Thinking of a trip to NZ Iin jan/feb for three weeks.

Anyone any tips on car hire/places to stay/stuff that’s a must do etc.

Also any thoughts on budget? Thinking with current exchange rate not cheap….

Im there too…:^)

where are you flying into? North or South Island or both? three weeks isn’t a long time. I had a wedding in Auckland last February and managed to spend almost 2 weeks just in Auckland and the islands. then a further week driving around North island.

comments, Taranaki has some lovely beaches as does the Coromandel, if it isn’t pissing it down!!!! Taupo, the mountains to the south really looks a desolate wasteland. beautiful though. Rotarua, i would suggest find the public park by the lake and explore, lots of mud pools etc and no entry fee.

Campsites are everywhere, i never booked any and had no problems

I’d give north island a miss if you only have 3 weeks… a few towns and some nice patches of scenery, but not a patch on south island’s epic mountains.

a few more details, the ferry between north and south islands isn’t cheap, distances are further than you think, no motorways etc.

Oh and never ever pass a petrol station and think there will be another just round the corner….

There won’t be!

3 weeks is not long at all in NZ. I’ve been here 6 years and feel I’ve barely scratched the surface of what this country has to offer.

Are you planning on riding here? If so then on North Island I’d say Rotorua and Wellington and the best spots by a mile.
If you’re not riding then head straight to South Island. Take a couple of days to drive down the west coast past the glaciers and then inland to Wanaka/Queenstown. Fly to Milford from QT, arguably the best approach to a landing strip you’ll ever do. Arthurs Pass is worth a look to as is Mt Cook and Lakes Tekapo and Pukaki.
If you hire a shitty camper van and live on Mrs Macs pies (they make Ginsters look like Michelin starred fare) then budget can be kept low.

drive through the lindis pass.

if the weather’s awful it’ll be spectacular. if the weather’s nice, try and remember to breathe.

it really does look like this:

(only with fewer cars)

Agreed … Riding at Rotorua and Wellington is great! You could spend days at Whakarewarewa Redwood Forest (Rotorua) and still not ride it all…

just adding this to my history…

Going Next December and starting to plan, 3 weeks only aswell

ditto on riding for Rotorua and Wellington. Taupo also has some nice trails now and hotpools for soaking in .
for sights get out of the north island (although Taupo has some nice mountains and easy tourist walks) and head to the south island. camping is the best option. most motels can be a bit on the cheapo quality side, but theres plenty of them to choose from.

supermarket food isnt as cheap as here and indeed if you want anything free range/organic you’ll have to hunt for it and pay through the nose.
eating out is also about the same as here outside of citys.

last time i was there at that time of year we had 3 months of solid sun.

dont ride on the road in auckland.

Most of my tips relate more to a longer trip (we were there 6 months), although I would say perhaps don’t try and do too much. Otherwise you’ll be driving 90% of the time.

Everywhere you go – find a swimming hole

There’s a book called “NZ for Free” which details some of the free natural hot springs like Kerosene Creek half way between Rotoroa/Taupo.

Use DOC campsites – cheapest and most of them are in stunning locations. Swim instead of showering.

This one’s 20mins outside Queenstown (click through for large and to see where the campground is):

Moki Lake by tryingtimes, on Flickr

Get lost from time-to-time driving up dirt roads.

To be honest if I was just going for 3 weeks, I’d probably go:
Christchurch
Mt Cook – walk to both glaciers and maybe one of the tramps up to a hut.
Queenstown
Glenorchy – Paradise – start of Routeburn track
Queenstown (do some adventury stuff)

Then see if you’ve got time to go further to Fjordland.

Another thing I’d do is chase the good weather.

But that’s just me – there are loads of other options 🙂

supermarket food isnt as cheap as here and indeed if you want anything free range/organic you’ll have to hunt for it and pay through the nose.
eating out is also about the same as here outside of citys.

This was true even when the exchange was 2.4, so it’ll be even more expensive in supermarkets now.
We found eating out about the same price as buying the food and cooking it ourselves which was a bit strange.

Plan was to fly into auckland then head down north island fairly quickly to wellington (friends there). Then spend most of time on south island.

Is it better to rent car and motels/hotels or get a camper?

The whole plan is fairly fluid…

Biking wise may well not do much due to time constraints. (and may head out there for a year or two in 2014).

personnally get a camper or a car and tent, more flexible as to where you can stay.

Kiwi in Northumberland. Feeling homesick now… 😕

Kiwi in Kent.

Me too…

I used these guys when I was over in NZ. http://www.kiwiexperience.com/

Good way of meeting people, (I was on my own) had cheap deals with white water, bungy etc companys (and had spaces left open for them)

You can do one or both island, Not sure if hostals was included or not.
And if you like a place you can stay a few extra days, then ctahc the next bus.

But it depends on what you are planning to do.

The plan at the moment consists of go to NZ. Not got much beyond that!!

lived there for a year in 2003, just my views mind 😉

defo hire car and do b&b, so cheap, i did the campervan thing but they are too small and stink after a few days. i also did a stint with these guys http://www.magicbus.co.nz/ great way to see the country and as said above, meet people and hop on hop off. they offer you hostels but you can stay where you want.

the south island is better than the north IMO, purely for the WOW visual factor.

milford sound, was ok but a long trek and to be honest theres just as much amazing stuff about.

fanz joseph glacier, do the half day not full day, half day was just enough.

to be honest i loved the place and would move back for good if i could persuade the wife!

We did about 3 weeks, roughly a week in the N, 2 weeks in the South. Hired a camper from Escape and used DOC sites and occasional posher ones when we stank 🙂

We did a lot of driving and not too much stopping so we could fit a lot in, we will go again and be more static next time.

In brief we did (all the stuff lifted from a guide book really):

North Island
Flew into Auckland and drove North to Bay of Islands & Waitangi.
West to Waipoua Kauri Forest
South to Waitomo (Glowworm caves)
East to Rotorua
South to Tongariro and the Tongariro crossing
South to the ferry.

South Island
Picton to Abel Tasman
West Coast Road heading South taking in whatever we found on the way
Franz Josef/Fox glaciers/Mount Cook
Through the Haast Pass and down to Queenstown
Milford Sound
East to Dunedin
North to Kaikura (sperm whale watching)
Flew out of Christchurch

🙂

We did 5 months – but were cycling so were pretty slow.

Stand out bits for me were Doubtful Sound – Queenstown – Wanaka – then along the west coast to Punakaki. Absolutely stunning.

Thanks all – some great pics/advice. Any thoughts from the evening crowd?

I flew out a year ago today for a 5 week bike tour, which was nowhere near long enough. Will post more when i get in but check out:

http://www.standbyrelocs.com/default.aspx?c=2

for cheap van rentals, basically shipping hire campervans back north over a couple of days as most people hire North to south. I didn’t use them, but if they work out feel free to pop a bag of choc-coated pineapple in the post when you get back as my comission. More addictive than crack, cheaper and perfect for stashing in a bar bag for on-the-move-bike-touring-snackage 🙂

Jealous….. Did both islands in a 3 week rush in 2006. Thoroughly recommend Magic Bus and the South Island.

Did a month, stayed 1 week in North Island visiting friends in Mount Manganui (Lovely place) and then Palmerston North (great cocktail place but little else).

Rented van for 3 weeks in South Island,

Bit of wine tasting in Marlborough, may be worth getting a tour so you can imbibe if you are on your own.

Weather was poor for canoeing in Abel Tasman so headed down to Kaikoura and swam with seals which was pretty cool and cheaper than the whale trips.

Over to Greymouth then down to the Glaciers to hike about a bit then down to Wanaka. Loved this place, great food when eating out.

Queenstown next and did Dart river trip up from Paradise on Jetboat then down on inflatable canoe. Helicopter flight over the mountains.

Milford sound for a cruise, had to move the campervan the night we stayed there as huge puddle appeared around us as the van was rocked by the winds.

Then over to Dunedin to see the Albatrosses at Taiaroa head,saw great stand off there between a sheep and yellow eyed penguin.

Up to Oamaru to see the little blue penguin colony which was fantastic and then Christchurch.

On reflection loved the trip but wished we had more time. If doing it again I would cherry pick a few from those. Really enjoyed the wildlife aspect so may spend more time on that.

You will enjoy it and will regret not having more time and want to go back even if you had twice as much time and money so just pick what you fancy and enjoy it.

Preferred the South Island to the North
Highlights
Waiheike Island great YH

Waiheike Island by Richard Munro, on Flickr
Coramandell Peninsular

Coramandell Penisular by Richard Munro, on Flickr
Hire a splitty the only way to travel

Soaking up the sun by Richard Munro, on Flickr
Wellington was great for biking!

Which way now Wellington by Richard Munro, on Flickr

South Island highlights
Abel Tasman kayacking

Abel Tasman by Richard Munro, on Flickr
Travel down the west coast climb Franz Joseff Glacier and skydive around Mount Cook

Driving down the West Coast by Richard Munro, on Flickr

DSC01231 by Richard Munro, on Flickr

Queenstown do all the bungees and mtb lots!

DSC01302 by Richard Munro, on Flickr

Avoid Christchurch and Hamner Springs!! wish I had spent more time going South but a wedding dictated my route

Fave time of the day East Coast NZ by Richard Munro, on Flickr

Tried to bungee with my bike but they were to busy!

Queenstown 1st jump by Richard Munro, on Flickr

A few leftfield things
Hokitika Gorge is very lovely
If you are in Wgtn and fancy a bit of flash head to Wharekauhau for lunch
Of course in Wgtn there is epic mountain bike heaven literally everywhere and decent beer in Hashingo Zake (Taranaki St in the old police stn), Malthouse on Courtney place, Bar Ed in newtown, Hop Garden in Pirie St, Mt Vic etc
Trawl round the city looking at old tree stumps acting out LoTR scenes. Why – i have no idea but it seems quiet popular.
Top of S Island is great – biking in Nelson, Mapua for fish and chips and nice beer from Golden Bear brewery, Moutere Inn, Kaiteriteri etc
I love living here 🙂

@pomona
I love Mrs Macs pies, maybe it’s the fond memories. Can’t stand the Ginsters stuff you have here.

Anyone going to N Zed my advice is always; don’t try to do too much or see it all in a short space of time. Relax, chill out and enjoy where you are. It’s all lovely but you won’t enjoy any of it as much if you are rushing from place to place. I also think people under rate the North Island. Coromandel Peninsula is one of the most beautiful spots in the world.

Oh and two more things
1) FFS use lots of sunscreen, the UV is wickedly strong here compared to elsewhere and summer is punctuated by blistering tourists
2) Drive very carefully. NZ drivers are all legally blind, all wing mirrors are removed and the concept of a motorway is quite a long step away from our current infrastructure. There have been some epic smashes with tourists this year already.

2nd That re the driving standards.

Oh Don’t eat the sausages either, truly terrible.

Cathedral Cove Coromandel,

not quiet the same as above…. Taken in february 2012

1) FFS use lots of sunscreen, the UV is wickedly strong here compared to elsewhere and summer is punctuated by blistering tourists

First time i went to NZ, got off plane in Auckland, and staying in Kohimarama, thought i would walk down to Mission Bay, cloudy day about 1/2 hour walk so just enough to stretch legs after the flight.

Legs were tingling by the time i got to the beach, by the time i got back….

Lets put it this way i didn’t have sunburn, more radiation burns, skin peeling and weeping sores for a fortnight. I wasn’t wearing sunscreen, i simply didn’t take seriously enough the warnings, this time i spent 3 weeks in factor 30 and came away with a decent tan rather than sunburn.

Can’t wait to go back in Feb!

I had a month there two years ago – awesome

However, you MUST

Do Queenstown

And then when you’re there

I contemplated flying from Auckland straight after my sisters wedding just to go to Fergburgers…. Not so hot if you’re a veggie

2nd 3rd and 4th the sausages. ugh!!!!!!!!!!!!!
and good bacon is rare too!!!

1) FFS use lots of sunscreen, the UV is wickedly strong here compared to elsewhere and summer is punctuated by blistering tourists

+ 1,00000000

i remember walking out of the airport and the sun blinded me, i also got burned!

oh the beer is terrible in NZ 😉

I’ll never forget the flight over, went via LAX, 28 hours if i remember with a 2 hour stop in LAX, bloody killed me!

god i want to go back…. (and not return this time!!)

oh the beer is terrible in NZ

Clearly not looking in the right place!

we went for a month (wish we’d of stayed longer) and used a camper van to get about. The van was ace, just park up at a DOC ground or layby but i couldn’t help thinking that it would have been nice to meet a few more people by driving and staying in hostels etc.

Places we loved included Wanaka (more relaxed Queenstown but with plenty to do), Okarito (very small coastal village with lovely beach and walks) and Milford Sound (amazing scenery)

As a few others have said don’t try and cram in too much, one of the best things about the country is the pace of it. Just lazing about watching the world go by was one of the highlights for me.

PS Fergburger +1

drive through the lindis pass

Or get a bike and ride it. Hit my max speed there: 77.5kmh, loaded with 40kg of panniers. 🙂

109kmh on a tandem going down the hill to Clyde Dam. Why is it you start pondering mechanical failures at that point ?

oh the beer is terrible in NZ

It certainly used to be, that’s why i own a brewery and have done since 2006. Lots of good resources now such as http://www.craftbrewingcapital.co.nz/ for Nelson
http://www.craftbeercapital.com/ for Wellington – the now pouring is very useful.
Auckland of course has Galbraiths which is worth a trip up to (Mt Eden) and the Britomart brewery in town. In fact decent breweries all over the place.

that’s why i own a brewery and have done since 2006

If you ever need anyone to “sample” your beer I’m sure I could be persuaded….

No worries with that – 60 litres in the kegerator at the moment. Although i did somewhat overindulge at Bar Ed last night so the thought of a beer right now makes me go cold and sweaty