Report from NZ

The week in NZ went very quickly. We departed Coolangatta on Friday morning and had a good flight across the Coral Sea with Freedom Air. Picked up our car at the airport, a 1994 Mazda. We drove to Lake Taupo arriving after dark. Found our resort and settled in for the night. The next day was warm but a lot cooler than Australia, 23 degrees. We had a great view of the lake and the snow capped volcano at the south end. Since it was the weekend we could not do any business until Monday when the golf manager and real estate agents were back to work. We spent the weekend enjoying the area. We found it to be very much like the interior of BC. The golf course could have been in Vancouver as it had pines, spruce and ceder along the fairways.

Taupo is a very attractive town with everything you need. You can golf, fish, hike, swim, shop and explore the area. There is a lot of thermal activity in this location. We visited the Creaters of the Moon, the falls and canyon. There are two courses in town. The Taupo course which has two 18 hole courses with one having a slope of 120 and the other 108. These are the courses we are using for next year with unlimited golf for our clients. The course is the world famous Waiarki course, rated number 25 outside of USA. We have rates of $75 here which is discount from the $135 normal rate. There is one more course at the south end of the lake about 30 minutes away. The course looked fine and our fees will be $20.

Within two hours there is plenty to see and do. You can go to the wonderful town of Napier and explore the vineyards, golf its 4 courses or if you can afford it you can pay the $400 green fee on Kidnapper Cove. Rotatura is only 45 minutes away with all the native culture and hot springs and thermal activity. It also has 4 courses.

The sea is 1.5 hrs away at Mt Manganui. There are about 6 courses along the coast.

On Monday meet with the real estate lady and located a number of very nice homes for our golfers to stay at. They do not have the condos that the Gold Coast has. Each place here is a home that if fully furnished with everything you need. Some have great views while others are very close to town. I think the golfers will like this type of accommodation.

With the car, accommodation, golf and air all in place we are now offering NZ for one month or more. We will also offer a combination of both countries. The cost for unlimited golf in NZ with 4 sharing is $3299 and $3799 for two. The combination package is $5599 and up for two months of golf.

The Back Hills of Bryon

We have spent most of the last week exploring the hinterland west of Bryon Bay. This area is has a number of interesting towns, rolling green hills, Macadamia groves, beautiful estates and quaint pubs.

The hinterland here is different than that part west of the Gold Coast. Here you do not have the high mountains and the rain forests. This is more like the English country side.

Towns you should visit while in the Ocean Shores, Bryon Bay area are Billienudgel, Bangalow, Mullumbinby and Ninbin.

Bangalow is a lovely little shopping town with a great pub. It burned down in 1939 and was rebuilt in 1940. They have a very interesting Aboriginal Galley and Museum there with interesting shops and restaurants

Billienudgel also has a great little and old pub and is also the home of the Humble Pie Shop. You owe it to yourself to stop at this pie shop for lunch. It has a great dining area and their meat pies are rated number one in Australia.

Ninbin, what can I say, it is different. It is a town for the alternative lifestyle. There are lots of interesting characters, brightly painted buildings and evern a marijuana bar.

The latest golf course played is the one in Ballina. It is wonderfully manicured course in great condition with some very nice gardens. The bad part of the course is that 6 of 9 holes on the front nine are east and west so a little boring. The back nine is better and has two water holes. I give this a 3.5 score out of 5. The green fees are $25 but you get a free beer. If you want another place to have a refreshment you should try the Ballina RSL which is right on the Richmond River.

Catching up

Since last post we have golfed at Murwillmbah, Ocean Shores, Bryon Bay and Teven.

Ocean Shores is a very good course in the top 100 in Australia. Here you get golf, cart and lunch for $40 during the week. Course is in good condition and is a must play when here. It is about 25 min from Kingscliff. B&B rating is 4 star.

Bryon Bay is ok but my rating is only 2.5 stars. The course is under construction as they try to improve. Front nine is good but back nine is a little boring. Fee is $25. I would not make the trip just to play this course.

Murwillmbah is a 3.5 stars on the B&B rating form. Very nice location with some changes in elevation. If you play on Monday or Friday the fee is only $20. Worth the 30 min trip to play here.

Teven is only an executive course that we played because we could not get on Ballina because of the comp. Will be playing Ballina this week as it looked like a top notch course.

March one is the first day of autumn here. The weather has cooled off a few degrees with days high around 25 and nights now around 18. The few degrees make a difference.

We have 4 golfers left in Australia. One is in Brisbane for a week with his relatives, one is wandering around and is now in Sydney, then going to Melbourne and Adelaide. The other two are taking a 3 day trip to Cairns and later in the month going on a 10 day motor trip to Sydney.

Booking and requests are now starting to come in for next year.