Dec 4, 202411 min read

Christchurch, New Zealand Travel Guide (An Insider's Perspective)

Updated: Dec 13, 2024

Hi friends! Ahh it's been a while since we've been back from our NZ trip! We headed over to NZ on the 12th of November and got back on the 26th of November and for the past week and a bit, I have been battling sunstroke (please wear sunscreen, especially in NZ), somewhat of a cold, and a really awful migraine so I haven't been my best self. But I'm sitting down now to write this Christchurch, NZ travel guide (bonus it's from a local - although lots of people call me a Melburnian now so who knows).

I'm also editing a 5 part YouTube series of vlogs for the time Luke and I spent in NZ so as I edit and upload those I will add them to the bottom of this guide. But I do still recommend checking out Ōtautahi if you haven't been there before.

Before I get into the guide I just wanna talk about a few odd things that happened while we were in NZ (and I don't want to complain, but I also don't want to bottle them up either, so here we go - that way you can skip them and get to the travel tips below if you're not interested).

On our flight over to CHCH, we were supposed to land at around midnight NZ time. However, once we boarded the flight, we had a 2.5 hour delay because the anti ice wasn't working - thankfully the fancy engineers worked their magic and we got there safely.
We stayed in a hotel at Lake Tekapo - one I had dreamed of staying in ever since I was younger (but never had the money too) and the receptionist who served us was quite misogynistic. I had used my card to pay, so when we got there I had to fill out all the forms etc. But, the receptionist asked Luke for his Credit Card and said it has to match the booking, so I pulled out my wallet and got my card and gave it to him. When he was finished with my card, he gave it to Luke. Like okay, he's obviously my partner but what if you have just given the card to a stranger? It was very odd - I snatched the card because I was grumpy at the interaction, and bit my tongue but all I wanted to say was "women pay for things too, it's not 1950." All other staff were really lovely.
Someone had a golly doll (so racist) in their spare room and it really gave me a horrible vibe.
People were asking me how much money I made per week - I wasn't comfortable sharing that. It's not really their business anyway.
People kept asking people to take photos of them but never offered back (I find that when we travel around Victoria, it's usually an exchange, not an expectation so that kinda rubbed me the wrong way).
On the way back home, we ended up getting a taxi back from the Airport and the guy was really awful to both the Airport staff and us. He berated the Airport staff for telling us he had to take us home, and he complained and swore the whole way home. It was sooo scary. I had a panic attack. Idk if I'll make a separate blog for what happened but I've already left two bad reviews and messaged the airport directly. I don't think anything will change but that's probably one of the scariest experiences ever. I'm so embarrassed for the panic attack but he was so mean.

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Christchurch, New Zealand Travel Guide (An Insider's Perspective)

I won't be doing accommodation recommendations for CHCH as we stayed in my mum's house and only one hotel in Lake Tekapo. But I'll be recommending foodie places, things to do, and all things nature!

Christchurch Eats!

Casa Nostra, Ferrymead - I'd eaten here once before and I was glad it was quite quiet when Luke and I walked down here because it was so delish! It wasn't super expensive either. If you like Italian food, this is a great place to check out!
Cassels Brewery Bar - another one that was in walking distance from my mum's house, located down at The Tannery. We had brunch here one day and also a lunch with some family members. I think I preferred the brunch food. Definitely a winner if you like craft beer and pizza though.
Fiddlesticks, CBD - This has been my favourite restaurant in CHCH for so long and is my version of "fine dining" - except the meals aren't that tiny - they definitely filled us up and I loved the desserts. We went for lunch, and I wasn't disappointed.
The Curator's House, Botanic Gardens - Now we didn't get a chance to have dinner here because we got so busy and days kinda flew by, but I would highly recommend it if you are a foodie.
Riverside Market - To me, this always felt like CHCH was trying to copy Melbourne's Queen Victoria Markets but Riverside is just food and there's some great food spots in there. I really like the dosa place and also the crepes place. Highly recommend to someone who wants to try lots of different street foods.
Sweet Soul Patisserie - This is the place I tried a Paris Brest for the first time and fell in love with how good Choux pastry is so of course, I had to take Luke here. It is on the more expensive side but trust me it's worth it. Plus they made a nice iced match!
Darfield Bakery - one of my favourite bakeries, so good!

Eats in Lake Tekapo

We also drove out to Lake Tekapo/Mount Cook so I wanted to put the places we ate separate from CHCH but there was some great food here!

Blue Lake Eatery and Bar - A great restaurant, yummy food, lovely staff, and yummy cider and beers! I would suggest making a booking because we were so lucky to get in. Here I had the best panna cotta of my life and trust me, I've eaten a lot of panna cottas - it's kinda one of my go-to desserts that I know won't hurt my tummy.
T.L.V - There was nice enough food here but it felt quite overpriced for the size of the meals, but a really great sticky date pudding for dessert and cool views over the lake.
The Greedy Cow - (Brunch spot) I was so excited that they still had my favourite dish here - Turkish Eggs. Really lovely food, although the pay wave didn't seem to work so that was annoying but great food! I even have an internet friend who loves this place too. It was quite busy at 7:30am so make sure you get there early if you want to beat the crowds. They also had eclairs in their cabinet and I'm regretting not getting one.
Jack Rabbit - (Another Brunch Spot) - this place had nicer coffee than The Greedy Cow but not as good food. Don't get me wrong, it was nice, it just wasn't amazing. But they do 4 hash browns for $5 so we ended up with like 8 hash browns so that was hard to eat LOL.

Cool Things to Do!

Christchurch Botanic Gardens - This is why CHCH is called the Garden City. I've always loved the botanic gardens. Super pretty and great nature area to walk around in. My favourite spots are the NZ garden, the greenhouse, and the rose garden. There's also a cafe if you're peckish and very clean public bathrooms. Oh, and look out for Californian Quails here because that's where they like to breed.
The Tram - This wasn't something that we did this time - living in Melbourne you kinda get your tram fix but it's a cool part of CHCH history (I went on it when I was little), so if you wanna go for a ride, check it out (Also, ask for Colin, he will help you heh).
Christchurch Art Gallery - If you like art, this is a must-do! They often have great art displays in here and you can learn a lot. Bonus, it's free.
The Arts Centre - When I was little, this place was booming with markets. It's not as busy as it used to be, but it still has some cool and quirky shops there so I highly recommend checking it out. Plus, we saw some cool street art of popsicles.
The Museum (when it's open) - The museum is currently closed for renovations and will be for a while but I always thought it was one of the more interesting parts of CHCH. Plus, my favourite display was the giant penguins once they found the fossils.
Antarctic Centre - This is on the pricier side, but if you're interested in Antarctica, it's worth a visit. Bonus, you can see penguins!
The Gondola - A great way to see the Port Hills (but if you're afraid of heights, it's a bit scary) but definitely worth it for the views. I personally prefer the one in Queenstown but if you're not a CHCH local, it is a cool thing to do.
The Air Force Museum - If you're looking for more FREE stuff to do, I highly recommend checking this place out, it's really cool, even if you don't like planes. I'm kinda sad that I still haven't taken Luke here yet.
Willowbank Wildlife Reserve - I should have put this higher on the list but hey, it's my favourite wildlife park in CHCH. And it's one that's really good with it's conservation (unlike the other zoo in CHCH). Plus, you get to feed all the animals so it's great for kids.
Lyttleton - Lyttleton is a Port down and according to Wiki, has been used "As a landing point for Christchurch-bound seafarers, Lyttelton has historically been regarded as the "Gateway to Canterbury" for colonial settlers" There's not a lot to do here but it is pretty cool to check out (and you can get to some lovely beaches from here like Corsair Bay).
Riccarton Sunday Market - There are a few markets in CHCH but this has to be my favourite one! It's so big, there's lots of parking and it has lots of food, lots of stalls, and fun stuff for kids to do. I think sometimes they even put rides. There's no public transport, so you have to drive, but it's worth it.

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Nature/Beaches

Sumner Beach - One of my favourite beaches to go to, especially because it's an easy drive from my mum's house. I loved doing evening walks here and taking sunset pics. It's booming in summer.
Taylor's Mistake (Godley Head Walk) - You gotta drive over a big twisty twisty hill to get here, but it's soooo pretty and worth it. You can swim here and there's a couple of walks you can do too. I am not as fit as I used to be (like I never used to struggle with these walks) so this time I didn't get very far but Luke got to see some cool views thankfully. And, we got to have some real fruit ice cream - which I recently learned was a specific to NZ thing. In googling it just now, I found some companies that do it in Aus but I can't locate them so I think you must hire them? So it's not the same as coming across an ice cream truck next to a beach (like I swear they're at all the beaches in NZ). If you don't know what real fruit ice cream is, basically they get either a soft serve vanilla ice cream or just like a Tip Top vanilla ice cream and they blend it with berries. It's so good, trust me.
New Brighton Beach - I kinda feel like New Brighton has had a bit of a revamp since I've lived there BUT it's a cool beach to go for a swim or walk on and it has a cool pier + library. Oh, and there's some hot pools there now too! I think they're definitely trying to get the crowds back in.
Haswell Quarry Park - I love this little spot, we saw a Kingfisher just chilling here and it's great to watch the sunset. There's even a dog park too! Super easy walks over the hills here and I believe some of the stone was used for some CHCH buildings too.
The Groynes - There's actually quite a bit to do here but you really just go to look at all the cute doggos because it's the best dog park.

CHCH - The Gateway to the rest of the South Island

Okay, so we all know this, CHCH is definitely the gateway to the rest of the South Island and I've done a lot of the South Island on roadies. I'd love to take Luke back and do a lot more of it (Plus I'd love to go back to Milford Sound one day). But here's a few day trips/overnight trips from CHCH I thought I'd share here. Obviously, we don't have time to do a whole South Island Roadie but I will always recommend doing that one day.

Mount Sunday (Edoras - LOTR) - This was somewhere Luke wanted to go to last time but we only went for 5 days that trip and this trip was 2 weeks so we had a bit more time to get in a bit more. The drive was really boring apart from the gravel road and the sheep we had to drive through, but it's a very pretty walk. It's short but it's really steep. if you are a Lord of The Rings fan then I highly suggest going here (there were some cool cosplayers too). Warning: It's SUPER windy so be prepared and take hiking boots!
Akaroa - Definitely one of my favourite day trips from CHCH, over the hills and you're in this gorgeous place. If you ever find yourself here, things I would recommend doing are going on a cruise to see dolphins/penguins, checking out Newton's Waterfall, visiting the cemetery, and going to the Giant's House. And we can't forget getting fish and chips because they are delish and no, don't come to me and say "fush and chups" - I'm aware I have an accent, so do you.
Hanmer Springs - A place known for it's hot pools and adrenalin stuff, definitely worth popping in for a visit. We went here last time we visited. One place I'd love to go again is the Hanmer Farm Park but it's only open on certain days. Definitely a place to check out if you want some slow travel time.
Kaikoura - I would say Kaikoura is an overnight trip because it is quite far, but it's a beautiful drive and they have cute seal puppers and if you go out on a boat, you are probably going to see some whales (as it's one of the only places in the world you can see them year-round). I don't think I've spent enough time here tbh.
Arthur's Pass - This is more of a day trip IMO but there's cool walks and waterfalls to see. Just watch out for all the keas who will try and get in your car and eat your windscreen wipers, hehe.
Lake Tekapo - This is a bit of a tourist hot spot but it's a cute town, you can see the pretty lake, The Church of the Good Shephard and stargaze. It has some great food spots too as I mentioned above.
Lake Pukaki - Another alpine lake and is worth a stop just to take a photo (it's in between the drive from Lake Tekapo to Mount Cook).
Aoraki (Mount Cook) National Park - Sooo yeah, this is my favourite place in NZ even though the walk is like 3 hours long (Hooker Valley track) and has 3 swing bridges which freak me out every time. However, the mountain is epic. It's NZ's tallest mountain and looks awesome with the snow on it. Luke and I didn't have enough time to check out the village but we did two walks and we were wrecked. If you are at a basic fitness level, I just recommend doing the Hooker Valley track but there's also the Tasman Glacier walk too. It's a great spot.

Anyway, there is a lot more to do in NZ if you plan on checking it out! And, kiwis are very very friendly so don't be afraid to approach them. They're also very chill and will probably make fun of you, but if you need help, they gotchu.

Some pics! Sorry, I forgot to add these originally!!