Riding in New Zealand

[Doggy]

Im keen to head over the pond to NZ next year in summer for a week or two of riding. Flights are easy sorted as dad works for QANTAS so thats easy to organise but all the rest I havent as yet got a clue about. I would hire a bike but take my own gear, but other then that I dont know. I guessing a few on here might have done it or looked at doing it so what I am chasing is info on where to hire a bike, how to get from airport to ski/bike fields and where to stay (most likely look at stayin in a backpackers as I might just be going by myself ).
Is it worth just going with the flow and going to Queenstown or is it better off heading elsewhere on the next door neighbour.
Havent got a clue as to what dates or if Ill be actually going, its just in the planning stage at the mo'.

 

[Binaural]

Might not be a bad idea cross-posting this on Vorb.nz, that seems to be the main NZ moutain bike forum.

 

[Doggy]

Yeah, I had thought of doing that at a later date when I have a vague idea of whats going on. Just interested to see what others had done from here.
Most of my holidays...no, all of my holidays I usually have no plans and just chuck my bodyboard and bikes and missus in the 4wd and mosey around for a couple of weeks, figured I might try to organise this one

 

[berkyburger123]

Well given that roturua is hosting the worlds, I'd say have a look there.

 

[Mattydv]

if your looking for places to ride etc. queenstown has some awesome riding. the drop in crew hit some pretty sweet places throughout NZ. though its all pretty sweet. accomodation wise, camping is pretty safe ( although cold ) if you can find a good spot, however if you have your license it would also be worth looking at hiring a campervan and going on a road trip. check out some NZ forums like binaural said though. very handy when preparing a trip

 

[RCOH]

NZ rawks


http://forums.farkin.net/showthread.php?t=48949&highlight=heli*

 

[fleshbone]

ahhh.you would get really lucky if your able to hire a good dh/freeride bike.as for places to ride,rotorua has an all over good solid ride.all the sick tracks are pretty much near each other.people say queenstown,yeh it rocks but it does get hard to get around to those secret solid tracks.but there are many other great places,those are just the recognised ones.

 

[notb4dinner]

NZ rawks

Indeed it does.

I'd consider taking more than a week or two - there's just too much to see. Three weeks would be my minimum just for the South Island.

In no particular order the key spot's I'd hit up and the minimum time I'd spend there are:
Dunedin - 1 Day (cool city just to wander around and there's at least one decent DH track)
Wanaka - 3 Days (2 days riding, 1 day chilling - it's the ultimate chillout town)
Queenstown - 0 Days (I thought it was a horrible place, although I can't comment on the riding)
Nelson - 1 Day
Hamner - 1 Day
Naseby - 1 Day (sweet flowy singletrack through pineforests dotted with the moon-like remnants of gold mining)
Alexandra - 1 Day
Mt Cook - 2 Days (no riding but if all you've only ever seen Australian 'mountains' the scenery is mind blowing)
Fox/Franz Josef - 1 Day (no riding again but a walk on the glaciers is a must)
Christchurch - 1 Day (absolute minimum. The full run along the port hills is really sweet and can take most of the day. Beyond that there's more riding to be had and it's a nice city to do touristy/cultural things).

= 2 weeks without any time allocated for driving and completely ignoring the North Island. Of course if you really want to see the place take a few months off and ride around.

A few other points:
* On the budget airlines (I don't know about Quntas etal.) a bike counts as 5kg of luggage, making taking your own bike a much better option.
* Staying at backpackers is a solid option, they're plentiful and on the most part clean, tidy and full of interesting people.
* I get the impression you're not able to drive yourself around, if that's the case there's plenty of tourist buses that run between all the major spots, they're reasonably priced and most are able to carry bikes (if you can drive hiring a van/campervan would probably be a good bet - it seems to be the most popular option over there).
* If you're not just after DH/Freeride trails buy a copy of Classic New Zealand MTB Rides, it's awesome.

 

[Doggy]

Great tips there Dinner
I am able to drive, Im 24 so thats no problems. The reason I was inclined to hire a bike is that I have an 05 Sasquatch which as lovely a bike as it is for me and I have a hell of alot of fun on it I thought it would be a bit more fun having a dually ride over there for as you said the FR/DH tracks would be the ones Im chasing.
I have stayed in numerous backpackers around oz in my 4wding adventures and yes they are great places to stay, hence my thinking of using them in NZ but I hadnt even thought about a hire van.....that could be an idea.
As for the flights, I will stick with QANTAS because staff and immediate family get bullsh*t prices on flights so even if I have to pay a bit extra for luggage it should still work out cheaper
Thanks for all the tips guys

 

[scratchy]

Erm, AMB in your newsagents now has a map for riding around some place called "craters of the moon?", no it was "valley of the moon"? or was it "Craters with a spoon?"
Anyway, In New Zealand, so check it out and tell us how it is.

 

[scbullit]

Hi there - I rode "Craters of the Moon". It is in Taupo about 1 hour south of Rotorua. It is good but nowhere near as good as Rotorua... Wellington has great riding and "The Queen Charlotte Track" on the South Island is awesome - a bit of climbing but the downhills rock!

 

[junek]

i went to NZ a few months ago for 4 weeks. Not for riding, just curzing with the girlfriend. Its a sick place, and in 4 weeks we drove from the top of the north island to queenstown - could have spent alot longer but we get bored easily!
I wasnt riding, but was always looking out for spots to come back and ride. Your best bet would be Rotorua area in the north island or Queenstown in the south.
Rotorua has a MTB park, with a Dh/FR track and is hosting the worlds in a few weeks, so that track might be open when you go there too. I'm sure there are heaps of tracks in the hills around the place, but you'd have to hook up with some locals to find them i reckon. Althought that wouldnt be hard - most cars driving around town have bike stickers or bikes on them. MTB is big over there.
Queenstown is the same. There is a sick track under the gondola in town, but no transport to the top, you gotta walk (crazy considering there is a gondola right above you). There are tracks in the hills, like on the way up to Coronet peak, about 15min drive outta town, and as before, im sure if you met some locals you would find shite loads.
as for a camper....get ready to max out the credit card. Little hiace or similar 2 berth is around 120 to 150 a day!!!!! Cheaper to stay in backpackers or camp (what we did). Just know, camping on the side of the road or in a park is bloody hard. They just dont want you doing it. They have figured that they can make you pay instead! Average price for a camp spot is $12 per person a night.

have fun

 

[Atomikryder]

Go to North Island first, go to Rotenrua ( Rotorua for those that don't think thats funny. By the way i say that cause it stinks) Then head south and just go anywhere. I swear when i was over there every town i went to there was a heap of tracks and riders.

 

[notb4dinner]

Erm, AMB in your newsagents now has a map for riding around some place called "craters of the moon?".

That reminds me, Freewheel had a two part NZ roadtrip story in issue #28 and #29 that, if you can get your hands on it, would be worth reading.

 

[Mattydv]

ive also heard that there is some great riding in nelson. ive seen plently of awesome pics and from what it looks like there'd be days worth. some massive dj's as well