So I arrived in Auckland on a Saturday night, which was clearly Aucklands biggest night out. There were people everywhere as well as loud music, so I was missing out on something. I stayed in Queen Street Backpackers, which is located on Fort Street, and central to the party location. I am not one for the party scene, and I just wanted my bed after a long day of travelling, but if you like to party hard then this is the place for you! The backpackers was actually very social, which I enjoyed, so your never eating alone!
On my first full day, I decided to explore a bit. So I walked up Queen Street, which I suppose is like the main shopping area. I also checked out Auckland Harbour Bridge, which is a bit like Sydney Harbour Bridge, just smaller.
Being an art lover, I headed straight for the free art gallery!
They’ve got some excellent art, my favourite being the portraits of the Maori tribesmen. (They also have a great cafe in there).
If you pop a bit further down the street to Aotea Square, there’s also some free art there to check out.
If you’re looking for free wifi, check out the library. There’s also a cafe in there which is great to go with a good book. If you prefer to read on the grass in the sun, check out Albert Park (located next to the art gallery) as it’s just beautiful.
So far the highlight of my tour has been my trip to Hobbiton and Waitomo caves! If you love Lord of the Rings as much as I do, then a trip to Hobbiton is a must. You get to see the hobbit holes, and get to drink in the Green Dragon! (Refer to other post for review!)
The domain is great for a walk about. There’s the museum, sculptures, duck ponds, sports facilities and a wooded bit or ‘bush’ as its called that you can walk through to Parnell (Parnell is very hilly, so beware if you’re as unfit as I am).
The same day I also visited Holy Trinity Cathedral as I am very into church architecture. From the outside it looked very modern so I wasn’t expecting much, but the inside was just stunning. The stained glass windows were just amazing!
There’s an older one right next door, but it wasn’t open unfortunately. I didn’t realise, but there were churches everywhere I went! Literally on every corner, like being back in Adelaide again haha.
One thing I didn’t do, was go to the Sky City Tower but one of the girls in my room at the hostel did. She went and watched the sun set, so she got to see Auckland in the day and the night. Unfortunately it was cloudy, so didn’t get to see much of the sunset, and was a bit foggy, so couldn’t see too far. I think it would have been a fantastic thing to do, going right to the top of a crazy high tower! But obviously, you can’t predict the weather. Well you can, but they mainly get it wrong!
Thanks for reading, onto Rotorua next!
Jess x
My life in a blog 