To read about our Waitomo leg of the trip, click here!
To read about our Rotorua leg of the trip, click here!
After a short 1-hour drive from Rotorua in which Miss K napped the entire way, we arrived in the lovely lakeside down of Taupo! After enjoying a busy but tiring first half of our holiday sightseeing, we would be taking it easy for the next 2 nights in town.
Quest Apartments
As they say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! While in Taupo we stayed again at Quest Apartments and had a lovely time there. Our apartment was notably smaller and had a more compact layout than our previous apartment, but it had everything we needed.
When you first walk in, it leads immediately into a narrow kitchen area and then the living room. The living room faces a main street, however there was little traffic so we didn’t have to worry about any noises. A sliding door adjacent to the living room revealed a small bedroom and bathroom that also contained the laundry facilities. Next to our bed, Quest was able to squeeze in a cot.
Although the apartment had air conditioning, the only unit was placed in the living room so the bedroom surprisingly retained quite a lot of heat at night. In the end, to keep Miss K cool we had to switch off the lights in the living room so we could keep the bedroom sliding door partially open to let the cool air come in.
To be honest, it was a bit of a pain, as that’s one of the main reasons we pay extra for a 1-bedroom apartment versus a single room but we made do!
There’s onsite parking at Quest and a small enclosed pool at the front of the property right where the carpark is. It seemed like an odd location to have a pool but the property is quite small, so I guess that’s the only spot they could place it! It was too cold to use the pool and I wonder how much use it gets from guests during the warmer months.
The location of the apartments wasn’t as central as we thought it would be. With a pram, it took us about 20 minutes to walk to the main strip overseeing Lake Taupo, which was too long with a toddler. We ended up driving into town for the rest of our stay, which was a lot more convenient for us.
Although we had a lovely stay at Apartments and the customer service was lovely, I would consider checking out other accommodation closer to the main strip for any future visits!
Around Town
Directly opposite Lake Taupo is a small strip of restaurants, cafes and bars. The view is amazing and the best seats in the house are at the front overlooking the lake. There’s a nice seaside holiday atmosphere. Heading inland, there’s more restaurants, cafes, bars and some lovely boutique stores.
About a short 10 minute walk up the road is Taupo Public Playground, which has several playgrounds for smaller and older kids. Miss K was still a bit young to enjoy the playground but she loved watching the older kids run around. I would recommend grabbing a gelato from Luna’s Gelataria to enjoy at the park!
Further up the road is the local Countdown where we stocked up on more groceries. While the town is small, it has everything you need and a wide variety of dining options. Unlike previous towns, we ate out a lot more in Taupo and really enjoying going out to eat!
Lake Taupo
If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought that I was looking out at the sea. With a surface area of 616sqm, it’s the largest lake in New Zealand. When you arrive in town, it’s hard not to miss the very large Love Taupo sign at the lakefront. It’s the perfect spot for a photo opportunity and we were fortunate enough to get some photos taken on a quiet afternoon.
Along the lakefront there’s a path for cyclists and walkers alike, with many picnic spots in between. There’s also a viewing platform where you can peek down and see the crystal clear blue waters of the lake. While there’s many water activities to do on the lake, they must be held elsewhere as I couldn’t see any boats or activity on the lake.
Huka Falls
While there are a lot of activities to do in town, they weren’t really suitable with a young toddler so we decided to keep things low key and visit Huka Falls. The Falls are a relatively short 15 minute drive out of town and going straight after breakfast meant that we beat the crowds.
The water from the Falls originally comes from The Waikato River. Just before it hits the Falls, it enters a shallow ravine of hard volcanic rock. This causes the previously peaceful waters to accelerate at great speed before bursting out over the Falls and crash into a turbulent pool approximately 11 metres below.
There’s a bridge positioned right over where this natural phenomenon occurs and it’s a sight to behold! To get up close and personal, there are cruises and jet boats available. If you have time to spare, there are also various trails available that go into the native forests and offer different vantage points of the Falls.
Lake Taupo Scenic Lookout
On the drive out of town and coincidentally on the way to Huka Falls, is a small scenic lookout overlooking the town and lake. It’s a nice short stop if you have the time to take some pictures and take one last look at the lake.
Next stop: Matamata!
Marie xo