CHRISTMAS JAUNTS

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2641, 11 December 1915, Page 15

CHRISTMAS JAUNTS

■ ■■— WHERE THE IRON HORSE RUNS HOLIDAY RESTING PLACES Christmas Day is this day fortnight, Let the reader get that fact firmly fixed in his mind before ho reads further. So distracting are tlip ovents which have worked the current year that Christmas timo has stolen unawares on most peoplo. Amidst the clamour of a war moro tertible than anyone ever imagined, and with other nations tottering on the brink of the awful vortex, Christmas has como along on rubber-heelß, and with a loud "Boo!" has surprised us into the knowlodge that another year has gone— a sad, sad year for many. But hope springs eternal in the human breast. There must be no down-heartcdness, wo must keep cheerful and bright, and must keep -melancholy at bay. It has' been a strenuous, anxious year, and most peoplo Bill be unusually ready for that period of general relaxation that comes with Christmas and New Year. Jaded bodies and troubled heads must have a rest—, a-holiday. It is not an indulgence, but a necessity, and a right. Many people who would otherwise havo tripped abroad, have been detained in Now Zealand because of the conditions outside, which make it (New Zealand) a particularly happy spot. This fact, together with the passport hurdl®. will confine the avorage pereon who travels at Christmas time to his own country. It is fortunate, indeed, that within tho confines 'of Now Zealand there is. so much to see that _is cither inspiringly grand or weirdly interesting, or both. EvoTy view from a railway carriage in New Zealand has its own particular charm. Take tho through trip to Auckland—thero is no railway trip to compare with the wide diversity of scenery to be takon in on tho run .through the North Island, yet there are many people who have not seen stately Tongariro and the giant Ngaruhoo rising majestcially from the Waimarino Plains, or who havo taken in the changing vistas on the "spiral." From the National Park, tile trains run through the famous King Country, and thence on through the fat acres of the Waikato to the jewel of the north, Auokland. From that port delightful excursions may bo taken to picturesque Eawau, the Great Barrier, Mongonui, and that paradise on earth—the Bay of Islands—the lotus land of New; Zealand. The Luce of Rotorua. But there are side attractions on this line that oannot be passed over in an articlo of this charaoter. Thero is Rotorua always beckoning. To those who havo once tasted its sweets, Rotorua is ; always a-calling. Its charms are, as insidious as those of the Bast, and are :n----finitely cleaner. Thore are those in Wellington yet who do not know that they can leave Wellington at 9.10 p.m. and Ire in RotoTua for ovening dinner the next day, and 'within twenty-four houre' mayhave sampled tho refreshing qualities of half the life-restoring baths in this unique sanatorium. The train which leaves hero at 9.10 p.m. for Auckland arrives at Frankton at noon tho next day, and shortly after 1 p.m. along buzzes the Rotorualinund train from Auckland, which lands tho passenger, in the hot'lako centre at 5.22 p.m., in ample time to take a quiet pwtro in the revivifying Blue Bath before dicnot. Where the Glow Worms Glow. . Waitomo, tho mysterious subteranean wonderland, is also a siding ,on the Main Trunk line. If the visitors wish to explore the cool, jewelled caves, round which so many legends havo been spun, they should leave Wellington by the 9.10 p.m. express for the north, which will drop them at Hangatiki at 10.30 o'clock the next morning. Coaches meet every train, and a first-class accommodation house (run by the Government) will bo found to give all satisfaction. The small charge of ,£1 per head covors all charges aft the caves—coach fares, guides, hotel charges, etc. ! In Search of Sunshine. Napier is a pleasant short day's jour-1 nay from Wellington, and then the Pacific opens out grandly from the sweepingMarine Parade; There at Christmas time tho place is to take on a carnival air, and there will bo. entertainment of a merry and bright character by day and night as long the Mardi Gras lasts. Should one aspire to the heights there, is *lway» the pleasant trip to Mount Egniont, New Zealand's most perfect peak —'to consider. The climbinb of this mountain (8000 ft. in height) is. comparatively an easy matter nowadays, and annually the trip is becoming more and more popular. Rather, further off the beaten track are Mounts Tongariro,..' Ruapohu, ana NgTauahoe—the. three tall sisters whioh mark the centre of the North Island. Down the Wanganui. To. those who can only spare a few days away from Wellington there is the trip to Taumarunui and down homeward via the Wanganui River. The best way to do this trip is to leave Wellington by the 1.10 p.m. train, which arrives at Taumarunui. at midnight. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays the river boats leave Taumarunui at 6.45.a.m., arriving at Pipiriki the same afternoon, where they tie up for the night to allow tho passengers a chance of. getting a good night's rest at tho accommodation house there. An early start-is made the next morning, the" boats arriving at Aramoho in time to catch tho midday train to Wellington. If tho up-trip is preferred, the 8.20 a.m. train must be caught here. That arrives at Wanganui at 3.20 p.m., and the boat leaves early the next morning (on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays) for Taumarunui, on which, trip a night is spent on the house-boat. In the South. •There is no lack of attractions reachable by train and coach or motor in the south. Tho growing popularity of Mount Cook will not suffor this year. There are already indications that tho Christmas and New Year holidays will seo the Mount Cook Road a pretty active thoroughfare. And who is there that has onoe done the glaciers of that district can resist :the lure of the ice. Travelling is made easy for the publio in these latter days. From Lyttelton to Queenstown and back may be covered at a cost of £2 13s. sd. secondclass and J!3 19s. Bd. first, and all tickets may be obtained at th-e Railway Department's bureau in Willis Street (opposite Etewart Dawson's).- Another very fine excursion. is tho one to Mijford Sound— from Lyttelton by train to Lumsden, motor to Lake To Anau, steamer to the head of the lake, and per foot to Milford ijound—one of the finest walks in the world. Hanmer is within handy reach of Jhristchiurch by . train and motor, and ita baths are famous throughout the Dominion. ... The Railway Department is issuing excursion fares over all lines asfrom December 17, and is now doing a lively business in monthly tickots, .£3 for each Island, or ,£l3 for both, extending over a period of seven weeks. All information Can be obtained at tho Railway Bureau, Willis Street, . wliero sleepers may bo booked and seats reserved (for all who aro journeying a hundred miles or more). From tho foregoing outline of only a few of the places that, are within easy reach of Wellington' either bv railway train, or boat and train, it will be realised that it is no hardship for New Zealandors to be confined to their country during tho holiday season now upon us.