New Zealand

One of my favourite countries in the world. Some absolutely stunning landscapes, friendly people and fascinating culture. In my opinion, the best way to get around is to rent a car. I took all my camping stuff with me, as I was doing a lot of multi-day hikes. And I would say they were the best thing about New Zealand – the trails are incredibly well marked and maintained. And there are no snakes or bears to watch out for. They do limit the number of people on the trail, which is a good thing, but make sure you book in advance.

Highlights

The Routeburn Track

Tongariro Northern
Circuit

Milford sound

Roy's Peak

Itinerary

Queenstown (12 nights)

1 hour 2 minutes

Wānaka (3 nights)

3 hours 51 minutes

Franz Josef (2 nights)

6 hours 11 minutes

Nelson (2 nights)

33 minutes

Motueka (6 nights)

2 hours 33 minutes

3 hours 50 minutes

Wellington (3 nights)

3 hours 51 minutes

Tongariro (4 nights)

1 hour 50 minutes

Rotorua (2 nights)

1 hour 47 minutes

Waitomo (1 night)

2 hours 5 minutes

Auckland

Queenstown

Queenstown is lots of fun. There's plenty of adventure sports stuff going on (skydiving etc.) if that's your thing. I was there mainly as a base for some treks in Fjordland National Park nearby. The Routeburn Track is one of my favourite multi-day treks in the world – camping by Lake Mackenzie was a particular highlight. The Milford Track is also great, but it's very hard to book. You can do a trip to Milford Sound without the walking, which is definitely worth seeing either way.

Routeburn Track, Milford Track, Milford Sound, Ben Lomond hike, disc golf in Queenstown Gardens

Eat

Fergburger, Fergbakery (meat pies), Devil Burger

Stay

Blacksheep Backpackers, Nomads

Wānaka

One of my favourite places in New Zealand. It's got a lot more of a chilled out vibe than Queenstown. The lake is gorgeous, and there's a nice beach too. If you fancy a longer hike, you can hike up to Roy's Peak (like everyone else does) but then walk all the way along the ridgeway. There'll probably be some hitchhiking involved at the start or end but it's worth it!

Roy's Peak, beach day, That Wānaka tree

Eat

Stay

Adventure Wanaka Hostel

Franz Josef

A nice place to stop as you head up the west coast of South Island. Speaking of which, the drive to get here is a belter. Once you get to Franz Josef, a glacier, an amazing lake, and even a little forest with glowworms awaits you. Head to Reflection Island on Lake Matheson for one of the most photographed views in New Zealand – Mount Cook and Mount Tasman in the background, perfect reflection in the lake.

Robert's Point, Lake Matheson, Terrace Walk (with glowworms)

Eat

Stay

Franz Josef Top 10 Holiday Park

Wellington

The ferry ride over from Picton is very picturesque, and the Kiwi capital was really nice, if a bit windy! The museum was great. There was a very fun drag show in the botanical gardens while I was there, I think they put on quite a few events there which are worth checking out.

Wētā Workshop (Lord of the Rings), Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington Botanic Garden

Eat

Satay Palace

Stay

The Marion

Tongariro

There's only one reason you'd be here, to see Mount Ngauruhoe, also known as Mount Doom. Most people do the day hike – The Tongariro Alpine Crossing, but I implore you to do the Tongariro Northern Circuit instead. It's a three to four day trek, and one of the best multi-day hikes I've ever done. I mean, you get to simply walk into Mordor!

Tongariro Northern Circuit, Tawhai Falls (Gollum's Pool)

Eat

Stay

YHA National Park Backpackers

Rotorua

If you've just done the Tongariro Northern Circuit, you'll be glad to have made it to Rotorua with it's thermal pools. Warm baths and massages, yes please. There's also a lot of places to learn more about Maori culture. I went to Te Puia which has a big geyser too. If I'm honest, the Maori part felt a little bit like a human zoo, but it was still interesting, and you get to see a haka.

Thermal Bath, massages, kayaking (with glowworm caves), Te Puia (Maori cultural village and geyser)

Eat

Stay

Haka House Rotorua

Waitomo

I pivoted last minute, choosing Waitomo instead of spending a night in Auckland, which everyone had warned me was pretty boring. And I'm glad I listened. I'd seen glowworms before in New Zealand. But this took it to the next level. It genuinely felt like you were stepping (or floating, as you're in a boat) into a scene from Avatar. And obviously you're going to be driving past Hobbiton on the way there, which is a must.

Waitomo Caves, Hobbiton

Eat

Stay

Kiwipaka Waitomo

Tips

Car rental can be expensive, and it can be annoying having to pay for days when you're off trekking. And it can be costly to take a car on the ferry between north and south islands. I actually ended up renting multiple cars to avoid this (Queenstown to Nelson, Wellington to Auckland).

If we had more time...

1. Aoraki/Mount Cook

2. The Coromandel

3. Bay of Islands

4. Lake Tekapo

OTRA

New Zealand

Highlights

The Routeburn Track

Tongariro Northern Circuit

Milford sound

Roy's Peak

Itinerary

Queenstown (12 nights)

Wānaka (3 nights)

Franz Josef (2 nights)

Nelson (2 nights)

Motueka (6 nights)

Wellington (3 nights)

Tongariro (4 nights)

Rotorua (2 nights)

Waitomo (1 night)

Auckland

Queenstown

Tips

If we had more time...

Tongariro Northern
Circuit