2014 New Zealand Caravan Trip: 02 Christchurch - Omarama

"A man travels the world in search of what he needs and returns home to find it..." - George Moore

(A cattle farm at Mackenzie District)

Day 2: Saturday, 8 November 2014
Route: Christchurch - Omarama

From Auckland International Airport terminal we walked a short distance to the domestic terminal to board our 06:30hrs flight to Christchurch. We checked in online through one of the many kiosks and dropped off our luggage. The flight took less than 2 hours and the immigration and custom clearance was swift.

(Arrival Hall Christchurch Airport)

(Planning the routing and setting coordinates)

(Looking out for road signages)

(Passing through sheep and cattle farms)

For our road trip around South Island, we decided to rent a campervan that will get us further off the beaten track. With the assistance from the I-site Customer Service Centre, we managed to book a campervan for a duration of 8 days at a total rental rate of NZ$1,615 inclusive of insurance coverage and GPS rental.

(The Farm Barn Cafe)

(Fairlie lookout point)

(Our campervan for the road trip)

Our Tui and Freedom Campervan pick-up was at 10:30hrs and by the time we completed paperwork and made full payment it was already noon. We drove out of Christchurch and stopped to buy provision at the Farrington Supermarket and later had fillet-o-fish lunch at one of the McDonalds on the Motorway 1.

(A cool beautiful weather)

(Bright yellow Mustard fields)

(A vast grassland with snow-capped mountains)

(A glimpse of Lake Tekapo)

Driving on the scenic route, we started our journey towards Omarama. Our first stop was at a Farm Barn Café at Fairlie in Mackenzie District overlooking the vast majestic landscape of rolling mountain and valley including Mt. Cook National Park.

(The Church of Good Shepherd)

(A short coffee break by the lake)

(Turquoise blue water of Lake Takapo)

(Blooming wild flowers along the lakeside)

We drove on Route 8 by-passing Timaru and stopped at Lake Tekapo, Lake Pukaki and Lake Oahu. We had a glimpse of Mt. Cook and stopped at a few lookout points to have photo shots of the beautiful scenery

(Beautiful reflections of the Southern Alps)

(Recreational areas along the lake)

(Omarama Campsite, quiet and tranquil)

We reached the Top 10 Campsite in Omarama around 19:00hrs. Omarama is a small town nestled among spectacular mountain ranges and surrounded by gorgeous scenery. The sky was still bright as sunset would only be at 21:45hrs. While waiting for Maghrib, I cooked rice, vegetables soup and omelette for dinner.

Tonight we slept like a log after traveling more than 20 hours.

          2014 South NZ: 03 Invercargill, New Zealand👉

👈2014 South NZ: 01 Auckland, New Zealand