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We will be flying from Honolulu Hawaii to Auckland, arriving at 6:45 a.m. on February 6. We are thinking about doing a morning tour of Auckland before getting a rental car and heading up to Kerikeri. Is this going to be too much to do after our long flight (both of us are able to sleep on an airplane)? Or, should we just plan to spend the day and first night in Auckland? If so, where should we look for a reasonably priced hotel?
If we stay at a hotel in Central Auckland, where should we pick up our rental car?
We will be flying from Honolulu Hawaii to Auckland, arriving at 6:45 a.m. on February 6. We are thinking about doing a morning tour of Auckland before getting a rental car and heading up to Kerikeri. Is this going to be too much to do after our long flight (both of us are able to sleep on an airplane)? Or, should we just plan to spend the day and first night in Auckland? If so, where should we look for a reasonably priced hotel?
If we stay at a hotel in Central Auckland, where should we pick up our rental car?
Thanks!
How long will you be in NZ?
It is 3 hours one way to Kerikeri from Auckland. I think it would be too much on one's first day, especially since Kiwis drive on a different side of the road to Americans.
I think you would be able to pick up a rental car at the airport.
I concur, it's probably better to catch up on your sleep and head off the next morning.
You can collect cars from the airport but there are also car rental places in Auckland CBD and they're probably cheaper too. Catch a taxi from the airport to your hotel and get a car the next morning. Ask the hire company to throw in some maps, or pick up some tourist maps and information brochures from the airport and/or hotel.
Look on wotif.com or one of the late room booking sites for a hotel but check the hotel's website before you book as sometimes there's not much difference in price. If you get spoiled for choice just look for the Holiday Inn site and see what deals they're doing.
Thanks for the input. We've rethought our first day and decided to take a guided tour around Auckland to experience driving on the left side of the road and then spend the night in Auckland.
Good information about where to rent the car!
I'm a planner, so I like to have my route chosen and my hotel rooms rented in advance. Especially since we'll be coming during peak season for tourists.
Thanks for the input. We've rethought our first day and decided to take a guided tour around Auckland to experience driving on the left side of the road and then spend the night in Auckland.
Good information about where to rent the car!
I'm a planner, so I like to have my route chosen and my hotel rooms rented in advance. Especially since we'll be coming during peak season for tourists.
I would vote for driving straight to Northland; you're presumably on an overnight flight, and it's only like 8 hours. Landing at 6:45 AM, you have several hours to kill before you can check into a hotel. Like most foreign countries, you could store your bags at the airport (at a cost), though if you are staying in a hotel that night, they would probably accept your bags early.
Rental cars near the airport are inexpensive if you go with a Kiwi company (Go, Jucy, Apex, etc). You get a crappier car than from an American company (and might need to make a slightly longer shuttle ride), but it is much, much cheaper.
Anyway, if you're staying overnight in Auckland, I'd recommend getting a car at the airport and staying in the CBD. Not having to pay for a shuttle will more than cover your parking cost for the night. There is nothing, repeat nothing to do at night near the airport.
RE Auckland hotels: Wotif is a reasonable place to look, but I have found travelocity and hotels.com to be better at this exact moment--Both are currently providing coupon codes that are making Auckland a rather affordable city.
I didn't know there were American car companies in New Zealand?
When we first arrived we came off a long haul from Heathrow via Malaysia. DH's work colleague picked us up from the airport and took us to the hotel. We had every intention of getting out and seeing the sites but tiredness gott the better of us and we didn't emerge from our beds until early evening. Next day we hired a car and drove for miles. This was in mid July and it was bucketing down, which was challenging driving at best. Not the best intro to a country
OP it's up to you of course but I wouldn't recommend anyone drive any distance with raw jetlag, especially if they're not used to driving on the left. Getting out of Auckland is bad enough, yourself some time and take off on your adventures the next day .
Sam,J: You are mixing yourself up with the OP. You arrived in Auckland after a 20+ hour flight (and a 12 hour time change). The OP only has an 8 hour flight and (depending on the time of year) a hour time difference. Also, I have a strong feeling the OP won't be visiting in July (not to say it won't be raining in Auckland in summer...)
RE American car rentals: Thrifty, Avis, Hertz, and Budget are all at the airport. You can call them multinationals, if you prefer...
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