East Coast, Rotorua, Taupo, Bay of Plenty

In Wellington we found a place to stay overnight in the middle of the city and first went to the national museum Te Papa. Afterwards we went to the restaurant.

The next day (April 1st) we walked through the city and took the cable car up the mountain, then walked through the botanical garden (past the parliament) back to the harbor. Because we liked the museum so much, we visited it again.

From Wellington we continued north with a night and a hike in Holdsworth.

From there, our route took us to the East Coast with the towns of Hastings, North Havelock and Napier, which are built in Art Deco style. This region is very warm and known for its wine-growing areas.

We did a wine tasting at the Craggy Range winery. Henry tried the olives, which he surprisingly liked.

On April 3rd, the trip continued to Lake Taupo. There we went for a walk and had something to eat. We found the Huka Falls with the masses of water flowing downwards particularly impressive.

After spending the night at the Aratiatia Lock on the Waikato River, we were able to watch the lock opening the next morning. It was interesting to see how quickly the water filled the river.

We continued on to Rotorua. The city is located in a large geothermal area with many bubbling water and mud holes. There is an extremely strong smell of sulphur everywhere. Rotorua also has a huge California Redwood forest, in which we took long walks.

We spent the night again at a beautiful lake.

The next day it rained. Instead of the planned hike around the Blue Lake, we spontaneously decided to go to the sea - to Mount Maunganui. Because it is so beautiful there, we decided to stay there for two days to swim in the sea, hike up the local mountain and walk around the town a bit.