Since Chinese New Year is just around the corner, I thought it would be appropriate to share our experience with Chinese New Year in Rotorua, New Zealand! Admittedly, New Zealand gets flooded with Asian tourists over the Chinese New Year. We found busloads of Chinese groups everywhere we went, and we sometimes found it humorous to watch what excited them the most. For example, in the evenings we saw buses drop off the busloads at the local...

After leaving Rotorua, we drove to Taupo, which is located centrally on the North Island. Lake Taupo is the largest lake in New Zealand, and the town of Taupo, on its north end, has a population around 24,000 people. It’s known for being a center of volcanic and geothermal activity—but unlike Rotorua (which is stinky), Taupo is not stinky, and is well known known for hot springs! It’s not nearly as...

After a 3 1/2 hour ferry crossing from the Southern Point of New Zealand’s North Island (Wellington) to the Northern tip of the South Island (Picton), we sought out a fun destination that would reward the kids for good behavior on the ferry, as well as fill some extra time before a long drive to Nelson. Picton is a small town with a population of only 4,000-ish residents, and although it gets a lot of through-traffic, it isn’t...

Did you try do read that out loud? If not–I dare you to try!! Paraparaumu!!! Need some help? Here goes: Par-uh-par-uh-ooo-moo Simple, right? Kinda catchy, even! Well…we spotted it on the map, and decided we were headed to the Paraparaumu region after our visit to Taupo, and then Napier’s Art Deco Festival. When telling locals our plans, we were a bit confused when instead of saying Paraparaumu, they used the name...

While driving through Hamilton, New Zealand, on the way South to Waitomo—we drove right past the LDS Hamilton New Zealand temple! It stands on a big hill on the outskirts of town…seemingly in the middle of nowhere. It overlooks 86 acres that it shares with the former Church College of New Zealand (a Church-operated school for 12-18 yr old students that permanently closed in 2009). The friends we were traveling with offered to...

We were tickled pink when we were able to find a last-minute vacation/”bach” rental in Hastings, NZ become available during the nearby Napier Art Deco Festival that attracts visitors from all over to enjoy their 125+ events over a February weekend! It turned out to be a superb location–perched on the edge of a vineyard, and in a quiet location without traffic or noise. The host was amazing, and let our kids help feed her...