Pros and cons of driving a motor-home in New Zealand

Thinking of hitting the road for an adventure? You should try it in a motor-home. Driving a motor-home enables you to indulge yourselves in mother nature through freedom camping and eliminates the need to do your business in the bushes where the mosquitoes hide. So what does one need to know or require to attain the van life experience in kiwi land or down under? Well here's 6 things that might help you:

1. A Drivers license in English 
• In New Zealand and Australia, a heavy vehicle license is NOT REQUIRED to drive a motor-home in these two countries.
• Automatic or Manual does not matter. I am sure most rental companies have automatic transmission motor-homes. (PS: My rental motor-home is an automatic)
• Drivers license not in English how? Get an official translation or get an international license.
2. A Travel insurance (obviously)
• Get it. You will be better protected with one then without. Never underestimate the power of travel insurance.
3. Where can I rent a motor-home in New Zealand?
• Maui, Apollo, Britz, Juicy, Star RV these are the few common rental companies I came across. We rented ours from Maui.
4. Where are the campsites? What are the types of campsites?

• Download the campermate or Maui app it shows all campsites in New Zealand and will be a great help during your planning phase.
• Two types of campsites. One is a holiday park, requires you to book and pay the other is absolutely free. Holiday parks  have facilities such as communal showers/toilet, laundry, kitchen, games room, out door playground, out door BBQ grill, thermal pool (some holiday parks), WIFI (only 100 MB) and other facilities or services which I did not explore. Campsites that are free are mostly found in a nature reserve area. I assumed you get the point.
• For a holiday park, you have the option to book a power or non-power site if you are coming by motor-home. I suggest trying Top10's holiday parks when planning to stay close to tourist hotspot area in New Zealand. If not you can always book a room.
5. Insect repellent
• You will be surprised that there are tons of sand flies in New Zealand's nature reserves and I went during the winter season. Sand flies are tough and no winter is too cold for them.
6. Memories, keepsakes etc etc
• Along with your passport (I am stating the obvious) pack your cameras, iPhones, Samsungs, GoPros, a travel journal. Anything that helps you to document your adventure. Get a travel sim card which can be purchase at the airport upon landing cause you might wanna Instagram!!!! Vodafone travel sim is currently the cheapest in New Zealand with two choices, $29 for 500 MB or $49 for 3 GB. Downside is top up can only be done via phone using your credit card. But if you rent from maui, their motor-homes include a GPS unit which have 1 GB free WIFI for you to surge on Instagraming.

Being born and raised on a island nation, there is no need for a motor-home and moreover no space to accommodate one. So being able to drive one with only a drivers license (car) is an experience I will never forget. That being said, there are pros and cons when driving a motor-home.

Pros:

• Camping is a whole lot convenient. Motor-homes are installed with a gas stove, kitchen sink, , bar size fridge, heater and for some a toilet. Along with that you get to sleep on a bed.
• Costs for a power site ranges from NZD $50-$80? most I had paid was NZD $65 compare that to the price for a room/cabin for the night at a motel. You get the point.
• Ease of parking at campsites when compared to a caravan. You know caravan? I leave it you to google the difference between a caravan and a motor-home.
• No need to unpack or pack EVERY TIME! Staying at a motel/hostel requires the unpacking and packing of bags. Unpack to get a set of fresh clothes/amenities and packing before getting into your car and hitting the road. But if you drive a motor-home, just unpack on the first day and pack up on the second last day of your trip before returning the vehicle. I think this is by far the best advantage a motor-home can offer.  

Cons:

• Driving. Yes driving a motor-home can be a hassle. With a long wheel base makes turning wide and the heavy weight makes it difficult on the mountainous routes of New Zealand. Lastly, unpaved roads. New Zealand have plenty of them and most campers are not all wheel drive so if your motor-home gets stuck good luck trying to get help. PS: if you are travelling on unpaved roads most likely you are headed for a farm-stay or nature reserve YOUR PHONES WILL NOT HAVE SERVICE in areas far from civilisation so really good luck.
• Parking! Yes Parking can really be frustrating while driving a motor-home. Imagine yourself driving a motor-home looking for a space to park in town just so you can visit a tourist hotspot or to stock up on food at countdown or new world. You have to find not 1 parking lot but 2 or 3 depending on the size of the motor-home you rent. 

  

  You see! Takes 2 to fit this big guy..

• Cost of rental is of course significantly higher than compared to that of a car. I paid $1,850 NZD and it only sleeps 2 + 1 child. The biggest rental motor-home that I come across can only cater to a maximum of 6 adults. Bigger motor-home = higher the rental = Cons significantly increase. PS: You can get a quote online from maui/jucy website for both motor-home or car rental. 
• Clearing your own shit!!!!! No you did not read wrong. As like most motor-homes and caravans they are self-contained vehicles. Which means emptying both the shit container and waste water tank every 1-2 days at a dump station which most holiday parks have. To top it off, you also have to regularly check and top up the fresh water tank and swapping the LPG gas tank when its running low which can be done at any petrol station that have counters manned by HUMANS. (Not those rural petrol station that is only governed by a machine.) 
• 12 volt batteries. The motor-home comes with TWO 12 volt batteries, one to start the engine the other to power the living lights. The one that powers the living lights only lasts 1 day and requires charging that means plugging it in at a power site. (Though the 2nd battery will get charged as you drive but it is not sufficient.)
• Space. Some may find it cramp living in a motor-home especially the toilet. It is a price to pay for the sake of having all these conveniences on board. Here are some interior shots of my rental motor-home.

Front of the motor-home

Rear, those couch can be transformed into a queen size bed

Shower/Toilet 

Shower/Toilet may be cramp for some people.

• Prohibit Routes*. Given the shear size of most motor-homes, there are some routes that prohibits motor-homes from travelling due to its near vertical roads or narrow lanes. One route that I was made known of is Crown Range Road as such to get from Wanaka to Queenstown, we had to go via Cromwell which is a 3 hour drive total. This is a critical consideration you have to factor into your road trip route planning if you have decided to rent a motor-home.

So if you are planning your route, be sure to avoid unfriendly motor-home roads 

In the picture above is our route for the southern island of New Zealand. Places that we went are:

1. Christchurch
2. Arthur's Pass
3. Greymouth
4. Fox Glacier
5. Wanaka
6. Queenstown
7. Milford Sound
8. Invercagill
9. Curio Bay
10. Nugget Point
11. Dunedin
12. Lake Tekapo/Mt John Observatory
13. Kaikoura
14. Hammer Springs
15. Christchurch and back home

• Diesel Tax*. Motor-homes are powered with a diesel engine, and countries like Australia and New Zealand diesel is taxed unless you are a Farmer. Example maui's Road User Recovery Fee for every 100 km NZD $6.22 or $6.62 (depending on the model of your motor-home). So if your road trip covers more than 100 km  select the Express Return Pack which is an additional NZD $300 if memory serves me correct but I managed to get it $50 cheaper thanks to a kind sales representative. Good going Maui!

Well these are the Pros and Cons that I could remember for now and if you are willing to put up with the disadvantages of a motor-home, then I highly encourage anyone who are keen to go on a road trip in New Zealand to do so with a motor-home. Lastly and importantly, bring your camera and take pictures. Keep those moments in a photograph and time will forever frozen still. Who knows you might get a great shot! 

To devil's punch

Devil's punch at Arthur's pass

Unexpected places like a ceiling may sometimes give you a great shot.

"Pebble Beach" at Greymouth

Need a new wallpaper? Just look down.

Great pictures are where you least expect it to be. Fox Glacier

Nugget Point

Interior of Dunedin Railway Station

Dunedin Railway Exterior 

The Galaxy Far Far away at Mt John Observatory

Star trial at Hammer Springs

I implore each and everyone of you travel addicts to pick up photography. A picture speaks of a thousand words, so start taking photos with whatever camera you have. Remember "the best camera is the one that is with you" - Chase Jarvis. So what are you waiting for? Get up, get out, and explore New Zealand!!!!