Parking Overnight in a Campervan

I just received a question regarding parking overnight on the side of the road in a campervan. I did my research nz-campervan-no-camping-219x300and have found the answers I was looking for:

  • Locals don’t like people camping on the streets in their towns (And you really don’t want to be making trouble with the locals!).
  • Many towns have local by laws prohibiting overnight camping, and you’ll be woken at 4-5am and told to move on.
  • If there are no signs indicating you are allowed to park on the side of the road, you should not assume that it is acceptable to stop and park.
  • Most towns have motor parks, and camping grounds where you can park, and there are many opportunities for “Freedom Camping” outside of towns and built up areas.
  • Alongside rivers and lakes (except within a town boundary) or in designated camping areas within National Parks, you are welcome to camp to your heart’s content.

Just please make sure you have toilet facilities (no dumping in the bushes if you can help it) with you and also take all your rubbish when you leave!!

If you want to find out more, click here

New Zealand number 2 on CNN’s list of top destinations in 2011

It’s not that surprising that New Zealand made it to number 2 on the CNN list of places to be in 2011.

Apparently the team at CNN had a chat with three travel experts (Robert Reid, U.S. travel editor for Lonely Planet; Pauline Frommer, creator of Pauline Frommer’s guidebooks; and Martin Rapp, senior vice president of leisure sales at Altour) who, between them have decided that New Zealand is one of the top places to be in 2011 (second only to the big apple).

This may well be due to the 2011 Rugby World Cup which they say will add excitement to an already popular destination, however kiwified travellers and locals already  know that it’s the place to be because it’s just plain gorgeous.

The crew at Transfercar however, look forward to a great new year with all the hundreds more cars and campervans we hope the 2011 Rugby World Cup will bring to the industry.

Here’s CNN’s list of top 2011 destinations:

1. New York
2. New Zealand
3. Peruvian Amazon
4. Barcelona, Spain
5. Norway
6. Albania
7. Japan
8. Guatemala
9. Bulgaria

New Zealand driving tips

If you’re planning on driving a  relocation car or campervan in New Zealand for the first time, these tips will assist you in understanding the rules and regulations of safe driving practices and help you have a safe and enjoyable vacation.

Not sure if you are allowed to drive?

Check out our article Driving in New Zealand

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What’s the speed limit?

Speed limits are normally clearly posted by the road side.

New Zealand is blessed with gorgeous little winding roads as well as open stretches that go for miles. Every type of road in New Zealand has its good points and its bad.

If you’re driving in rural areas, watch out for gravel verges, especially on corners. Some isolated roads are unsealed and use gravel as the surface. In these cases, drive slowly.

Continue reading New Zealand driving tips

SURVIVING AUSTRALIA’S OUTBACK

redback_webI was trawling the web looking for articles I thought our Transfercar drivers would be interested in and found this little beauty. Not only does it contain invaluable advise about travelling in the outback of Australia,  it’s a really good read!

SURVIVING AUSTRALIA’S OUTBACK

About three o’clock in the morning something woke me, and I lay listening. A strange rumbling came from somewhere out in the night. “Are you awake?” Cristi whispered softly. I whispered back that I was. “There’s something outside,” she said.
The northern Australia night was stifling. Beneath our flimsy tent we had gone to sleep in the coolest possible costumes – nothing at all. Now I got to my feet and tiptoed to the entrance to the tent. Gently I pulled open the flaps an inch apart and peered out. It was pitch black, and I could see nothing. I parted the tent flaps a bit more. There, not twenty feet from the tent, was a large crocodile.


By now Cristi was up and standing next to me. We stood there, stone-like, with nothing but a thin sheet of canvas between us and a twenty-foot crocodile.


The rumbling continued. It came from the crocodile’s stomach. It was tearing up the food we had left away from the campsite. It was a lesson of the Outback that I was happy to have learned: don’t store your food near your campsite.
Slowly it worked its way through the food, ripping apart a barbecued chicken with uncomfortable ease. Then it scurried away, toward the Herbert River, silhouetted against the horizon, immense, its red eyes gleaming in the moonlight. Finally it left, and as we went back to bed, I recalled a sign we had seen along the roadside earlier in the day. It warned travelers succinctly: “Beware of Crocodiles.”

Read the full story thanks to hackwriters.com.

Driving in Australia

Thinking of driving one of our Transfercars in Australia? Well, fine.roadsign_428x269_to_468x312

If you’re a visitor and hold a valid driver’s licence (in English) from your own country, fine, you’re allowed to drive throughout all of Australia. (But an international driver’s licence, if you have one, does not by itself give you the right to drive in Australia.)

If your driver’s licence is not in English, a translation may be necessary and you may also need to have an international driver’s licence.

Read the full article here….

Driving in New Zealand

I’ve had many questions from our Transfercar drivers about what licence they need to drive our vehicles. Here is aroad great article about New Zealand driving regulations that will answer many of your queries.

International Driving Licences and Permits

You can legally drive in New Zealand for up to 12 months if you have either a current driver’s licence from your home country or an International Driving Permit (IDP). After 12 months you are required to convert to a New Zealand licence. This applies to each visit to New Zealand.

In New Zealand all drivers, including visitors from other countries, must carry their licence or permit at all times when driving. You will only be able to drive the same types of vehicles you are licensed to drive in your home country. The common legal age to rent a car in New Zealand is 21 years.

Read more at newzealand.com