Sophie Skinner
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Punakaiki ▷
Pororari River Track Carpark
Just a car park but a handy spot near the pancake rocks and blowholes.
Nicely laid out for easy bays. No facilities but it’s for self contained only, though if you really want a toilet the isite at pancake rocks isn’t far to drive in the morning. By the road so a little traffic but not a bother. Good for free spot :)
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Cron street ▷
Otto/MacDonalds Campsite
Clean, tidy site with bays marked clearly.
Clean flush toilets. Handy for a stay in this area for 13$pp where there are no free camp spots.
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ Nelson ▷
Tahuna Beach Holiday Park
When we needed a good shower after a few days free camping this was ideal.
20$pp for unpowered site is a bit pricier than others we had paid but actually the facilities are really good. Plenty of toilets and unlimited hot showers. Really nice kitchen and lounge area with wooden dining table and tv. Made a nice change for a night. Windy as right on the beach, airport plane noise isn’t much of a bother. Also nice play area for kids (and adults :)).
Hi Sophie, thanks for your great review and feedback. There is nothing like a long hot shower after a few days free camping and glad that you enjoyed the facilites we have on offer here.
tahunapark
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Hanmer Springs ▷
Hanmer Field Base and Picnic Area
Perfect spot if exploring Hanmer Springs.
Can walk to town and hot baths (15mins) and there are good forest trails around. If you do the ‘Forest Walk’ there are some cool wooden carvings to look at. Good flush toilets and a tap to help with dishes etc. Sandflies though!! Small ish space, pretty much full both nights we stayed.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Blenheim ▷
Kekerengu
A free camping spot?
We couldn’t see any signage to direct us to the site or anywhere / anyone to pay, even in the morning. Another van was parked in the fenced area when we arrived, so we parked up near that. Take the left turn off the highway and take the gravel hill to the left not right, keeping tight to the highway bridge. No facilities as mentioned, though the store cafe does a great coffee and breakfast and you can use the toilet if you buy from them. Nice walk onto the beach and good ocean views. Overall slightly strange as we never knew if we were in the right place but did the job and nobody bothered us!
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ Motueka ▷
W F Moss Scenic Reserve Picnic Area
Ideal spot for camping pre/post Abel Tasman.
Very close to Kaiteriteri/Marahau/Motueka for a tour departure or before heading over Takaka hill. Corners and a couple trees to nestle into in the van. Beside a nice river, has one clean long drop. Road to site is under minor maintenance but it was fine for our camper, just some cones and a little gravel when we went, so don’t be put off by early cones. Stayed 2 nights here!
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South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Owaka ▷
Hillview Camping Stay
Great welcome, nicely set up, really flat spots, nice kitchen area to cook and wash up if needed.
10$pp. Showers 2$ for 5mins, hot and powerful enough. Good laundry wash and dry service for 8$ ready for us when we woke up. Sheep, lambs and cows to make friends with. Perfect stay with the facilities we needed! Highly recommended.
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South Island ▷ Queenstown Region ▷ Arrowtown ▷
Crown Range Summit
Very exposed site and a little tricky to find a flat area and no shelter whatsoever.
Only us and one other camper which felt a little isolated. No facilities. Local teenagers being silly with cars up and down the mountain made us a little uneasy. Otherwise quietened down at night and good view across to Queenstown.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Fairlie ▷
Lake Opuha
Ideal free spot before visiting Tekapo, not too far from main road turn off.
Clean toilets, no water supply, grass a bit long in places. Nice lake and pretty views, bit too cold for a swim in October!
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South Island ▷ Wanaka Region ▷ Makarora ▷
Wonderland
Nice camp area under trees.
Good kitchen and lounge area to wash up/charge items/warm up by log fire! Showers hot and unlimited. Good value for 15$pp - everything we needed. Arrived late and just paid in the morning. Just the guy behind the desk was a little grumpy!!
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South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Owaka ▷
Waikawa Recreation Reserve
Ideal free spot before/after visiting Curio Bay.
Toilets are a 1min walk back to the road, site small ish and grassy. Flat enough. What you’d expect for a free site.
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Methven ▷
Rakaia Gorge Camping Ground
Best value ground of our whole trip.
10$pp for hot unlimited showers, clean toilets, sink area for washing up and great views. Fairly quiet in October so lots of space to find your own corner. Really enjoyed the 3h Gorge Walk.
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South Island ▷ Wanaka Region ▷ Wanaka Township ▷
Albert Town Camping Ground
Ideal value spot with flush toilets and sink area to wash up.
Lots of space, can find a spot among trees. Can fill water tank here. Cute ducks. 10$pp. Does the job well.
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Christchurch ▷
PiwiWiwi Campervans
Norman, our trusty camper van, was not the newest of road users but he and PiwiWiwi made our 22 night trip around the South Island one we will never forget.
From the first e-mail contact we had with Nick, the personal check-ins and weather warnings during the trip and the goodbye at the end, the whole experience was exceptional. The van itself had everything we needed and more. A fully equipped kitchen with extra utensils you'd probably forget if shopping for yourself! Extra blankets for the cold and even washing line and pegs, table and chairs. It meant that whatever the weather, we could enjoy the trip to the full. The sleeping arrangement in the van was perfect. The bed was really comfy and we slept very well throughout the trip. The conversion from sleeping area to table and seats is easy and no hassle to do daily. Overall, we would highly recommend PiwiWiwi and thank the family for the wonderful time we had, their personal touches and thorough explanations of how everything works made us at ease with the whole experience of a first time camper rental. A big thank you again!
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South Island ▷ Fiordland ▷ Te Anau ▷
Cascade Creek Campsite
You’re paying for the proximity to Milford rather than facilities, but it’s worth it to have a shorter drive to Milford in the morning.
Big site, lots of space, recently renovated facilities - clean drop toilets, tap to help with washing up and some covered bench areas to prepare food/eat out of the wind. 13$pp. Nice friendly rangers.
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South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Tuatapere ▷
Monkey Island, Orepuki
Lovely spot by the bay.
Can stroll to Monkey Island and beach is beautiful. Site stretches alongside the bay so if you’re further away toilets are a little walk but no bother.
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South Island ▷ Central Otago ▷ Cromwell ▷
Lowburn Harbour
Great spot by the water.
We had a dip even in October, not bad at all! Site stretches out along the bank with more toilets further along, portaloos clean. Good for star gazing and close to Cromwell and other turn offs.
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South Island ▷ Queenstown Region ▷ Queenstown Township ▷
Queenstown-Glenorchy Road, TwentyFive Mile Stream
Ideal free spot on way to Glenorchy.
No facilities. Shame some people are spoiling it - seems to have developed a toilet bush around one side. No problem for self contained though. Nice little beach onto the lake.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Twizel ▷
Lake Poaka Campsite
Ideal for a free spot before visiting Mt Cook.
Gravel road is the one on the Mt Cook side of the bridge (we went down the wrong side first time). Road is fine for campers. Lots of space to park, one clean long drop, could get busy in summer but no queues in October.
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South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Lumsden ▷
The Lodge and Holiday Park
Lack of options for free camp in the area but we really enjoyed our stay here.
Really well kept site. 12.50$pp unpowered, free to use sink, bbq, flush toilet, hot shower (very). Space to hang washing and friendly owners. Town has a couple of cafes/bars, lady in first one v friendly and we enjoyed a good cider in the sun.