Recommendation - Car hire Christchurch

[Yungs]

Hi, we are booked to go on the Sapphire Princess from Syd -Akl 9th Jan 08 and so far have organized car hire for Dunedin and Tauranga but not Christchurch yet.

 

Question: Does anyone know of any car hire companies that will bring a people-mover car to the port for the day? Seems that Lyttleton is too far from Christchurch and most companies aren't all that keen on it.

 

Or would we be better off just catching public transport into town and mooching around Christchurch? Not all that keen on getting cabs as we are 4 adults and 2 children (aged 5 and 3), and wouldn't fit into one cab, also trying to watch the budget a little so DIY excursions would be our preference. What is everyone else planning on doing in Christchurch, if doing DIY stuff?

 

Thanks! Excitement level is building for the cruise....

 

Megan

[SheilaNC]

Megan,

IMHO, taking transportation into Christchurch and then doing a combination of walking and the tram that rides throughout the scenic part of town with commentary is the way to go with children. The Botanical Garden is lovely and 'free' - a perfect place to 'stop and smell the roses' and enjoy some down time with the kids. The area near the river is wonderful for restaurants/pubs/cafes and very scenic. In addition, the Arts Center with lots of shops/displays and a very nice eating places is fun and interesting as is the Cathedral. I could go on but I think you get the idea and any Web site providing tourist info about the city will give you other ideas as well.

 

By the way, there is a visitor center right near the river (this might be where the bus lets you off) that has lots of brochures and friendly people to point you in the right direction.

[STUR]

Hi, we are booked to go on the Sapphire Princess from Syd -Akl 9th Jan 08 and so far have organized car hire for Dunedin and Tauranga but not Christchurch yet.

 

Question: Does anyone know of any car hire companies that will bring a people-mover car to the port for the day? Seems that Lyttleton is too far from Christchurch and most companies aren't all that keen on it.

 

Or would we be better off just catching public transport into town and mooching around Christchurch? Not all that keen on getting cabs as we are 4 adults and 2 children (aged 5 and 3), and wouldn't fit into one cab, also trying to watch the budget a little so DIY excursions would be our preference. What is everyone else planning on doing in Christchurch, if doing DIY stuff?

 

Thanks! Excitement level is building for the cruise....

 

Megan

We are booked on the Celebrity Mercury January 20th,2008 and will be in Christchurch on January 30th

We booked a tour with Celebrity called Christchurch & Countryside

$59.00 Adult $39.00 Child (total tour 4 hr.)

 

Check out to see what Princess has to offer

 

Injoy your trip

 

STUR DAYTON,OHIO

[JPO]

We are also interested in getting a rental car after docking at Lyttleton as we want to drive down to Lake Tekapo, then on to rejoin our ship in Dunedin a day later. It looks like there are no rental agencies operating near the harbor. Any idea whether taxis might be available to take us to Christchurch to pick up a car?

[Coastaljen]

I was looking at that tour too. I am leaning toward a half day tour that will just tell me about the area and give me time to enjoy Christchurch on my own too.

 

I just returned from a cruise last weekend. I paid for one tour, and it is amazing what I learned about the local area from the person giving the tour. To me that is the most interesting part of the cruise. When someone tells you about the area, I feel like I learn a lot more than I do just walking around on my own.

[GEM1]

Hi, we are booked to go on the Sapphire Princess from Syd -Akl 9th Jan 08 and so far have organized car hire for Dunedin and Tauranga but not Christchurch yet.

 

 

 

Question: Does anyone know of any car hire companies that will bring a people-mover car to the port for the day? Seems that Lyttleton is too far from Christchurch and most companies aren't all that keen on it.

 

Or would we be better off just catching public transport into town and mooching around Christchurch? Not all that keen on getting cabs as we are 4 adults and 2 children (aged 5 and 3), and wouldn't fit into one cab, also trying to watch the budget a little so DIY excursions would be our preference. What is everyone else planning on doing in Christchurch, if doing DIY stuff?

 

Thanks! Excitement level is building for the cruise....

 

Megan

 

I have used Apex Rentals in the past and they are very good http://www.apexrentals.co.nz/cars_about.html. They are out near the airport though. Their website says they can arrange a shuttle. They have older cars (2 years old but still good cars) and it worked well for us as the price is good. A rental car is probably not much good for 1 day getting around Christchurch. You would be better off getting into the city and walking around.