I would say it's too rushed and exhausting. Maybe you don't have a good handle on drive times.

For planning purposes I go with 60 km per hour on most routes which allows stopover time for photos. Although the speed limit is 100 kph for all practical purposes you cannot average that speed due to one lane bridges, curves, and slow moving vehicles.

Hi jmoe -

You're trying to do entirely too much. You've basically got a two week itinerary compressed into six days, trying to see the far north and the far south with no time to do it. You'll be spending all of your time in the car. It's just not feasible.

A few questions:

Are you flying to Auckland from the east or west coast of Australia? If it's from the west, you're going to be seriously knackered after that short overnight flight (trust me, I've done it). If from the east, you might still be knackered, as you'd have left pretty early in the day to get to Christchurch by 7:40 am.

<Fly to Christchurch-arrive at 7:40am and drive to Akaroa. Kayak and do the penguin tour at night.>

Are you referring to the Pohatu Reserve Penguin tour?

<Drive to Dunedin and do Elm Wildlife Tour from 3-8pm; stay in Dunedin>

This is about a 6.5 hour drive, and that's via the east coast, which is the least scenic road on the SI as far as I'm concerned.

<Drive to Te'Anau (either straight over or through Catlin Coast)-stay in Te'Anau>

The drive from Dunedin to Te Anau is over four hours, taking the most direct route. Adding the Catlins will add many more hours. There's so much to see and do in the Catlins, and it's spread over a large area, so you won't be able to fit much in.

<Milford Sound Cruise at 8:55, then drive to Wanaka with a stop in Queenstown>

The drive from Milford Sound to Wanaka will take you at least five hours. This doesn't leave much time for QT, especially as you won't be leaving Milford until around 11 am.

<See Haast and drive to Fox Glacier and through to Hokitita>

There's really nothing to see in Haast, although the drive along the West Coast is spectacular, especially when the sun is out. There are many reasons to stop along the way. In addition to the glaciers, there are lots of track options, BUT the drive from Wanaka to Hoki is well over six hours of straight driving. We drove from Hoki to Cromwell (56 km further than Wanaka) last month and it took us 10.5 hours with stops, and we were still unable to do half of what we'd hoped.

<Drive from Hokitita to Westport to Nelson>

This is another 5.5-6 hour drive day. And for what, to fly out the next day?

With only six days, I suggest you make a one way drive from Christchurch to QT via the West Coast, stopping for overnights along the way, visiting Wanaka enroute and visiting Milford from QT and then flying out from QT.

Or, perhaps consider flying from Christchurch to QT (or direct from Auckland if that's an option) and basing yourself somewhere near QT/Arrowtown/Wanaka. Maybe split your overnights between QT/Wanaka and Te Anau and see all that you can from those two bases.

This time/distance calculator might help in your planning:

http://www.newzealand.com/travel/getting-to-around-nz/travel-times-and-distances/travel-times-and-distances-home.cfm

Hello,
Thanks for the info and feedback. I'll be flying in from Sydney to Auck on 9/30 and then to Nelson on 10/1. Yes, I think my original itineray was too much, so I've revised and want to know if you still think this is too much or a bit better. Initially, I was going to Akaroa to see the penguin preserve and then included Dunedin to see the yellow eyed and blue penguins, as well. If I really want to see wildlife, are one of the towns better to see than the other?
How does this new itinerary look?
1. Fly to Nelson and arrive at 8:10am-drive to Westport and to Hokitita
2. Drive to glaciers and end at Haast
3. Drive to Te'Anau with a stop in Queenstown
4. Milford Sound AM cruise and drive to Invercall or Gore
5. Drive to Dunedin and do Elm Wildlife Tour (3-8pm)
6. Drive to Christchurch and fly out next morning
Thanks

It's still a very busy itinerary, with drives of four hours most days and two days of driving over five hours. This is a driving itinerary....you've left very little time for activities, exploration, etc.

Driving every day of a holiday isn't how I personally like to travel, but if that's your goal, that's what you've got.

Any reason you're going to Westport? You can cut that corner off the drive to Hoki and save a little bit of time.

Oamarau is a good place to see blue penguins. Lake Moeraki is a good place to look for Fiordland Crested penguins (seasonal). Seals are very easy to find along the Kaikoura coast, particularly at Ohau Point, whale watching tours originate from Kaikoura. Stewart Island is the place for birds. Dolphins can been seen many places from boats...Akarora, the sounds, etc. You might see dolphins and seals on your Milford cruise. There's the Albatross Colony in Dunedin, sea lions along the Catlin coast, yellow-eyed penguins at Nugget Point (take your binoculars).

I was including Westport to see the pancake rocks and the buller gorge swing bridge, but I know there's a swing bridge also near Hoki. My other option is to cut the west coast out to have time for more activities, i.e. kayaing in Akaroa and then do a loop from Christchurch around Dunedin/Milford Sound/Queenstown and back to Christchurch via Mt. Cook (being able to do a hike or two at Mt. Cook).
I heard the drive down the west coast is spectacular,and that's what I'm struggling with, but is it more worth it to cut it out and do the activities above?

The Buller Gorge swingbridge is northeast of Westport, near Murchison. You'll go right by it as you come down SH6 from Nelson. The Lyell Walkway is good too, but you might not have time to walk it.

Punakaiki is south of Westport, also right on SH 6, but in any case, you can clip the corner, you don't need to go into the town of Westport.

There are swingbridges all over NZ, most are on tracks. Do be be aware that the Buller Swingbrige charges a fee, the other don't. Perhaps the swingbridge you're thinking of near Hoki is at Hokitika Gorge? It's a bit of a drive from town, so you'll need some time to get there and back.

The drive down the West Coast is indeed spectacular, but you need time to nejoy it.

I suggest you decide what you absolutely cannot miss, and then go from there.

At that time of year you can stay flexible. Unless you have a clear weather report for the west coast I might be inclined to drop it.

Ok, I revised more to 2 itineraries and I wanted to see which one might look a little better. Also is the weather on the West Coast at the beginning of October stormy or icy? Some of the reasons I was flying through Nelson or Christchurch was the price as opposed to Queenstown

Itinerary #1:
1. Fly to Nelson; arrive around 8:10 and drive to see Punakaiki and to Hoki
2. Drive Hoki to Fox Glacier and kayak
3. Walk Lake Matheson and drive to Wanaka
4. Drive to Te'anau with a stop in Queenstown
5. Milford Sound AM cruise and drive to Gore or Invercall
6. Drive to Dunedin and do Elm Wildlife Tour (3-8pm)
7. Fly out of Dunedin

Itinerary #2:
1. Fly to Christchurch and arrive around 8. Drive to Akaroa and kayak and see penguin preserve. Stay in Akaroa
2. Drive to Dunedin and do Elm Wildlife Tour
3. Drive to Te'Anau
4. Milford Sound Am cruise and drive to Queenstown
5. Queenstown to Mt. Cook and hike
6. Drive to Christchurch via Lake Tekapo
7. Fly out of Christchurch (I'm considering dropping Akaroa)

It can rain for weeks on end. Just check metservice.com, they have quite a few types of forecasts, ie severe weather outlook, under "rural" there is a seasonal outlook, forecasts for the national parks. As well as more typical forecasts. It's really a very interesting website. One year I even brought a metservice calendar home.