Top of the South Island 11 Day Wellness, Food and Wine Campervan Itinerary from Christchurch - Britz

Ten nights and 1,200 kilometres in a loop from Christchurch in a campervan, weighted towards hot pools and long lunches rather than distance.

Waipara Springs comes first, an hour north of the city in a small cool-climate wine region, then Kaikoura for the whales and the seals, and Ward and Seddon on the way up the coast.

Picton, Spring Creek and Havelock follow, the last at the head of the Pelorus Sound and the self-declared green-lipped mussel capital of the world, with the Pelorus Bridge reserve nearby where the river runs over granite through old forest. Nelson and Kaiteriteri come next for the Abel Tasman coast, then the route turns inland for Maruia Hot Springs, a thermal pool in a riverbed on the Lewis Pass road, and Hanmer Springs with its developed pools.

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. Eleven days for 1,200 kilometres is unhurried, and the two sets of thermal pools on the way home are placed where they are for good reason. Maruia is a quieter and more austere proposition than Hanmer, which has slides and a spa. Nothing on the route is unsealed, and the loop format avoids a one-way relocation fee. Eleven nights also means most stops get two nights, which is where the value of a slower itinerary actually shows rather than simply adding more places to it.