Making miles
Of we go again, continuing our RV roadtrip in New Zealand with kids. Wanaka to Greymouth is quite a drive, with beautiful scenery: the Fox and Franz Josef gletsjer. We stop at the Franz Josef gletsjer for lunch and a stroll around town. To be honest the drive is a little too long, especially with young kids, although the boys are behaving very well. When we finally arrive in Greymouth the boys can’t wait to play in the campgrounds playground. As the campground is next to the beach we pay a visit to the beach as well. The beach is covered in timber, the kids enjoy themselves building huts. We end this long day with a tasteful bbq dinner.
We leave for Abel Tasman National Park the next morning. Unfortunately all campgrounds are fully booked. Luckily we find one in Mapua, close to Nelson. Not the blue bay we expected, but an intimate campground next to the beach with a pool and a wonderful restaurant. We really like this place and decide to stay 2 nights instead of 1. We enjoy our dinner at the restaurant, with an amazing pavlova as dessert. Although the next day starts a little cloudy, the temperature is perfect. The kids have a swim and I do the laundry (someone has to do it ;). In the afternoon I have a well deserved glass of wine at the terrace.
Back to the Northern Island
We have the ferry back to Wellington tonight. We skip the plan to visit Nelson today because of the really good weather. Is so hot we rather spend the day at the beach. Marcel plays in the sea with the kids, while I enjoy a good book in the sun. Unfortunately Marcel has forgotten to use sunscreen, resulting in a badly burned back. We leave for Picton in the afternoon, again driving the Queen Charlotte Drive and again loving the scenery over the Sounds. This view is a stunning last view of the Southern Island. We definitely have to come back here some day.
On our way back to the Northern Island, on the ferry, the kids enjoy themselves with greasepaint while we enjoy the beautiful sunset. We have booked the Top 10 campground in Wellington in advance as we will be arriving late evenings. When we arrive at the campsite it is raining again, welcome back to the Northern Island ;). As we are on our way back I feel a little sad knowing this amazing trip in New Zealand with kids comes almost to an end.
Glowworms
I am meeting my old neighbor today: Jeen. He lived next to me when I was a little girl. He moved to Wellington and we kept in touch. We meet in a coffee bar, really good to talk to him again after so many years! After this little speed date we continue our drive to Wanganui. Marcel, Thije and Hidde go for a refreshing swim when we arrive. The campsites aren’t as busy anymore, unfortunately the weather is less good as well.
We visit Waitomo Caves the next day to see the glowworms. When we arrive at the caves all the tours are fully booked. Someone tells us the local tourism board might now if there are any other tours available. We are lucky! They have availability at 3.30PM. The visit to the caves feels very “commercial” there are tiles on the floor, stairs with guardrails and lights everywhere. Nevertheless we came for the glowworms and they were awesome. It feels like some kind of theme park attraction: thousands little lights, stunning!
It’s time to clean up the RV in the afternoon. The kids go swimming and I start cleaning and packing. I thought it would take me 2 hours max, no way…. 3 hours later I am still not done. I give myself a break to have dinner in a cosy restaurant close to the campground. After dinner we finish the cleaning and packing together. I do the last laundry and hang it to dry before I go to bed. When I finally lay in bed in starts to rain after 30 mins… hmm might a good idea to put the laundry in the dryer the next morning.
Now our holiday in New Zealand with kids, almost comes to an end…
Tips & Tricks New Zealand with kids
Book your campsite at Abel Tasman National Park months in advance
Despite the commercial set up visiting the glowworms at Waitomo Caves is very much fun
Start cleaning and packing up the RV in time 😉
New Zealand with kids: campsite BBQ
This guest blog is written by Lonneke, she is living in the Netherlands with her husband Marcel and two sons Thije and Hidde . Lonneke tells us about the amazing trip she made with her family to New Zealand when the boys were 2,5 and 4 years old.
