Top 10 must do experiences to have in New Zealand

By Gemma Tedaldi | Published: 28th October 2018 | Updated: 1st November 2024

After spending a month travelling the length and breadth of New Zealand I thought it wise that I put together a list of the top 10 things you simply have to do when visiting. There is so much to offer my list barely scratches the surface, but hopefully, it can give you an idea of what incredible things there are to do in this adventure-filled country! So here are my top 10 must do experiences to have in New Zealand;

1 – Hire a Campervan

There is only one way to see all the amazing things New Zealand has to offer and that is by campervan. Whether you hire one or buy one, it will be the best idea for visiting every nook and cranny of the country that you can! There are so many brilliant campsites throughout the islands you will never be lost of finding somewhere to stay. We even stayed in a couple that had heated swimming pools and saunas!

2 – Visit both the North and South Islands

If you do go to New Zealand make sure you get to both the North and the South Islands. There is a stark contrast from the warm hot spring beaches of the north to the cold mountainous glaciers of the south! This is one of the many reasons people love to live and visit New Zealand, the changes in scenery are incredible and I honestly couldn’t tell you which island I prefer over the other.

3 – Get off the beaten track

Explore the pathways and roads that lead you to unknown places, walk the hikes that take you to amazing vantage points and drive the routes that the other campervans don’t, because believe me it will make your experience of New Zealand 10 times better if you step away from some of the tourist areas and explore the country for yourself. That being said a lot of the tourist attractions can be quite interesting so don’t discount them all entirely!

4 – Explore the geothermal areas of the North Island

Rotorua, Taupo and the surrounding areas are the perfect places to visit a geothermal park or two. Waiotapu Thermal Wonderland and the Waimangu Volcanic Valley are both astounding places to visit with bubbling pools swirling in every colour hue you could think of alongside spouting geysers and steaming cracks in the ground.

After visiting a thermal park, why not hop in a thermal pool yourself? There are mud pools, hot springs and thermal pools galore to soak in! The Polynesian Spa on Lake Rotorua is a great stop to sooth those aching feet. Just be aware of the eggy smell that comes with thermal activity, you will definitely smell Rotorua before you see it!

5 – Adrenaline pumping activities

High on the lists of peoples, top 10 must do experiences to have in New Zealand is an adrenaline-fueled activity! New Zealand is known as the place to go for adrenaline pumping activities, be it skydiving, bungee jumping, white water rafting, you name it I bet you that can do it!

Taupo is the centre for all things adrenaline for the North Island, with Queenstown the centre for the South Island. We did attempt a skydive in Queenstown that unfortunately got called off due to snow, so we headed up the cable car overlooking the town and tobogganed back down to a lovely Ferg Burger, (you are going to want one of them if you go to Queenstown trust me!). Taupo was bungee time for us! Needless to say it was terrifying yet exhilarating all at the same time, especially with the local rugby team cheering us on!

Planning your own trip to New Zealand? Make sure you check out our Travelling Tedaldi Amazon Store Travel Guides for all your guidebooks and maps. (We’ve done the hard work for you and linked all the things we used to plan our trip!)

6 – Visit the Moeraki boulders at sunrise 

This is just one of the beautiful places we visited during our trip but the added bonus of getting up before sunrise to see places means fewer people! Koekohe Beach where the boulders are is situated is just north of Dunedin in the South Island so we stopped there on our way to spend a couple of days in Dunedin. Believe me, being there experiencing the sunrise over the coast and boulders made it even more incredible.

7 – Taste all the local wine and honey

Now New Zealand is fairly well known for there wine and honey so it would be missing a trick if you didn’t try at least a few of them! Malborough, in the very north of the South Island, is the best place to visit a number of wonderful vineyards who also have there own honey. We hired bicycles for the day and cycled between each one on the trail, a must do if you actually want to try the wine, which believe me you will!

8 – Visit the northernmost tip of New Zealand

Cape Reinga, where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean in a mass of swirling blue waters and where Maori spirits begin there final journey from the ancient pohutukawa tree. The walk to the lighthouse and signposts are beautiful enough but nothing beats the feeling of being on the very tip of New Zealand with nothing north until you hit Russia! You can also get there via Ninety Mile Beach which is awesome in itself.

9 – Surf the Te Paki giant sand dunes

Yes, you heard that right, surf giant sand dunes! Quite possibly my favourite of the top 10 must do experiences to have in New Zealand, are these sand dunes! And they are big, and I mean BIG. They take a fair bit of puff getting up there and a whole lot of speedy fun going down. One of the dunes we climbed was so steep when we finally got to the top all you could see was sand like we had been transported to the middle of a desert not just off a country road in New Zealand!

I warn you now, that sand gets everywhere! We were finding it in the campervan for the rest of our trip!

And last but not at all least…

10 – Gasp in awe at the incredible scenery

It’s kind of hard not to… If there’s anything you will do in New Zealand it is sit and stare in awe at the scenery that unfolds before you. Every twist and turn in the road brings new eye-catching views, every roadside or campervan pitch we stopped at was just breathtaking and the walking routes off the beaten path are mind-blowing. I really can’t explain to you enough how incredible the landscape of New Zealand is. It is one thing you have to go witness it for yourself.

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And there you have it, my top 10 must do experiences in New Zealand! Make sure you check out our other blog posts on New Zealand about all the other places/things you should check out whilst visiting this astounding country. Any questions about where to go or what to do, send us a message and we will be only too glad to help!

If you’re thinking of combining a trip to New Zealand with Australia or Fiji, check out our other posts!

5 beautiful places you have to see in Fiji

Top 10 experiences to have in Australia

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Gemma (i.e The Travelling Tedaldi)

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Gemma Tedaldi

Gemma is the owner and author of The Travelling Tedaldi, a travel blog helping travellers to discover the best road trips and travel itineraries throughout the UK and Europe. When she isn’t writing about her favourite travel destinations, she can often be found out exploring local hikes or planning future trips.