Julia Clark
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North Island ▷ Northland ▷ Tutukaka ▷
Dive Tutukaka
4.5/5
The most organised dive centre I have ever encountered.
Three boats full of people, organised with military precision. Good quality hire kit and knowledgable and helpful staff. 260 dollars each for a full day with 2 dives. It's expensive but holiday diving always is especially when you are hiring full kit. The ten dollar lunch was fine, a nice sandwich, two pieces of fruit and a chocolate bar. Free tea coffee hot chocolate and soup. The only downside which surprised me for such a top quality dive centre was no showers, you come back from two wetsuit dives and you need somewhere to shower and wash your hair. I have never encountered this previously. They said there was a hot shower on the boat but there wasn't.
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North Island ▷ Coromandel ▷ Thames ▷
Danby Field
4.5/5
It's brilliant, a free place to park up overnight in this lovely friendly town.
It is just a car park with no facilities, the bays where you are permitted to overnight are marked between two arrows. You must be self contained, leave nothing, and vacate by 9am. There is a block of public loos about 50m along the road (near the shopping centre and kids playground) . Most if them are locked at night but the disabled one is marked 24 hours and was open. This is a great initiative and we had a brilliant curry in the Cumin Indian restaurant. I hope that local businesses benefit from the motorhoming guests.
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North Island ▷ Ruapehu ▷ Tongariro / National Park Village ▷
Discovery Lodge Campground
4.5/5
This site was recommended by a chap in the DOC info centre because it does an earlier shuttle to the start of the Tongariro Crossing than anyone else.
They go at 05:30 and 06:00 whilst everyone else does their first shuttle at 07:00, so you get to be ahead of the crowds. The shuttle is 35 dollars each and they do returns at every hour at 12:30 through to 4:30. This service is brilliant and they check you off on a list so they know they have got everyone back safely.
The campsite itself is good, showers etc all fine if a little tired, and the chap that runs it is really pleasant and helpful. It also has a restaurant. We paid 36 dollars for two adults in a motorhome with electric hook up. Good value, really nice place and perfect if you are doing the alpine crossing (which most people seem to be there for). But 11 out of 10 for the lovely chap that runs it.
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North Island ▷ Wellington Region ▷ Wellington ▷
Wellington Waterfront Motorhome Park
4.0/5
It's just a car park for motorhomes with toilets and showers.
It has fresh water but no grey water or toilet dump. Seems expensive at 50 dollars a night but the location is perfect for city centre attractions. Obviously there is traffic noise but we slept fine until the morning rush hour. It does seem a little odd shuffling over to the shower when people are in their office suits on the way to work but it is a great way to do a bit of city stuff. Check in at 10 am and you get to park there all day until 10 the next morning. Great for Te Papa museum. You must go and see the Gallipoli exhibition.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Picton / Marlborough Sounds ▷
Picton Campervan Park
5.0/5
Literally 2 minutes from the ferry.
Smallish pitches but facilities fine, the loos and showers were spotless.
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South Island ▷ Marlborough ▷ Havelock ▷
Smiths Farm Holiday Park
4.5/5
Brilliant small site, very friendly helpful owners.
Pitches are a decent size and all level. Lovely walk up to the waterfall with glow worms on the way back. Bonus! We were also given food to feed the sheep. We don't have kids with us but brilliant for kids with a swing and a trampoline too. The lady that runs it gave us fresh home baking on arrival and helped us book kayaking and bike rental with a local company. When it's busy there was a queue for the showers as there are only three, but lovely site and a refreshing change from the big expensive chains. We booked for one night but stayed two. Wifi is $5 but works great. We paid $36 for two adults on a powered pitch with motorhome.
Thank you so much Julia. It's great that you took the time to experience all that the farm has to offer....we are always looking for new ideas too so that we can keep our guests entertained and happy. We hope that the rest of your trip went well and look forward to seeing you maybe sometime in the future. Safe travels and Kind Regards, Barbara and Chris
Barbara and Chris Faulls
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South Island ▷ Nelson Region ▷ Abel Tasman ▷
Abel Tasman Marahau Beach Camp
4.5/5
This is a brilliant little campsite right next to where you get your water taxis and kayak trips into Abel Tasman and right next to a stunning beach.
$34 a night for two of us with a motorhome and electric hook up. Decent sized pitches. The showers are $1 for six minutes which is plenty even for me to wash and put conditioner on my hair. Don't mind paying for the shower as the site is cheaper than many. Only downside was the laundry with only two washing machines and it was insufficient on the busy weekend we were there. But there is a good washing line.
The information centre where you check in and book the kayaks and water taxis has a small shop for essentials, and some nice t shirts. The cafe attached to it "Hooked" is brilliant, doing breakfasts, lunches, happy hour and lovely dinner in the evening. We dined there twice. In summary , decent camp site in brilliant location. We booked an extra night on top of the two we booked on arrival as it was such a lovely place.