Auckland - where all the people are....

Though I realize Matamata and the home of the famous 'Hobbiton' Shire isn't in Auckland, and is in fact several hours drive away - it was the last little travel excursion I made in my year long stay in New Zealand, and in many ways was the perfect and fitting goodbye to the country.

And even though it's not in Auckland itself - it was such a fitting and pleasant day trip out of the city that I thought it warranted being included here.

Like many other travellers to New Zealand, one of the destinations first on my list, and the one making me feel the most childlike in my travels was the need to visit the set of Hobbiton from Lord of the Rings.

Set in the hilly farm country of Matamata, the set is mostly been removed, though it was more the feel of the place and the idea of having a wander about that interested me anyway.

It was something that was planned every time we were on the North Island - and yet somehow it never seemed to work in our favour. Some times it was the weather, sometimes it was a change in travel plans. One time we couldn't get a car rental. It always seemed to be just out of reach.

The week we were finally leaving New Zealand I was determined not to miss it. We flew to Auckland a few days earlier than we had intended to allow for extra time, we had booked ourselves on the tour - and even booked the car three months ahead. We were all set.

When the day came the weather was perfect. Cool and very sunny - the first sunny weather we had ever seen in Auckland, in fact. It finally all seemed to be going our way.

The tour - before we came to New Zealand - had seemed pricey at $58 pp, but after realizing what the average price for events and tours was, it did sound a lot more reasonable. Even including the car rental to get there, petrol, and a night's stay at a local B&B.

We spent most of the afternoon making our way down from Auckland at a leisurely pace - hoping to arrive in time for the last tour and our last touring experience in New Zealand.

We arrived in the little town of Matamata just as the sun was beginning to lower, and the last tour was about to go out. We wandered around the little town with its odd and seemingly misplaced touristy signs about Hobbits. And suddenly - the whole thing seemed to have the wrong idea.

Just about that time the bus pulled up, driven by a bedraggled looking driver in a somewhat ratty bus, and dozens and dozens of camera wielding tourists piled out. And even though I had known to expect this, I instantly felt my heart sink.

I didn't want yet another New Zealand touristy, half-done trip. I wanted the magic of the Shire, the grandeur of Lord of the Rings...some hint of the wonder of it all and some feel of the soul of the story so many hold dear.

We made our decision instantly to head back to Auckland that night and forget about the tour entirely. It may be great for some; it might even be a fantastic tour. But for us - it wasn't what we were after.
Instead, we drove back to Auckland the back way, and went through the back hills of Shire country right at dusk. We stopped the car along the side of the road and watched the sun set on the surrounding hills, where Hobbits may well have been hiding around any corner. It was there we found a touch of the magic, and a little of the story did exist. All we were missing on that hillside was Gandalf's pipe.

More than just the most picturesque and well known image in Auckland – the SkyTower and adjoining 'SkyCity' offer a lot for those visiting the city.

Apart from the accommodation and shopping of the CDB, SkyCity offers a good selection of options for the visitor, all in one place.

The Sky Tower itself is impressive, and does leave the impression of having 'arrived' in the city the moment you catch sight of it, much as does the Eiffel Tower in Paris or the Space needle in Seattle.

The feeling of having landed somewhere new and seeing the symbol it's so well known for is always a pleasant and exillerating moment in any journey.

But this Sky Tower has more to offer than just nostalgic moments in travel or great photo opportunities.
The Sky Tower itself is a hot spot for those who have come to New Zealand craving a bit of it's renowned love of Xtreme sports. You can actually jump from the Sky Tower in a slow moving, wire maneuvered descent to the bottom. Bungee jumping from the top is also an option, and something you will almost certainly experience when you pass by on your way to it. The distant sound of excited screams can almost always be heard around the base of the Sky Tower.

Do be aware though that these activities are very expensive. Worth doing if you have travelled around the globe to do so, but you will pay well for it. The slow descent jump is also, in my opinion, a great way to break yourself in if you're not quite ready yet for the full on bungee or sky dive experience. Not to mention it's a little bit different.

But if you're not interested in actually jumping off of it – feel free to catch in amazing views of the city and go up it.

Inside the Sky Tower is SkyCity. It offers many options for the Auckland visitor in anything from an I-site downstairs (tourist information Info) to a fine dining area near the top with amazing views and wonderful food.
As well as everything in between.

There are a number of cafes and restaurants throughout the tower. There are also a number of bars, clubs, and casinos for the visitors to take part in.

All of this is somewhat costly – and you will need a pass to go up the Sky Tower at all.

Whatever you decide you want to make of your stay in Auckland – it is worth a visit to the Sky Tower, if for no other reason than to use it as a starting point, get a good look at the city and decide where and how you want to proceed from there.

Though I do realize it seems a bit odd to review something so common and well known as a McDonald's – I do also think it's worth pointing out to the traveller when you come across a chain restaurant (in particular one as patronized as McDonald's) that is either very very good, or very bad.

Generally when I do a review of a chain it's because I've come across something a traveler should carefully avoid. For example, fast food in general in Europe and especially in the UK.

But it's quite a pleasure in this circumstance to be able to recommend something commendable about the McDonald's chain in Auckland.

I can not, obviously speak for every branch of this restaurant in Auckland – though I can say that across the board the fast food in New Zealand as a whole was pretty good. I still think the US wins the competition for best all-around fast food (in price, option and quality) though in particular after spending so much time in the UK I found the fast food in New Zealand to be pretty impressive.

It is, however, much more expensive than it would be in the states, and to some extent even in Britain. (the average Whopper will cost you almost $10) But at least some of the quality is there, and the service in general was much improved upon it's European cousins.

But the reason I wanted to write this review in particular has to do with the chain on Queen Street in Auckland. Amidst the busy shopping district in the CDB (Central Banking District) just a few minutes walk from the Skytower – you find this particular McDonald's.

It's crowded in amongst many other fast food chains, but stands out for two small reasons.
The food is pretty much on par in cost and quality with the rest of the Auckland fast food (I did notice a distinct decline in the quality of fast food chains in Auckland as opposed to ever other place we went in New Zealand) but it had two stand out differences which make it worth reviewing.

One is the location. Situated beautiful and openly in the midst of what looks like an old renovated train station. With high, corniced ceilings and intricate railing on the stairs leading up to further seating – this is a pretty stunning McDonald's. It does also have a little McCafe section, which is fairly average but does offer an extended selection and means you don't have to wait in the standard line.

However, this is not really a problem and brings me to the second impressive aspect.
The service. In no McDonald's anywhere in the world have I gotten such extremely efficient, quick, and pleasant service.

We showed up in Auckland around Christmas time at lunch – expecting to wait for ages to be served and to actually get our food given how crowded it was. However, this McDonald's had implemented a 'free if it takes longer than 60 seconds' policy.
I fully expected to get my meal for free.

And yet – time and time again, we watched the orders be taken, the food prepped and given out with in the time. No matter how large the order.
It was amazing. Not only that – but there was a great buzz of excitement and teamwork in the staff, rather than being extremely harried by this new time restraint. I can only hope they are directly rewarded for their contribution to this service.

So if you are in a hurry – this is definitely the place to go, and I can only say Well Done to McDonald's for pulling this off so well.

For a country that in general has exceptional coffee at even the smallest cafe, this chain cafe seems to have a rather ordinary coffee on offer.

Though I wouldn't say that this cafe was bad - I would say it was pretty average.
The decor was nice, and though it did have the traditional relaxing look of a coffee shop, there is something of bustle and hurry about it that doesn't leave you feeling quite as chilled as you might like.

It is right on Queen's St in the CDB of Auckland - and though it's location is a convenience, it also means that its often crowded and busy and noisy. I didn't find it to be an especially pleasant place to sit (while I was waiting for a bus, as it happens)
Though that might have been ok had the coffee been very good.

It was, unfortunately average at best - and though not bad - there are so many places that do wonderful coffee in the area, I wouldn' recommend Gloria Jeans as a top pick.

On our second visit to the City of Sails - after having a very bad hostelling experience when we first arrived in the country - we decided to look around a bit before making any accommodation decisions.

We were returning from Fiji - hot, tired and very travel weary, and after having no real phone or internet access for several weeks on the islands, landed in New Zealand with nowhere to stay. Something that often proved difficult in New Zealand.

We put our bags on a trolley and headed to the free internet offered by the airport (Auckland airport is great for that - head either downstairs near the Tourist Information, or upstairs just before you get to Duty free, and there are Sony stations set up that have laptops with free internet) to look for a place to stay.

All the hostels we found were on Fort Street, and we'd not had a great experience there, and had heard even worse stories than ours of other hostels.
So we decided to check hotels instead.

In New Zealand - this is often completely unfeasible if you are on a hostel budget. Even the lowest rent motels are usually over $100 per night, and only go up from there.

However, we discovered a bit of a gem on this trip - and I highly recommend it to anyone arriving in the city on a budget, or just simply wanting a place to sleep.
Right around the corner from Fort Street (on the same bus route from the airport) is Wyndham St, and on it is the Formule 1. These cheap option hotels are often seen around Europe - and this one was exceptional value for price.
We ended up staying there more than once, and both times our experience was a good one. It is basic - the rooms are quite small, but you have a good bed, linen, TV, private bathroom, and even a little kitchenette.
Every time we had no problem getting a room, the service was efficient and pleasant, and very very easy.
And - if you request the highest room possible - you get wonderful views of the city.
This is basically just a 'sleeping' hotel - offering good, central, secluded stop to escape from the city after a long day of travel.
It also offers laundry, and best of all lockers for your luggage.
For $3-4 you can rent a locker for up to 4 hours to store your luggage while you sight see or await a bus. This is invaluable in the city, and one locker managed to get all of our bags (two rucksacks, two day packs, a laptop and a handbag) So very, very good value.

And though this is a bit more expensive than the hostels a few streets over - only just. And if you are travelling with two people, it almost comes out the same, as Formule 1 charges per room, rather than per person.

Excellent for the businessman stopping over for the night - or the budget traveller tired of hostels. Very highly recommended.

Oddly enough - if you are travelling on a budget - it can be quite difficult to find a mid range place to eat in Auckland.

On our last night in the city - before flying on to the US - we decided we wanted to have a little more of an experience than fast food or takeaway, and yet not spend the entire rest of our New Zealand dollars doing so.
This proved to be quite tricky as we wandered all over the city looking for an option. Evening meals in New Zealand do tend to be quite pricey, so finding a nice place to go with in our budget wasn't easy.

We ended up wandering up Federal Street towards the Sky Tower at sunset. To the sound of people bungee jumping above us - we wandered into Sky city for a look around, and decided to check out the restaurants on offer here.

There are some very good options if you have a bit more to spend (I would recommend trying one of the higher observation restaurants if you can afford to do so - though book in advance if possible) but we were about to leave and look some more when we noticed Rebo.

It's a little cafe right at the entrance of Skycity. At first it appears to just be almost a bit of a cafeteria, and though the menu sounded good, by this time we were very hungry and not sure if the affordable options would be enough for us.

After a few moments of swithering we decided we liked the sound of the menu and decided to gamble on it - and it turned out to be an excellent decision.

Though it's not flashy by any means, it’s pretty nice inside. The service was good and friendly and we were seated immediately. There are some nice seats by the windows looking out onto Federal Street - but all the seating was decent.

I highly recommend one of their wood fired pizzas - a very good value and can easily be shared between two people (they aren't tiny single person pizzas) and they were delicious.
They also have a good selection of coffees, teas, wine and local beer. (Take this opportunity to have a Lion Red if you haven't tried one yet - it is Auckland's beer...)

You are still basically in the lounge of Skycity, so it's not romantic or overly cosy - but it is nice, very good value, good food and good service. We were both very pleased with our experience.

Though this is actually a sports bar - I'm reviewing it for a great place to have breakfast.
Which might be a surprise when all of Auckland is at the doorstep - but this is a surprisingly good little spot to stop and have a nice, cheap (a thing to value highly in New Zealand) good little breakfast.

This is an especially good option for those staying in hostels on Fort Street, or in hotels in the area. There are a lot of little cafes in the area which sell muffins, etc - but for a good breakfast you are likely to pay a lot for anything more.

However - in the morning the lively sports bar is very quiet. It's a very clean, basically quiet and well run joint. The local workers in the area (and a few hard core gamblers) come in for breakfast and lunch - and you feel as if you're enjoying a bit of calm in an otherwise noisy area.

It's well put together - and there is a fair amount of seating. It's very clean and though there are many TVs showing sporting events - it's not loud, and they tend to play good music as well.

They offer very good breakfast deals - of anything from a couple eggs and toast for a few dollars to a full English breakfast. And the food is excellent.
This was somewhere - once discovered - we visited many times during our stays in Auckland. A great place to wait for a bus to the airport as well as they have not only a good selection of drinks, but make an excellent coffee.

There are cafes nearby - but they tend to be much more crowded - a distinct downfall if you are carrying all of your bags with you.

I highly recommend it if you want a nice, quiet breakfast - or just a place to stop in out of the rain and plan out the next bit of your trip.

I really don't know who it is that does the reviews of 'Best Hostels' - but they seem to be spectacularly far off the mark every single time. I have now stayed at two hostels - one rated 'Best Hostel in Oceania' in Perth, Australia, and Nomads Fat Camel in Auckland which was rated the 'New Zealand's Best Backpackers 2007.'

This is categorically rubbish. On both accounts, but specifically with this review.

I want to start by clarifying two things.

1.) This is not a reflection on all Nomads hostels, as I have also been to one in Fiji that was superb.

2.) If you are looking for a frat-house type, super cheap hostel where you can live just as you did as a student where you came from - with other students - then this will probably be a nice hostel option for you.
This was not only the worst hostel I stayed at anywhere in New Zealand - and I did stay in dozens in the year I was there - but probably the worst hostel I've stayed at anywhere, and the only time I've ever left early despite getting no refund.

For those travellers who would look for a hostel with some level of interest, other travellers (beyond gap year students) I would strongly suggest you go elsewhere. This is like a bad frat house, and there are a number of better options in the city whose rates are not much higher.

But for those who aren't too picky about where they stay and just want a cheap bed, I will simply lay out the problems I had with the place.
First of all - the atmosphere is terrible. I stayed in a private double room (approx $35 NZ pp pn, so $70 per night for myself and my friend - with a shared bathroom) which was like a prison cell.

There were no windows, the whole little room was made with concrete block with one little lamp that worked sporadically. There was basically a partition wall that separated us from the next room where we could literally hear every-single word that was said, as well as a lot of other things I wish I hadn't had to listen to.

The bed was terrible - even for a cheap room - and I was extremely hesitant to touch any of the sheets or covers, and I'm not someone who is easily bothered by such things. It was one of the most unpleasant and depressing rooms I have ever stayed in.

The service here is terrible. In general in New Zealand I was very impressed with the level of service and the pleasant staff that often conducted it. But they were bored at best all three of the days I stayed at Nomads (as well as the few times I had to deal with them afterwards for problems that arose) and incredibly uninformed and unhelpful.

The place is right next to a bar - which does rank quite highly with students and backpackers that travel here - but do keep this in mind if you're not looking for that kind of place. It's noisy and often filled with people coming back from the bar.
If that is a bonus to you, though - it did seem to be quite a lively bar, and Fort Street is also filled with several other selections of bars. The nightlife in the area would be a bonus if that is a big asset to your trip.

For me the most important issue was how misleading the advertisement for the place was. We were told we'd receive a free meal every night with our stay, and a free beer on arrival. When we did get there, they had no idea about the beer, and the 'free meal' is actually a small sampler cup of whatever little pre-fab meal they are cooking that night. You can purchase the entire meal for about $7. (Which I wouldn't recommend - there are plenty of places to eat nearby.) Even though I am someone who relishes any free treat - I only bothered to take the free meal the first night.

And I want to add a huge warning about the 'Fat Camel Mail Service’ that they offer. One of the reasons we chose this as our first stop in Auckland - was that they offered a 6 month mail service which I think cost about £17.
This was a big bonus for us as we didn't have a New Zealand address yet - and weren't sure when we would get one.

When we arrived, we discovered that the 'Mail service' was actually a big open wooden box that everyone's mail is dumped in together. You can rifle through and try to find yours.
This was less than ideal - given the amount paid, but the worst bit of this was when I wrote later from the south island to have my mail forwarded (something that it said that they did) and the person at the desk didn't seem to understand, and then said he would have a look for the mail which never arrived.
Four months later when I turned back up in Auckland to retrieve it, the girl at the counter told me that if it was a few months old they probably threw it away.

I later resolved this with a manager - but it took about 7 months for me to get my mail - and when I did it was obvious that the bulk of it had indeed been tossed out.

I was also double charged for our stay. I paid online when I booked the hostel - showed them the proof of this when I arrived, gave them credit card details - and they even ended up making two copies of my receipt of payment because they lost it - only to find two weeks later that they had again charged by card.

This, too, took several weeks to resolve.

The area is good in that it's easy to get to by the expensive airport shuttle bus, and it's very close to things. Just a few minutes away is an excellent shopping district, restaurants, etc - and you aren't far away from a lot of other sites.
The downside of the area is that Fort Street itself (though close to a good location) is a bit rough.
And though Fat Camel itself wasn't too bad for safety issues (I heard a lot of complaints from other travellers about the dorms there feeling unsafe - but nothing about any actual problems) there were a lot of thefts and problems at the next hostel up the road (Base Backpackers) I spoke to several people whose money was stolen while they stayed in the dorm there.

So do keep this aspect of the area in mind when you are considering where to stay. (Check out my review on Formule 1 for an excellent other option nearby)

And they do not offer refunds of any kind. We left early because we were so unhappy with the place, and there was no refund at all for the days we didn't stay.

Also - the most obnoxious and loud cleaning service I have EVER encountered works here. Considering a lot of their guests have just arrived from the other side of the world and are deeply jet lagged - when the loud cleaning service came through in the morning they were shouting and swearing at each other while cleaning, and one of them grabbed a hold of our door knocker and rattled it shouting for a good ten minutes before we had to get out of bed to tell them we were staying another night and didn't want the room cleaned.

The shower did work, and the bathroom was basically clean. It wasn't nice, but I can't really complain about it. A very basic shared bathroom.

They do have internet access - though I found it incredibly difficult to find time to get on. There were computers down stairs as well as up - but they were always filled with students on Facebook, who would sit for hours with out getting up. Even in the middle of the night it was often hard to find an open computer - and the cost of the internet was quite steep. (As it is everywhere in New Zealand)

The one TV in the lounge was also unwatchable. Other than the fact that there were always dozing backpackers in front of it - it was bright orange - and the screen was barely visible.

The best hostels I have ever been to have been in New Zealand - but I certainly can not recommend this as one of them. There are some better options in the area - and unless you are looking for a cheap, student- party atmosphere (for which it is fine) then I would suggest highly that you look around a bit before booking here.