CITY: Picton

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at the Piwaka Lodge and Backpackers. At first, I was a little underwhelmed by the facilities, but I ended up loving this little spot because of the hospitality by it’s owner, Nicci. When I was cold at night, she provided extra blankets and a hot water bottle (this my favorite invention btw- not sure why we don’t have these in California). She also provided breakfast and dinner each night (FOR FREE). It was also one of the more deluxe free hostel breakfasts I have had, complete with toast, cereal, and a delicious homemade porridge with fruit in it. Delicious! Nicci was also very helpful in planning my time in Picton. At her recommendation I did a day trip to an island sanctuary and did a hike through part of the Queen Charlotte track. Overall, I would highly recommend staying her.

Where to Eat:

Given Nicci provided breakfast and dinner, and I packed a lunch for my hike, no recommendations for where to eat here.

What to Do:

Like a lot of New Zealand, the best things to do here involve hiking or boats. The afternoon I arrived I did a 2 hour hike to the Snout. It was a great way to stretch my legs after the 4 hour ferry from Wellington.

The best thing to do here is the Queen Charlotte Trail through the Marlborough Sounds. Given I did not have my backpacking gear or 5 days to spare, I obviously couldn’t complete the whole track. However, Nicci recommended a day trip that allowed me to do about 15km of the trek, which was perfect! This was definitely one of the highlights of my time in New Zealand. The views were unbelievable and there weren’t too many people around. It was peaceful to meander through the Marlborough Sounds and I met three Irish women who I became friends with (and met up with twice more in the South Island).

Overall Thoughts:

Picton was such a fun stop for me! I ran into a girl I met at the hostel I stayed at in Auckland and we grabbed a drink. I met the three Irish ladies who I couldn’t wait to hang out with again. The day hike was magical. I loved my hostel and the cute town of Picton. Also, because the Kiwi Experience doesn’t stop here for a night it provided a break from the experience which was nice. Definitely recommend a stop here to spend time in the Marlborough Sounds!

CITY: Kaiteriteri (Abel Tasman)

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at the Kaiteri Lodge and it was not the worst, but not the best. You have to pay for wifi and you have to put a deposit down for silverware (which you get back when you check out). It just didn’t give the place warm, fuzzy vibes. However, there was a restaurant/bar and a smoothie food truck in the same lot so access to food was great. Kaiteriteri is small so there aren’t too many options for accommodation. As such, this isn’t a bad choice.

Where to Eat:

My favorite meal here was my smoothie bowl from The Mermaid’s Beach House (next to the hostel). So yummy and nice to have something healthy!

I also got a burger from Gone Burgers, which was pretty delicious and fairly reasonably priced.

What to do:

The two great things to do here is hike through Abel Tasman National Park and kayak around the outskirt of the national park.

The kayaking brought us to two different islands where we saw waterfalls, sea lions, black sand beaches, and had a picnic lunch (which you need to bring, unless you pre-pay for a lunch with them). It was beautiful to get a taste of the national park.

Overall Thoughts:

This was a cool, low-key stop along the Kiwi Experience route. Very small town with a few restaurants, but I enjoyed this lazy spot. The kayaking was stunning and definitely a highlight. This is also where I met a whole new group of people on my bus, which I would become good friends with and travel the rest of New Zealand with 🙂

CITY: Westport

HOW LONG: 1 NIGHT

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at Bazil’s hostel, which was a quirky, homey hostel. We only stayed one night so we didn’t get too acquainted with the hostel, but the kitchen was well equipped and they had a nice common room with a large tv that some people used for a movie night. If for some reason you end up in Westport, don’t hesitate to book here.

Where to eat:

We were literally here for less than 18 hours so we only cooked in the hostel and did not eat out.

What to do:

Westport seemed like a bit of a random stop along the west coast so there is not necessarily a reason to stop here, other than potentially to break up the drive along the west coast (?). The one activity offered to us on the Kiwi Experience was a surf lesson. I opted out as I wanted to save surf lessons for an area with warm water (Australia, Bali, etc).

CITY: Lake Mahinapua

HOW LONG: 1 NIGHT

ACCOMMODATION:

As legend has it, the Kiwi Experience bus broke down and got stranded about 20 years ago near the Lake Mahinapua Hotel. The hotel was nice enough to take them in and now the bus stops here on every route. Once again, I think this is just another spot to break up the time down the west coast to Franz Josef glacier, but it’s a nice spot. The beach is about a 5 min walk and there is a pretty lake about a 10 min walk away. There is no wifi, but there are hot tubs! It’s a flat $55, but that included dinner, breakfast, and your room as there is no kitchen.

Where to eat:

You are treated to a yummy dinner and a lovely breakfast buffet in the morning at the hotel.

What to do:

The main activity is a fancy dress/costume party the night we stay here. The theme when I went was dressing up as something that started with the first letter of your name. As such, I went as a marathon runner (aka wore what I wear everyday while traveling haha). It was a fun night, but I would have loved for there to be more drinking games so it was more social and you got to know everyone. Instead it was just very loud music so all you could do was dance. 

The morning after I did go for a lovely run near the lake through some trails so that was great!

Also, I did not participate in this, but you could carve your own piece of jade jewelry here. 

Overall thoughts:

There is no reason to stop here unless you are on Kiwi Experience, and this definitely wasn’t my favorite stop, but I did enjoy the hot tub and walking to the lake.

CITY: Franz Josef

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTs

Accommodation:

Rainforest Retreat was one of my favorite places we stayed in New Zealand. The whole place felt like a rustic lodge. There’s a hot tub and sauna. The restaurant had fireplaces and it felt like the perfect place to cozy up for some hot chocolate or ciders. The kitchen was very functional and the wifi worked fairly well (for NZ standards). While we stayed in dorm-style rooms, they also have private rooms and bungalows as well as camping spots. If you plan on stopping in Franz Josef to see the glacier, then definitely stay here.

Where to eat:

We ate at the restaurant at the retreat as they offered an all you can eat pizza night and who can turn that down? There were some cool looking restaurants around town so have a wander and see what tickles your fancy!

What to do:

Almost everything around this town centers on the glacier. You can walk on it, take a helicopter over it, ride snowmobiles, climb it. In the interest of budgeting my money, I chose to just do a hike to the foot of the glacier for a small peek of it. I wish I had the money to do the heli tour, but alas we can’t get everything we want 🙂 Side note: It’s pretty devastating to see how much the glacier has melted in the past 100 years #climatechangeisreal

Overall thoughts:

I could have stayed here one more day. I enjoyed the hike and the lodge and the pretty valley it was located in. 

CITY: Wanaka

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTs

Accommodation:

We stayed at Base and unless you are on Kiwi Experience, I would recommend staying elsewhere. The wifi was bad, the kitchen was gross, and there are definitely better places to stay. It’s also a dry hostel. The location was close to the water though so that’s a plus.

Where to eat:

My favorite place to eat was the crepe shack, Charlie Brown Crepes, right next to the Base hostel. I went twice I liked it so much. I also had a delicious hot chocolate from them.

I had a decadent ice cream from Patagonia chocolate after hiking all morning. 

What to do:

One of the most famous spots in Wanaka is the Wanaka Tree, which is a tree that is growing out of the lake. It’s about a 15 min walk from town around the lake. The lake was a bit flooded while we were there so my friends and I agreed it didn’t look particularly cool, but normally it’s beautiful.

The highlight in Wanaka for me was the hike to Roy’s Peak. While some of my friends did it for sunrise, I am not a morning person, but they said it was amazing. I left with some other friends at around 8am to beat the afternoon sun. It took us about 2.75 hours to get to the top and about 2.25 hours to get down, including some breaks for water, rest and food. There aren’t restrooms once you leave the bottom so keep that in mind. Don’t forget snacks, water and sunscreen! This was definitely a hard hike as it’s mostly straight up to the peak and the obviously straight down to the bottom.

Another fun thing to do here is go for a ride on a boat on Lake Wanaka. I chose not to go for budget reasons, but my friends who went really enjoyed it!

Overall thoughts:

This is a beautiful, sleepy, relaxing spot in New Zealand. I love a cute town on a lake! I easily could have stayed here longer. 

CITY: Queenstown

HOW LONG: 12 NIGHTs

Accommodation: 

We stayed at Nomads in Queenstown. It is in a great location, right in the middle of town so close to all the bars and next to the lake. You can’t beat the location. The kitchen was most everything you needed, but it could get crowded at peak cooking times. The “free breakfast” consisted of toast and jam so I wouldn’t rely on that. The wifi is quite unreliable and kicks you off constantly. Plenty of showers and bathrooms, which is good as it’s a decently sized hostel, but it wasn’t always super clean. Rooms didn’t have lockers so make sure to have a lock for your bag itself. I would recommend staying at one of the other cool hostels in town (and there are many), however, if you are on a tight budget, this hostel will do the trick. 

Where to eat:

Queenstown has so many fun spots to try. A few highlights were:

Fergberger– If you are traveling in New Zealand and haven’t heard of Fergberger then you must not have spoken to one other traveler. There is always a line out the door and once you have a burger, you understand why. My advice: don’t be afraid to go a couple of times, whether you take it to go and sit by the water at sunset or if you go late at night after a night out and try a few different burgers (they are all good). I didn’t love the fries, but that might just be personal preference as I like shoestring fries. 

Ferbakery– This is right next to the famed Fergburger and has delicious sandwiches and ice cream!

Cookietime– What a dream for me: mixing cookie dough and ice cream! I went a few times to try different menu items and ultimately tried the cookie dough milkshake, chocolate chip cookies and the double chocolate vanilla milkshake. My favorite was definitely the cookie dough milkshake but they were all delicious!

World Bar– This is a great bar for bar hopping in the evening, but I also really, really liked the burger and fries I got here!

The Boat Shed– While biking around the lake we stopped here for a quick snack. It’s a really quaint spot and cutely decorated. 

Vudu Cafe & Larder– This is the cutest spot for some delicious, healthy, inventive meals. I went twice!

Devil Burger– Another great burger stop and as a bonus the line is shorter than at Fergburger. 

The Bathhouse– This is a cute little spot for some pastries and a coffee in the morning. Grab a spot outside and just enjoy the view of the lake. I had a great banana bread and hot chocolate here.

Little Blackwood– This is a slightly nicer bar right on the water. A bit on the smaller size, but it had delicious drinks.

What to do:

MM OH MY there is a lot to do in Queenstown so it really comes down to the time you have, the $$$ you can blow, and what you enjoy doing.

For the hikers, there is Queenstown hill and Ben Lomond. There are plenty of other hikes if you have a car and get yourself out of Queenstown itself. 

You can take a day trip to Milford Sound.

For the adrenalie junkies, there are no shortage of options for bungy jumping, catapolts, swings, and skydiving. You can also canyon down a river and speed along a river in a speedboat. You can mountain bike and race around the lake in a tiny shark-like contraption. 

You can enjoy a leaisurely walk through the gardens or the path around the lake. You can take a cruise through the lake or enjoy a glass of wine at one the many bars right on the water.

For the partiers, you better believe every night feels like a Saturday night here and the bars are happening. Every 20 feet there is a cool bar to check out that probably has a happy hour going on, including an ice bar.

If you are here during the winter, then ski at one of the 5 ski resorts nearby. 

It is very easy to fill your time with activities and empty your pcokets while in Queenstown. ENJOY!

Overall thoughts:

Queenstown was by far my favorite place in New Zealand. I could spend a month here; in fact, I could spend a year here working on a working holiday visa.

Please allot appropriate time here in Queenstown on your trip to the South Island. It is such a fun spot to hang for a few days.