Richard Clapton
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South Island ▷ Queenstown Region ▷ Queenstown Township ▷
The Pod Campervan Rentals
We did our original search through Rankers and Pod came up as the best value for what we were looking for.
We had an amazing 3 weeks traveling around NZ in Little Apiti (Adventurer). The vans are great and you get a lot of the things you need thrown in (unlike many rivals) such as chairs, kitchen utensils etc. The bed is super comfortable and it's quite cosy in the back. It does get pretty cold (we went in winter) as I'm not sure there is much insulation but we had a sleeping bag along with the duvet and were fine.
The battery you get with the adventurer model is super useful, the fridge means you can live more off grid and still have plenty of good food and you can charge all your gadgets as much as you want without having to pay for powered campsites.
NZ is so well set up for campervaning. With the fully self-contained pod you can set up on pretty much any gov land and be good, but there are also loads of free campsites, many with toilets, taps and bins. You can also of course pay for proper sites and make use of their facilities like kitchens and swimming pools but there's so much natural beauty to see we didn't bother with any of these.
The van is a little old so can struggle up the hills and the engine isn't super efficient so you end up going through a fair amount of petrol but at this price it's what we expected and didn't effect our experience in any way.
Overall it was one of the highlights of our trip, NZ HAS to be seen by road and we would 100% book with Pod again.
We also got a 1 week DOC pass for the south island and stayed in one every day so made the money back easily!
Thanks Richard - so glad you guys had a great time. The DOC (Department of Conservation) passes are a great idea - search up their website as you can secure them before you arrive. They are cheap and the places you get to visit are gorgeous. Thanks for the review :)
podrentals
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Punakaiki ▷
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowholes
Pretty amazing formations and really interesting information on theories along the short walk.
Apparently best to go during high tide but not possible for us.
Also you can see seals further back down the coast at the seal colony which was really cool.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Cron street ▷
Sentinel Rock Walk
Ok view of the glacier but you really have to do the 1.5 hour walk to get close and really appreciate its size.
Soon it may be gone!
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Mount Cook ▷
White Horse Hill Campground
Plenty of walks in the area but the main ones are closed in winter.
The flush toilets and drinking water don't work in winter either which is a bit annoying since you pay the same price in summer but get more facilities.
Included in the DOC campsite pass.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
Lake Mahinapua Campsite
Excellent doc campsite.
Included in the campervan pass and has really good facilities. Flushing toilets, with soap and tp. Even a solar shower but we didn't use so not sure how well it worked. They also have rubbish and recycling bins. One of the best equipped DOC sites we stayed in at this price.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Mount Cook ▷
Red Tarns Track
Quite a tough climb but amazing views along the way and a beautiful plateau at the top.
We went in winter and there was a fresh layer of snow and the ponds were frozen. Really lovely.
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ St Arnaud ▷
Mount / Mt Robert Circuit Route
Wow, what a walk!
We went towards the end of winter and the top was pretty full still of snow. A couple feet deep of snow which was difficult but funny when every now and then you drop down. My girlfriend found it quite scary though at times.
The walk up is quite steep but the views are totally incredible. It says 5 hours but we managed it in about 3.5 hrs.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Haast ▷
Lake Paringa Campsite
Nice DOC campsite included in the campervan pass.one of the better ones we stayed in.