New Zealand, or Aotearoa to its native Maori, is a place teeming with the spectacular wonders of nature. Whether you are looking for lakes, snow-capped mountains, or just about any peaceful background scenery you can use for that new Facebook cover photo you have been longing to have, New Zealand has it. Listed below are amazing tourist spots that will take the breath right out of you faster than you can say “kiwi”.
Tongariro National Park
Perhaps the most important part of your itinerary, a visit to the Tongariro National Park would be the best guarantee that your tour to New Zealand will not be a waste. UNESCO acknowledges this as one of the 28 mixed cultural and natural World Heritage Sites. This is also home to the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, a 12 mile 9 hour trek through untamed forests, active volcanoes, and placid lakes that is most challenging but incomparably satisfying once you reach the end. Be physically and mentally prepared to make this journey, however, and never forget to bring your own water.
Mount Taranaki
Fans of Tom Cruise delight as this quiescent stratovolcano was the shooting location for The Last Samurai. While the threat of eruption is still remotely possible, the foothills are wondrously lush with life and can be explored if you’re armed with a raincoat and are ready to get wet.
While some areas are inaccessible by vehicle, we recommend checking out car hire in Auckland options that will make travelling a bit easier, so the only thing you have to worry about is whether you have charged your camera batteries enough!
Kaikoura
Or as many would describe as the ultimate destination for seafood lovers. The name itself means “a meal of crayfish”. Indulge your appetite for the ocean as well and go whale watching or swimming with the dolphins. Albatrosses, petrels, and shearwaters also fly by this area, so if you want to grow your collection of aviary photos don’t forget to look up and point your camera to the sky, too.
Abel Tasman National Park
Filled to the brim with natural beauty, Abel Tasman National Park is considered to be the ultimate hiker’s dream. Mesmerizing vistas surround you within the 3 square mile boundary of this park. This may be the smallest among the parks in all of New Zealand, but it is far from coming up short in its offering of visual candies. The only way in Abel Tasman is through walking, via a small plane, or by boat since it is closed to vehicles, which only makes it that much more interesting to see.
Mount Aspiring National Park
It is part of the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site and is frequently visited for hiking and mountaineering. The Gillespie Pass and the Routeburn Trail are two of the most popular passes that hikers go through in exploring this mountain. Your inner botanist will certainly enjoy this as you would be treated to plant life endemic in that area only.
Where are your favourite places in New Zealand?! Let us know below 🙂
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