South Island: 3347 km in 19 days From end of October 2016 to mid November 2016 we went on a 19 days DIY driving trip on the South Island of New Zealand. This was our second trip to New Zealand and…
Day 19: Church of Good Shepherd
Plan for the day This day was our very last day in New Zealand, south island. Our flight out of Christchurch was at 9 pm in the evening. Our plan was to leave Lake Tekapo at noon which would give us plentiful…
Day 18: Lake Tekapo
Plan for the day We originally planned to be at Lake Tekapo for just two nights and to leave for Christchurch today and fly out of Christchurch the next day. But since the earthquake happened north of Christchurch four days ago there…
Day 17: Lake Tekapo & Mt John Observatory
Plan for the Day Our plan was to move around Lake Tekapo and the town today. In our itinerary was a trip up Mount John Observatory to enjoy the view of Lake Tekapo from a high view point in the afternoon.…
Day 16: Lake Pukaki, Mount Cook & Lake Tekapo
Plan for the day Our plan was to travel northward to Mount Cook before proceeding to Lake Tekapo. There was no direct route between Mount Cook and Lake Tekapo so we would have to back track to Lake Pukaki before travelling…
Day 15: Lindis Pass & Lake Pukaki
Plan for the day The plan was to drive east and northward to Lake Pukaki. We would be passing Lindis Pass which I understood was another scenic pass. The distance to Lake Pukaki was about 150 km and would not take long to…
Day 14: Wanaka and Diamond Lake
Plan for the day Our plan for the day was to take it easy! Since we had already dropped the trekking trip of 16 km (round trip) to Roy’s Peak, we would have plentiful of time to relax. There were many walking…
Day 13: Nugget Point, Cannibal Bay & Lake Wanaka
Plan for the day We would be visiting Nugget Point Lighthouse and Cannibal Bay in the morning and in the afternoon we would drive to Lake Wanaka where we had already booked a room at Wanaka Hotel for two nights.…
Day 12: Porpoise Bay, Purakani Falls, Cathedral Cave
Plan for the day The plan for the day was to visit six places. They were Porpoise Bay, Cathedral Caves Florence Hill Lookout Purakaunui Falls Cannibal Bay Nugget Point Lighthouse. For the night we would be staying at Hillview Campsite & Backpacker…
Day 11: Clifden Bridge, Slope Point & Curio Bay
Plan for the day Our plan for the day would be a long drive from Manapouri all the way to the southernmost part of South Island, Slope Point. Along the way we planned for a couple of sightseeing destinations. For…
Day 10: Doubtful Sound (Fiordland)
Plan for the day We would be visiting Doubtful Sound (fiord) on a Doubtful Sound Wilderness Cruise organised by Real Journeys. The entire trip was expected to last 7 to 8 hours. By afternoon we should be back at Manapouri. For the rest of…
Day 9: Devil’s Staircase, Manapouri, Te Anau
Plan for the day After Queenstown our next destination was Lake Manapouri which was about 179 km, two hours and 10 minutes drive away. It would not take long to reach Lake Manapouri and along the way we did not expect…
Day 8: Queenstown, Bennetts Bluff & Glenorchy
Plan for the day Our plan for the day was to explore Queenstown and its outlying areas. In the morning we would go into Queenstown downtown, in the afternoon we would drive north along Lake Wakatipu to visit Bennetts Bluff…
Day 7: Haast Pass & Queenstown
Plan for the day We planned to drive from Fox Glacier to Queenstown, it would a long drive with a distance of 330 km and an expected driving duration of 4 hours. Our drive would take us over Haast Pass,…
Day 6: Fox Glacier and Lake Matheson
Plan for the day This was our second day at Fox Glacier and our plan would be to move around this area. Our primary reason for revisiting Fox Glacier after 14 years was to view Lake Matheson. We had seen…
Day 5: Punakaiki Blow Holes & Lake Matheson
Plan for the day Our plan was to travel southward all the way to Fox Glacier Town. The journey would be about 250 km and would take about 3.5 hours to complete. Our main purpose at Fox Glacier Town was Lake…
Day 4: Lake Rotoroa, Seal Colony & Perpendicular Point
Plan for the day Since our motel was only 20 km from Lake Rotoroa we decided to visit the lake again first thing in the morning. In the afternoon we would travel westward to Pendicular Point where I had already…
Day 3: ArchWay Islands, Lake Rotoroa
Plan for the day The original itinerary was to extend another night at Wharariki Beach Holiday Park, but since the park was not guest friendly we decided not to stay another night. This morning we would visit Archway Islands and then…
Day 2: Rotoiti Lake & Golden Bay
Plan for the day For the morning we planned to explore Lake Rotoiti and its surrounding. In the early afternoon we would travel north toward Golden Bay to finally end at Wharariki Beach. The journey to Golden Bay would take…
Day 1: Hanmer Springs, Lewis Pass & Lake Rotoiti
Plan for the day Our plan was to drive northward from Christchurch to Lake Rotoiti. The estimated travelling was about 350 km and required 4.5 hours to complete, that was if we did not make stops along the way. Four and…
Flying into Christchurch
Annoying Flight cancellation at the last hour! We did not fly straight into Christchurch, instead our flight journey was broken into two legs. Singapore to Melbourne and Melbourne to Christchurch using separate airlines. The flight costs using one or two airlines…