I’m heading down to visit the Kiwis during March-April for a 27 day road trip and have rented a VW Camper. Really looking forwards to it and am starting to put together a rough itiniary and was wondering if anyone here has made a similar journey or has any general tips on what to see?
Generally it seems that the South Island has more to offer than the North Island and a few travel sites suggest dividing up the time to 1/3 north & 2/3 south. Does this seem correct/plausible?
That would mean I have 9 days to travel from Auckland to Wellington, head south with the ferry and then an 18 day round trip ending at Christchurch.
Is it worth heading north from Auckland to Paihia / Waitangi Treaty grounds? Or better just to head south, so as not to backtrack.
Any must see stops / suggestions? I have some general ideas: Hobbiton, WETA, Lake Tekapo, Queenstown, Milford Sound… and because I have a van and don’t need to worry too much about booking accomodations, I’m hoping to leave some wiggle room, so I don’t constantly have to rush off to the next stop under time pressure. (as I’m travelling alone, I don’t have anyone to share the driving with)
Well, it’s a fairly small city and the unique thing is it was (re)built at the same time after an earthquake, so there’s not a lot of point singling anything out. The whole thing is spectacular.
I spent more time in the south island than the north when I went, no regrets. But I would like to go back again.
On the north island, you should check out the Waitomo Glowworm Caves - there are tours, I went with Spellbound when I was there. Super neat.
On the south island - some places I would recommend checking out and seeing if they’re your thing: Abel Tasman, the Catlins, Nelson, Dunedin, Akaroa. The Craypot in Jackson Bay is a fun lark. That whole island is just littered with memorable places, really.
Another recommendation for the Catlins (if you can brave the cold water, you might be able to swim with a pod of dolphins like I did two summers ago), and since it’s not too far away, check out Fiordland National Park. Lake Hauroko is one of the deepest lakes in the world (the walk is more than manageable) and the Green Lake track is effing stunning. Both provide fantastic experiences, and absurdly gorgeous scenery.
I would also suggest that if you’re dead keen on making a trip to Central Otago, instead of Queenstown or Wanaka, visit Glenorchy and check out the Routeburn track.
Thanks for all the tips!
Did have the Glowworm caves, Catlins & Glenorchy on my list and as I look at my route, I’m getting a bit worried that its getting rather awkward trying to cram in all the locations and still have time to sleep in some days… But once I hit the road, I suspect I’ll find a comfortable pace. Just need to make sure I reach the ferry in time! (from what I gather I should book that and not just rock up)
I do enjoy some hiking, but in the back of my mind I suspect its not ideal to do that alone (eg I twist my ankle somewhere in the sticks and don’t have any cell reception and nobody knows where I am).
New Zealand is god’s own country (and I’m an Australian). You should love it. I agree that pretty much everywhere was picturesque.
Please drive on the left hand side of the road. Everyone will thank you.
If you are sticking to the south island :
I thought Oamaru and Dunedin in the south island were surprising. There is an old victorian docks area in Oamaru which is like walking back in time 150 years.
Staying a couple of nights near Aoraki (Mt Cook) is amazing. The photo you showed is from the drive to this area. You need to get out and walk, and listen to the keas calling in the evening.
Fox glacier and/or Franz Joseph glacier are wonderful.
Fiordland is a must must must see. Book a cruise on Milford Sound. Expect the weather to be bad. Bring bug repellant - the sandflies are carnivorous.
Arthur’s Pass midway between the west and east coasts is fantastic country. The Devil’s Punchbowl is a nice walk.
I’m sorry its taken me so long to post about this trip, but I just thought I’d (finally) give a quick feedback on how it went.
Firstly it was AMAZING! Really was a perfect holiday. Ended up driving about 5000km across North & South Island and saw many many awesome landscapes and locations. Though I still didn’t get around to quite a few things, so I obviously need to head back there again someday!
For now here are a few snapshots from the trip:
The dwarven guard at the gates of Auckland Airport.
My van at one of the free camping sites.
Edoras! (unfortunately the drive on the long gravel to reach this location too so long, that the sun was setting when i arrived, so I had to fiddle around on fotoshop a bit here to compensate the lack of exposure)
Some interesting little stone pyramids I found in a river bed. There were hundreds of them. It was starting to rain, which gave them a nice mystical quality…
