This two-week route is for travelers who want New Zealand’s North Island beaches, volcanoes and Māori culture, finishing with a taste of the South Island’s golden coves. The pace is moderate: two nights in most places, one quick stop in Napier, and nothing longer than about 6 hours on a bus. You’ll use InterCity coaches, a few local shuttles on the Coromandel and around Tongariro, the Interislander ferry, and water taxis in Abel Tasman. Fly into Auckland and out of Nelson.
Days 1-2: Auckland
Treat
Auckland as a harbor city first. Walk the waterfront from the Viaduct to Wynyard Quarter, then climb Maungawhau (Mount Eden), a free grassy crater with views over the isthmus that show how squeezed the city is between two seas. Keep the second day loose to beat jet lag and stock up on groceries before the small towns.
Days 3-4: Coromandel Peninsula
Coaches run to Whitianga on the
Coromandel Peninsula in about 3.5 to 4 hours via Thames, and local shuttles cover the last stretch to Hahei. From Hahei, …
read more 👉This two-week route is for travelers who want New Zealand’s North Island beaches, volcanoes and Māori culture, finishing with a taste of the South Island’s golden coves. The pace is moderate: two nights in most places, one quick stop in Napier, and nothing longer than about 6 hours on a bus. You’ll use InterCity coaches, a few local shuttles on the Coromandel and around Tongariro, the Interislander ferry, and water taxis in Abel Tasman. Fly into Auckland and out of Nelson.
Days 1-2: Auckland
Treat Auckland as a harbor city first. Walk the waterfront from the Viaduct to Wynyard Quarter, then climb Maungawhau (Mount Eden), a free grassy crater with views over the isthmus that show how squeezed the city is between two seas. Keep the second day loose to beat jet lag and stock up on groceries before the small towns.Days 3-4: Coromandel Peninsula
Coaches run to Whitianga on the Coromandel Peninsula in about 3.5 to 4 hours via Thames, and local shuttles cover the last stretch to Hahei. From Hahei, reach Cathedral Cove by boat or kayak tour, or on the coastal walk when it’s open, to see the arched rock tunnel that splits the beach. Time Hot Water Beach for 2 hours either side of low tide, when you dig your own spa into sand heated from below; spades rent for around NZ$10 (US$6).Days 5-6: Rotorua and Hobbiton
Getting to Rotorua from the peninsula takes most of a day, with a change, so arrive and do nothing more than soak in a hot pool. On day six, take the tour from Rotorua to the Hobbiton Movie Set, about 1 hour each way. Adult tickets run roughly NZ$120 to 140 (US$72 to 85), and the 44 hobbit holes with their tiny painted doors are worth the price even for casual fans.Days 7-8: Wai-O-Tapu, Taupo and Tongariro
Book a shuttle that stops at Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland on the way to Taupo. Arrive by 10:15 a.m., when staff set off the Lady Knox Geyser each morning. Day eight is for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, 19.4 kilometers of volcanic ridges and acid-blue crater lakes; trailhead shuttles from Taupo cost about NZ$60 to 90 (US$36 to 54). If the forecast is bad, swap the days around.Days 9-11: Napier and Wellington
The 2-hour coach to Napier drops you in a town rebuilt almost entirely in Art Deco after the 1931 earthquake; a self-guided walk along Tennyson and Emerson streets takes an afternoon. On day ten, a 5-hour coach runs south to Wellington. Spend day eleven at the free Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, where the colossal squid and the carved marae are the standouts, then walk up Mount Victoria at sunset.Days 12-14: Picton, Nelson and Abel Tasman
The morning ferry reaches Picton in about 3.5 hours, and a coach covers the 2 hours to Nelson, a sunny small city full of craft breweries. On day thirteen, ride the bus to Marahau, then take a water taxi into Abel Tasman National Park. Get dropped at Anchorage and walk back along the coast track, about 3 to 4 hours of golden coves and tidal estuaries. On day fourteen, fly from Nelson to Auckland, about 1 hour 15 minutes, for your international connection.
Before you leave Nelson, bike the Great Taste Trail out to Rabbit Island, a long pine-backed beach where locals swim and almost no visitors turn up.v2.webp){kind=logo}
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