North and South Island in 2 weeks - help required

frankie

You will miss so much trying to cover all that is on offer with just 2 weeks. I would concentrate on one island only, even then you'll just scratch the surface of this astounding country.


Ist trip we did was 2 weeks north, 2weeks south. Realised we had missed out on seeing so much. 2nd trip 3 weeks north, 3 weeks south.


Still didn't cover all that we wanted as we side-tracked, re-routed, extended, explored etc.


Did both our trips in camper van and used the campsites which were a great laugh.


We still want to go back for more, and so will you!!

fizzytbomb

When driving North to Christchurch, I would stop in Tekapo. Lovely lake and very dark skies, perfect for stargazing. And they have the Tekapo pools!

Just be warned, Milford Sound is a good 3 hours (at least) from Queenstown so factor that in on your day trip - you will have to leave early if you want to kayak (or fly - it really is the best way to see it!). Its a long day by road.

I lived in Queenstown for many years as a hotel concierge, its an amazing place! Let me know if you need any recommendations.

richardw

Consider spending a little longer in Queenstown.
Consider flying ZQN-CHC.
Kaikoura is great for whale watching, consider hiring a car and driving from Christchurch.

mgdavid

looking at the OP the problem seems to be you don't have 2 weeks, you have 11 1/2 days! We did a self-drive tour by car about 15 years ago, for 2 1/2 weeks and even then didn't go further north than Whangarei.
From Queenstown you could do Mount Cook, either Fox or Franz Josef glacier then up the coast road to Greymouth, turn right and take highway 7 back to Christchurch.
Is Hobbiton a 'must' for you? Personally I wouldn't go near it, I find the natural world so much more rewarding!

isplumm

Hi,

Not sure I would bother with a camper van ... my suggestion is to drive to Rotorua & visit the glow worm caves on the way - then stay in Rotorua 1 or 2 nights for the mud / blowholes, then fly from Rotorua to Wellington, then boat across to Picton, train down to Christchurch, maybe stop on way for whale watching.

For me the South Island has far more to offer then the North, so if you only have 2 weeks, spend a few days in the North, then head South.

Mark

isplumm

richardw wrote: »

Consider spending a little longer in Queenstown.
Consider flying ZQN-CHC.
Kaikoura is great for whale watching, consider hiring a car and driving from Christchurch.

Not sure if OP has time, but could catch the train down from Picton (?) to Kaikoura (do the whale watching), then catch train to Christchurch, then over to Greymouth, pick car up & drive down to Franz Joseph Glacier, then Queenstown, Christchurch, the fly back to Auckland & home? A lot of driving in a short time.

Or spend a little time in Christchurch after getting off train & fly from Queenstown to Auckland & home? Just be aware that Queenstown can be windy, so flights can be cancelled!

Mark

familyguy321

Thank you so much to all of you for taking the time to respond and for the helpful tips.

On reflection, it is probably too much to do in the time and so we will need to decide on priorities as suggested above. We will definitely review all comments and respond to individuals where further detail is required.

Thanks again!

FG

PoorCharleyBear

we live in Aus and flew to NZ for 10 days - so no jet lag to contend with, and in 10 days we just did the top half of the North Island, down as far as Rotorua.

So much to see and roads are usually pretty bendy and not dualled, so little opportunity for overtaking. Stuck behind a tractor? Tough.
The journey of 200 kms should take 2.5hrs on good roads, takes 4 in NZ.

Just visit one island- two will leave you dissatisfied.

familyguy321

Hi everyone,

Thanks to the excellent feedback and suggestions, we have amended the itinerary to focus on priorities and to allow some time to relax! The biggest change has been choosing to fly from Auckland to Queenstown, instead of from Wellington, which gives us more days in South Island. This means we have a base, Auckland / Queenstown when in the North / South islands respectively. However, it also means we don't get to experience the Aukland - Wellington Northern Explorer train.

Please review the itinerary below and feel free to offer suggestions or answers to our questions.

Day 1 (Sunday): Flight lands in Auckland early afternoon. Check into hotel and then go out for Auckland Harbour Boat cruise and, if not too tired, followed by dinner at the Sky Tower.

Day 2 (Monday): Day trip to Waiheke Island via Ferry (will self-explore instead of using a tour company). Free evening back in Auckland to relax and get early sleep.

Day 3 (Tuesday): Check out of hotel and leave early morning for Hobbiton [2.5hrs]. Afternoon movie set tour [4hrs] and then drive to Rotorua [1hr] for overnight stay in Maori village.

Questions:
Is 4hrs enough at Hobbiton?
Is Rotorua the best place to get the proper Maori experience?

Day 4 (Wednesday): Leave morning for Orakei Korako Geothermal Park [1hr] or Lake Taupo [1.5hrs]. Return to Auckland by evening [3hrs]

Question: Which is better to visit; Orakei Korako or Lake Taupo?

Day 5 (Thursday): Afternoon flight from Auckland to Queenstown. Check into hotel. Explore in the evening.

Day 6 (Friday): Nevis swing. Relaxing evening.

Day 7 (Saturday): Free day in Queenstown

Question: Is there something we could do on this day?

Day 8 (Sunday): Full day tour - Milford Sound Cruise & Kayak

Question: Should we stay near Milford Sound overnight instead of returning to QT?

Day 9 (Monday): Free day in Queenstown

Day 10 (Tuesday): Leave Queenstown in the morning, drive to Mt Cook through Lindis Pass [5hrs]. Evening stargazing tour.

Question: Is it better to go via Wanaka-Haast Pass-West Coast (glaciers)-Arthurs Pass route?

Day 11 (Wednesday): Drive to Christchurch via Lake Tekapo. Overnight in CC.

Day 12 (Thursday): Day trip to Akaroa/explore Christchurch.

Day 13 (Friday): Morning flight out.

zagfles

familyguy321 wrote: »

Hi everyone,

Thanks to the excellent feedback and suggestions, we have amended the itinerary to focus on priorities and to allow some time to relax! The biggest change has been choosing to fly from Auckland to Queenstown, instead of from Wellington, which gives us more days in South Island. This means we have a base, Auckland / Queenstown when in the North / South islands respectively. However, it also means we don't get to experience the Aukland - Wellington Northern Explorer train.

Please review the itinerary below and feel free to offer suggestions or answers to our questions.

Day 1 (Sunday): Flight lands in Auckland early afternoon. Check into hotel and then go out for Auckland Harbour Boat cruise and, if not too tired, followed by dinner at the Sky Tower.

You can do a walk round the top if you're feeling brave (3 foot wide metal grid with no handrails, you're attached with a harness of course)! Or even do a "base jump" off it! Might help with the jet-lag, or not!

Day 2 (Monday): Day trip to Waiheke Island via Ferry (will self-explore instead of using a tour company). Free evening back in Auckland to relax and get early sleep.

Day 3 (Tuesday): Check out of hotel and leave early morning for Hobbiton [2.5hrs]. Afternoon movie set tour [4hrs] and then drive to Rotorua [1hr] for overnight stay in Maori village.

Questions:
Is 4hrs enough at Hobbiton?

It's only really the tour there, you can't see it independantly, then you get a "free" drink, Think the tour is about 2 hours. AIRI it was very expensive!

Is Rotorua the best place to get the proper Maori experience?

Probably.

Day 4 (Wednesday): Leave morning for Orakei Korako Geothermal Park [1hr] or Lake Taupo [1.5hrs]. Return to Auckland by evening [3hrs]

Question: Which is better to visit; Orakei Korako or Lake Taupo?

We went to Wai-o-Tapu geothemal park which AIRI was the best one we went to. South of Rotorua.