1 - An air route from Taupo to Napier is not shown on the ANZ site. Since they are close, consider driving.

2 - Do you really want to fly to CHC, then backtrack to Nelson? Consider flying from Napier to Nelson, then driving to CHC. It would then be easier to fly to IVC.

You should make reservations as soon as you reasonable know when and where you want to stay. In most of the places, the cancellation policies are quite good. Than as you approach the time, you can check if anything better is available on <b>wotif.com</b>. If you are going to stay in CHC, we loved The Point, which has large accommodations in a beautiful setting.

Pawleys,
Schools are scheduled to start on 7 February 2006 although some may choose to start a little earlier, so there may still be a local demand on accommodation, etc if you are here at that time.
As locals we too have problems trying to fit everything we want to do into a limited time frame, and we go south every summer!! We are staying in Wanaka then Te Anau rather than Queenstown.
If you are wanting to stay in that region, I would suggest staying at Tekapo for the two nights unless you plan to climb Mt Cook - if you can. It is not always visible / climbable, even in summer. Otherwise, why not stay one night in the area, and look at spending the next day driving leisurely through to Christchurch. Or spend one night in Tekapo and one in Timaru then go through to Christchurch.
Good luck with your planning.

Disagree with Jed. In February we found it hard to get good accommodation and cars at the last minute. It is the best month to be in NZ and the high season. All that will be on wotif will be tired stock standard hotels not all the lovely lodges and B&amp;Bs.

I'm not sure what you disagree with.

Make reservations ASAP? Check with wotif later?

O K, here's my most recent effort to stuff everything wonderful into 3 weeks:
Arrive Aukland, fly to Taupo
Taupo
Drive to Napier
Napier
Fly to Christchurch, drive to Arthur's Pass
Arthur's Pass
Drive to Haast Pass (considering Wilderness Lodge or ??
Drive to Queenstown Area (stay Glenorchy?)
Glenorchy
Drive to Milford ; Overnight cruise of Sound
Drive to Invercargill, fly to Stewart Island
Stewart Island
Fly to Christ Church, Drive to Kaikoura
Kaikoura
Drive to Blenheim
Blenheim
Drive to Nelson area, possibly Mouteuka
Moutueka
That's 18 nights, all I have and I'm still leaving out so many of your suggestions. Would love your thoughts.

Questions: Would it be better to stay in the Queenstown area a third night and fly to the overnight cruise of the Sound then drive to Invercargill from there?

Can I enjoy the wineries and Abel Tasman from one location at the top of the South Island or split it to Blenheim and Moutueka?

Taupo is of marginal interest unless you are a fisherman. The only other place you mention in the North Island is Napier.
I've not been there myself, but unless it's of strong appeal to you, why not skip the North Island entirely?

Wilderness Lodge Moerecki is a Garden of Eden (but expensive).

You asked about &quot;enjoying the wineries &amp; Able Tasman&quot;&quot;

IF you are referring to the wineries in the Nelson region...then YES. But, if you are referring to the wineries in Blenheim then I'd say no......there is a beautiful, very curvy road between Blenheim &amp; Nelson. We made the trip a few times....even after a long dinner at Herzog.
BUT it is a pull!!

We've made several trips to NZ. Renting a car is the best way to see the islands. Our personal opinion is The South Island is proportionally worth 80% of your itinery.Be sure to take 1/2day or longer Franz Josef hike (must be guided for good reason!)Wanaka is worth at least 2 days. Queenstown &lt;3 days. If a hiker, DO THE MILFORD TRAK but sign up before you leave USA. Guided tour is FABULOUS or you can be &quot;indep. walker&quot; but then need food and sleeping bags. If less time, do Routburn. Christ Church, stay by Botanical Gardens (3 star hotels are adequate)+ Antartica Museum is a must-see! ALL NZ accommodations are crisp and clean, but not luxurious. &quot;Home Stays&quot; staying with NZ family in rural areas also is a treat (if you like sheep!) You don't need reservations ahead. Plenty of options except at Xmas. Renting a &quot;Blitz&quot; or &quot;Maori&quot; RV is extremely popular. We rarely stayed in cities (on South Is. there are no &quot;cities&quot; other than Adventure Capitol of the World: Queenstown.

We stayed in fairly budget accommodation for most of our trip to the South Island, so can't recommend any really nice places.
But..... DEFINATELY book in advance. We went for most of Feb 05, and booked all our accommodation, except for the last few nights- This resulted us spending a stupid amount of time on the phone once there, trying to tee up comfortable acommodation at a reasonable cost. However, if you have a higher budget, it may not be as difficult to find ad-hoc places to stay.

Here I go again, trying to stream line this trip.
We've decided to do just the South Island. Unfortunately we're locked into flying in and out of Auckland. But, we plan to fly directly on to Nelson. Here's how it looks now, what do you think? 1.Arrive Nelson late AM; Ruby Bay Area
2.Nelson
3.Abel Tasman
4.Abel Tasma ( Could we stay at in the Ruby Bay Area for 3 or 4 nights and do Tasman easily from there?
5.Drive to West Coast (Where to stay?)
6.Drive towards Franz Josef (Is there an attractive lodge nearby? I'm not into motels.
7.Drive to Lake Moeraki Wilderness Lodge
8.Lake Moeraki
9.Drive to Te Anau Overnight Cruise
10.Te Anau
11.Queenstown Area
12.Queenstown Area
13.Lake Tekapo
14.Drive to Akaroa
15.Akaroa
16.Drive to Kaikora (See BotanicalGardens in Christ Church on way
17.Kaikora (Whale Wathcing)
18.Drive to Blenheim
Fly from Blenheim-Aukland-home
I'm trying hard not to have too many days with long drives, and not to move every day.
This includes most of what we really want to see except Arthur's Pass. Thought about scooting in there while coming down the West coast and spending one night there instead of closer to FJ. Would that work?

For Franz Josef, check out Punga Grove. We're staying there in January in one of their Rainforest Studios.
http://www.pungagrove.co.nz/

Hi, Pawleys,
Revised itinerary looks interesting. Perhaps stay in either Greymouth or Hokitika which is about 40 kilometres south of Greymouth. Both have hotels and guest / hosted accommodation - a really nice-looking place in Hokitika is the Villa Polenza.
Both places give you access to a variety of activities on the West Coast.

You will enjoy 2 nights at Wilderness Lodge in order to take full advantage of their walks. Bring insect repellent.

It is a long drive from Lake Moerecki to TA. Do you plan the overnight cruise on night 9 or 10?

Dear Pawleys, As it's your 35th why don't you hand it over to those, that do this sort of organising all the time. I would suggest http://www.designzontravel.co.nz/ and http://www.travelplanner.co.nz/ these companies will make the planning that much easier.

Hi there.....Congratulations.....NZ is a wonderful place to visit....2-3 weeks is a short time however don't forget the north .... Bay of Islands... Russell...Keri-Keri some good vineyards in that area as well.. Hokianga Harbour is beautiful.. Sand dunes you can board down....You will be spoilt for choice with all the good advice you have received from this forum !! but have a great time....would suggest you fly into Auckland and out of Christchurch or visa versa... to keep in one direction.. enjoy......
Kelpie..

South Island is the most beautiful place on Earth, so I'd recommend spending as much time there as possible, though the Bay of Islands in North Island is worth a few days.
In the South, here' some not to miss ideas-
- the journey from christchurch to greymouth - either drive or on the Tranzscenic
- Fox Village (stay at Rainforest Motel and consider the half-day glacier walk - dont miss Lake Matheson)
- Queenstown (spend at least 4-5 days here and you can skip Wanaka completely)
- Dunedin (try a nature tour to see albatross and penguins -its an out of the world experience)
- Kaikoura (a whale watch is a must)
- Blenheim (a wine tour is highly recommended)

I missed Nelson/Abel Tasman National Park and the Southern Scenic Route - since you have the time, you must certainly inlcude these in your itinerary.

bkmk