OceanView

wow, you had a lot of issues on this car but you did a tremendous job in getting it ready for your trip.
And yes, NZ is on my bucket list.

ES300NZ

Thanks for that, it was a painful process in places, but it drives great now.

NZ is great, but like any place there are issues, most people that come here hire a camper van and tour the country which would be my recommendation. It would cost, but you can see so much more that way, and also you can make your own holiday up. Some people buy a car/hire a car, and drive it up and down the country, which is another way to do it. Below I'll run through some things that I like (and dislike), but it's brief, there's so much more than what I can cover which also deserves attention.

Like most places that have a lot of tourists come, some things are really expensive, here are things that locals avoid;

Waitomo Glowworm Caves (too expensive $80). neat experience though.
Picton: top of the south island, ferry stops there, don't stop, that town is built to rip you off.
Whale Watch Kaikoura - whales are cool but it's expensive($145) and boring.
Bungy Jumping - its expensive ($169), it's a long rubber band, you get wet, and it's all build up, over in 10 seconds, most girls complain about that sort of thing. If you must, Queenstown's one is best. Or Taupo.
The Sky Tower - it's a viewing platform, with a glass bottom, high up, in Auckland. yay? no.
Gold Panning - in southland (Arrowtown) - trading of the old mining history they sell 'gold panning' experiences to tourists, kinda cool, history and all that, but if you never went your life would be about that same, it's hardly life changing stuff.


Things New Zealanders go to;
Kelly Taltons: it costs, but we don't mind. Marine life, like Sea World only WAY smaller and no animal cruelty. very very cool. Parking sucks. go mid-week, weekends it's full.
Beaches - the beauty will blow your mind, but if you give Piha a miss and go to KareKare beach instead which is just around the corner / before .. (take food and plastic bags for your rubbish), it will be a spiritual experience. A word of warning, if you want to swim, go for it, stay in contact with the sand, those west coast beaches have serious 'rips' that go straight out to sea, even locals die each year. I prefer this end of that beach, and the road is almost direct too (but rough, its gravel, car is ok though). https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@-37.0.../data=!3m1!1e3. Also, I strongly recommend hotwater beach, the geothermal activity .. hot water .. read here.
Rotorua - the luge, this place is a play ground - , I suggest the paddle tours, jet boating, Kaituna Cascades, and parasailing. If you can afford it - have the time - do this: http://www.rotoruanz.com/visit/to-do...nd-rainforest/
The West Coast of the North Island is known for it's beauty and remoteness, but with that comes settlements that are small and have few facilities. The East Coast is well populated, mostly. The South Island is big, open, and much less populated. If you decide to take a camper, 'start' your journey here at the northern tip (http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-rec...ghthouse-walk/), and end it here, in Bluff (http://www.bluff.co.nz/).
The West Coast of the South Island is stunningly beautiful. No matter what you do, you must, see the West Coast of the South Island, if not for the Franz Josef Glacier and Fox Glacier, then for the Milford Track. , read the site, do the trek, it will change your life and give you an experience of 'the bush' like we New Zealanders know it, don't do it in Summer, .. October, November, not Dec, or Jan, or Feb, or March during the 'hot' period the sand flies are so thick in the air you _will_ eat more than you want to admit to others, the walk is best done during the colder seasons (Sep - Dec 1st, / April - June 1st) but outside of the winter months when cold means under zero. The official PDF is here.. Unusually (for a govt) the New Zealand government is pretty good about warnings, information, and preparation information so look for it, read it, and take notice of the warnings, this country is seriously dangerous in places, basic prep, food water, care saves lives. Every year people die cos they did something silly like swim in the wrong place, not take food or water or shelter on a long walk, silly things like that, weather chances here and tourists just keep on walking and not stop when it's clearly dangerous.



The beaches along the coast are amazing, there is a list of our best beaches here, to be honest I'd dispute that list and say some of the best beachs are the ones you will yourself and the are just a random stop in a remote location away.

Places like this are real, common, and the fishing is usually pretty good too (daily limits apply though). You'll get bored of scenery like this.

but so are the lakes.

Lake Mathison

There are places to see all over the country, like this list for the Waikato (center of the north island)

If you want to come here, I recommend around November, it's not Summer, but it's not cold anymore, and it still rains, which is good, this country gets pretty hot in summer. I would generally avoid the main centres, and stick with smaller towns, only visiting main centres for a day, there's so much to see I think a month would do it. Tourists are regularly assaulted, have their campers cleaned out (burgled), and mistake a road siding for good camping spots (they aren't). New Zealand is like any place, there are criminals, and most people are very nice but it pays to be careful, if in doubt ask a gas station attendant, they are usually helpful. Also, we don't tip here, so don't tip people, we don't know how to react and it gets embarrassing for us; seriously, .. we don't tip at all here, don't do it.

ES300NZ

My cousin took some great pictures on a road trip, to the Manukau Heads (Awhitu). It was in a car, probably a lexus, so .. I though a few people might want to see them. She's just a typical person with a s4 taking some pics for the 'book of faces' while on a road trip

https://www.google.co.nz/maps/place/...1922ef1a3b6c44