Travel plans: CHANGE OF PLAN: WE HAVE NOW COMPLETED OUR HOME EXCHANGE FOR MAY/JUNE 2007 AND HAVE POSTPONED OUR TRIP TO VANCOUVER ISLAND UNTIL MAY 2008. WE ARE STILL OPEN TO ALL ENQUIRIES AT ANY OTHER TIME AND WILL RESPOND TO ALL EMAILS.

Our house is a spacious five year old brick home and is situated in a quiet subdivision two blocks from the white sands of the Papamoa Beach in the Bay of Plenty.You can see the shopping plaza, cafes, restaurants, medical surgery etc from our front letterbox. The house faces north and catches all day sun. It consists of 3 bedrooms, one king-size bed (which can be converted to two single), 1 double and a queen size bed in the master bedroom. We have a large modern kitchen with all modern appliances with dining room and a separate large lounge, large bathroom and separate toilet, plus an en-suite bathroom attached to the master bedroom. There is a sliding door off the master bedroom leading to the garden and bi-fold doors off the dining room and lounge to the outside garden and barbeque area. A gas barbeque is available. We have internet and email access.

Our region: Papamoa is located in the Bay of Plenty province, just 15 minutes from Tauranga and the stunning beaches of Mount Maunganui and Pilot Bay. May/June is our autumn and we enjoy sunny mild weather with temperatures between 17-19 degrees C. We are approximately 2 and 1/2 hours drive from Auckland (which is the closest International airport) and lies in the heart of the orchard area and is the home of the famous kiwifruit which is exported around the world. There are regular air and road services from Auckland, several times daily. We are 45 minutes from Rotorua, which is one of the main tourist destinations in New Zealand, with it's Maori culture/thermal activity/hot mud pools etc. A further 45 minutes takes you to the shores of Lake Taupo, which is both a summer and a winter playground and has fantastic trout fishing all year round. Lake Taupo is in close proximity to two of N.Z's best ski fields. A car exchange is available.

There are no pets to look after. We are non smokers and do not allow smoking in our home. We take a lot of pride in our home and would look after yours in the same fashion. We have family nearby who you can call upon if you need assistance. Also we have a kind neighbour who normally looks after our home when we are away to help you if you need any information.

Alan and Lesney are in our mid fifties, still working part time, and have travelled extensively within New Zealand and Australia and in the year 2000 travelled around the world visiting Perth, Singapore, Athens, Crete, Santorini, Naxos, Rome, southern Italy, Tuscany, Umbria, a "tiki" tour through Austria, Germany to Paris before ending up working in the UK for five months before coming home through America and Rarotonga. We love hiking, swimming, cycling and walking and have just completed the famous Routebourn Track in Fiordland. We are at present planning our trip to the UK in May/June 2007 but are interested in any world exchanges, including within New Zealand, in particular the Bay of Islands, the Far North and the Nelson Province which are our among our favourite NZ destinations. We have a particular love for Italy, France, the UK, Spain and Canada, but are prepared to consider all enquiries.