The Heritage Hotel is located smack-bang in the middle of Christchurch City, and is one of the most accessible hotel rooms I’ve ever stayed in. For details, pictures, and my overall impressions, keep reading! One of the great things about paying a bit more for accommodation is that ‘little bit extra’ when it comes to customer service. For example, once we’d checked in, our bags were taken up to our room without even having to ask, making the whole process

We all know that good budget accommodation is hard to find. And I’m sure many of you know that finding good accessible budget accommodation is even harder. So it’s with great pleasure that I present my overdue review of Wellington’s YHA. Location: Located directly opposite a local supermarket, it is incredibly central, situated just a few minutes walk from many of Wellington’s fantastic attractions. Te Papa, the waterfront, and the many cafes and op-shops are all within easy walking /

Let’s face it. There isn’t much on offer in NZ for disabled thrill-seekers. More often than not we’re lumped in the ‘too hard’ basket and left on the sideline as a spectator by many tourism operators. So imagine my excitement when I got a call from the folks over at Auckland’s brand new SkyWalk, asking me if I’d like to take their new ‘access’ chair for a test drive (or swing, as it turns out). Without thinking about what I

Thanks to Jenny for this review! Sylvia Park shopping mall is situated in Mt Wellington, just off the Southern motorway, which makes it easy to get too. Entrance: Sylvia Park has many entrances which are all level access and some entrances have sliding doors. Mall: The whole mall is great to get around in, level surface and all shops have a level entry. The mall has an outside area of shops, mostly undercover too. One thing which I liked in

Thanks to Saphiya for this review! Ahh, the library. Not the funnest place to go, but sure is an educational one! The library doors open automatically onto a long ramp (which you have to try and steady yourself on, or it could be one hell of a ride), passing a small cafe where customers can sit, enjoy a coffee and read. Although not part of the library itself, the ramp did not provide a flat surface to steady a wheelchair

Thanks to Jenni for this review! Hot Mama’s has a very relaxed and easygoing atmosphere about it, with friendly staff and a good menu choice catering for different types of people, with good vegetarian choices also. This includes hot foods e.g. wedges, chips, nachos & pizza, cabinet food such as sandwiches and cakes, and they have a licenced bar to the side. It is easily accessible for everyone, having a wide door and ramp access, there is outdoor seating out

Thanks to Philip Patston for this review! New lifts popping up in corporate buildings (like the PriceWaterhouseCoopers building in downtown Auckland, which we visited today) have no floor or call buttons – you now enter the floor you wish to go to in a separate console and it tells you which lift to take (the cars are lettered). If you press the button with the Universal Access (wheelchair) Symbol, it embarrasses you by shouting the lift letter (hopeless if you

Around the top of the list for any traveller to Auckland should be Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater World. Hidden away along Quay St, you’d never think such a massive aquarium was hiding under Auckland’s stunning coastline! But the shark-infested tanks are there, along with the myriad of other brightly-coloured sea creatures, and is most definitely worth the rather exorbitant entry fee. I spotted one mobility parking spot, and the rest of the parking spaces were all full, so it might even

I’m all for giving credit where it’s due, and as such I credit this ‘borrowed’ review entirely to AttitudeTV’s Curtis Palmer. Curtis says that he was down in Wellington over New Years, and stumbled across a “wee gem” of an accessible hotel, and gives it a solid rating. The Comfort Hotel in Cuba St was primo! It’s a heritage building that used to be the old Trekkers Backpackers. Newly renovated, its classy. We paid $89 a night, the room was

Having had a very pleasant, and surprisingly successful journey on the Interislander ferry myself early last year, I was intrigued as to what the folks over at NZ On Wheels had to say about it all. Thankfully, our individual trips seem to have at least one thing in common – the overriding enjoyment factor! It really is a stunning voyage, and a must for anyone travelling New Zealand’s stunning coastline. The picture on the left is taken from NZ On