Road tripping is a crucial part of the New Zealand experience, and I will tell you why. Last weekend my friends and I headed south to Mount Cook, about a four hour drive from Christchurch, and I had one of the best weekends of my life. The cherry on top was that we rented a car and road tripped instead of taking public transportation. Don’t get me wrong, I love public transport, but there’s something about road tripping that makes a trip ten times more fun. Let me lay out the logistics of doing a road trip and show you how easy it can be.
Affordability
If you or a mate own a vehicle then road tripping isn’t costly at all because you’re mainly paying for gas. However, if you don’t luck out with a vehicle of your own, renting one in New Zealand is fairly cheap. We went through Bargain Car Rentals in Christchurch and got a sedan that sat 5 people and had a trunk large enough for our luggage, camping gear, and food. Like most car rental places, Bargain Car Rentals also has larger vehicles such as a ‘People Mover’ for 7 or 8 people, a ‘Mini Bus’ for 10, and an array of ‘Commercial vehicles’ such as a ‘Cargo van’, ‘Coach 19 seater’, ‘Minivan’, ect. Whatever vehicle you choose will need gas which is on the expensive side because New Zealand is an island. Although if you pack your car, splitting the cost of gas turns out to be pretty affordable.
Besides a vehicle, food and accommodation are the next big hitters in terms of cost. My friends and I decided to camp and we all own our own gear so it was very reasonable. There are many outdoor shops all over the country where you can pick up gear if you don’t have some already. Also, the Canterbury University Tramping Club does rentals for club members. For food we went cheap and did pasta and sauce the first night and tortellini the second night. We had eggs for breakfast both days and made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch.
To really cut down on our costs we chose activities that were free. It’s easy to get caught up in the ‘this is a once in a lifetime opportunity’ mentality and blow all your money on adventures such as helicopter rides, skydiving, bungee jumping, and more. But, without spending a penny on attractions, my friends and I had an incredible weekend at Mount. Cook. We hiked the Hooker Valley Track and the Muller Track, swam in lake Tekapo, played card games, and that was more than enough fun.
Road Trip Cost per Person:
Car Rental $48.40 NZD
Gas $25 NZD
Campsites $46 NZD
Food $18 NZD
Total: $137.40 NZD = $85.20 USD
Flexibility
Compared to other modes of transportation, driving a vehicle to your destination gives you the most flexibility with your itinerary. If you were on a plane, train, or bus you may be able to see beautiful scenery during your journey, but you can’t stop and admire it, take a picture, or do an activity that wasn’t initially on your list. For example, we were driving back from Mount Cook and realized it would be really neat to watch the sunset over Lake Tekapo. Because we were in control of our own schedule, we drove to the car park and hopped out just in time to take a quick dip in the lake and see the sun disappear behind the mountains while the sky turned a cotton candy pink. This moment was magical and I couldn’t imagine being trapped on a bus wishing that we could live spontaneously.
Additionally, there are self-contained vehicles that you can park overnight almost anywhere in New Zealand. The rules and regulations of what the government considers ‘self-contained’ can be found here. If you are lucky enough to have or rent one of these vans, you really have (almost) unlimited freedom during your trip. You don’t need to book accommodation for the night so the whole trip is very low commitment. Yes, sometimes it’s nice to know what you’re doing and where you’re going during a trip, but the New Zealand culture is very go-with-the-flow so it wouldn’t be a problem if you just set off in a camper van for a week or more.
Making Memories
Some of my favorite memories thus far during my study abroad have been on road trips. This sounds very cliche, but it really is about the journey as much as it is about the destination. This mode of transportation is so fun because everyone can’t put their feet back and relax. As soon as we started out from Christchurch we were laughing our heads off.
First off, I had never driven on the left side of the road. Yes, it was legal for me to drive because I hold a drivers license printed in English and have not been in New Zealand for more than 12 months. Anyways, I was getting used to the roads and feel of the car which turned out to be fairly simple but I would still put on the windshield wiper by accident when I meant to turn on my blinker. Once we really got on the road we started jamming and admiring the beautiful scenery. Luckily the roads were dry and it was a sunny day, so the driving conditions were great. I can’t tell you how much fun it was to ride in the car. The memories you make on a road trip will last a lifetime.
Have I convinced you?
At this point, I hope anyone reading this article who travels to New Zealand is seriously considering taking a road trip while you’re here. It’s good cheap fun! Also, New Zealand is not all that big. Both islands are very easy to get around and most destinations are not that far and usually do-able on a weekend, if not a 3 or 4 day trip.
That’s all for now, I hope to see you on the road! Thanks for reading!
