Back from South island New Zealand

[Axisx]

NORTH ISLAND
Leaving on 1 june...rtn 14 jun
Planning a 12 day motorhome drive from 2 June to 13 June.
Just got the tix for 2 pax at total $1490 ( jetstar )

campervan cost est : $1500 with $0 excess insurance ( havent booked yet..still looking ard )

no other plans done up yet.
open to any suggestions

 

[mata_hippo]

NORTH ISLAND
Leaving on 1 june...rtn 14 jun
Planning a 12 day motorhome drive from 2 June to 13 June.
Just got the tix for 2 pax at total $1490 ( jetstar )

campervan cost est : $1500 with $0 excess insurance ( havent booked yet..still looking ard )

no other plans done up yet.
open to any suggestions

can give you some comments after my trip

 

[Axisx]

can give you some comments after my trip

camping here for updates.

 

[ahbui83]

Im just back from new zealand last week.
I would like to sell my lonely planet, rough guide and the rough guide map.
These 3 items help me a lot on planning the route and activities.
Condition is 7.5/10.

Selling these 3 items at a price of $55.00
Lonely Planet Book: Amazon.com: Lonely Planet Discover New Zealand (Full Color Country Travel Guide) (9781742200897): Charles Rawlings-Way, Brett Atkinson, Sarah Bennett, Peter Dragicevich, Scott Kennedy: Books
Rough Guide Book: Amazon.com: The Rough Guide to New Zealand (Rough Guides) (9781848365230): Paul Whitfield: Books
Rough Guide Map:
Amazon.com: The Rough Guide to New Zealand Map 2 (Rough Guide Map: New Zealand) (9781848361713): Rough Guides: Books

Do pm me if you are interested..

 

[AT]

bookmarked

 

[playereleven]

I'm in South Island now, on a Working Holiday Visa. Fellow Singaporean. Just bought a car yesterday to travel around. Anyone who is interested to jump on to explore and share the fuel cost, please feel free to drop me PM or for faster response, email to playereleven@gmail.com. Will be here until 10 Jun. I might be working for a few weeks during this 2 months but we can work out something. Cheers

 

[mozzozo]

Hi guys will be heading to nz in mid june. Was wondering how is the driving therr like? Haha

 

[ahbui83]

Hi guys will be heading to nz in mid june. Was wondering how is the driving therr like? Haha

You need to strictly follow their speed limits. There will be police ambushing at the road side. Once u over the speed limit, they will summon u. No excuses given. NZ is really strict on speed limit

Highway is 100km/hr
Town area is about 50km/hr

Speed Signage are clearly stated. If the opposite care high beam u, take note that there are police car in front. So drive carefully.

Rent a GPS from the rental car company. Once we over limit, the GPS will sound us.

Theres a local who told us his friend drove 100km/hr in town area and kanna fine NZ$500.. because is way over speed limit... So just follow NZ speed rules and u will be fine..

 

[nikkoon]

Hi ppl just to share with those who are interested in hiring motorhome try visiting Rental Cars | Car & Campervan Rental - DriveNow NZ I'm actually looking to travel in late june and wonder if anyone had experienced travelling via motorhome during winter?

 

[mozzozo]

Hmm any branded goods worth getting from nz? Planning to go skiing in june also. Anything to take note off?

 

[Axisx]

Hi ppl just to share with those who are interested in hiring motorhome try visiting Rental Cars | Car & Campervan Rental - DriveNow NZ I'm actually looking to travel in late june and wonder if anyone had experienced travelling via motorhome during winter?

I am going on June winter season. Since I am interested in freedom camping... i got a camper that could stay outdoors unplugged for 3 days at least. Which means to say that I need not look for a powered site everyday.Also, the van must be shielded or at least have a heater to keep u warm at nite. I hired a base jumper 2 from new Zealand wilderness motorhome

 

[mata_hippo]

camping here for updates.

im back from my trip

wad questions do u have in mind now so i can give you some opinions specifically?

the full insurance is definitely worth it due to the road conditions at some places (gravels, small animals, etc.)

we kena a small accident along the way, hit a dead possum on the road and we heard a loud bang at the rear. we didn't think much of it until we stopped over to buy groceries and noticed the damage...

the loud bang was actually the dead possum hitting the "thing" infront of the rear tyre (i duno what u call that part of a vehicle) and left that "thing" dangling by 1 screw... we had to slowly twist it off that's y u dun c anything infront of the wheel now...

the duct tape was of little help so we left it dangling all the way... from the side mirrors u can see it flapping a little

 

[mata_hippo]

You need to strictly follow their speed limits. There will be police ambushing at the road side. Once u over the speed limit, they will summon u. No excuses given. NZ is really strict on speed limit

Highway is 100km/hr
Town area is about 50km/hr

Speed Signage are clearly stated. If the opposite care high beam u, take note that there are police car in front. So drive carefully.

Rent a GPS from the rental car company. Once we over limit, the GPS will sound us.

Theres a local who told us his friend drove 100km/hr in town area and kanna fine NZ$500.. because is way over speed limit... So just follow NZ speed rules and u will be fine..

yep, the ppl there r rly law abiding... so jus follow wadever they do when u're there...

when we were at the campervan rental place, the guy told us they usually allow only +4 allowance on top of the limit... will be +9 during special occasions like easter break...

 

[junichi]

yep, the ppl there r rly law abiding... so jus follow wadever they do when u're there...

when we were at the campervan rental place, the guy told us they usually allow only +4 allowance on top of the limit... will be +9 during special occasions like easter break...

Hi guys

I juz came back from south island last week
Yup..do take note of ur speed limit..u will easily exceed it when driving on v empty and striaght road..
And ya there will be "kind" ppl high beaming you to alert you of TP ..
And of you feel a little slpy..pls pls stop and take a break..v v dangerous esp mountainous road..
And pls dun let the beautiful scenery distract your drivin
Overall I think driving in nz is fun .if you drive often in sg, driving in nz wun give u much of a problem..
Cheers

 

[casualtraveller]

Travelled NZ in Nov 2011

seeing these photos brings back beautiful memories when we were travelling in NZ in Nov 2011. We did a partial road trip in south island. Road trip is a must try in NZ. It's never stressful or boring driving there. Below was our itenary.

1) Fly to Auckland via JetStar
2) Took Air NZ from Auckland to Christchurch
3) Pick up our rental car (Apex Car Rental) - We bought Tomtom GPS in Singapore with free NZ map downloaded.
4) Stayed in Christchurch 1 night.
5) Drive to Lake Tekapo and stayed 2 nights.
6) From Lake Tekapo drive to Mt Cook passing by Lake Pukaki. Along the way, turn right into Lake Tekapo Canel where there is salmon fish farm. In NZ, they call it trout. You can do fishing there and also buy sashimi, smoked salmon, etc from the small shop.
7) After 2 nights, from lake tekapo to Queenstown, passing by Lindis Pass, Cromwell, Arrowtown, Kauwara River, Gibbston Valley.
8) Stayed in Queenstown for 3 nights where we go to Glenorchy and other activities.
9) Went to Te Anau then Milford Sound and back to Queenstown.
10) Take Air NZ from Queenstown to Auckland. Queenstown Airport is scenic too.
11) Stayed 2 nights in Auckland where cheaper Manuka honey can be found near to Britomart Train Station. Shop name is Dr. Manuka. For cheaper Manuka sweet, buy in Lake Tekapo.
12) Auckland via JetStar to Singapore.

Wanted to post pics here but my post count not enough.

 

[casualtraveller]

If you are travelling domestic with Air New Zealand, book from their website at grabaseat.co.nz. They have cheap domestic air tickets. Can be as low as $69 per pax per trip.

 

[Axisx]

the loud bang was actually the dead possum hitting the "thing" infront of the rear tyre (i duno what u call that part of a vehicle) and left that "thing" dangling by 1 screw... we had to slowly twist it off that's y u dun c anything infront of the wheel now...

the duct tape was of little help so we left it dangling all the way... from the side mirrors u can see it flapping a little

Hi, welcome back home. Lucky small accident!

For bicycles we call it mudguard. So maybe for vehicles it's also called mudguard. I have tons of question but will try to keep it less and won't load it at one go. : )....... Oh shucks... I dunno where to start...


1. How's the weather. Super cold at nite? Do I really need to get those gore-tex material clothings or the normal wind proof thick jacket china made stuff is enuf?

2. I intend to do lots of freedom camping. Am still trying hard to figure out thru various websites from DOC and rankers about the recent changes in freedom camping. Did you do freedom camping and if yes any issues with the locals chasing u away? I am getting a self contained motorhome.

4. Many more questions... But brain freeze now. Do u have any free maps that u want to get rid of?

5. How many km did u conquer? Since I will be the only driver for 12 days... and intend to drive a max of 300km per day with breaks in between. Am I siao person?

Thanks a million!

 

[mata_hippo]

Hi, welcome back home. Lucky small accident!

For bicycles we call it mudguard. So maybe for vehicles it's also called mudguard. I have tons of question but will try to keep it less and won't load it at one go. : )....... Oh shucks... I dunno where to start...


1. How's the weather. Super cold at nite? Do I really need to get those gore-tex material clothings or the normal wind proof thick jacket china made stuff is enuf?

2. I intend to do lots of freedom camping. Am still trying hard to figure out thru various websites from DOC and rankers about the recent changes in freedom camping. Did you do freedom camping and if yes any issues with the locals chasing u away? I am getting a self contained motorhome.

4. Many more questions... But brain freeze now. Do u have any free maps that u want to get rid of?

5. How many km did u conquer? Since I will be the only driver for 12 days... and intend to drive a max of 300km per day with breaks in between. Am I siao person?

Thanks a million!

1) yep it's definitely colder at night but still bearable... how much u need to wear also depend on individual but 2 layers in general shld be enough...

u will also feel cold when u jus wake up, probably cuz ur body isn't working when u're sleeping... the smaller the vehicle the colder u will feel!

2) u can't rly do freedom camping or park wherever u like... u have to go to designated camping sites or holiday parks... it's usually around $20 per adult per night... there's an interactive map in rankers that u can use to find out about the holiday parks available in each area...

for a self contained motorhome, u have to find a park with dumpsite (to dump ur toilet and grey waste), water to fill up ur water tank and of cuz power to charge ur van...

3) u can get lots of free but still useful maps from the airport's i-Site visitor center... NZ has lots of i-Site all over the country in cities n major towns... they rly put in effort for their tourism industry!

4) i think we did around 1000 km? not rly sure... we went from auckland all the way up and back to auckland... then from auckland again to coromandel/rotorua/waitomo... then finally back to auckland again to return the van and fly back somewhere... but i wasn't one of the drivers , we had 2 drivers out of 4 of us...

300km/day shld be near the max u shld try, 200km per day for us took 2-3hrs depending on the traffic n speed limits...

take ur time for the qns... i'll try to ans them if i know...

 

[yamashita]

seeing these photos brings back beautiful memories when we were travelling in NZ in Nov 2011. We did a partial road trip in south island. Road trip is a must try in NZ. It's never stressful or boring driving there. Below was our itenary.

1) Fly to Auckland via JetStar
2) Took Air NZ from Auckland to Christchurch
3) Pick up our rental car (Apex Car Rental) - We bought Tomtom GPS in Singapore with free NZ map downloaded.

How's Apex Car Rental? Renting a car for 4 pax for my NZ trip in June.

 

[casualtraveller]

Socrates, your photos are beautiful. My regret for going NZ was, it's too short. I too went for 10 days. Should have stayed longer. Hope to go again.