From the Scenic South to the Volcano-rich North

Having spent 16 days in the South Island, it was time to bid farewell to the island and also to the rest of our travellers while five of us proceeded to the north island.

We flew in from Christchurch to Auckland, 757km away. We rented a MPV (or People Mover as it is known in New Zealand), a Toyota Estima for our 10-day trip. Starting from Auckland, we travelled south to Tongariro National Park before heading back north to Rotorua, then to Paihia.

Friends who have been to both the north and south islands told me that ‘if you have been to south island, you would not find north island attractive, it is much less scenic and you may not like it so much…’ Well, I was about to find out.