If you’ve been reading this blog for a while and are familiar with the structure, you’ll know that I always like to take some time to reflect on the adventures and, as a wrap-up, shortlist my favourite pictures.

And this post will be no exception.

But this trip to the other side of the world has been so unique that I find it difficult to put my thoughts together.

First of all, I’d say it’s given me the opportunity to reconnect with two of my passions: the discovery of new places and photography.

In fact, my entrepreneurial endeavours with Cruizador and lately Covid had put the brakes on my adventures.

On the other hand, the COVID and its consequences, especially on my business and travel prices, limited the adventurous spirit in me.

Of course, in 2023 I was able to reconnect a little with these two passions by returning to Morocco, partly to see my business partner Nabil, but also to discover the Atlantic coast.

But in the end it was only for about ten days. Including 5 days of real work.

But at the beginning of 2024, there was a kind of conjecture of factors, an alignment of the planets, which allowed me to embark on my adventure again, with a free hand.


The main reason was to visit my cousin, who’s like a brother to me. Him and his family had emigrated to New Zealand about 5 years ago.

And 2024 was a big milestone, marking two major life events for them: obtaining permanent residency and buying their first home in Raglan.

Of course, I’d always wanted to visit the country. But the distance and travelling time just to get there had put me off.

But this time the opportunity was too great.

Besides, business was at a standstill due to the winter, and I’d got the go-ahead from my partner, who couldn’t join me for professional reasons unfortunately.


I think that’s a rhetorical question. Of course it was worth it, every penny of it!

Although the South Island was a little less unfamiliar to me than the North Island.

New Zealand is considered by many to be the Switzerland of the southern hemisphere. And this is especially true of the South Island. At times I felt like I was exploring places I had been before, like Graubünden. This mountain landscape with the alpine lakes, for example.

But on a much smaller scale compared to the New Zealand reality.

The North Island was more of a change of scenery. Nature was more lush and the meadows much greener.

But in both cases I would say that I didn’t feel like I was visiting one country, but a multitude of different countries.

Some of the landscapes reminded me of the Iceland, especially the volcanic sand beaches in Raglan, or the seismic activity, such as Hot Water Beach or Waiotapu Thermal Wonders.

In some other places I felt like I was in the northern part of Thailand. What a strange sensation, this feeling of déjà vu.

The presence of the big cities, Auckland or Wellington, also brought more diversity. In Auckland for instance, I felt a bit the same vibe than in Singapore.

So as you can tell if you’ve read the different article I wrote about my NZ adventures, I visited not only one country but severals.


But all this comes at a price. The price of travelling almost two days if you live in Western Europe just to get your food on New Zealand soil.

And to overcome 12 hours of jet lag, which is not for the faint-hearted 🙂

Of course, the stopover in San Francisco helped a lot. But at the end of the day, it made the journey even longer.

I had the privilege of spending a whole 2 months there and still felt I had to exclude certain things. Of course, part of the reason I came was to spend time with my cousin and his family.

And on top of that, I didn’t get involved in any long outdoor activities, which left me with more time for sightseeing.

There are virtually no motorways in New Zealand. So when you’re driving, you’ll have to deal with all the regional traffic, as well as trucks, farmers’ convoys and so on.

Sometimes you’ll have an extra lane to take over, but most of the time you won’t. So a 200km journey can quickly turn into a 4 hour journey, or even longer if you happen to have to deal with roadworks or a mountain pass.

Technically, you could fly as there are a lot of regional airports in New Zealand.

But first of all, I don’t know where you stand when it comes to your carbon footprint/environmental sensitivity…

You could argue that after a 35 hour flight to get there, is a 2 hour flight really going to make much of a difference? Besides, most regional flights are operated by propeller aircraft, which tend to use less fuel.

But in the end, don’t all the little streams make up the great rivers and all the geistures, even the smallest, count?

And if you have to triple your carbon footprint to get there, you can at least reduce it by trying to use less polluting transport once you get there.

Once you factor in the time it takes to get to the airport, check in your bag(s), go through security, wait to board, fly, pick up your bag, take a taxi to the city centre or hire a car, the difference with ground transport is often less significant.


Traveling through New Zealand on a budget is definitely challenging.

Covid has had a detrimental effect on inflation, and prices have since soared. The overall economic situation in 2024 was tense, to say the least, and not just in New Zealand. So, depending on your local currency, FX may not be working in your favour either. On top of that, the market outlook is not the best.

And to top it all off, if you’re on a tight schedule, you’ll probably either have to be super selective about what you want to do/see or accept compromises.

This requires a bit of capital up front, but there’s a good chance you’ll get (some of) your money back in the end. Especially if you haven’t bought the worst wreck.

However, if you do this at the end of the season, you might have to cut prices to make sure you find a buyer (offer and demand situation).

But all in all, travelling in a van allows you to cut down on some expenses, such as eating out or hotels/accommodation.

As mentioned in the first article about the Coromandel adventures, there are apps that show you spot where you are allowed to stay overnight without paying any fee.

You’ll find signs stating how much you’ll be fined if you try to camp there. Usually in the range of 2-400 NZD. And they really do enforce the law. So don’t expect to go under the radar.

So, depending on the location/season, you may end up paying for a pitch on a campsite. Depending on what you need, i.e. with or without electricity, this will cost you between NZD 50 and NZD 100, sometimes even more.

Food will not be cheap either. And depending on where you usually live, this could also be a shock.

I personally live in Switzerland at the moment and 50% of the time I live in one of the most expensive cities in the world (Zurich).

So it shouldn’t have been a big shock for me, but still, I was sometimes a bit shocked to see the prices of things that are usually grown in the country (fruit, vegetables, etc.).

Last but not least, hiring a car will cost you a lot of money, and the price of a tank of petrol will be about the same as in Switzerland.

Ultimately, though, as you are unlikely to be making the trip every other year, we can safely assume that you will want to make the most of it. And therefore not count every penny.

That’s why it’s better to save a little before you go.


To end this post and my New Zealand adventures, I have curated a selection of my favorite pics. I hope you’ll like them.

If you want to know more about the background of some of the pictures, you can find the detailed blog posts here.

  1. We touched base and settled into local life in Raglan (here)
  2. We went on a road trip around the Coromandel Peninsula (here)
  3. We took a fair amount of time to explore the Kiwi cities (here)
  4. We embarked on a great adventure in the South Island (part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4)
  5. And we ended our trip with a road trip in the Mont Taranaki region (part 1, part 2)

If you’re a bit indecisive about the image you’d like to have printed, may I suggest the annual calendar I’m releasing. This consists of 12 months + cover in A3 format with landscape images from around the world. More info here


That’s it for now!

I really hope you get to discover this incredible country for yourself! It’s so much more than just the scenery. If you love nature, endless landscapes, and infinite spaces, and if you want to discover a different state of mind, fully immersed in nature, you’ll fall head over heels with this country!

I’ll leave you here, but stay tuned because you’ll be up for another round of adventures, this time closer to home in the Balkans!

I was lucky enough to go on a road trip for a whole month in Croatia, Montenegro and Albania, in June/July of 2024.

But as you can imagine, my inspiration and writing flow is running a bit dry after these 10 long posts. So I won’t be back until 2025 at the earliest.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Un abrazo grande.

Yours devotedly.