All of the New Zealand experts out there must want to scream with all the the itinerary questions but WE NEED YOUR HELP. Let me thank you first before the screaming starts. I've been going over books, maps, printouts and have blurry computer eyes. It's overwelming.

My husband and I have 4 weeks for a New Zealand and Australia trip - depending on cost, maybe 1 week longer. This post will only have questions regarding New Zealand.

My plan is to only do the South Island (2 weeks) and then Sydney and Cairns/Port Douglas and if possible, Uluru (2 weeks) We will start our adventure around April 5, 2015.

We are in our mid 60's. We don't want to be on a strict timetable so we can stop at anything that catches our eye. We are fit but not hiker types. My husband loves farm markets and food shops. A must is a jet boat ride, the luge in Queenstown and, if I get the courage, a hang glide ride.

1. We have not made airline reservations yet and was wondering if anyone has used any kind of air pass with New Zealand Air or Quantas? Do you feel those passes have saved you money? We will fly out of Detroit and do New Zealand first, then Australia. I am sure we will stop in Auckland then fly on to the South Island so we can start pretty much anywhere. If it works, I think we can fly into Christchurch and out of Queenstown or even better yet, Dunedin. Our first night will be wherever we land to recuperate after the long flight. I have checked and can pick up a car in Christchurch and drop in Dunedin.

2. We want to visit Queenstown 3 nights, Milford or Doubtful Sound 2 or 3 nights (possible overnight boat trip) Lake Wanaka and Dunedin. Is the Trans Apline Train worth the trip to Greymouth or would a self drive be just as scenic? I would like to do the west coast side. What other scenic highways or towns should we add? Will we miss a lot by not doing the east coast? I quess that's a dumb question because I'm sure we will , but you can't see everything.

3. Do most people make ALL of their hotel/motel/BB reservations prior to departing? At that time of year, can we keep a night or two open and book once we are on the road? Looking at the road from Greymouth to Lake Wanaka, can we figure on one night or two for that drive? Is a reservation necessary for that segment? We don't book high end resorts. Motels or B & Bs are fine with us.

The itinerary is looking something like this:

Christchurch - First night
Greymouth - 1 night
Road from Greymouth to Lake Wanaka - 2 nights
Lake Wanaka -1 night
Queenstown - 3 nights
Milford Sound/Doubtful Sound - 2-3 nights
Dunedin 2 nights

That leaves 1 or 2 nights to fill in. Any suggestions or should I open a bottle of wine and start over? Thanks for all the patient help for all the first time New Zealand travelers.

Hi rfbk50.

NZ itineraries can indeed be overwhelming, but you're on the right track.

<<Is the Trans Alpinee Train worth the trip to Greymouth or would a self drive be just as scenic?>>

I prefer the drive myself. The train goes through 19 tunnels, which sort of defeats the purpose of a scenic rail journey IMO.

<<What other scenic highways or towns should we add?>>

If traveling up the West Coast from Wanaka, Franz Josef or Fox Glacier is the best place to break up the long drive. I suggest at least two nights there.

<<Will we miss a lot by not doing the east coast?>>

No. The east coast of the SI is the least scenic, particularly from Christchurch to Oamaru.

<<Do most people make ALL of their hotel/motel/BB reservations prior to departing?>>

No. A lot of folks prefer to wing it, which is completely doable. It can be more problematic during high season and school holidays though. Some areas, such as Mt Cook and the glaciers, have limited accommodation, so you're taking a chance if you rock up in high season w/o a booking, as these areas are popular & isolated - you can't usually just drive on to the next town. The long Easter weekend (Good Friday through Easter Monday) will be very busy.

Regarding your itinerary:

Skip Greymouth. I suggest you continue south to either Hokitika or the glaciers. If you plan well, you might also be able to fit in a side trip to Punakaiki - Pancake Rocks - 45 minutes north of Greymouth.

Give Wanaka a minimum of two nights, three is even better.

Te Anau makes a great base for the full day trip to Milford. There's not much IN Milford other than the cruise terminal, a café and one or two place to stay. Te Anau is a two hour drive from Milford and the closest place to stay (with the exception of Knob's Flat and some camp grounds).

Open a bottle of wine, sit back and finesse. No need to start over.

Hi, rfbk50

Just a note - NZ school holidays in 2015 are 2 - 20 April. As it is still fairly warm families will still be travelling around. I would suggest for the popular areas . e.g. Wanaka, Queenstown, Franz / Fox and Milford / Doubtful - you consider booking in fairly soon.

Have never gone on the TransAlpine, but driven through the various passes many times, and as Mel says they are beautiful and worth doing.

Glad you are going down the West Coast - it is one of my favourite parts of the country - but I wouldn't say that to my husband who is a true-blue South Islander!

dotty -

<<but I wouldn't say that to my husband who is a true-blue South Islander!>>

I'm just curious why your husband doesn't care for the West Coast?

I got a similar reaction from a Kiwi once - he couldn't understand our attraction with the West Coast, and likewise, I didn't get why he didn't like it. It's so beautiful!

So exciting for you! Here's my contribution...I live in Christchurch (which is awesome by the way).

1. Can't tell you anything about air passes in NZ or AU. But there's only 2 options for flying within NZ - Air NZ and Jetstar. I've always found that the earlier you can book, the better price you get. Jetstar only covers the main centres and Qtown, and is a stickler for weight limits, check in times etc. They are also pretty good at cancelling flights and lengthy delays (I've been stranded in Wellington by jetstar). I personally try to avoid them when it matters and if there's not much in it as far as price goes. . Air NZ does all the smaller airports as well as the main centres. Check out www.grabaseat.co.nz and sign up for the deals. Between NZ and AU there's also Virgin Australia.

2. Don't start second guessing what you've planned so far - it looks pretty good! I can make some small suggestions...


Christchurch - First night (yay!).
Greymouth - 1 night (agree with Melnq8 to stay in Hoki over Greymouth. I'd make your first full day a nice easy one and take the train. The roads are windy, slow and you'll have plenty of time to drive on other days. Also, there are too many fatal and serious road accidents with tourists that are jet lagged and not used to NZ driving conditions.)
Road from Greymouth to Lake Wanaka - 2 nights (agree that you could add a night or 2 here and stay in Fox or Franz on the way. PS. I love Gillespies Beach at sunset)
Lake Wanaka -1 night (could add a night or 2 here)
Queenstown - 3 nights (yes! I love Qtown!)
Milford Sound/Doubtful Sound - 2-3 nights (agree that you'd be best to stay in Te Anau if not on a boat)
Dunedin 2 nights (much as I love Dunedin, I'd be tempted to skip this and add the extra nights to to Wanaka/Qtown and then fly to AU from Qtown.

I would have absolutely no concern about winging it with the accommodation. My preference would be to book if I knew parts of my itinerary were fixed, but unless there's a rugby test on, there would be no real need. I just think it saves time

Enjoy!

Sounds like a great trip.
Definitely Hokitika over Greymouth and the West Coast is magnificent. It's a WOW at every rugged and spectacular turn.
I also agree about Dunedin. It's a lovely city ( and my sister in law lives there!) but if you only have 2 weeks in NZ you don't need to visit Dunedin. Much better to maximize your time in Q'Town or Wanaka & fly direct to Aus from there.

In re: your questions about airpasses. I have used the Qantas (no "u") Walkabout Air Pass to get around Australia. It was cost-effective for us, but you have to crunch the numbers.

Hi, Mel,

<<but I wouldn't say that to my husband who is a true-blue South Islander!>>

What I should have said was "but I wouldn't let him know that as I am a North Islander and as such could not possibly profess to find part of the South Island interesting!!" He does love visiting the West Coast, and exploring places we haven't been to together. (He used to go to the West Coast when living in Christchurch before the Haast bridge was in place.)

Sorry I confused you.

No worries Dot, thanks for clearing that up.

"No worries Dot, thanks for clearing that up."

You're sounding like an Aussie, Mel!

Guilty as charged, margo, although I picked up 'no worries' from a cowboy in Wyoming about 100 years ago.

while we were in QT we met some people who had flown straight there from Brisbane, so you could use that as your gateway into Queensland.

from our experiences, you want as long in the SI as possible.

you might like to think of this:

Day 1 - Christchurch
Day 2 - Hokatika
Day 3-4 Franz Joseph [shame to go all that way and not see the glaciers]
Day 5,6,7, Wanaka
Day 8,9,10 -Te Anau for Milford Sound
Day 11, 12 - Dunedin
Day 13,14,15, QT.

Melnq8 can tell you if it's worth going to Dunedin. We didn't but i rather wish we had to see the wildlife in that area. OTOH we did go to Oamaru, and had a wonderful evening, eating in one of the best restaurants we found in NZ and then watching the little blue penguins coming ashore.

OP here. Annhig, thanks for the suggestion. We have looked over flights and decided on doing Australia first then on to New Zealand because of Easter school schedules. We will depart the US mid April.