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Self Drive Tour Itinerary - Safety, Convenience, Activities, Itinerary HELP

Self Drive Tour Itinerary - Safety, Convenience, Activities, Itinerary HELP

Old Feb 15th, 2017, 07:09 PM
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Self Drive Tour Itinerary - Safety, Convenience, Activities, Itinerary HELP

Hi all, after some consideration and browsing around regarding safe driving in NZ, me and my partner (30&31yrs old) plan to have honeymoon in NZ and do a self drive tour. Both of us are very much comfortable in driving as we drive here everywhere in our home, we also happen comes from a country that drives on the left lane, so our next step to prepare for our self drive tour is to learn on NZ traffic rules and regulation. Currently our rental company's choice is either Hertz/Avis, but open for any suggestion on other good companies and we plan to rent a Yaris or Corolla hatchback or similar. We need advice on insurance plan that we should buy from rental company and of course we will have travel insurance also. Here's my itinerary (currently we are looking at departure on mid December, so plan to spend Christmas&NY in NZ, good idea or bad timing?), need some locals to give feedback on which day to add more nights or suggested activities:

Day 1 Christchurch -> Arrive AM, check in hotel, city sightseeing, any recommendation place for dinner?

Day 2 Christchurch - Arthur's Pass - Greymouth via TranzAlpine, we pick up Rental Car here in Greymouth drive to Franz Josef Glacier (I haven't decide activities in Franz Josef Glacier because I predicted it would be around 5-6pm when we reached FJ), we will then be staying at Fox Glacier (20-30mins from FJ?)

Day 3 Fox Glacier we plan to do Heli-hike morning to afternoon, sightseeing & walking in Lake Matheson.

Day 4 Fox Glacier - Wanaka around 3 hours driving, we have yet a plan in Wanaka, and need suggestions from you guys on activities in Wanaka

Day 5 Wanaka - Mt Cook/Aoraki around 3-4 hours driving, REALLY need a suggestion on activities in Aoraki/Mt Cook, is the glacier Heli here somewhat same with the Fox Glacier? We'd love to do day hike of possible here or do you think we should skip this place? But actually I really want to see Aoraki/Mt Cook so if possible want to fit in to our itinerary.

Day 6 Mt Cook Aoraki - Queenstown around 4 hours driving, plan to arrive in Queenstown around 9PM, check in hotel and get some rest (so we can have activities in Aoraki/Mt cook in the morning).

Day 7 Queenstown -> Bungee Jumping/Swing and Shooter River Rafting, need recommendation on good company and place to do such activities.

Day 8 Queenstown - Milford Sound Around 6hrs Scenic Drive, Stay at Milfordlodge Premium Riverside Chalet, PM kayaking

Day 9 Milford Sound AM cruise, 1.5hrs or 2hrs15mins cruise?? drive back to Queenstown (return rental car) (evening flight to Auckland). On this day I am open to add one more night in Te Anau if necessary, do u think it is too rushing to back to Queenstown to catch evening flight to Auckland or just ok? flight is around 8pm. If we opted to add one more night in Te Anau, please suggest an activities, hiking maybe?

Day 10 Auckland (pick up Rental Car) - Thames - Coromandel Town actually we only want to visit Cathedral Cove so we have no idea where to stay (coromandel or Whiting for this?)

Day 11 Coromandel Town - Whitianga need suggestions on activities here

Day 12 Whitianga - Matamata - Rotorua, need suggestions on activities in Rotorua, do you think we need one more night here?

Day 13 Rotorua - Taupo we plan to do jet boat in Huka Falls

Day 14 Taupo - Waitomo (only do the glowworm cave) - Auckland (drop off Rental Car)

Day 15 Auckland - Fly Back at 1.30pm

Many thanks in advance!!
redsoleslady is offline  
Old Feb 16th, 2017, 10:10 AM
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Woohoo! Fun trip. First off, we honeymooned in NZ and did something similar (SI then NI, similar stops), so I understand why you are doing it. We did that and then declared that the next time we go back we would focus on the SI only, which is what we did last year. So with this hindsight, I would say focus the full 15 days only on the SI. However, I realize it is taking away this personal experience from you so don't let me stop you if you still want to do both islands.

Now to some of your other questions:
1) Xmas will be crowded, but in my experience NZ crowded is still not like any other tourist country's crowded. If that is the best time for you, go for it.
2) We used Hertz and had no issues. they even reimbursed us for a flat tire we got in Wanaka.
3) At FJ glacier, you should have enough time to do hike to the face of the glacier (or as close as they let you) as you'll still have some daylight hours left.
4) Wanaka - Rob Roy Glacier hike (takes 3-4 hours), see my trip report at the end. We had a blast doing a canyoning trip. You are young, so I highly recommend it if you are adventurous.
5) Mt Cook - We love the Hooker Valley Track for a full view of Mt Cook. Some others like a different one (forget the name now).
6) QT - bungy jumping at the Kawarau Bridge. I think all of the jet boat tours are similar and good. We used Shotover Jet.
7) Milford - you want to take your time between Te Anau and Milford Sound ... the drive is beautiful and there are lots of stops along the way for hiking and sightseeing. We used an entire day (early morning to late night) driving there and back and taking a cruise.

I'll leave you with that for now as you'll get tons of other advice from others.

http://www.fodors.com/community/aust...rip-report.cfm
paulg is offline  
Old Feb 16th, 2017, 11:10 AM
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Oh, and on day 4, allow more time for driving to Wanaka. Yes the driving time itself is 3-4 hours, but there is a lot to stop and see along the way.
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Old Feb 16th, 2017, 11:41 AM
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Don't miss the former swank resort hotel and now most interesting museum (also still a grand building) - see www.rotoruamuseum.co.nz/visit-us/

While in Taupo, go to one of the several hot baths, see http://www.greatlaketaupo.com/experi...-do/hot-pools/

Also visit the http://www.volcanoes.co.nz/HOME/MAP-..._ID=8617_.html and ask for directions to the hill above, drive up and take pictures, it looks like a moonscape or something unique, your cameras will love the thermal power station
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Old Feb 16th, 2017, 11:43 AM
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I think the top activity for Mt. Cook Village is walking (through an alpine valley and among NZ’s tallest glaciated peaks). Here’s a link to a brochure of Mt. Cook walks:
http://www.doc.govt.nz/Documents/par...ki-mt-cook.pdf

Hooker Valley Track is the most popular. It includes swing bridges over a fast-flowing river, and views over a glacier lake. Kea Point Track and Tasman Glacier View walks are also popular, easy, and beautiful. I don’t think you can go wrong with any of the walks here.

You could also consider the Glacier Explorers tour, which takes you in a small boat onto Tasman Glacier lake, right up to icebergs, so close you can touch them. http://www.glacierexplorers.com
Or kayak:
http://www.mtcook.com/glacier-sea-kayaking

Mt. Cook is part of the International Dark Sky Reserve. So if the night is clear, go out and look up at the stars. Or you can take a tour:
http://www.hermitage.co.nz/en/the-si...sky-stargazing

Highway 80 to Mt. Cook Village is highly scenic, with lookouts over Lake Pukaki, which like Lakes Tekapo and Ohau, is a unique blue due to “glacial flour,” fine-grained, silt-sized particles of rock.

Mid-December through the holidays will be busy. Prepare for cold, windy and wet as well as warm, dry and sunny weather.

NZ roads can be narrow and curvy. Some climb through steep mountain passes, others snake along sharp drop-offs. You'll probably drive on some gravel roads, have to slow down for one-lane bridges, maybe get stuck behind a slow-moving campervan or three of them. So it will take time and patience to drive from place to place. The roads are even more challenging in poor weather. Once you've figured out your route, you can check drive distances at: https://www.aa.co.nz/travel/time-and...ce-calculator/

See these links for NZ Transportation (road rules, tips for visitors. etc.):
https://www.nzta.govt.nz/safety/driv...iting-drivers/
https://www.nzta.govt.nz/resources/r...ad-code-index/
Diamantina is offline  
Old Feb 17th, 2017, 03:33 AM
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Many thanks for all the replies!

Noted on the crowd during the holiday time, is it going to be better in early January?

I have to fly back to Singapore via Auckland so we want to do quick trip in NI also, sights that we really want to see in NI are Hobitton, Cathedral Cove, Glowworm Cave and Huka Falls.
redsoleslady is offline  
Old Feb 17th, 2017, 09:56 AM
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Hard to say. School holidays (and family vacations) will be from around December 20 through January 29 (or up to a week later), 2018. See:
http://www.education.govt.nz/ministr...idays/#cal2018
Diamantina is offline  
Old Feb 17th, 2017, 12:33 PM
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Christmas through New Year's is likely to be busier, especially for Queenstown and Wanaka. Queenstown's NYE celebration, in particular, attracts big crowds.
I expect you'll also pay the highest prices for accommodation during this holiday period and you'd need to book well in advance if you expect to be in these places then. Or you can avoid this area at this particular time, depending on your preferences.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/nation...crazy'-nye

I don't live on the North Island, so I can't comment about holiday crowds up there, but I've read about North Island "traffic hotspots" during the holidays. Maybe Tasmangirl, who, I believe, lives in Auckland, can help out with this.

January is still high season and NZ is experiencing a tourism boom (which is even spilling into the shoulder seasons). But if this is the only time you can get free, go for it.
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Old Feb 18th, 2017, 09:14 AM
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Living in Auckland the traffic does rule! However like dipping your toe in a cold swimming pool at some point you just have to jump in and start swimming. So it is with Auckland's traffic.
December 24,25 and 26 are usually mad. Both routes north and south can get very busy. State Highway 27 along to the Coromandel Peninsula can get very very slow. So if you can avoid driving these days it should not be too bad.
Everyone goes back to work about the 1st weekend in January so for 2018 that's 5,6 and 7 January. Avoid this time as well.
It would not be too soon to book accommodation right now. Coromandel (by this I mean the whole peninsula not just the village called Coromandel)can get booked out over Christmas.
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Old Feb 18th, 2017, 09:33 AM
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My eyes glaze over at the sight of a long long post so I
have split my comments into Auckland's traffic and your itinerary for the North Island.
Day 10 drive Thames-Coromandel village-Whitianga for the scenic beauty but staying in Whitianga gives you more choice of accommodation, shops, cafes etc.
Day 11 - explore Cathedral Cove (about half hour drive) and also Hot Water Beach. Cook's Beach is nice for a swim.
Day 12 - leave out Rotorua if you are not really interested in it. Do Hobbiton in the morning and then head to Taupo for 2 nights. Huka Falls does not take long to 'do' and the jetboat ride is further along at the Prawn Park. Might pay to book this. We were there in Oct 16 and our friends did the jet boat ride (about $150)which was awesome.
Day 13 -Taupo maybe do the walk from the town to Huka Falls?
Day 14 Waitomo (it's about 2 hours from Taupo)and you are wise to head aback to Auckland the day before your flight. As long as these dates are not 24-26 Dec or 5-7 Jan you should not have major traffic hassles.
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