Waikato & the Coromandel Peninsula
Whale Bay marks the end of the sealed road, but a gravel road continues to the wild spans of Ruapuke Beach, 22km from Raglan. It’s dangerous for swimmers…
Must-see attractions in New Zealand
Buller Region
Housed in an old church 2km east of Reefton on State Highway 7, this museum is crammed with prospecting paraphernalia.
Rotorua & the Bay of Plenty
Located near the northern shore of Lake Rotorua, these springs are a sacred place for the local Ngāti Rangiwewehi people. A pretty 1.5km walk leads…
The West Coast
Hari Hari is where swashbuckling Australian aviator Guy Menzies crash-landed his trusty biplane into a swamp after completing the first solo trans-Tasman…
Tauranga
A fairly ordinary-looking Victorian villa stranded on a hill as the roads around it grew, Brain Watkins House (no, not Brian) was built in 1881 from kauri…
Fiordland & Southland
Sharing a building with the Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track Information Centre, this modest museum features rusting relics and photographic records of the area…
The West Coast
This handsome Catholic church, completed in 1928, could only be admired from the outside when we passed through, due to earthquake-strengthening…
Central Otago
The Maniototo Museum, spread across two heritage buildings, evocatively chronicles the history of the region's 19th-century settlers, run-holders, gold…
Buller Region
Up the driveway from Blacks Point Museum is the still-functional Golden Fleece Battery, used for crushing gold-flecked quartz. Ask at the museum for entry.
The West Coast
Iconic only to West Coast locals, Hokitika's attractive clock tower was unveiled in 1903 to commemorate King Edward VII's coronation and to memorialise…
Greymouth
When we passed through, this pictorial museum of Greymouth's gold rush days was closed indefinitely, to allow the handsome 1924 building to undergo…
Waikato & the Coromandel Peninsula
The Rangiriri Heritage Centre screens a short documentary about the battle of Rangiriri. There’s also a small museum and a cafe with good home baking.
Auckland
It's a bit dull by international standards, but Rainbow's End has enough rides (including a corkscrew roller coaster) to keep the kids happy all day.
Māori War & Early Settlers Cemetery
Waikato & the Coromandel Peninsula
The Māori War & Early Settlers Cemetery houses the soldiers’ graves and a mound covering the mass grave of 36 Māori warriors.
New Plymouth
An appropriately austere stone New Plymouth landmark that presides over the Coastal Walkway and a public playground.
Karangahape Road Art Gallery Trail
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Filling the spaces between ethnic restaurants, hip wine bars and vintage-clothing shops, Karangahape Rd is home to the highest concentration of studios…
