Arriving in mid November, leaving at the end of January. Will I be able to buy a camper van and will I be able to sell it when I leave?
Hi as part of a round-the-world trip I'm planning to visit New Zealand for 2 months from mid November to end January with my partner. We would ideally want a camper van with a kitchen and possibly a shower as well as somewhere to sleep. We're loathed to pay the high prices to hire, but are concerned that there will be lots of other people having the same thoughts as us and that there will be no vans available when we arrive and less people wanting to buy all our camper vans when we leave mid January!
Is it true that people arrive in Auckland and leave from Christchurch. Would we be better off arriving in Christchurch and leaving form Auckland. Or even doing a round trip arriving and departing from Auckland?
I'm looking for advice as to whether November a good time to buy and is January a good time to sell? If we really couldn't find anything, would it be easy to walk in and hire something, or would we really need to book? Am I just worrying unnecessarily?
Any advice greatly received? Thanks
Reply to this Hi Nicki,
Welcome to TravelBlog.
From a seasonal point of view I would say those months should be ok - November is ahead of the holiday rush, and with February being the most consistent month weather-wise, people will still be in holiday mode when you leave mid January.
To give you an idea of what is around at the moment;
Trademe.co.nz
Car fairs are also an option. I'm only familiar with the
Auckland Car Fair though.
Best of luck, you'll love NZ :-)
Reply to this We bought a van in Christchurch and sold it in Auckland. It worked out amazingly because yes, everyone buys in Auckland and sells in Christchurch. The type of van you want could be a problem though! Most backpackers just want cheap and cheerful - no shower, no kitchen. We bought for 1500NZ$ and sold for 2600NZ$ so it was fab! They have specific markets for backpackers and their vehicles and ALL guesthouses and B&B's have noticeboards packed full of vans for sale.
Renting try www.wicked.co.nz or www.spaceships.co.nz
Go to a DOC office (there's one in Christchurch Centre) and get info on campsites. They're FREE and have a useful booklet - one for each island - with details and maps. They all have toilets, some have cooking areas, barbecues and even woodpiles for fires. Most of them work on an "honesty box" system so if you're naughty (like us) you can stay for free. Showers are easy to come by. Some petrol stations and tourist information offices have them for 1NZ$ but easiest is leisure centres as they let you just use the showers for 1NZ$ as well. We bought a double gas stove and LPG bottle brand new and cheap from a K-Mart in Christchurch. The gas cost us about 5NZ$ and lasted approximately three weeks.
Without blowing my trumpet you can check out my travelblog for info on what we did/where we went. It has up to date prices on it as well.
Good luck!
Reply to this I have bought and sold vans before but now it looks harder to sell my old camper.
So I came over to Auckland and trying out the Carfair at Ellerslie Racecourse on this Sunday.
My van is Toyota Hiace 1992 Diesel High Roof campervan. http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=313370489
I am also writing a guidebook for travelers coming to New Zealand: http://www.nzvancamping.com/
As Stephen commented I recommend buying from Christchurch and Selling in Auckland as some strange reason travel agents seem to sell tickets to Auckland first and then they fly off from Christchurch.
When buying get the vehicle tested by simply taking it to one of the testing stations and get a WOF check done for about $40 or a comprehensive pre-purchase test for about $120. saves you buying a lemon when you want an orange😊
Reply to this The reason most people arrive in Auckland and depart from Christchurch is because Auckland has the main international airport and so this is where the majority of International flights arrive. Generally people then fly out of the smaller Christchurch airport for shorter flights to Australia. We had a round the world ticket which took us from Santiago (Chile) to Auckland and we then had a connecting internal flight to Christchurch that only cost an extra £10 in taxes. As we made around 1100NZ$ profit on buying/selling our van the opposite way to most travellers it's definately well worth it!!
Reply to this If it is any help to anyone, I have an Isuz elf 1992 campervan, with hot and cold shower, kitchen and all else. Had it fr 3 years, had reconditioned the engine last year. It is VERY reliable camper to tour any country(not 4x4). We are moving overseas for a few years, the main reason for sale. It's priced at 36k but we are leaving on the 14 August 2011, so we want just NZ$26K for a very quick sale if possible. If anyone interested they can inspect in Dunedin although we are flying from Christchurch. You can have it delivered in Chch as well. Let me know what you want and you are very welcome to put it under any test and it will pass.
If you don't buy it now and decides later you want it, you still can contact me, but you will have to pick it up in Dunedin and with the true price, dot the discounted one. We will leave it parked with friends.until we return and will be happy to use it again.
This is a chance for a keen camper, and I guarantee you won't go wrong with this one. Good luck anyway and happy travelling.
Salah
Reply to this If it's any help to anyone, I have an Isuzu1992 Campervan worth 36K but will sell it for 26K before 13 August. We are moving over seas for a few years and the van will sit doing nothing until we return, so we need to sell it quickly. We had it for 3 years and we reconditioned the engine just 20000km ago. It has all yuou need from kitchen, fridge, hot and cold shower, toilet, sleeps easy five adults and absolutely guaranteed happy travelling. We are leaving from Christchurch airport on the 13th August 2011 and you can inspect in Dunedin now but delivery will be in Christchurch.
This price for urgent sale ony, so if you decide later you want it, you still can buy it but you have to pick it up from Dunedin where it will parked with friends until our return. you can find it on trademe by the way.
This is a very good chance to have a solid campervan for a bargain price. In any case, we wish you good luck and happy travelling where ever you go.
Salah
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