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Far from feeling like they are in boring, familiar territory on their travels to New Zealand during the pandemic, Kiwis are discovering pleasant surprises almost everywhere they roam.
Small towns off the beaten track hide some of New Zealand’s most unique and underrated attractions, from expeditions to see kiwi in the wild and open old school Tiger Moth airplane rides to a quirky community where bulldozers are used to transport crab boats and out of the ocean.
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The coastline around Ngawi is a hiker and mountain biker’s dream.
Travel of thingsThe recent call for small town favorite discoveries sparked a flurry of responses. Below are just a few of the cities that your compatriots believe deserve much more attention.
Ngawī
A break in a retro seaside town can be a perfect antidote to the stress of the big bad world, and Sarah Kennerley of Wellington thinks Ngawī might be one of the best.
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Beyond the pinnacles of Putangirua on the coast road to Palliser Bay from Wellington, this town of Wairarapa’s biggest claim to fame is that it has more tractors per capita than anywhere else in the world; you’ll know you’ve arrived when you see a bunch of them in the horseshoe-shaped bay.
Local fishermen use tractors and excavators to haul their boats in and out of the wild waves of the Cook Strait, which normally return laden with crayfish. Those wild waves, and the fishing and surfing they provide, have made Ngawī a popular vacation and weekend destination with Wellingtons for decades, as old-school singles attest. But they are far from the only attraction in the city.
Ross Giblin / Stuff
Tinky Winky is among the best-known tractors in Ngawi (for pretty obvious reasons).
Cape Palliser Lighthouse and the seal colony are just a short drive away, as is Aorangi National Park. It even has its own nine-hole golf course.
For Kennerley, the entire Wairarapa coast is “really something special. Walking on quiet and rugged beaches where it is totally windswept by Cook Strait in the middle of winter makes you feel completely alive and as if the planet is a much less crowded place than it really is. “
Position
Tūrangi, which is often used as a simple swim or gas stop on the way to Taupō or Rotorua, deserves to be recognized as a destination in its own right, says Bev Cochrane of Raumati Beach on the Kapiti coast.
“The lake is calmer and looks cleaner,” he says, adding that Kuratau and Omarai, both just a short drive away, offer more “beautiful lakeside fun.”
New Zealand’s unofficial trout fishing headquarters, Tūrangi’s natural assets are no secret in fishing circles, but even those who hate fish can have a great time there. Just four kilometers from Lake Taupō, 40 minutes from the Whakapapa ski area on Mount Ruapehu and a transport stop en route to the famous Tongariro Alpine Crossing, it is an ideal base for exploring the wider area.
Rafting on the Tongariro River / Supplied
Rafting the Tongariro River from Turangi will have you screaming non-stop, says Bev Cochrane.
Just five minutes from the municipality, the Tongariro River Trail, with its hanging bridges and a riverside trail through native bush, is popular with both beginner and experienced mountain bikers.
Cochrane recommends river rafting, saying it “has you screaming for the whole adventure.” There is also a climbing wall, a pool complex and the interactive Volcanic Activity Center, and the Tokaanu Thermal Pools are just down the road.
Ōkārito
Old-school potholes for rent, a driftwood-covered beach perfect for cooking saussies over a campfire, kayaking New Zealand’s largest unmodified estuary lagoon, kiwi-watching in the wild, a private photo gallery, and nights intimate live music at a heritage-listed store. are among the highlights of a trip to this small west coast town for Barry Hughes.
About a 30-minute drive north of the Franz Josef Glacier, Ōkārito, home to about 30 people, is perhaps best known for its snowy mountain-backed lagoon, an open-air buffet for thousands of waders, including the rare kōtuku ( White Heron). .
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Okarito boasts rugged beaches, stellar views of the Southern Alps, and the world’s rarest kiwi.
Hughes recommends staying at the community-run Okarito Campground on a sandpit sheltered by native trees, with the proceeds going to local projects like pest control. He’s also a fan of Okarito Kiwi Tours, which takes guests to an established kiwi hangout, providing insight into the local area and New Zealand history along the way. On clear nights, the stars of the Milky Way will also be your guides.
You are sure to get plenty of good Christmas pictures in this old gold mining town, but, for truly exceptional landscape images, stop by Adris Apse’s gallery on The Strand.
After dark, head to Donovan’s Store, the oldest known building on the West Coast, to see traveling musicians and artists perform.
PAMELA WADE
Croydon Aviation Heritage Center in Mandeville offers flights in restored Tiger Moth aircraft.
Mandeville
Do you like the idea of becoming a pioneer pilot and donning a helmet and goggles to fly through the Southland countryside in a canary yellow Tiger Moth? Or watching the pros take the old wooden jet for a ride? Mandeville is your place.
Located between Queenstown and Gore, this small town is a delight for anyone with a passing interest in aviation. The Croydon Aviation Heritage Center houses some of the most important vintage aircraft in the country and the largest collection of de Havilland aircraft in the southern hemisphere.
Almost all aircraft from the 1920s and 1930s are still flying, allowing you to experience the ‘Golden Age’ spirit of flight. You can book a flight in a Tiger Moth convertible or just check out the vintage planes and the regularly changing display of local artwork in the lobby.
Christchurch’s Lucy Richardson recommends checking out the on-site “lovely little cafe and gift shop,” Miss Cocoa Coffee, where you can eat berry-topped muffins and Oreo cookies or Whittaker’s chicken and chocolate cream cheese stacks.
Bronwyn Cowles, who works at the museum, said that while the city “is often referred to as a jewel in the middle of nowhere,” Mandeville certainly is “somewhere.”
Matakohe
Located in the upper reaches of Kaipara Harbor on Northland’s Kauri Coast, Matakohe is best known for its Kauri Museum, the largest undercover attraction in the region.
The cross-sections of the ancient kauri trees on display are impressive in more ways than one, as are the life-size reproductions of a pioneering sawmill, boarding house, bushman hut and Victorian home and kauri gum collection from ” buried gold “. Kauri’s single-trunk bath is also a sight to behold and she’s even allowed to climb up to take a selfie.
Stuff
Ruatuna: The birthplace of Matakohe and home of former Prime Minister Gordon Coates.
With heritage buildings like a small Kauri pioneer church amid rose gardens and an old school and post office, Matakohe has rural charm in abundance. And unsurprisingly, a scenic reserve filled with centuries-old kauri trees.
There is also a family-friendly coastal bike path that runs along the city’s old one-lane bridges, sections of native bush, and a pou by master carver Te Wārihi Hetaraka, which speaks of the coming together of people from the four corners of the Earth. . If you’re in town on Saturday, museum volunteer Victoria recommends visiting the “amazing” farmers market with live music in nearby Paparoa.
