Profile
techno69
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
The Hokitika Glowworm Dell
Great, easy to find and free!
Next door to Shining Star campsite, bonus as we were staying there!
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Reefton ▷
Marble Hill Campsite
Another brilliant DOC campsite.
Has fireboxes so you can gather wood and light a fire. Longdrop toilets were clean. Fantastic views.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Punakaiki ▷
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowholes
Great place to visit and free!
Note, wheelchair access only partway around due to steps cut into the rock.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
Shining Star Beachfront Accommodation
Beautifully maintained, very clean, direct access to beach, glowworm dell a few minutes away, farm area and playground for the kids and a spa pool...what more could you ask for?!
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Charleston ▷
Charleston Motor Camp
Seems like the owners have lost their mojo.
Unmowed grass, dirty toilet block (cobwebs, dead insects, dust), manky static caravans...shame. Could be a really nice site with a little hard work.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
Hokitika Gorge Walk
The Hokitika Gorge Walk is signposted from the town centre and is about 30mins drive.
A short walk takes you to the lookout, walk a little further to the swingbridge and the end of the track. Beautiful scenery and amazing glacier coloured water make this a must do!
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Charleston ▷
Underworld Adventures
We have nothing but praise for Geoff, his staff and our awesome guide, Mark.
Housed in an awesome new purpose built building, the Underworld Adventures team gave us a day to remember for the rest of our lives. The 15min train ride is great fun, the walk up to the cave entrance is another 20 mins and then you're in the caves exploring and learning from your expert guide for the next 1.5-2 hours. Then you reach level 3 of the caves and jump in your rafts for simply the best glowworm experience ever. Finally you are out of the cave exit and onto the river for a short but enjoyable trip down the river and some rapids. Back on the train and then back to base for a hot shower. Our guide ordered us food on the return train trip and it was ready for us after our showers which was a great touch. Our pictures are brilliant.
A note for those that have left a few negative reviews, this is the West Coast of New Zealand, sandflies are rampant here, use bloody inspect repellent and stop moaning at the staff for forces of nature they have no control over....some people aren't happy unless they are moaning!
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Punakaiki ▷
Punakaiki Cavern walk
TAKE A TORCH!!!!
When you get to the top of the steps you think "yeah great" but the cavern goes back a surprising distance. It gets muddy and wet at the back and there is a really small crawlspace so don't let the kids go unsupervised but the youngies will love it!
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
West Coast Treetop Walk and Cafe
Don't get me wrong, we enjoyed this but its over and done in an hour tops and at $80 each we thought it was overpriced.
Luckily, when we arrived it was 2 for 1 so that took the sting out of it a bit. Maybe if it was extended with a walkway down to the lake and some rowboats to mess about in, something like that, it would just make it.
We had fish & chips in the restaurant (Groper) and for a cafe meal it was excellent, no complaints there at all! Lovely friendly staff too.
Check Bookme.com for discount passes.
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South Island ▷ Kaikoura Region ▷ Kaikoura ▷
Gore Bay Camping Ground
Kiwi style camp ground, basic kitchen facilities, toilets and showers.
Showers were nice and hot both times we used them, toilets are proper flushing loo's not longdrops and everywhere was nice and clean. Great views, right next to the beach and friendly owners. Great waves so take your body boards. We'll definitely be back and will recommend. Thanks Kerry for a great, relaxing stay :-)
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South Island ▷ Wanaka Region ▷ Wanaka Township ▷
Wanaka Tasman Holiday Parks
We stayed here in September 2011 and it was fantastic, a breath of fresh air compared to our previous night at the Chalets in Cromwell (see review!).
Great staff, super clean and modern, fantastic facilities and close enough to town to walk in. Highly recommended!
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South Island ▷ Central Otago ▷ Cromwell ▷
Chalets Holiday Park
We stayed here Sept 2011 with friends when we both hired wicked campervans for 5 days, it didn't really live up to our expectations.
We wanted to eat in but were only offered bowls of chips or a seafood platter, none of us like seafood so that just left chips, not much of an evening meal! We ended up walking up to the ale house and having a meal there. Facilities in the kitchen were poor and made breakfast a bit of an ordeal. Considering the cost to stay overnight and the onsite facilities compared to other sites we have stayed at, this ranks as one of the worst.