Day 1: Kaikoura to Christchurch
We took the Coastal Pacific train from Picton to Kaikoura, where we spent three nights. Then today we continued that train journey to Christchurch, where the train ends. We’ve now done all three of the New Zealand Great Journeys: the Coastal Pacific, the Northern Explorer (Auckland to Wellington), and the TranzAlpine (Christchurch to Greymouth). All three are scenic and pleasant train trips.
We forget that they farm deer in New Zealand. It’s odd to see a herd of deer in a fenced field.
The train goes right next to the shore in spots. The waves were wild that day thanks to storms. We were happy we missed the rain on our way to the train station. There were also a number of tunnels on today’s route.
We arrived in Christchurch around 7:30 PM and took a taxi to our hotel. We dropped our bags and headed for our dinner reservation at Mexicano’s.
Day 2: Horizontal Rain
Despite it being rainy and a little chilly we had to go to the supermarket to stock up for our next stop, Aoraki/Mt Cook. There are no supermarkets there and only a handful of expensive restaurants so we’re taking food for three dinners, breakfast, and snacks.
We did go past the cathedral — still under repair from earthquake damage — and through a downtown park.
I don’t know how high the water normally is here, but this looks high. We were soaked by the time we got back so we got creative with drying out our clothes. We battled the horizontal rain going to dinner and back. We chose someplace nearby!
Day 3: A Day In
While there were indoor things we could have done today, none seemed to justify getting drenched to get there. So we stayed in, which was nice for a change. We only ventured out for dinner. I wanted to try Vietnamese food, and how could we resist that name? Here’s also just one of many murals we saw around Christchurch.
Essentials
Lodging
We chose the Focus Motel partly for the balcony, which we couldn’t use because of the rain. It was still a good stay. The location was good, the hosts were friendly, and it felt like a splurge to have a separate bedroom.
Dining
We had quesadillas our first night at Mexicano’s. Pretty good version of Mexican. Our pizza at Spagalimis Pizzeria was also good. It came recommended by our hosts and was the closest restaurant to us. Nice setting in an old Victorian house. We had “Mr Gig’s banquet” at You Hanoi Me, since it sounded like a good overview of Vietnamese food. The greens were kind of boring — probably by design — but the other dishes were all interesting.
Transportation
We took the train into town and left by bus. There’s also an airport; last time we flew to Dunedin to save time. We got a taxi from the train station; the bus station was within walking distance. (The two aren’t near each other.) Otherwise we walked, though we thought about taking the trolley for the tourist experience.