Best of New Zealand - in Style

 Leaving Christchurch the route is about as straight and flat as roads get in New Zealand. On a clear day, the Southern Alps provide outstanding scenery. The Rakaia bridge spans 1.8 kilometres of one of the world's best examples of a 'braided' river system. Oamaru has many elegant historic buildings made from the local sandstone. The famous Moeraki boulders lie scattered along a beach between Oamaru and Dunedin. 

Leaving Dunedin, fresh, green farm scenery will accompany you to the historic mill town of Milton - the unusual kink in the main road is where two surveyors didn't quite meet. Next is Balclutha with its distinctive arched concrete bridge and an interesting museum. After Gore you will travel across the river plain to Lumsden heading towards Fiordland National Park.

Trout fishing rivers and high country scenery are features of the drive to Queenstown. Leave time to take a break in Kingston, the home of a remarkable vintage steam train. From here the rest of your journey scenically follows the contour of Lake Wakatipu.

From Queenstown, the shortest route to Wanaka is over the Crown Range Road. It's a challenging drive, but the views are amazing, if the weather is fine. Alternatively, you can take the route that runs beside the Shotover River, Lake Dunstan and the Clutha River. The vineyards of the Gibbston area and bungy jumpers at the Kawarau River Bridge are interesting distractions along the way.

Lake Hawea is the first scenic highlight, followed closely by the northern end of Lake Wanaka. At the wilderness town of Makarora one can fuel up before taking on the dramatic twists and turns of the Haast Pass. There are waterfalls and river scenery to enjoy when arriving on the West Coast. The settlement of Haast was once a construction camp for the Ministry of Works (the government department responsible for road and bridge building). It's a town with a touch of the wild west - helicopters fly deer hunters into the rugged ranges and local pubs make a feature of stuffed animal trophies. The Haast Visitor Centre offers excellent information on the South Westland World Heritage Area, worth a stop!

Just north of Haast is Lake Moeraki, a peaceful forest lake with good fishing - a 40 minute track (one way) goes down to Monro Beach - a wildlife refuge protecting breeding areas used by penguins between July and December. Next is pretty Lake Paringa and a salmon farm. The terminal face of Fox Glacier is just 5 kilometres from the township that serves it. The road to the walking track crosses ancient moraine from earlier advances and retreats. Fox Glacier was named after an early New Zealand Prime Minister, William Fox.

The road north of the glaciers is rural, but with a wild streak. The farmland is trying to turn back into forest, and the beauty of the rivers is raw and primeval. In good weather the Southern Alps can be seen. The road between Hokitika and Greymouth provides great views of the wild west coast. Shantytown, just south of Greymouth, is a reconstructed 1880s gold rush town, great for families.

Umfulana-Tip: The scenic "HariHari Coastal Walkway" (2 hrs return to coastal viewpoint of "The Doughboy / Mt OneOne". At low tide, a 3-4 hr loop track is possible). The walk starts at the rivermouth of the Wanganui River, a 20 min drive from the southern end of the main road in HariHari (between Ross & Whataroa). For further information, please enquire at the Department of Conservation / Visitor Centre in Franz Josef Glacier.

The road to Westport hugs the coast, providing spectacular views of wild beaches and the tempestuous Tasman Sea. At Charleston, formerly a prosperous gold town, you can arrange underground rafting and cave exploring trips. Westport is known as a coal mining town, but it's also a base for outdoor adventures such as black water rafting, jet boating, horse trekking and surf rafting. The road to Nelson is scenic and interesting, beginning with the dark, forbidding Buller Gorge. At Hawks Crag there is a dramatic rock overhang. At Lyell one can walk to a pioneer cemetery. The museum at Murchison tells visitors all about the massive earthquake that shook the region in 1929.Umfulana-Tip: The seal colony at Cape Foulwind, near Westport is worth a visit - so is the nearby cafe.

The drive to Picton is both beautiful and interesting. A t Pelorus Bridge Scenic Reserve one can enjoy a bush walk or a swim. Havelock is the place for a seafood meal - it's known as the Green Shell Mussel Capital of the World. The famed Queen Charlotte Drive is a popular tourist route between Havelock and Picton. This road wends its way through native bush offering several vantage points from which to enjoy views of the inner Queen Charlotte and Pelorus Sounds. If going via Renwick & Blenheim instead, which are surrounded by vineyards, it will be clear that this is wine country. 

The drive to Martinborough winds through the picturesque Hutt Valley before climbing over the Rimutaka Range and descending into the tranquility of the Wairarapa region. In recent years, Martinborough has become the gourmet capital of the lower North Island. It is home to over 25 boutique vineyards and several fabulous restaurants.

The major entertainment on the road from Napier to Taupo is the scenery. There's a bit of everything - rugged hills, beautiful valleys, gentle plains and huge vistas. About Halfway, at Tarawera, there are hot springs, right above the Waipunga River. Lake Taupo is situated in a huge crater, created by an eruption so big the sun went hazy in China. It is the largest fresh water lake in Australasia - about the same size as Singapore - with water so clean a few zillion trout call it home. Water activities take place in the lake all year round, including water-skiing, parasailing, jet skiing, fishing, cruising, swimming, kayaking, canoeing, sailing, and landing in it by float-plane! There are 47 rivers and streams feeding into Lake Taupo, and just one outlet - the Waikato River, New Zealand's longest river. Taupo township is located right on the edge of the lake. Located in Wairakei Tourist Park, just north of Taupo, the Huka Falls is New Zealand's most visited natural attraction. More than 220,000 litres of water tumbles over the cliff face per second. Large tracts of plantation pine forest and unusual, volcanic geography can be seen on the road to Rotorua. There are side roads to geothermal parks with geysers, silica terraces and craters of boiling mud.

The relatively long drive makes sense to avoid an(other) overnight stop in Auckland. Driving through the lush farmland of the Waikato, it's easy to see why these green pastures and rolling hills near Matamata were chosen to portray Hobbiton and The Shire in "Lord of the Rings". A detour makes it possible to either visit 'Hobbiton' on the way. Although much of the set was deconstructed post filming, hobbit fans can still visit Hobbiton, wander among the hobbit holes and listen to the fascinating commentary about how it was all created. North of Hamilton, the route whisks you over the Bombay Hills, then along the motorway straight through Auckland heading north. Further north the Twin Coast Discovery Highway is a more scenic drive. Near Dargaville, a visit to the Kauri Museum is highly recommended.

On the way south, a detour can be taken to explore the beautiful Tutukaka Coast north east of Whangarei. The Whangarei Falls are also worth a visit. At the Quayside Town Basin complex a few stylish cafes and restaurants, as well as museums, art galleries and shops are worth a visit. Another detour is the loop past Waipu Cove, Langs Beach and Mangawhai Heads  spect