Sarah
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South Island ▷ Coastal Otago ▷ Dunedin ▷
Dunedin Holiday Park
Stayed 1/1/25.
$36 for one person in an unpowered site. They took my money without knowing how many sites were left- I very nearly didn't get a spot.
Lots of amenities with very fun paintings on the walls.
Good, large kitchens.
Cramped but free showers, with benches AND hooks!
A bright street light shone straight into my car ALL NIGHT.
There will be lots of familys here as it is within walking distance of a beautiful beach.
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South Island ▷ Queenstown Region ▷ Queenstown Township ▷
Twelve Mile Delta Campsite
Stayed 3/1/25.
$15 pp unpowered, DOC.
Curse Queenstown. If you are on a budget and didn't book three weeks ahead of time, this will be your only option in this area.
Stinking portaloos, no drinking water, large but crowded site with DOC rangers on the prowl.
Lots of walks close by and pretty view of the sunset.
Quite cold in the morning.
Terrible reception.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Fox Glacier ▷
Pine Grove Motels
Stayed 5/1/25.
$25 for an unpowered site (1 person).
On someone's farm!
Well equipped kitchen.
Not many people staying there, close to highway but not overly noisy.
One toilet, one shower. Soaps, shampoos, bath mats etc provided, but the shower doesn't lock (a trusty door sign is provided instead) and the toilet light doesn't work.
Lots of sandflies.
Super friendly host, who was even trying to get someone's stuff to them that they had left behind.
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South Island ▷ Fiordland ▷ Te Anau ▷
Cascade Creek Campsite
Stayed 2/1/25.
$15 pp, DOC.
Long drop toilets and no showers. Water must be boiled before using.
Beautiful location with a huge variety of quite private sites.
Stay near the trees where it is sheltered!
Beware the biting bugs...
Lots of people turned up later in the evening.
Handy picnic tables scattered about.
Walking distance to a lake/forest hike.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Fox Glacier ▷
Fox Glacier Lodge
Stayed 4/1/25.
$35 for an unpowered site. My pre-booking apparently failed, probably due to patchy reception, however the friendly reception lady was able to fit me in quite late in the day.
Had to park very close to other people.
Weird kitchen layout with lots of indoors mosquitos, BUT NO SANDLFIES!!!
Brilliant bathrooms- individual rooms with hand basic, toilet and shower. Proper hand towels, foot mats etc. Clothes line provided!
Good reception, free unlocked wifi.
Free glow-worm walk at 9:45 pm!
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North Island ▷ Coromandel ▷ Tairua ▷
Tairua Campground
Stayed 20/12/2024.
$22 pp, unpowered, + $2 each for seven minute showers.
The very friendly host showed us around, gave local recommendations, as well as lollies and watermelon. Even warned us about the incoming rain!
Has a laundry, well-eqipped kitchen, bathrooms, loungeroom with powerpoints.
No benches in showers.
No external shelter.
Tent-dwellers could hear live music from the pub next door.
Very thorough recycling bins provided.
Wifi provided.
Strictlt separated camping sites.
Table and chairs provided.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Picton / Marlborough Sounds ▷
Camperco
I rented a Camperco Sleepervan (Toyota Estima) for three weeks to solo-travel around both islands and had a brilliant experience.
Ross was very easy and fast to communicate with both before, during, and after the trip, and the vehicle was great to drive. It was also very well outfitted, including a powered fridge, a back-up gas stove and battery, two chairs and a table, a wash tub and a near-new 2-person tent. The bed was very comfy, and I actually had people who had rented with other companies commenting on how envious they were of my set-up.
Highly recommend!!
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North Island ▷ Waikato ▷ Hamilton ▷
Narrows Park Camp
Stayed 17/12/2024.
$24 pp unpowered.
No benches or vanity in the bathroom, and only a few hooks. Showers were free.
Bore water used.
Kitchen and shelter provided.
Nice patch of grass for tent set-up, but was quite windy.
Saw absolutely no one during our stay.
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North Island ▷ Rotorua Region ▷ Rotorua ▷
Affordable Willowhaven Holiday Park
Stayed 23/12/24.
Right on lake Rotorua; great location!
$95 for cabin with bathroom. Had separate bedrooms, however you had to walk through one to get to the bathroom.
Office was locked when we arrived and the people were hard to get hold of, meaning we were stuck for a while outside rhe boom gate despite having booked weeks ago.
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North Island ▷ Auckland Region ▷ Auckland ▷
Piha Domain Motor Camp
$22 pp, unpowered.
Very friendly, somewhat hippy host, warned us about beach danger and gave us lots of good local recommendations.
Fob system + paper guide required. This site is quite large.
Free showers, each with a bench.
Grass was not cut where we camped.
Laundry and kitchen provided.
Only a short walk to beach for sunset!
Fairly busy.
Wifi provided.
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North Island ▷ Northland ▷ Kerikeri ▷
Wagon Wheel Holiday Park
Stayed 18/12/2024.
$22 pp unpowered.
Bathroom: Two shower caddies provided per stall, but no bench. No bathroom sink area. Brilliant shower heads, and the showers are free!
Friendly, helpful host.
Site was relatively empty.
Located close to busy road, meaning tent-dwellers will experience truck noise all night.
Sloped grass area can make finding a spot for a tent tricky.
Wifi provided.
No kitchen save for an outdoor sink to do washing up in.
Picnic tables scattered about for guest convenience.
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ Motueka ▷
Tapawera Campground and Tiny House Park
Stayed 27/12/24.
$15 pp, unpowered. Payment only required the next morning.
Friendly host lady, very relaxed.
Lots of farm animals wandering around.
Sites had quite long grass.
Very drunk local resident wouldn't stop talking to us and other campers.
Free showers with large private rooms, hooks and chairs.
Free, if dated, laundry room.
Good kitchen
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ Nelson ▷
Maitai Valley Motor Camp
Stayed 26/12/24.
$22 pp, unpowered.
We pre-paid, and didn't see anyone at the office as we came in late.
The grass was very long, and there were lots of biting bugs due to the riverside location.
We saw a beautiful sunset here.
The showers cost $2 showers and had extremely weak pressure, as well as taking a long time (upwards of ten minutes) to get not very hot.
Benches in showers.
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North Island ▷ Wairarapa ▷ Masterton ▷
Henley Lake Freedom Camping
Stayed 25/12/24.
What better Christmas gift than a free nights stay!
Lots of geese and swans to share the space with.
The one shower is very hot and was locked 30 minutes before it was supposed to be, at 6:30ish. The disabled toilets were left open overnight however the door does stick.
Potable water taps nearby.
Friendly other campers.
Picnic tables close by.
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North Island ▷ Waikato ▷ Kawhia ▷
Forest View Motor Camp
Stayed 21/12/24.
$24 for one site, regardless of number of occupants. We payed in the morning as we didn't see the owner until then and they weren't picking up the phone.
Friendly locals and lots of permanent residents who showed us around, no other campers.
Needed $1 coins for showers, and we couldn't get tokens from office as it was closed when we arrived (around 6pm).
Showers had benches and hooks.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Mount Cook ▷
White Horse Hill Campground
Stayed 31/12/24.
$15 pp unpowered, DOC.
I had pre-booked but arrived late due to a cruise and very nearly didn't get a spot! Sites are not reserved and this is a very busy campground.
Extremely friendly (and physically close-by) neighbours on either side.
Flushing toilets which ran out of toilet paper overnight.
No showers, but potable water with outdoor sinks and bins.
Lots of people up early to go on walks etc.
People were very quiet and respectful at night, even on new year's.
BRILLIANT views.
Sandflies...
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Springfield ▷
Porters Lodge
Stayed 28/12/24.
$17 pp unpowered.
Beautiful alpine scenery.
Very tight shower stalls in the main lodge building, located very far from our campsite.
The gravel picnic ground where we camped was not very tent-friendly.
Be prepared for it to be cold, even in summer!
Very friendly, if relaxed, owners. You might stand in line for a while, but the food in the lodge is good.
Lots of rude people driving into our campsite late at night. Had a drone hover over us for ages.
Free showers.
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North Island ▷ Hawkes Bay ▷ Napier ▷
Mohaka River Farm
Stayed 24/12/24.
$54 for an unpowered campsite for the night.
Accessible only via a long gravel road.
Riverside location means there are biting bugs in the grass!!
A selection of fancy soaps provided in the bathroom.
Kitchen very well outfitted.
Beautiful setting with lots of local fishermen staying.
Extremely strong water pressure in the showers!
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North Island ▷ Taranaki ▷ Stratford ▷
Stratford Kiwi Motels and Holiday Park
Stayed 22/12/24.
$49 for campsite, $95 for cabin.
Very friendly lady who helped us change our campsite booking to a cabin when it began raining heavily.
Didn't need to pre-book.
Cabin was good but didn't have private bathroom. One bunkbed mattress was terrible.
Toilets were very close by.