Queenstown to Christchurch via Franz Josef and Mount Cook - maui

Nine nights from Queenstown to Christchurch in a campervan, with stay days at Franz Josef and Wanaka and only seven stops in ten days.

Te Anau comes first on the edge of Fiordland, then the route returns to Queenstown before heading north, which makes the Fiordland leg an out-and-back rather than a transit.

Franz Josef follows on the West Coast, where a glacier comes down through rainforest almost to sea level, which happens in very few places on earth, and which gets the first of the stay days for the walks and the helicopter landings. Wanaka comes next over the Haast Pass, the quietest of the alpine crossings and the most heavily forested, and takes the second stay day. Mount Cook follows, with the Hooker Valley track below the highest peak in the country, then Lake Tekapo and its dark sky reserve before Christchurch.

The camper and the day-by-day plan come from maui, and the hire is priced live per vehicle rather than per person; campsites, fuel, ferries, park fees and activities are all extra, with a nil-excess insurance pack available at booking. Ten days across seven stops is a relaxed schedule, and the two stay days are where the value is: glacier trips and the Wanaka walks are both weather dependent and a single night leaves no second chance at either. The Haast Pass is sealed but slow in a long vehicle. This is a one-way hire, so a relocation fee is worth checking at booking. The Hooker Valley track is the best short walk in New Zealand and better done early in the day.