Travel Itinerary: 6 Days in New Zealand

What better way to celebrate our one year anniversary than to visit Middle Earth? As an avid Lord of the Rings fan, I immediately jumped on the opportunity to ride on horses to Isengard and drink ale at The Green Dragon. Though a short trip, it was certainly a wonderful adventure to remember.
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Here was our itinerary! Packed with a lot of driving - I would suggest extending the trip to two weeks if you can! We definitely ran out of time, and especially with the shorter winter days, found ourselves rushing from place to place. In the South Island, we rented our campervan from Britz, which was surprisingly great! There were mixed reviews online so we were skeptical, but we had no problems with the van, and it was quite spacious and well stocked. In Auckland, we rented a Toyota Yaris from GoRentals, which also worked out pretty well.

Day 1:

• See the blue waters of Lake Pukaki* [2.5 hr drive from Queenstown Airport]
• Stargaze at Church of the Good Shepard [45 min drive]

Day 2:

• Ride on a helicopter and hike on Franz Josef Glacier* [6 hr drive]

Day 3:

• See the blue waters rush through the canyon at the Blue Pools Track of Haast Pass [2.5 hr drive]
• Wonder at amazement at the surrounding waterfalls of Milford Sound [6 hr drive] 

Day 4:

• Ride horses through the river at Dart Stables in Glenorchy [5 hr drive]
• Fly back to Auckland Airport [45 min drive]

Day 5:​

• Take a quick stop at Owharoa Falls [1.5 hr drive]
• Climb through cave slots, wade in knee deep water, and finally marvel at the galaxy of glowworms at the Glowing Adventures Waitomo Caves Tour [2 hr drive]

Day 6:

• Drink ale and cider at the Green Dragon Inn at Hobbiton [1.5 hr drive]
• Drive back to Auckland Airport [2.5 hr drive]

* These were on our itinerary but we didn't make it! Unfortunately we either ran out of time or ran into poor weather conditions.

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