Discover the extraordinary in the land of the long white cloud. Introducing my New Zealand Odyssey—an unparalleled journey that seamlessly blends nature's majesty, cultural immersion, and adrenaline-pumping adventures. Picture yourself exploring ancient Maori traditions under a starlit sky, venturing into the heart of the Southern Alps, and kayaking through pristine fjords. Immerse yourself in a world where innovation meets nature's wonders. In this guide, I’ve curated the perfect itinerary after years of living in and exploring all over New Zealand.  Don't just visit New Zealand; experience it like never before with us. Your adventure awaits. Think different, travel different.


New Zealand - 21 Day Itinerary

I hope this guide made you look up cheap flights to New Zealand, but, if not, send me a DM because I’m a bit concerned for your mental well-being . If you’ve had the opportunity to visit this beautiful country already, please tell me all about it ASAP. Happy travels!

Taupō

Kaikōura

Bay Of Plenty

Waitomo Caves

New Zealand

Matamata

Ngatapa

Waikato District

Manawatu-Wanganui

Southland

Akaroa

Queenstown

Auckland

Rotorua

New Zealand Bucket List

Wondering what to do and where to go with your travel days in Auckland? I've lived in Auckland city and explored extensively for over a year. My list here isn’t super long, but that’s because I’ve chosen to list only the things we really love and actually do ourselves. Here are the top places we take our visitors.

Auckland, New Zealand

What to Do + Eat in Auckland, NZ (Kid friendly)

This is a map of all my favorite spots to explore, eat, and stay in Aotearoa New Zealand after a year and a half of living in the land of the long white cloud with my two kids. Nearly all the pins are child friendly and they are noted if not. 

I update this periodically as I travel to new places so keep an eye out and enjoy New Zealand's incredible country!

Kid-friendly New Zealand

This guide is for both Islands in New Zealand (the north and the south) for first time visitors who are taking their camper van throughout the islands with a few days in Auckland and Queenstown. It's a three week itinerary and includes the arrival and departure flight days (and has some suggestions for these days as well). 

It will go through (in detail!) every location we visited, the activities we did, the sites we camped up at, the restaurants we ate at (in between our camper van meals), what we learned about New Zealand and the camper van life whilst we were there, and other suggestions of what to do in the areas so you can alter your plans to fit what you want. 

Note that this itinerary includes two different camper van rental locations on each island, and flying between the two islands. But you could easily do the majority of this itinerary and just switch up a few days to drive between the two islands! This itinerary does have a decent amount of driving but its because we really wanted to PACK our itinerary to see as much of New Zealand and it's beautiful scenery whilst we were here. 

The main locations touched on are listed here (and we highly recommend all of them):
-> Auckland (& Waiheke Island)
-> West Coast North Island (Black Sand Beaches / Mt Taranaki)
-> Tongariro Alpine Crossing
-> Coromandel Peninsula
-> Queenstown
-> Milford Sound
-> Wanaka (& Roys Peak)
-> Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park
-> Dunedin
-> The Catlins

If you're looking for a detailed guide that outlines your plan for each and every day, look no further! 

Tongariro National Park, Manawatu-Wanganui, New Zealand

Wānaka, New Zealand

Milford Sound, Southland, New Zealand

Coromandel Peninsula, Kaimarama, New Zealand

Marokopa, New Zealand

Waiheke Island, Auckland, New Zealand

The Catlins, New Zealand

New Plymouth, New Zealand

Mount Cook National Park, Canterbury, New Zealand

Oamaru, New Zealand

Queenstown, New Zealand

Egmont National Park, Taranaki, New Zealand

Dunedin, New Zealand

Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park, Canterbury, New Zealand

3 Weeks in New Zealand - See The Best of BOTH Islands

This itinerary outlines nine days of continuous adventure on the North Island of New Zealand. Spend a couple days exploring Auckland and the nearby islands, head out west for some black sand beaches and secret coves, hit up some insane hiking trails, and head to the east coast for some stunning beaches that draw the local crowds all summer. 

This itinerary is partially in hotels, but most of it is geared towards campervanning or rooftop tenting it through the North Island (that's what we did & LOVED it). It also includes a few hours of driving a day, and quite a few hiking opportunities (of course these can be substituted for other activities in the area). If you don't want to drive as much you could always spread the activities over more days, or skip your least favourite part to spend more time in the other areas ... but good luck trying to choose! Each day outlines activities to fill your day, how much driving, what to eat, where to stay, and other suggestions / information. 

This itinerary covers the following specific places:
-> Auckland
-> Waiheke Island
-> Hobbiton
-> Marakopa
-> New Plymouth (Mt Taranaki)
-> Tongariro National Park
-> Lake Taupo
-> Coromandel Peninsula 
-> Coromandel Forest Park
& so much more!

Note: if you're interested in doing both North and South Island in one trip, you should definitely consider purchasing our 3 week itinerary (found on our thatch home page) as it includes all of this same information & everything on the South Island!

Pinnacles Walk, Waikato, New Zealand

Coromandel, New Zealand

Pouakai Circuit Reflective Tarn, Taranaki, New Zealand

Hobbiton™ Movie Set Tours Buckland Road, Matamata, New Zealand

North Island, New Zealand

Lake Taupo, Waikato, New Zealand

Mount Taranaki, Taranaki, New Zealand

NEW ZEALAND: 9 Day North Island Campervan Itinerary

Discover the best of New Zealand in 5 weeks exploring the North and South Island🚍✨

Taupō, New Zealand

Kaikōura, New Zealand

Lake Tekapo, New Zealand

Wanaka, New Zealand

Blenheim, New Zealand

Hokitika, New Zealand

Milford Sound, Southland Region, New Zealand

Christchurch, New Zealand

Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Manawatu-Wanganui Region, New Zealand

Abel Tasman National Park, South Island, New Zealand

Wellington, New Zealand

Tauranga, New Zealand

Rotorua, New Zealand

5 Weeks New Zealand Roadtrip Itinerary and Recommendations 

You are spoilt for choice when it comes to beautiful outdoors locations in New Zealand, but what are the very best spots for admiring this country's incredible nature and scenery? 

Check out this list of the most stunning and iconic outdoors spots in New Zealand! 

Fox Glacier, West Coast, New Zealand

Otari-Wilton's Bush Wilton Road, Wilton, Wellington, New Zealand

South Island, New Zealand

Cathedral Cove, Waikato, New Zealand

Franz Josef Glacier, West Coast, New Zealand

Tongariro, New Zealand

Mount Tasman, West Coast, New Zealand

Mount Aspiring, West Coast, New Zealand

Mt Cook, Canterbury, New Zealand

White Island, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand

Wharariki Beach, Wharariki Road, Pūponga, New Zealand

Northland, New Zealand

Best of the New Zealand Outdoors

- Unlimited access to the interactive map
- Unlimited access to detailed information
- More than 200 things to do including accommodation, activities, attractions, beaches, mountains, hikes, some secret places and more...
- Unlimited access to several types of suggested routes
- Direct links to service reservation pages 
- Different itinerary suggestions depending on your interests.
- Recommendations

New Zealand 

Waterfalls & Swimming Holes in New Zealand to explore!

Waterfalls & Swimming Holes in New Zealand

All my favourite places on the North Island of Aotearoa New Zealand. I've narrowed it down to my top choices to give you some inspo. But I have a more extensive map on Google, with 200+ locations and colour-coded sections so it's easy to navigate. You can even save it to reference once you're on the road! Message me for FREE access. 
Details also on my blog: https://runawaytraveller.com/north-island-map-explore/

Napier, New Zealand

Best Stops On New Zealand's North Island 

Te Whanganui-A-Hei (Cathedral Cove) Marine Reserve

This cove is a super popular place for everyone to visit and will require some effort to get there - but it's well worth it! The cove itself is free, but parking will usually cost some money. You can park at a few places along the way, but commonly people park in Hahei and either walk the entire way (a decent walk!), take the shuttle there, or even take a boat. 

Cathedral Cove, also known as Te Whanganui-A-Hei, is a marine reserve on the Coromandel Peninsula of New Zealand. It’s full of dramatic scenes and postcard-perfect views, which makes it an incredibly popular destination for tourists.

Perhaps you recognise this spot from your Windows home screen? Cathedral Cove is currently only accessible by boat, but it's so worth the journey to see these crystal waters and incredible rock formations in person!

This highly rated destination is considered one of New Zealand's gems. 

Be prepared for a 4.5km walk with 225m elevation gain. Then enjoy the cave and the beautiful surrounding beach.

The walking trail is closed for renovations, but you can still get there by boat!

Te Whanganui-A-Hei (Cathedral Cove) Marine Reserve

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