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[vijays]

Hello Friends,

Firstly, a big thank you to all for gathering and sharing so much information on this wonderful forum.

I am planning for a 2 week vacation in New Zealand this year. We will be travelling with two kids 10 & 7 year old. The options available for me are either 1st week or June or 2nd week of September (kids school holidays and available breaks during my projects).

What would you suggest is the best of these two?

I am planning for a south island trip. I understand from other posts that, two weeks time is too less but unfortunately I can't extend it much.

I am planning to hire a campervan and drive through as much as I can. Is britz a good option to hire campervan from? Any other suggestions?

The activities I am planning for:
- Skydiving
- Glacier hiking
- Bunjee jump
- Show Penguins to kids

Am I asking for too much?

Cheers,
Vijay

[bazil.dog]

Hi Vijay,

First off depends what type of weather you want to go in. September is going to be warmer then June.

All those activities are really easy to do in NZ, and since you've got such limited time, I'd consider spending some time in Queenstown. Its a bit of a party town, but they've got tons of options for touristy stuff (sky diving, bunjee, etc) and will get you set up in no time- and you can do it all in one place.

For the penguins, I saw them for free at a place called Oamaru. Its along the east coast of the south island a few hours drive/bus south of Christchurch.

The drive to the fjords/west coast takes longer then you think, so make sure you leave ample time to get there and spend a bit of time there.

Finally, for campervans, my boyfriend and I rented a Wicked Camper which we got a 50% discount because he's a registered nurse. BUT I don't think these camper vans are at all suitable for families- but I saw alot of people going around in Juicy vans which is another popular company. If you're planning on staying in hotels/hostels, it might be cheaper to just rent a small car instead.

So after all that, I think as a rough itinerary you could say, land in Queenstown, spend like 4 or 5 days there, then drive over to the west coast for the fjords and glaciers- depending how much time you want to spend there you could spend another 4 or 5 days. So that leaves a few extra days for some lenience, and also you could pop down to Oamaru and leave from Christchurch or something! But you can also see penguins at the fjords (we saw them at Milford sound).

Akaroa's a great place for wildlife spotting which is near Christchurch (an hour or so drive). And then of course Kaikoura, but thats a bit of a ways north from Christchurch.

Good luck with your planning!! Although 2 weeks in NZ is not much- you can still make the best of it and see tons of NZ since its so compact!!

[vijays]

Thank you Bazil for quick reply. I guess, I will make the tour in September. Thank you for the itinerary. I will probably land in Christchurch as most of the airlines fly to Christchurch than to QT.

I will drive to QT from Christchurch and will take a flight back.

Cheers,
Vijay

[bazil.dog]

Thank you Bazil for quick reply. I guess, I will make the tour in September. Thank you for the itinerary. I will probably land in Christchurch as most of the airlines fly to Christchurch than to QT.

I will drive to QT from Christchurch and will take a flight back.

Cheers,
Vijay

Yes I wrote the last reply quick as I was on my way out of the house! Then realized later you can probably only fly in to Christchurch for an int'l flight. The drives are quite nice in NZ, tons of places to stop for photos along the way!

Have a great time!!

[aladam888]

New Zealand waterfalls are just as majestically blissfull a sight as you can imagine. Some of the best are Waikaremoana, Whangarei Falls, Waitakeres, Purakaunui Falls and Kao pun Temple waterfalls. You should surely visit them