After 12 days on the South Island, we boarded the ferry from Picton to Wellington. Read more about our South Island road trip here.

We had high expectations before arriving on the North Island. We were heading to new places—some we had never been before—that had long been on our must-see list.

This is our itinerary, starting in Wellington and ending in Auckland. The car we rented in Christchurch could be taken on the ferry between the islands, which was super practical—no need to change cars or repack. Please enjoy our trip; links to longer posts about our adventures, side quests, and other miscellaneous happenings are highlighted throughout.

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21st March – Arrival in Wellington

The ferry from Picton on the South Island to Wellington on the North Island was smooth sailing on a strait that is infamous for rough winds and waves. We checked in at West Plaza Hotel and headed to the excellent Little Beer Quarter for beers, cider, and dinner.

22nd March – Wētā Workshop, tree root & Zealandia Sanctuary

An awesome day starting with breakfast at The Flight Coffee Hangar, our favourite café in Wellington. We had booked a tour at Wētā Workshop—a must-do pilgrimage for LOTR fans visiting the city. Afterwards, we walked in the park where the iconic scene of the Hobbits hiding under a tree root from the Black Rider was filmed. A stroll and lunch in the city centre followed, before an evening tour at the fantastic Zealandia Sanctuary. Read about our two days in Wellington here.

23rd March – Wellington via Rivendell to Whanganui

A great day on the road from Wellington, with a stop in Rivendell (read about that visit here). We crossed the Remutaka Range and stopped for lunch in Greytown. Overnight in Whanganui.

24th March – Whanganui via Mt Taranaki to New Plymouth

From Whanganui, we headed to visit the volcano Mt Taranaki Maunga. We drove the spectacular road to Dawson Falls Visitor Centre and hiked to Wilkies Pools and Dawson Falls. Read about our hike and stay in New Plymouth here.

25th March – Forgotten World Highway, Meads Wall & Gollum’s Pool to Ohakune

This turned out to be an epic day. Starting from New Plymouth, we backtracked slightly to Stratford and joined the amazing Forgotten World Highway (read about it here). After coffee and muffins in Taumarunui, we headed to Mount Ruapehu and the Whakapapa ski resort to see Meads Wall and LOTR locations (read more here). After this epic stop, we drove to our overnight stay in Ohakune, dropped our luggage, and continued to Gollum’s Pool just up the road (read about that side quest here).

26th March – Ohakune, Desert Road, Taupō to Rotorua

Another glorious day, starting with coffee in Ohakune. We drove the Desert Road with views of Mt Doom, had lunch in Taupō, visited Huka Falls, enjoyed thermal bliss in Waikite Valley, and ended the day in Rotorua. Read about it all in the links.

27th March – Rotorua via Hell’s Gate to Ōhope Beach

From Rotorua, we visited the Hell’s Gate geothermal area, a spectacular site. From there, we headed north to the coast for a few relaxing days in a bach at Ōhope Beach.

28–30th March – Ōhope Beach

Total bliss—no driving, just relaxing, swimming, bodyboarding, and barbecuing in our own little house. It felt well deserved. Read about our R&R here.

31st March – Ōhope to Tairua

A nice coastal drive with a lunch stop in Whangamatā before ending up in Tairua for the night, simply because it fit our onward itinerary. Both places had spectacular beaches.

1st April – Tairua via Hot Water Beach & Cathedral Cove to Coromandel Town

From Tairua, we headed to the famous Hot Water Beach but mistimed the tide—the water was too high to get the full experience. Still a nice, uncrowded beach. We continued to Hahei for a marvellous hike to Cathedral Cove (read about it here). From there, we drove to Cooks Beach for a swim and continued to Whitianga for a late lunch. The coastal road over the Coromandel Range to Coromandel Town was epic—read about that drive here.

2nd April – Coromandel road trip

After a caffeine hit at Naughty Bean Coffee, we explored the famed Coromandel gravel roads—an adventure for sure (read about it here). Back in Coromandel Town, we visited Waiau Kauri Grove and Waiau Falls, enjoying two spectacular short hikes. An awesome day, ending with dinner at Pepper Tree Restaurant.

3rd April – Hobbiton!

Another coffee stop at Naughty Bean Coffee before heading to Matamata for our revisit to Hobbiton—20 years later. It was an epic LOTR experience (read more here). Due to a poor weather forecast, we decided to stay south of Auckland for shopping the next day and ended up in a very nice hotel in Karaka.

Special Mention

The road from Coromandel Town along the bay to Thames is an absolute stunner. The vistas come thick and fast around every corner.

4th April – South of Auckland: shopping to Orewa

The rain was pouring, so we first visited Manawa Bay Outlet Mall near the airport. Newly opened, it offered great shopping with plenty of stores. We continued to Onehunga Outlet for more retail therapy, then drove through Auckland to the surf town of Orewa. It was raining so heavily when we arrived at the motel that all we could do was laugh at the downpour.

5th April – Orewa to Whangārei

We started a sunny day in Orewa with coffee at Drifter Coffee NZ, then drove to the Matakana market for oysters and good vibes. After a few days without a swim, we headed to Goat Island Marine Reserve for a refreshing dip. We survived the Pakiri gravel road before ending up in Whangārei for the night. Read about our epic day here.

6th April – Whangārei via Waipoua Forest to Ōmapere

The main reason for stopping in Whangārei was affordable accommodation, but also because Highway 14 to Dargaville starts here. From Dargaville, Highway 12 leads north to the giant kauri trees of Waipoua Forest—these giants are not to be missed! Read more about our hikes to some of the world’s biggest trees here. Kai Iwi Lakes were also visited and we had a refreshing swim in the crystal clear water, read here. We continued to Ōmapere, with stunning views across the bay to the dunes of Pouahi, and stayed at The Sands Hotel.

Special mention, The Sands Hotel

We need to give a special mention to The Sands Hotel Hokianga for being one of the nicest hotels we stayed in during our travels around the North Island. The view from our room over the bay to the dunes, the beach just beneath the balcony was very nice. Also, the bar gave us use of their projector to show the F1 race that evening, as long as we had some beers and cider, no problem. Spectacular hotel and location.

7th April – Ōmapere to Kaitaia

We had an early start and drove to Rawene for the ferry across the estuary, but first stopped at the excellent Boatshed Café for coffee and muffins, which we enjoyed on the ferry. After landing, we continued north to Ahipara, the start of Ninety Mile Beach. We had hoped to rent quads but the rental place was closed—disappointing. We drove further up to Waipapakauri but decided not to take the car onto the beach since insurance didn’t allow it. Overnight in Kaitaia.

8th April – Cape Reinga

Cape Reinga has always held a special place for us—a spectacular and spiritual meeting point of oceans. This was our third visit (read more here). On the way back, we stopped at the huge sand dunes and made a small side trip to Rarawa Beach before returning to Kaitaia.

9th April – Kerikeri Peninsula to Paihia

We had read that the Kerikeri Peninsula offered stunning beaches, and it didn’t disappoint. We enjoyed a refreshing swim at one of the best beaches we’ve visited in New Zealand, plus epic fish and chips (read more here). We ended the day in a rather fancy hotel in Paihia.

10th April – Russell

A relaxed day in Paihia—it has changed a lot since our first visit in 1997. We took the ferry to historic Russell (read about it here) and spent the day unwinding. It was nice not to drive.

11th April – Paihia to Auckland

A straightforward drive from Paihia to Auckland, where we returned our car after 6,528 kilometres in five weeks.

11–14th April – Auckland

The final days of our New Zealand adventure were spent in a five-star hotel in Auckland’s Britomart district. We ended up liking Auckland very much—it was a perfect ending to our trip. Read about our weekend here.

15th April – Homeward bound

And just like that, it was our last morning in New Zealand. Taxi to the airport: Auckland–Hong Kong–Istanbul–Oslo–Mandal. Forty-two hours after leaving Auckland, we stood at our doorstep in Norway, wondering when the next New Zealand trip would be…

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Final thoughts

The North Island of New Zealand is a true adventure—epic scenery around every corner and a lifetime’s worth of experiences to discover. This time, we focused on places we had missed on earlier trips, while also revisiting favourites.

Much has changed since 1997, and even since 2005. Some changes are for the better, while larger crowds can be a bit bothersome. Still, it’s easy to find places without crowds—you just have to accept that some highlights are popular for a reason.

New Zealand has kept its unspoilt heart. We’ll always feel a deep connection to both the North and South Islands. We thought we were done with New Zealand after this trip, but it turns out we were wrong—it’s still calling us back. And we hope that one day, we’ll return again.