From holiday parks to family-friendly hotels and resorts, New Zealand offers a range of accommodation to suit all types of families.
Explore New Zealand together and give the kids a holiday to remember. Hire a campervan, stay in a hotel or experience a farm stay. There are family friendly accommodation options to suit all budgets.
Holiday parks provide powered and non-powered sites for tents, caravans, campervans and motorhomes. Many also have simple cabins, self-contained motel units with kitchenettes and backpackers' lodges.
Shared kitchen and bathroom facilities is always part of the deal and often include a TV and games room and barbecues.
Great value for families, holiday parks usually have play areas, heated swimming pools, trampolines. Free-range kids means parents have time to relax.
Unwind, relax and soak in your private hot tub onsite at Hanmer Springs Top 10 Holiday Park. Nestled amongst native plants, the hot tubs can fit a family of five, or leave the kids with the grandparents and escape to the tub for some alone time - after all, it's your holiday too.
Wanting a stop and drop holiday? A hotel or resort is the way to go, with many offering a babysitting and a tour booking service.
Small or large family? Little ones or big kids? Interconnecting or family rooms are a great way to experience hotel accommodation.
Let someone else take care of the hassle of meal planning with breakfast included and a restaurant and carpark onsite, a hotel package can take care of the nitty gritty for you.
Motels, motor inn's and motor lodges cluster along main driving routes so they're generally easy to find.
Motel accommodation usually features a selection of studio, one or two bedroom units. Tea, coffee and sometimes cooking facilities are provided and most units have a TV. Very affordable, motels are ideal for the more budget conscious traveller who appreciates the ease of a hotel stay.
Keep an eye out for Qualmark star rated properties for a quality stay and great hospitality.
Grab some gumboots and roll up your sleeves! Farm stays are a unique accommodation option if you want a real taste of rustic, authentic Kiwi farm life.
Start the morning with a hearty farmstead breakfast then get ready to pitch in with feeding lambs and calves, round up the sheep ready for shearing or learn to milk a cow.
Often similar to a bed and breakfast (B&B), with a few extra hands-on activity options thrown in farm stay accommodation lets you feel like part of the farming family and a holiday the kids wont forget.
Venture just 90 minutes from Christchurch to Pohatu Penguin Farm Stay is a working sheep and cattle farm in Akaroa. Specialising in 24 and 48 hour packages, their family friendly cottage, gypsy wagon and tree house are surrounded by beaches, private bush and walking tracks. Let the kids stay up past bedtime to greet little white-flippered penguins as they swim to land. An experience the kids will remember for years to come.
Kids glued to their devices? Show them how you used to spend the school holidays. Take them on a nostalgic journey to experience New Zealand's great outdoors just the way you did as a kid.
Rise with the sun and spend the day looking for wildlife and native plants on the many day walks, skim stones on the river and toast marshmallows together.
Department of Conservation (DOC) campsites can be found all around the country, often in remote wilderness areas. The facilities vary, but they all have stunning locations. DOC campsites tend to be quieter than holiday parks and often have walking trails nearby.
If you're travelling on a budget and enjoy exploring the wilder side of New Zealand, responsible freedom camping is an option.
Not keen on packing 'everything except the kitchen sink'? Leave space in the car and give glamping a go, it's like camping but with the comforts of home.
Check out the free CamperMate, Rankers Camping NZ, and Campable apps to find campsites, toilets and waste stations.
I spy with my little eye...a home on wheels, a moving hotel, a holiday on wheels - no matter what the kids like to call it, motorhomes and campervans are the most flexible of accommodation types for family road trips and something the little ones will look forward to.
Come across a scenic picnic spot? Pull over and prepare your lunch from the camper. Had enough driving for the day? Find a suitable place and park up for the night.
Holiday parks and campgrounds have kitchen, laundry and bathroom facilities. Powered sites allow you to connect your vehicle so you can charge your battery and use the camper heater and more electrical features.
Responsible freedom camping may be possible for fully self-contained vehicles, but it’s wise to check with the local information centre first as each district in New Zealand has different rules on where it is permitted.
