Silly American
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North Island ▷ Taranaki ▷ Mokau ▷
Tongaporutu
4.0/5
Good little spot to ring in the new year.
A few locals going crazy with fireworks but there’s not much out here but a strip of a few houses. Plenty of parking. I made the mistake of parking under a Manuka tree and found flower droppings all over my van for days after. No potable water, the bathroom is about 100 meters away, and no trash bins. At the turnoff from the main road there’s a dumpster for recycling and one for trash, but to use the trash one you have to insert four $1 coins. That’s probably why the little trash can in the bathroom was overflowing in fast food wrappers. Great walk out to the three sisters at low tide. Some neighborhood kids went hunting for clams in the mud at low tide and came back with a huge bin, maybe if you know something about that this spot could benefit you
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North Island ▷ Waikato ▷ Tuakau ▷
Te Kauwhata Domain
5.0/5
Great last campground of the trip as there was potable water and a dump site right there.
Large, clean bathrooms and an outside sink for washing dishes. It was pretty packed my night so it was evident where to park, but it’s pretty much up against the side of the parking lot with the stands for the rugby pitch behind you. A few tents set up on the opposite end of the campers. Some other reviews talk about power hook-ups, they might be referencing running an electric cord to the electrical boxes at the base of the light poles, but I wouldn’t be comfortable doing that. $5 donation asked for and was a perfect place to dump all my New Zealand coins at the end of the trip.
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North Island ▷ Taranaki ▷ Mt Taranaki ▷
Stratford Plateau Carparks
5.0/5
Tried to camp at a spot listed on the app in town, but was chased off by a cop and told to park up here.
Actually grateful he did, this was a true favorite. Located at the end of the road, i couldn’t appreciate the view because it was pitch black when I arrived but woke up to a great sight of the mountain covered in snow in the summer. The wind was blowing incredibly hard, I parked one way but the gusts were so bad I thought I’d tip the van over so I moved 90 degrees to face it head on and solved the issue. Great bathrooms, no potable water but the sink water was warm for some reason (I won’t argue, it felt great after a chilly night). It was quiet my night, no hooligans like the other reviews indicate, but it’s remote so I could see the local kids terrorizing this lot.
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North Island ▷ Taranaki ▷ Inglewood ▷
Everett Park Carparks
5.0/5
11 stars out of 10 best spot of the whole trip.
Right on the river and afforded a great swim in the ice cold water. By closing at 8:30 meant nobody could come bother us in the night, and we were the only van there. The rangers came down to tell us they were closing the gate and I asked when they’d open up in the morning (the sign said 7:30) and he replied that the lady that opens does it at the beginning of her shift, so probably 5:30 instead of 7:30. Great spot with plenty of space. The grass was super long at the lot down near the river so I parked on the gravel, but if it was cut it could probably hold 20 and another 10 or so up the hill in the other lot. Dirty bathrooms but it was fairly trafficked during the day by swimmers and people taking their dogs to run around. Honestly the only place the old people are making more noise than the youngsters. Greatest spot I’ve ever camped at in the word
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North Island ▷ Taupo Region ▷ Turangi ▷
Hinemaiaia Reserve Carparks
5.0/5
Some people parked right off the paved road at the beginning of the gravel road and weren’t bothered, but I don’t think that’s in the true spirit of freedom camping and definitely doesn’t look great on
van campers as a whole. I went in about 500 meters and took the first campsite on the left. This pulloff was T shaped and fit about four vans. Other reviews talked about going further for a nice river view and more space but my little spot was enough for an enjoyable evening and some French neighbors cooking delicious smelling supper. 10/10 would camp there again
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North Island ▷ Rotorua Region ▷ Rotorua ▷
Government Gardens Thermal Area
4.5/5
If you’re lucky enough to get a spot here it’s convenient to everything and gets patrolled often so you can feel safe.
If you’re unlucky like myself and don’t get a spot, don’t worry: drive north up to the peninsula of the park and the cops let you park in the parking lot associated with the bathrooms and boat ramp. A little loud because of the local hooligans playing music late but a nice little parking lot on the water with bathrooms. No potable water was available as of Dec 2019
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North Island ▷ Coromandel ▷ Whangamata ▷
Onemana Beach Reserves
5.0/5
Great spot in the grass to the right of the parking lot.
When I was there (dec 2019) there was still construction going on of the new bathrooms right next to the freedom camping area. This cut into the amount of space allocated (cut it down to about four vans) but all four spots filled up that night. Beach shower and bathrooms up the hill were still operational and it’ll be super nice and convenient when the new bathrooms open up. 10/10 would camp there again