We arrived late afternoon in Christchurch and checked in to the hotel. At the airport as soon as we stepped off the plane there was a Spark counter offering good deals on Sims and eSims.  They added a new physical Sim to Jackie’s phone and configured my eSim – it was about NZD 95 for 30GB for both phones (buy one, get one half price) which we thought was a good deal. We grabbed an Uber to get to the hotel only to find the room was not ready (at 3pm!) .A complimentary tea later and we went straight to bed given the travel and different time zones.

Given that we still had a bit of jet lag we had a relaxing day by the pool at the hotel. Although Spark had configured our phones,  the phone with the replacement physical Sim was not working so we spent an hour or so with Spark technical support trying to fix it. In the end, we went to a local Spark shop where the guy identified the APN config being wrong (it should have been set to ‘internet’) and then after a reboot the phone was fine. Throughout our trip, Spark worked fine, albeit in Fjordland there was little connectivity though I suspect this is the same for all network providers. 30GB for 4 weeks on each phone was fine for us.

Our hotel was close to The Botanical Gardens so we took a stroll through the area and around the city and heard the various stories from the locals about the enormous ML6.2 earthquake they had there in 2011. There are still noticeable empty areas where building once stood.

The Global Buskers Festival was coming to a close but we had some great street entertainment along the way.

We decided to take public transport to the Gondola, which was on the purple line. We had some impressive views of Christchurch and did one of the numerous walks at the peak. There are some interesting gifts to be purchased at the building at the top as well as food and drink. Once we descended we took the public bus which is a frequent service back into town. Another meal and stroll around town and then back to the hotel.

We had booked a motor home whilst in the UK, about 2 months in advance. We should have booked it perhaps 6 months in advance as they are very popular and choice becomes restrictive. We went with Britz who are based at the airport and they provided a Fiat Laika Cosmo. There was a long queue and it seemed ages before we got allocated the vehicle. A quick inspection and we were on our way. First stop was to the local supermarket for provisions and then we headed for Arthur’s Pass and on to Moana at Lake Brumner.

Arthur’s Pass was spectacular and we felt our trip on the South Island had really started. We stopped at Lake Pearson on the way through for lunch.

We used the THL app (THL seem to own most of the motor home companies; Britz, Mauii, Apollo, Jucy etc) to find and book sites and we found that many of the west coast sites were fully booked as this was peak/shoulder season.

Once we had checked in at Moana and had worked out how all the van components worked (we were Newbies!) we toddled off for a meal at the local pub.

Lake Brumner is a warm lake due to the lake fauna which is dark and so absorbs the heat from the sun. We had a refreshing swim and then packed up to hit the road. We headed north to the blow holes and Pancake rocks of Punakaki, We stayed at our first Freedom Campground, ie; no facilities at all so all overnighters have to have self-contained vehicles. We were surprised to find that quite a few of the locals turned up in their cars and stayed over. It was great to fall asleep to the silence except for the sound of the breaking waves nearby.

We took a walk through the local forest and then started our next leg to Lake Mapourika along the West Coast Highway. We passed through some stunning scenery and made it to Otto McDonald campground on the lake by mid afternoon. Again, a lovely lake surrounded by beautiful scenery so we had another warm swim.

Again, a beautiful journey along windy and steep roads to get to Wanaka. On the way, we passed Franz-Josef and Fox glaciers and given that the parking for Fox glacier was just off the highway, we stopped there. We took a walk along Fox Glacier Valley up towards the glacier which offers good views. There is lots of interesting information about the receding glacier and the surrounding woodland.

We stopped at Roaring Billy Falls for a break, but they were not roaring as this was quite a dry spell but it was great to take a walk through the woods.

We then pressed on to Wanaka with excellent scenery as we passed between Lake Wanaka and Hawea.

Another scenic drive from Wanaka to Queenstown where we stayed at Kingston Campsite on Lake Wakatipu.

We really enjoyed the vitality and beauty of Queenstown. We loaded up with some more supplies and then took a well earned rest swimming in the lake at the campground.

We left Kingston Campsite to go to Te Anua. This was a shorter trip than those before and we arrived at Lake View Holiday Park in the early afternoon. Lunch was a legendary New Zealand pie from Mike’s Pie shop which was delicious and we spent some time wandering around Te Anua.

We wanted to take a flight over Doubtful Sound and The Alps so had the option of helicopter or seaplane so we booked the seaplane as the pilot said the weather would be good in a couple of days time – which it was!

We visited the Te Anau Glowworm caves which were really interesting. There is a short boat ride around some islands and then we arrived at the quay. The tour was run by RealNZ; we had a short walk into the cave and then we carried on by boat in complete silence. The glowworms were very impressive and we had a presentation by one of the guides which helped us understand the glowworm life cycle.

After a wander around Te Anau we visited the Bird Sanctuary which is  a short walk out of town. We saw a variety of birds and were impressed with the New Zealanders approach to preserve their wildlife

Today we did a seaplane trip over Doubtful Sound and The Alps. The plane leaves from Te Anua and there are different trips that you can do. We chose the 40 minute flight which takes you over The Alps to Doubtful Sound and the surrounding area. We went with Wingsandwater and had a really enjoyable trip. 

It’s about a 2-3 hour trip in the Motor Home dependent on traffic and weather so we decided to leave Te Anua and stop on the way up to Milford Sound.

The Mirror Lakes are on the way so we stopped for a break but there was probably a little too much wind to get any good reflections from the water.

We stayed at The Cascades camping ground which is spacious and has great views. There are also some well marked walking tracks which we used and turned in for a quiet night.

We had a short drive up to Milford Sound from the campsite. It’s worth booking online before you go and there are multiple sightseeing boats which all seem to do a similar thing.

Parking can be expensive at $10/hr at the car park close to the quay so we parked at a car park which was 30 mins walk away for free and which was very popular.

Our trip was about 2 hours and the scenery is absolutely stunning. Well worth a trip out. Once we had done the trip, we returned to Manapouri which is close to Te Anua. A 10 minute walk from the campsite was a bar/restaurant called The Church which did some great food and drinks. It’s advisable to book as it’s very popular.

We left Manapouri for Lowburn. This was a large campground next to the large clean Lake Dunston. We met some friendly New Zealanders who suggested we walk The Hooker Trail at Mount Cook which is what we decided to do the following day.

We headed to Mount Cook from Lowburn to do the Hooker Trail and had some glorious weather again. We called to book into the White Horse Campground and were told that we could use the overflow area as they were busy. Once parked up, we followed the Hooker Trail which is about a 4 hour round trip and well worth doing. On the way you pass over about 3 rope bridges and the walk terminates at a glacial lake at the base of Mount Cook. There were even small icebergs afloat! The trail is classed as ‘Easy’ and is a well marked track. Once again a well earned rest amidst the peace and quiet of the mountains.

We were up early and did the Kea Point Track prior to leaving. Our next overnight stop was to be at Geraldine where we found a well maintained Top 10 Holiday campground.

We traveled to the beautiful Banks Peninsula and stayed at Duvauchelle Holiday Park.

We spent a day traveling the steep and windy roads of the Banks Peninsula. We really enjoyed Okai Bay and also realised there was a great looking campground and what looked to be free camping nearby. There were very few people around . Given the expanse of the beach, one lucky soul was enjoying some sand yachting.

We needed to hand the van back on the following day so made our way back to Christchurch, stopping at Little River campground on the way through.

Motor Home Hand back day! We arrived back at the Britz depot to hand the vehicle back and made sure they were aware of some of the issues we had along the way. They were suitably contrite and provided a refund for the inconvenience but the net result is that we would NOT recommend them to anyone else. The lack of support from their mechanics throughout our trip was the key factor here. Our main takeaway was that a Motor Home lifestyle suited us so we would do this again when on holiday as we enjoyed the freedom that it provided.

We decided that rather than hire a car and travel up through the North Island to the South Island, that we would fly. Jetstar offer very cheap flights so we were due to fly out that evening to Aukland but once at the airport they cancelled the flight! They re-booked us on the flight the morning after and put us up in an hotel and covered meals etc but still rather annoying!

Jetstar managed to get us to Aukland where we picked up a Toyota RAV4 from Apex Car Rentals. We drove straight down to Rotorua where we stayed in a small lodge at Roturua Thermal Park. They had their own hot springs so we kicked back and relaxed and had a BBQ later in the day.

Kuirau Park and thermal Springs is worth a visit. It was only a few miles from our camp ground toward the middle of Rotorua. We had a casual stroll and saw the various thermal springs and were also able to dip our feet into the thermal baths which have outdoor public access.

We took a walk along the side of Lake Rotorua and doubled back to the quaint ‘olde worlde’ area of the Government Buildings which includes the Bathhouse and players having a game of Bowls amidst the methane enriched air and associated steam springs.

We tried to visit the Kiwi sanctuary at Rotorua but it was fully booked so continued the drive to Coromandel. We swam in Long Bay and later met Dawn and checked in at The Wee Cabin. This was a small cabin with all the required facilities and with a kitchen across a gravel drive. We went into Coromandel town and and had a lovely meal of Green-lipped mussels and Oysters at The Pepper Tree. Dawn made us aware of the local, ladies only, fishing competition prize giving at the Coromandel Hotel that evening so we spent a pleasant evening with the locals and band.

We decided to check out Whitianga, take a long walk to Cathedral Cove, have a nice meal and enjoyable time at Hot Water Beach and then back to Coromandel.

Another lovely drive which took us through Whitianga which looked a bit too crowded and commercial for us, to arrive at the public car park for Cathedral Cove. Although the walk to Cathedral Cove is classed as ‘easy’, it’s a long walk up and down some steep hills. The weather was hot as well so we were relieved to reach the Cove and have a swim.

We then drove to Hot Water Beach which was excellent. You need to be there about 2 hours either side of Low Water to ensure the steam fissure below you is truly experienced. As we arrived early, we had a lovely meal at the local cafe/restaurant with a great view over the beach. As you walk across the sands you arrive at certain hotspots which are really noticeable on the soles of your heat. In some places it is too hot to stand. There were quite a few people there building baths and some of the temperatures reach near scalding. Some people were boiling eggs and everyone helped to make baths and warm pools of water.

We then drove home to The Wee Cabin.

We spent a great time at Mangawai Beach which had great sand, clear water and breakers on which people were surfing. We had to move on and found a great little place called The Hideaway which had the best facilities that we had come across on our trip. The following morning we took a local walk through their Kauri forest to a secluded little pool and stream.

We reluctantly left The Hideaway to drive to La Petite Farme at Kerikeri. Again, we took the scenic coast road which goes via Russell Rd. Russell Rd is basically an 8km gravel track with steep drops either side – average speed about 20 km/h! We later found that it is not a route recommended for tourists but it was quite an experience. There was no other traffic. However, we made it down to Russell and took the ferry across to Paihia and then after a little sightseeing. Paihia has a great beach and so we lazed around  bit and then drove on to Kerikeri where we stayed the night.

We drove from Kerikeri to take a beach swim at Te Ngaere Bay which was deserted. We then moved on to take a look at The Rainbow Warrior monument at Matauri Bay. It was fascinating to learn about the demise of Rainbow Warrior by the French who blew a hole in her hull! We returned to Kerikeri for a quiet evening in.

We had a relaxing morning and then went to The Plough and Feather in the Kerikeri Basin Reserve for lunch. It’s a lovely quiet spot. Whilst there we had a look around The Old Stone Store, Kemp House and Gardens, Te Waimate Mission House and Te Ahurea which is a reconstruction of a fishing village.

We were going to walk from there to The Rainbow Falls but given the hot weather, we decided to drive up to The Falls and did the walk from the Public Car Park to The Rainbow Falls and also on to the Fairy Pools. Once we got to The Fairy Pools there were notices preventing us from swimming so we backtracked to The Rainbow Falls and had a great swim.

We visited The Waitangi Treaty Grounds and Museum which was excellent and toook about half d day to see most of it. We then took a look around Paihia which was quite commercial so we ended up under a tree on beach. We then had dinner at Kai Mata in Kerikeri.

We checked out of Kerikeri and drove to Hokianga Harbour. We stopped at Rawena and took the return car ferry to Narrows Wharf. We had meal at The Boatshed and then found the spherical boulders at Koutu. They were interesting but not worth making a special trip – it was a useful break in our journey. We then drove through the dense Whaipoua forest and stayed at Wild Forest Hideaway at Donelly Cross.

 We left our delightful Hideaway at Donnellys Crossing and had a short journey to see the biggest tree in New Zealand, The Tane Mahuta and had an informative presentation from a local guide. He also sang a Maori version of ‘My Way’ !

We then did the walk through the Kauri Forest to see the oldest tree in New Zealand, The Te Matua Ngahere which is about 2500 years old.

We enjoyed the walk through the Trounson Kauri Forest and then moved on to Kai Iwi Lakes Reserve and swam in Lake Taharoa. The Reserve has beautiful white silicon sand and clear blue water and was a real find.

Later, back at the cabin, Jackie had a massage on the deck.

We left the Wild Forest Hideaway to go to the excellent Kauri Museum at Matakohe. We then drove to Aukland to hand the car back at Apex Car Rentals at the airport and booked in to the Novotel hotel at the airport.

We decided to skip any tours around Aukland so took Air Link bus from airport to rail station Puhinui and then rail to Downtown Ferry terminal at Waitemata. Fullers360 do a ferry ride and get on/off bus ride around Waiheke Island called the Fullers360. It’s a short ferry ride over to the island which is well known for its vineyards and tourist areas. We took lunch at a vineyard which was great.

It was a relaxing day for us as we would have a long journey home so we returned to Novotel to pick up our bags and go back to airport. We flew Singapore Airlines Business Class flight at 0050 on Thursday 6th and arrived back in the UK at Heathrow Terminal 2 at 1530. Not the cheapest way to fly but the lie flat beds made the journey tolerable.