Auckland, New Zealand

A couple of key points up front: the train service we used back in 2004 to travel from Auckland to Tongariro (National Park Village) has since been ... More

A couple of key points up front: the train service we used back in 2004 to travel from Auckland to Tongariro (National Park Village) has since been discontinued. While the day rides are still available, the night run we took both there and back has been discontinued. Also, our planned tramp along Tongariro Crossing got rained out - so we spent the day wandering around the very small village of National Park, wandering twice back to Eivens to drown our sorrows in wine. Almost enough to make up for the rain! Well, not quite. 4 Jan 2004: The flight from Sydney is longer than we expected - but cer... Show Less