Go East for Easter

When there are four points of the compass to choose from for travel during the extended Easter break, a good choice must surely be to look to the east.

So Travel turned its back on the wagons rolling west and set its sights firmly to the east. Surprisingly, New Zealand cartographers gave us little to choose from; east hardly appears on maps whereas west lends its name to a whole lot of land.

Still, our writers did find four ideal areas to visit during the Easter break - the Eastern Chicken and the Hauraki Gulf; East Coast Bays and the regional parks of Auckland; Eastland, where another era survives in tiny settlements like Waihau Bay, near East Cape, and Eastbourne, the Wellington bay that is as New Zealand as Katherine Mansfield.

There is more than just an east to go with our choice. Each area featured has a little of the best available anywhere in New Zealand. Contained within them are fine beaches and fine wines, restaurants to cater for all palates, outdoor activities to suit all tastes, rugged isolation and urban sophistication.

And just in case somewhere to the east doesn't inspire you, we have come up with a selection of other places you might consider.

One thing is for sure, with Anzac Day making a rare appearance alongside the Easter holiday, Easter 2000 is perfectly timed for an autumn break.

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