South Island travel tips for clueless ozzie
 

Well, curiousity has got the better of me and the three of us (including wife and 16 y.o. son) are hopping on a plane in Sydney bound for Christchurch in late September. We plan to "do" the South Island in two weeks. I've always wanted to see what it's like on the other side of the ditch.

Would you recommend we hire a camper van or just a car and stay in hotels? Is it better to concentrate on the north (Nelson, Marlborough Sounds etc?) or south (Queenstown, Dunedin)?

Got ridiculously cheap plane tickets ($280 incl taxes) so can afford to spend some cash on activities. Would prefer smaller lodges or motels with character rather than bland hotel chains or big resorts.

Ready to fall in love with NZ and might be on the lookout for a block of land for a future holiday home. :cool:

Re: South Island travel tips for clueless ozzie
 

Campervan or motelling are both easily done, and it really depends on what you want as to which is best. I've never used a campervan personally, but they look like fun. Downsides might be that you it will take slightly longer to get places, and if you're travelling in the cooler months they sometimes lack good heating.

Most tourist spots or cities have a range of motels, backpackers and hotels to choose from. AA and Jasons are a couple of online guides that cover pretty much all accommodation providers. We like staying in a good motel, where you will be comfortable and have the choice of cooking your own meals if you want.

2 weeks is probably enough to see both the north and the south of the island. An example itinerary might be Christchurch (2 nights), Mt Cook or Tekapo (1), Dunedin (2), Queenstown (2), Te Anau (1) with daytrip to Milford, Wanaka (1), Glaciers (1), Nelson region (2), Blenheim-Kaikoura (1), Hanmer (1). There are various travelling times in the above, some days are really short, others you will want to get an early start. It lets you see the main sights, whilst still leaving a few more 'off the beaten track' sights for next time'.

Re: South Island travel tips for clueless ozzie
 

Personally I think you need at least 3 weeks to do the South Island properly!! :rofl:

Best advice is to not travel every day, base yourself in a few places for 2 or 3nights so you can actually enjoy yourself!! Try not to double back on yourself either. It doesn't look like a lot of driving but a lot of the roads are quite twisty and sometimes it takes longer than you think.

Things I would certainly look to do:
Queenstown - so many adrenalin things to do, you do kinda fall at the end of the winter season so there should hopefully be snow on the ground for ski-ing/snowboarding etc and of course its the home of the bungy jump, and it is gorgeous down by that lake. Make sure you go to Winnies for Pizza and to Fergburger of course...

If you can afford it the overnight stay on a boat on Milford Sound is amazing!

Few days in Christchurch, make sure you get to Te Anau, Wanaka and a day in Dunedin maybe. Few days in Franz Josef in case you get a bad weather day for climbing the glacier.

The train journey from Christchurch to the west coast is rather fab.

While up North Nelson is a good base to go and explore the fantastic Abel Tasman and Golden Bay areas, and of course lots of wineries up that way! Its worth 2 nights it Kaikoura aswell in case you want to go out on a boat, they do get called off depending on the weather so gives you a better chance at seeing Dolphins/Whales etc...

And then you are only a short hop from Wellington on a plane from there if you want some real culture of course :rofl:

Think I would do: Christchurch, Dunedin, Queenstown (2), Te Anau, Milford Sound overnighter then back to Te Anau, Wanaka, Glaciers (2), West Coast, Nelson (2), Kaikoura, Christchurch. But that is a lot of driving!!

Personally would concentrate on the South if you think thats too much travelling, so maybe: Christchurch (2), Dunedin, Invercargill (if you are brave!), Te Anau, Milford Overnighter, Te Anau, Queenstown (2), Wanaka, Franz Josef (2), West Coast, then across Arthurs Pass to Christchurch again before you leave! :thumbup:

Oh and don't be affraid to consider the YHA hostels the ones I stayed at in Te Anau and Franz Josef were fab, and you can do your own cooking which is a nice break from eating out all the time.

Re: South Island travel tips for clueless ozzie
 

Inbru14 and Southerner: thanks a ton for your helpful suggestions. I'm leaning more towards motels rather than campervan. Might be a wee (already practicing my Kiwi lingo ;) ) bit cool. I agree we won't see everything in 2 weeks, particularly as I want to get in a day or two skiing. Mount Hutt sounds the best option for late season skiing.