New Zealand Road Trip Route

Our two month campervan road trip of New Zealand is over and we had a great time. The New Zealand road trip route took us from Tauranga, North Island to Fiordland in the South and back. We drove over 6200km and saw countless beautiful sights.

Planning Our New Zealand Road Trip Route

Small as New Zealand is – equivalent to Colorado – there’s a lot to see and do. Before we hopped in the van, we didn’t have much of a plan besides seeing as much as we could. We bookmarked Lonely Planet, read people’s blogs, and used Google Maps to decide where to go and what to do.

Once we started driving, we only knew where we were going next. Then, as the days progressed, we booked two things weeks in advance: the Doubtful Sound overnight cruise, and the Kaikoura Coastal Walk. Everything else we booked a day or two in advance or last minute.

We tried to mix it up, visiting both popular and “off-the-beaten” path places. Plus, we hiked and biked, met up with friends, and even relaxed a little. Our New Zealand road trip route took us from Tauranga in the North Island to the South Island fiords and lots in between.

Camping

We stayed in all sorts of campgrounds, and used airbnbs in Wellington and Christchurch for convenience and comfort. Having a campervan in New Zealand is pretty handy.

Where We Went in Our Campervan: Road Trip Recap

Since we already explored from Whangerei to Auckland to Tauranga by land and sea, we drove south. We spent eight weeks: a week on the North, six weeks on the South, then a final week on the North Island.

Eight weeks for a road trip is long, but the time flew by! We were so lucky to have all that time. Here’s a recap of our road trip.

North island: Tauranga to Wellington

Before we left Tauranga, our only booking was for the ferry across the channel to the south island on January 30th. We left on the 23rd, which gave us a week to travel 524km. We could have done that in one day, but we took seven and camped by lakes and oceans and visited wineries, breweries, funny and pretty viewpoints, biked and hiked. That’s what we did all along the entire New Zealand road trip route.

Taupo

We drove 144km and spent two nights in a freedom camping spot in Taupo, just south of Rotorua. While there, we visited the beautiful waterfall and raced around their mountain bike park.

Hawkes Bay

After Taupo, we headed east for 144km to one of New Zealand’s famous wine regions. The freedom campsites in this region are conveniently located and nice, the surroundings are lovely, and the wineries wonderful. We stayed three nights in two different campgrounds. Hawkes Bay remains a favorite.

Two Stops Before Wellington

Between Hawkes Bay and Wellington, we stopped at two freedom camping sites. First was the Mangatinoka Reserve, conveniently located across the road from Tui Brewery, and second, Lake Domain, with black swans and lots of stars at night.

Wellington

Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand, is very different from Auckland. It’s grittier, less polished, but still has some great museums and nightlife.

Wellington is known as the windiest city in the world. I literally had to hold onto my hat so much I just gave up and took it off.

South Island: crisscrossing the south

To start our second week exploring New Zealand by campervan, we took an early afternoon ferry to the South Island. The ferry trip is almost four hours, but we had to arrive at least 60 minutes early to check in. Then we got to explore New Zealand’s South Island.

Blenheim

Our six week South Island adventure began in the heart of the Marlborough wine region. Blenheim offers free overnight camping downtown, a convenient bike ride to all the attractions, including the wineries.

Pelorus Bridge

After Blenheim we headed northwest towards Nelson, aiming for Abel Tasman Park. While we could easily have done the drive in one shot, we took some friends’ advice and drove 66km to overnight at the beautiful Pelorus Bridge DOC campsite. After some hiking, we even went swimming in the cold river.

Nelson

Nelson is an adventure town, with awesome hiking and biking trails. We freedom camped in a convenient downtown parking lot. Billed as the sunniest city in New Zealand, we endured a torrential downpour with hail. Good thing that along with the trails, Nelson has fine museums and excellent craft beer bars!

Kaiteriteri

We continued west further into parklands for two nights at a holiday park in Kaiteriteri. Home to one of New Zealand’s best beaches, Kaiteriteri was crowded because it was a holiday weekend. We did a combo sea kayaking-hiking tour and went biking in the local mountain bike park.

Heading Back East

We were booked for a two day hike on the east coast, 304km from Kaiteriteri, so we broke up the trip over two nights. The first was on Kina Beach on the Tasman Sea, which offered lovely beach walks. Then we drove 226km to The Store campsite, another beautiful beachfront spot.

Kaikoura Walk

The two day Kaikoura Walk included accommodations in cottages on farmland owned by the walk organizers. We saw a lot of sheep and cows in addition to seals on the beach over the course of the 26km two day hike, enjoyed the company of the two other couples also hiking, and got a break from the campervan.

Hot Springs

After Kaikoura, we went west to two hot springs. The first, Hanmer Springs, even had water slides! Then, Maruia, less than 80km away and more exclusive. Only guests at the resort, including campers, can use the hot springs. We treated ourselves to dinner in the fancy restaurant and and enjoyed the restorative waters.

West Coast – Wind and Sand Flies

It was our third week exploring New Zealand by campervan when we decided on a whim to check out the northwest of New Zealand. Part of the beauty of having both time and a vehicle, besides seeing the natural wonders, is making decisions on the fly.

We spent one night in the only freedom camping park in Westport, alongside the beach. After cycling and hiking along a lot of coastal pathways for stunning seaside views, we moved 100km south to Greymouth.

The west coast is known for both sand flies and wind, and we got a lot of both. The towns are not accommodating to freedom camping, most have only one site removed from any attractions or amenities. We were glad to have our bikes.

Franz Josef

We continued south for the glaciers, which have receded massively in the last 50 years, but the weather was not on our side. Soon after we arrived in Franz Josef it poured for over 24 hours. We probably needed the down time but we and everyone else there were stir crazy by the end of the storm. So we attempted multiple hikes in both Franz Josef and Fox Glacier next door, but the rain and fog persisted. We pulled up stakes and drove inland and were we glad we did! Those aren’t our first glaciers anyway.

Wanaka

Our introduction to the stunning Southern Alps, Wanaka was a whirlwind. In two days and two nights, we watched a triathlon, biked around the hills, and hiked the gorgeous and very steep Roy’s Peak.

After that arduous 16km climb up 1200+ meters, we rewarded ourselves with a private spa including hot tub and sauna at the holiday park!

Te Anau and Doubtful Sound

One of the few excursions we booked ahead was the Doubtful Sound overnight cruise. Since we live on a boat, we generally avoid boat tours, but for Fiordland, we made an exception, and this was a highlight of New Zealand for us.

Our tour left Te Anau on a Tuesday morning and returned Wednesday afternoon, so we spent Sunday, Monday, and Wednesday nights there.

Kingston

We broke up our drive to Queenstown with a night in this quiet little town on the bottom of Lake Whakatipu. While there, we cycled some of the Around the Mountains Cycle Trail while staying at the Top 10.

Queenstown

Queenstown began the “beautiful but busy” section of our South Island tour. This lakeside spot at the base of Ben Lomond is very popular, a ski resort in summertime. We liked the natural beauty, the multiple bike trails, and the nearby wineries, but only stayed two nights due to the crowds.

Omarama

We broke up the trip from Queenstown to Mount Cook with a night in Omarama, a sleepy mountain town with a sheep statue.

Aoraki/Mount Cook

Another campsite we booked in advance was the DOC site at the foot of Aoraki Mount Cook. New Zealand’s biggest mountain gets thousands of visitors daily for day hikes. We arrived early afternoon, parked our van and then cycled some of the nearby Alps 2 Ocean cycle trail. The campground is ideally located next to the start of several hiking trails, so we got up the next day and did two hikes before escaping the crowds and tour buses.

Lake Tekapo

Leaving Mount Cook early meant we could stay the night in pretty Lake Tekapo, and give ourselves a soak in the baths after a double hike day. Approximately 104K from Mount Cook, the main attractions of Lake Tekapo are the hot Tekapo Springs, the Dark Sky Project and an old church.

Christchurch Area

After a month in the South Island, we aimed for the east coast and Christchurch, to meet up with our friends Ian and Ann from S/V Afrikii.

Between Tekapo and Christchurch, we found a pub in an outlying suburb which allows freedom camping in one of their parking lots.

The next day it was a quick drive to the south island’s biggest city, which feels like a town, albeit one with excellent street art. The Quake City museum informed us about the 2010-2011 earthquakes which changed Christchurch dramatically, but we focused on reuniting with our friends, which we did for a few days in Christchurch and the nearby southern coastal town of Akaroa. After four nights in the CHCH area, we left Ian and Ann, who’d just begun their road trip.

With a ferry booked for Friday, on Tuesday we headed north for a few last must dos on the South island.

Back North to Kaikoura and Picton

We backtracked for one night in Kaikoura, then to Picton and a tour of the Marlborough Sounds, which included a water taxi and a beautiful hike.

Luck had it that our friends from S/V Lupina had a ferry the same day so we met them for one last drink in Picton.

End of the road: northbound on the north island

Two Nights in Wellington

We stayed the weekend in Wellington and it was both Fringe and Pride fest, so we saw a little of both. We had one more festival to get to before the end of our New Zealand road trip: WOMAD.

The Last Leg: Heading North to New Plymouth for WOMAD

After Wellington, we drove north about 60km and spent one night freedom camping near a park in Waikanae. While there, we biked along the river, visited a brewery and a cool new coffee shop.

Next, we detoured inland to Ohakune. The 229km drive took most of the day because we stopped twice to get Brian’s bicycle fixed, which we finally did in Palmerston North.

Another ski town in the off-season, Ohakune was charming but very quiet. One of our favorite things there was the bike trails. For our first ride in Ohakune, we got driven to the ski lodge at Mount Ruapehu, the tallest mountain on the North Island, and biked down the road. It was exhilarating!

We spent 2 nights there and were going to extend another to do the Tongariro Mountain Crossing, a famous day hike, but the weather didn’t cooperate. We still enjoyed our time in the Carrot capitol of New Zealand.

For our last stop before New Plymouth, we freedom camped downtown by the river in Whanganui. An artsy town with excellent mid-20th century architecture, the food scene was kind of blah, but we loved the street art and the elevator in the hill.

The Final Weekend: New Plymouth and WOMAD

We’ve been dreaming of going to a music festival in New Zealand, and WOMAD was fantastic! We loved the cool Kiwis in their colorful clothes and the incredible musicians from all over the world: we saw bands from several continents and had a fun day dancing and clapping along. It was a great way to celebrate the end of our eight week adventure on the road.

Thanks for reading about our New Zealand road trip route. We were fortunate to have a lot of time to travel around this beautiful country.

What’s the best road trip you’ve ever done? Let me know in the comments, I want to do more!