After losing ourselves in the South Island for 13 days, that left us only 4 for the North. Which only means one thing… we’ll need to come back!
Our favorite Airbnb in our very own Shire!
We’ve stayed in over 50 Airbnb’s on 4 different continents - but we think this was our favorite. The Lake Taupo surroundings were straight out of the Shire in Lord of the Rings, with a cabin atop a small hill with sliding doors and a porch facing directly west. Our first night, we had plans to go out to a local dinner spot, but couldn’t peel ourselves away… so we had peanut butter and jelly with a bottle of wine and danced on the porch as the sun set. We would absolutely love to come back here.
Conquering the Tongariro Alpine Crossing
On our most ambitious hike yet, we set the alarm for 4:30AM to make the 1.5 hour drive to the base of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, one of New Zealand’s most iconic hikes. The whole trip took us about 7 hours as we crossed over and around a series of semi-active volcanoes. Adam was a little nervous at first, but there was nothing to be worried about. The path looked like we were walking on the moon and we befriended 2 American girls in catsuits. They must have been roasting because it was a perfectly sunny day close to 80 degrees. We were exhausted by the end, and Annie had little red dots all over her feet. After some ferocious googling on the drive home, we concluded it was heat rash and not a little bug that was biting her feet all day.
Strolling through active hot springs
On our way back from the spa, we saw signs to walk through active hot springs. We turned left and snuck through the door just 15 minutes before close. For an hour, we strolled through 15+ active hot springs while taking in some gnarly smells and snapping a few pics before heading back to our little Shire… and more wine.
Hitting the spa in Rotorua
We were warned of the strong odor in Rotorua, and we definitely weren’t disappointed. The whole down smells like rotten eggs, so we decided to hop into one of the oldest spas and test out the different temperatures of pools, then head back to our hilltop heaven back in the Shire in Taupo.
We’re not finished with the North!
If we learned anything in New Zealand, it’s that we know we need to come back. The country is filled with incredibly friendly and eco-conscious people. Three days in the North Island definitely wasn’t enough… so we’ll be back!
