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Get FREE detailed New
Zealand travel information
on accommodation, attractions, things to do and see . . .
This guide is the big picture, the overall view, but if you want detailed information on what to see, where to go, where to eat, where to stay go to my (Not quite) Complete Guide to New Zealand Travel Where to stay, where to eat, what to see. Yes, all that. But much more. It is aimed primarily at self-drive travellers and they need to know much more. The problem is how to deliver this information in a logical way - and I have decided to serve it up as the road rolls under you. That is, the information is given kilometre by kilometre for each of the state highways. It is a work in progress. And so far it has been seven years in the making. It is far from complete, but if you are touring NZ you may find it useful. Click here to visit the (Not quite) Complete Guide To New Zealand Travel. |
New Zealand By Car or Campervan
Advantages of travelling by car or campervan in New Zealand: 1: Flexibility. You can go where you want to go, not where a structured operator takes you. 2: You can stop when you want to to follow something or somewhere (or someone??) that interests you. Good for taking photographs, for instance. 3: A lot of the natural appeal of this country is best found on minor roads. Main-line bus operators just don't go there, and even if they do they don't stop at the good bits. 4: Gives you access to cheaper accommodation options. Sometimes the best accom deal is slightly off the beaten track. Disadvantages of travelling by car in New Zealand: 1: Cost, if there is only one person travelling. See "Costs" later. 2: Driving on the "wrong" side of the road if you come from a right-side-of-the-road country. 3: Local information. On a tour operation the driver will have local knowledge and give you a running commentary. They'll also help with accommodation and activities. Renting v. buying. If you are travelling in New Zealand for less than a month renting is definitely the cheapest option. For less than two months renting is possibly your best option. For two months or more buying a car comes into the frame as a value option. Some of the considerations are the cost of ferry crossing (see below), one-way travel, and your preferences in age and condition of the car. For more information on buying a car in New Zealand click here. Cost of driving in New Zealand Rental Cars can start as cheaply as $15 a day - but there are "special conditions" - Auckland to Auckland only, minimum 40 days hire, older car, winter time only. Don't believe every headline you see in rental car company ads. Mostly, they lie. Generally you'll pay around $30-35 a day for a good car for a month or so. That's for a small hatchback, probably around 10 years old. If you think that's old, remember the plane that brought you here is probably older. (E.g. the average age of American Airlines planes is 15 years. That's the average!). Late model; cars, again small hatchbacks, would start at $40-45 a day on a month basis. There are three tiers of rental car operator in New Zealand:
If you want competitive quotes on rental car hire go to http://new-zealand-rental-cars.com/New-Zealand-rental-cars.htm Fuel. I always work on 10 litres per 100 km (because it's easy to calculate). Later model cars, however, might do slightly better, large cars and vans somewhat worse. A tour of a month will run up 4000-6000km which, on current fuel prices will cost about $800-$1200. On a two month trip you'll run up 6000-8000km. After that add about 50km a day. Shorter hires - less than a month - usually average around 250km a day. Petrol prices vary from time to time. A great site to keep a watch on current fuel prices is PriceWatch. Diesel fuel is cheaper than petrol in New Zealand. That is because there is no road tax charged on it at the pump. Instead you have to pay a tax, currently 5.5c per km, for every km run. Even with the tax added, diesel is slightly cheaper than petrol . If , for instance, you average around 200km a day you'll pay an extra $11 for road tax. Over two months or more that will drop to around $6 a day. Some car and campervan rental companies include the cost of RUCs (Road user Charges) in their daily prices. Some don't. Ferry crossings. New Zealand is cloven in two by Cook Strait. That poses a problem for motorists. There are two types of rental firms when it comes to dealing with this problem - those that have depots on each side of Cook Strait which divides the two islands, and those that do not. The first group - which includes all the major operators - has the advantage that you leave one car on one side of the strait and collect another on the other side, thus avoiding the cost of transporting the vehicle by ferry. On the other hand they tend to be the more expensive operations - those depots have to be paid for somehow. The ferry cost ranges from $169 to $249 for car and driver. There are two ferry operators: The Interislander is the long-established operation - they are a part of Tranz Rail, the country's only rail operator, now owned (for the second time) by the New Zealand Government. And there's Strait Shipping 's Bluebridge service, which started out as a freight line but now operates ships which carry cars and passengers. For more details on crossing Cook Strait go to http://new-zealand-travel-guide.com/cook-strait.htm. Road rules. The most important rule is "Keep Left". In New Zealand the left side is the right side and the right side is the wrong side. By and large the passenger should have the green grass outside the side window and the driver should have the white dashes in the middle of the road. If it's the other way round, something is wrong. The second and third days are often the most dangerous days for drivers from right-side-of-the-road countries. On the first day you are conscious of the problem. By the second or third day you figure you have it sorted . . . and you switch your brain off. What will help is for the navigator to also take responsibility for keeping to the correct side of the road. In many places now they have large white arrows painted on the road to remind you of the correct driving side. Licenses A frequently asked question is "Do I need and International Driving Permit". The short answer is no, provided your license is in English. Your home country license is valid here under an international agreement that allow countries to recognise each others driving licenses. You are entitled to drive on New Zealand road for up to 12 months before having to get a New Zealand driving license. However, if your license is not in English you may need an IDP or an English translation. For the official line go the the New Zealand Transport Agency website. One way travel. There is something of a problem in NZ with an imbalance in travel directions. Most travellers arrive at Auckland and with a knee-jerk reaction want to hire a car, do their tourist number, then depart through Christchurch to save going over the same ground twice. Result: Cars pile up in Wellington and Christchurch and often have to be transported back the other way at high cost. Most companies which operate nationally will from time to time, depending on the positioning of their cars, offer special deals for south-north drives. It is more common to get such deals on a stand-by basis, rather than by pre-booking. But even with a pre-booked vehicle there can be incentives for starting in Christchurch. For instance I recently got rental quotes for a client wanting a 21 day trip in January. It was $30 a day Auckland - Christchurch, but only $19 a day the other way around. But a couple of other considerations: All of which means if you are trying to sort out car rental in New Zealand you may need a cup of tea and a lie down long before you've figured it all out. If you want someone to figure it all out for you contact me at http://new-zealand-rental-cars.com/New-Zealand-rental-cars.htm. I do not rent cars but after 27 years in the business I can help you navigate your way through all the permutations and combinations. I don't work like those automated sites that purport to find you the cheapest deal (yeah, right!!). Remember, a computer is just a very fast idiot. Do you want your rental car selection made by an idiot, no matter how fast? I actually sit back and think about your options, get quotes then give you the options. You choose. If you like the idea of the wind in your face and the romance of motorcycle touring there are a couple of operators that can help: Ardmore Auto Rentals, ex Auckland. City Motorcycle Rentals, 32 Allen St, Christchurch. New Zealand Motorcycle Rentals in Auckland. GoTourNZ.com operating from Nelson but with service also available in Auckland and Christchurch.
A New Zealand Travel Guide is written by David Morris and published by 148 Hillsborough Rd, Hillsborough,
Auckland 1042,
New Zealand. [Return to the top of A New Zealand Travel Guide] |
