Camper vans in New Zealand
 

Has anyone traveled the South Island with a Maui camper van? Is this a good or bad choice? We like adventure and the outdoors. However, we want to feel safe. We have a very limited amount of time on the Island and want to see as much as we can. Any onfromation from all regarding camper vs. other lodging choices on the South Island..."must sees" in NZ and Australia...and, Tasmania would be appreciated so very much. We like coastline, surf, non-touristy stops...adventure. The plan is to hit the East and South of Australia, the South Island of NZ and possibly Tasmania...Time is short and we would like to learn from others' experiences/mistakes/stellar finds!

We (2 adults, 2 children) travelled the North and South Islands in July 2004 with a 6 sleeper Maui campervan (which was enough room for 4 people, not 6. The winter rental rates are very reasonable in NZ. I had little difficulty driving the campervan, even on the left side of the road. I had only driven such a vehicle once before. The Top 10 chain of campgrounds provides super sites and facilities yearround, and will book your next site before you leave your existing site.
Do not, however, drive to Milford Sound with a large campervan. In the NZ winter, chains are recommended for this drive, and we booked a bus tour from Te Anau for this excursion, allowing me to actually see the fabulous scenery close to Milford Sound on the drive in. We otherwise had a fine driving experience, even over Lindis Pass.
Generally I was very pleased with the campervan. Don't buy the optional insurance, however, in my opinion. The van had little sound insulation, so expect a lot of road noise if you book a campervan -- we had to crank up the CD player at times.
One last note: in the NZ summer, you may be better off renting a car and booking B&B accommodation or available cabins at Top 10 or Kiwi campgrounds. Campervan prices are much higher then.

My wife and I drove a Maui campervan a number of years ago - 11 days around the South Island, Feb 1- 12. Rates were reasonable against other options - but when we added the cost of powered campsites, the cost advantage was not substantial - especially if you are prepared to rely on standby rates offered by motels (we a saw quite a lot on offer).
We were given a van that accomodated 6, though we booked a smaller one as none was available at pick up time - ie we got a 'free upgrade'.
Driving was no problem, even across Arthur's pass, but if you are North American you need to be aware of not being disorientated on those narrow single lane situations down the gorge -something raised with me by a NZ cab driver in Christchurch. I reassured him we were Aussies.
We used powered campsites (and the nice hot showers) but sometimes we parked at lookouts and vehicle rest areas. We drove to Milford Sound; the Milford Road was spectacular then, and we stopped several times for photos.
The advantage is the flexibility, and a sense of adventure. Once, parked near a glacier (I think Tasman glacier) near Mt Cook at night, we could hear a battle to the death between a small animal and a bird - just one foot above our faces on top of the campervan as we laid in bed.
My wife freaked out by the noises, but I thought it was fascinating.
I must confessed that parking in wilderness areas by ourselves, in absolute darkness we sometimes felt a sense of desolate loneliness - but you might be the type who enjoy it.
I enjoyed the experience of campervan driving, cooking in the barely adequate kitchen, a sense of freedom with no real pressure on itinerary, with only a map, a guidebook and our whims to guide us. My wife did pine for more creature comforts - but she's a city girl.

Maui is only one provider in NZ - there are others, and many have specials. You can look at a special website at
http://www.nzcarandcampervanrentals.com
as they are brokers and can help find the best deal and the best priced campervan/motorhome for your needs.
Good luck,
Roger

do a search in this forum for camper vans or motorhomes. There have been heaps of threads on this. You should find it helpful with lots of hints and information.

I just got back from three weeks in a campervan on the South island and had a great time.