New Zealand Travel Forum

Hi there,
We'll be visiting the South Island this December (we'll have a campervan), and after quite a bit of research I've come up with a possible itinerary. There's SO much to see, I want to make sure we don't miss any must-see places! How does the following sound? (I know, I'm packing an awful lot in, but keep in mind we'd probably leave at 6 or 7 am on long-drive days - we're early risers - and that we live in Switzerland, so glaciers are not all that unusual for us. Still, is this do-able?

Day 1: Pick up camper - Christchurch
Day 2: Lyttelton Harbour and / or Akaroa
Day 3: Drive to Mt Cook village via Lake Tekapo
Day 4: morning glacier / mountain flight; afternoon drive to Queenstown
Day 5: Queenstown (cablecar ride + lake cruise)
Day 6: Queenstown to Te Anau
Day 7: Milford Sound
Day 8: Doubtful Sound
Day 9: Te Anau - Wanaka
Day 10: Wanaka - Franz Josef Glacier
Day 11: Franz Josef - Motueka (I know, a LONG day!)
Day 12: Abel Tasman day hike (return with water taxi)
Day 13: Motueka - Picton (scenic Drive) - Kaikoura(late afternoon whale / Dophin cruise?)
Day 14: Kaikoura - Christchurch (drop off camper + flight to N. Island

Would really appreciate your comments? Thanks!

Wow you are really trying to pack it all in. I have done just about what you are planning but not as much and had trouble fitting it into 17 days. It is do-able but I feel you will miss so much of the little things that make the South Island so unique. The drive from Franz Josef to Motueka is a nice drive and not 'hard' and will take about 5 - 5.5 hrs. You will see alot but also miss out on a lot. i reckon another 2-3 days would make all the difference as Queenstown needs another day as does the drive from Motueka to Kaikoura as there is so much to see and do around Nelson.

Thanks Mundo! I WISH we had more time, but I'm afraid we don't! The flights are booked already (we have another 15 days in the North island. You know how it is, jobs to get back to! Anyway, if you think this is packing in too much, what do you suggest we get rid of (the day on the Banks Peninsula? Trying to do a bit of Tasman?) I'd really appreciate your input, especially seeign as you've done this all yourself! Thanks!

I spent 3 weeks in NZ, mostly in the South Island. I do not like rushed trips, prefer to see less places more deeply, so it is difficult for me to suggest things for you.

What I can say is that from Kaikoura - which I adored and spent 4 nights there - I found the dolphin viewing much more rewarding than the whale viewing. One doesn't get to see much of the whale... Another great possibility is the Pelagic boat (sea bird) viewing. Details on all on my NZ pages and tips.

From Christchurch if you take the Gondola (cable car) to the top of the Port Hills there is a lovely walk around the extinct crater up there from which you get fabulous views of Lyttelton harbour.

Yes, a day each for Milford and Doubtful Sounds (which are both actually fijords) is a great idea. Also give you a bit of time to unwind from the rush!

Have fun!

It's always hard to recommend missing stuff. But with time restrictions, sometimes it's better to do some places well and miss others.
May I suggest missing Akaroa and (dare I say it) missing Doubtful Sound. I don't say this because those places are not interesting but rather to cut two places from a hectic itinerary.
You are going to Milford Sound, hence my suggestion to cut Doubtful which takes a lot of time to reach. Going to both is doubling up.
Your itinerary is 'do-able' but you won't get time to "smell the roses" and take strolls and see the small things.
As well, there are often interesting things to stop and view enroute and if you are on a time constraint zooming along not being able to stop can be very frustrating.
You mention going to the North Island, I hope you are planning to go to Coromandel Peninsular, it's a highlight . Happy travels :-)

Hi ateach
I'd be very careful where you travel in the South Island of NZ this summer.
1080 poison is being aerial dropped everywhere.
It's going to be dropped all over the West Coast,The Waitaki Valley,Marlborough,The Catlins.It's even going to be dropped near Dunedin citys water supply.Make sure you bring your own water.
Apart from that have a nice holiday

This is a travel site not a place to vent your protests.

Thanks for the advice everyone! Yes, perhaps I should delete Doubtful, but but but ....... And Akaroa, OK, guess that'll get chopped off too. And if we go dolphin swimming the following week in the Bay of Islands (which we are), I guess Kaikoura could be missed too - or should we stay there a night anyway? Supposed to be a very pretty little place. I wish we had a few more weeks on the South Island. Our North Island trip (17 days) will be far more relaxing, and is being organised by our Kiwi hosts.

As for the water, being a European, I drink almost exclusively the bubbly bottled variety (which I remember from a previous trip to NZ is not as easy to come by there as it is here) :):):)

Bottled water is everywhere here now, so no fear :-)
Tap water is fine as well in most places. But I normally avoid stream water although my husband drinks it on all our hiking trips and has never got sick.

Hi Kiwi
This is not a protest.
I am advising people who travel in New Zealand, who have probably saved for many years for their trip, that when they arrive they will be restricted as to where they can safely venture.Walking tracks,river beds and many other places in rural areas will have signs posted warning people of the dangers from poisons that have been layed.But sometimes these signs have been removed.

I often walk in areas of poison drops, and don't find any great problem. Normal care with water and touching things is needed, but it certainly shouldn't stop someone from travelling.
Fair enough though, you mention that sometimes the signs are missing. Oh and welcome to VT, by the way :-)

I think the original itinerary is fabulous, and you should more or less stick to it.

I recommend not to cut Akaroa out of the itinerary, as Banks Peninsula is one of the most spectacular regions in the whole country - and not just because I live next door. A visiting colleague told me some months ago it was the highlight of his NZ trip. If you have a look at my Akaroa/Banks Peninsula and Lyttelton pages you will see why.

Although I prefer Milford Sound to Doubtful Sound I would say, visit both if you can fit them into your itinerary. From what I can see, you have a very realistic itinerary.

If you cut it out, I would sacrifice it for an additional day in the Lake Tekapo/Mt. Cook area, so you could make one of the great hikes, for example Hooker Valley or Tasman Lake.

Of course, it is a bit rushed. But I am sure, if you have done this trip you will come back to go into detail a little more ;-)

The only tiny change I would make is doing the scenic flight from Lake Tekapo and not from Mt. Cook, as you have to drive back to the Mt. Cook airfield from Mt. Cook Village. It is several kms from the village, in fact in Glentanner. But really, it is only a matter of 15 min - and the same company. So just leave it ;-)

About drinking water: I would not drink river water without boiling or treating it. There might not only be traces of 1080 in the water but also effluent from a few dairy farms that do not keep to the rules and laws, or, like on the Avon and Heathcote in Christchurch at times of heavy rain, overflow from the sewerage system... You can walk everywhere where they drop 1080, I would just not touch anything near one of those green baits. You will see poison signs and be irritated. Many people in NZ protest against the drops, especially on the West Coast.

Water from taps is absolutely safe, but sure, you can also buy water at the supermarket. In restaurants you get free tapwater automatically served at your table, or can grab it at the counter in self-service cafés and pubs.

Well said Kakapo. I could not agree more about the water. And as she suggests, stick more or less to your original plan.
Oldruss.

Hi Kakapo
I wasn't going to mention 1080 anymore until I read the advice that you gave to ateach.You can boil your water as much as you like but that will never get rid of traces of 1080.And you should not say that it is safe to walk everywhere where they drop 1080.It's a hazardous pesticide and many doctors believe that the high incidence of heart attacks in NZ is caused by exposure to 1080.

I do not want to get in a deep discussion on this issue here, as 1. I am no scientist, and 2. you do not cite your sources or give any valid evidence. Who are "many doctors"?

Just that much: I have not heard that NZ has higher rates of heart attacks than other comparable countries - but higher rates of arthritis, depression, and suicide. With 1080 (highly soluable BTW) in water, according to a big story in North & South 2000 water samples have been taken over 18 years of aerial operations, and 96 per cent had no detectable 1080. Of the remaining 76 samples one exceeded the Ministery of Health's maximum value of two parts per billion - and it is thought that the person who took the sample contaminated the sample by wearing a contaminated overall. Having spoken to opponents of the drops even they say that the risk for humans of getting poisoned is very low. But sure, still I would not want 1080 in my water supplies, and especially not if I am getting my water from the same source permanently, who would?

I am by all means an opponent of 1080 drops, and the cited magazine is very critical about it as well. But if you make claims you have to quote sources, give numbers and evidence.

It's very easy to survive a hike in a 1080 poison drop area. The key is awareness and sensible caution. I certainly wouldn't use it as an argument to stop a visitor from travelling.
Nobody likes poison. nor do they like the threat to our fauna and native animals by the target of the 1080. There are always arguments for and against, but this one about the increase in heart attacks needs substantiating. Otherwise it's just scaremongering.

Thanks everyone, for the helpful answers! It sounds like I have everyone's blessings with my itinerary. Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner with thanks, but I've been hiking in the Swiss Alps for the past week. It's supposed to be summer, but we had 20 centimeters of fresh snow at the Moiry Glacier Hut at 3000 meters! Yikes!

Will look into a flight from Tekapo instead of Mt Cook village.

One last thought - do you think it's better to do this trip in the clockwise direction I've posted, or should we go the other way round? I've noticed that in guide books such as the Lonely Planet, tours are described in an anti-clockwise direction!

I would do it clockwise, as in your itinerary. Others swear on doing it anti-clockwise...

You surely get the greatest views of Lakes Tekapo and Pukaki/Mt. Cook, even down to Wanaka and Queenstown clockwise because the landscape unfolds in front of you, and you approach all those destinations downhill, which promotes the unfolding and the more spectacular views.

May I recommend you to drive to Lake Tekapo via Scenic highway 72 and not on SH 1. This way you would pass at the Rakaia Gorge and Mt. Hutt - and have a lot less traffic than on SH 1 along the coast. You just have to leave Christchurch towards the West Coast and turn onto SH 72 in Darfield, follow the brown Scenic Drive/Route sign to Geraldine. And in Geraldine stop at the public toilets in the town centre and taste the jams and chutneys at Barker's for free ;-)

I agree, driving into the mountains from From Christchurch direction is more beautiful than driving out that way. So you get my vote too, on the direction you have planned :-)