After arriving in Auckland we took our pre-paid transfer to
the centre of the city, found our hostel and it was all going pretty smoothly.
(We stayed at Base just off Queen Street, which is located right in the centre
of the city.) We were given a room and we planned to go out and have a little
explore. This was not to be as, once we had found our room, we found there was
only one bed free. We tried to explain to reception but they weren’t having it
and after an hour of us explaining and housekeeping having a look and some
members of staff displaying some not-so-fantastic attitude, we were finally
assigned a much smaller and dingier room. The room had 6 beds and, in reality 4
would have been plenty. The people we shared with were nice enough but they
were all living in in the room and working in Auckland, so we led different
lifestyles. Which made it difficult when we wanted to get up at 8 am when they
had only got in at 5. The hostel itself was ok but just a bit too big for its
boots. If I had to go back to Auckland, I would not be staying at Base.
Enough of the hostel.
The city itself had a relaxed and calm atmosphere, not at
all like London which, to say it’s the country’s largest city, surprised us.
New Zealand has 4 million people living here and between 1/3 and ½ of those live in Auckland. Within the
city there wasn’t that much to do. We went down to the harbour which was lovely
but expensive and went up the Sky Tower.
The Sky Tower was pretty cool and offered some amazing views
of Auckland. We paid only $20 to get to the top. (The usual price is $24 but
it’s defiantly worth a visit). After a good look around we went to the café
which is on (now don’t quote me) I think the 60th floor. The prices
here were really reasonable and we had iced coffers for $5.50. Bargain with a
view!
Our favourite day in Auckland actually happened on an island
just off of Auckland. We took a ferry to Rangitoto Island which is a dormant
volcano. (It’s actually Auckland’s newest volcano and rose from the see 600
years ago.) We caught the ferry from Auckland’s port which cost around $30 and
took between 20-30 minutes.
The beauty of this place is that once you jumped off the
ferry and the ferry had left, you were alone. There was nothing else on the
island apart from the people who had hopped off the ferry with you.
We walked and followed the signs to some ‘lava caves’. IF
YOU GET THE CHANCE YOU NEED TO GO HERE!! (It was awesome, just make sure you
wear good shoes and take a torch.) Once we had stumbled through a couple of dark
caves we came to an opening with tree roots exposed. Here is a photo but it
just does not do it justice.
This is a cool day out and it’s only $30 ish. Just be warned
that some of the signs regarding walking time are a bit inaccurate. We walked
for well over an hour trying to find a coastal path that should have taken 45
mins, before we turned back.
Our favourite evening in Auckland had to be when we went to
the Rugby at Eden Park and watched Auckland Vs Waikato. We didn’t have tickets
but we met some guys who did so just tagged along with them and bought ours at
the stadium. We hopped on a train that cost $2 which took us right to the
stadium (if you already have your ticket you don’t have to pay for the train).
Once we got there the queue was short so we hopped in and paid $15 for our
ticket. (I didn’t actually as a guy gave me a free ticket but that’s another
story). It was a lovely night out and we even got a free flag. Winner!!!
Basically Auckland itself is just like any other city and it
felt as though we could still be in the UK. It’s full of chains and shopping
and, apart from the Sky Tower, there’s not much to do. Auckland: good for a day
or two but we were glad to leave.
Ciao for now
Xx
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