the Banks Peninsula (see sidebar following this article). The second is to take one of the "Top Ten Train Rides in the World," Tranz Scenic's Tranz Alpine to Greymouth on the wet west coast. This is a four-and-a-half hour ride one way; I did a round-trip in one day, which was no problem. You first head across the Canterbury Plains, the once-treeless land that early settlers transformed into bucolic sheep farms. You then wind up crossing the Southern Alps by a series of viaducts. Staircase Viaduct, constructed in 1906, is the highest. The myriad ice-fed rivers flowing down from these hills--especially the 90-mile long Waimakiri--feature some of the cleanest water you'll ever see. I wanted to get out and refill my water bottle, a bottle I figured was originally filled nearby!

Once at high-altitude Arthur's Pass, you head through a very long tunnel. Upon exiting, you'll find yourself in a changed landscape of rainforest. You then continue to the tiny town of Otira, with its 13 denizens, to the summer playground of Moana's Lake Brunner, eventually ending in Greymouth on the Tasman coast of Westland.

Interliners who visit any part of New Zealand are sure to come up with their own superlatives for one of the world's most fascinating lands.

The Banks Peninsula

About 50 miles from Christchurch via Highway 75 is the Banks Peninsula, my favorite rural region of New Zealand. This is a volcanic area with the only French settlement in New Zealand, rugged hills, sheep farms and a shallow harbour with beautiful water.

Getting to the Banks Peninsula is easy. I paid N.Z. $20 (approximately U.S. $8) for a round-trip shuttle ride scheduled to depart from Christchurch's Cathedral Square via the Akaroa French Connection (tel: 0800.800.575).

In 1842, the British brokered a deal with the Maori and beat the French to the Banks Peninsula. This sole foray by the French now thwarted, the British offered them some land, which the French gladly accepted since they were enamored of the region. Thus was created Akaroa. Street names in Akaroa are still mostly in French, and the houses surrounded by lavender attest to the area's past. Many of the homes have been transformed into bed and breakfasts, offering travelers a wonderful stay.

Points of interest in Akaroa include: the Tane Garden, a commemorative tree and bush walk; the French Cemetery, a short hike up the hillside; and the Herb Garden with its duck pond. The main street of Akaroa is Rue Lauvaud/Beach Road, where you'll find most of this small town's eateries, shops and some lodgings. I rented a bicycle and rode around the hilltops, gazing down on this incredible town and its harbour. Akaroa is pretty quiet, although day-trippers can make the afternoons a bit busier. Staying overnight offers a peaceful slice of New Zealand.

If staying longer, as I did, a farm stay may be of interest. I stayed in an impeccably restored 1860's farmhouse atop a mountain in Onuku, about five kilometers away. The owners had 2,000 sheep running around the surrounding hillsides. Most sheep are, well, sheepish, so you cannot get too close to them. The property owners did have a resident sheep named Nixie who was more friendly, so I got to pet her. The town of Onuku is very small, but it does feature an historically significant Maori church and a nice swimming beach, although the water is nippy (as is Nixie!)

Christopher Gil is Managing Editor of the ASU Travel Guide.