New Zealand has a lot of different, weird and wonderful adventures to take hold of. (Yes I have taken the starting paragraph from the other blog). I have to split this into the North and the South, there is just so much to fit in! Let’s start with the basics first of all and then we will get into the fun part.
On the South Island, New Zealand there are two major airports which international flights will fly in and out of, which is Christchurch and Dunedin. You can fly with airlines such as Cathay Pacific, via Hong Kong, and Singapore Airlines, via Singapore, without having to do another stop in New Zealand such as Auckland before you connect into one of these. The other main airport which travellers can fly into is Queenstown, however for flights into here you would have to route via another hub within New Zealand first. Other internal airports which are a lot smaller include Blenheim, Nelson, Milford Sounds and many more. These are a lot smaller so routes will usually be operating through a larger hub rather than flying directly between. Unless you are able to find a low-cost carrier of New Zealand who will zip in between these airports.
From experience if you would like to visit both the North and the South Islands of New Zealand you need 3 – 5 weeks. If you have any less time that this, concentrate on just one island. Just like the North Island there is only one main road which can take you around the whole of the South Island to stop off at all the major sights along the way.
So now the fun part, below I have listed all the different activities and areas you can visit, which I believe to be the best places to visit on any South Island New Zealand itinerary. If you are already aware of one area, you can skip this and go straight to another:
- Christchurch
- Kaikoura
- Hanmer Springs
- Blenheim
- Nelson
- Abel Tasman National Park
- Greymouth/Hokitika
- Franz Josef
- Wanaka
- Queenstown
- Lake Tekapo
Now, I’m not going to go into a huge amount of detail, as I want you to do most of the exploring yourself. However, this should provide you with a nice overview and help you to plan out your next South Island, New Zealand adventure.
Christchurch
A small city, not a huge amount going on. You can stay in the centre, usually I only recommend 1 night here just to get over any international flying or before you are about to embark on your journey home the next day. Chateau on the Park is a popular accommodation choice here, close to the train station if you are thinking about starting your South Island adventure with the Tranz-Alpine train. You can also pick up a car or motorhome from here with most hire companies.
Hanmer Springs
As you head further North towards Kaikoura this is the perfect place to stop, a little further inland and home to the Hanmer Springs Thermal Pools and Spa. Not a necessary stop if you are strapped for time, but if you wanted to break up the journey to Kaikoura, or if you had all the time in the world, its worth having a couple of nights here.
Kaikoura
From Christchurch head North along the coast and you will reach Kaikoura. Home of the most popular spot for Whale Watching and Dolphin swimming experiences. There is one main company here which runs all the different types of trips. Top tip: if you are going whale watching I would recommend getting the earliest morning departure, as they will not send the first boat out if the weather if bad and they can’t spot any whales. Therefore, if you are on a tour due to depart in the afternoon you could get bumped off the day, if there are major delays. One night in Kaikoura is all you need, it’s a very small, quiet, beach side town.
Blenheim
One of the most famous wine regions in New Zealand, popular for a few nights to make sure you aren’t drinking and driving of course. Most lodges or hotels you stay in will provide day tours or wine tasting of the surrounding vineyards.
Picton
This is worth a mention as this is just an hour on from Blenheim. You wouldn’t stay here, however this is where you would book your ferry over to the North Island. You can take the ferries with your car or motorhome, or as a foot passenger.
Nelson
If we curve round the North of the South Island we get to a quaint little town called Nelson. Home to the centre of New Zealand walk which is a lovely countryside hike. You finish with beautiful views over Nelson Bay.
Abel Tasman National Park
Nelson is the gateway to the start of your drive to Abel Tasman National Park. This National Park has some beautiful, boutique and unique accommodation. For those travellers wanting to get in touch with their nature side. The lodges usually include activities such as kayaking (with seals) or forest nature walks in the park on land. If you didn’t want to stay in one of the lodges, there are Abel Tasman day trips you can take from Nelson.
Greymouth / Hokitika
Greymouth is the end or start point for the Tranz-Alpine train. This can be taken in either direction from Christchurch or Greymouth. Car hire can be picked up from either end. Motorhome hire can only be picked up and dropped in Christchurch. You can take a return journey to and from the same place if you would like to. If you were wanting to stay a night either side of your train journey I would recommend the coastal town of Hokitika just a thirty-minute drive from Greymouth.
Franz Josef
This is the place of the great Franz Josef glacier and Fox glacier. Two nights is enough time to spend here and make sure you add in either a short helicopter flight or a heli hike on the glacier. Due to global warming the glacier is very small and hard to see if you are to take the walking trails up to one of the viewpoints. You are also not able to get a walking tour up to the glacier anymore so the only proper way to see it is to get a helicopter onto it.
Wanaka
One of my favourite places in New Zealand. New Zealand landscape at it’s prime. A beautiful little town set in the middle of the valley of mountains and on the side of Wanaka lake. We didn’t organise any activities here, just walk. That’s the top tip for this location, just walk. You are bound to find a trial which will fit your time scale and athletic capabilities. We stayed three nights which is what I would recommend, or even longer, to take in all the surroundings.
Queenstown
Three night MINIMUM needed here. Minimum. We could definitely stay longer as there is so much to do and the town is just exquisite. It’s famous for winter skiing and has that European vibe with the large grey stone walled buildings. The mix of wooden buildings and well places trees making it very picturesque. In the summer, this town also comes to life with mountain biking, jetboating and buggee jumping. Head up the cable car to get involved in the bungee jump or try the luge (basically a go-kart without an engine) a must do, great fun. Just outside of Queenstown is the Kawarau Bridge where AJ Hackett has their main station if you wanted to do a bungee jump from here instead, or to even try the World’s Biggest Swing! For something on the ground, play a round of frisbee golf in the local park (get a frisbee from a travel centre in the town which are usually available to hire for an hour or two). Frisbee golf for you confused, don’t worry we were as well. You just start one end of the part and they have baskets around which are your holes and you just frisbee freely while keeping score. When you get hungry from all those exciting experience; Ferg Burger is a must. You will queue but it is worth it, anyone who has been to Queenstown will have gone here. Nom nom. Mildford sound and Doubtful sound are incredible day trips from Queenstown where you will take a coach down, a day cruise and perhaps even a scenic flight. All in one day, definitely add: just Google them you’ll know why.
Lake Tekapo
You know when you used to draw mountains when you were younger; tall and always with white tops. This is it in real life, the Mount Cook Mountain range lines the middle of the South Island, separating the coastal road which goes past Franz Josef, and the main road which takes you from Queenstown back to Christchurch. Fabulous lakes and mountains, another place like Wanaka where you just walk and take in your surroundings. If you wanted to you can visit the Lake Tekapo Spa which is hugged into the mountain side, or you can visit the star gazing observatory for a night tour.
South of the South Island
There is a lot of places to see at the very South of the South Island such as Dunedin and Stewart Island. However these areas are another further drive South and can take up many days in your New Zealand itinerary. Domestic flights can be used at this point. We did a loop of the South Island locations above and didn’t go down this far, we didn’t feel like we missed anything. Majority of travellers will head further South if they have family in this area rather than for the exploring aspect of it. Next time I visit New Zealand on a second visit I may head down this way to experience it.
LEAH HANCOX 