Need info about renting rv in NZ.

MTGunner

MTGunner
Hello all, I will be traveling to NZ in the short future. I/we are interested in renting an rv to tour both north and South Island. We traveled to NZ in 2016 to hunt red deer and tahr but next trip will be to tour. Can anyone steer us in the right direction to rent an rv? Thank you in advance for any and all help. MTG
 

Billhilly

Adventurer
Lots of options out there. I don't know anything about the comparison website in the first link. Jucy is pretty big down here. Maui/Britz as well. I don't know how the dollars work out for renting one in each Island vs having just one camper and
bringing it across the Straight with you. I guess that would all come down to how much of each Island you want to see. Bottom two links are the two ferry options.

https://www.campervanfinder.co.nz/?gclid=CIuaocHbvNQCFUgKKgodk3YAmg

https://www.jucy.co.nz/?gclid=CIfX-qXbvNQCFQsFKgodWGcMTA&gclsrc=aw.ds

http://www.maui.co.nz/motorhome-hire-promotions/Pages/winter-motorhomes.aspx?gclid=CJvsnuvbvNQCFUsEKgodGjMOew

http://www.britz.co.nz/

https://www.bluebridge.co.nz/
https://www.greatjourneysofnz.co.nz/interislander
 

whatcharterboat

Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
MTG,
.
Every September, my wife and I rent an RV from Tui Campers in Christchurch for a 2 week trip around the South Island. Their vehicles are a little older than most and as a result are really affordable. I have always had very good experiences with them and as a repeat customer they give me an even better deal than usual (Kiwis are great people and I know they appreciate the loyalty). Not sure what you need exactly by way of a vehicle but I now ask for the smallest platform they can provide that still has an inside shower and on-board flushing toilet .... so last year, that was a 2 year-old, high-roof, diesel, Ford Transit Van. In 2015, IIRC, I had an '08 Ford Transit platform with a typical flat-panel, wide-body motorhome on the back....definitely more comfortable and roomy inside for us but that motorhome was way too scary running up the skifield roads as it was far too wide, high, under-powered and had tons of body roll. The newer van was like a sports car by comparison which resulted in an embarrassing speeding ticket.
.
We never stay in campgrounds like most do ...... as you probably would know, the free camping on the South Island is exceptional. We usually take some of our own gear like small cargo nets and lots of alloy carabineers for hanging stuff, a plug-in inverter, multiport cig socket adaptor, GPS, etc . We also take our own feather-down quilt so we're cosy at night in the snow country ....it packs down to nothing and I would have to say that the supplied blankets are never warm enough in the winter. We also fly over with soft luggage that you can stow away easily once you've unpacked into the van.....that said, Tui will store any hard luggage back in the Christchurch depot if you really need them to.
.
One thing that you should check on no matter who you're getting info from is what roads you are restricted from travelling on. Many won't let you run up the ski fields tracks and a lot of dirt roads. Tui had very little restrictions.
.
Happy to help further if you need any contacts. I'll be back there again in 87 sleeps but who's counting??
Regards John
 
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Thirty-Nine

Explorer
We rented from Mighty and had a pretty good overall experience. Britz/Mighty/Maui are all the same company, but the different brands offer newer/nicer vans. Maui is the nicest, Britz is in the middle, and Mighty is the least expensive/oldest vans. For instance, our Mighty Sprinter didn't have an auxiliary jack to plug in a phone for listening to music; no bluetooth either. It also didn't have a diesel heater, only an electric one. So, if we wanted heat, we had to be plugged in. It wasn't very cold most of the time we were there, but if we'd had the diesel heater, we would've used it. Just something to be aware of.

Things to look into: Campermate -- app works great. Offers info on free places to park a self-contained campervan, or info on holiday parks.

Also, highly recommended is http://okay2stay.co.nz/. It was a great, inexpensive way to stay in NZ. We used it on both islands. You stay with local businesses. We stayed at a honey shop in Garston, a pub in Onekaka, vineyards in Blenheim, etc.

We had a Sprinter when we were there in September of '16. Big, but it was very comfy. I'd go with the smallest self-contained van next time as we didn't need something that big.

Not to shill our site, but you can read some of the joys/frustrations on our rental here:

http://crankshaftculture.com/2016/10/31/van-life-can-awesome-can-also-frustrating/
 
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Peterf

New member
Like other people on this thread have said, be careful about the bigger (US-sized) RVs. The roads are windy and do have anything like the visibility you get in the States. Think Vermont with two lanes and more hills. If you intend to camp at DOC campsites you will need your own shower; if you intend to freedom camp you now need to have on board toilet to this legally. So go smaller not bigger All the best!
 

whatcharterboat

Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
MTG did you do the NZ trip?
Zero sleeps now for me. Pick up the van in the morning. Going to try okay2stay as was suggested by Thirty-Nine.
 

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