10 Photos That Will Make You Want To Travel New Zealand

Hukka Falls

New Zealand with its awe-inspiring natural beauty and the vastly different landscapes of the North and South Islands, how can you not want to travel it?

I had the privilege of travelling this beautiful country in Janurary/February and these are my favourite  landscape photos from my time there. If at least one of them doesn't make you want to go there then I don't know what will!

Lake Taupo 

Lake Taupo is the largest lake in New Zealand and is situated on the North Island. It was created by a volcanic eruption around 26,000 years ago. It is part of the tourism attraction for the city of Taupo with hundreds of sailing tours and recreational boats on it daily. There are also Maori rock carvings on the North West side of the lake, which we were told were real, but were actually created by artists in the 1970s.

Abel Tasman National Park 

This photo I took on a sailing trip I was on around the Abe Tasman National Park so I can't pin point exactly where this is. The national park is situated on the North West side of the South Island and is named after the Dutch explorer who was the first European to find New Zealand. It features some of the only yellow sand beaches in New Zealand and gorgeous blue waters.

Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown 

I adored Queenstown. And it lies on the shores of this gorgeous lake! It is a resort town in the South-West of the South Island that in the winter acts as ski town and the extreme sports capital on New Zealand all year round. With a gondola to the top of one of the mountains you can get this view that is unreal.

Hobbiton

Any Lord of the Rings fan's dream land. The whole country is littered with filming locations but this set is truly beautiful. It's just so green! Originally a family farm, Peter Jackson chose it as his filming location after a helicopter flight around the surrounding area. It lies just Southwest of Matamata on the North Island.

Wai-O-Tapu

Part of the Thermal Wonderland just outside of Rotorua on the North Island these rock colours are all natural! The area has many hot springs notable for their fantastic colours made from the earth's elements.

Mount Ngauruhoe

Another Lord of the Rings moment, this mountain was featured in the films as Mount Doom. In real life it lies in the middle of the Tongariro National Park on the North Island and is an add on to the already nineteen kilometre Tongariro Crossing. It is still classed as an active volcano.

Franz Josef

Franz Josef is on the South Island so features a fair about of the Avatar like scenery and lots of mountains. There are also a fair few glaciers down there that you are able to hike on through guided tours. However, when I was there it rained most of the morning I was supposed to go so I hiked to a glacier through a massive valley that had all these beautiful waterfalls because of all the rain.

Lake Matheson

There are an awful lot of lakes in New Zealand and each one is just as spectacular as the last! Lake Matheson is on the South Island, not far from Franz Josef, and is famous for its reflective quality. It was formed by glaciers 15,000 years ago.

Kaikoura

The dolphins of Kaikoura, what an amazing sight! They're also difficult to photograph! But swimming with these gorgeous creatures was one of the best things I did travelling, hands down. Kaikoura is a fishing town on the East coast of the South Island.