- Singapore to New Zealand, Auckland
- Whangamata
- Mount Maunganui
- Rotorua - Taupo
- Napier
- Wellington, Melbourne (transit) to Singapore. There was no direct flight from Wellington to Singapore
9 April 2019 (Tuesday)
Direct flight from Singapore to New Zealand - Auckland took 9 hour and 35 minutes. We took Singapore airline, flight SQ 285. The plane took off at 9:45 pm.
10 April 2019 (Wednesday)
The plane landed at Auckland international airport at 10:45 am New Zealand time. Auckland was 4 hours ahead of Singapore. We had arranged for the airport pick up service. The airport pick up bus already there when we arrived. Checking in to Auckland Crowne Plaza hotel was seamless. We took a ten minutes rest and took a walk to the waterfront area. We had dinner at the Wildfire restaurant.
arrival hall
our airport pick
up transport
Plaza hotel lobby
Waterfront
my new xiao mi
selfi stick
in Auckland
dinner
11 April 2019 (Thursday)
After breakfast, we walked to the near by bus stop and took the free shuttle bus service to the Dress Smart premium outlet and spent a day shopping. Dinner was at the hotel Japanese restaurant.
outlet- Indian food
after dinner
3 persons room
the fire drill
Casino
building
12 April 2019 (Friday)
We picked up our rental car at Hertz near the Crowne Plaza hotel. A Toyota Aurion ( Toyota Camry equivalent). We loaded all our stuff to the car booth at the hotel pick up point and drove to our 1st destination, Whangamata. On the way we stopped by Pacroa for snack and the popular L&P lemonade drink. We had pizza for lunch. My daughter decided to go for jogging after checking in the air b&b bungalow. Also taking the opportunity to jog to the beach. Dinner was self prepared.
near hotel
accommodate 3
big luggage plus
3 back packs
Whangamata
Air B&B
bed room
dinning area
before jogging
by pizza shop
to have lunch
13 April 2019 (Saturday)
We left for Whitianga after breakfast. It was a day of Ocean Leopard tour. Boat seats were limited. So we booked the Ocean Leopard tour in Singapore to confirm our reservation. It was a 2 hour boat ride. The tour will cruise the rugged volcanic coastline, visiting the near by islands & stunning beaches.The original fee of the Ocean Leopard tour was S$95 per person. The cost was reduced to S$66 per person due to change of the original activity (landing at the island beaches was cancelled in lieu of strong current). We had a light lunch before the boat trip to avoid stomach upset. We had coffee break after Ocean Leopard Tours. Dinner was take-away fish & chips.
breakfast
& left over
pizza
Whitianga wharf
for lunch
boat ride
tour boat
the boat
boat man
and scenery
floating clouds
selfi stick
was handy
compulsory
for safety
fish surfaced
another
drinking water
group photo for us
boat ride
14 April 2019 (Sunday)
We left Whangamata for Mount Maunganui after breakfast. Before check in we had simple lunch at a shopping mall. We checked in to Air B&B apartment , the algarve mount maunganui. We took a walk at the beach before having dinner at Burgerfuel, the popular burger with the locals.
breakfast, bread
egg, bacon
algarve Mount
Maunganui
lobby access by
card
The Algarve at
Maunganui
rooms
wall
potato balls
15 April 2019 (Monday)
We went trekking at Mount Maunganui in the morning. After trekking we went back to the apartment for shower and then went for lunch at the Social Club. We went for a walk at Tauranga bay of plenty after lunch. We had Thai food take-away for dinner as the Thai restaurant was fully booked.
t apartment.
Cruise ship at
far end
opposite building
point
the way
the way
hard work out
submit soon
other trekker
Maungamata
be served
as table
at the entrance
table
of plenty
cross in the center
16 April 2019 (Tuesday)
We left Mount Maunganui for Taupo after breakfast. On the way to Taupo, we took coffee break at Rotorua. Before reaching Taupo we stopped by Huka Falls. Lunch was at the Bella Italia restaurant, Italian food. After checking in to Motel Bella Vista, Taupo. we went back to Huka Falls for trekking. We had fine dinning dinner at Vine eatery & bar. The restaurant was near the Taupo McDonald with a defunct old DC3 airplane. The Mcdonald Taupo was a popular place of tourist attraction.
Bella Italia
eating
destination
Mcdonald plane
Vine eatery &
Bar
with heater
for 2
passengers
17 April 2019 (Friday)
We left Taupo for Napier. On the way we had coffee and toilet brake at the Tarawera cafe before we drove to Linden Estate for wine tasting and lunch. After lunch we proceeded to Napier and reached our Air B&B apartment at Shed 5, 1 Lever Street, Napier around 4.00 pm. This apartment had 2 levels. The bedrooms were on the upper level. The living/dinning/kitchen and utility were on the lower level. This apartment was the biggest unit we stayed in New Zealand.
toilet break
before lunch
stuff to helicopter
car park
then eat
Linden before
leaving for Napier
spacious living
room
up wifi
room
bedroom
apartment
equipped with
BBQ burner
near apartment
of apartment
near by
apartment with
bedrooms on
upper floor
machine
18 April 2019 (Thursday)
We visited the Arataki Honey outlet in the morning & purchased some Manuka honey and honey related products. Lunch was at the near by Japanese restaurant recommended by Trip advisor. The Piku Redbarrel restaurant. We visited the Bluff hill lookout in the afternoon. Dinner was take-away Thai food.
for lunch
go with lunch
"Drive don't drink"
pork bun
Lookout
eye view
Thai dinner
Thai dinner
19 April 2019 (Friday)
We left Napier at 9.30 am for Wellington. We stopped at Palmerston North Mcdonald for lunch. We had KIWI burger, a must-try burger in New Zealand. After checking in to Ibis hotel Wellington we returned the rented car to Hertz. For the next two days before departing, we explored Wellington on foot. The places of interest were all near the hotel Ibis. Our 1st dinner in Wellington was the Dockside restaurant.
Ibis hotel
Wellington
3 rooms
with breakfast
& cloudy night
20 April 2019 (Saturday)
We took the cable car ride up the hill to Wellington Botanic Garden in the morning. After the Vietnamese beef rice noddle lunch we visited the Old Bank Shopping Arcade and then did our last minutes shopping around the area. We visited the Wellington under ground market before going for dinner. The Crab Shack restaurant was very popular. No reservation of table was allowed. Customers must queue for the table in person or you can put your name down and came back an hour later to check for the table availability. We could not get a table the night before. So we turned out early that night to secure a table. We shared two Dungeness crabs and other food to end our trip. The crabs tasted good. The style of cooking was different from our Singapore chilly crabs. All of us enjoyed the dinner.
for defence
in the past
sun light
lamp shade
restaurant
with bean sprouts
John Chew
before Wellington
under ground
market
ground market
temporary tunnel
crane (not in use)
Shack restaurant
to be served
tomorrow's
departure
NZ$164.50
us from stains
21 April 2019 (Sunday)
The airport shuttle bus picked us up at the Ibis Wellington hotel (10.30 am) to Wellington airport. We will transit at Melbourne for Singapore. We touched down 12:15 am, 22 April 2019, Monday at Singapore Changi International airport.
boarding pass
boarding pass
boarding
airport cafe
airport
Changi International
airport after mid night
