South Island of New Zealand - is it worth they hype?

South Island

Full of breathtaking views and adventures to start - this is definitely a destination for active people who like to enjoy nature! But don't come to New Zealand if you're expecting beach vibes and week-long sunny days (even in the peak of summer)!

As we shared in our post about best ways to travel - we did NZ a little bit different. This could have changed a little bit our experience but we are still happy to have traveled this way. Read more on:

• Recommendations of places to stay (and not!)

• Activities that are worth it

• Unusual spots some may like

18 days

1404 € p.p.

What kind of things did we do?

Sightseeing:

For good sightseeing spots we considered small towns/areas which are really cute to walk around, will be close to nice nature/viewpoints that don't require a lot of "activity" or special gear to get to/enjoy.

• Christchurch - if you can, there are some nice thermal pools by the beach in the northern area of the city

• Oamaru - old style town with very nice sightseeing points (see the picture and be delighted)

• Queenstown - small village vibes yet a quite lively and walkable city center with lots to do and nice places to eat (and even shop if you like that)

• Wanaka - especially known for the Wanaka Tree which spends a lot of time with its roots submersed, like 1h from Queenstown but completely different holiday vibes

• Lake Tekapo - If you like the flower fields by an incredible blue colour water, this is the area to go to and you are near the observatory where you can see the most amazing night sky and perhaps even an Aurora Australis?

• Dunedin (in all fairness, we didn't make it here, but some friends had a lovely time here with castle-ly vibes and cute open markets)

• Marlborough Sounds / Nelson - Ocean towns really hit different, especially when surrounded by the mountains, definitely an area for the nature lovers somehow with a more modernized touch. Here you can also take the ferry to get to the Northern Island

Our itinerary was actually a little bit confusing because we would have to do a lot of days trips to get back to our sleeping locations so we thought to break it down in the kind of activities we did so you know which spots to check for what.

Hiking:

If you're into hiking, especially multi-day hiking, New Zealand is the destination for you. We have mainly focused on single-day hikes, though but almost any small town will have a visitor center with information for you about what hikes are possible. Some hikes we enjoyed:

• Hooker Valley Track - it is quite nice but it is also quite crowded, but good distance with a nice view at the end (just nearby, still in Mt Cook, you have another short hike to a glacier that is quite cool to see)

• Roy's Peak - this one you do it only for the view, the path is actually a tractor track and going uphill the WHOLE time. But the view on top is breathtaking and you get a beautiful view while going up as well but be prepared because it is tough

• Moke Lake Track - Close to Queenstown, very nice route around Moke Lake with some cool birds to spot along the way

• Bob's Cove Track & Nature Walk - close to Queenstown as well, all along the water, you can take a dip at Bob's Cove beach

• Short hikes along the road to Milford Sound - you have really a lot of variety here, some shorter some longer - we didn't have much time so we stuck to the shorter ones which were quite beautiful and most often along a river or lake. You can swim in many spots (though the water is COLD!)

• Fox Glacier - This side of the island is very rainy so we had a little less luck with the hikes we could do, but a nice short one where you can end with a swim is at the Hokitika Gorge (a little bit further than Fox Glacier). The hike to see the Fox Glacier is definitely special so I hope you get to do it and let us know how it went if you were lucky to be there without heavy rains.

• Abel Tasman - Here was the hike we were most looking forward to (you can do here a multi-day hike or take the water taxi to do only some portions of it). Water, beach and nature hikes are the combination with most look forward to - here you definitely have it with some elevation challenges to make it more interesting. Again, we were a bit unlucky because of the rain, which made it actually quite cold and less enjoyable since there was little you could see with all the clouds but it can be an amazing place if the weather collaborates. Also if you choose to do a multi-day hike, you have really nice huts to sleep in but it does get crowded.

Activities:

There were some specific activities that tourist get recommended to do when going to the tourist spots. Here's what we tried:

• Glowworms boat/cave tour (Te Anau) - when in Te Anau, you will be bombarded with things to do and they are ALL expensive. We chose to do something we felt to be quite special - a boat trip in the evening to a cave where you can see the glowworms. This cave was super interesting as it has an actual river that runs through it and it is a very immersive experience to be in the dark with these little creatures (you can definitely see them well!) - the cherry on top was the boat tour back to the Te Anau in the dark and seeing one of the most starry skies of our lives, without light pollution!

• Elevator Queenstown - it's a nice view from the top (see the photo we took), but it was way too overpriced - if you have time for it, just walk up yourself.

• Hamner (Hot) Springs - We came here at the end of our trip and were very curious for the hot springs - while there are many types of pools and you can have a relaxing experience, it does get crowded and it is a bit like a water park. It was a different day and we did find it a pity that it closes a bit on the early side.

• Canoeing Marlborough Sounds - We booked this experience, only to have it be cancelled by the strong winds that day, so we can't say for sure if it's worth it but just by being in that area, it does have all the ingredients to be an amazing experience.

• Kiwi visitor experience - As Kiwis are nocturnal, it is not so easy to spot them in the wild (plus most of them live in the southern tip of the southern island) so we decided to visit them in a more "artificial" way. Here, the day and night are swapped so that the Kiwis can be seen running around - it was a very interesting experience for sure and you support the conservation efforts.

• Kawarau Gorge Bridge - This is for the thrill seekers - the place to do bungee jumping! We didn't dare but we still enjoyed to make a stop here and check the views!

Unusual / less visited spots

There were some other activities we did that were there were visibly less tourists - we are not sure why but we thought they were still quite nice to do

• Watching seals in Oamaru beach (if you go at the end of the day, you can also see penguins but you have to wait for the end of sunset)

• Aboriginal cave paintings / drawings - there are not many places where you actually get to see cave paintings and there are two just close to each other between Otematata and Oamaru (it's not a full day activity but definitely worth the stop)

• Elephant rocks - the name might mislead you as these rocks are not elephant shaped but they are very large and there is a whole field full of boulders that are quite fun to walk by

• Movie theater in Queenstown - One of the most unique things we found was the movie theater in Queenstown, almost as if you're going into a rustic winter lodge but it's a cozy cinema

• Horse riding in Abel Tasman - Truth be told, you can probably go horse riding in many places but we did in this region of Abel Tasman - a small trip from a permaculture farm to the beach and back we had a very nice time!

• Kite flying at New Brighton Beach - This might be more difficult to catch but somewhere in the beginning of February (and we don't know if more weekends as well) but we accidentally visited this beach when they had a huge kite flying festival - it was quite a sight and very special to witness

Places we stayed at:

By the airport:

We arrived and left via Christchurch airport at some times quite crazy hours so it was nice to be able to stay nearby. We stayed at the Lylo Christchurch which is a 'hostel' chain but it is quite comfortable and it has a nice vibe and amenities. So we really recommend it! It's not the cheapest but it's definitely good value for money!

Central area of the South Island - Otematata:

Ok, it's not SUPER central but it was more or less 1h drive from all the places we wanted to visit - Mount Cook, Lake Pukaki, Lake Tekapo and Oamaru. And it was a good deal (it's not so easy to find good deals during peak season)! But it was an old style room, a bit outdated but comfortable and with everything you need - should you need food you are near the pub (which gives the hotel the name) and can enjoy some food (don't worry, we stayed during the weekend and it was not really noisy).

Te Anau - The nicest surprise

This is a hostel overlooking the lake directly (not from your room though). It was so nice to stay with a lovely kitchen and dinning area outdoors, perfect for those summer nights. Even though we had booked a mixed room, the staff upgraded us to a private room (i.e. 2 person) by their own no suggestion, no extra charge! It was so kind! We loved the vibe and had such a nice time here we wished we would have stayed longer.

Queenstown - The biggest disappointment

Ok - maybe this one is on us because it is called "the last resort". Typical hostel shitty bunk-bed situation but boy were the people messy and snored loudly! It was like you were transported to your student house but not in a good way. Plus, we had booked two bed which ended up not being in the same room - when asked to change the host said it was not possible, while at the same day another guest had arrived who then went to the same room as one of us (i.e. we could have easily swapped). Terrible sleep, it's worth to pay a little extra to stay somewhere else.

Fox Glacier - Camping vibes

From one end to the other - here we actually tried to get a double room but the minimum was a 4-person cabin 🤣. But this was a very nice camping park, with a little forest nearby you could explore plus great location to reach the nice hikes nearby.

Greymouth - A trip to the past

This was an interesting experience - a very industrial type of old town and The Duke Hostel takes you back in time while offering quite comfortable rooms. It reminds one of some places in the UK and the host was quite friendly. You might be able to dolphin spot here (though we didn't see any that day) but it was restful place to stop before continuing our journey north.

Richmond - In between Abel and Nelson

This was a very logistical choice but it turned out quite well. We had our own little cabin with kitchen and toilet and we could make use of the pool (though it seemed like we were the only ones). It was bit on the outdated side but quite comfortable and clean in any case! But it was nice to be able to reach both of the sides of the region that we wanted to visit within 1h-1h30 while staying in one location and not having to move around.

Hamner Springs - Rest in the mountains

As a our last stop before leaving NZ, we decided to experience their thermal waters. We stayed at a very nice Inn/hotel which really gives mountain vibes and was so comfortable - for sure the most luxurious stay of our trip. Walking distance to everything in this town and even though we were there with summer, this would have been perfect for a winter stay as well!