LONELY PLANET'S OFFICIAL ITINERARY INFORMATION
Itinerary: Due North
1 MONTH/AUCKLAND TO WELLINGTON
(1-2 weeks minimum travel time)
Hot springs, mud baths, variegated volcanic lakes, untramped native forests and tracts of sand with nary a footprint in sight will be encountered as you range northwards on this diverse trail. The itinerary can be done in a week, but a month of travel will be just as busy and far more fulfilling.
A full exploration of the North Island's volcanic, river-swept landscape doesn't always occur to visitors, who leapfrog large swathes of terrain between prominent features like the Bay of Islands and Rotorua. But a circumnavigation of this ragged island's secluded beaches and secret forests won't disappoint.
Depart Auckland for a snorkel off Goat Island Beach . Continue on to the iconic Bay of Islands to peruse the historic confines of Russell and to see where a landmark treaty was signed at Wai-tangi. After sprawling on the gorgeous sands of Matai Bay, swing north to the desolate dunes of Ninety Mile Beach. Snake back through Auckland and head east to roam the splendidly forested Coromandel Peninsula, then follow SH26 to the equine paradise of Cambridge before heading to 'Sulphur City', Rotorua.
Take SH30 to the karst (limestone) glory of Waitomo Caves, then SH3 to the dormant cone of Mt Taranaki/Egmont. Further south, detour up the scenic Whanganui River Rd before trundling north via the still-smoking volcanoes of Tongariro National Park to sparkling Lake Taupo. The SH5 visits Napier and its roaring '30s wardrobe, while SH2 terminates in the windy cosmopolitanism of Wellington.
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