Auckland’s Albert Park is one of the most centrally located parks in the city, and travelers staying in or exploring the CBD are sure to find their way there at some point. With a significant Maori and European history and views of central Auckland’s tallest buildings, it’s a great place for a picnic lunch and a stroll.
The Mitai Maori Village—just outside Rotorua—offers Maori cultural performances and interactions, such as waka (canoe tours, a traditional hangi meal, song and dance shows, four-wheel-drive adventures, and more. The Rotorua area is rich in Maori culture and history, and visiting the Mitai Maori Village is a convenient way of learning more about this while enjoying some entertainment and activities.
In the Waikato region of New Zealand’s North Island, Matamata isn’t just a small town—it’s home to Hobbiton. The blockbusters The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit were filmed all around the country, but Matamata was selected to represent the Shire. Stop by for a day of movie-related attractions and outdoor adventures.
Te Mata Peak is an unusual craggy peak that rises 1,309 feet (399 meters) from the plains of Hawke’s Bay, behind the towns of Hastings and Havelock North. Shaped like a grass-covered tsunami with a rocky crest, Te Mata Peak is a popular hiking destination. You can also drive to the peak for fabulous views, especially at sunset.
Marked by a squat lighthouse and a gnarled 800-year-old pohutukawa tree, Cape Reinga is the northernmost point of New Zealand that’s open to the public, and the site where the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea come together. The area is popular for its coastal views, which you can enjoy from a series of windswept nature walks.
Treat yourself to a day at the luxurious, award-winning Polynesian Spa in the North Island town of Rotorua, known for its bubbling mud pools and spurting geysers. With more than 20 pools fed by natural springs, the spa offers a menu of treatments designed to address various health and wellness needs.
Most people know Kaitoke Regional Park as Rivendell, the Elven city where the Fellowship forms in Peter Jackson’sLord of the Rings. But it’s more than that: Kaitoke Regional Park, just outside of Wellington, is an ancient rain forest full of old native trees and winding rivers, and a tranquil place to escape the city for a day or more.
Mt. Victoria Reserve(Takarunga) is located on a volcanic hill in Devonport, a seaside town on Auckland’s North Shore. The climb to the top is quite quick and manageable for active travelers, and the views are impressive, as you can look back to the central Auckland skyline with its skyscrapers and sailboats bobbing in front.
There are plenty of places in Rotorua to find bubbling mud and steam vents, but the geothermal activity at Hell's Gate Geothermal Park is the most pronounced. Explore the landscape in this valley and you’ll notice that the steam is a bit thicker; the mud gurgles, a bit louder. The earth here is powerfully raw, which is precisely what makes the attraction so alluring.
At the top of Bastion Point, overlooking Waitemata Harbour, is the Michael Joseph Savage Memorial. A monument to the legacy of New Zealand’s well-loved 23rd prime minister, the memorial is surrounded by a peaceful park with gardens and panoramic views of Auckland and the Hauraki Gulf—a perfect escape from the hectic inner city.
Auckland is covered in pretty volcanic mounds, and Mt. Eden is one of the most famous. You can drive or hike to the summit for sweeping views right out into the harbor. The mount also lends its name to the upmarket suburb below, a lively neighborhood with hip coffee shops and bars.
Tongariro National Park earned dual UNESCO World Heritage status for its combination of Maori cultural and natural features. Located on the central North Island, the park offers visitors several options for exploring the volcanic terrain. If you want to shorten the multi-day Tongariro Northern Circuit, a New Zealand Great Walk, then consider the popular Tongariro Alpine Crossing day hike.
Home to dance companies, artist collectives, hip start-ups, and more, Wellington’s Cuba Street district is bristling with creative energy. The action is centered along a pedestrian mall, a hot spot for buskers and street performers that’s lined with historical buildings and full of stylish, artsy stores, cafés, and restaurants.
The Kerikeri Stone Store is the oldest stone building in New Zealand and part of Kerikeri’s historic Mission Station. Built in 1832, the Stone Store has been a trading post, a library, a barracks, and more. Today you can explore the store and hear the stories of the chiefs, settlers, and missionaries who passed through the station.
Zealandia Ecosanctuary is a unique wildlife conservation park in Karori, just minutes from central Wellington. A premier eco-attraction, the fully fenced urban project has restored much of the flora and fauna that once surrounded the city. Forest and wetlands provide habitat for more than 40 native bird species, amphibians, and reptiles.
Just a half-hour ferry ride from Auckland, Rangitoto Island offers active travelers an adventurous escape from the city. This 600-year-old dormant volcano boasts stunning panoramic views of Auckland and a selection of rugged walks both up and around the island, most of them suitable for people of all fitness levels.
Established in 1851, just a decade after the founding of modern-day New Zealand, Mission Estate Winery is the country’s oldest winery. As well as making fine Hawkes Bay wines, the winery offers tours, accommodation, a restaurant, a cellar door for tastings, and hosts events and concerts. It’s in the Taradale Hills, near Napier.
Lake Rotoiti is the boutique cousin to the larger Lake Rotorua. Though Rotoiti is connected to its massive neighbor by the narrow Ohau Channel, it has its own relaxed feel. Sunsets on Lake Rotoiti are beautiful, and the trout fishing here is some of the best on the North Island.
A large, popular green space in the Auckland suburb of Epsom, Cornwall Park is a great option for a day of outdoor fun. The park houses restaurants and cultural attractions, and, as the site of a pre-European Maori settlement, is also archaeologically significant.
The grand neo-baroque landmark presiding over the Auckland central business district is Auckland Town Hall, the civic heart of the city since the early 20th century. Admired for its architecture, the Town Hall is more than just a pretty facade—it’s also a popular concert venue that’s hosted everything from symphony orchestras to shows by pop icons, including The Beatles and Elton John.
Take a short drive out of Rotorua and explore a village trapped in time. The Buried Village of Te Wairoa is a remarkable relic of Victorian-era New Zealand, preserved by volcanic ash from the 1886 Mt. Tarawera eruption. Walk around the village and marvel at this portal to the past, nestled in the Bay of Plenty forest.
It’s tough to decide which is more beautiful: the cobalt hue of the aptly named Blue Lake sparkling in the midday sun, or the deep green of the Whakarewarewa Forest that hugs the shore of the lake. Either way, the natural beauty is what makes Lake Tikitapu an ideal place to connect with nature.
Wellington’s Red Rocks Reserve (Pariwhero) is a site of cultural and geological significance, which you can admire during an easy coastal walk or bike ride. The 4.5-mile (7.5-kilometer) track runs from Owhiro Bay in southern Wellington to Red Rocks Reserve. Enjoy ocean views and fur seals basking in the sun (and wind) along the way.
The New Zealand Maritime Museum (Hui Te Ananui A Tangaroa) tells the country’s maritime story via art and artifacts displayed across its numerous galleries on the Auckland waterfront. Relive seafaring history through the museum’s impeccably restored boats—not just those in the galleries, but the ones on the water that you can even go sailing in.
Opened in 2017 in Matakana, north of Auckland, Sculptureum is a sculpture garden, art gallery, restaurant, and vineyard in one. The many animal sculptures in the gardens delight kids, while six indoor galleries display glass work and abstract art interesting to adults, making Sculptureum a popular day-trip destination for all.
The North Island’s Ninety Mile Beach runs along the west coast near Kaitaia all the way to Cape Reinga on New Zealand’s northernmost tip. This seemingly endless stretch of wave-lapped sand is rimmed by dunes and topped by the lighthouse at Cape Reinga in the Far North, a remote spot where the Pacific Ocean meets the Tasman Sea.
Although other parts of New Zealand boast taller or faster-flowing waterfalls, none is as conveniently located—and few are as photogenic—as spectacular Otuihau Whangarei Falls. This 85-foot (26-meter) cascade surrounded by birdsong and native bush is just minutes from Whangarei’s city center, making for a perfect pit stop or half-day hike.
New Zealand has the world’s highest sheep-to-human ratio, with an industry that is estimated to include 30 million sheep. At the Rotorua Agrodome—a 350-acre (142-hectare) working sheep farm just outside of town—visitors can help to shear sheep, tour the mill, and observe well-trained sheepdogs as they follow commands.
The open wildlife sanctuary of Tiritiri Matangi Island is devoted to the protection and conservation of reintroduced threatened and endangered reptiles like the tuatara, and birds such as the flightless takahe. The island is tightly controlled to keep out predators that hunt fragile bird species like the nocturnal little spotted kiwi.
Steaming geysers, hot springs, and mud pools bubble up from boiling-hot reservoirs below the Earth’s surface at Orakei Korako geothermal park. The area boasts silica terraces decorated with colorful swirling patterns—the result of the hot water algae—and a rare geothermal cave.
