New Zealand is a country that surprised me in so many ways. I knew their beautiful landscapes were some of the best in the world, but I didn’t know the entire country believes in protecting that environment for future generations to come.

I spent three weeks traveling through this spectacular country and there is still so much more I have left to see. From pristine beaches, to remote volcanoes, mud pots, and stunning fjords and glaciers this country has everything anyone would want or need. Explore New Zealand with me!

New Zealand is such a unique country- with a huge variety of things to see! In my opinion, the stunning natural beauty is the #1 reason to visit New Zealand- but it takes a long time to get there and there is a lot of ground to cover- so what do I recommend?- see below with one caveat- I didn’t see everything in the entire country- so I’m sure I missed a few gems.

If I had to pick the top sight to see in New Zealand- it would be the majestic beauty of Fjordland National Park. You could plan a stay in Te Anau and take a guided tour to Milford Sound, or better yet, drive in and take in all the incredible stops along the way.

Rotorua gets my pick because of it’s uniqueness. The town itself if very different, and smells very strong of sulfur, so you need to be prepared for this. There are many day trips you can take from Rotorua to see some very interesting geothermal features. We loved our visit to Waimangu Volcanic Valley- that area had an incredible wow factor for me. It’s no surprise I loved this area so much as Yellowstone National Park is my favorite in the US as well, and shares some similarities.

Look into Air New Zealand SkyCouch. This is a different type of ticket where you can convert a economy seat into a lie down couch. It’s perfect for people who are relatively small like me, or travelers with small children. The price is comparable to a premium economy seat- but you can have a whole row to yourself that converts to a sleeper ‘couch’. We found great airfare rates from Los Angeles to Auckland (about 13 hour flight)- and we purchased the skycouch so we could lie down and sleep.