Ok guys, this is my first unreserved recommendation! If you come to Auckland, you HAVE to go to Tiritiri Matangi! The ferry is 1h30 each way and return costs the equivalent of £35. The whole island is a bird reserve (again with no pests, vermin etc.) and is just bursting with birds! There are little wooden walkways that wind through the trees and forests, arching over the little streams. Amazingly, there were no mosquitoes! I suppose there’s too many birds eating them.

I saw two different types of parrot and so many birds that I have genuinely lost count. It was really magical – blue skies and topaz waters then thick forests teaming with all these bright birds. And it was just so much fun to walk through it spotting them all! I have to say that I didn’t spot that many – good job my friends were much better at it!

I think words really can’t say how awesome it is … you’ll have to come visit me and try it for yourself! 😉 You can also stay overnight and if you do that you may well see some wild Kiwis (this is now on my Bucket List).

In the afternoon we went snorkelling in the bay and there were fish two foot long with bright blue fins and spots. AND I saw a jelly fish that was the size of my hand! In the shallows, when you opened your eyes under water (and I can tell you right now that prescription goggles are an absolute game changer) you could see that the waves were full of all these tiny weeny jellyfish smaller than my little finger nail, settling on my arms and legs and swimming around me! (they don’t sting by the way). Sadly I don’t have any pictures of the underwater stuff and that is a real shame as there were some amazing things.