Profile
Grizzly Girl
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North Island ▷ Ruapehu ▷ Tongariro / National Park Village ▷
Whakapapa Holiday Park
Good kitchen facilities, adequate shower facilities with unlimited hot water.
The spaces for campervans are small but have a vegetation barriers between them. Wifi is included in the fee. The only food options after Labor Day seem to be the two hotels as the tavern and cafe were both closed on the day I left for my hike and returned from my hike. Overall good facilities even if the price is a bit steep for a DOC with tiny campervan spaces.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Picton / Marlborough Sounds ▷
Aussie Bay Campsite
Drove by this place thinking I might stay overnight on the way to the ferry.
I say drove by because I had barely pulled in before I was confronted by a few campervans hogging the minimal space with their full lounging setups and a few others that looked like they had been there ages. The whole site had trash about it and was very rundown. I imagine other human evidence would be present as well looking at the single long drop. Definitely would pass on this DOC campsite and am skeptical it will remain an available overnight site as it stands now.
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South Island ▷ Fiordland ▷ Milford Sound - Fiordland National Park ▷
Milford Sound Lodge – Rainforest Campervan Park
Their van sites were quite expensive for a single person in an unpowered van.
To that end I stayed in the dorm (and was reminded why I hate dorms with all the cafe noise and late comers). The dorm uses the same facilities as the campervans though. With nearly all 50 campervan spots and the dorms about full there was not enough kitchen space for everyone. Overall clean bathrooms considering. There is also a laundry room though it is very expensive. They are pretty much the only game in town so you are stuck with them but I would not stay more than a night. Quite a crush.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
Linksview Holiday Park
Really lovely place run by a lovely couple.
$17/night for an unpowered site for a single person. Nice communal kitchen and bathrooms areas. The owners bring in fresh eggs from their chickens in the morning and have a supply of coffee and tea around. Kevin also offered to drive a number of us off to see the glow worm dell (not to be missed, a really excellent glow worm site!). Clean eveything and they take a lot of pride in their site. Showers are $2/4min which makes me a bit sad but this is balanced out by the overall excellence of the place. Definitely a great stop.
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South Island ▷ Fiordland ▷ Te Anau ▷
Te Anau Lakeview Holiday Park & Motels
Good location within 15min walk to town and the bird sanctuary (worth a quick visit)!
Kitchen and bathrooms were clean but be prepared to being your own cooking and eating supplies. $18 for a tent site where I parked my campervan and you get showers and internet with it so not bad. The place gets 8/10 because of all the complaints I heard about the laundry facility. $4 each to wash and dry and the clothes apparently did not dry all the way. I took my laundry to town for $7 and had no problems.
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ Abel Tasman ▷
The Barn Cabins & Camping
I was not as in love with this campground as others were.
What it has going for it is proximity to the trailhead for Abel Tasman hikers and clean facilities. They pack the campervans in next to each other on a grassy lot which greatly detracts from the camping experience. Also the internet worked only until my screen timed out while cooking; then, despite following their directions and leaving the browser open, I could not get back on.
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North Island ▷ Taranaki ▷ Stratford ▷
Stratford Kiwi Motels and Holiday Park
Clean facilities.
There’s even an indoor swimming pool if you are interested. Place gets a 9/10 because while the powered sites are nicely separated by hedges the space for the tents and unpowered campervans are crammed into a turn on the road on a grassy flat. Otherwise clean and everything you would expect at a holiday park.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Picton / Marlborough Sounds ▷
Picton's Waikawa Bay Holiday Park
Older place where a lot of locals stay for the weekend.
Despite being dated the facilities were clean and the managers were really interesting and friendly. Great place to stay near the ferry. Has all the usual facilities for a holiday park.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Havelock ▷
Smiths Farm Holiday Park
Fabulous stopover in the Marlborough region and on the way to the ferry.
Laundry facilities that work, muffins on checkin as advertised, and lots of farm animals that you can feed if you want. Very pleasant family running the place. The only reason I just can’t quite give a 10/10 is the water pressure on the shower is so low it took ages to get the shampoo out of my hair.
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ Murchison ▷
Riverside Holiday Park
Unpowered spot for my campervan right on the river where i could watch a kayak class happening.
Powered sites are slightly off the river and on level gravel. Laundry $2 each for washer and dryer, and both worked very well. $2 for a shower that is hot! Walkable to Murchison or they have bikes you can borrow to ride the path in. A couple of kitchen facilities, one with a deck and river views (cold front coming in so I did not avail myself of this feature but in the summer it would be great). Free wifi though they ask you not to stream since it is shared with everyone. Good location and facilities for the money.
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North Island ▷ Coromandel ▷ Hahei ▷
Hahei Beach Resort
$20 for an unpowered site.
Maybe 20% of the site (or even less than that) was occupied and the woman initially put me in the worst possible unpowered place immediately across from the front entrance so every single car or van entering hit me with their headlights. I asked to be moved and she put me directly next to another campervan despite there being empty rows and entire areas of powered and unpowered sites available. Not sure what happened to ruin this lady’s day but I did not appreciate her unprofessionalism. Also the bathrooms were consistently dirty from 5pm when I used them all the way to 10am when I left the next morning. Really disappointed in this site. The only thing it has going for it is location and I am guessing that it is lovely in the summer.
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North Island ▷ Waikato ▷ Waitomo ▷
Juno Hall Backpackers and Camping
$17/night for a single person in an unpowered campervan.
I was early enough to get a spot next to a tree for a feeling of privacy. At first I was going to knock this down to a 8/10 bc of the shower in the womens restroom (very mildewy smell that made it hard to want to stay in even one extra minutes) but later I found the main shower block which is actually very nice. Apparently there’s a small pool as well. Laundry facilities are good and the dryer will actually dry your stuff. Wifi is included in your fee. Fully stocked kitchen. Roomy lounge with a fireplace. Great location if you are going into town for the glow worm tours the next morning. So overall recommended.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Okarito ▷
Okarito Camping Ground
$15/adult with kids free.
Covered cooking area but bring your own supplies; hot water for dishes. Barbecue by coin. Showers by coin. Caretaker on site. Close to lots of great beach and forest walks, a lagoon you can rent kayaks for, and a night time kiwi tour operator. Also free wifi which was actually pretty speedy before lots of people showed up in the evening. They are dealing with some flood damage which means fewer sites and a 9/10. Great site in a great little town though. So worth the stay.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Haast ▷
Haast Lodge
The woman at the counter told me that they only had powered spaces-no tent or uncharged.
Base rate of $20. I am not a fan of anywhere charging a person in an unpowered van for a powered site, or charging a single person for two so there is always points deducted for that. It was storming and the options were slim though so I went with it. Basically you just park in a shared lot, no walls or even vegetation really so no privacy. Communal facilities included a kitchen (which had ovens too) and open area with tv and fireplace. Considering that it is a converted warehouse you really need that fireplace. Quite chilly and i had to get my coat on to relax indoors. The showers are on these 5min timers where they wont immediately reset with hot water when you hit the button (there is some lag time). I hate these types of showers as it usually takes me 7-8min to wash so putting me on a timer system does not help. Either charge me for the time or don't. So i took my towel and went over to the next shower stall, using two showers just to get my hair rinsed. A place to stay in Haast but nothing special.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Westport ▷
Gentle Annie
Grassy field with vegetation partitions at $12 a night, no powered sites.
Beach and river are right there and lots of white baiters were out. Being October the main cafe was not really running yet (coffee only from 9-10am which is when someone is around to collect camping fees) but the communal lounging space/cafe space is a selling point foe the place. Indoor and outdoor seating with fireplaces (no dry wood left when i was there but there is a ton of wood waiting to be dried from the beach). Shower on an honesty box system at $2 and it was actually hot. Kitchen is sort of small for all the people needing to cook (which is everyone without the cafe running) and you should bring your own stuff as kitchen supplies are limited. Other than that no complaints. I would love to stay here in nice weather and during the summer.
Thank you for staying with us 😀
Future guests, here's what we think you'll enjoy about our special spot:
Jessica's Famous Homemade Baking-We've kept our camping rates cheap so you can treat yourselves!
Delicious organic, locally roasted coffee-the perfect way to start your day!
Fast Free Wifi!
No Checkout Time!
Beautiful Beach!
Gentle Annie Point Bush Maze!
Service with a smile-we're here to make your stay awesome!
Large private camping areas by the beach-choose your own spot!
Bonfires on the Beach!
Catch a Fish for Dinner!
Use of our Wood-Fired Pizza Oven-remember to bring ingredients!
Checkout our video on our website for what our place is all about.
We look forward to having you here!
Jesse Paley-Atkins
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Fox Glacier ▷
Welcome Flat Campsite
The hit is a mere $15 and I would call it more of a wilderness lodge than a hut.
While not a huge fan of the Copland Track this is a great DOC hut facility next to some natural springs and ringed by snowcapped mountains. Its rained hard while I was there and I would advise splurging on the hut over the campsite (grassy and exposed) unless you are certain of the weather (and who is on the West Coast?)
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South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Lumsden ▷
The Lodge and Holiday Park
$12.50 for an unpowered site via an honesty box.
There was only one other campervan present when I stayed and it was perfect after the bustle of Milford. No sandflies, chickens scratching about your door, and quiet. There is a single shared toilet/shower for the unpowered sites but it wasn't a problem with only three people there. No kitchen facilities though there is a hot water kettle and a cold water washer. There is technically space for ten unpowered campervans but that would be packing it in and i cannot imagine that would actually work. 4-5 powered sites across the way that each get their own toilet/shower combo. Nice little place to spend the night. Be on the lookout for the sign though as Athol has all of two roads i think.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika ▷
The Hokitika Glowworm Dell
Really great glow worm dell.
Do not miss an opportunity to stop and see it if in the area. Better than most other sites you pay for and its free!
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North Island ▷ Rotorua Region ▷ Rotorua ▷
Affordable Willowhaven Holiday Park
Unpowered sites for campervans are just a block of 2x4 in a grassy field.
The powered sites have lovely lake views. While the showers were hot I really detest signage and the “3 min” shower signs put me off. Who, might I ask, can actually take a shower that involves cleanliness in 3min? Kitchen has no supplies in it and is small. However, everything was very clean. This is also as far north as the shuttle for the cultural show will pick you up if you intend to go to an evening performance.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Picton / Marlborough Sounds ▷
Whatamango Bay Campsite
This looks like it would be a lovely site in the summer.
However, when driving into it in October I thought I was the only person until I happened upon a little corner where two startled people exchanging stuff between their car windows were located. Back in the States I would have said I had stumbled across a drug deal. And just like there I promptly left. So very sketchy vibes in the early spring and I would be hesitant to stay there alone.
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North Island ▷ Coromandel ▷ Coromandel Town ▷
YHA Coromandel
Good little site with all the amenities.
Fully stocked kitchen and both indoor and outdoor seating areas. Easy to walk into the small town if you so desire. Only complaint is the button pushing shower system which I detest. Also I suspect it could get crowded in the camping area but it was fine when I was there in October.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Mount Cook ▷
White Horse Hill Campground
Great DOC site with flush toilets and a sheltered area to cook in.
The views sell it. You can park anywhere in the trailhead parking lot so if you are not keen to pack in with the other campers just wait for the day trippers to leave and have a whole quiet lot with awesome views all to yourself!
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South Island ▷ Coastal Otago ▷ Portobello ▷
Portobello Village Tourist Park
Nice little family run place a quick walk to the tiny town of Portobello.
There is a yummy cafe and small grocery there and a few of the wildlife tour groups will pick you up at the store or at the campsite. Kitchen facilities were great and the hostess was excellent. Gets 8/10 because the showers were impossible to figure out (especially while wet and freezing) even after consulting with people who had been there multiple days.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Lake Tekapo ▷
Lakes Edge Holiday Park
They pretty much have the market cornered so they can charge what they want.
Overall clean and with a nice lounging area but not nearly enough space in the shared bathroom/shower/kitchen facilities of the dorm block (the campervan shared looks similar if lesser). Its a frequent stop for big bus tours to drop their loads of people. Pretty expensive for cramped accommodations if you are a single person. However, it is clean and there are so many signs everywhere you will feel like your mother is chiding you to keep it spotless the entire time you are there.
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South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Papatowai ▷
Papatowai Campsite
Great site with epic beaches views and the best smelling drop toilet I might have ever encountered.
Only downside were all the people who showed up late with their blinding headlights and then left without paying. Shame on them. If you want to enjoy a nice beach with nice toilets please pay the measly $8.
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South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Invercargill ▷
Winton Golf Course and Camp
I had a slightly strange experience here where I was the only camper staying and they turned the lights off on me midshower in the evening well before the golfers left for the day.
Then the next morning they did the same thing again while I was brushing my teeth. It was probably unintentional but it was dark in that shower! The washer mentioned in prior postings is cold water only and no dryer on site. The shower in the womens locker room had a clean and newish stall set into a dated and damp basement changing room-overall fine by me but hopefully that explains the mixed reviews already posted. $2 gets you about 15min of hot shower. I was the only person there overnight and the only noise I heard were the cows and birds.
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Christchurch ▷
Godley Head Campsite
Overall nice location close to Christchurch.
The road coming in was not bad even in inclement weather. Drinking water present. 8/10 for this DOC campsite due to relative expense for what you get, difficulty with gate access, and only one bathroom working.