New Zealand Travel: 8-Day Tour of New Zealand’s South Island
Stepping on this land again, only because I passed through the North Island many years ago and was amazed by its beautiful scenery, far above Australia. However, I heard that New Zealand’s South Island is known as the last pure land on earth, possessing the most pristine original ecological landscape. Compared to the North Island, its natural scenery is even more spectacular! When the winter in the Northern Hemisphere meets the summer in the Southern Hemisphere, our god-like team gathered and set off. Christchurch, we are coming..
Self-driving route
To fully experience New Zealand’s lakes and mountains, and enjoy the physical and mental pleasure that the natural scenery brings us, we decisively gave up the North Island, entering through Christchurch and exiting through Queenstown, not backtracking, and heading all the way south.
Entry
Absolutely do not bring prohibited items, all food ingredients can be found in local supermarkets. When entering the country, you cannot bring any food, including seasonings (vacuum packaging is OK). New Zealand customs is one of the strictest in the world, in addition to security checks, unpacking, and questioning, there are also customs sniffer dogs. When transferring from the North Island to the South Island, be sure to allow plenty of time. We left a full four hours, and almost missed our flight due to the unhurried customs inspection. Isn’t that incomprehensible? When you travel abroad, you’ll realize how efficient Chinese customs is! Even with long queues, even when you’re rushing to catch a connecting flight, the customs there still proceed at their own unhurried pace, absolutely not implementing emergency measures based on the situation. Only after our repeated efforts to communicate did they seem to wake up as if from a dream and add more staff. It was truly thrilling.
Weather
In early January, it’s summer in New Zealand, but I feel that you need to bring clothes for all seasons. Mornings are quite cold, and wearing a thin down jacket is perfectly reasonable. Midday is relatively hot, and you can wear short sleeves. So New Zealand’s summer can be quite a dilemma in terms of clothing. The daily temperature ranges from about 10 to 30 degrees Celsius. It occasionally rains, so you need to have rain gear prepared.
Things to Note
It should be noted that driving on the left side with right-hand drive is completely opposite to driving in our country. New Zealand is sparsely populated with vast land, and roads are very limited, with only a few main highways. Local drivers, unlike drivers in China, may not be as adaptable and might collide directly without applying any brakes. Rural roads in New Zealand are mostly single-lane with complex conditions. Mountain roads often have continuous curves, steep slopes, and deep seas below the cliffs, so you must drive with extreme caution. After driving for a certain distance, passing lanes usually appear, where you can overtake slower vehicles.
When we first started, we were pulled over by a police car on the road, not for speeding, but for driving too slow! Too slow! They nicely reminded us that if you’re driving very slowly, you should always pay attention to the vehicles behind you, and once there’s a safe area, you should pull over to let the vehicles behind you pass safely.
Talking about this trip
New Zealand’s beautiful natural scenery attracts tourists from around the world, and also makes it a filming location and source of inspiration in the eyes of many directors, screenwriters, and producers.
The globally popular “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy and “The Hobbit” series were filmed in New Zealand, which has earned New Zealand the beautiful nickname “Middle-earth”.
Pure World—Heaven has so favored this land, granting the South Island all the purest colors: the most beautiful skies, the most brilliant sunshine, the most dazzling starry skies, the purest lake waters, and the magnificent glaciers formed through thousands of years of melting and freezing. Its scenery is picturesque, yet its beauty is understated. It’s so quiet you can hear the gentle whisper of the wind, the footsteps of clouds, and the singing of lake waters. Pure New Zealand. In “The Lord of the Rings”, this is Middle-earth; beyond “The Lord of the Rings”, this is the last pure land on earth.
Day 1
Lake Tekapo
D1: Enjoying the spectacular glacier views during the day – The plane flies from the west coast of the South Island to the east, and New Zealand’s purity is already visible. Outside the window, glaciers shrouded in clouds, emerald-clear lakes, and azure skies – this is a land far from pollution.
The various shades of blue on Lake Tekapo, under the sunlight, make the pure sky pale in comparison! As the plane turns, descends, and flies straight, New Zealand strikes our vision with its infinitely transparent colors, as if God casually left behind a magnificent oil painting…
Day 1 Peppers Bluewater Resort
Reason for recommendation: Well-designed layout with spectacular views. The second floor offers views of Lake Tekapo’s sunset and sunrise. (Call or email the hotel directly for booking at reasonable prices, better than major domestic websites)
Day 2
Astro Café
Day 2, woke up naturally, went to Astro cafe, which is known as the most beautiful cafe in the world. Through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, overlooking the magnificent view of Lake Tekapo, after a simple breakfast, we bid farewell to TEKAPO. Feeling the breeze of the Southern Hemisphere, we continued our journey south.
On Day 2, stay overnight in the most beautiful starry sky town – Lake Tekapo, New Zealand
Lake Tekapo town is the first “Dark Sky Reserve” certified by the United Nations, where you can visually appreciate the unpolluted, most brilliant starry sky. The most beautiful side of Tekapo reveals itself as the night gradually darkens. Beneath the sky, the stars shine brightly. It’s impossible to express the inner shock through words and pictures. Without experiencing it personally, one cannot truly understand it. Just like the meaning that travel brings to us. TEKAPO, there’s more here than just the starry sky
Day 3
Dunedin Railway Station
D3 During the day we went to Dunedin Railway Station. For us who are used to seeing cities, compared to the magnificence or grandeur of many European buildings, Dunedin Railway Station is not particularly outstanding. On the contrary, challenging the “world’s steepest street” Baldwin Street was more attractive to us. Its slope is 35%, and it entered the Guinness Book of Records for being the steepest street in the world. According to Baidu, “It was designed by some British urban planners who had never been to Dunedin. They simply drew some small grids on paper without realizing they had designed a road that defies common sense or is very ridiculous…”
Day 3: Stay in Dunedin at night. It’s about 300 kilometers driving from Tekapo to Dunedin. Dunedin is a South Island city rich in Scottish charm, known as “the most Scottish city outside of Scotland”.
Opening the window, the sound of waves, birdsong, and cool air greeted me as I was awakened by Dunedin’s morning.
Day 4
Larnach Castle
Day 4 visiting Larnach Castle located on the Otago Peninsula. This 140-year-old building is the only castle in New Zealand, with an excellent geographical location. Standing on the top floor of the castle, you can enjoy a 360-degree unobstructed view of the sea. The exterior is simple and rustic, but the interior is very exquisite.
On the evening of Day 4, check into Larnach Castle located on the Otago Peninsula. You can enjoy a candlelight dinner in the castle and an absolutely stunning castle stable breakfast. Of course, the beautiful castle has a poignant story. If you’re full of positive energy, you might want to come and experience it.
Day 5
Queenstown i-SITE
D5: Queenstown, the climax of our journey, we boarded the TSS Earnslaw steamship. As the only operating coal-fired ferry in the Southern Hemisphere, although it has gone through a hundred years, it has not faded or declined with the passage of time. The steam engines in the power cabin and the museum at the bow gave us a strong sense of history. It still maintains its original elegant shape, slowly and gracefully shuttling through the stunning lake and mountain scenery of Queenstown, becoming the Lady of the Lake (Lake Wakatipu). With the ancient ship’s whistle, we could see the highland pasture under the distant Walter Peak. In fact, the pastures are similar to each other. Besides the herds of cattle and sheep, the only thing that amazed us was the azure sky overlooking the deep green lake, enthusiastically surrounded by colorful plants and flowers. Flowers surround the steps in front of and behind the houses, like a paradise on earth.
Day 5 staying at Queenstown QT Hotel
Day 6
Glenorchy
D6: “Lord of the Rings Town – Glenorchy”. The town is located at the northernmost end of Lake Wakatipu, a 45-minute drive from Queenstown. The road winds along the lakeside, surrounded by mountains, vast grasslands, and perennial snow and glaciers on the distant high mountains.
Accompanied by the beautiful Lake Wakatipu, this road connecting Queenstown and Glenorchy is acclaimed as “one of the most beautiful roads in the world.” It is called the Road to Paradise.
D6 evening check-in at Queenstown QT Hotel
Day 7
Lake Wanaka
D7: Wanaka is a quiet town. The clear water of Lake Wanaka is refracted by the sunlight, sparkling. The blue Lake Wanaka is surrounded by Mount Aspiring. Although it’s summer, snow-capped mountain tops can still be seen.
Check into Millbrook Resort on the evening of Day 7
Day 8
Arrowtown
D8: Arrowtown during the day — Strolling along the main street, Buckingham Street, lined with century-old European buildings, antique English telephone booths, 19th-century hotels, and vintage cars parked by the roadside, time seems to flow backward. From its former days as a gold mining town to its current status as a filming location for The Lord of the Rings, ARROWTOWN has become one of New Zealand’s most picturesque settlements.
D8 Evening check-in at Millbrook Resort—Reasons for recommendation: Very close to Arrowtown, lush greenery, beautiful scenery, comfortable rooms
Free outdoor hot pool where you can see the stars in the sky when you look up
A two-bedroom apartment with elegant Mediterranean-style decoration and fully equipped kitchen
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