New Zealand with a toddler: The place that felt like home

A quick bit of context before we begin…

We’re a family of three, usually living the van life in the UK and Europe. But for this trip, we swapped the campervan for backpacks and set off on a 6-month adventure to the other side of the world with our 3-year-old in tow.

These posts are our monthly reality checks – the highs, the lows, and everything in between.

This post is for anyone planning a family adventure, especially families considering travelling to New Zealand with a toddler.

If you missed them, you can catch up with our Month 1 recap here and Month 2 recap here.

The vibe this month

Oh, New Zealand.

This was the month we’d been waiting for.

I’ve been to New Zealand twice before – once in 2010 and again in 2012 – and I’ve been telling anyone who’ll listen ever since that it’s the greatest country on earth. My favourite place I’ve ever been.

So, when Mr Rick and I met, getting him there was always a dream. We’d been talking about going back for years, but life kept getting in the way.

In fact, our entire six-month adventure was basically built around getting to New Zealand, with everything else as a bonus. We’d added extra places because, well, if you’re going to travel that far, you may as well make the most of being on the other side of the world!

And then we landed. And it was everything and more.

It was genuinely the weirdest feeling. After three months of travelling, constantly moving and figuring things out as we went, something about New Zealand just clicked for all of us. The landscapes, the space, the outdoors, the way of life – it all felt so us.

Just a couple of days after arriving, I received word from home in the UK that my uncle had died. Suddenly, the other side of the world felt very, very far away.

So this month was a bit of everything: finally arriving somewhere we’d dreamed about, dealing with grief from the other side of the world, getting back into van life and exploring the North Island of New Zealand – all while dodging some pretty spectacular weather.

Our Vietnam and North Island New Zealand itinerary

We started the month finishing our time in Vietnam before flying to New Zealand and exploring the North Island by campervan.

• Nha Trang, Vietnam – our final Vietnamese stop, and probably our least favourite
• Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – our last taste of Vietnam and a lot of visa-related stress
• Auckland – our first look at New Zealand
• Hamilton – basket burn festival and family adventures
• Rotorua – geothermal landscapes and plenty to explore
• Taupo – dough boats and beautiful scenery
• Napier – family, Easter and one of our favourite stops
• Wellington – our final North Island stop of the month

Finishing Vietnam

Before we could get to the place we’d been waiting for, it was time to finish up in Vietnam – the place we’d unintentionally fallen for.

I last left you in Da Nang, and our next move was a sleeper train to Nha Trang. And it was a DISASTER.

They’d put Mr Rick and me in one four-person cabin, and Little Rick in another on his own. Which clearly wasn’t going to work for a three-year-old. There were a few other moments from that train that may become a story for another day… but eventually we made it to Nha Trang.

If I’m being completely honest, it was probably our least favourite place in Vietnam. It wasn’t terrible, but for us it just didn’t have the same magic as Hanoi, Ninh Binh, Da Nang or Hoi An. (BUT, we met another family who loved Nha Trang and even extended their time there, so it’s very much an individual thing.)

It did, however, provide some very memorable moments:

• There was the 3am fire alarm test! A wonderful time for all, as you can imagine…
• The completely random karaoke performances by the hotel desk staff in the lobby at all hours of the day.
• And then there was my ill-fated attempt to get a haircut. I’ll fill you in…

It was raining when I arrived at the hairdresser, and my shoes apparently had decided to operate on zero grip. I stepped onto the marble floor outside the entrance, immediately went flying and flailed around like a beached whale, with no way of getting myself back up as every time I put my foot down, it slid out from beneath me.

The receptionist came rushing out to help, but eventually realised that if she tried to pull me up, she’d be coming down with me. So she grabbed the door handle and essentially dragged us both inside, with the entire salon watching us. That was followed by cold water and my very British attempt to inform them with a slight wince. And the fact that they wouldn’t let me leave as they were concerned about me falling again.

It was a whole debacle. I should have taken a bow.

Vietnam really did save some of its best stories for the end!

Our final stop was Ho Chi Minh City for a couple of nights.

The most stressful flight of the trip

Getting to New Zealand was supposed to be the easy bit. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t.

I made an almost catastrophic error and completely failed to realise we needed an NZeTA, only discovering this while we were trying to check in for our flight.

I applied for all of us, and thankfully mine and Mr Rick’s came through in about ten minutes.

Little Rick’s did not.

So we spent the rest of our time in HCMC refreshing, worrying and wondering whether we’d somehow managed to make a monumental mistake on the most important leg of our entire six-month adventure.

His NZeTA finally came through about an hour before we needed to leave for the airport. I’ve never been so relieved to see an email in my life.

At last, we could board the plane… New Zealand was happening!

Arriving in New Zealand

I’ve imagined going back to New Zealand for years. So when we finally landed, I expected to be excited.

I didn’t expect to cry. Yet cry I did.

I can’t quite explain it, but it felt like my soul had arrived home. I couldn’t stop looking at the sky and proclaiming how blue it was (I don’t know if this is real or my rose-tinted glasses!).

We hired a campervan and got back to something we already knew and loved: van life.

After months of packing and unpacking our stuff every few days or weeks, having everything in one place again was bliss. We could wake up somewhere amazing, make breakfast, get on the road and decide what came next.

It felt like putting on a favourite pair of shoes.

Favourite place of the month: Napier

Favourite place of the month… can I just say New Zealand in general?

OK, fine – I’ll be more specific. Napier was probably our favourite stop of the month, but not for the usual reasons.

For us, it was 100% the people.

We stayed with family friends who were incredibly generous and welcoming, even though we’d only met them once before. They had us for Easter, and it was exactly what we needed.

By this point, I was feeling pretty homesick. Losing my uncle was one thing. And on top of that, Easter is a pretty big deal in my family. I’m one of six, so it’s not often we’re all together – Easter provides a reunion, all the kids playing, Easter egg hunts and an obstacle course that has become quite the event over the years.

So being welcomed into someone else’s Easter celebrations was pretty special. They made us feel just like family, and after months of travelling, it was lovely to spend some time in that environment.

Why it stood out:

The people, the relaxed feel and the chance to slow down for a bit.

What surprised us:

How much we appreciated the family side of travelling.

Who would love it:

Families, outdoor lovers and anyone who likes somewhere with a relaxed, welcoming feel. We’d happily go back.

The highlights

Best experience: The basket burn in Hamilton (hot air balloons and a festival!), hiring a dough boat in Taupo and visiting Orakei Korako – all completely different, all brilliant in their own way.

Best food: Home-cooked van food! We hadn’t realised how much we’d missed being able to make our own food.

Best moment: Landing in New Zealand. Without question.

Funniest/weirdest moment: My spectacular hairdresser-related fail in Vietnam. It’s hard to beat a story involving slipping, flailing like a beached whale and being dragged to safety by a confused receptionist.

The lowlights

Every adventure has them, and this month had some big ones.

The NZeTA panic

We genuinely spent much of our final time in Ho Chi Minh City wondering whether we’d be allowed to board our flight to New Zealand.

Definitely not the leg of the trip on which you want to discover you’ve forgotten an important travel document.

When home suddenly felt very far away

Having a family member pass away while you’re travelling is one of those things you never want to think about. It was devastating, and being on the other side of the world made it even harder. After years of dreaming about New Zealand, I suddenly found myself painfully aware that I couldn’t have been much further away from my family.

It didn’t make me love New Zealand any less. If anything, it gave me a different perspective on what home actually means.

I’m going to write a separate post about this at some point, because there’s a much bigger story here than I can fit into a monthly travel round-up.

The weather had other plans

We’d planned to explore Northland at the tip of New Zealand’s North Island, but some pretty serious weather warnings changed those plans.

Huge storms meant some communities became isolated, so rather than heading north as planned, we ended up spending a couple of days hanging around a car park in Auckland watching Shrek on repeat while we waited to see what the weather was going to do.

Not exactly the New Zealand adventure we’d pictured!

But, as we’ve learned by now, travelling rarely goes exactly to plan.

Food obsession of the month

Dish/Drink: Van food, home-cooked by us!

Where: Lando the van (named by the F1-obsessed three-year-old)

Why we loved it: After three months of eating out, it suddenly felt very luxurious to be able to make exactly what we fancied.

What this month taught us

That sometimes the things that make somewhere special aren’t the things you expected.

I’d already loved New Zealand before this trip, but what I hadn’t expected was how much we’d enjoy getting back into van life together. After months of backpacks, packing and unpacking, having our own little home on wheels gave us a completely different pace.

And Napier reminded us that sometimes what you need from a place isn’t another attraction or adventure. Sometimes it’s good people, a home-cooked meal and an Easter egg hunt.

This month also reminded us that being far away has its downsides. We can love travelling and still miss home. We can be having the adventure of a lifetime and still have difficult things happen.

And I guess we’ve come to realise that both can be true at the same time.

Photo highlights

• Huka Falls – nature at its finest
• Basket Burn in Hamilton
• The campervan and getting back to van life
• Walks in Napier with our friends who became family
• Orakei Korako – showing off New Zealand’s geothermal landscapes
• Fun in Rotorua – the self-proclaimed ‘Vegas’ of the North Island

Would we go back?

Nha Trang: Probably not – it just wasn’t our favourite spot in Vietnam.

Ho Chi Minh City: Yes – we’d like to see more of it without the looming visa panic.

Auckland: Yes – although we’d probably use it more as a starting point for exploring.

Hamilton: Yes – we really enjoyed our time here.

Rotorua: Yes – there’s loads more we’d like to explore.

Taupo: Absolutely.

Napier: 100% yes. We loved it.

Wellington: Yes – we’d happily spend longer here.

New Zealand in general: Is this even a question??

One thing we’d do differently

We’d have planned our Vietnam-to-New Zealand transition a little more carefully – particularly checking the entry requirements before we got to the airport!

But to be honest, the single biggest thing we’d change is the amount of time we’d have in New Zealand. It still stands as my favourite place, and is now top of the list for Mr Rick and Little Rick too. So I think we’d have planned six months in New Zealand. We’d have completely bankrupted ourselves… but dare I say it would have been worth it?

What’s next

We’re properly into the New Zealand chapter now. And we’ve only seen the North Island.

Next month, we’re heading south to discover the South Island – and I cannot wait to see it again.

More road trips, more van life, more ridiculous scenery and hopefully slightly fewer administrative disasters.

Let’s see what the next month brings…

FAQs about travelling New Zealand with a toddler

Is New Zealand good for travelling with a toddler?

Absolutely. We found New Zealand a particularly easy fit for family travel. So much of what we wanted to do involved being outdoors, exploring and having adventures, and travelling by campervan gave us the flexibility to take things at our own pace.

Is New Zealand family-friendly?

Yes. We found it easy to travel as a family, particularly because there was so much outdoor space and so many activities that worked well for all three of us.

Is New Zealand worth visiting with a toddler?

Definitely. Bringing Little Rick made the experience even more special, and we found it easy to combine outdoor adventures with slower family days. The campervan also meant we could adapt our plans around a toddler.

Is travelling around New Zealand by campervan good with a toddler?

For us, absolutely. We’re used to van life in the UK and Europe, so having a campervan in New Zealand felt incredibly familiar. Having all our belongings in one place also made a huge difference after months of packing and unpacking.

What is the best place to visit in New Zealand with a toddler?

Everywhere. I’d describe New Zealand as the absolute fun capital of the world. There are things to do everywhere. On the North Island alone, we found brilliant family adventures in Hamilton, Rotorua, Taupo and Napier.

Enjoying our 6-month adventure?

If you’re enjoying following along with our 6-month family adventure, there’s plenty more to come.

You can start at the beginning with our Month 1 recap, catch up on Month 2 in Vietnam, or keep following as we take Lando the van south and discover a completely different side of New Zealand.

👉 Read Month 1: Singapore, Thailand & Finding Our Feet in Southeast Asia

👉 Read Month 2: Vietnam with a Toddler – A Full Assault on All Our Senses

And if you’re planning your own family adventure, bookmark this series – we’re sharing the reality of travelling long-term with a toddler, including the places we loved, the bits that didn’t quite go to plan, what we’d do differently and everything we learn along the way.

Next up: the South Island. And I cannot wait.