Rikki Skoczen
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North Island ▷ Ruapehu ▷ Ohakune ▷
Ruatiti Domain
Literally unbelievable that this place is free.
It was the size of three campsite strung together, which the whole third section along the river. There were many bathrooms, and taps (though they said to boil all water), and tons of river access. Several dozen people could have happily camped here, but it was only us and one other car. It felt so isolated, except for the horses, sheep, and cows that we could watch across the river. I would love to come back here some day, and absolute must stay if you can!
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North Island ▷ Waikato ▷ Putaruru ▷
Jones Landing
Nice spot by the lake, had a shower!
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
Hans Bay
Very crowded, but we were able to set up our tent in a decent spot.
There were nice picnic benches by the lake. The campsite was quite near to some houses, so it definitely didn’t feel fully out in nature. Definitely a good spot to stop on our roadtrip.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Haast ▷
Lake Paringa Campsite
A beautiful campsite on a gorgeous lake, with lots of space near the lake to set up tents and star gaze.
No drinking water, but easy enough to boil from the stream. There were four Keas living in the trees near the site, and they were really amazing to watch.
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Rangiora ▷
Motunau Beach Camping
We had the whole place to ourselves, and the bathrooms were nice enough.
The wind got quite bad at night, so we didn’t get much sleep. The road is closed 7:30am to 7pm until late March, so we had to wake up early to get out before the closure. Would recommend as a stoping point on a roadtrip, but maybe not for multiple nights.