I currently live on Kauai and I’m looking to embark on what I hope will be a three-month tour of New Zealand. My job’s end date is pretty flexible—likely anytime between the end of December and the beginning of March—so there’s a bit of wiggle room for when I start the tour. (For the moment, I’m assuming a working start of February 1.)
What I’m hoping to do is ride pretty much the entire length of both islands and back. I’d like to see Milford Sound and ride as far south as Dunedin before looping back to Cape Reinga in Northland. I found this Tour Aotearoa route that will probably be a major source of inspiration (it has odd quirks like riding 50+ miles on a beach and taking a riverboat through a really isolated national park, lol), and I figure I can cobble together some sort of alternate route for the return trip, perhaps inspired by other rides like the Sounds to Sounds or Alps 2 Ocean. I’m keen on avoiding major highways and I’m happy to stay in the mountainous inland if need be.
My questions are mostly logistical. What is the best ~90 day span in which to balance good weather with limited crowds? Is there a specific holiday weekend to avoid? Should I ride down one particular coast and up another? How much money should I expect to spend per day? (I’d like to camp/warmshowers as much as possible, but could probably budget a few hotel nights in major cities.) Are there any considerations I should have as an American? (I understand the typical stay is no more than 90 days, that I need proof of departure, that New Zealanders drive on the left side of the road, and that the exchange rate somewhat favors the US dollar.)
Thanks in advance for any input!
by have_two_cows
5 Comments
Keep in mind that the Kiwis are asleep now.
What kind of bike will you be riding? I did a tour of the South Island loosely based on the Tour Aotearoa in 2019 during Jan-March, absolutely fantastic, and I’m happy to make some recommendations once I know what you’ll be riding.
Check out the app campermate, that was super useful while we were there for finding resources such as camping, hostels, grocery stores, etc
Feel free to PM me, I spent two months down there riding around so I’ve got a good amount of info I’d be psyched to share
I’m afraid I have no info for you, but this looks like a blast and I’m taking notes for the future.
I’m planning to ride the TA in November! Figured the weather should be good enough by then.
I’ll be riding a Salsa Cutthroat as I come from a CX background so hoping my drop bar handling will be fine for the single track sections. That bike is also built strong enough for the Tour Divide and has the best middle ground geometry for the TA.
I did a tour by car over two weeks in February. Mostly South Island. I stayed in hostels and can only suggest booking your stays ahead of time (a day before was fine for me)
It’s a great country! Have fun.