Road Trip Aukland to South Island
Discussion
Random pub idea but .... is this feasable or worth doing?
Thinking of getting hire car in Aukland then heading south to see the scenery and enjoy some good open roads (not much of that here)
How long does this trip take / what are the road mile distances?
Also does anyone hire anything mildly interesting do do the drive in. (i.e. anything above the usual Hertz snotter list)
Cheers!
Thinking of getting hire car in Aukland then heading south to see the scenery and enjoy some good open roads (not much of that here)
How long does this trip take / what are the road mile distances?
Also does anyone hire anything mildly interesting do do the drive in. (i.e. anything above the usual Hertz snotter list)
Cheers!
It must be about time for the 'what hire car' thread again, been about a week since the last one.
I think you are looking at a distance of somewhere near 2000km depending how far south you go. Certainly feasible over 5 days, and thats at a fairly leisurely pace.
As for the rental cars, the default answer is a Hertz/Avis/Budget FalconXR6 or Commodore SV6. This is because smaller hire companies (the ones who do interesting stuff) tend to be awfully expensive, dont do one-way hires (though I would reccomend driving back; take one coast down, and another one back up), as well as charge for mileage at a fairly astronomical rate.
I think you are looking at a distance of somewhere near 2000km depending how far south you go. Certainly feasible over 5 days, and thats at a fairly leisurely pace.
As for the rental cars, the default answer is a Hertz/Avis/Budget FalconXR6 or Commodore SV6. This is because smaller hire companies (the ones who do interesting stuff) tend to be awfully expensive, dont do one-way hires (though I would reccomend driving back; take one coast down, and another one back up), as well as charge for mileage at a fairly astronomical rate.
Edited by Jem Thompson on Monday 9th November 04:24
"Backs away from Hire car question" 
Cheers on the other bit, also like the idea of one coast there and the other back ... any interesting stuff in the middle or is it mostly sheep and mountains?
A scooby would be a nice option but have to admit, big capacity V8 would also appeal (given the ballache expensive road tax here!!)
cheers muchly
Cheers on the other bit, also like the idea of one coast there and the other back ... any interesting stuff in the middle or is it mostly sheep and mountains?
A scooby would be a nice option but have to admit, big capacity V8 would also appeal (given the ballache expensive road tax here!!)
cheers muchly
Lots of interesting stuff in the middle of the South Island 
if you do it in winter you'll definitely want something with 4wd, Subarus are popular here for a reason.PS you'd be well over 2000km for a lap of the South Island, Northerners can advise you better than me on distances up there.
Edited by GravelBen on Monday 9th November 04:59
XJSJohn said:
"Backs away from Hire car question"
Cheers on the other bit, also like the idea of one coast there and the other back ... any interesting stuff in the middle or is it mostly sheep and mountains?
A scooby would be a nice option but have to admit, big capacity V8 would also appeal (given the ballache expensive road tax here!!)
cheers muchly
Here are some hire car threads;Cheers on the other bit, also like the idea of one coast there and the other back ... any interesting stuff in the middle or is it mostly sheep and mountains?
A scooby would be a nice option but have to admit, big capacity V8 would also appeal (given the ballache expensive road tax here!!)
cheers muchly
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Im really not sure you can hire a big V8 for a reasonable cost and for that sort of mileage. Perhaps drive to Christchurch in something more normal, and hire a decent set of wheels for a few days to blat about the South Island in, then head back to Auckland again in the other car.
Also, the island is quite narrow in some places, so you can go from the coast to the centre pretty quickly. Never been to the South Island though, so can't offer any help on that. I have however, done both coasts of the North Island.
XJSJohn said:
A scooby would be a nice option
cheers muchly
A WRX quoted here... http://www.atlasrentalcars.co.nz/prices.htmlcheers muchly
if you visit Hawke's Bay and need a motel...
Edited by mark387mw on Monday 9th November 07:14
mark387mw said:
XJSJohn said:
A scooby would be a nice option
cheers muchly
A WRX quoted here... http://www.atlasrentalcars.co.nz/prices.htmlcheers muchly
if you visit Hawke's Bay and need a motel...
Edited by mark387mw on Monday 9th November 07:14
Subtle hint received loud and clear
XJSJohn said:
RobDickinson said:
Still need to get up to the East cost n island sometime...
Picton -> Kaikoura -> Chch -> Tekapo -> QT -> Milford -> Wanaka -> west coast -> Arthurs pass -> Chch is an ace trip.
sorry, can't help a schoolboy type snigger there Picton -> Kaikoura -> Chch -> Tekapo -> QT -> Milford -> Wanaka -> west coast -> Arthurs pass -> Chch is an ace trip.
and err ... Chch??
Christchurch? Mate Wanaka is the most beutiful spot in NZ....
We did the opposite. Flew down to Queenstown, picked up a car and worked our way up to a wedding in the Bay of Islands 2 1/2 weeks later. We were doing plenty on the way, but except for Queenstown we didn't stay anywhere more than a night or two.
We went up the west coast of the s.island, fox glacier, pancake rocks, up to marahau for sea kayaking, over to nelson, picton, ferry over to wellington, up to taupo, rotorua, whakatane (for white island), waitomo then up through auckland, whangarei, tutukaka (to dive poor knights) and finally up to paihia for the wedding.
Trouble is you're always having to drop good stuff off the schedule - I did another trip with my (kiwi) gf a couple of years later where we did a loop from christchurch, queenstown, doubtful sound, invercargill, and all round the coast back to christchurch which was great. The more you see, the more frustrating it gets as there were loads of things I'd have loved to have checked out but no time!
Hire-wise, consider doing it the other way round - more people head south so you're more likely to get stung on one-way hire fees. Check too whether they're OK with you taking the car between islands, some don't allow it and want you to get on the boat as a foot passenger and pick up another car on the other side which would be inconvenient at best. Don't plan on massive daily mileages as just about everywhere is single carriageway and easy to get stuck behind things, especially if your hire car is on the slower side. I think our longest day was about 430km and I wouldn't want anything more than that, even on a day with nothing else planned.
We went up the west coast of the s.island, fox glacier, pancake rocks, up to marahau for sea kayaking, over to nelson, picton, ferry over to wellington, up to taupo, rotorua, whakatane (for white island), waitomo then up through auckland, whangarei, tutukaka (to dive poor knights) and finally up to paihia for the wedding.
Trouble is you're always having to drop good stuff off the schedule - I did another trip with my (kiwi) gf a couple of years later where we did a loop from christchurch, queenstown, doubtful sound, invercargill, and all round the coast back to christchurch which was great. The more you see, the more frustrating it gets as there were loads of things I'd have loved to have checked out but no time!
Hire-wise, consider doing it the other way round - more people head south so you're more likely to get stung on one-way hire fees. Check too whether they're OK with you taking the car between islands, some don't allow it and want you to get on the boat as a foot passenger and pick up another car on the other side which would be inconvenient at best. Don't plan on massive daily mileages as just about everywhere is single carriageway and easy to get stuck behind things, especially if your hire car is on the slower side. I think our longest day was about 430km and I wouldn't want anything more than that, even on a day with nothing else planned.
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