Spelelis
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South Island ▷ Fiordland ▷ Manapouri ▷
Monowai Campsite
3.0/5
It's 14km off the main road & 8 of that is gravel.
Positioned right above the beautiful lake, there's lot's of space for smaller vans/cars, but not after a heavy rain (very soft ground). I'd like to point out that there's LOADS of mice, mosquitoes & sandflies. When sandflies go to sleep, mosquitoes wake up so there's not a single minute of peace if you're not well prepared (we had mozzie sticks & spray repellent but it didn't help for more than a few minutes). We also got a few mice in the van, even on the bed. Oh and the toilet... Smelly, buzzy, one of the absolute worst we've come across. But the scenery is fantastic, there's a few walks near-by and the beech forest makes you feel like you're in a fairytail (if you keep on moving so the flies don't catch you - haha).
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North Island ▷ Coromandel ▷ Coromandel Town ▷
Little Bay Recreational Reserve
5.0/5
Very nice place in the heart of Coromandel Peninsula.
The long-drop non-smelly toilet is especially amusing - it's painted by a professional painter and it's asking people to "take 3 for the sea" - basically pleading people to collect 3 trashes from the beach and put it in the bin to keep NZ beaches beautiful. There is a bin and not much more. Some houses close-by but after all it's a secluded place with a sandy beach. It's one of my favourite places I've camped at and it's well worth the cca. 10km drive on gravel road (it's well maintained so no worries there). I would definitely recommend!