Winnipeg to Calgary to Vancouver

Views flying into Vancouver

Kitsilano Beach

Fiji Airways’ flight was rebooked to the next day which meant we’d miss our transfer in Fiji. They ended up booking us on Air New Zealand direct. We have a 14 hour flight ahead of us but should arrive 6 hours AHEAD of schedule!

Mercer Bay Hike, our first glimpse at the beauty of New Zealand

Black sand beach. We saw tons of surfers.

Kitekite falls. An “easy” hike that ended up being a bit more difficult than planned.

We definitely got lucky with our early flight. We would have never seen this beautiful area if we hadn’t gotten here so early.

We somehow skipped lunch and just ordered a pizza for dinner. We’re exhausted!

Step count: 19,841

Passion fruit pastry

Lydia was in heaven at this park!

Didn’t expect to see palm trees in NZ

Weird birds everywhere

We then made our way to the glowworm caves which were super neat. They take you through on a 45 minute tour where you go on a boat to view the glow worms. Unfortunately you can’t take photos inside the cave.

Next was a 2 hour drive to Rotorua. We are here to see the geothermal areas in the area. As soon as you enter the city you smell a very strong sulpher smell!

We ate at a local restaurant called Pig & Whistle. We shared fish and chips and lamb shank, both were delicious! Prices are inclusive of tax here and tipping isn’t customary so we found this meal to be quite reasonable.

Step count: 7052

After breakfast we went to a nearby park which has a bunch of free geothermal areas to look at.

Next we went to Te Puia where they have the largest geyser in the southern hemisphere. We were also able to learn a lot about the indigenous people (Māori) and see a cultural performance.

We had lunch back at the hotel and then went for a hike in the nearby redwood forest. There are all kinds of trees and vegetation in NZ!

L&P Soda. Not my favorite.

Lydia enjoyed picking up giant leaves

For dinner we went to Lone Star. The portions were outlandish! Not sure who would ever be able to finish all this food!

A busy and tiring day!

Step count: 13,528

This one was beef, bacon, mushroom and cheese. It weighed about 2lbs and was delicious!

Lydia chose a Loly Cake, also a famous NZ treat

We walked around lake Taupo which had a beautiful view of mount Tauhara.

Lydia’s awesome photography skills

“Do a silly one mommy and daddy”- Lydia

Next we went to some hot spring pools. All the water is pumped in daily and sits around 30 degrees Celsius. It was an amazingly relaxing way to spend the afternoon. Our skin also feels super soft.

For dinner we just picked up some Turkish kebabs from a local spot and ate it back at our hotel. Lydia spent some time at the kids corner in the evening. We leave Rotorua tomorrow but we have really loved our time here!

Step count: 5250

Lunch buffet!

The set was absolutely beautiful! We learned a lot about the movie but the best way to describe the day was “magical”!

After Hobbiton (and a huge lunch) we drove to a gorge for a hike.

The first half of our walk took us through an old railway tunnel

After the hike we drove to Auckland for the night so we can be near the airport for our flight tomorrow morning. We just got some food from the supermarket for dinner.

Step count: 14,120

Then it was time to pickup our motorhome. The whole process took a lot longer than expected. We then went to get groceries and attempt to park the motorhome (a very difficult task)!

Our grocery bill

We then had to drive 3 hours, much of it in the dark. Kuddos to Nick for getting us to our campground safely. Lydia are a sandwich in the car and we cooked a pizza after she went to bed. We’re still figuring out how to use everything in this motorhome but that’s a job for tomorrow.

For some reason everything is huge in New Zealand, including this chocolate bar.

Step count: 6840

First stop: Lake Tekapo

Viewpoint along the drive

We stopped at a local salmon shop at Lake Pukaki and got some delicious sashimi.

Next we made our way to Mount Cook.

Paradise aww

Next up was Hooker Valley Track. A 10km dream hike. I don’t know if I’ve ever been on a more beautiful hike!

The lake was frozen!

After a little rest in the motorhome we wanted to do another hike. Nick ended up doing a more challenging hike on his own and lydia and I did one that was easier. Lydia walked the entire 3kms on her own!

Made our way back to the camper and made some dinner.

We were so lucky to have such a beautiful day! There was even an aurora at night!

Step count: 25,354

Queenstown for more groceries.

Narrow roads

We made it to our campground in Milford Sound area where there is no service and we had spaghetti for dinner. 

Step count: 3746

Interesting terrain

Next we drove to Milford Sound. Nick did a great job navigating switchbacks and one way bridges. We arrived for our cruise after scarfing down some sandwiches for lunch. The cruise was absolutely breathtaking and we couldn’t have asked for better weather! We were so far south that if we kept going the next stop wouldn’t be until Argentina!

It was a tiring day but we got to see some of the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen!

Step count: 21,331

We then went for a hike in the area which was beautiful. 

We drove to a campsite near the Queenstown Lake just in time for sunset. 

Step count: 13,239

Throwing rocks, her favorite pastime.

The views were worth the climb

We had lunch by a nearby lake and then set off for the scenic drive to Glenorchy. It was one of the most beautiful drives we’ve ever done!

After Glenorchy we went back to Queenstown where we booked a holiday park. It’s close to town and has electricity and laundry. For dinner we went to a nearby craft brewery.

Step count: 18.638

For lunch we went to a famous burger place called Fergburger. It was tasty and the burgers were gigantic.

We walked around Queenstown for a couple of hours after lunch, this town has some spectacular views.

Always picking up leaves

Playground with a view

We had a pint and sat outside to admire the views. Many of the restaurants in NZ are kid-friendly. This one had coloring and blankets for missy!

She’s drinking a sparkling water

We went back to our campground and sat outside to watch the sun set over the mountains.

Pizza for dinner from a local restaurant! As usual portions are HUGE in this country.

We really enjoyed Queenstown but we’re back on the road again tomorrow.

Step count: 14,859

Venison meat pie…amazing

Custard cake…to die for

The next town we visited was called Wanaka. Amazing beauty, just like pretty much every other place we have visited. We went on another hike, it’s one of the best ways to get a good view of the scenery! This one was 8.5km with 495M of elevation. It wasn’t too difficult of a hike, however it was muddy and slippery so we had to take extra caution coming down. I think it was our favorite hike so far, the views were 1000% worth the climb!

Sheep at the top of the mountain. Lydia was very excited.

Lake Wanaka

We stayed at a campground near Wanaka as we’ll be heading back into the town tomorrow. We tried our hand at cooking lamb chops and I dare say we did a great job!

Step count: 19,409

After having some breakfast at our campground we went back to Wanaka to see the famous Wanaka Tree. It’s growing straight out of Wanaka Lake! Lydia enjoyed playing at 2 playgrounds and throwing more rocks into the water. 

In the afternoon we decided to go to Puzzling World. It’s has rooms with optical illusions, it was entertaining and Lydia enjoyed it for the most part. 

Tilt room

We drove to our campground which turned out to be more remote than expected, it was 10 minutes of gravel road with sheep everywhere! Hopefully the rain will dissipate overnight and we can enjoy the views tomorrow morning. 

Step count: 8220

Campground views right outside our camper

We were met with wintery conditions for part of it! 

We saw a few waterfalls.

Then we took a walk along the west coast; the Tasman Sea. 

It was raining in the afternoon but we needed to stretch our legs so we went for a walk to Fox Glacier. Unfortunately we couldn’t see anything but it was still nice to get out of the car for a while. 

Who knew there were so many rainforests in NZ?

Glacier hiding behind the clouds

Our campsite has a nice lake by it but no service!

Step count: 14,360

After some time at a nearby playground, Lydia and I went to the kiwi wildlife center. Kiwis are New Zealand’s National bird. They are flightless and endangered but super cute. One of the ones we saw was super active and chasing Lydia back and forth in the viewing area. Lydia really enjoyed learning about the birds and playing in their glacier display. Nick took a much needed rest while we visited the center.  

We got back to the campsite a little early and were able to soak up some beautiful views at the lake.

Step count: 15,441

She said later she was a little scared

Franz Joseph Glacier

We then made our way to Hokitika to take in views of the gorge. It was beautiful!

We found our campsite for the evening down by a beautiful lake. What an amazing day!

Step count: 10,527

Lunch by the lake

Lydia entertaining herself in the car

We then went to a “world famous bakery” and it did not disappoint. They sure know how to do their meat pies here. Lydia had another lolliecake.

We went to our campsite early as we had lots to do to get the motorhome ready for tomorrow!

Step count: 11,421

Next we went to a big playground for Lydia and walked up and down New Regent street to see the tram. 

After some coffee we went to a wildlife farm. Lydia enjoyed feeding the animals. 

It was a long day to fill but after some dinner we made our way to the airport. That’s when we found out our flight was further delayed. We ended up getting to our hotel at 4:30 in the morning…ooof. It wouldn’t have been as bad if we didn’t have a pickup for our island beach day at 7:50am. Lesson learned, don’t fly Fiji Airways. They’ve already screwed up 2 of our flights. 

Next stop, home! Hopefully…fingers crossed a Fiji Airway flight actually goes as planned.