From above, looking at the map of New Zealand, the Banks Peninsula It draws much attention for its shape, a mound that rises above the ocean and cracked by a huge ditch in the center. The volcanic origin of this place is the cause of such capricious forms and, although from below, traveling along its paths is not so impressive, it does not cease to have a special charm.
Perhaps because in this area a colony of French people settled for a few years, who, very much theirs, built their houses in the purest colonial style and left their mark in the small town of Akaroa, in the center of the peninsula. So we went there.
And the truth is that it has its point. To arrive from Christchurch We first deviate to Sumner, a seaside town with very cool landscapes. From there we had to turn around because the road was cut and we reached Lyttelton, with its huge and ugly harbor. And from there we went to the Banks Peninsula itself through several bays (one of them Cass, which Lety had special illusion).
Halfway we stopped to take a piss on Little river and we discovered that his train station is legendary! It was part of the first network of New Zealand railways. Although today the only thing that happens here are some clueless like us with a full bladder and wanting to connect to Spark's cabin to check the mail ...
That first day we did not reach Akaroa, instead we stayed at the French Farm Bay to spend the night A great place 1 m from the bay, on the other side of the crack in front of Akaroa.
The next day we traveled the 10 km until Akaroa and we gave ourselves a loop there. The atmosphere is very particular, with its well-decorated colonial houses, with those leafy gardens in front of its doors full of bushes and flowers. Come on, like a city taken from a movie set in France 100 years ago.
You have to make one special mention to your lighthouse, which in itself does not have much interest, but be careful, if you are over 90 years old you can upload for free. Perhaps if the life expectancy in Akaroa is 130 years and is considered senior citizens from the 90s. We may have to add a retiree card to our university card 10 years ago to get these benefits.
USEFUL INFO
Where to sleep with a van on the Banks Peninsula.
We saw that in WikiCamps there is a place in Akaroa itself where to sleep. In the car parks we saw, it was forbidden to spend the night there. Anyway we had already stayed in the French Farm Bay, about 10 km before reaching Akaroa. There are quite clean construction bathrooms, it has running water although not potable and the environment is very beautiful in front of the coast.
