NZ rental car Questions
 

My wife and I are starting to look at possible itineraries. One current idea would be to fly into Auckland and fly out of Christchurch. This would keep us from having to drive the same routes twice and see more stuff (we are thinking of about a 2 week vacation so hopefully this isn't a too agressive trip). Anyways while looking at different rental car sites I noticed Eurocar suggested switching rental cars at the ferry terminals at the north and south island to save money on the cost of transporting a car on the ferry. But I can't find any other rental car companys suggesting this. Looking at the cost for the ferry it seemed like you might save about 100NZ$s this way. Not sure if its worth the hastle. Anyone have an opinion on this?

All of the majors (Hertz, Avis, Budget, etc.) require you to drop the car and pick up a new one on the other island (otherwise it is a breach of the contract). This is a very convenient process as well as saving a lot of money (also the ferry can be sold out for cars for a day at a time, during peak periods, but always has room for passengers). 2 weeks is enough to tour AKL to CHC but it goes fast; a very nice and easy drive for the most part.

At the risk of sounding like I am flogging this place, I've had great success and service with Rent-a-Dent in NZ (they have about 30 locations on North and South Islands.) The cars are used (as they are from Hertz or Avis,) well maintained and cheaper, in my experience. We've had nice Toyota Camrys imported from Japan when they were sold by their owners there and been well pleased with this company. (A Mazda sedan or 626 with unlimited kiloemtres is ~NZD $55.00 a day, samller cars at NZD $39.00, including Daily Hire Insurance and G.S.T.)

(1 US Dollar = 1.64493 New Zealand Dollar at this posting)

Thanks for the info, and thanks for the recommondation for Rent-a-Dent I will check them out.

Also check out Maui Car Rental ...

Included in the rental rate is the Ferry crossing between N-S islands and you keep the same car. More convenient possibly.

Your itnerary (fly into Auckland and out from Christchurch) is exactly what my wife are doing starting tomorrow!! We'll be there a little longer (3 weeks). We pick up the car in AKL and slowly make our way south - Rotorua, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, Greymouth, Frans Josef, Queenstown and then back north to Christchurch.

Warning on rental car insurance
 

Check with your credit card company to see if your rental car insurance covers New Zealand. When I did my RTW trip in December and rented cars, AmEx told me that New Zealand is one of only five countries that are excluded from their coverage. (The others being Israel, Ireland, Italy, and Australia). It is worth verifying in advance. @:-)

Thanks for the suggestion, I would love to hear how the trip goes when you get back. Have a great time.

Hey there,

Having lived in the country for a bit, I would recommend using one of the local rental companies (not one of the major U.S. brands). They are a lot easier when it comes to dropping off in one location vs the other. In fact, quite a few are designed just for that purpose.

Any specific ones you would recommend? All seem to be sticking me with a sizable one way fee. Although the Rent-a-Dent rates are pretty good so they seem to be the front runner currently.

For one-way rentals it is truly a case of supply and demand. The fees go up and down based on inventory (and may be free in one direction while charging for the other). It also means different firms will have different charges. Finally some rates at the majors waive a drop-off charge, which sometimes makes their rates lower than the "cheap" firms. No easy way to find the best price.

Mac, thought I would provide an interim update. Itinerary and car rental so far have worked out well.

Flew into Auckland and spent a day or two exploring the city. Rented the car through Maui Car Rental (required a cab ride back close the the airport though) and headed south. Overnight in Rotorua, next day drive to Wellington. Scenery great.

From Wellington took the ferry to the South Island (was included in car rental fee) and it was great not to have to return the car, lug our bags to the ferry and re-rent on the other side. Much simpler to just drive on - drive off. All very efficient.

From Picton drove to Nelson thru the Queen Charlottes (beautiful). Overnighted in Nelson before starting 3 day hike in Abel Tasman (Awaroa Lodge ^ ). Drove back to Nelson for overnight (we had left our bags at the B&B so would not have to hike with them). From Nelson we took Highway 6 all down the West Coast (Westport, Greymouth, Hokitika (overnight), Franz Josef & Fox Glaciers, Haast, Wanaka to Queenstown. We took 2-3 days, stopping at the Glaciers and frequently along the way to take in the STUNNING scenery. It's winter and lots of snow topping the Southern Alps which shoulder the road on the west. Road from Haast Pass to Wanaka amazing.

We're currently in Queenstown (visited Milford Sound via small plane yesterday) and will make our way north to Christchurch via Mt. Cook tomorrow. We have avoided backtracking so far by making a small change to our itinerary. We will do the Arthurs Pass trip once we get to Christchurch and do the Trans Alpine train to & from Greymouth the same day.

Please PM me for more details and I would be glad to provide. I will provide an update once the trip is complete.

If you want to save a few $ take the airbus to the airport and then the free shuttle bus from the airport which does the airport hotels and the off-airport rental cars. Airbus is $15 one-way or $22 return (less $1 by printing discount coupon off their website) - a good saving, if one person, over the approx $50 cab fare.

Does renting a car in Australia or New Zealand require an international drivers permit if the driver has a US license? I'm inclined to beleive from my research as long as your license is in english you don't need the international drivers permit. Any insight/advice?

Thanks!

Correct.

Just to clarify what correct means, no international license is required in NZ for any license that is printed in English.