Visiting Cape Reinga, New Zealand

Cape Reinga is the northenmost tip of New Zealand, a tiny little dot on the tip of the North Island, 100km away from the closest town and really far from literally everything. It is at Cape Reinga that the Pacific…

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Tutukaka Lighthouse Walkway Hike in Whangārei, New Zealand

The Tutukaka Lighthouse Walkway is an easy walk with beautiful coastal views of Northland, north of Auckland. We enjoyed this little walk, especially since we had just camped in our van in one of the bays that you can see…

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Coromandel Peninsula Roadtrip in New Zealand

The Coromandel is a beautiful peninsula near to Auckland and thus popular with city-livers keen to escape into the countryside. There's plenty to do and explore here. We spent a week taking it slowly around the beautiful area. Named for…

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Coromandel Coastal Walkway Hike in New Zealand

Unfortunately, the Coromandel Coastal Walkway was a disappointment. I'd even go so far as to say that it was my least favourite hike in all New Zealand, bumping the Abel Tasman Coast Track up to second last place. The drive to…

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Swinging at Otama Beach in the Coromandel, New Zealand

On our quest to see as much as possible in The Coromandel, a nature-full peninsula just east of Auckland, we came across the Otama Beach swing. Otama Beach itself is a beautiful beach - wide and expansive providing plenty of…

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Visiting Cathedral Cove in the Coromandel, New Zealand

The Coromandel Peninsula, just a short drive from Auckland, is a haven of natural beauty. When planning our roadtrip here, I had plenty of beautiful places pinned to Google Maps! Cathedral Cove is perhaps the most famous place in The…

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Stargazing at Cooks Beach in the Coromandel, New Zealand

When a clear night fell upon us while camping in our little van, Bongo, in a tiny beach town in The Coromandel, we knew we had to finally give astrophotography a go. There was no wind, the skies were clear,…

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Paku Hill Summit Hike in the Coromandel, New Zealand

On a mission to see as much as we possibly could on our roadtrip around The Coromandel peninsula, the most popular place to escape to from Auckland city nearby, we planned to drive state highway 25 all around the perimeter,…

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Visiting Karangahake Gorge in the Coromandel, New Zealand

Karangahake Gorge was our first introduction to The Coromandel, a beautiful peninsula near to Auckland and thus popular with city-livers keen to escape into the countryside. There's plenty to do and explore here. Karangahake Gorge is an abandoned gold mine,…

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Mount Maunganui Hike in Tauranga, New Zealand

We had heard only good things from other travelers about trekking up to the summit of Mount Maunganui. We can see why! Not a lot of effort is required for this 30-40 minute trek up the summit via one of…

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7 Free Things to Do in Rotorua, New Zealand

Rotorua is well-known as the stinkiest city in New Zealand! This is thanks to the bubbling geothermal activities that call Rotorua home. The city is built around a number of extra-hot mud pools, erupting geysers and sulphuric deposits that all…

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Visiting the Redwoods of Rotorua, New Zealand

In Rotorua, natural geothermal activity bubbles away all day every day at high temperatures, contributing to the rotten egg sulphur smell that lingers around town! There's plenty of funky places to explore here that contribute to a pretty unique experience…

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