longnhvietnam

Thanks all you guys for sharing great Itinerary Options.

freediver

Been following this thread and have some questions for those "in the know". My wife and I are going to NZ at the end of Jan 2019. We are meeting friends in Nelson for 3 nights and going with them to Christchurch for 2 nights. Before and after that we are free and basically have 3-4 weeks to spend in NZ. So do you have any thoughts as to how to hook up with them in Nelson? We can arrive well before them or stay on after they head for home from Christchurch (they arrive Nelson Jan 31and depart Christchurch Feb 5)so does it make sense to plan a south island trip before or after we meet them in Nelson and then go to Christchurch with them. We could also finish our trip with them, i.e. Nelson, Christchurch and then home as well. We were thinking of 3 weeks on the south island and 1 week on the north.
Thanks

Melnq8

freediver -

You might get more responses by starting your own thread. But in the meantime, school holidays in NZ (summer break) end between Jan 28-Feb 7, depending on school. Until then, locals and their families will be out in force as well as international visitors - busy time, higher prices, more crowds.

If it were me, I'd meet up with your friends first, and then take the rest of your trip after they leave when kids are back in school.

It makes sense to start a trip in Christchurch as then you can make a figure 8 loop and return to Christchurch for departure. By doing so, you can incorporate both the inland route (Mt Cook) and the West Coast (glaciers), but you'll need a good two weeks. More is even better - three weeks would be ideal.

If you were to fly directly into Nelson, spend time with your friends and then drive on to Christchurch, you could easily drive both routes, hit the highlights and then depart from Christchurch (and on to Auckland).