- autumn
- shoulder
Avg temp 10–20°C
Rainfall Lower
Daylight 11-13 hr
Phase Shoulder
Autumn colour
Driving a NZ motorhome in April
April is the peak of autumn colour in Central Otago and the Mackenzie. Mild days, cool nights, lowest motorhome rental prices of the year outside winter, easy ferry bookings.
April is the best month of the year for autumn-colour photography around Wanaka, Arrowtown, Tekapo and the Lindis Pass — the willows and poplars peak in mid-to-late April. Daytime temperatures sit at 13-20°C across the South Island and 16-22°C across the North, daylight contracts to about 11.5 hours by month's end, and motorhome rental rates hit their pre-winter low at 25-35% below January peak. The trade-offs are shorter driving days, colder nights (overnight 4-10°C in the Mackenzie), and Easter falling within the month most years.
Where to time the autumn colours
Mid-to-late April: Arrowtown (the historic Chinese mining village just out of Queenstown), Wanaka lakefront, Lindis Pass between Cromwell and Omarama, Tekapo, and the Mackenzie Basin south of Aoraki. The Arrowtown Autumn Festival is usually the third weekend of April — busy but worth scheduling around.
School holidays and Easter
NZ school holidays usually start in mid-April and run roughly two weeks. Easter weekend lands inside that window most years. Both push holiday-park demand sharply in Bay of Islands, Coromandel, Rotorua, Wanaka, Queenstown and Tekapo. Outside those two-and-a-bit weeks, April is the quietest non-winter month on the main loop.
What to pack
Warm sleeping kit (motorhome heaters work but most are run off the leisure battery and won't last overnight without holiday-park hookup). Layered clothing — daytime can hit 20°C, overnight drops to 5°C. A real rain jacket for the West Coast.
Other months and seasons
- NZ motorhome trip in January — Peak summer
- NZ motorhome trip in February — Late summer
- NZ motorhome trip in March — Early autumn
- NZ motorhome trip in May — Late autumn
- NZ motorhome trip in June — Early winter
- NZ motorhome trip in July — Mid-winter
- NZ motorhome trip in August — Late winter
- NZ motorhome trip in September — Early spring
Want help picking the right month for your trip?
Tell us what kind of trip you're imagining and your flexibility on dates. We come back with month suggestions and what each one will cost.