Sun 22nd – Tue 24th Feb
Accommodation: Sebel Auckland Viaduct Harbour
Sun 22nd Feb
It was a big day of travel for us today. It started with an early morning departure from Te Anau for the two hour drive to Queenstown Airport to return the cars and then our flight to Auckland. We made it to our hotel in Auckland just after 4 pm but didn’t dwell long in our rooms and headed out to stroll around Viaduct Harbour. It was much quieter on a Sunday afternoon compared to when we were here a couple of weeks ago on a Saturday evening. Our dinner was at a nearby Italian restaurant which was great. Baduzzi had great food and vibrant atmosphere as the place was packed by the time we were eating our mains. This is a restaurant I would highly recommend if you’re ever in the Viaduct Harbour area. They even had their red wine stored in a wine fridge at 17 degrees which made a most pleasant change.
We were all rather tired after a long day of travel but managed to fit in an ice cream stop before returning to the hotel for one last drink on our balcony and then parting ways for bed.
Mon 21st Feb
It was a cloudy morning but warmer than what we’d had for some time at 16o C so we went for a walk back around the harbour front noting the absence of cruise ships this time.
We had lunch with a distant relative on my father’s side of the family, Judith, which was quite interesting as we all sat there trying to peace together bits and pieces of our family tree. This is a work in progress.
Mark and I spent the afternoon on a 2 hour walking tour of Auckland which was excellent. Our guide was a young local guy, Darcy, and he worked as part of a group of six guides hosting walking tours of Auckland. Most of our group were young as well, being travelers from different parts of the world, and it was great to explore parts of the city that you wouldn’t normally venture to on your own. We discovered some great places that we would like to explore further if we were ever to come back to the city.
The tour finished just after 4 pm and Mark needed somewhere to sit down so thankfully there was a pub right by where we finished the tour. We then caught up with Colleen and David at a nearby rooftop bar, Queen Room, and finished the night with dinner at Hello Beasty which was excellent. Mark and I had stumbled on this place last year and thought it was great and it didn’t disappoint at all tonight either. The food was excellent and this is a must-dine place if you’re ever in Auckland but you need to book a week or so in advance.
We had enjoyed our short stay in Auckland and could have possibly had another night or so. The Sebel Viaduct Harbour was in a great location for exploring and was convenient in that it had a washing machine and kitchen so is comfortable for a stay of a few days. Our room, for this second stay was bright, spacious and had a great view so I’d request again (Room 415). We would definitely love to come back to Auckland one day soon.
