We asked guest contributor Sarah Lavender Smith (aka FarFlungGal, who wrote a great piece on RV travel in kiwi-land) to share a post about New Zealand in honor of a worldwide travel bloggers’ initiative called #Blog4NZ. From March 21 to 23, travel bloggers are dedicating their posts to tourism in New Zealand, in the wake of the the February earthquake that occurred in Christchurch. Together, we hope to encourage travelers to visit the country, which is very much up and running and accepting tourists!

“It feels like we drove from Big Sur to the Rockies in less than two hours,” I told my husband as we cut across New Zealand’s South Island on the Great Alpine Highway.

Natural formations known as Pancake Rocks near the west coast of New Zealand.

We started our day on the wet and wild West Coast, marveling at blowholes and layered rock formations known as Pancake Rocks. By lunchtime, we found ourselves in the midst of Arthur’s Pass National Park, staring upward at the Southern Alps’ glacial peaks and slopes of scree. The dramatic change in landscape also dazzled our two school-age kids, who kept pointing and exclaiming, “Look!”

Crossing the South Island from the West Coast to Christchurch along Highway 73 takes just half a day, but I recommend taking at least three to explore the stretch between Westport and Greymouth and to hike or bike around Arthur’s Pass.

Starting in Westport, experience the gorgeous Buller Gorge river valley on horseback with Buller Adventure Tours. Then dine next to waves crashing against the coast at The Bay House in nearby Cape Foulwind (which smells fine in spite of its name), hands-down the best restaurant we found in the region.

The next day, head down to Punakaiki and take a short walk around Pancake Rocks, where wind and waves sculpt the layered limestone stacks into incredible formations that spout water like a whale. From there, drive south and then turn east to reach the woodsy Arthur’s Pass Village—but when you get out of your car, get ready for pretty but pesky alpine parrots called Keas to swarm in search of food.

The author's kids on a famous trail!

Lots of family-friendly short hikes branch out from the village. We embarked on one that passed by a waterfall and clear pool that reflected light and color like gemstones.

Before heading to Christchurch, consider spending a night or two at Flock Hill Lodge, about 15 minutes east of the village (and about two hours from Christchurch). Settled on a working sheep station, Flock Hill Lodge is a collection of comfortable rooms and self-contained cottages that surround a lovely garden, pond and first-rate restaurant.

The area is so magical and visually arresting that it was chosen as a location to film The Chronicles of Narnia’s climactic battle scene. Many challenging tracks (what Kiwis call trails) lead trampers and mountain bikers to remote parts of Arthur’s Pass National Park and nearby Flock Hill, but to my kids the choice of a day hike seemed obvious: The Narnia Track!

A river pool by a trail next to Arthur's Pass Village.

Hills and horses surround Flock Hill Lodge off Arthur's Pass.

The author and her son ride near Buller Gorge.

FarFlung Gal Sarah Lavender Smith and her family spent two months living around New Zealand during a ten-month round-the-world journey, which she chronicled at Away Together. She now blogs about destinations and training advice for runners at The Runner’s Trip: Run Long, Travel Far, Discover More. Photos by Morgan C. Smith.

My husband was driving our rental RV on the North Island of New Zealand, past emerald green pastures dotted with snowy white sheep, when he asked where we should stop for the night. We were heading toward a swath of lush, jungle-like greenery that looked like a hybrid of the Sierra Nevada and Hawaii because groves of pine emerged from a tropical rainforest and a snow-capped peak rose above a beach.

The view out the back of our RV at a camp spot in Waiwera, a half hour north of Auckland.

In the passenger seat, I flipped through a directory that listed dozens of RV parks, several of which dotted the map near us, and answered, “We could go anywhere!”

The freedom to go anywhere — yet always be close to nature — is a large part of what makes traveling by motor home or campervan so appealing in New Zealand. Kiwi couples and families love to vacation at these campgrounds, which are known as “holiday parks,” so much so that camping seems to rival rugby as the national pastime. Much of New Zealand’s tourism industry is dedicated to promoting the parks and catering to campers’ needs.

Our two kids, sitting at the table toward the back of the RV, chimed in with criteria they had honed for choosing a park: It should have a trampoline by the beach or a rope swing over a river, preferably both.

My son loved the zipline at the Kauri Coast holiday park near the North Island's Waipoua Forest.

For Americans, the idea of staying at an RV park may conjure AstroTurf visions of budget-minded bumpkins. Set aside those stereotypes, because New Zealanders make camping (or “glamping,” as my Queenstown friend calls “glamorous camping”) more comfortable, convenient and fun than many hotel-based family vacations we’ve tried.

We rented a motor home from Kea Campers, one of the better-known companies (Maui Motorhome is another), for a week in early December. After we turned it in, we continued to kick back at a lakeside holiday park by renting a cabin at one near Rotorua.

That’s one of the surprises about holiday parks: You don’t actually have to pitch a tent or drive an RV to stay there. Most have no-frills cabins ranging from one-room, box-like units (averaging $50 – $60 NZ per night) with shared showers and toilets, to very comfortable and well-equipped condo-like units with a full kitchen, bathroom and TV (averaging $90 – $110 per night).

A spot to park and plug in a motor home, meanwhile, averages $45 – $60 for couples (families can expect to pay about $10 extra per child). For that you get a parking spot, picnic table, shared kitchen and shower facilities, and other amenities such as a recreation room. Several of the parks we stayed at in the Bay of Islands region north of Auckland had more things for the kids to climb and bounce on than any playground back home.

Cooking on wheels and eating on picnic tables has never been so much fun!

But timing is everything when planning a New Zealand holiday park trip. The whole country goes on summer break from around December 20 through January, so rates for RV rentals shoot up and campsites fill up, necessitating advance reservations, which in turn crimps the ability to travel byways by whim rather than by a set itinerary. The cost quoted for a 4-person RV from Kea, for example, jumps $85 per day, from $279 to $364, from early December to late December 2010. Beating the peak season by traveling in early December is ideal.

Or, going Down Under during America’s Spring Break is an appealing option. March through May marks autumn in New Zealand, when temperatures range in the 50s to 60s and dry days still outnumber wet ones (check the climate on the New Zealand tourism website for details).

Our family found camps in the Top 10 Holiday Parks network to be the best and recommend the following route to sample some of them: for a sublime beach, head north from Auckland to Orewa; for Rainbow Falls and good restaurants, Kerikeri; for a forest fairyland, Kauri Coast; and for lakeside fun, Blue Lake Rotorua.

We haven’t scratched the surface of the South Island — yet. We’re hitting the road there for a month and plan to pass up hotels in favor of holiday parks. “On the road again” never sounded so good.

Watch this short video we made to see what Day One in a rental RV really is like:

“Another chocolate store!” my 11-year-old daughter gasped with disbelief and delight. We were on a sidewalk in Bariloche, Argentina, in the Andes foothills of the Lake District near Chile — but we might have been in Europe rather than South America. Swiss alpine architecture, German trinkets, Italian eateries, designer clothing and sports stores, and countless chocolaterias give this pocket of Patagonia an international flair along with a sense of fun and adventure.

The water in the foreground is actually the Llao Llao Hotel pool, which seems to flow into the lake.

We recently wrapped up two weeks in Bariloche, which sits on the shores of a vast lake surrounded by snow-capped jagged peaks in Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi, the country’s oldest national park. The region is a magnet for skiers, anglers and trekkers during winter and summer, but our family discovered its charms — along with relative bargains — during the off-season months of late October and early November (which, of course, is springtime down there).

Along with the ubiquitous chocolate stores and the irresistible Museo del Chocolate in downtown Bariloche, my daughter and 8-year-old son likely will remember splashing in the indoor-outdoor pool of the renowned Llao Llao Hotel, about a half hour east of the town center, where we spent our first three nights. We splurged on this five-star hotel because we couldn’t resist the location — perched on an emerald bulb of land between two lakes — and its family-friendly offerings, including a kids’ club, game room and gorgeous pool. The pool’s cascade creates an illusion of extending to the lake and beach below.

We booked Llao Llao’s most affordable “partial-view” room in an older wing of the hotel and happily discovered our room was plenty roomy and replete with luxurious linens. Plus, we found the “partial view” fully satisfying.

The back of the Llao Llao Hotel, as seen from our room.

With the kids safely supervised and content to play at the hotel, my husband and I ran off to explore the nearby trails up Cerro Llao Llao, a lovely peak next to the hotel, and Cerro Catedral, site of the main ski development. The kids came along on a gondola ride with Teleferico up Cerro Otto and were wowed by the views at a revolving restaurant there.

Eager for a day trip that would take us out on the lake’s shimmering waters, we spent a full day traveling by boat to the forested Isla Victoria and Parque Nacional Los Arrayanes. This outing is a family-travel must-do, for it combines genuinely interesting environmental education with stunning scenery and good-ol’ hiking and running around. We’re glad we booked the trip with the catamaran Cao Cao and went on a day with an English-speaking guide.

Our family outing to Isla Victoria, on Lago Nahuel Huapi in Patagonia.

We left Llao Llao in search of more affordable, apartment-type lodging and discovered a wide range of cabañas and hotel suites. Unfortunately, due to unchecked development in the last decade, some have a tacky time-share look and support the main rap against Bariloche, which is that it’s too touristy. It’s true that Bariloche, with a population of about 120,000, is bigger and brassier than smaller neighboring communities that dot Patagonia’s Lake District. We spent a week in quieter, quainter Villa La Angostura, about an hour north of Bariloche, and had an unforgettable time there — but if you and your family have time for just one destination, Bariloche offers the widest range of things to do for grown-ups and kids alike.

After sorting through the lodging options, we booked a clean, cozy one-bedroom cabaña on the property of the Villa Huinid Hotel and couldn’t have been more pleased with the setting and service. We had our own little home overlooking Lago Nahuel Huapi, but we also could walk up a few hundred yards to the hotel to take advantage of its fitness room, pool and restaurant. The kids loved the hotel’s play structure and friendly free-roaming dogs, too.

If it's springtime in Patagonia, be prepared for sudden changes in the weather!

Though we did much of our own cooking in the cabaña, we also dined out and found three family-friendly, not-too-touristy restaurants to recommend: Tarquino, in a Hobbit-like quasi-tree house (trees really grow through the restaurant), serving regional specialties and fresh salads; Dias de Zapata, with authentic Mexican food to please this Californian’s palate; and La Fonda del Tia, a no-frills locals’ parrilla with a friendly neighborhood vibe.

One warning: If you go to Bariloche in springtime, prepare yourself for any type of weather. We arrived to blue-sky splendor and got hit by a snowstorm three days later. At least the climate is ripe for rainbows!

Considering the dramatic views and delectable chocolate, it’s no wonder we had dulces sueños (sweet dreams) in Bariloche at bedtime.

FarFlungGal Sarah Lavender Smith is a writer from the San Francisco Bay Area who’s three months into a year-long round-the-world trip. She blogs about her family’s adventures at away-together.com, with the tagline “One family, one year, many places, no regrets.”

All photos by Morgan C. Smith.