3 Reasons Why New Zealand Is The Perfect Place to Begin Solo Travelling

It’s been a while since my trip to New Zealand. Facebook and the Photos app on my phone keep reminding me of the moments I had exactly a year ago.

I was living in Melbourne at the time with my cousin and although I had planned on going to New Zealand I didn’t plan on spending 3 weeks there, nor would I have thought I’d spent all of it on my own. But it was the trip I didn’t know I needed. Melbourne was a great way for me to ease into solo travel. I spent most days wandering around the looking for a new cafe to try, grocery shopping or just walking to the book shop or library. I started going to the theatres on my own, eating out on my own and realized how much I enjoyed it.

Mount Sunday, South Island, New Zealand

Photograph by Michelle Lee 

So heading to New Zealand was pushing me out of my comfort zone even further and I couldn’t have picked a more perfect place to travel solo. These are the top 3 reasons why New Zealand is one of the best places to begin solo travel.

The People. 

One of the first things I noticed when I landed in Christchurch was how welcoming and helpful the locals were. No doubt they see tourists often, but there was a kindness much like what I had experienced in Melbourne. From the first day of my trip to the last, I felt like I was being welcomed to their home – not just their city, town, restaurant or store. A sense of pride and genuine hospitality to invite you to explore their country.

Tourism is a major part of the economy in New Zealand and the locals seem to hold that with pride. They’ve been able to keep their country as natural as possible and love to share the history and breathtaking views with you. One of my reasons for travelling is to meet new people, listen to their stories and approach people with renewed interest instead of with, as my past taught me, skepticism. Of course, I still used common sense – I locked my doors, placed my valuables out of sight or on my person and if I was going on a hike in a remote area I would leave a note and let someone know where I was heading off to.

I am a city girl after all.

But the beautiful country with its wonderful people welcomed me like I was coming home, which is what makes New Zealand quite unique. Not only are the locals hospitable, but I met many travellers, students working abroad, honeymooners and expats from all over the world – Germany, Sweden, France, USA, London, Ireland and Australia to name a few. Most travellers were there for at least 6 – 8 weeks as they traversed both islands and perhaps it’s the atmosphere and the fact that you’re surrounded by the most beautiful views nature can offer, people were kind and patient with each other even while trapped in a T-Zone town for 2 days with no power or cell service.

And when you’re hiking a difficult path you tend to leap frog and essentially spend 2 to 3 hours with the same people on the mountain. They even encourage and cheer for you when you reach the top.

The Wildlife. 

I normally research the places I’m visiting before I get there, but New Zealand was not one of them. I spent each day hiking a mountain trail looking for views and wildlife and each evening in my camper-van at a campsite researching where I’d go the next day.

It wasn’t until I reached Milford Sound and spent money on the only planned day trip did I learn from the tour guide that New Zealand had no predators. Besides the pesky sandflies that I unhappily met on a beach and could very well take a chunk off of you, there was nothing that could actually eat or attack you. Besides their local sheep, cows and species of birds, kangaroos, wallabies, possums and rats are considered pests (and should you find one dead they would not be unhappy when you reported it to local authorities – so says a sign. They would also not question how or why it died. Take that as you will.).

So if you’re looking for a day hike or adventurous enough to do a 4 or 5 day hike across a mountain range, the only thing keeping you from having an unpleasant journey is if you were unprepared for the elements. That in itself, would be the beast that could swallow you whole.

Still.

Being the literal top of the food chain while I’m hiking sets my mind at ease by 200%.

Made for you. The Traveller. 

To describe New Zealand as beautiful, breathtaking, magnificent or marvellous would actually be all an understatement. I’m sure this is true for many of the natural splendours of the world – nature is indescribable with words, but we try our best.

There isn’t a moment where you don’t think to yourself, ‘I’m bored’. Just spending a whole day driving I felt invigorated, content, wonderment and curiosity at what might come after the next turn or pit stop. And there are plenty of pit stops. All along the way, there are lookout points and places to take a break, stretch your legs or have a picnic.

Tip: the best places to stop were not the designated lookout points – there’s always a spot before and after them that offer better or different points of view which I often preferred.

There are also many private campsites for you to pitch your tent, park your camper-van or trailer. Some offer extra amenities with hot water and a shared kitchen plus access to a beach or you can stay at many government-designated camping sites that are no-frills with an outhouse at $8 a night. These, most often, offered the best views of the night sky and the opportunity to travel out to the most remote of areas. Also something I preferred.

No matter which option you choose, so long as you’ve got an idea where you’re going each day, you’re never too far from a town to stock up on some provisions or a gas station keeping in mind that it may not be the cheapest location for either especially in a small town.