From Wikitravel

For other places with the same name, see North Island (disambiguation).

The North Island of New Zealand is warm, with scenery ranging from sandy beaches, through rolling farmland to active volcanic peaks. Although it is smaller than the South Island, it is more populous, with half of the New Zealand population living north of Lake Taupo, in the middle of the island.

[edit] Regions

• Northland
• Auckland Region (also Auckland metro)
• Waikato
• Bay of Plenty
• Central North Island
• East Coast
• Hawke's Bay
• Wairarapa
• Taranaki
• Manawatu
• Wanganui
• Horowhenua
• Kapiti Coast
• Wellington Region (also Wellington metro)

[edit] Cities

There are many settlements in the North Island, here are nine of interest to the traveller.

• Auckland - "The City of Sails" and, with over a million people, the largest metropolitan area in New Zealand and Polynesia.
• Hamilton - Home of the Waikato River.
• Napier - Art Deco and wine in the sunny Hawkes Bay.
• Paihia - Main center in the historic and picturesque Bay of Islands.
• Rotorua - Famous for Maori culture, geysers and beautiful hot pools.
• Taupo - Trout fishing and adventure activities in the central North Island.
• Tauranga - On the Bay of Plenty, it is known for its great weather, sun and beach.
• Waitomo - Home of the Waitomo Caves.
• Wellington - The national capital and the third largest city in the nation - home of the Parliament and the Beehive. The Windy city (and it's not hot air).

[edit] Other destinations

• Coromandel Peninsula
• Hauraki Gulf Islands
• Hokianga, pristine, unspoilt, untouched, untamed
• Bay of Islands
• Lake Taupo - and its trout
• Tongariro National Park and the Mount Ruapehu skifields.
• Havelock North Trendy shopping near Hastings

[edit] Get in

• Auckland - Is the primary arrival point for most people in New Zealand a large majority of those coming in through the Auckland International Airport (IATA: AKL, ICAO: NZAA) which handles 70% of all tourist air travel and is serviced by most major airlines. A significant number of people also arrive in Auckland by cruise ship.

[edit] Get around

The North Island is adequately serviced by many national bus companies.

• Newmans Coach Lines [1] operates a premium sightseeing tours throughout the North Island.

• InterCity Coachlines [2] is New Zealand's national coach company and operates over 150 services to more than 600 destinations nationwide.

• Nakedbus.com [3] is the cheap alternative to Intercity with tickets starting from $1 - book early and get bargin bus travel. They do not have quite as many routes or services as Intercity but are catching up fast.

[edit][add listing] See

• Koutu Boulders — biggest concretions in the world in Koutu, Hokianga
• Mangungu Mission House (Historic Site) — site of the biggest signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in Horeke, Hokianga
• Mt Bruce National Wildlife Center. This DOC center is a good place to see Kiwis and Kaka (kind of "bush parrot"), and also plenty of other native birds. 20 min drive from Masterton on the way to Palmerston North.
• Wairere Boulders (Nature Park) — an enormous basalt flow just south of Horeke, Hokianga
• Sand Dunes (Top Sculptures) — windblown sculptures on top of sand dunes across the harbour from Opononi, Hokianga

[edit][add listing] Do

• Overnight Cruise with Bay of Islands Rock Cruises Overnight Cruise Cruise the Bay of Islands for 22 hours.

[edit][add listing] Eat

[edit][add listing] Drink

[edit] Get out

This article is an outline and needs more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. Please plunge forward and help it grow!