Queenstown to Christchurch: a 14 day Top of the South Island outdoor and wellness campervan itinerary - Britz

Thirteen nights and 1,542 kilometres from Queenstown to Christchurch in a campervan, by way of the glaciers and three sets of hot pools.

Lake Tekapo comes first, milky turquoise from rock flour, with the Church of the Good Shepherd on the shore and a dark sky reserve overhead, then Kura Tawhiti, the Castle Hill limestone tors, which are a climbing site and have been used as a filming location.

Arthur’s Pass follows, with the Otira Gorge dropping steeply away to the west, then Hokitika and Franz Josef, where a glacier runs down through rainforest almost to sea level. Greymouth and Reefton come next, the latter the first place in the southern hemisphere to have a public electricity supply, then Maruia Hot Springs in a riverbed on the Lewis Pass road, Hanmer Springs, and Kaikoura and Waipara on the way into Christchurch.

Britz supply the camper and the day-by-day plan, and the hire is priced live per vehicle rather than per person; campsites, fuel, ferries, park fees and activities are all extra, with a nil-excess insurance pack available at booking. Fourteen days for 1,542 kilometres leaves time at each stop rather than spending the trip driving. Glacier walks and helicopter landings need booking and are weather dependent, and the West Coast takes several metres of rain a year. This is a one-way hire, so a relocation fee is worth checking at booking. Taking the West Coast rather than the direct inland road is what makes this route worth the extra days, and the hot pools are well spaced through the second half.