Ever since AJ Hackett started commercial Bungy (bungee) in 1980s in New Zealand it has become a popular activity for extreme sports and adrenalin junkies. The height of the jump, the location and the views and what you are jumping into makes it all more exciting. So we thought that we would make a list of some of the most exciting bungy jumping places in the world.

AJ Hackett Bungy at Kawarau Bridge, New Zealand

This is where it all beagn! The world’s first commercial bungy site. Near Queenstown, it is a 43 metres bungy with optional water touch or water immerse. You can also do a tandem or a solo jump.

AJ Hackett Bungy at Kawarau Bridge, Queenstown, New Zealand, Image source AJ Hackett Bungy

Victoria Falls Bridge, Zambia/Zimbabwe

A 111m plummet towards Zambezi river from the Victoria falls bridge in Zimbabwe, Africa is a must do when you are visiting Africa! With the falls backdrop there is no way this can be missed! This is the place that there was an incident where the bungee cord snapped earlier this year, but hey there is no sport that is not accident prone. And moreover from what I hear and read this is the only incident that has happened in history. So I will be more than happy to go there and take a leap.

Bungy At Victoria Falls, Zambia, Image source afrizim.com

AJ Hackett Bungy at Nevis, New Zealand

At 134m height, Nevis is New Zealand’s highest bungy. A more nerve racking, high adrenalin jump, this is something for those junkies who want a bit more. I hear that getting to the bungy pod is also heaps of fun Yeah it is no bridge, it is a BUNGY POD! With so much excitement from what we hear, this is a must do in my opinion.

AJ Hackett Bungy at Nevis, New Zealand, Image source AJ Hackett Bungy

Verzasca Dam, Switzerland

If you are in or around Europe, or planning to go there I think this is where you should do your Bungy! This bungy appears in the opening scene of the James Bond movie “Golden Eye”.

Bungy at the "007 Golden eye film famed" Verzasca Dam, Switzerland; Image source Trekking.ch

At 220m height this is definitely an adrenalin rusher! Who doesnt want to come back from a holiday and boast to their friends that they have done the 007 jump! Oh yes this one is in my bucket list!

Bungy at the "007 Golden eye film famed" Verzasca Dam, Switzerland; Image source Trekking.ch

Macau tower, Macau

At 233m height, this is the world’s highest bungy and is different to the other bungy sites in that these guys use the specially designed system to let the jumper bounce up and down instead of rocking side way to avoid the risk of hitting the tower! And I hear that the jumper get to a speed of 200kmph! Now that is what I will call a bungy! And wait till we head to Macau! Another one for my bucket list! Woohoo!

AJ Hackett Bungy at Macau Tower, Image source AJ Hackett Bungy

Is there any of your favourite places for bungy that we have missed? Do let us know in comments!

I had been meaning to do the Bungy jumping, also called Bungee jumping for a couple of years now. So this time there was no looking back, when we travelled in New Zealand. I wanted the highest jump but I also wanted the water touch down. So we decided to do it at the Taupo Bungy!

Location

Taupo Bungy is located in Taupo in the North Island, New Zealand, about an hour from Rotorua, upstream the Huka Falls. The beautiful turquoise river waters, lovely greenery provide awesome views and makes the jump much more exciting.

More views!

1 2 3 Bungy

Since I have jumped off the plane before and I totally loved it, I thought this is going to be an easy jump. But by the time it was time to take the leap, I needed a third hand to aid me to jump off the platform. The cord is all set depending upon your height, weight and if you wanted a water touch down or not! And when it is time, it is a leap on the command of the Jump Master “1 2 3 Bungy”

1 2 3 Bungy

In my opinion, compared to sky diving, bungy jumping is much more challenging and one of the staff at Taupo Bungy agreed with me, after the jump ofcourse

Mid-air

The moment my feet were off the platform, there was a blank space for a second, I guess the brain is still trying to understand what is going on! And then there was the awesome free fall feeling and I can still recollect memories of me dashing towards the water.. and SPLASH!

And splash

$$$

The first jump costs $150 NZD, without the photos and the videos. But then you get a voucher for $79 for your second jump and it is valid for an year! Yeap it is a bit expensive but it is so much of fun! Was definitely worth the money.

The best leap I have ever made! The walk back up was pretty good too, though a little bit of a climb that you can feel after a leap but in that excitement all I could think about was getting back up there and check out my video

Pulling down in to the boat

The best bit is that, once I finished jump, I just wanted to do it all over again!

About 1 hr ride by ferry from Auckland is the beautiful Waiheke. A day trip to Waiheke is what we needed to console ourselves after disembarking The Pacific Pearl cruise.

Another gorgeous view during our drive in Waiheke

Getting here

There are hourly ferries to Waiheke from Auckland and the tickets cost $35 NZD return as of end of December 2011. The ferry ride is lovely with beautiful sea views.

Going Around

We hired a car to get around this island. There are car hires in the ferry wharf and these guys rent the car on hourly basis too! But I suggest spending atleast a day or two in roaming round the island and enjoying its diversity.

Attractions

Waiheke is popular for its diversity, it is a beautiful island with a great wine trail, lovely beaches and loads of activities to do.

Wineries
It is not called “The island of wine” for no reason! The wine trail is beautiful. The vineyards have beautiful cafes and lovely views and the wines are lovely too! The only thing that I dont really like is the paid tastings here. Especially having come from New South Wales where wine tasting is totally free in Hunter Valley region, this was a bit new and odd to me, but I get the point of people misusing the free tastings.

A lovely winery in Waiheke

The vineyard “Wild on Waiheke” has taken the concept of vineyard to an extra step with Archery there! It is so much of fun with archery, brewery, wines and some awesome Pizza! A must visit over there! We especially loved their vegetarian Pizza, the Syrah and their own “Hauraki Gulf Ginger Beer”. We bought ourselves a case of them to carry on with us for the rest of the trip! So much of fun, this vineyard is a must visit.

Archery at Wild on Waiheke

Lovely Beaches
The lovely beaches here offer distinct water views with beautiful marine blue and sea green colours of the water. You cannot miss the beach here! Either just walking by the beachside or playing in the sand it is a perfect spot to just chill out and unwind.

Bird Reserve
The Onetangi forest and bird reserve provide a perfect feast for the nature and bird lovers.

Activities

Walks and hikes, cycling and sea kayaking are the popular activities in the area. The walks and hikes range from an hour return easy graded walks to more difficult walks. Sea kayaking is pretty popular and we have also see people jet skiing, thought we could not find any jet ski hire places through out our drive.

Kayaking!

Recommendation

Waiheke, being so close to Auckland, still preserves its gorgeous nature, the forests and the birds, beautiful beaches and provides loads of activities catering for people who want to lazy around and just chill to people who are super active and want that little bit more in their holidays!

Just beautiful

Cant believe this amazing place is only an hour away from Auckland and I would definitely recommend either a day or a weekend away!

Its very easy to forget packing little things and more than often these little things are the ones that matter and you might just end up buying them again! And buying them on-board the cruise can be a bit expensive. So here is a list of “little” things I made up before our cruise trip!

Swimmers & Sun Protection stuff

Make sure you pack heaps of sun screen, hats, sun glasses, swim wear. Girls, atleast a couple of bikinis Trust me, no number is more when it comes to bikini fashion!

Sunnies

Clothing

Jumper
This can vary depending upon the season in which you are cruising. Apart from your usual seasonal clothing, do remember that you will be in the middle of the ocean and it can get pretty cold in the nights if you are lying on the deck star gazing or just loittering around! Ofcourse a couple of drinks can heat you up or a good jumper or a jacket is a must to carry!

Themed nights & Party wear
Almost all cruises have themed nights or a specific party nights. Please check with your cruise company to find out about these events before hand so that you can pack stuff and clothes accordingly. For example a cocktail night will require the girls to wear evening dresses and gowns and formals for the boys. A country music night might need you to wear the classic hat! So it is always good to know abt these early on!

Gymwear, swim wear, casual clothing
Dont forget to pack some casual comfortable clothes, your swim wear and yes if you are a gym junkie, carry gym clothes as there will be gym on board for almost all big cruises.

Fashion accessories

Bathrobe and slippers
Depending upon the type of cabin you are staying in, you get these either complimentary or you will have to pay for them. Check with your cruise company to see if it is complimentary or not. If not complimentary, I usually like to carry my own ones just so I dont double up on them when I am back home. Storage is always an issue, so I dont like duping and de-duping

Medication

If you need to prescription drugs, glasses etc. dont foget to pack them! In my opinion these should be the first to go into your bag! And carry your prescription with you as a just in case! Dont forget sea sickness pills or bands.

Fashion Accessories

Shoes
Remember to pack shoes and sandals that go well with the clothing you are carrying. You might need to carry heels and formal shoes for cocktail night kinda events. Dont forget to carry some slippers or sandals in which you can roam round the ship comfortably!

Hiking shoes, sandals and heels

If you are doing offshore tours and there is going to be a lot of walking or hiking then make sure that you carry appropriate shoe for that!

Bags
I am used to carrying big handbags while travelling just cause of the stuff they can accommodate. But on-board the cruise I couldnt carry my huge handbag to all events and dance classes etc, it was just too big. I needed a little pouch to carry my room swipe card, my credit card and a couple of dollars! I ended buying a small Billabong bag onboard!

My Billabong bag that I bought on-board Pacific Pearl

If you are doing offshore tours as well, its probably a good idea to carry a day bag with you to carry your stuff in it easily.

Makeup & accessories
Yeap, make sure you take your makeup stuff, jewellery that goes with your dresses etc.

Makeup and accessories

Favourite time pass

There can be an odd couple of hours where you might not find anything interesting to do on-board the cruise. So I strongly suggest to carry a book or an ipod or your tablet device to keep yourself entertained with the books or the music or the movies you love.

Photography equipment

Most important of all dont forget your photography equipment. Take your camera and capture every single awesome moment of your trip And if possible take a binoculars with you. There is 99% chance that there will be a pod of dolphins that will swim past your ship and you wouldnt want to miss the gorgeous ones!

Remember that if you forget anything, most of the time you can buy it on-board, unless it is something rare or odd. So dont panic and enjoy your cruise!

We wanted to head off snorkeling somewhere closer to Sydney preferably in the city itself. After doing a bit of research we decided to head off to Clovelly beach.

Covelly beach, Sydney

Clovelly beach has two sides, the bay with a concrete platform and the other is a small beach which is much more suitable for kids and for everyone irrespective of their swimming skills. The maximum depth at the entire beach is 5-6 metres and the edges of the bay are pretty shallow.

Snorkeling

As much as this was our purpose, I was utterly disappointed from the colour of the water. It was green in colour due to the weather. The water wasnt clear at all and there were sea weeds. There wasnt so much of fish either and it was really hard to see the colour of the fishes. We were snorkeling only in the beach as we are still noobs and are not very good swimmers. Also having snorkeled in Fiji I think our expectations of Clovelly were set pretty high in our minds. May be I wasn’t just that lucky.

Snorkeling at the Clovelly beach, Sydney

Ocean swimming

This part of the ocean is between Coogee and Bronte and there isn’t any waves hitting into the bay. And also given that the surf rescue is only metres away, literally, it is a much more safer place to learn and practice ocean swimming.

A family outing

The small beach, the BBQ and the family area around the beach makes it a nice family outing. The beach especially is pretty shallow and with no waves it is kids friendly.

The verdict

I would definitely go there again to learn ocean swimming or to just hang out with friends but for snorkeling may be I should try it out again on a much more brighter day.

We cruised onboard Pacific Pearl, from Sydney to Auckland and I must say, the early morning skies added a special beauty to the Auckland CBD and the city or the downtown views wowed us.

While the CBD, when compared to Sydney, is relatively smaller, the people were extra-ordinarily friendly and are very welcoming everywhere you go. The added benefit of travelling during christmas time is the beautiful X-mas decoration throughout the city that makes it amazingly beautiful and jaw-dropping.

Attractions

Sky Tower
The tallest free standing structure in Southern Hemisphere, this is an attraction that you cannot miss! You can go up the tower and enjoy the magnificient views of Auckland city and for the adrenalin junkies you can even do a sky walk and a sky jump. We did our trip during Christmas time and at this time of the year Sky tower is extra-ordinarily beautiful in the night with the X-Mas lights.

Auckland sky city, glowing gorgeously with X-mas lights

Arts and History
For the art and history lovers the newly renovated Auckland Art gallery and the Maritime Museum are must sees!

Beach goers
The Coromandel coast which is about 2 hrs drive from Auckland is a must see! If you are looking for some thing much closer then I definitely recommend Piha beach and the north shore beaches.

Piha beach, Auckland

Nightlife
I especially love the city in the night time, when the lights are on and the restaurants and pubs are hustling and bustling with people. It just adds that extra awesomeness to it.

Franklin Street
This street walk during Christmas time is a must-do. The entire Franklin street lights up with X-mas decorations during this time of the year and the it is so beautiful that it is definitely worth the walk along the street.

Lovely X-mas light & fairy decorations in a house on Franklin Street in Auckland

Other attractions like The Underwater world, The Auckland Zoo, The Motat provide loads of fun to both elders and children and is definitely a superb family entertainment.

Activities

While the attractions can keep you entertained the activities that Auckland provides can keep the adrenalin junkies super busy.

Adrenalin on and off the bridge
Such a popular landmark it is, Auckland bridge also is a house for activities like Bridge climbing and Bridge Bungy. AJ Hackett provides a bridge bungy and you can do a water touch as well, if you wish! Trust me there is nothing like a free fall.

Sky Jump & Sky Walk
Sky Tower which is the tallest free-standing structure provides activities like sky walk and sky jump. The sky jump is not a free fall but it is still amazing to jump off the tallest tower at 80kmph speed.

Stardome Observatory & Planetarium
This is great place to learn about our galaxy, the solar system and also learn about identifying the stars and planets.

Sailing or cruising the harbour
It is the city of sails! You cannot miss sailing the harbour. You can choose the intensity of sailing and there are tour operators who accommodate to all kinds of levels.

Mt Eden hiking
This is one of the local hidden attraction. Mt Eden, the highest natural point in Auckland region is an awesome attraction with the volcanic crater. But, take my advise and instead of taking a bus or driving uphill, hike the mountain! It is an easy-intermediate hike and I would definitely recommend it.

Mt Eden crater and views of the Auckland CBD

Public transport

I like going round the cities in public transport, that is the only way you can get the “locals experience”. My friends suggested to use a car but I decided to use the public transport for a couple of days and I must say that it isnt too bad. There are free buses covering the entire CBD. The city is divided into different zones and it is all very clearly communicated regarding which buses for which stops and zones both using the network maps and also the Audio-Visual system on the bus. And then there are the friendly locals. There was this lady who, without us asking, told us where to get off to reach our destination!

Hint: If you are travelling a lot, then get an all day pass instead of buying individual tickets for every destination.

The only feedback I would have is that the tourism info guys patrolling the streets do not have much suggestions. I think they should be filled with more information regarding the attractions, activities and suggest depending upon the personal interest.