The timeline to the right shows all the stops I hit during my jaunt through New Zealand and Australia at the start of my 3 month sabbatical in early 2003. It was an action-packed itinerary, and if you're headed to New Zealand, perhaps one which you can adapt for your own purposes. One can always find ways to improve an itinerary in hindsight, but all things considered, I couldn't have been happier with my coverage of New Zealand.

For each page of this tour guide, look in the blue margins for favorite destinations, travel tips, local tour operators, and major sights. Click on thumbnail photos to see enlarged photos (make sure to enable Javascript and disable any pop-up blockers in your browser). I took over 700 photos on this trip, but I've only scanned a fraction. Look for more photos to permeate this travelogue over time.

To those of you I met along the way during this trip, thanks for all the memorable times, and do let me know if I've gotten the facts wrong or if you can supply some of the names of people and places I've forgotten. Wish we could do it all over again, for the very first time.

Our journey begins in Auckland...