Christchurch to Auckland Self Drive Holiday
Most people drive North to South in New Zealand, but frequently this leaves a surplus of vehicles in Christchurch and Wellington. Doing a Christchurch to Auckland Self Drive holiday can give you a bigger choice of vehicles, and sometimes better rates.
Leaving Christchurch the most popular Christchurch to Auckland self drive itineraries take you south to Mt Cook, Dunedin and Fiordland National Park to Queenstown, the adventure capital of New Zealand. A Nature Cruise on Milford Sound or Wilderness Cruise to Doubtful Sound is highly recommended.
From Queenstown, you head past Wanaka, in a stunning location besides Lake Wanaka in Mt Aspiring National Park; and then down the Haast Pass to the West Coast and the glacier region, stopping at Fox Glacier or Franz Josef. Here a scenic helicopter flight with glacier landing, or one of the Helihike trips for a 2 hour walk on one of the glaciers is not to be missed.
From the Glaciers you can then either drive through Arthurs Pass or take the TranzAlpine Scenic Train to Christchurch; before following the east coast through Kaikoura to Marlborough; and crossing from Picton to Wellington on the Interislander Ferry.
The alternate route from the Glaciers takes you up the West Coast past Punakaiki and the Pancake Rocks and Blowholes, before driving through the Buller Pass to Nelson and Abel Tasman National Park. A short drive from here takes you to Picton and Marlborough.
Once in the North Island, the main routes take you past Tongariro National Park and Lake Taupo to Rotorua. The alternate route takes you from Wellington through the Wairarapa Wine Growing Region to Hawkes Bay and the art deco towns of Napier and Hastings. From Rotorua you drive through to Auckland via either Hobbiton or Waitomo Glowworm Caves. For those with more time, detours to the Bay of Plenty and White Island, around the stunning Coromandel Peninsula coast or to the beautiful Bay of Islands are popular route extensions.
Amendments
Our Christchurch to Auckland self-drive itineraries are fully flexible, so they can be amended or combined with other itineraries. All one way itineraries can also be done in reverse. So if you have any changes or special requests, just put a note in the booking/enquiry form.
Airfares
International flights can be included from Australia for all Australian residents.
