Originally Posted by
Happy
and this trip we purposedly did the Island Circle trip - from Christchurch down to Dunedin and started the Southern Scenic Route, to reach Te Anau. Did Milford Sound from Te Anau. Went to Queenstown, and then up Wanaka, and to West Coast. Visited both glaciers, and continued to Abel Tasman National Park. From there headed East to Nelson, then to Picton and then headed down the East Coast, stopped at Kaikoura and backed to Christchurch.
This sounds just wonderful; will it be practical in mid-June? We plan to rent something fairly heavy (minivan) for the four of us and luggage, not to mention the safety factor! We've not driven in winter conditions for years, and that makes us nervous. We want to keep the hair-raising road conditions to a minimum!