New Zealand for three weeks! WWYD?

[GatoNaranja]

We are a family of four planning a trip to New Zealand this Christmas. We plan to fly in and out of Christchurch as we have friends there. We're hoping to stay with them for a while but we really want to make the most of our trip. Any advice would be much appreciated and I thought I'd ask you guys to help / suggest a tour for us!

Budget is reasonably tight, so we're happy to camp / hire a camper van for some of it...

Two things that must be included:

Some awesome horse riding for me and dd1 (currently looking at a place in Glenorchy on the south island but open to other suggestions)

Something nice to do on Xmas Day (the children aren't too impressed about going away over Christmas and while we'll do the whole 'ooo look Santa's visited' thing when we get back we will probably bring a main present for each of them and that's kind of it. So maybe a hotel or something for a couple of days and get into some kind of festive spirit?

One thing that I would like:
Some sun - preferably towards the end of the trip. Will this mean going far north and if so how long does it take to travel from place to place and where can we go?

This is a once in a lifetime adventure for us as a family and I really want to make the most of it! Children are aged 10 &11.

Thanks in advance :-)

It will be sunny everywhere (unless the weather happens to bad!) at Christmas. Christchurch can be very hot in the summer.

On the south island I'd see Milford sound & the moeraki boulders, Queenstown is beautiful and if your kids like speed they would probably enjoy the shotover jet there.
Dunedin has the world's steepest street and a good science museum.

It would probably be cheaper to fly internally than drive, especially on longer trips. The distances can be a bit deceptive. The weather is a bit more reliably warm the further north you go though Christchurch can get incredibly hot if a Norwester is blowing.

We took DD, aged 9, to NZ over Christmas a few years ago. Highlights for her were:
South Island
Albatrosses and penguins in Dunedin (though it was freezing in Dunedin)
The Cadbury chocolate factory in Dunedin is worth a visit if the weather is bad. Plenty of freebies are handed out, especially for the smaller members of the tour groups.
Moeraki boulders (can be done on the drive from Christchurch to Dunedin)
Queenstown got a bit of a "meh" from her but Puzzling World near Wanaka got the thumbs up.
If you are driving through the South Island I recommend going to Hamner Springs, just on the eastern side of Lewis Pass. There are hot springs there and, last time I looked, horse riding as well. DH and I went white water rafting there once, though the river was quite full and it was a bit more of a pink knuckle ride than a white knuckle one (which is good as DH is a wimp)
Kaikoura for whale watching
Nelson for golden sand beaches for the kids and wine for the adults

North Island
Rotorua, even though it smells. The Waimangu valley was a real hit. It's a valley that was created after the eruption of Mount Tarawera in the 1840s. The place seethes with volcanic activity. Walk to the bottom, take the cruise on the lake, view the smoking cliffs, take the bus back up the hill.
Waitomo for the glow worms. If your children are old enough take them Black Water Rafting
In the far north is ninety mile beach of which I have fond childhood memories.

For Christmas activities I would recommend doing what the Kiwis do and heading towards the beach. One of DD's proudest possessions is a photo of 3 generations of her family in the sea on Christmas day.

Check out motel accommodation. It's by far the cheapest and most practical for families. The often have washing machines as well as the standard kitchen equipment. The AA publish a guide. You can pick up a physical copy from NZ house in London. I also recommend sites like this for picking up good last minute deals.

This is all really fantastic! Thank you so much, I've got lots of research to do.

with 'only' three weeks and jet lag, consider just the south island. OR the way round this would be to fly into Auckland and out of Christchurch. One itinerary that could then work is:

arrive Auckland, two days there as it is unsafe to drive earlier. Skytower, Rangitoto, Devonport.

hire car, drive to Rotorua (4 hours) for a few days of excellent smelly volcanic stuff. Wai-o-tapu is brilliant, as is Craters of the moon near Taupo.

90 mile beach is just that and is a bloody long drive north from Auckland. NZ has plenty of excellent beaches and your time is short.

fly to Queenstown. Spend rest of time on loop from Queenstown to Christchurch in either direction. I also prefer Wanaka and you can do all the active stuff in the area, the two are only 90 mins apart. The Glenorchy horse-riding would indeed be lovely.

Christmas on the beach is something you can't do in Europe - maybe Abel Tasman area? I also like Dunedin where you can see lots of wildlife. Moeraki boulders are round rocks on the beach, unusual but take 10 mins. :-)

Do not underestimate driving times, assume 60km/h max. Google maps is often badly wrong.

I agree that car plus motels would be excellent; weather is not guaranteed in NZ so don't set your heart on a sunny Xmas day, but you should certainly get some good days. Book well ahead for your entire trip.

I've been fortunate to spend a lot of long holidays in NZ, happy to help further and love dissecting itineraries! :-)

Recommend whale watching (or swimming with dolphins) in Kaikoura. Abel Tasman is beautiful, and Nelson (next to the park) is one of the warmest towns in the South Island so a good place to get some sun. You could stick to the South Island, but its worth going across to the North Island to visit Wellington and the Te Papa museum.
Don't bother with Auckland if you don't need to, its very big-city-ish.

We stayed with friends in Tauranga (North Island) and went to Rotorua, and a Maori village, also lethal tobogganing ! And a day on the beach. We were only there a few days on our way home from Aus(!!) but it's the bit the children talk about the most. They were 11, 9 and 5 at the time. Fab, so jealous :)

And they jet boated down a river. No health and safety, the young fellas running were so lovely. Brilliant holiday

Great suggestions above - just wanted to say I have spent a lot of Christmases in Christchurch and the weather is not reliably good - December can we very wet and cold - similar to UK summer, so if warm Christmas is important to you (I.e above 18c and dry)I would second the Able Tasman or the Coromandel (stunning and my favourite place in NZ)

Yes yes to kaikoura the seals are just fab and so is the whale watching. North islands is north island is worth a visit as its so different and Rotearoura (sp?) is awesome with all is bubbling volcanic activity and awesome if slightly stinky baths, hotwater beach also fab, kids will love it, you dig a hole and sit in warm warm water (even better leap in pre-dug one the Germans are really good at finding hot spots oh the whole on NZ is just great, but def hire a car, or camper as the roads are generally quiet and easy to navigate (avoid driving in Aukland though its a nightmare) watch out for KIWI maps they are not to scale!! Oh and they have a few weird giveway rules so get lonely planet guid as it will give you the lowdown. You'll have an amazing time so jealous

Just marking my place as we are going for 3 weeks this summer!

We will be travelling down from Auckland to Christchurch, visiting friends and doing other stuff.

Loads of good advice and ideas here! We will be there for DDs 16th birthday - either still in Auckland or nearby - any tips for something memorable for us to do?

Lots in and around Auckland what kind os stuff does your 16 yr like doing big ? Tip for now though take good waterproofs and warm fleece!

Of not os!

Not much to add really but definite highlights for me that I think your age children would appreciate are 1)yellow eyed penguin and albatross tour in Dunedin 2) Whalewatch, Kaikoura 3) Blackwater rafting at Waitomo (not what it sounds!) 4) Rotorua ....lots of volcanic stuff and Maori cultural stuff. If you make it up to Bay of Islands it is worth driving up the Kauri coast and seeing some Kauri trees. Bay of Islands is stunning and good for fishing trips/boat trips/dolphin swimming etc. The boat from South to North Island is a beautiful trip and Wellington is lovely with a great museum which is child friendly. You will have a fab time. If you don't want to do all the driving there are(or certainly were when I was there) some great bus tours which you hop on/off as you chose and they stop at all the main attractions. You can either stick with the itinery of the bus which will book all accomodation and tours for you,or you can stay in one place an extra day or two and pick up another bus from the same company to continue.

www.kiwiexperience.com/specials/Pages/default.aspx?gclid=CjwKEAiAjsunBRCy3LSlz_PJqCgSJACJY7yKZnbPEP81WI36hhbA_BRPAMTmpMXJpKBY3S7Om6M3MBoC9FLw_wcB

We hope to do the same with our kids within the next couple of years.You will have an unforgettable trip.

Queenstown- shotover jets, via ferrata, loads of other outdoorsy things there too.

Christchurch is a lovely place, some nice parks to go walking in.

Milford Sound boat trip.

Yellow eyed penguins on south of South Island

Pancake rocks

Glacier hike

Abel Tasman beach was stunning (and warm)

Wanaka world of puzzles (not far from Queenstown)- fascinating place

Worth investing in a good guide book

Amazing place and the people were helpful and friendly. Hope to go back soon.

Sage, she likes lots of stuff! Sports/challenges but also city stuff (she's a London teen!), cool places to visit/eat... DH doesn't really want stay in Auckland too long, we might head towards the Coramandel. .. Or maybe we should even fly straight down to Christchurch and drive back up - his beat mate is there and it's quite a cool place?

Will remember to pack our ski jackets for warmth!

Although when we went 15 years ago at the same time of year, we had lovely weather, but that was just the north island.

Coramandal good for cathedralcove and hotwater bay. Bay of plenty stunning coastal walks, great views of live volcano, baby brained so can't remember said volcanos name! Bay of islands good for boat trips. South- island for snow and mountains and skiing time of year you are going will try and get brain back in to gear for for more ideas!

NELSON South Island and the surrounding able Tasman park area

I'd go just there for 3 weeks:)

We had crazy hail/ snow when i was in bay of plenty same time of year, to be fair it was very unusual....or so i was told, but i do remember getting very cold...and spending a fortune in kathmandu getting warm clothing!

NZ South Island weather is just like Britain so pack for a British Summer... ie could be hot or freezing.
If you want a white Christmas book into the hotel at Mount Cook ... it glp fabulous views over a glacier you can walk to. We picked cherries at a pyo on our way there then had a fabulous Christmas there.

Sage, maybe we should see the volcano - it could be our new holiday hobby - we climbed an extinct one and went up an active one last year
So many great ideas! Kids and DH would LOVE to go skiing, but then we would have to pack all our stuff unless we could borrow.

I live in Christchurch, lots to do here, including the botanic gardens (there is a new visitor Centre there and a huge free paddling pool that all ages seem to like); the museum is great; trams in the city have just opened up a figure of eight loop round the city so a great way to see it (for $20 you can hop on and off all day); the restart mall built of shipping containers, with boutique shops and lots of nice things to eat; cardboard cathedral (actually called the transitional cathedral); Antartic centre; and the gondola with amazing views over banks peninsula.

Banks peninsula is well worth a drive round, Governor's Bay has great walks and an amazing chocolate cafe called She Chocolate; Corsair is a great sheltered bay for swimming; Akaroa is lovely and you can go on a dolphin watching tour, swim with the dolphins, or go sea kayaking (I did this and it was amazing!), it is about 90 mins from Christchurch. Beaches are beautiful, Sumner is lovely, we live by the beach and there is a massive park called Broad park which has big play equipment (zip wires etc) plus a cafe and a surf club where you can swim between the flags in summer - there are free changing rooms and showers. You can hire surf boards at New Brighton or Sumner. Spencer Park is lovely and has a campsite.

One thing to consider staying in are cabins on campsites, cheap and the campsites generally have great facilities you can use including full kitchens. DOC sites are great and cheap if you have a motor home or tent. I'd recommend hiring a motor home, it is really geared up to them here, lots of places to park, and easy to sightsee.

Further afield, Hanmer Springs is great, about 90 mins from here; Tekapo is beautiful, great to do on your way down to Wanaka (which is about 5/6 hours from here); driving across the Alps via Arthurs Pass to the West Coast is stunning (NZ was made for adjectives ) and well worth doing. Picton, Havelock, Nelson are nice, we stayed at a stunning DOC campsite at Pelorus Bridge where you can swim in the river (they filmed the barrel scenes in the Hobbit there) and is right in the bush.

I disagree with the weather being like the UK, one of the reasons we love it here is that it's not! I have our winter stuff packed away and we barely use it for 2 months of the year or if we want to go up to the mountains. It can rain, but the weather is very changeable so it doesn't normally hang around for more than a day (although we did go camping one year in nelson and it rained solid for 4 days, but apparently that is very unusual). I wouldnt say it gets cold at all in summer here, but obviously the further south you get it gets cooler (although Otago is often very hot in summer) We're actually in a drought in Canterbury at the moment and it's 31 degrees today! I'd bring a light rain coat as it can be changeable, and a windproof fleece for when it gets colder (it is windy here, but generally a warm wind in summer).

Sorry that's quite long

Ooh yes, just remembered, try this site for good deals www.bookme.co.nz

I am also in Christchurch and agree with everything don't even blink says . Also the trams in the city is a good way to see the central bit. You can buy a combined ticket the the trams and the gondola and you don't have to do it all on the same day.

We find driving can take a while here as the roads aren't fast and you keep stopping to take pictures.. The trip to Akaroa is a great trip and see the dolphins is a good day out.

We did a day out to Kaikoura then Hamner springs on the way back. It was a very long day. I would recommend breaking it up maybe staying in Kaikoura and then maybe whale watching and then do the springs on the way back or even stay over.

Haha Don'tEvenBlink.... look up the weather in summer 2000 ... maybe the worst year NZ ever had then? pretty much everything was ruined by rain.