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New
Zealand
A scenic wonderland
- green
rolling hills, beaches, mountains, lakes
and
national parks
Perfect destinations for
thrill seekers
or those who want total luxury with
incredible food and sightseeing
New Zealand is a
small country with incredible diversity.
It takes much longer to see the highlights
of New Zealand than
people realize.
The country is comprised of two main islands.
Below is an overview
Click here for a map showing main tourist
regions
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Knowledge and
Experience of New Zealand |
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Below are personal recommendations for the
key areas that offer the best of New Zealand. Ngaire the owner of
Brown and Keene was born and raised in New
Zealand and was in the tourist industry in
New Zealand before moving to the United
States. We have extensive knowledge of New
Zealand and can be sure you get the best
possible experience from your vacation. You
will find this web site and the
recommendations more on the personal side
than the normal website promoting New
Zealand.
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The North Island:
The North Island is more populated than the
South Island. Located
on the North Island are
Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, and
Wellington, the Capital City. The far North
is very tropical and has incredible scenery
and 90 miles of white sand beach.
The center of the North island offers
Rotorua, the center of Maori culture and
thermal activity. Taupo offers incredible trout fishing in spectacular
lakes. The entire North island is covered with rolling
green hills, millions of sheep, unspoiled
un-crowded beaches and bays. Click
the links below for more information.
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The South Island:
The South Island is less
populated than the North Island
and has two major cities,
Christchurch and Dunedin. The
northern end of the South
Island offers wineries, Abel
Tasman Park, lovely beaches and sunny
weather. The center of the island you find
Mount Cook. A
wonderful area to visit. Mount Cook is the highest
Mountain in New Zealand. The West Coast from Greymouth to the Hasst Pass is a wild,
unpopulated and beautiful area. The
Southern end of the South Island you find
the Southern Alps, Fiordland, Queenstown and
Milford. These are the key attractions in
the South Island. Click the links below
for more information.
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Scenery or
Adventure Travel |
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New Zealand is a
wonderful destination for
everyone. If you wish for a pure scenic
vacation, with fine accommodations and
outstanding cuisine it is a perfect
destination. If you enjoy an action
oriented vacation New Zealand offers you great
adventures. You will find river rafting,
hang gliding, bungy jumping, parasailing,
hiking, boating, even flying over a canyon
suspended from a cable "Fly by Wire" in fact more ways to find
excitement than you can imagine.
Queenstown is known as the adventure capital
of the world.
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Fly by
wire - Queenstown |
Jet
Boating |
Bungy |
Rafting |
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Fishing, golf
and hiking |
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New Zealand offers some world class golf
courses for the golfing enthusiast.
Fishing is also outstanding in New Zealand
in both the North and South Island. Hiking
is a national pastime in New Zealand.
The country has many short or long hikes
many of them guided walks. People from
around the world walk the Milford and
Routeburn Tracks in
Fiordland. The
guided walks include overnight
accommodations in huts on the trail and vary
in length. Itineraries can be arranged
to take advantage of each individuals
particular interests. |
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Accommodations |
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The quality of the properties selected dictates
the
cost of visiting this beautiful country.
Let us know if you want large hotels, top
luxury lodges, bed and breakfast, or even a
farm stays. There are so many options for all
types of accommodations. Based on your
budget we will select the properties that we
know and trust to offer you the best
possible experience for your accommodations
in New Zealand. During the peak season of December to
February the hotels can fill up and advance
reservations are
necessary.
Particularly during the School Holiday
season around the end of December and into
January. Luxury properties.
There are some outstanding world class properties in New
Zealand that are worth the price if
your budget will allow.
Huka Lodge in the
North Island is one of these spots and
highly regarded. CLICK
HERE TO LINK TO EXAMPLES OF ACCOMMODATIONS
IN NEW ZEALAND.
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Renting a car |
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Driving is fairly easy in New Zealand
except in the major cities of Auckland,
Wellington and Christchurch. Remember that
New Zealander's drive on the opposite side
of the road from the US. Some of the
roads have improved in recent years but
there are still a lot of
two lane highways.
There are many windy roads on mountains with sharp bends on both the
North and South island.
Click here for our recommendations on
driving in New Zealand. |
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Guides and
transfers |
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Of course a car
and driver is a very comfortable and
convenient way to see any unfamiliar
territory and there are many hidden "nooks
and crannies" that are difficult to find or
know about unless you are a local. This does
increase the cost of the trip of course but
may be worth the expense |
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Food |
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You will find
the food of the highest quality. Fresh farm
and seafood produce and
of course the best lamb in the
worlthe
worldhe
world. The New Zealand diet and the
et and the
American diet are very similar so you will
be at home with the food served. New Zealand
has experienced a lot of immigration so
there are restaurants serving every ethnic
food you can imagine. |
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Budget and
Itinerary |
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Above are links to
the areas of New Zealand we recommend
you consider visiting and we can customize
your itinerary to include the areas of the
country that most interest you.
If you have any interest
in an area not mentioned here we can of
course accommodate you and arrange for you to visit
any location in New Zealand |
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Example Itineraries: Click
here
for Pre-planned itineraries |
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Click here for details on New Zealand's
climate |
