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Self Drive

South Island Highlights

12 Days Christchurch to Picton self drive
from $1,065.00 per person based on double occupancy

Taking in all of the major sights in the South Island, this 12 day self-drive package includes all that you will need to experience the South Island in all of its glory


INCLUSIONS
  • 11 nights standard hotel accommodation
  • 11 days mid-size automatic car rental
  • Co-Pilot reference guide, including driving directions for your journey, keepsake maps and activity coupons

ITINERARY

With your rental car, hotel arrangements and detailed driving itinerary all taken care of, all you are left to do is enjoy the scenery.

DAY 1 Christchurch
Christchurch is one of New Zealand’s historic cities with a distinctly English feel to it. Christchurch is a city of gardens, parks and churches designed in the mid-1800’s. It has grown into an eclectic and vibrant community with thriving theatres, galleries and festivals. The Botanic Gardens, tucked into a loop of the Avon River, are arguably the most beautiful gardens in New Zealand. Upon arrival, transfer to your hotel in the city.

DAY 2 Christchurch to Twizel (330km)
Pick up your car today and start your program. Heading west from Christchurch today you will cross the fertile Canterbury Plains and the rural farming communities of Geraldine and Fairlie before entering the bleak MacKenzie Country in the Mount Cook region. Stop at the Church of the Good Shepherd at Lake Tekapo for one of New Zealand’s most picturesque picnic spots.

DAY 3 Twizel to Dunedin (330km)
Travel inland via Omarama and Lake Pukaki, a spectacular turquoise-colored glacial lake. Pass through Oamaru and Palmerston in the region of North Otago on your way to the city of Dunedin. Dunedin, founded by Scottish migrants in 1848, has the distinctive character of a university city as many citizens are students. Dunedin is situated on the Otago Peninsula, which is indented with bays, providing many picnic and swimming sites. The hills above are crisscrossed with old stone walls.

DAY 4 Dunedin
Today we suggest a drive out along the Otago Peninsula for a sample of the unique South Island wildlife found in abundance on this scenic peninsula. At the tip of the peninsula is Taiaroa Head, a special reserve that includes the only mainland nesting site of the magnificent Royal Albatross. The rare Yellow-eyed penguins can also be seen at the Yellow-Eyed Penguin Reserve, halfway along the peninsula.

DAY 5 Dunedin to Te Anau (292 km)
Heading further south your route takes you through the township of Gore, one of the world’s top Brown Trout fishing areas. Continuing West via Lumsden you will reach Te Anau, at the entrance to the Fiordland National Park.

DAY 6 Te Anau to Queenstown (170km)
Fiordland National Park is listed as a World Heritage Park. At 1.52 million hectares, it is the largest national park in New Zealand and one of the largest in the world. Milford Sound is the best known, most easily accessible and one of the grandest of the fiords along this coastline. It runs past one of New Zealand’s most famous landmarks, Mitre Peak, which rises almost one mile, straight up from the water. This afternoon continue north along the shores of Lake Wakatipu into Queenstown.

DAY 7 Queenstown
These two days are at leisure for you to explore the many activities and scenic wonders of Queenstown and the surrounding areas. If you’re feeling adventurous, take a ride with Shotover Jet on the Shotover River, try white-water rafting, take a helicopter ride, go bungy jumping or bush walking. Or, for a more relaxing day, take a cruise on Lake Wakatipu on TSS Earnslaw or just have a picnic lunch and take in the beautiful surroundings.

DAY 8 Queenstown
Day at leisure.

DAY 9 Queenstown to Fox Glacier (404 km)
Your route today takes you via the lakeside town of Wanaka and over the Haast Pass into the Westland National Park. The famous Fox Glacier is a 8.6 mile long tongue of ice which descends to 750 feet above sea level. It is the most accessible glacier in New Zealand.

DAY 10 Fox Glacier to Hokitika (139 km)
From Fox Glacier head north along the spectacular West Coast Highway 6, to Hokitika. Hokitika was the center of the richest gold-producing area in New Zealand in the 1960s. Visit the West Coast Historical Museum in town for an insight into the history of the area.

DAY 11 Hokitika to Nelson (330 km)
Following the West Coast northwards, you will enter the Abel Tasman National Park region and proceed on to the artisan town of Nelson, New Zealand’s sunniest city, a beautiful city flanked by the sea, golden beaches and hills.

DAY 12 Nelson to Picton
Drive via Havelock to Picton where this part of your journey ends. From Picton you have easy access to the spectacular Marlborough Sounds. Your program ends today, however you still have full use of your rental car for the whole day. Please note that your car must be returned the following morning, at the latest, by the time it was picked up on Day 2.