Rent a caravan & car to tour New Zealand

[Susan_5088647]

Please let me know if you are interested in renting a caravan and car to tour NZ. We are considering buying an English caravan and want to know if there is interest from Britons with caravan experience in hiring it to tour. Likely to be a Swift 4/5 berth around 5 meters with a Toyota Camry tow car. Available from April/May 2006.

 

[JandP]

Hi Susan, we visited NZ in february and march for seven weeks and were surprised at how few trailer caravans we saw. I think the problem you will face is that for most Brits a trip to NZ is something they will not do very often so they will want to make the most of it while they are there. After visiting relatives we still had nearly 4 weeks touring but there was so much to see that we never stayed more than 2 or 3 nights at any one place and for this kind of touring a motorhome is more convenient than a trailer caravan. Do any rental companies offer trailer vans? This should give you an idea of their popularity. After a lot of thought we didnt even rent a motorhome but went for the hire car and campsite cabin option. We used the "Top 10" sites when we could and we found them excellent. The hire car was a 4 door medium saloon and cost about

 

[JimF]

Having just come back from a holiday in NZ in a motorhome, I would recommend hiring a car and staying at the "cabins" on the camp sites. The main roads in NZ are quite good BUT once you want to go off the beaten track they can be quite different!. A car would be much more suitable. I was quite glad to see the back of our motor van, something I would never say about our faithful Coachman!. What ever way you visit NZ Im sure you will have a tremendous time like we did, its a fantastic country!, with fantastic people!!!

best of touring,

JimFF5

 

[JandP]

Hi again Susan. The poor response to your question and with the only replies both recommending the car/cabin option probably indicates a lack of interest. This entry should bring it back to the top of the page so I hope someone else will see it and reply. We have a slight change of plan since my last entry, my wife is going on her own next year to visit her sister in Wanganui, I have to baby sit our 4 dogs! Best of luck with what ever you decide, Jim.

 

[cris_408518]

Mentioned your question to a mate on a 4 month holiday in NZ at present.

He reckons that caravan 4 berth behind a Camry would be hell on a lot of the NZ roads. He has bought a 3lire holden to cope with his explorations of the islands. Cabin holiday by far the best option he suggests.

On a day out on last years holiday there his start point was 30 miles from his campsite destination as the crow flies but around 65 miles and two hours on good roads in a friends big 4x4 Toyota!

Uphiil and down dale around hair pins etc he decided against towing a trasiler tent that was offered to him. He pitched tent or used Cabins, B&B etc.

 

[ChrisH]

Hi Susan,

Don't know if any one is still looking at this question, but here are some thoughts in case you do look again.

We have spent 2 six week holidays in NZ and have used the rent-a-car plus campgound cabins option in North Island and have rented a motorhome (for 21 days plus each time) in South Island.

We are regular caravanners in the UK and Europe and were reluctant the first time to switch to a motorhome.

There are pros and cons. It would be convenient to have a car for sightseeing and local touring and popping to the shops for milk.

But a caravan is more work when you arrive at a site and it's not so easy to move if you don't like the first pitch you choose....

Also, we have very much enjoyed "wild" camping - i.e. stopping at a remote location (by a lake or in the mountains), where overnight parking is allowed, and some of the places we've taken a motorhome would not be suitable for towing a caravan. Those have usually been our most memorable stops...

At the end of the day it's also a price consideration - you'd need to be very competitive to make it of interest.

We did see a modern Swift Challenger on one site - privately owned - so you won't be alone in owning an English van if you go ahead.

Good luck,

Chris

 

[Susan_5088647]

Thanks for all your comments. There doesn't seem much interest from those who have responded but we will go ahead anyway (because we wanted a caravan for ourselves and the occassional let is all we are looking for). Comments on the best websites or magazines to advertise in would be helpful. A dedicated website/page will be created too.

There will be regular visitors to NZ who may prefer to take a caravan to a few places for a week at a time, especially to North Island beaches in summer, these are the people we want to reach.

The same options are available to Kiwis and they own tents, caravans, motorhomes and buses depending on their wants as well as staying in hotels and motels. Motorhomes and RVs are great for touring and the car/cabin or B&B option for quicker travelling big distances.

The caravan we have bought is a 2004 Pageant Moselle (4 berth, double + single with bunk over) and the tow car is a 3L Lexus. They will be available for pick-up from Auckland Airport or our home in Rotorua which is 3 hours south east by car or a short internal flight. Other places by arrangement.

Fully furnished with food equipment, bedding and cleaning materials we expect to rent for not more than 500 pounds a week. As we only want to have experienced caravaners used to driving on the left we are open to swap time with British owners of similar configuration or canal boat. (Though we just need 2 berths.)