2 Week New Zealand Itinerary (North & South Island)
The following 2 week New Zealand itinerary was created for my parents on their first trip to New Zealand. They travelled in late January to mid-February and the weather was excellent.
Here are the hotels, activities, car rental, and flights I recommended and booked for them. My parents thought all hotels and tours were great.
They visited the north and south island.
Hotels
- Auckland: M Social Auckland and InterContinental Auckland
- Rotorua: Aura Accommodation
- Napier: The Crown Hotel
- Martinborough: Swan House
- Nelson: The Sails
- Te Anau: Fiordland Lakeview Motel and Apartments
- Queenstown: Sofitel Queenstown Hotel & Spa
Activities
Auckland Area
Rotorua
- Wai O Tapu & Waimangu Volcanic Valley Tour – tour operated by Elite Adventures
- Te Pa Tu Māori Cultural Experience with Dinner
- Polynesian Spa
Hawke’s Bay
- Napier Cape Coast Winery Tour on Pedal or E-Bikes (self-guided)
- Cape Kidnappers Gannet, Nature & Sightseeing Tour
Abel Tasman National Park
Te Anau
- Milford Sound NZ Small Boutique Cruise Experience
- Te Anau Glowworm Caves Guided Tour
- Half day e-bike rental from Bike Fiordland
Queenstown
- Skyline Gondola – they did not book in advance
- Dinner at Walter Peak High Country Farm and Steamer Cruise
Car Rental
- Auckland to Wellington – they booked Europcar in Downtown Auckland
- Queenstown to Queenstown – they used Ezu Car Rental but the cars are a bit older than the usual car rental
Flights
The best flights from London to New Zealand are to Auckland International Airport. I tried to arrange flights from Queenstown, but it was too complicated. So you should base your trip in starting and finishing in Auckland.
I usually check general flight prices on Skyscanner and then book direct with the airline.
Outbound: London to Frankfurt to Singapore to Auckland (Lufthansa and Air New Zealand)
Inbound: Auckland to Los Angeles to Frankfurt to London (Air New Zealand and Lufthansa)
Internal flights:
- Wellington to Nelson – Air New Zealand
- Nelson to Queenstown (via Wellington) – Air New Zealand
- Queenstown to Auckland – Air New Zealand
Itinerary Outline
- Day 1: Arrival in Auckland
- Day 2: Tour of Waiheke Island from Auckland
- Day 3: Hobbiton and drive to Rotorua
- Day 4: Rotorua
- Day 5: Drive to Hawke’s Bay
- Day 6: Tour of wineries in Hawke’s Bay
- Day 7: Drive to Martinborough
- Day 8: Drive to Wellington and fly from Wellington to Nelson
- Day 9: Tour of Abel Tasman National Park from Nelson
- Day 10: Fly Nelson to Queenstown and drive to Te Anau
- Day 11: Visit Milford Sound
- Day 12: Te Anau
- Day 13: Drive to Queenstown
- Day 14: Queenstown
- Day 15: Queenstown (option to fly back to Auckland today or the next day)
- Day 16: Departure from Auckland
I hope you find this helpful!
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