New Zealand with Limited Mobility(Part2)

Maui Rental Van

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When visiting New Zealand, getting around means more than renting a car or RV and picking up a guide book and a good map if you have mobility problems. You need wheelchair accessible transportation and accommodations. With a little advanced planning, wheelchair users can drive themselves or travel with a tour guide companion.

I hope you're thinking of trying Lake Waikaremoana. If so, you need to start planning now for next season. Accommodations are limited in the summer season. If you're planning to stay at the Lake Whakamarino Lodge, Accessible New Zealand has rental cars with hand controls. Galaxy Motors specializes in rental vehicles for people with disabilities. They also offer tour guide/companions and specialized tours to fit your travel plans.

If you want to rent a motorcaravan and try RVing, check out Mobility Motorhomes. Designed for wheelchair users, their units are fitted with hand controls and detachable steering wheel knobs. They're also fitted with a self-operating electric wheelchair lift which folds under the entrance door. Bathrooms have double doors for easy access.

If you're not interested in driving a car or RVing, the Intercity Bus runs through the park from Wairoa to Rotarua and return three days per week. Buses have fold down ramps for wheelchairs. A shuttle service can also be arranged from Wairoa.

Lake Waikaremoana in English means more or less-- Old man who fell asleep by the fire and roasted his private parts. I think I like the Maori version better. If you're visiting the "Land of the Mist," expect to get wet. Fog hangs around in the morning and settles in late evening-- and that's in the summer. Bring enough clothes to stay warm and dry. You don't want to get cold and fall asleep by a fire and get roasted.

Since you're planning for next season, you have time to contact Kiwis about their travels. If you're planning to spend time in Auckland, Red Nicholson, a Kiwi, can offer some advice. He's not a travel agent, just another Kiwi traveler. According to Red, "Most hotels/motels, and even backpackers have wheelchair access. It is a very common feature here." Check out Red's site Walking is Overrated.

New Zealand on Wheels is a wheelchair travel guide with reviews by Kiwis who have been there and done that. A recent review on the Wellington Botanic Gardens offers suggestions for getting around-- the gardens are not flat. Check the tourist sites they've reviewed and if you can't find what you're looking for-- ask. The Kiwi people are kind and generous. The tourism industry always promotes the scenery, but seldom mentions their greatest asset-- their friendly people.

Lyn Harris

RV in NZ

New Zealand with Limited Mobility

New Zealand

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Photo by:

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Itsabitblurry

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Once out of Auckland, much of New Zealand is rugged, remote, and best seen by car or RVing. Even with limited mobility, you can visit many off the beaten track locations with wheelchair accessible vehicles.

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Department of Conservation camps, Te Papa Atawhai, (DOC) camps are government reserves. If you really want to get back into untouched country, try a DOC camp. There are restrictions on maximum length of stay and type of vehicle-- RVs, buses, and other vehicles designed to sleep people are acceptable. Cars are not.

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Five thousand people per year visit Lake Waikaremoana. Many come to fish for brown and rainbow trout, kayak, or tramp the Lake Waikaremoana Track. Managed by DOC, this 46 km three to four day tramp which follows the lakeshore is part of the Great Walks.

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Te Urewera is the largest National Park in the North Island. Often called "Land of the Mist" it's a rain-forest with many native birds including Kiwi birds. Some of the comments from AA's Travel New Zealand site are:

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"It's amazing, quiet, untouched...well worth the drive over the dodgy roads!!!"

"The road trip is a bit shocking but once you are there, it is a must to stay a night or two."

"Thank goodness the roads in are aweful as it keeps it one of New Zealand's most beautiful but isolated areas."

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We thought so, too-- the beautiful and isolated part. The road didn't seem that much of a problem. We had a fairly large-- for New Zealand-- RV and usually dropped most of the water from our tanks before leaving Wairoa hoping we'd have a little more get up and go to get up the hill. We spent four to five months each year in our RV and carried more heavy stuff than the average visitor, but still worried about too much water.

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The road from Wairoa is mainly sealed. It seemed pretty tame compared to some we found in the South Island. We usually camped in one of the campgrounds along Hwy 38 which runs through the center of the park, or stayed in the HAPNZ Motorcamp. On the lake near the Aniwaniwa Visitor Centre, the Motorcamp is wheelchair friendly as are the lake side family cabins which sleep four or five people.

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If you're looking for a little more comfort, you might like the Lake Whakamarino Lodge on one of the smaller nearby lakes. While in the park, you can cruise the bays and inlets of Lake Waikaremoana in a charter boat, try you luck at trout fishing-- a 28.6 lb brown trout was caught recently-- or take a guided Eco-tour.

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AA Traveling New Zealand has more comments about Te Urewera and some nice photos of Lake Waikaremoana. If you've read the archives about AA, you know your U.S. AAA card is good for discounts in New Zealand.

(To be continued)

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Lyn Harris

www.rvinnz.com