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16-day NZ itinerary: Suggestions and Confirmations Wanted

16-day NZ itinerary: Suggestions and Confirmations Wanted

Old Apr 27th, 2014, 06:26 AM
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16-day NZ itinerary: Suggestions and Confirmations Wanted

Good Day Fellow Global Travelers,

My wife and I are adventurous go getters and we are departing for our 16 day trip in New Zealand next Month! We are hoping to do the best of both islands for us, and we would like some help from our Kiwi friends & other experienced NZ travelers. We packing in a lot which is OK, yet if there are areas that we should be excluding for sake of sanity, please share your thoughts. We arrive in Auckland 30th of May, and depart from Queenstown 14th of June. My estimated drive time per day to the next destination is in ().

North Island Itinerary
1 Land at 6am and spend All day in Auckland (N/A)
2 Leave Auckland, visit Hobbiton, then on to Rotorua by evening (3.5 hrs)
3 Explore Rotorua/Maori customs then to Lake Taupo (2 hrs)
4 Do morning Hike in Taupo area, then to Napier for wine time (3 hrs)
5 Leave Napier mid morning for Welly - visit museum/wharf (5 hrs)

This is where we can use some help and are open to suggestions. Originally we were going to do the Island Ferry from Welly to Picton, however, my wife discovered the beauty in Kaikora and the Whale watching / baby seal pups that play in the warmer water falls this time of year. As of now, we have the following itinerary. We'd like to know if this is worth it, or if we should stick to the island transfer to Picton/Nelson, and continue along the West/Southerly route to Queenstown etc.

Current South Island Itinerary
6 From Welly, Fly into C.Church & explore recovery, drive to Kaikora (1hr flight 2.5hr drive)
7 Kaikora after whale watching/seal pups - drive to Nelson (3.5 hrs)
8 Explore area via Kayak or hiking in Nelson/Tasman park - stay nearby (N/A)
9 Drive to Glaciers/Mt. Cook areas (7 hrs)
10 Explore Glaciers/Mountains all day (N/A)
11 Drive to Queenstown and take our time heading south (6 hrs)
12 Explore Queenstown - walk around, drink wine, etc drive to Te Anau (3.5 hrs)
13 Get to Milford Sound early - we are kayaking not doing big boat tour (5 hrs roundtrip)
14 Back to Queenstown early for more exploring, wine drinking, etc (3.5 hrs)
15 Ski-fields and recap an amazing exhausting trip to NZ (N/A)
16 maybe catch a museum before our 4pm flight that leaves out of QTown (N/A)

Alternative South Island Itinerary (no visit to Christchurch or Kaikora)
6 Island Ferry transfer to Picton, then to Nelson...drink wine (5.5 hrs (includes boat time))
7 Hike/Kayak in Nelson or Abel Tasman Park. Stay in Nelson (2 hrs)
8 Drive to Punakaiki Beach area, see pancake rocks, relax (3 hrs)
9 Drive to Glaciers/Mt. Cook areas with no agenda, just sightseeing (4 hrs)
10 Explore Glaciers/Mountains all day (N/A)
11 Drive to Queenstown and take our time heading south (6 hrs)
12 Explore Queenstown, walk the town, get to Te Anau by night for glow worms (3.5 hrs)
13 Get to Milford Sound early for kayaking not the big boat tour. Each way about (2.5 hrs)
14 Back to Queenstown early for more exploring, wine drinking, etc (3.5 hrs)
15 Ski-fields and recap an amazingly exhaustive trip to NZ (N/A)
16 maybe catch a museum before our 4pm flight that leaves out of QTown (N/A)

Are we Crazy or are we on the right track? Which Itinerary looks best, and most doable? What would an experienced Kiwi or NZ traveler add/subtract?

My wife and I lived in Colorado and adored the mountains and outdoors, the picturesque scenery, adventure, etc yet also love to kick back during our downtime with good wine, food and locals! We are hoping this itinerary allows us to capture all that is wonderful about NZ and its people. If we are lacking something, please tell us and if we need to emphasize something we already have on our agenda, please inform us. Please Help us have a trip of a lifetime!

Sincerely,
Brian & Holly G.
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Old Apr 27th, 2014, 01:22 PM
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Your North Island itinerary looks good to me. The only thing I might change is I would go for a shorter hike in Tongariro National Park instead of Taupo. http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-rec...iro/activities

Lee Ann
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Old Apr 27th, 2014, 02:40 PM
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The seal pups near Kaikoura are generally a winter phenomenon. A sight to behold indeed, but do be aware they may not be there, or the numbers quite limited this time of year.

SI itinerary, day 9 - I'm confused here, as these are separated by a mountain range. You'll need to choose either the West Coast (glaciers) or the inland route (Mt Cook). The West Coast makes sense if you're coming from Punakaiki.

Day 12 - too ambitious IMO (especially the wine drinking prior to the two hour drive to Te Anau).

Day 13 - Plan to spend the whole day in Milford - lots of nice walks along Milford Road. Is this night spent in Milford or Te Anau? If Te Anau, the drive to QT the next day is only two hours.

Ski fields in May won't be very interesting, but plenty to see do in/around QT. Not aware of any museums in QT, but perhaps I've just missed them.

SI itinerary #2:

Why not stay closer to Abel Tasman if that's your main focus? Motueka, Kaiteriteri, Marahau, Little Kaiteriteri...lots of closer options - you'll just waste time making the drive to/from Nelson, which while nice, is just a town.

I feel that your SI itinerary is too rushed.

Interesting tidbit...I was once told by a NZ accommodation owner that they get more visitors from Colorado than any other US state. I just happen to be a (former and potentially future) Colorado girl myself and I can't get enough of the SI.
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Old Apr 29th, 2014, 04:17 AM
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itinerary two probably looks like the one I would pick. Kakioura is nice but I think you will see beautiful beaches in Abel Tasman. The drive down the west coast from punakaiki to grey mouth is one of the nicest in NZ (as is the te anua Milford drive). Haast to wanaka is also a beautiful drive and if you have time stop at the blue pools for a nice hour walk.

As previously mentioned mt cook and the glaciers (I'm assuming franz and fox) aren't too close but you can heli tour from fox. Lake Matheson is a must especially on a crisp winter morning...best photos of the southern alps. There is also a beach turn off on the right not long before franz. Check it out, such a contrast to Abel Tasman - raw west coast... I've stayed in franz twice once over New Years...very nice spot but only 300 locals...lots of walks.

Agree re staying closer to Abel Tasman. We stayed in a guest house in pohara which was super but anywhere close would be nice. I've also heard good things (my mum raves) about the Daniel le brun winery in the area (Blenheim I think).

Milford sound is only about 60-90 mins from te anua. Expect to rain but that is part of the fun.

Hmmm museums in QT - nothing that I would rush too... Arrowtown you might consider a throw back town and is a nice visit with quaint shops and cafés.

Glow worms are awesome in te anua

Agree re ski fields - usually open around queens birthday (beg of June). In saying this last year the South Island had 1.5metres of snow dumped in a couple of days in May so it really depends. Expect it to be cold especially if the southerly is up and just be mindful of the weather.

North Island looks good. Hobbiton is fun but in the middle of no where so good that you are traveling on to rotorua.

Taupe do some of the geothermal walks. Craters of the moon is on the right as you drive in to taupo. We'l worth he visit...

Tongariro walk would be nice but probably not practical given you are going to Wellington via Napier...

Hope this helps,

Have fun and pack your woollies...
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Old Apr 30th, 2014, 01:11 PM
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5 Leave Napier mid morning for Welly - visit museum/wharf (5 hrs)>>

I defer to melnq8's greater knowledge and experience but i'm surprised she didn't pick you up on this. unless you are arriving in Wellington on a Thursday when Te Papa is open late, you have no chance of getting 5 hours there on a day when you are driving from Napier, as it's a "good" 5 hour drive. We went to see the gannet colony first thing in the morning, and then left the Napier area at about 12.30 - and we got to Wellington at about 6pm.

BTW if you like wildlife, I can thoroughly recommend the gannet trip that we did:

http://www.gannetsafaris.co.nz/

you can also get there by tractor along the beach but the day we were there, their time was cut short because they had to beat the tide to get back. We had plenty of time as they take you right up to the gannet colony.

Generally, i would agree with Melnq8 that you are rushing things in the SI, apart from QT, which we felt was greatly over-rated. Wanaka was much nicer and we found quite a lot to do in that area including wineries but that was in Nov/Dec, not May.
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Old Apr 30th, 2014, 01:21 PM
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annhig -

I didn't even read the NI itinerary - I've only been there once and don't feel qualified to comment on most NI itineraries.
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Old May 1st, 2014, 01:03 AM
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Yes te papa is a museum option in Wellington or you could do the auckland war memorial museum if you've got a couple of hours free in Auckland or weather not fantastic. Irrespective of weather yougo inside the museum in aucklandthe buildings beautiful and there are excellent views of the harbour and gardens. Mt Eden also has nice views out too the harbour or you an go and have lunch up the sky tower.

I've done SI drive holidays a couple of times rather than just fly in / fly out to a particular SI destination (I lived in Auckland for 30yrs). One trip was three weeks solely South Island (left home at midday on Christmas Day and caught the 1:30am Boxing Day interislander ferry to picton (10hr drive Auckland to Wellington given relative familiarity with the roads). Second time was fly in / out Christchurch with campervan hire - 11 nights with a very similar itinerary to yours except we skipped anything above Lewis pass (Abel Tasman / Nelson etc). 11 days was lots of driving about 500-700km per day but I don't mind driving so not fussed. Yours is doable so long as you don't mind being in the car... (Ps petrol is about $2.10-2.20 per litre)
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Old May 1st, 2014, 02:25 AM
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Further to my warnings about the time to drive from Napier to Wellington, I've just consulted our New Zealand Travellers Road Atlas published by Pathfinder, and the travelling times and distances map confirms that takes over 5 hours. Those times assume that you can keep up a pretty constant 60 mph, and quite frequently, we found that our journeys took longer than the guide indicates.

This atlas is well worth getting hold of, BTW, if only for the travelling times and distances guides on pp24 & 25. The book is very easy to use, being on a spiral binding, with good maps for general touring as well as larger scale of conurbations and even larger of cities. Well worth the NZ$27 [i think!] that it cost us.

and looking at the map, it reminds me that it's 6 hours from Franz Joseph to Wanaka, and another hour to Queenstown. In May with shorter day lengths that doesn't leave long for exploring on the way. you might like to think of staying in Wanaka that night instead.
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Old May 1st, 2014, 10:01 PM
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For drive times bear in mind that many sources under estimate tourist drive times. I think they assume you never stop.

Maximum speed is 100 kph but you can rarely sustain that, you often slow or stop for bridges, curves, slower vehicles, photos, etc.

For travel planning I would use 60 kph/40 mph and on some stretches it may even be less.
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Old May 2nd, 2014, 07:16 AM
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For drive times bear in mind that many sources under estimate tourist drive times. I think they assume you never stop>>

mlgb - the atlas to which I referred assumes stops of 10 mins every hour, which is a minimum for us; we tend to do drives of 3-4 hours, swapping driver half way, and then stop for an hour or so for a meal and a wander. And that ignores the stopping along the way to take photos, explore nearby sights, and do a bit of walking. Between Franz Joseph and Wanaka we must have stopped at least 6 times for various reasons, so it took us close on 8 hours as I recall, rather than the advertised 6.

and as you say, you can't expect to keep up 100 kmp all the time. in towns and the environs the speed limit is quite a lot less, and you have to go even slower if there are road works [and those road menders get everywhere!]
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Old May 4th, 2014, 05:23 AM
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Great notes everyone! Thank you for your contributions towards our trip. Since my original post two weeks ago, nearly every reviewer and bloger said they'd wished they'd spent more time in the SI, so here's an updated itinerary. We are in need of some help with accommodation recommendations in QT and Welly.

Day 1 - all day auckland
Day 2 - drive to hobbiton and ending in either Rotorua or Taupo area. Leaving it open for now
Day 3 - take our time driving south to Welly by nightfall. We are thinking of doing an AirBnB here to stay with locals unless there's a great recommendation.
Day 4 - explore Welly and museums, fly to christchurch early evening
Day 5 - see recovery areas of christchurch them head north to Kaikora in search of those winter seal pups and do a whale watching tour
Day 6 - drive up to Nelson and visit some wineries along the way
Day 7 - all day adventure day hiking/kayaking around Nelson and south end of Abel Tasman
Day 8 - gradually make our way south along west coast. We are not yet sure if we want to be really aggressive on this day and get to Fox/Franz or stop short in Punakaiki or Hokitika. We were thinking of staying at the Hydrangea cottages in Punakaiki for the unique stay and to see the pancake rocks along the beach. Should we see the rocks or continue south to spend more time in the glaciers.
Day 9 - get to the glaciers. We've read That both Fox and Franz are comparable, yet the town of Franz is better and we should concentrate our time there.
Day 10 - spend all day hiking, touring, driving in Glacier areas
Day 11 - gradually work our way south to QT with no real agenda other than soaking up the drive.
Day 12 - drive to Te Anau - stock up on supplies, and do the glow worms tour at night
Day 13 - Kayaking the milford sound - back to Te Anau - we read there's a beautiful short nighttime guided walk if weather permits.
Day 14 - back to Queenstown - we need recommendations for accommodations in QT. We like lodges, social surroundings, convenience to adventures, being able to walk to town.
Day 15 - all day QT, bungee, drink wine, hot tub time, etc
Day 16 - back to the a States

We cut our time in the NI short to accommodate as best we could what others have said is the best of NZ in the SI. Regarding drive times, I'm trying to overestimate this time by 25% what is shown on a google map estimated drive time realizing there's a lot of stops, twists, and curves, not to mention wacky weather. Since we are spending some good time in the QT area, what are some must do's? Will we regret spending as much time here given the ski fields aren't likely to be open yet, or are there must dos around QT that are a short drive? Also, what is the likelihood we can catch a glimpse of the Aurora Australis?! That's a big bucket list item for me.

Thanks again for your contributions.
B&H
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Old May 4th, 2014, 06:34 AM
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Just came across this article that might interest you, from the Marlborough Express about "Wild Seals at Ohau Stream"
http://www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-e...at-Ohau-Stream
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Old May 4th, 2014, 02:57 PM
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we stayed in a B&B in Wellington with fantastic views that run by a lovely lady called Peg:

http://www.wellingtonpanorama.co.nz/

In Queenstown we stayed here:

http://www.villadellago.co.nz/

absolutely lovely with great facilities including a fire in the grate, but a bit far out of town unless you don't mind driving there and back all the time.

I still think that you are lumbering yourselves with a lot of driving on Days 11 & 12, and would strongly suggest stopping in Wanaka that night, rather than in QT. it will only add an hour or so to the drive on day 12, but will shorten the drive on Day 11 by the same amount, which you may be grateful for given that it's 6 hours from FJ to Wanaka.
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Old May 4th, 2014, 04:06 PM
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I too, highly recommend Villa Del Lago in QT. IMO, the out- of-way location is a plus, as it can be difficult to find quiet accommodation in QT. It's an easy flat walk to town for those of us who enjoy a stroll.

Do be aware that parking in QT can be a complete nightmare, so accommodation within walking distance (whatever that might be for you) is a definite perk.

There was a time I'd have suggested Bella Vista Motel for it's great location; an easy walk to town, but do be aware the rooms are quite compact and it's not the peaceful location it used to be.

If you're a light sleeper, I suggest you avoid any accommodation on or near Shotover Street.

My personal preference these days is to stay in nearby Arrowtown, which is very quiet, but will require a drive to get into QT.
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Old May 27th, 2014, 08:35 AM
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Don't cut the north island.

You can sometimes catch a Maori dance in the Auckland museum (check website for times.)

Hobbiton may or may not be available, as they are still filming (?)

I'd stay in Taupo for a couple of nights, nicer than Rotorua. You can then do a day trip to Tongariro national park (you want LOTR stuff, this is WAY better than Hobbiton.) Also, it's but a short drive from Taupo to various thermal parks.

Skip Napier and head straight to Wellington. Do a couple nights there (nice city, and if you want a winery, there are some nearby.) Remember NZ wine tastes different, but the method of production is pretty much the same all over the world (pick grapes, crush grapes, ferment grapes, etc. etc.)

This also gives you a bit of slack in itinerary which you may well need.
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Old May 27th, 2014, 08:51 AM
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Note, you don't need to do the Tongariro crossing to have a great time in Tongariro park.

About the south island. Hmmn.

6. Ferry from Wellington to Picton, overnight Nelson.
7. Skip the kayaking - do a little sightseeing, overnight in Punakaiki.
8, 9. The Glaciers.
10. Drive to Wanaka and relax a bit (laundry, etc.)
11. Te Anau, gloworms, maybe a hike
12. Te Anau, day trip to Milford, back for gloworms.
13. Back to Queenstown, take in Arrowtown or do some bungy jumping.
14. Glenorchy - gorgeous place, maybe a zodiac ride/tour.
15. Free day to patch in somewhere.
16. BAck to the states.
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