From Oz to New Zealand - Oz to Anywhere

The place that surprised me was New Zealand. I went for the first time only four years ago. It felt like I’d spent my whole life dating only to discover the boy next door was the love of my life.
Jana Frawley, editor – escape.com.au

As a fellow Australian, Jana’s quote really resonated with me as I was absolutely blown away by the stunning scenery in the South Island of New Zealand (NZ). Australians are keen travellers however I believe many of us put off visiting our neighbouring country, as well as other parts of Australia, to see more of Asia and Europe first. We think we can always visit NZ at any time as it’s so close. I was inspired to visit as I work with a lot of New Zealanders, many of whom are actually from Christchurch. I hear all about their trips on a day-to-day basis. Annie, a friend of ours, heads over to NZ annually to visit relatives and escape the oppressive humidity in Brisbane. I decided that last year was the perfect opportunity to do exactly that!! We could also do something special to celebrate our 10 years together and to see in the new decade too.

I’m from Canada, and New Zealand feels like you took all the best bits of Canada and squished them onto a tiny island like Hawaii. I was absolutely blown away by the beauty of the South Island.
Evangeline Lilly – Canadian Actress & Author

I appreciated Evangeline’s quote for a few significant reasons. As we were planning our trip a few people mentioned that the scenery in NZ is as beautiful as Canada. My Mum, Tina is Canadian and I have a strong desire to spend more time in Canada however it’s a much longer flight for us travelling from Australia. As we were heading to our Hotel we made friends with a fellow traveller in the taxi, Kathy. Kathy is a Canadian and was meeting up with her partner, Mark. We ended up having a couple of meals together and even catching up again on the road, in Queenstown. It warmed our hearts how keen they were to connect and we had a shared passion for NZ and sharing details about our respective road trip adventures. Our friends Andrew and Elena live in Christchurch and I met them both when I was teaching English in Kyoto, Japan some years back. Elena is also Canadian. So, as you can see, this quote meant a lot to me as I was reflecting on our NZ adventure and the connections we made as a result of our trip.

New Zealand Road Trip South Island 2020 in a Spaceships Campervan

We didn’t do any organised tours. We travelled independently and designed our own itinerary. Here it is for those of you who are interested in the details and may be looking to book your own trip.

I’m a member quite a few Facebook Groups on NZ travel and lots of the questions are about campsite and other costs. For us, this trip to New Zealand was a reasonable price considering we were travelling at a peak time and didn’t book until late October 2019. I’ve itemised some costs below but didn’t go to great lengths to differentiate Australian dollars from New Zealand dollars as the exchange rate wasn’t that significant. I’m interested to research if there’s any money to actually be saved by doing tours as opposed to travelling independently when we return to NZ next time. I’ve also included the cost of a powered campsite at each stop below:

Itinerary

Day 1 – Akaroa (1 night) – Akaroa Top 10 Holiday Park – Cost – $39.00
Day 2 – Timaru (1 night) – Glenmark Holiday Park – Cost – $38.00
Day 3 – Mt Cook (2 nights) – Glentanner Park Centre – The Mt Cook Experience – $108.00
Day 5 – Queenstown (1 night) – Queenstown Lakeview Holiday Park – $65.00
Day 6 – Te Anau (2 nights – base to drive to Milford Sound) – Te Anau Lakeview Kiwi Holiday Park and Marakura Deluxe Motels – $98.00
Day 8 – Queenstown (2 nights) – Queenstown Holiday Park and Motels Creeksyde – $130.00
Day 9 – Lake Tekapo (1 night) – Lake Tekapo Motels and Holiday Park – $54.00
Day 10 – Drive back to Christchurch, return hire care and fly home

Main Trip Costs – itemised

Travel Dates – Dec 22 2019 – Jan 5 2020 – Peak Season!!!!!
Total Cost – $5500 for 2 Adults (not including food, petrol and entertainment). I know it’s not romantic to include all the costs broken down but it’s practical for planning purposes. I’d like to assist you all as much as possible.
Return Flights – Brisbane to Christchurch – $2115.00 – Shuttle from Airport to Hotel – $24.00
Christchurch Accommodation – Hotel 115 for 4 nights – Dec 22 – Dec 26 – $698.40 (plus upgrade of room to a larger room on arrival – $80 approximately)
Crowne Plaza Christmas Dinner – December 25 2019 – 2 Adults – $298.00
Spaceships Campervan – Beta 2s (Premium) – Total cost including insurance – $1,815.00
Powered Campsites total cost for 10 nights (itemised above) – $532.00
NZ Top 10 Holiday Park Membership – $49 for 2 years – as we travelled during peak time there was actually only one holiday park where we received a discount and that was Akaroa. The others were in the Top 10 Group.

NZ Campervan Trip Video below…

don’t miss it!!

This video captures some highlights from our 10 Day Road trip. We based it on research on YouTube and travel books as well as recommendations from friends. Naturally we would have liked to spend more time and see a bit more however we decided on a two-week timeframe given that we were choosing to travel at peak time as a bit of treat.