Eileen & Paul Varetto

Well this is the longest testimonial and trip report I have ever received. The fact that you have put so much time and thought into this says a lot Eileen and I am so grateful. We have everything here readers - fancy dress, lost luggage, G&Ts on the beach, helpful Kiwi bobbies and Jeremy Palmer saving the day, sort of like Champion the Wonder Horse but with two legs and a phone.

Paul & Eileen all dressed up in Napier,

fortunately with somewhere to go

Our second NZ trip came about as a result of an invitation from friends to visit them there whilst they were staying with their daughter who lives north of Auckland. Paul Carberry organised some cut rate flights via Singapore for a 6 week holiday and we decided to spend 3 of those weeks travelling independently with our friends exploring Auckland and the areas north and east of the city. We then followed the well trodden tourist routes round the Coromandel Peninsula to Rotorua and Lake Taupo before ending up in the Art Deco town of Napier built in this style after the original town was destroyed in the 1931. On Paul C’s advice we timed our visit there to coincide with the Festival weekend – a not so serious celebration of the Art Deco style.

Paul C managed to get us a friendly homestay cottage at a very busy time and so, as nearly everyone seems to dress the part, we decided to enter into the spirit of things as you can see. Whilst having a delicious meal at the Masonic Hotel on the front we watched the vintage cars arrive on Friday night and soaked up the atmosphere. Saturday was the big parade of cars and people with pipe bands and a flying display and in the evening there were jazz bands and dancing. On Sunday we made our salmon and cucumber sandwiches and took a few bottles of bubbly to the Gatsby picnic on the front where everyone else was doing the same thing to a lesser or greater extent. Everyone visited each others picnic and admired dresses and antiques and listened to the bands and the barbershop choir. It was such an all inclusive friendly weekend and I have to say it cost us very little as the main events were free – in fact I think it cost a feather boa and a pair of braces!

A pensive Paul at Whangamata Beach

on the Coromandel Peninsula

At this point we left our friends and for the next 3 weeks were guided by New Zealand In Depth. We had a memorable weekend in Wellington which was hosting the Arts Festival. We went to the Circa Theatre, watched dragon racing in the harbour, ate extremely well at Shed 5 (delicious oysters) and Paul managed to shake Vladimir Ashkenazy’s hand which made his weekend complete.

Gannet colony at Muriwai Beach

The next move was a flight from Wellington to Nelson in South Island from where we were driving to Golden Bay near Abel Tasman Park to stay for a week. Having checked in we discovered that I had left Paul’s hand luggage in the taxi (Yes apparently that’s the way it works – I was in charge of it whilst Paul paid the driver!). Panic ensued and that awful feeling in the pit of your stomach when you know you’ve been a plonker! We got in touch with ID Tours (New Zealand In Depth’s partner in Auckland) since all our vouchers, flight tickets home and, most important, our medication were in the hand luggage. They assured us we could carry on without the vouchers and they would sort them out and so we took the flight and made our way to Pohara in Golden Bay where our accommodation was overlooking a spectacular beach. From our balcony we could watch the surf and the oystercatchers and also the locals sand surfing - all whilst sinking a G & T!

A phone call from Jeremy at ID Tours at about 4.30pm brightened up our day even more when he told us that the bag had been handed in by the taxi driver to the police in Lower Hutt. The police couldn’t have been more helpful and arranged for the bag to be couriered to us the next day. So we picked it up from Takaka (5km away) and inside it, absolutely everything was there – including tickets, iPod and medication. This saved us so much hassle and we were very impressed by the honesty of the driver and the speed with which the police returned the bag to us. I have to say, I did wonder if the same would happen to a tourist in the UK.

Indiana Jones still at large in Abel Tasman National Park?

A few days in Picton followed exploring the Marlborough wine region and Queen Charlotte Sound. Then we took the Interislander ferry back to Wellington – a stunning trip - and drove up the western side of the island. Not quite so touristy but I loved seeing Mount Taranaki and New Plymouth itself with its 7km coastal walkway. Our final stop at Otorohanga was really memorable. Kamahi Cottage was absolutely delightful and catered for our every need. An inspired choice Paul! Liz cooked us some wonderful meals and we left feeling we had made a friend. Sadly Auckland and the long flight home beckoned but, once again, New Zealand In Depth had delivered a memorable holiday.