The next morning was a bit cloudy, but the sun was promised for the afternoon. The plan for the day was to explore the centre of Christchurch and experience some of its most iconic attractions. So, first it was a trip on the old trams, and these restored heritage trams are not only beautiful but will take you seamlessly around the city, with a commentary included, where you can get on and off as often as you like and get to all the main places over its 18 stops. If you would like to get the full tram experience, then you can do a full circuit of the route which will take you around 50 minutes. I actually purchased a very reasonably priced combo ticket from the centre of Christchurch that included the trams, punting on the river, and the Gondola. This allows you to book your punting on the river for a set time so that you can work around it, and this is necessary as it does get pretty busy on the river!
After the first tram trip, it was off to explore the large and amazing botanical gardens that are beautifully kept. I spent some time wandering around the gardens and then popped into the tearoom for some refreshments before heading out to the river for the punting experience.
Punting on the River Avon was so relaxing and enjoyable – there were even blankets to drape over you to keep any chill from the water away. You will get to appreciate lots of fauna and flora along the way with sweeping willow trees adorning the water and eels passing by your boat. You also got plenty of information from your punter who is dressed in Edwardian clothing to look the part. This lovely experience lasts for about 30 minutes, but I really wished it could have been longer!
The last activity on the combo ticket was the Gondola with its spectacular 360-degree views over Christchurch. You can see across the plains to the Southern Alps and Lyttelton Harbour. The views from the top really are stunning and I managed to time it so that my descent coincided with the sun beginning to set, and this made the whole experience even more stunning. There is also a gift shop and café at the top. I discovered, too, that there was a little discovery ride inside the summit station that was great and told you all about the history of the area – it was a bit like a Disney experience!
My next idea to finish off the day was to wander around the centre of Christchurch with its many shops, cafes, and restaurants. There are still large areas of the centre that are undergoing repairs to old architectural building due to the earthquake from a few years ago, but it doesn’t spoil the experience of the place as it still has lots of charm. I was told that some of the old building may unfortunately never get finished due to extreme costs that have already gone way beyond the original budget.
