Konini Lodge has always been a favourite of mine for years. I’ve been here for a few school trips with an overnight stay. It’s a great place to come if you and your family love to hike or explore the mountain trails. The Lodge gives amazing views of Mt. Taranaki and it holds bunkrooms with 8 people to a room. This is the perfect place to stay if you want to check out Goblins forest and Dawson Falls, which are both just a short walk away from the Lodge.

Mt Hiwi Lodge is a full on log wood cabin. It’s very private and secluded with beautiful views. It has its own nearby lake and an outdoor wood fired bath! A true slice of heaven in Taranaki is what I’ve heard it’s been called before. The wood fired bath is prefect for spring night times as it’s still a little but chilly out! In winter it even gets covered by snow as it’s close to Mt Taranaki. It’s a cosy little place to take the family away for the weekend for a little getaway, and it may even become your new regular.

Do you have a large or extended family who you’re extremely close to? Fitzroy Heights is perfect in that situation as it sleeps a massive 13 people. There are 5 separate bedrooms that are lavishly decorated and the kitchen even has a dishwasher; with a big family, that is such an asset to have. The apartment is located in Fitzroy to it’s close to New Plymouth CBD, the beach, Lake Rotomanu and the Valley shopping complex. If you have young children, a portacot, highchair and toybox can be provided on request.

Alabasta Accommodation is located in the heart of Oakura. This is a modern apartment complex that is just a 5 minute walk to the awesome Oakura beach. Alabasta is a great alternative to a hotel as it has all the comforts of home! And it’s close to cafes, a restaurant, and a pub; the beach one way and a village the other, it’s the best of both worlds. It also has laundry facilities and off road parking. The pricing isn’t bad either, at $130 per night for two people and only $15 per child; it’s very affordable accommodation that can have you living comfortably.

Paua Cottage is in Waverley which is part of South Taranaki. It’s such an adorable little cottage you’d almost want to stay there permanently! It’s natural, it oozes tranquillity and is such a nice place to go with the kids to get away from the busy city life and have some quality family time. You can even bring your dog along for the holiday as the property is fully fenced. Long beach is directly across from the cottage which is great for swimming, boogie boarding or even walking the dog!

Fab faces motto is “face painting with a twist”. They offer services from balloon twisting and face painting, to Henna and glitter tattoos. This is perfect if you’re hosting a birthday party or if it’s your turn to have a few kids over in the school holidays for the day. You can also hire a fairy or a pirate to accompany your face painter or balloon twister to play some party games to make it a really good day; and at the moment they’re at a discounted rate so go on and book in!

Ngamotu Beach is the place to go when you’re with the family and want a nice day out celebrating that Spring is finally in the air! I know it’s not quite summer yet, but it’s just getting warm enough to have a little dip, play in the sand, and have a few sneaky barbeques. It’s definitely the safest beach to go in New Plymouth and there’s no chance of encountering a shark or jellyfish! As well as no scary wildlife, there is also very little waves since it is inside the breakwater barriers. If your child can swim (or if they can’t, get in there with them!), you’ll have a fun day. Don’t forget the sunscreen!

Fun Ho! Toy Museum is located in the heart of Inglewood, and if you have kids that love everything cars, airplanes or motorcycles, this would be the place to bring them. At any one time, there are one hundred models available to buy out of the 275 and more ever produced since 1942; that’s quite a large selection of toys if you ask me! What’s really cool is that if the toymaker is in store and the furnace is blazing, you can watch him make the toy of the day. Everything is handmade there right on site and it’s definitely something special that Taranaki has to offer.

Kawaroa Playground always sparks memories of happiness from when I was a child. I went there on school trips, family outings, or even just to get an ice cream and have a play. Swing competitions were my favourite to see who could go the highest. Although since I was little, it’s had a few new improvements that have made it a lot better. They’ve added in a new slide in replacement of the old dangerous metal one. There’s also these poles you stand on that spin around and make you feel so dizzy you could be sick!

Going to the Rock pools has always been a favourite past time of mine as a child. Even now it’s still fun to go looking under rocks and exploring the magic of underwater creatures. The rock pools are just down from the Kawaroa playground so you could even kill two birds with one stone and do both activities in one day! Exploring the pools can also teach children a lot about the ecology of the ocean, perhaps see if they notice if particular creatures are closer or further away from the tide.

I like to think that it’s pretty common knowledge that the French know their food, and Petit Paris confirms this. Even walking past the place you can smell the aroma smouldering out of it. The amount of breads and patisseries they make each day is insane; they must be up at 3am! Another one of my guilty pleasures are citrus desserts and oh my goodness, their ‘La Tarte Citron’ with lemon curd is to die for, I could literally die happy after eating it. Give them 4 to 5 days’ notice and they can prepare you the most luxurious cake for any special occasion.

Elixir is an all-time favourite. All the locals here know they can come to this place, which opens till late, and get excellent dessert every time. I cannot stop raving on about their baked New York cheesecake, it will forever hold a place in my heart as the thing that got me addicted to Elixir. The atmosphere inside has a really good vibe to it and makes you think you’re in some cool New York bar listening to your favourite band play. Try the cheesecake with a coffee and you’ll be returning for more soon enough.

Yopick is located in Centre City in New Plymouth, a great spot when you’ve just polished off some lunch from the food court. You control what you want, choose the size of your tub, which ever yoghurt you want and any topping you like. I love to get the original flavoured yoghurt as it just tastes nice and natural, and then top it with fresh fruit and a few sneaky sour lollies on top. Its increasingly becoming a trend, these yoghurt shops and I can definitely see why!

Piccolo Morso Milkbar is a recent addition to my favourite little sweet treat shops. Even just the word ‘Milk bar’ gets me excited for desserts and milkshakes. And their menu is just so delightful to look at. Although this is more of a dessert place to go to in the day, it’s worth taking a trip after lunch to try their food. There are so many options; even the pickiest eater could find something to love. I love custard and they do a really nice Apple and Custard Scroll and amazing custard donuts, maybe even the best in town! They can also do catering and deliveries in town (if orders are over $50).

Lush is famous in New Plymouth for their delectable gelato; smooth and creamy and tastes like it’s come straight from heaven. I’ve always been a sucker for their coffee flavoured gelato, and of course the typical strawberry flavour is always a favourite, a good start to get you hooked on gelato. And to make it even better, the gelato at Lush is 95% fat free so you won’t have to feel guilty for having dessert so you could even try the bigger sized tub… with three scoops! It’s getting into summer soon so keep an eye out for their portable gelato cart making its way round the Coastal walkway.

For all those people with adrenaline junkie dads, this activity is for you! How would your dad like it if he was taken for a helicopter flight from Port Taranaki to Mount Taranaki? FreemanX Experience can take you and your dad on an experience he’ll never forget. The helicopter flies at around 8,500 feet above the summit of the mountain, so imagine how high that is from sea level! If you go on a clear and sunny day, you can even see all the way to the Central North Island. This is definitely a great gift that any dad would love.

Father’s day is just around the corner, and if your dad is an electronics guru, or maybe just needs an update of something, come in to Play N Play Electronics. Gadgets galore for young dads, old dads and all dads in between. Not only that, but they also have a large selection of fix-it-yourself accessories, there’s probably a better name for these parts but I’m no electrician! Although I am a bit biased as my partner works there, it really is a genuinely good store with everything your dad would need if he likes to fiddle round and take things apart.

For dads that are smoother and dress really well, or for the business dad that takes his work seriously, Barkers have the best quality clothes you can get your hands on. Special occasion coming up? Treat him to a new suit or a nice pair of shoes; they sell authentic Conserve shoes which almost every guy loves so you can’t really go wrong there as they look good with a suit or with just casual comfy clothes. I really love the collared shirts they sell; they’re classy yet using the right accessories, they can be dressed up or down.

Chaddy’s Charters can take you and your dad on a little adventure around the famous Sugar Loaf Islands outside Port Taranaki. These are the eroded island remains of volcanic activity from around 1.75 million years ago. As well as sharing a great experience together, you will also learn about the history of the Sugar Loaf’s and get a picture on board if you’re lucky! The islands are home to many seals, a few penguins and over 11 species of sea birds. Be sure to take your camera to capture the experience, and if you’re prone to sea sickness definitely take some motion sickness pills beforehand!

I’d say this shop is for the dads that like horrible ‘dad jokes’ and doesn’t take life too seriously. You can buy some seriously cool purchases from here, or you can go down the other road of the joke presents. For example, you could buy dad some duck slippers for the morning of Father’s day and make him a coffee in his new Superman mug you’ve bought him. Or how about a luxurious bathrobe that he can lounge around in all day while he’s being treated like a king? Either way, you’ll definitely find something whether it’s sentimental, quirky, funny or just all round a great gift.

Pukekura Park is by far the most popular park in New Plymouth. With the fernery and the tea house open for business, you can imagine why. The fernery consists of 3 levels of glass topped houses filled with the most beautiful flowers. It’s been the place I come to take flower photos for a few years now, and it’s always best in spring. It has indoor and outdoor plants that are native and from all over the world. The tea house café is just down a couple of sets of stairs from the fernery for a little morning tea or try some of their special fudge!

Lake Mangamahoe has about eight different bike trails to explore. This is great to do in spring as it’s not too hot and the rain holds off enough for it to be safe enough to ride. The Kiwi and Kea trails are great for beginners, families and leisurely riders. But if you’re a bit of a daredevil, the Hudson Alley trail is for you as it has a surprisingly steep finish to get that adrenaline going! Lake Mangamahoe is a great scenic reserve so take a picnic in your backpack and sit yourself down in one of the lovely spots and enjoy the view.

When I think of spring, it always reminds me of packing up picnics and taking them to places with beautiful scenery with your loved ones. Burgess Park is a perfect example of this. Settled on four acres of native New Zealand bush, who wouldn’t want to be enclosed by these beautiful surroundings? It’s located on Junction Road heading out towards Inglewood so it’s hardly a chore to get there and the atmosphere is so worth it. You feel like you can really breathe that fresh air with all the trees around you.

Spring is when all the flowers are blooming and coming up from the ground, in other words; spring time is the perfect time to visit Pukeiti. There is a humongous 336 hectares of protected rainforest and 26 hectares of garden that’s so rich in history you can almost feel the pioneer ancestors. Pukeiti is home to over 2000 species of Rhododendrons and the perfect time to view them in full bloom is from July through to March so get in there now, you will not regret it!

If you haven’t guessed already, there is a bit of a theme going on here. I’m a very outdoorsy garden person so I’ve included a lot of gardens and trails to explore, including Tupare Gardens. These are just my favourite things to do in spring and it’s also my favourite season. Tupare is so big they have an electric shuttle to get around in for sightseeing. The river that runs through Tupare hosts a river workshop to teach both young and old about the natural ecology and biodiversity of the river.

Located right in between Bell Block and Waitara, Big Jims Garden Centre is where you need to travel to get your spring bulbs. They lay out everything so beautifully it’s very hard to choose between what you want, you may end up getting both! Something special they have is their very own vegetable patch. This is where they experiment with new techniques and varieties and then let us know how they got on with it. You can even have lunch out here with the café that’s open from 8.30 till 4, seven days a week.

Living Trends is one of my favourite shops, and it has been for a while now. Spring equals spring cleaning and that means out with the old, and in with the new; and this is where you can purchase your new. This giant warehouse has everything from furniture, décor (indoor and out), art pieces and garden accessories. There are a range of different styles also so you could find something there to suit any home. I love how the layout is too, they set everything by colour so when you first walk in everything is turquoise then it moves onto red, it’s kind of exciting!

Spring is the time to start getting into shape to feel healthier; and of course to get that summer body you’ve always wanted. Mitchell Cycles is a great little shop located in Strandon that has everything you need to gear up for some biking this season. They’ve been serving Taranaki for 60 years so they definitely know what’s what. They even have a fully equipped workshop to fix your bikes or give you any advice about them. If you’re an avid biker or just someone who likes to go out every now and then, this place is great for anything you could possibly need for when the days start getting longer.

Sentiments is a trend setting florist run by Denise Fleming who has had 27 years’ experience working with flora and fauna of all types. Nicely nestled in the middle of the Moturoa shops, she offers bouquets and arrangements that are very high end and European inspired. Modern, contemporary, or a mix of both, Sentiments can work with you for any floral needs from anything as big as a wedding, to a small bouquet to say ‘I love you’ to your special person. She also sells little gifts and chocolates than can accompany any flowers you would like to send.

The outdoors and spring time go perfectly hand in hand, and what better shop to go to than the Kiwi Outdoor Centre. If camping is your thing, pick up a tent and some camping gear and head out into the wilderness and just be one with nature. Or if you’re more of a one-day hike kind of person, they have day bags, clothing items and footwear. Throw in a GoPro camera while you’re at it and capture all the radical and exciting fun you create out there!