Fancying a 'Big Adventure' before we pop our clogs & reckon NZ would fit the bill. So....
has anyone done it & have any hints/tips/recommendations in any shape or form? I've looked at current hire prices for a 4 berth motorhome that work out at around 5k NZ$ for 4 weeks. Ovbiously campervans are cheaperer but wer'e 60 odd & like a bit of space.
(Thinking about taking 4 weeks at least.)
Anyone?
Nothing but good things to say about Wilderness Motorhomes. They're definitely not the cheapest but it was a lovely place to call home for a month. The NZ Frenzy books are worth a look for finding interesting places to visit. Wilderness include their own book with loads of less well-known campsites which made it feel like more of an adventure. Much better to wake up next to a massive waterfall with no other campers in sight rather than yet another caravan park.
Another option that has worked well for friends n family visiting is just hire a car and stop at motels. Price works out about the same but more comfort.
Yep I'd seriously ditch the idea of a motorhome. They are expensive to rent, then you have to generally stay at paying campgrounds. They are also a pain in the arse to drive on twisty NZ roads and a better solution would be a cheap hire care from Apex rentals and Airbnb or motels, with Airbnb my preference for staying somewhere cool and meeting some more interesting people apart from motel owners....not offence to motel owners
^ what I did, albeit in miniature.
I did the sums and by the time I'd hired a camper van, I was cheaper hiring a normal car and just booking hotels/motels/B&B's/lodges/huts/AirBnB's etc on the hop as I went.
I was however travelling solo, which skews the costs a bit.
It was brilliant dodging about the South Island in a decent specced X-Trail, overtaking the sluggish, wobbling campervans wheezing their way up the mountain passes too...
Whatever you do - do it. New Zealand is just beautiful.
I’d be inclined to agree with the car/motel/cabin route. You can get to some much better spots in a car and motorhomes while may seem like a great idea have been ruined by freedom campers littering and shitting in the nice spots thus bans. 15 years ago yes, not now.
most Top10 holiday parks have good cabins, you’ll find lots of motel options and also homeaway and trader worth looking at. Usual caveats on roads being like UK A roads and v slow, take your time don’t try and do the whole country in 2 weeks
My mate toured there last year & became friendly with a NZ couple who have just visited after purchasing a motor home in this country..due to the huge price advantages / tax relief .
A long shot ..but if you can find someone who wants a new motor home in New Zealand you could probably cover the cost of your holiday ..
https://www.mmnz.biz/importing-a-motorhome-from-the-uk
I did 8 weeks in NZ at the start of this year with my partner for £3k all in including flight etc. We bought a camper van (hi top hiace) and used it for the whole trip, sold it on when we left and it cost us 100 dollars in total. We wild camped most places quite easily, a few busy spots but lots of great quiet spots too. We definitely wouldn't have done all we did without it. We did a few nights in airbnb etc to break things up or in bad weather. In NZ summer solar showers are more than enough and get overly hot at times.
Some friends did a similar trip at the same time as us and had 4 weeks, they did both islands but said after they wished they'd only done one as they felt they were cramming too much in.
Most importantly take your bike, the riding is amazing!
Great stuff & thanks for the replies. Defo food for thought!
What nz col says. 3 years ago i did a tour. The camper side of things has took a real bashing with the government partially trying to ban it. A car and cheap accommodation is a good as anything.
We lived there for a year and did trips away in the car with cheap accommodation. NZ has some superb 'backpackers' accommodation - worth keeping in mind as it's often better than the motels.
The roads aren't great fun in a campervan either. Whatever you choose to do, budget more time than you'd think for each journey (you can't really hurry anywhere). Also echo the advice above to choose a few places to spend some time in rather than zipping from place to place and only really seeing road signs and petrol stations.
