Planning a Trip to New Zealand

New Zealand is longer than people expect. The country stretches about 1,600 kilometres from top to bottom — roughly the distance from New York to Miami — and it’s narrow enough that you’re never more than 128 kilometres from the coast. Two very different islands. Two very different personalities.

The North Island is warmer, more urban, geothermally active, and full of surprises. The South Island is wilder, colder, and staggeringly beautiful. Most visitors fly into Auckland or Christchurch and work outward from there. If you have three weeks, you can do both islands justice. If you have less, pick one and go deep rather than racing through both.

Getting between islands means crossing the Cook Strait — by ferry if you have a car, by plane if you don’t. The ferry takes about three hours and the strait can get rough. It’s still worth it for the experience.

New Zealand is built for road trips. The roads are well-maintained, reasonably wide, and designed with caravans in mind. Budget more time than Google Maps suggests — the roads twist and turn through mountains and countryside, and you’ll want to stop. A lot.

The map below has pins for every post I’ve written with a specific location. Click any pin to see what’s there.