New Zealand - Northisland
We spent almost three weeks traveling through New Zealand in a van and discovered what the most accessible city in the country looks like, and how well Alex manages in such a small van. We experienced so much! The pictures can only offer a small glimpse into our time, but you can still get a sense of how beautiful the North Island of New Zealand is.
Our time in New Zealand was divided into two parts. On the one hand, we tested out for about three weeks how it is for us to discover a country with a camper on the other hand, we lived in Auckland in a shared apartment for three weeks.
The time in the camper was certainly not the easiest for us in terms of accessibility. We have the feeling that camper life is not made for people with disabilities, although New Zealand offers almost the perfect conditions for such a life. Unless you buy your own camper and then you can redesign it, according to your needs it will be hard. Together, we still managed this time.
The places, campsites and parking lots were mostly largely barrier-free, but it was, for example, difficult to adjust to frequently changing sanitary facilities. Alex's showering in particular was sometimes difficult for us here. Also, everyday life is much more complicated for a person with disabilities in the camper due to the limited space, as things often have to be moved from A to B for different times of the day or activities. At the places worth seeing themselves, there was often a high level of accessibility, if feasible in nature. For example, there were often signs for hiking trails as to whether or not they were suitable for people with mobility impairments.
We spent the second half of our time in New Zealand in Auckland, which can be compared to Sydney and Melbourne in terms of accessibility. Similar to Sydney, however, the very hilly terrain made getting around a bit difficult in places, or made some places difficult to get to at all. Public transportation and therefore buses are usable for wheelchair users.
Overall, there is an awareness in the New Zealand population about disability and inclusion, similar to Australia. The topic of inclusion is firmly anchored in society and is dealt with publicly, both politically and socially. Again, when we asked for help, we were helped very nicely, whereas people were less proactive in approaching us. In our opinion, this has a similar reason as we see in Australia. People with a disability are no longer seen as exotic here and therefore do not get the undivided attention. On the other hand, disabled people also get much more support from the state than in Asian or South American countries, so perhaps society feels it has to support them less than in countries where people with a disability really rely heavily on help from family or strangers. Nevertheless, the very hilly terrain makes many places difficult to reach.
Write us your opinion and your experiences.
How did you experience New Zealand?
Here we have created a small gallery for you,
with pictures from our Newzealandtrip.
