New Zealand honeymoon itenary
 

Hi I have decided to go to New Zealand for my honeymoon in the month of February 2015. We two have a budget of around US$ 7000 - 8000 excluding flights tickets from India. We plan to cover both the island, travel by road and take trains, flights where necessary. I am intending to plan everything on my own. Can anyone suggest a good travel plan which i can take as a base to start on. Is my budget appropriate?

Congratulations!

What are your interests?

Lee Ann

How many days will you be in NZ?

My no. of days are open. I am looking to spend around 2 to 3 weeks. Looking for some adventure, but mostly looking for seeing the country. Heard that its probably the most beautiful country in the world.

It's a bit difficult to help you rishabhjain as your post is pretty vague.

How much money you need is anyone's guess - it really depends on what level of accommodation you require, whether you plan to rent a car or take organized tours, how many flights you plan to take within NZ, how many activities you partake in, whether you plan to self-cater or enjoy some posh dining, etc. There's really no way we can help you with budget given such wide parameters, but if you're only asking if a budget of 7-8K is sufficient for three weeks in NZ, I would have to say yes, it should be more than enough.

With three weeks, I suggest you spend two on the SI and one on the NI.

You can hit the highlights of the South Island in two weeks, but you definitely won't see everything and you'll need to narrow things down. For instance, it's extremely difficult to see the south of the SI and the north of the SI in only two weeks. The SI is long and skinny, there are only so many roads, so it takes considerable time to drive from place to place.

One of the biggest mistakes first time visitors to NZ make is underestimating how long it takes to get from place to place.

I suggest you sit down with a guide book and narrow down what you want to see and do and then come back here to ask for specific itinerary suggestions.

In the meantime you might consider this popular loop that many first time visitors enjoy:

Christhchurch-Arthur's Pass-West Coast Glaciers-Wanaka-Queenstown-Mt Cook-Christchurch

Thanks Melnq8..i will surely look into it and get back.

My main reason was to book the flights now as it will be cheaper. So should I plan to arrive in SI - Christchurch and depart from NI - Auckland. So like 2 weeks in SI and then last week in NI.

Understood. I assume your arrival flight will go through Auckland as well, so it really doesn't matter where you begin.

Something to consider though...chances are your flight will arrive into Auckland very early in the morning. You'll want to think about what to do on your first day that won't involve driving. Regardless of whether you begin in Auckland or Christchurch, you'll want a good night's sleep before you drive.

You might also consider spending your week on the NI and then ending your trip in Wellington, where you can take the ferry over to Picton on the South Island.

However, this means you'll begin your SI trip at the very north of the SI, which may or may not work for you, depending on what you hope to see.

Lots of options.

And for what it's worth, I think booking three months out is plenty - are you flying Air NZ? They have specials on a pretty regular basis, I wouldn't rush into booking a flight as far out as February (although it is high season).

I think you're wise to figure out what you want to see and do before you commit to flights that you may not be able to change later.

We honeymooned in NZ - two weeks on South Island (Queenstown, Lake Moeraki, west coast glaciers, tranzalpine rail, Christchurch, Kaikoura (swimming with dolphins), Malborough (Tamara Lodge - wonderful), Queen Charlotte Sound) and one week on North Island (Bay of Islands, Coramandel Pen. and Auckland).

Loved it! Lots of options for outdoor activities, wine tasting, relaxing.

We recently returned with the kids. Just North Island (Wellington, Napier/Havelock North, Taupo/Rotorua, Hamilton/Waitomo, Auckland). In a word, awesome.

Pick a few things you really really want to do and then connect the dots in an intelligent manner.Congrats and have a terrific time.

We loved the South Island for the views and wildlife, the North Island for the cities. I recommend flying to Queenstown and starting from there. We saved almost $1,000 on a van rental by driving it from the South Island back to the Auckland airport -- most people go north to south. Make reservations ahead of time for the ferry between the islands, but since you are not going at peak times, you shouldn't have a problem. Kaikoura was a fantastic place to stop for several days to rest -- whale watching and hiking trails, and it is only an hour from Picton, where you catch the ferry to the North Island.
We saved money by staying at B&Bs rather than nicer hotels -- they tend to be simple and basic, but were always clean.

Thanks a lot guys for the tip..I am working on the itenary..will get back for help

hi, rishabjain,

we did a 17 night trip to NZ last year, and in retrospect, had we had 3 weeks, we would have divided it into a week in the north and 2 weeks in the south. I like the idea of using your arrival day to fly down to Christchurch, and then having the rest of that day to recover. Then you could set off in a big loop, ending up at Picton for the ferry to Wellington.

things not to miss? on the SI, Oamaru for the lovely Victorian buildings and the fairy penguin colony, Queenstown/Glenorchy, Wanaka for its position on the lake and general surroundings, the glaciers on the West Coast, the lovely little town of Nelson.

on the NI, Wellington [assuming it's not blowing a gale like it was when we were there] Napier for the Art Deco and the gannets, [not to mention the wineries] and the Coromandel peninsular which is just gorgeous.

I'm sure that others will have their own ideas, and you definitely should listen to Melnq8, not least because she has a lot of experience of the SI; we definitely should have listened more closely to what she said about driving times as it can take a very long time to get from one place to another.