Ibis Budget Auckland to Pokeno private car — Javier's family visit

The Ibis Budget up on Customs Street West always has a certain buzz about it in the early morning. A lot of backpackers heading out of the city, or arriving late. This Monday morning in mid-December it was a bit quieter than usual, but the lobby was still busy enough with people grabbing breakfast. I found Javier standing just outside the main entrance, looking a little lost with a small suitcase and a backpack. He's originally from Spain, he told me, but has been living in Auckland for a couple of years now while working for a tech company. Today was a bit of a break from his usual routine. He was heading down to Pokeno to visit family, his wife’s side. They had a little bach there, he explained, a holiday home that they used whenever they could get away.

He settled into the back of the Mercedes, and we pulled out into the Auckland traffic. It was already heating up, the usual Monday crawl through the central city. He didn't say much at first, just watched the familiar city streets glide by. I could tell he was enjoying the break from the city’s pace, a quiet moment before the drive south. As we cleared the central business district and headed onto the Southwestern Motorway, the conversation started to open up a bit. He pointed out a few spots he knew from living in the city, places he’d explored on weekends. He mentioned he’d only recently started using private drivers for trips like this, having previously relied on rental cars or the bus. “It’s more relaxing,” he’d said, with a slight smile breaking through his reserved demeanour. “No need to worry about navigation or parking, especially when you’re going somewhere new, or in my case, somewhere familiar but you just want to switch off.”

The journey down the Southern Motorway is always a bit of a grind, especially on a Monday. The Bombay Hills can be a bottleneck, and the Pokeno stretch often has roadworks. This time, it was thankfully clear. We stopped at the BP on the way, just past Mercer, for a quick coffee. Javier bought a small bottle of water and stretched his legs. He mentioned that his wife’s family were expecting him for a late lunch. They’d apparently been planning a big barbecue, the kind that lingers all afternoon. He’d been looking forward to it all week, he admitted. He’d only seen them a few times since he’d moved to New Zealand, and these family get-togethers were important to him. He spoke about his own family back in Spain, a quiet wistfulness in his tone, and how he missed their regular Sunday lunches. It was a different kind of pace, he said, a rhythm he hadn't quite found yet in Auckland.

As we got closer to Pokeno, the landscape started to change. The rolling green hills became more prominent, dotted with sheep and the occasional beef cattle. The air felt a little cleaner, a little cooler than in the city. He pointed out a turn-off we’d be taking soon. “My wife’s aunt lives just down that road,” he said. “They have a great view of the Waikato plains from their deck.” He seemed genuinely happy to be heading there. There was a lightness in his voice that hadn't been there when we started the trip. It’s always rewarding to see that shift, that dawning realisation that the stress of the journey is over and something pleasant awaits.

We pulled up to a neat little house on the edge of Pokeno, the kind with a well-kept garden and a couple of cars already parked in the driveway. A woman came out onto the porch as we approached, waving enthusiastically. Javier gathered his bags, thanked me for the ride, and with another slight smile, he headed towards his family. He’d arrived, the journey done, the lunch barbecue undoubtedly just starting. I watched him go before turning the car around and heading back north, the afternoon sun glinting off the windscreen. Just another day on the road, connecting people and places.