Only 8 Days?! What to do?

For someone who likes rugged alpine tramping and has 8 says to spare from Auckland, I say head down and walk the Tongariro Northern Circuit, one of NZ's 'Great Walks' and possibly the only walk in the North Island that really rivals those in the South. It's spectacular and so different from anything else in the country. It takes about 4 days to walk. On the 'Tongariro Crossing' section there will be hundreds of other walkers, but for the other 3 days it should be pretty quiet. Walking between Ruapehu and Ngaruhoe is awesome! You could then take a few days to drive back North, stopping in Taupo to see the Huka Falls and maybe taking in Rotorua as well.