Services
Doctors, banks, internet, information centres....even hangover cures and sun burn prevention! You'll find what you are looking for in Taupo. Check out our list of essential services
Useful-to-know Stuff...
Emergency and Medical Services
New Zealand Emergency Services (Police, Fire & Ambulance) 111
If in doubt about whether to ask for ambulance, police or fire (such as in the event of a multi-vehicle traffic accident), always ask for the Fire Service. The fire crews have trained paramedics and can arrange for the other emergency services as required, including organising a rescue helicopter.
Taupo Coastguard 07 377 0400
Taupo Police Storey Place 07 378 6060
Medical Services
Taupo Hospital Kotare St 07 378 8100
Taupo Medical Centre 117 Heuheu St
Pharmacy
Main Street Pharmacy cnr Tongariro & Heu Heu Sts
Opening hours 8.30am - 8.30pm Mon-Fri, 9am-8.30pm Sat-Sun
07 378 2636
Dentist
Taupo Dental Centre 127 Spa Road 07 378 8005
Optometrist
Visique Taupo Optometrist 32 Heuheu St Taupo 07 378 8770
Taupo Vision Care 66 Ruapehu St 07 378 7529
Banks
Banking hours in New Zealand are 9am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday.
ANZ Banking Group 42-46 Horomatangi St 0800 180 921
ASB Bank Ltd Horomatangi St 0800 803 804
Bank of New Zealand Tongariro St 0800 800 468
National Bank of NZ Tongariro St 0800 808 908
WestpacTrust 27 Horomatangi St 0800 400 600
Visitor Information Centres
All the centres are extremely helpful and can make bookings on your behalf. Call in for advice, information, maps and brochures. Another site to check for really handy info on Taupo is: Destination Lake Taupo
I Site, Taupo Tongariro Street 07 376 0027
I Site, Turangi Ohuanga Road, Turangi 07 386 8999
Tongariro National Park Whakapapa Village 07 892 3729
Experience Taupo, Tongariro St 07 377 0704
Internet & Email Facilities
Global Gossip 11 Tuwharetoa St
Central Plateau REAP 73 Titiraupenga St
Computer Shop 15 Tamamutu St
Contact Cyber Cafe 10 Roberts St
Cybershed 117 Tongariro St
Log On 71 Tongariro St
Lock It or Lose It
If you're travelling around in a vehicle ALWAYS take your valuables with you when you leave and ALWAYS lock your vehicle
Sun
Thanks to a big hole in our ozone layer, spending all day in the New Zealand sun without protection will mean some serious sunburn.
SLIP - on some protective clothing
SLOP - on some sunscreen (SPF 40+)
SLAP - on a hat
Telephones
0800 numbers are free, 0900 charge by the nanosecond and New Zealand's area codes couldn't be simpler:
09 - Auckland and Northland
07 - Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Coromandel Peninsula and Central Plateau
06 - East Coast, Hawkes Bay, Manawatu, Taranaki
04 - Wellington, Kapati, Hutt Valley
03 - South Island
For international calling, dial 00 + Country Code (i.e. 00 44 = Britain). New Zealand's telephone companies are very generous in offering capped national and international calling charges at weekends. It's worth asking a friendly Kiwi if you can use their residential phone. You can talk for hours and it's only going to cost you a few dollars. Be warned though: calling overseas during business hours costs a fortune. It's worth buying a pre-pay mobile (especially if you're going to remote places) and selling it on to someone when you leave.