Jen
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Cron street ▷
Rainforest Retreat
5.0/5
Pricey but you get what you pay for.
We looked at the Franz Josef Campervan Park on the way here, really small & basic but a bit closer to town.
Rainforest Retreat has free (and good!) wifi, washing machines you can use with a credit card, & hot hot untimed showers.
We were able to get a powered site that backed onto the tiny creek with forest up the back so we woke up surrounded by trees, running water & birdsong.
The attached restaurant & bar is worth a visit if like us you are ready to treat yourself to something other than camping food.
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South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Haast ▷
Lake Paringa Campsite
5.0/5
Excellent DOC Campsite right on the lake.
Clean flushing toilets, non-potable water on tap but snowmelt drinking water from the stream running into the lake.
Moderate amount of sandflies, no hassle for us.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Mount Cook ▷
White Horse Hill Campground
5.0/5
Excellent DOC Campsite, $15 pp /night, drop dunnies with non-potable tap water.
Plenty of space for either great views or privacy tucked away amongst the tree line.
Right at the start of the Hooker Valley track, which I recommend!
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South Island ▷ Wanaka Region ▷ Wanaka Township ▷
Albert Town Camping Ground
5.0/5
Lovely place to overnight just out of Wanaka.
Clean flushing toilets, bins, & plenty of space out on the grass or under the trees next to the river.
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South Island ▷ Mount Cook - MacKenzie ▷ Lake Tekapo ▷
Lakes Edge Holiday Park
4.0/5
Good place to stay to recharge, dump & shower.
Access to the sites are through a boom gate, you get given the unlock code on payment.
Flat sites in view of the lake, can pay more for a 'Lakes edge' view which just means you don't have anyone in front of you - still 100m or so from the actual water but you are uphill.
The showers are on an 8 minute timer (I really don't get this given access to water is clearly not an issue), but they're clean & well maintained.
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South Island ▷ Kaikoura Region ▷ Kaikoura ▷
The Point Campsite & Bed and Breakfast
3.5/5
Basically a sheep paddock, no facilities at all (no portaloo as someone else mentioned), no shade, but nicely grassed, across the road from a very rocky beach, 50m walk through the fence & across the paddock
to a bit of beach for swimming & a public toilet.
$25 night per vehicle, you need cash - there's apparently an online booking system but we couldn't get it to work without downloading & registering with yet another app (not really worth the hassle for 1 night!).
We arrived mid afternoon on a Saturday, fabulous weather but no food vans - the gelato van just packing up as we left (so don't rely on being able to buy anything once you're here).
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ St Arnaud ▷
Bellbird Walk
5.0/5
Excellent short walk, the entrance is a bit hard to find - go to the 2nd carpark after the visitors centre, there is a sign for another Kiwi Campsite, go past that & into the forest a bit & you will see
the sign for the walk & the info board hidden amongst the trees.
The Campsite here is also fabulous!
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ St Arnaud ▷
Kerr Bay Campsite
5.0/5
Really fabulous Campsite, between the lake & forest.
As mentioned, lots of lovely walks from here, the Bellbird & Fantail sites are best for being up close to the forest.