“Renting” a Campervan in New Zealand

We had heard about 2 months ago that it was possible to do a car rental return from the south island to the north island.  Apparently, most tourists fly into New Zealand and rent their cars in Auckland, and then drive south and fly out of Queenstown or Christchurch.

This leaves an excess of cars (and campervans) in Christchurch and Queenstown.

So, tourists or residents wanting to travel the other direction can return the campervans (or cars) for these companies and do so very cheaply.

We ended up with a campervan rental return (relocation) from a company called Maui, and this camper is FLASH. (That’s a New Zealand term for really classy/modern/nice – As I understand it, it can also mean a bit uppity, but doesn’t have to.)

It’s a 2-bed camper, but for Carrie and I, it works great because the living room space of the campervan/motorhome can just stay as a living space and the bed just folds down from above the driver and passenger seat.

We’ve really enjoyed our first day of traveling from Christchurch to Picton, but we have to get up early to catch the 3-hour ferry across the water to the north island tomorrow.

So, that will end this post for now, but suffice it to say, we’re enjoying driving the campervan, and getting to do so for about $5/day (plus whatever we spend on gas).

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