Imagine an urban environment where everyone lives within half an hour of beautiful beaches, hiking trails and a dozen enchanted holiday islands. Add a sunny climate, cosmopolitan population and a passion for outstanding food, wine and shopping, this is Auckland and we live in the gardens area which is so named because we are a few minutes from Auckland Botanical Gardens, a very nice place for walks, jogging relaxing by the lake or enjoying the cafe.
Travel distances from our home: The airport is 15 minutes, motorway on and off ramp 3 minutes, time to city 20 minutes (avoiding morning and evening rush hour traffic). Shopping mall 10 minutes. Swimming/Gym complex 10 minutes. Service station, bakeries, fish and chip shops dairies and restaurants just down the road. Rotorua (thermal area) 3 hours South.

My husband and I are retired. Both born in England, but we have lived in New Zealand most of our lives. My husband worked for an airline and with staff travel privileges we are able to travel extensively. Over the past thirty years we have mainly travelled around the Pacific, Asia and California. We would now like to visit Florida and the beaches around LA and some European countries including Southern England, Italy, Austria etc.
Number of travellers 2.