Visit To New Zealand - Auckland

We, a family of 3 (2 adults + 1 child - 5 year old) planned a holiday to New Zealand in the December of 2018. Since we had a kid in tow, the trip had to be child friendly and keeping his timings in mind. One may not be able to let their hair down or explore new places around as much as one would like to when accompanied with kids; but despite those “kiddy” considerations, we did manage to have good amount of fun.

We were travelling across 3 cities in the North Islands - Auckland, Rotorua and Wellington before we headed to the South Islands. We had limited time per city -  an average of 1 and half to 2 days max a city,  hence we had to be super quick in covering as much as we could.

We travelled from Singapore to Auckland by Singapore Airlines & all I can say is that the flight was uber comfortable. The food was great and so was service. We flew comfortably so no complaints there. It is of course a long flight so you need to plan the journey accordingly.

After we cleared all the airport formalities, (mind you, you have to throw away every single food item on you. You may carry your basic medicines that too preferably with prescriptions), we headed to our hotel - Pullman Auckland.

The same evening we spent walking around the streets of Auckland outside our hotel. We did not even realise which streets were we randomly walking into, we were simply exploring. There was not a single dull moment anywhere around.

Despite it being a Tuesday, all the restaurants & bars were rolling and buzzing. The temperature was a cool 15° C (which was winter like for us considering we come from a very hot country). The weather was perfect to enjoy cups of hot chocolate & steaming cappuccinos. Since it was close to Christmas, the decorations had kicked in and the holidays feels were in the air. As much as we wanted to savour delights from some local cafes, Starbucks was all that we could find in vicinity. We were exhausted after a long journey, hence were okay with anything we could find easily. Our dinner too was at the hotel restaurant in Pullman Auckland.

Day 1 (Next Day Afternoon)

We headed to the Auckland War Memorial Museum in Auckland Domain. Their collections focus  mainly on their natural & military history. They have a Maori cultural performance where they take you through stories like how their region was discovered & showcase their journeys. It is a beautiful piece of structure & a great place to visit with kids.

Evening:

After the museum, we headed to The Auckland Sky Tower. It is a telecommunication tower with an outstanding observation deck. The main observation deck is on Level 51. I don't think I will ever find enough and the correct words to describe the view one witnesses from there. I will let the pictures below do the talking. Lets just say that what you see is a mix of the city, little sail boats and cruise ships making their way along the sea it faces. After enjoying in the view we headed to the cafe which was on Level 53 for our fix of evening tea.

I clearly remember gazing outside those tall glass windows, soaking in the view of the city with my hot cup of tea. Just looking at the entire city from that height as the world goes about doing its own thing, was very relaxing.

I will let the pictures speak for themselves. The tower also offers adventure activities like Sky Walk & Sky Jump.

Night

We headed to Auckland Central for dinner & drinks. The place has numerous restaurants with multiple cuisines, so it is not hard to make a choice. We opted for Mexican food and were quite satisfied, both - with the food & service.

Our flight back home (after 11 days) was from Auckland itself, so once again we were back on the streets - just walking around and absorbing the feel of the city. I loved walking through parks. I was so happy to see such healthy trees and pleasant greenery around. Its just like you could stand anywhere with your camera and you will find something which is worth capturing on your lens. Anywhere you look, it is picturesque.

Here are some of the pictures of everything beautiful we saw.

This picture below - is of a park. It was pitch dark at night. We just clicked with our phone camera -flash on and were pretty excited with the outcome :)

We had reserved the last day for some retail therapy. The Pullman Auckland's concierge suggested Sylvia Shopping Centre so we headed just there. The mall has some very exciting local fashion brands and many restaurants to choose from. So if you want to do some quick shopping, this mall is a good option.

Any Wagamama fans here? Their restaurant is located within this shopping centre. 

For fun South Islands, click here.