Day 146 – 3rd April – Christchurch – Auckland

We checked out of the hotel at about 9am and got the bus to the airport. Our flight was at 11am and we landed in Auckland about 12:30pm. We picked up our bags and got a taxi into the centre. We only had today in Auckland so we dropped our bags and then headed for a walk into the centre. We went down to the harbour front and spent a while looking at the boats. There were also a lot of cool bars and restaurants at the harbour. Dan had spotted the Lime scooters and we both picked one up and rode around the harbour a bit more!

Day 147 – 4th April – Auckland – Paihia

We checked out of the hotel about 9:30am and got an Uber to Britz to pick up our next campervan. It was really busy and so we had to wait a bit until we could collect our van. This time we had gone for a slightly bigger van; the venturer. When we got taken to our van we actually had a venturer plus so it was pretty long! We were shown inside the van and where everything was and then we set off north to our first stop; Paihia. The campsite was about a 3 1/2 hour drive and we arrived about 4pm after a stop for lunch and a supermarket shop. We had a pretty chilled evening and Dan made home made burgers. On the campervan there was a outside bbq and Dan cooked them on there whilst enjoying the outdoor living!

Day 148 – 5th April – Paihia

We had a lovely day today doing very little and enjoying the sun at the campsite. After so much recent driving on the South Island it was nice to have a bit of time enjoying the surroundings. We had a late breakfast overlooking the lake and spent the afternoon relaxing. We walked to the supermarket late afternoon to pick up a couple of bits for tea and a beer or two and came back and enjoyed the last of the sun. Dan cooked another lovely bbq tea and I did a bit of planning and researching for some of our future destinations.

Day 149 – 6th April – Paihia

We got up early today and left the campsite at 8:15am. We walked into the town centre and boarded a boat for our morning day trip around the Bay of Islands. The trip was called ‘Discover the Bay Cruise’ which basically meant a cruise around some of the 144 islands and through the ‘Hole in the Rock’ which was part of Piercy Island.

After about 30 minutes cruising we spotted a pod of dolphins and the boat stopped for a while giving us some information about them. They were quite a juvenile pod and so they performed quite a lot of jumps and threw fish into the air! After staying with the dolphins for a while we set sail for about 20 minutes to Piercy Island to see The Hole in the Rock. This hole has been formed by erosion and you can go right through to the other side. It is quite narrow and so the captain spent a few minutes making sure the boat was in the right position before travelling through quite quickly! We then went to a cave next door which is forecast to be eroded the same way as the hole way in the future. The water here was unbelievably blue. We then set off for Otehei Bay and our island stop on the trip. We had a nice lunch and then Dan and I went and did the walk up to the top of the cliffs to get an amazing view all over the bay of islands. After about an hour on the island we got back onto the boat and began our trip back to Paihia. We got back to the campsite mid afternoon and chilled at the campsite.

Day 150 – 7th April – Paihia – Coromandel Coast

We had an extra hour in bed this morning as the clocks changed. We left the campsite at about 9am and had our longest drive on the north island ahead of us. It was over a five hour drive to our next destination at the Coromandel Coast. We arrived at the campsite at Hot Water Beach mid afternoon and set up. After this we went for a walk down to Hot Water Beach. At low tide you can take a spade with you and dig a hole in the sand which releases the hot water from a spring below the sand. The water can reach up to 68 degrees, hence the name Hot Water Beach! We didn’t have a spade on us but could see the crowds of people building their own ‘bath’!

After this we walked back to the campsite and enjoyed the rest of the day light. Since the clocks had changed it was noticeable how early the sun went down.

Day 151 – 8th April – Coromandel Coast

We got up, ready and set off for Cathedral Cove which was the setting of one of the more recent Narnia films. We drove to the park and ride shuttle car park and got the shuttle up the hill to the start of the walk. It was about a 45 minute walk with other spots you could stop at on the way down. We stopped off at Gemstone Bay on the way and enjoyed the views. We then carried onto Cathedral Cove. It was quite a hilly walk and so we were happy to have a bit of a relax on the beach when we got there and have our packed lunch!

After spending some time on the beach we started the walk back to the car park and got the shuttle back to the park and ride.

In the evening Dan cooked another lovely BBQ and I popped to the on-site takeaway to get a portion of chips to go with our burger for tea!

Day 152 – 9th April – Coromandel Coast – Matamata (Hobbiton) – Rotorua

We left the campsite and drove about two hours to Matamata for our Hobbiton Tour.  Our tour was at 12:45 so we had lunch in the campervan beforehand.  We checked in at the information centre at 12:15 and then boarded the bus to take us to the movie set.  I had previously done a Hobbiton tour in 2008, however the difference from that to this was incredible.  Ten years ago the tour was combined with a farm tour and there were a couple of hobbit holes in the hill made of polystyrene and cardboard.  After the Hobbit films were recorded, the family and Peter Jackson decided to create ‘The Shire’ into a permanent set and to offer tours to the public.  They built over 40 hobbit holes from brick and oak as well as the Green Dragon Pub and a village green which also has a full functioning allotment.  The detail that has gone into the set design is great and some of the hobbit holes have smoke coming out of their chimneys and clothes on the washing line!  The tour lasted about 90 minutes and it was really good.  We were both surprised at how busy it was.  They have approximately 5000 visitors each day and they want to expand that to 8000!  We finished the tour with a drink at the Green Dragon Pub before getting the transfer back to Matamata.

Then we drove for about an hour to the campsite in Rotorua and when we arrived we had a bit of a chill before heading into the town centre. It was our six year anniversary today and so we decided to go and treat ourselves to a couple of drinks and a meal out to celebrate. We had a lovely evening and then walked back to the campsite. Rotorua is an area that has a lot of geothermal activity and you could really smell the sulphur in the air as we walked around!

Day 153 & 154 10th / 11th April – Rotorua

We had a very chilled couple of days and planned a lot! Not very much to report at all here!