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New Zealand - Bungee Jumping, Hobbit Houses & Breathtaking Beauty That Keeps This Family Coming Back

Kelsey Graves | Trip Tales Podcast

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Heather joins Trip Tales from Westchester, New York, to share her family’s love for New Zealand - a place they’ve visited several times and love so much that they now have residency, with dreams of someday making it home.

Most recently, Heather traveled to New Zealand in March 2026 with her husband and their two kids for an adventure-packed family trip through both the South and North Islands. We talk about breathtaking Queenstown and Wanaka, bungee jumping and canyon swings, Mount Cook, geothermal adventures, Hobbiton and those iconic Hobbit houses, beautiful beaches, playgrounds, hikes and so much more.

This episode is available to watch on YouTube: @kelseygraves

If you’d like to share about your trip on the podcast, email me at: kelsey@triptalespodcast.com

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Mentioned in this episode:

New Zealand Residency
Sky Couch on Air New Zealand
North Island vs South Island
Auckland Airport - VIP Assistance through airport
Queenstown: Waterfront & Shopping District, Patagonia Chocolates & Ice Cream, TSS Earnslaw boat to Walter Peak Farm Tour (sheep, highland cows, etc), Shotover Jet, AJ Hackett Company (Kawarau Bridge Bungy: the original bungee jump), Kawarau Bungy Swing, Bathhouse Playground, Skyline Gondola and Luge, Fergburger, Cookie Time, Remarkables Park - Joe’s Garage restaurant
Wanaka: Dinosaur Playground, Wild Wire Wanaka Via Feratta, the cinema, Rippon Winery, Roy’s Peak hike, Scroggin for coffee or brunch, Big Fig for lunch, Lake Bar, Black Peak gelato,
Omarama Clay Cliffs
Open Hotel Alert: https://openhotelalert.com/
Mount Cook: Mount Cook Lodge, Hermitage Hotel (brunch buffet), hiking (Hooker Valley Track), stargazing
Lake Tekapo: Mount John Homestead, playground, feed the animals, farm tour
Sumner Beach: Beach town outside of Christchurch, Cave Rock, Fire & Slice pizza restaurant
Rotorua: Hell’s Gate, Geo-thermal area, mineral pools, hot springs, Redwood Forest Tree Walk
Hobbiton: Hobbiton Movie Set Tour, Green Dragon Pub
The Coromandel Peninsula: Hahei, Cathedral Cove, Hot Water Beach, Walnut Cottage Airbnb
Matakana: Farmer’s Market, Action Ninja World
Milford Sound

Trip Tales is a travel podcast sharing real vacation stories and trip itineraries for family travel, couples getaways, cruises, and all-inclusive resorts. Popular episodes feature destinations like Marco Island Florida, Costa Rica with kids, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Aulani in Hawaii, Beaches Turks & Caicos, Park City ski trips, Aruba, Italy, Ireland, Portugal’s Azores, New York City, Alaska cruises, and U.S. National Parks. Listeners get real travel tips, itinerary recommendations, hotel reviews, restaurant recommendations, and inspiration for planning their next vacation, especially when traveling with kids.

16 Comments

@krysaliyah 2 weeks ago

I agree with another commenter re Rotorua. As well as the world-class mountain bike trails in the Redwoods Forest, white-water rafting featuring a massive 7-metre waterfall, zip lining through ancient tree canopies, geothermal wonders - spouting geysers, boiling mud pools, natural mineral hot springs, volcanic craters, and yes the sulphur smell, Rotorua is more famously known as the heartland of indigenous culture and where one can learn more about the Māori, its carvings, haka, and listen to ancient legends, as well as enjoy a traditional hāngī feast cooked in the earth using natural thermal steam. There is so much more to experience in Rotorua. Check it out.

Having said that, I think your interview with Heather is the best I have heard of any interview I have listened to online about my country and the areas you guys covered. Next time, you may cover a few days of places north of Auckland, where our recorded history began - for better or for worse. 🤗

Just discovered your channel today, You ask all the questions everyone, I’m sure, would want answers to. Love it. I’ve subscribed. A native Kiwi/New Zealander.

@lizairns5931 11 hours ago

Kawarau River. Lake Wakatipu is Z- shaped with high hills on all sides. Of interest the Earnslaw was delivered to Kingsion at the southern end of the lake and built there. Since then the railway to the lake closed and the line lifted Bscause Queenstown has become one of NZs most tourist attractions tne railway if it was still there would be quite busy.

@marieroberts1221 2 weeks ago (edited)

There is a lot you missed seeing in Rotorua There are areas of bush with beautiful waterfalls ,a couple of gorqeous lakes very pretty with bush around them there are Geysers etc and a maori cultural area, where you can enjoy performances of maori music, Haka etc you can even join in with the Haka and its very educational and a lot of fun Also I agree with the person who mentioned visiting puzzling world which your kids would have really enjoyed also a maze etc Christchurch has the most exciting interactive Library which is a lot of fun for the kids and adults alike and also in the city centre there is a large play park and you would have all enjoyed that too

@krysaliyah 2 weeks ago

Cathedral Cove gained global fame after being featured in the movie The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian❤

@mattieclan8957 2 weeks ago

Do you know of Puzzling World in Wanaka?
I see your kids love playgrounds. Margaret Mahy playground and the unique Christchurch library would have been so fun for them.

@mindtpi 2 weeks ago (edited)

There are lots of Kmart stores in New Zealand and Australia - it's a different company to the US one (although it was originally a joint venture with the US company but they split in the 70s). Also Sir Edmund Hillary was born in Auckland not Mt Cook - it was where he climbed a lot though

@Frank-rx8ch 5 days ago

Buying a piece of land 👍. Don't forget some little lambs a chooks to keep the children occupied.

@danielhicks7141 2 weeks ago

Walter Peak station isn't on an Island, but there is no road access. A lot of places around the lake don't have road access because of the topography.

@nzfreeski 2 weeks ago

Central otago - Wanaka, Queenstown, Manipuri - all gods zone

@KarloHiriwa-oz9id 2 weeks ago

Kia ora I love your style of interview you go into interesting detail and dont rush it im from Auckland and am getting itchy feet as I have not been to the south island shame on me thanks to you im keen as

@cnm757 3 weeks ago

3 hours is a long enough time in a car on twisty NZ roads.

@deanparkin1176 3 weeks ago

Hi ladies you don't have to go through security at the airport in nz unless you're going international I believe 🇳🇿😉👍

@barryscott6222 2 weeks ago

Tekapo = Tech-A-Poh

@T_Vk1327 2 weeks ago

The 'r' in Kowaru is prounced 'dd' like in teddy. basically r = dd.

@krysaliyah 2 weeks ago

As a New Zealander, I think they charge too much for Hobbiton. Just saying. 🤔

@Duneenzo 2 weeks ago

Walter Peak Station is not on an island. Seriously. It's just on the other side of the lake ffs. And it was a New Zealander who invented the world's best jet boat engine, the Hamilton Jet. I don't think this woman is going to get on very well in NZ. Seems like she wanted to be in NZ but would have preferred to teleport because actually travelling is too tiresome for her preciousness. NZ is not an easy place to live in. You have to be prepared for hardship; bad weather, loss of telecoms, closed roads, being housebound due to road conditions. Her style of speech is going to piss off NZers in 5 minutes flat- she has that nasally high rising terminal at the end of each sentence, which makes every statement sound like a question. That's going to have to go. I also wonder if the nanny, Lily, got a Sky Couch or if she had to suffer the unbearable hardship of a regular seat.

Most foreigners drive pretty well under normal conditions, but the second they're in a stress situation they revert to habit and swerve right which increases their chance of death.

And I'll say it again because I always do - When you're in NZ things and places are IN an island, not ON. Queenstown is IN the South Island, Auckland is IN the North Island.