Part 2-New Zealand North Island Itinerary

Continued from Part 1 here

Day 3 : Rotorua - Huka Falls - Taupo - Wellington

We initially wanted to visit the famous Te Puia Maori Village, but due to budget constraints, we decided to skip Te Puia and head to Whakarewarewa Woods (aka Redwoods). Te Puia is the home of the Pohutu geyser, mudpools and live kiwi birds (they are an endangered species); and tickets for the day tour are priced at NZD52 for adults. Redwoods, however, is free to enter and there are many walking paths to choose from. We chose the shortest path for a light morning exercise, which took us around 30-40 minutes. There is a clear blue river in the woods, that you will cross on this (mark by red arrows) path. You can also enjoy the treetop walk here, priced at NZD20.

Enchanting Redwoods

Magnificent trees

Clear blue river in Redwoods

Gorgeous walking path

Easy walking path for beginners & families

Redwood Memorial Grove Track is the easiest/shortest walking path

Perfect spot for photos!

The entrance/exit

Treewalk

Next on the itinerary is Huka Falls in Taupo, which is one hour drive away from Rotorua. The Great Taupo website describes Huka Falls as the falls that is "located just a few minutes drive outside of Taupo town, this thundering 11-metre high waterfall is the most visited and photographed natural attraction in New Zealand. The sheer volume of water flowing over the falls amounts to 220,000 litres per second - enough to fill one Olympic sized swimming pool in 11 seconds!"

Isn't that impressive? :) There are mountain biking & hiking trails around the falls. Since we lacked the time to try these activities, we headed straight to the viewing platform. The view is simply breath taking. The water is amazingly crystal clear blue & the sound of the falls is surprisingly soothing. If you have extra dollars to spend, try the jet boat/cruise so that you can get closer to the raging waterfall ;)

Crystal clear blue water

The bridge we crossed to get to the viewing platforms

View of the cruise ship & falls from the viewing platform

Jet boat

They definitely got wet from the falls' mist!

The viewing platform

Information board

After the falls, we explore the Taupo city centre to find halal food & we were surprised when we saw the size of Lake Taupo. It is a hugeee lake, you can barely see the other shore line when you are standing on one side. We parked our rented car & walked along the lake, looking at all the restaurants facing the lake. Happiness is stumbling upon halal food! Burgerfuel is a chain restaurant serving halal meat & chicken burger. There are even vegetarian & vegan options. Not only are the burger halal, they are out-of-this-world delicious as well. We tried the gourmet chicken & beef burgers, sitting outside while enjoying the view of the lake. 

Unfortunately, we were having too much fun (and too feeling too hungry) that we didn't take any decent photos in Taupo :D There are also a few home decorating shops that sells locally made items & I had to restraint myself from buying anything. Taupo is a lovely city that we should've stopped by a little longer. After lunch, we gathered ourselves back into the car & drove straight to Wellington, since we had an early morning flight to Christchurch. 

Halal burger from Burgerfuel

In my opinion, we had the best accommodation in Wellington since our we had a complete room with kitchen, in suite bathroom, washer, dryer & the best bed. After the approximately 5 hours drive from Taupo, we were glad to arrive and check into Gilmer Serviced Apartment. Unfortunately it was cold and rainy when we arrived in Wellington and the sun had already set. We paid a short visit to the Mount Victoria Lookout to see the full view of the city from 196 meters above the city. A short walk around the Wellington city center failed to show us any halal restaurants, except for a couple of Malaysian restaurants. Soon we were back again in our rooms, having Brahim's for dinner & sleeping early. 

The gorgeous Gilmer Apartment/Hotels lobby

The gorgeous Gilmer Apartment/Hotels lobby

Our small kitchen/laundry area

Our room in Gilmer

Our journey continued when we touched down in Christchurch in Day 4, to be continued in the next post ;) The next itinerary is as follows:

Day 4 : Wellington - Christchurch - Lake Tekapo - Lake Pukaki - Twizel
Day 5 : Twizel - Aoraki/Mt. Cook National Park - Queenstown
Day 6 : Queenstown - NZONE Skydive - Te Anau
Day 7 : Te Anau - Milford Sound/Piopiotahi - Queenstown
Day 8 : Queenstown - Auckland
Day 9 : Auckland Harbour - Auckland Tower - Art Gallery 
Day 10 : Auckland International Marathon - Karangahape/"K" Road
Day 11 : Auckland Bridge Bungy Jump - Queens Street - Possonby Street