3 Days in New Zealand's North Island | Wellington, Hobbiton, + Auckland!
We visited the North Island at the end of our New Zealand trip. We went to the South Island first, and decided to end our trip in Auckland and fly back to NYC from there. We were so excited to visit the North Island because we had already fallen in love with the country while we were in the South Island. Visiting Hobbiton was also on both of our bucket lists, so we were really looking forward to going there. The North Island is almost equally as beautiful as the South Island, and there is so much to see. We were only spent about 3 days in the North Island, but we would definitely recommend staying longer if you can and want to take your time exploring.
How to get around new zealand’s north island
The best to get around New Zealand is by renting a car. Please keep in mind that they drive on the left side of the road there! This was our first time driving on the left side and it was much easier than we expected. We rented our car through Expedia from the Wellington airport, and dropped it off at the Auckland airport at the end of our trip. You will want to rent a car because a lot of things in the North Island are off the beaten path, and you can only access them by car. It’s also fairly easy to drive on the North Island, just be careful in the cities (like Wellington and Auckland). We loved the freedom of having a car and think it’s definitely necessary when visiting New Zealand!
FIND A CAR TO RENT FOR YOUR TRIP TO THE SOUTH ISLAND HERE ON EXPEDIA!
Where to Stay on the North Island
We staying in both major cities on the North Island during our trip. We flew into Wellington from Queenstown, picked up our rental car and spent the day there, and then drove up to Auckland (with stops along the way of course!). We loved that we stayed in both Wellington and Auckland because both cities are totally different vibes. Wellington is more grungy and hipster, while Auckland a bit more posh and modern.
Where to stay in wellington
In Wellington we stayed at The Intrepid Hotel. We booked it on Hotels.com and it was one of the most unique hotels we’ve ever stayed in! The vibe was modern, hip, and eclectic, and it was in a perfect location aka in walking distance to everything we wanted to see! We were sad we were only there for one night because we loved our stay at The Intrepid Hotel so much. The only negative was there was no lot to park our rental car overnight. We ended up parking it in a nearby public lot.
In Auckland we stayed at voco Auckland City Centre. We also booked it on Hotels.com and we really liked it there. The voco was in a great location where we could walk almost anywhere we wanted to do, and it was close to a lot of great restaurants and bars. They also had a parking garage next door to the hotel that guests could use to park if you needed to, which was clutch! Parking in Auckland was difficult so we basically left the car in the garage the whole time and just walked everywhere we wanted to go. The voco was perfect for us during our time in Auckland.
Find other North Island accommodations here on Hotels.com!
Best Things to do on New Zealand’s North Island
Wellington
Wellington Waterfront
Cuba Street
Wellington is New Zealand’s capital and it was our first stop on the North Island! We only spent one day here, but we tried to see as much as we could during our time there. Wellington is right on the water so it’s usually very windy there. As we said above, Wellington has a grungy and hipster vibe which we really liked. It reminded us of Brooklyn (where we are based) aka a little taste of home.
Cuba Street - one of the most popular streets in the city! Here you will find lots of shopping as well as restaurants, cafes & bars. The street is also really colorful we which loved. Here you will also find the rainbow street called Wellington’s Rainbow Crossing that is dedicated to the LGBTQ+ community.
Wellington Waterfront - Along the beautiful waterfront of Wellington, you will find the waterfront walk, as well as picturesque wharfs. Make sure you check out Queens Wharf & Te Papa, and take a picture in the iconic Wellington sign!
Grab a drink at a local Brewery - Wellington is known for it’s craft beer, so make sure you grab a pint at a local brewery. There a bunch all over the city, but we went to Fortune Favours Brewery and loved it!
Hobbiton + Matamata
The one thing you absolutely cannot miss when visiting the North Island is Hobbiton! If you are a Lord of the Rings fan, then you probably have been dreaming about this most of your life haha. The Hobbiton movie set is located in Matamata on the North Island, and it’s the set they used for The Lord of the Rings movies. They do multiple tours per day of Hobbiton, and I believe tickets are around $120 per person if you get there yourself.
Since we were coming from Wellington, which was about a 6 hour drive, we booked directly on the Hobbiton Movie Tour website. However, most people come form Auckland because it’s less than 2 hours from the city. If you book coming from Auckland, they have tours that will pick you up and drop you back off in Auckland. During the tour you will see all the filming locations, learn about how they built the set, and grab a drink at the Green Dragon at the end! The Hobbiton tour was so cool, we both loved it so much! It’s in our top 5 things we have ever done. It’s expensive, but definitely worth it.
Auckland
Takarunga/Mt. Victoria
Karangahape Road
Auckland Sky Tower
Queen’s Wharf
Auckland is the biggest city in New Zealand, and you can definitely feel that city vibe when you arrive. We spent a few days in Auckland before heading back home, and we really enjoyed our time there! You definitely don’t need more than a few days to see the whole city, but it’s definitely worth a stop on tour trip.
Queen Street - the main shopping street in Auckland! Here you’ll find lots of different stores, restaurants & cafes.
Karangahape Road/K Road - The rainbow street in Auckland! Known as the queer area, here you will find thrift stores, cafes, & more. The rainbow crosswalk is right in front of St Kevins Arcade.
Queen’s Wharf - A beautiful waterfront area in Auckland. There’s lot of shops & restaurants nearby, and here you will also find the ferry to other islands & areas of Auckland.
Devonport - a town across from Auckland, you get there via the ferry. The ferry only cost $4 for a one way and the ride is only 12 minutes. Devonport is a cute town with some shops & restaurants, but our favorite spot was the hike/walk up the volcano Takarunga/Mt. Victoria. The top of Mt. Victoria has amazing views of the city of Auckland, and it’s a great area to come and see if you have time.
Auckland Sky Tower - a famous needle like building in the city center!
Find other tours & activities to book in Auckland here on Expedia!
Where to Eat + Drink on the North Island
Wellington
Fortune Favours Beer
Pho Viet Street Food
Fortune Favours Beer
Lunch Money
Swimsuit Coffee Dixon Street
Auckland
East Restaurant
Remedy Coffee
East Restaurant
Remedy Coffee
Hell Pizza
Lord of the Fries
The best way to see everything we did on the North Island of New Zealand is to check out our North Island YouTube vlog! We show you everything we did, and anything we forgot to put in this blog post is in the video haha. Also you can see the beauty of the North Island (and the Hobbiton tour) first hand! Make sure you watch it below:
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