📋 While living in Auckland, New Zealand for a few months, Sarah and I try to make some road trips to different corners of the North Island during the weekends. We try to visit both the must do, must see and must visit destinations and hidden gems in New Zealand. And we think the top things to do in NZ are not always what you would expect…
👍 If you like this video, please hit the ‘thumbs up’ button and subscribe to the channel!
🛸 I always take my DJI drone with me to take some shots when and where allowed. Since nobody is allowed to fly in Egmont National Park, I had to fly outside of the NP boundaries.
🗺️ Last weekend, we drove down the beautiful State Highway 3 all the way to New Plymouth and Mount Taranaki. From my first plan to visit New Zealand, this impressive mountain was on my list. We stayed in the beautiful city of New Plymouth. The city and mountain are situated in Taranaki, a region on the west coast of New Zealand’s north island, about a five-hour drive south of Auckland.
To approach Mount Taranaki, we hiked the Mangorei Track and part of the Pouakai Circuit Track to the reflective pools. It got cloudy real fast, but the mountain still remains a very impressive sight to see.
After our hike, we drove back to Auckland. Along the way, we made a stop in the Waitomo region. The Waitomo caves are one of New Zealand’s most popular tourist destinations. We didn’t go for the main caves, but instead choose the spellbound tours for a small group experience of the caves. The experience was truly magical.
We made two other worthwhile stops in the region. The first was Waitanguru Falls. They are not very well known, but it is only a half hour drive from the main road. The road there is absolutely breathtaking, and actually one of the filming locations of The Hobbit. The great thing about the Waitanguru Falls is that hardly anyone visits it, so you will probably be all by yourself.
The second stop was Otorohanga, where you can visit the kiwi house. The Ōtorohanga Kiwi House has been breeding kiwi since 1971. The not-for-profit wildlife and conservation centre displays kiwi birds all day in specialised moonlit nocturnal houses complete with burrow cameras. And it breeds rare native New Zealand wildlife for release to the wild. You cannot film the kiwis (so we didn’t), but we did see them! There are also plenty of other animals to see, so certainly worth a visit.
The last (or first) stop of the trip is in Hamilton, where you definitely need to make a stop at the Hamilton Gardens. Rather than focusing on plant collections, at Hamilton Gardens the emphasis is on different types of garden design.
Hamilton Gardens has the unique concept of showcasing the cultural meaning and context of gardens over the past 4,000 years. Each tells a story and offers an insight into a different civilisation.
The Paradise Garden Collection includes gardens that represent China, England, Japan, America, Italy and India. Each garden is highly individual with a totally different design philosophy. Highlights include the Indian Char Bagh Garden, Italian Renaissance Garden, Chinese Scholars’ Garden and more.
The Productive Garden Collection is all about gardens that are functionally useful. There’s a herb garden, a kitchen garden and a sustainable backyard garden.
The Cultivar Garden Collection tells the stories of plants that have been selectively bred for the garden. It includes areas devoted to roses, camellias, rhododendrons and Victorian garden flowers.
Finally, but possibly most memorable of all, is the Fantasy Garden. Here imaginations have been allowed to run riot, with a special focus on the themes of ‘perfume’ and ‘time’. Highlights of this collection include the Tudor Garden, Tropical Garden and Concept Garden.
👀 Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/terramundi.be/