Innholdsfortegnelse for January - February 2020 i RV Travel Lifestyle

When I left off last issue we were just boarding the Interislander bound for Picton. Following a smooth voyage and an on-time arrival we disembarked with a mission to get as far south as possible by nightfall. We prefer not to arrive at new camping grounds after dark, so stopping during daylight hours with time to prepare dinner (preferably a BBQ) is important. Last year there was the problem with delays on the Kaikāura coast part of the journey, but this year there was no such impediment. Once I get on the road I like to press on to whatever destination we have chosen, although there are obvious temptations to dally, and as we proceeded south we passed all those lovely vineyards with their tasting rooms, and the co-driver decided…

There’s a lot to see in our beautiful country, with some of the best bits off the beaten track. That’s why you need a motorhome that’s done the hard yards, developed the best combination of performance, engineering and creature comforts through decades of experience and has runs on the board for reliability. In short, something that just won’t stop! MADE RIGHT HERE IN NEW ZEALAND. Designed and built in New Zealand, the Action Everland comes from the leading maker of motorhomes and campervans in the Southern Hemisphere, Action Manufacturing. In fact, Action has built more than 15,000 rental tough motorhomes for the likes of Britz, Maui and Kea, not to mention ambulances for St John. So you know they’re tough, safe and have been road tested over, literally, millions of…

This low-profile semi-integrated model took our fancy – why wouldn’t it with its U-shaped rear lounge, a front dinette, two drop-down ceiling electric beds and a bathroom with separate shower even. Surprisingly spacious throughout – a good kitchen with lots of storage options, a dinette area with two front-facing seats with belts for guests, adjustable table and swivel cab seating. The bathroom is especially nice, with features that rival some larger motorhomes on the market. The sliding door to the bathroom is a favourite designer style of mine, such a smart use of the space rather than opening a door out into the walkway area. The two ceiling, drop-down electric beds take up to 250kg weight. These really do offer the owner so many variations of use, and it is…

We picked up the vehicle from the Smart RV and Wilderness Rentals main office, and after adjusting the seat and mirrors (for me), taking a quick look over the controls and checking the two passengers on board were secure, we headed away out the gates. We didn’t have far to go to Villa Maria. The vehicle was easy to drive with good visibility, while acceleration was relatively smooth as we headed off into the hills for a few photos and to check out the vehicle inside and out. EXTERIOR The chassis is a wide rear-axle Fiat Ducato front-wheel-drive model. Plenty of grunt for most drivers with the 2.3L multi-jet 110kW engine, with the 6-speed auto transmission. Lots of modern aspects to the exterior with LED lighting under the awning, day…

I remember the day like it was yesterday – the day we actually drove out of our property to be on the road full time. It was the strangest feeling. The excitement was unreal, and the possibility of what new adventures lay ahead was electric, but we were sad to leave our home, all the memories, our regular routine and the safety of normality. But I can tell you now that the adventures and fun we have had and the new people that we have met in the last year exceeded our expectations. The first job we went to was meant to last four months, working at a popular holiday park in the Bay of Islands. To get to the job we had to take the Russell–Ōpua ferry, and fortunately…

An excerpt from the newly released book by Don and Marilyn As we sit down to write this, a wonderful New Zealand summer has just ended. We were privileged to travel the lower North Island and East Cape, enjoying fantastic scenery, soaking up the sun and surf, and meeting wonderful New Zealanders who like us think the best place to be is out on the open road. Our recreational vehicle (RV) of choice is a fully restored and self-contained 1958 14-foot Liteweight Kiwi Caravan. Over the years we have owned many RVs including 11 caravans, a six-metre Toyota Coaster bus and an 11-metre Isuzu bus. We converted both buses to motorhomes. Our RV experiences include nine months living in a caravan while our house was being built, braving the cold…

Reminiscences from NZTODAY founder Allan Dick For those who don’t know much about me, I have spent the past half-century writing about cars. I fell under the spell of the motor vehicle when I was 10 years of age. Firstly I collected pictures, cut from the newspapers, then I plagued car dealers looking for ‘pamphlets’ and then, at 15 years of age, the real thing. As a teenager I was a V8 boy, a milk-bar cowboy of the era; noisy exhausts and driving with the devil. A sneer against society across my face. Responsibility and respectability arrived when I started specialising in writing about cars. From 1990 to about 2005 I was an automotive journalist ‘A-Lister’ and got invited to new-car launches in some of the most exotic places in…

Earlier this year we dropped in to visit Paul and Rochelle Cook, owners of RnRV in Silverdale, north of Auckland – and were in time to review the Carthago ‘Liner for Two’ luxury motorhome just before it headed off to its new owners. This time we got a call to visit before a new model that had just landed and, having been sold immediately, was heading out of the yard and over to Aussie for the new owners in just a few days. This liner is the Carthago Chic CLine 5.3 four-berth model. These are German-built luxury liners, with quality and innovation oozing out of every pore. We enjoyed luxuriating in its interior for a few hours so we could share it with readers. We also got quite distracted by…

The latest model has arrived at DeLuxe RV Group in Blenheim – the most compact length to date within the Pilote semi-integrated range they have chosen for the New Zealand market. We take a peek into the Pilote under-6m motorhome, with three-berths, French bed, good bathroom situation with separate shower and cassette toilet, 20" TV with Freeview and DVD with auto satellite dish and 120W solar panel already fitted ready to go. This size vehicle is so compact you feel like you are driving a car, but with a 728kg payload and a rear tunnel boot enclosing 935 litres of storage you can take all sorts of compactible toys with you, and it is also accessible from under the bed. A tow bar can be fitted to take bigger toys…

George Begg at Classic Motorcycle Mecca A legend is coming home. Classic Motorcycle Mecca, the leading motorcycle collection in the Southern Hemisphere, will soon be home to a world-class display that pays homage to George Begg, a motorsport icon of the 1950s through to his retirement in 1974. The George Begg exhibit will bring Begg’s incredible story – one of taking on the world, and winning, all from a rural New Zealand workshop – to the public. With vehicles built in Begg’s legendary rural workshop, memorabilia from his car-building and motorcycling days and more, it will offer visitors a fascinating insight into how the Southland engineer reached dizzying heights on the world stage. Entry to the George Begg exhibit will be included in admission to the collection, which boasts more…

The Kaikōura earthquake struck at two minutes past midnight on November 14, 2016. The damage was immense but there was no loss of life, because this region – apart from Kaikōura itself – is very sparsely populated. However, New Zealand’s transport infrastructure was thrown into chaos with both the railway line and SH1 damaged to such an extent that wise people scratched their heads and wondered if we needed to look at alternative routes or methods of transport – alternatives such as coastal shipping. The first priority was to see if there was any way that road traffic, at least, could flow again via ‘the inland route’ – Lewis Pass, Springs Junction, the Shenandoah, through Murchison, turning off at Kawatiri, through St Arnaud and down the Wairau Valley. Apart from…

Pick up a JUCY campervan, 4WD, people mover or car from JUCY Rentals www.jucy.co.nz at Queenstown Airport. We’ve tried them, all but this time we had a two-berth JUCY Cabana campervan with a double bed and a little kitchen which gave us the freedom to camp out whenever we felt like it. The Cabana is not self-contained so we stayed at camping grounds and met some awesome people along the way. We liked the ease and manoeuvrability of the basic little campervan and the freedom of not being tied to an itinerary or pre-booked accommodation.…

Now based near the beach at Mt Maunganui, Peter Williams has worked within the national media world for over 45 years. More recently, as Peter winds down his TV career he is looking forward to sharing more NZToday ramblings as he reflects on some of the places around the country he’s come to know and plans to test a few other towns and villages to see what lurks beneath their surfaces. In the course of a very privileged working life I’ve witnessed many of the world’s great sports events, with the tab picked up by my employer: half-a-dozen Olympic Games, probably more Commonwealth Games, a few Black Caps tours and overseas test series, and many of the Rugby World Cups. Invariably on the job I’ve encountered fellow Kiwi travellers in…

The burnt orange colour couldn’t be ignored, nor could those round porthole windows. We were drawn to the Malibu 640LE two-berth campervan as soon as we saw it. You can order your own fancy colour – red, blue, white, orange, grey or black – the red and orange models are certainly happy campervans to look at. This campervan has a rear fixed bed that can be split and raised to each side giving the ability to carry large items in the back area; a dinette in the front with cab seats that swivel – the dinette seats have seat belts fitted so you can take passengers with you, and there is room for their tent under the bed, accessible easily through the fully opening back doors. In between the back…

Based in New Plymouth Merit RV is the official Swift caravan distributor for New Zealand. Always looking to stay ahead of the game, owner Nathan Butler keeps a close eye on development and advances in the brand as they come out of the UK factory. The most recent developments have seen Swift UK develop the Explorer model for the Australian market, specifically with a big boost to the chassis. The 580, 645 and 650 models are built on extra heavy-duty AL-KO chassis with an ALKO ATC trailer control fitted as standard. This boosts payload significantly, and as part of the Aussie spec’s the chassis is 100mm higher than a standard Swift caravan, giving additional ground clearance – a must for the Kiwi ‘freedom’ camper. Other upgrades are the larger entrance…

ILT CHRISTMAS VARIETY SHOW When: December 22 Where: ILT Stadium, Invercargill W: southlandnz.com/node/537451 Without doubt the ILT Christmas Variety Show is one of the highlights of the event calendar with over 400 performers and a special guest appearance from Santa Claus! A spectacular show which always sells out. WESTPORT RACES TROTS When: December 26 Where: Westport A stunning setting, relaxed atmosphere and fantastic live entertainment – this is summer NZ! Treat the whole gang to classic summer memories and smiles with a fun-filled day out trackside at the Interislander Summer Festival Westport Trots. RHYTHM & VINES 2019 When: December 29–31 Where: 75 Waimata Valley Rd, Gisborne W: rhythmandvines.co.nz Chase the sun to Rhythm and Vines, the ultimate New Year’s destination to welcome in the new decade. Widely regarded as one…