me hitch hiking in New Zealand

My Experiences Hitch Hiking Around New Zealand

I first read about New Zealand and its amazing outdoor wonders while in university in my mid-20s. Ever since, I’ve been keeping my eyes & ears peeled for news, stories and tips about traveling around that far-flung natural paradise.

Including in those stories were many tales about travelers hitch-hiking around the country. All those accounts described the ease and safety of hitch-hiking around safe & friendly New Zealand. Reportedly, not only was hitching easy and safe, but the friendly, helpful local residents who picked up hitchers often would go so far as to invite the travelers to their homes – for a meal or even to stay overnight!

So when I finally made it to New Zealand in 2014 for some rather extensive travels, I had hitching on my mind as a potential means of getting around. During my first 3-month trip around the North Island in early 2014, I did not even attempt it, however, for several reasons.

First, I was traveling during off-peak tourist season, so I figured there wouldn’t be many travelers on the roads. Secondly, thanks to Naked Bus.com, I was able to book several bus trips between all my travel destinations for an average of $10 NZ, regardless of how far the journeys were. At that low rate, why bother standing on the side of the road with my thumb out?

starting Abel Tasman Track on South Island

But when I came down to explore the South Island for three months, I decided to give hitch-hiking a go. In fact, for more than half my trip, hitch-hiking has become my primary means of transportation. There are several reasons I decided to try it out this time, despite being a solo female traveler.

First of all, while preparing my South Island trip I couldn’t find any low bus rates between my intended destinations, even through Naked Bus. Even when searching two months in advance most Naked Bus trips cost $20-50, some just for a 1-hour ride. The high prices were more than I wanted to pay to get around from place to place.

Secondly, I’m traveling during the peak summer tourist season and along the most popular tourist routes to the most popular & famous destinations on the South Island. I figured I’d be able to get rides easily enough, either with locals or other travelers.

So as soon as I arrived on South Island in mid-November, I put my hitching skills into practice. For my first ride – on my second day on South Island – I didn’t actually have to stick out my thumb nor stand on the side of the road at all.

I was staying at a backpackers in Picton, so I simply chatted with other travelers about where they were going and what they were doing. Almost instantly I found two European girls heading out the following day along scenic Queen Charlotte Drive, doing a day hike on Queen Charlotte Track then heading further west to Nelson. They were happy to have me join them, not just for the scenic ride, but for the entire day’s adventure.

After we hiked and explored Queen Charlotte Sound area, they dropped me off in Havelock town, where I intended to set out on a 2-day hike of the Nydia Track.

Not long after that I jumped into my second and third hitching experiences, just after I completed Nydia Track and found myself way out in remote Duncan Bay on Tennyson Inlet.

hitching out of Nydia Track – Marlborough Sounds

That time I was really hitching – thumb out on the side of the road. There wasn’t much traffic way out there, but I’d been told that the few locals who were driving out, heading to town, were generally happy to give people a lift. That proved to be true. Quite happily I did not have to wait long to catch a ride out to the main highway.

From the highway I had to hitch back to Havelock. This also felt like a first. It was my first time to hitch on a major road with heaps of traffic flowing by.

After all the great hitching stories I’d heard over the years about how helpful & friendly the locals were, I expected that as soon as I stuck my thumb out, the very first car that came along would stop and give me a lift.

So I was a bit taken aback when that first car drove right on by me. What? Then a second and third, fourth and fifth car drove by without slowing or showing any interest in me. Hmm… I estimate about 20 cars & trucks whizzed right past me on that road without paying me any mind. I was astonished.

But at long last (and only 15 minutes after starting) a local woman stopped and gave me a lift to Havelock, right to the door of my Motor Camp, in fact. Thank you very much.

At that point, with two successful road-side hitches and a hook-up with fellow hostellers under my belt, I felt like an experienced hitch hiker and proceeded quite confidently to hitch all over the top of the South Island and down the West Coast.

For over one month I got everywhere by hitch-hiking. From Picton to Havelock, Nelson, Motueka, Golden Bay and back, I caught rides by standing on the side of the road, sticking out my thumb and smiling encouragingly.

 Here’s a summary of my hitching experiences.

* Around the Picton – Nelson – Abel Tasman – Golden Bay area I never waited more than 30 minutes for a ride. Usually I only had to wait 10-20 minutes.

* Out along the west coast, however, there was a very marked lack of traffic for some reason. According to all the guidebooks, the west coast road is chock-full of camper vans, caravans and travelers driving cars from Dec to Feb.

But when I was hitching in mid-December, 2014, the roads were nearly empty. Apparently, it was a much quieter year than normal.

the stunning but empty West Coast road in Dec. 2014

Not surprisingly, then, I ended up waiting considerably longer for rides. In fact, on several occasions I waited 1-2 hours, hopefully tossing out my thumb at every passing vehicle. Most cars and trucks just flew past.

But the occasional local resident or foreign traveler would stop and give me a lift. So I always got to my destination, eventually, on the day I set out.

Lash with Ben & Becca – British couple I befriended while doing HelpX

* In total I caught 20 rides over 1-month’s time. Two rides came from travelers at hostels/campgrounds I was staying at. I caught all my other rides by standing on the side of the road with my thumb out, smiling brightly.

Several locals I befriended and a British couple I’d met earlier in NZ also gave me multiple rides (But I don’t count those as hitch-hiking).

* Thirteen of my 20 rides were with locals. Almost all of them had traveled extensively themselves and/or had lived abroad.

* Seven rides were from foreigners traveling around New Zealand, much like me. They had cars or caravans and were happy to give me a lift as they traveled down the road.

* Nobody asked me to pitch in for fuel. I offered to help pay for fuel to fellow travelers on two occasions. One of them gratefully accepted my meager offer, the other stoutly refused. So in all my extensive travels around South Island by thumb over one month’s time, I spent a total of NZ$10.

* I never felt in danger. I never got a ride with a person who I felt was dodgy.

* My shortest rides lasted 10 minutes. Those were from locals who stopped to tell me I was standing at the wrong location for hitching, and then took me out to the right spot! Very considerate and helpful.

camping in Westland NP with Helene, the French woman who gave me a lift for 3 days

* My longest ride lasted three days! Yep. A lovely French woman picked me up at Pancake Rocks, as she was heading slowly down the west coast. We hit it off, had the same relaxed pace of travel, both enjoyed beaches & camping & culture & the great outdoors.

I ended up riding with her and exploring the west coast for three full days. We suntanned on beaches together, laughed at crazy signs and railroad tracks, hiked to glaciers, camped together and did a few walks.

* All in all, I had a marvelous time hitch-hiking around the South Island. Aside from the few excessively long waits along the west coast road, I actually enjoyed standing on the side of the road, asking for help, trying out my luck traveling with the help of others. It added an extra element of adventure, a test of my fellow mankind and a sense of freedom and accomplishment.

I also gained a great inner glow – a wonder about people helping me out just for the heck of it. I shared travel stories with other world travelers and local farmers. We marvelled together at the spectacular scenery we drover through. I heard locals’ perspectives on life and happenings in New Zealand.

I felt fortunate and grateful for being helped along my journey. For their part, the drivers felt great helping out a fellow traveler. Everyone benefited from the exchanges. And I’ve had the most heart-warming feelings towards my fellow humans than I’ve had in a long, long time. It’s made my South Island trip much more about connecting with people than I had ever anticipated. It’s been a great ride – or, more accurately, one great ride after another. (no pun intended)

Questions:

 Have you ever hitch-hiked?

 If so, where and how did it go?

 Would you like to try hitch-hiking around New Zealand?

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Watch Me Fly a Stunt Airplane!

New Zealand’s Famous Abel Tasman Coast Track

Photos of South Island’s Dramatic West Coast

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