NZ Cruise - Bay of Islands

Day 11 of our cruise to New Zealand in March 2019 - Bay of Islands

Bay of Islands

We caught the ship's tender to Paihia and then boarded the shuttle bus into the town centre of Paihia.

Another lovely sunny day in beautiful New Zealand.

We wandered around Paihia, enjoyed an ice cream, and then caught the ferry to the village of Russell.

Paihai

Paihia

Lovely area in Paihia to wander around and view the mosaics

Mosaics on pathway

Paihia ferry terminal

View of the jetty at Russell

Walking around Russell

View from the Duke of Marlborough Hotel

Duke of Marlborough Hotel

History of the Duke of Marlborough Hotel (copied from their website)
The Duke of Marlborough began its life in 1827 as “Johnny Johnstons Grog Shop”. The owner Johnny Johnston was an ex convict come good, he became fluent in Te Reo and was very well regarded by the local Maori. This relationship led to Johnny being able to purchase the freehold site of the Duke – which was one of the first land sales to a European in New Zealand. 

In the 1830s, Russell or Kororareka, as it was known then, was the biggest whaling port in the Southern Hemisphere and turned out to be a bit of an eye opener for the missionaries. Up to 500 whalers at a time would arrive in Russell after twelve months at sea, with Russell having no effective law enforcement agency, the scene wasn’t ideal. Prostitution was one of the area’s largest industries and many local women frequently entered into 3 week marriages.

On our way back to the Majestic Princess

We wanted to have a relaxing day so nothing was planned and we had also been here before so just wanted to see a few different parts of the town and also have a drink at the Duke of Marlborough Hotel.

A drink at the Duke of Marlborough

Another lovely day in New Zealand.