Self-contained campervan hire · Christchurch Airport
Your South Island road trip starts here.
Kiwi Rover Campervans rents fully self-contained campervans and caravans from our depot beside Christchurch Airport. Every van comes pre-loaded with a curated itinerary, freedom-camping guide and 24/7 roadside support.
43.4894° S, 172.5322° E · Orchard Road, Christchurch
Reserve a campervan →01 · Our fleet
Five vans, each one different.
Every Kiwi Rover is self-contained certified (NZS 5465:2001), meaning you can freedom camp at any certified site. We fit out each van with a cassette or composting toilet, a freshwater tank and a grey-water system.
The Kea
From $139/day
- 2-berth Toyota HiAce LWB
- Cassette toilet · 60L fresh water
- 5.4m length · auto transmission
- Solar panel · USB charging
The Weka
From $169/day
- 3-berth Mercedes Sprinter
- Composting toilet · 80L fresh
- 6.4m length · rear awning
- Diesel heater · bike rack mounts
The Takahē
From $199/day
- 4-berth Fiat Ducato
- Cassette toilet · outdoor shower
- 7.0m length · manual
- Full kitchen · oven
The Tūī
From $119/day
- 2-berth Nissan Caravan
- Porta-potti · 45L fresh
- 4.9m length · compact
- Pop-top roof · great on fuel
The Moa
From $229/day
- Tow-behind caravan · sleeps 4
- Full bathroom · 100L fresh
- Requires Category 2 tow vehicle
- External BBQ · awning
02 · Pick your itinerary
Six routes, three difficulty tiers.
Every rental includes a printed route card and the same itinerary loaded into the in-van tablet. Filter by difficulty to find what suits your driving confidence and available days.
Showing 6 of 6 routes
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3 days
Canterbury Plains Loop
Christchurch → Akaroa → Methven → Lake Coleridge → Christchurch
-
4 days
Kaikōura Coastal
Christchurch → Waipara → Kaikōura → Hanmer Springs → Christchurch
-
7 days
Southern Lakes Circuit
Christchurch → Lake Tekapo → Ōmarama → Wānaka → Queenstown → Te Anau → Dunedin → Ōamaru → Christchurch
-
6 days
Abel Tasman & Golden Bay
Christchurch → Kaikōura → Nelson → Mārahau → Tākaka → Motueka → Christchurch
-
7 days
West Coast Gold Rush
Christchurch → Arthur's Pass → Hokitika → Franz Josef → Haast Pass → Wānaka → Lindis Pass → Christchurch
-
14 days
The Full Send
Christchurch → Kaikōura → Nelson → West Coast → Milford Sound → Queenstown → Dunedin → Christchurch
03 · Freedom camping guide
Camp free, camp right.
New Zealand's Freedom Camping Act 2011 (amended 2023) lets you camp on public land in a self-contained vehicle. Every Kiwi Rover is certified, so you are covered — but the rules matter.
The rules in short
- You must stay in a vehicle with a current self-contained warrant (blue sticker on the windscreen).
- Stay a maximum of two consecutive nights at any one site unless signed otherwise.
- Use your on-board toilet — never the bush. Grey water stays in the tank until you reach a dump station.
- No fires, no generators after 10pm, no damage to the site.
- Check for local bylaws — Queenstown Lakes, Mackenzie and Kaikōura districts have restricted zones.
Our top five free sites
- Lake Pearson 42.9981° S, 171.7817° E — Canterbury high country, mirror-still mornings.
- Boundary Creek 44.0722° S, 169.9250° E — Lindis Pass, stars you cannot believe.
- Doctors Point 45.7867° S, 170.5667° E — Waitati, beach and bush.
- Ship Creek 43.8306° S, 169.0583° E — Haast, a boardwalk into the dunes.
- Cable Bay 41.1667° S, 173.4333° E — Nelson, turquoise water, walk-in sites.
We pre-load every site into the CamperMate app on the van's tablet, including dump stations, water fill-ups and holiday parks for when you want a hot shower.
04 · Rates & extras
Honest pricing, no hidden fees.
Rates include insurance (excess $1,500, reducible to $300), unlimited kilometres and 24/7 roadside assist. Minimum hire is three nights.
| Van | Low (May–Sep) | Shoulder (Oct, Apr) | Peak (Nov–Mar) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Tūī (2-berth compact) | $119 | $149 | $179 |
| The Kea (2-berth HiAce) | $139 | $169 | $209 |
| The Weka (3-berth Sprinter) | $169 | $199 | $249 |
| The Takahē (4-berth Ducato) | $199 | $239 | $289 |
| The Moa (tow caravan) | $229 | $259 | $319 |
Add-ons
05 · Traveller stories
Three weeks of road, a lifetime of memories.
"We picked up The Kea at the airport and by that afternoon we were sitting at Lake Pearson with no one else in sight. The freedom-camping guide on the tablet saved us every day — we never paid for a campground and never broke a rule."Kaikōura Coastal → Southern Lakes · 12 nights in The Kea
"Our kids still talk about the glow-worms at Ship Creek. The Takahē was big enough for the four of us and the oven meant we could bake banana bread at the campsite. Genuinely the best holiday we have taken as a family."West Coast Gold Rush · 7 nights in The Takahē
"I have rented campervans in Iceland and Portugal and this was the best-equipped by a long way. The composting toilet actually worked, the heater was silent, and the route card for the Abel Tasman trip was perfect."Abel Tasman & Golden Bay · 6 nights in The Weka
06 · Pick-up & drop-off
We are five minutes from the terminal.
03 341 7200 · book@kiwirovercampervans.co.nz
Pick-up
We run a free shuttle from the arrivals hall every thirty minutes, 7am–7pm daily. Call when you land and we will be there in under ten minutes. Allow forty-five minutes for the van walkthrough, paperwork and loading your itinerary onto the tablet.
Drop-off
Return the van by 10am on your final day. Top up the fuel (diesel, all vans), empty the cassette toilet at our on-site dump station, and leave the keys in the lockbox. We shuttle you back to departures.
After hours
Late flights? We offer an after-hours pick-up for $45. The van will be unlocked at the depot with the keys, linen and route card inside. Call our 24/7 line if you need help.