GlobalGophers | NEW ZEALAND

Hitchhiking in New Zealand

Map of NZ I am wary of advocating hitchhiking as there are many horror stories of nasty things happening to people. That said, I spent three and a half months hitchhiking and it was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I was nearing the end of my 12 months of backpacking and fast running out of money. Hitching seemed a good way to save some and besides it was something I had always wanted to try. I was happily hitching within a week of arriving.

Of course, New Zealand is probably the best country in the world to hitch in: it is reasonably small, there are relatively few stretches of road that get absolutely no traffic (unlike Australia!), and most Kiwi's are friendly and used to picking people up.

It became almost an obsession for me, I set a goal for myself which was that I had to see all that NZ had to offer and I had to hitch to get there (The pen markings on the map indicate where I went). People were so good to me, some of the best were:

The Grandma in Dunedin who gave me a lift and also afternoon tea the next day.
The prison chef in Turangi who offered his spare room to me for two nights and cooked some fabulous meals - thanks also to his 11-year old chess-playing son who said I was the "coolest hitchhiker" he'd met. When I inquired as to how many hitchhikers he'd met he replied none.
The traveling supermarket distributor who picked me up in Punakaiki and took me to many supermarkets and dropped me outside of my hostel in Hanmer Springs after many candy samples. He also offered me accommodation in Christchurch.

Of course there were also some interesting rides - from the marijuana-smoking teen from Nelson who took me off-roading when I happened to make the observation that his car was a 4-wd. To the 5 girls who whistled at me as they drove by and promptly reversed to pick me up en-route to the Bay of Islands.

Advantages of Hitching:

Get to know the locals - New Zealand was the one country where I truly interacted.
Great experiences - each lift is a completely different experience. You may get six lifts one day all from utterly different people and circumstances - for example one day I received lifts from an elderly grandma, tourists in a camper, a prison chef and a lorry driver.
Save money.
More often than not, the vehicle will have no passengers so you will get the front seat - a real luxury compared to cramped, dull buses.

Disadvantages of Hitching:

None.ok, you might wait around a little bit - the worst for me was a couple of hours. But so what? I had a good book...

Hitching tips:

Look smart - I had people who said they have never picked up hitchhikers before but thought "I looked nice". I don't mean you should bust out the tuxedo but at least shave!
Walk to an intersection - where the majority of traffic is going the same direction as you.
Accept every lift - even if it is only 10 meters. I was stuck behind another hitchhiker in Hokitika who kept turning lifts down as they weren't going all the way to his destination!
Just stick out your thumb - I didn't bother with signs as I was not on a rigid schedule so was never certain where I might end up.
Hitch alone or at most in a group of two - Drivers can be put off by large groups.

Other modes of transport:

Buy a car - and pick up hitchhikers of course. If you are planning to do this it is better to buy one in Christchurch and sell it in Auckland as most backpackers do the reverse (simple supply and demand).
Rideshare - lots of people are traveling around New Zealand and may be happy for you to join them. Although I like to give the impression that I traversed New Zealand solely through hitching I did actually travel with a great couple for a week or so in the Catlins).
Public Transport.
Tour bus - having not traveled on one I can't say much about them (I am being polite). The Kiwi Experience seemed pretty popular - though not the kind of Kiwi experience I was looking for.

Hitchhiking is such a buzz. I've really enjoyed writing this article and remembering all the experiences. When you hitch and someone stops it feels like you have gambled and won. The feeling reminds me of winning the jackpot on a fruit machine.

After 35 lifts in the South Island and 48 in the North (grand total of 83 lifts from hitchhiking) I had a great time and am always willing to pick up hitchhikers if I see them (which, if truth be told is not that often as I don't own a car!).

Useful links:

Bug Pacific offers some interesting tips on hitching.

BY: Sam

EDITOR'S NOTE: Have you traveled by Kiwi Experience - why not write an article about it and let us know

Hitchhiking in New Zealand

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