So I have a female friend and her 12 year old son who I was supposed to accompany to New Zealand for a month. I am now having to bail on her due to circumstances beyond my control. I want to encourage her to go ahead on her own but I have no idea if it is safe. She plans to travel all over both islands. I would really appreciate any feedback. Ron
I find its ok....so... we don't leave the back door open, or the keys in the car but probably much the same as most places. Avoid downtown Auckland at night in the weekends as its full of drunk teenagers..... Driving seems to be the area that tourists have the most problems.... forgetting to stay on the left....and the standard of driving here is pretty average. I took a 5 and 7 year old around Thailand for a month 10 years ago..... you just got to be sensible and keep your wits about you. If you don't have a contact in Auckland feel free to PM me.
Don't worry about Steve, he only ever makes sense occasionally We will keep him locked up while your friend is visiting But seriously, your friend should have no problems, NZ is as safe as the US, maybe more so. Cheers Clint
+1 I wouldn't recommend that women travelling alone hitch-hike. And as long as they're staying in decent accommodation they should perfectly safe. Imagine if they where going on a trip to Canada or Alaska what advice would you give them? I imagine exactly the same advice would apply here. (Except anything about Bears or snakes.. because we don't have them...)
You do need to exercise basic common sense, like not hitch-hiking alone, and not walking through bad parts of town late on a Friday night, but otherwise NZ is pretty safe. I've never felt unsafe when traveling around by myself.
since u ookies only been around 20 minutes you clearly are not aware that Chris and Erin spent considerable time in NZ when they did there world tour. They no the place very well yes they are real estate agents but if you look at their site they spend considerable time motorcycling. By the poster of this site visiting them they can fill him in face to face over and out now get back to ya garages and do hat ya do best. Attempting to modify ya shitters
Should be just fine going alone. I recently spent a week riding around the south island alone and felt perfectly safe. Mrs ztaj
one word of warning. Tell her not to stop for guys on non factory looking R100gs's. This is what the do. Spend all week modifying their bikes. Then go for a ride and break down on side of road.
She will be on her way soon. Thanks for all the feedback. You folks take good care of the woman I love.. She has a camper van rented. No bike this trip. Ron
I hope she has a great trip. She is welcome to get in touch if she is passing through Rotorua and wants somewhere to park the camper
So my GF is on the move in New Zealand and says it is the most beautiful place she has ever seen. She is still on the North Island. Since many say the South Island is the most beautiful she cannot wait to see it. She says she cannot understand anything anyone is saying though. Thank you all for helping me convince her to go on her own. Ron
I thought I would follow up on my request for information. My Girl Friend returned about a week ago from a month in New Zealand. She absolutely loved it. She says people from New Zealand are the nicest she has ever met. Not sure if she actually met any folks from ADV. She was well taken care of so thanks to the whole country. I don't think she ever felt concerned except when she was driving. :huh