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UK to NZ & Aus with own bike
Hi All,
I'm looking to do a trip around NZ & Australia, shipping my bike from the UK to arrive in NZ mid-November 2019, and ship back home to the UK March/April 2020. I'm planning on exploring the back country on small/gravel/dirt roads - nothing too extreme. RE Himalayan: I'm all about taking it slowly and enjoying the sights ! In and out of NZ seems quite straightforward (all things considered) ... Has anyone got any experience of shipping a bike from NZ - Aus (likely airfreight from Aukland International Airport) ? Sydney seems a likely arrival point for Australia. Essentially I'll have December 2019 - March 2020 to do both countries. I've a rough idea of a route for New Zealand, but would be grateful for any tips for Australia. I've done most of the 'must sees' having done a long trip there several years ago, and have family in Sydney. I'd like to do NSW/Vic/Tas/South Australia, rather than a blast around the circumference. Good maps that people have used would be great ! TIA, Matt |
Can't help with Oz but if you haven't already, sign up to Adventure Riding NZ
https://www.adventureridingnz.co.nz/ It has many of the gravel/4x4 public roads in NZ and it's all free. There's a facebook group too where you could arrange to meet members. Remote Moto probably lists more routes on the South Island but there is a cost to access them as the GPX files are available (plus other info). https://www.remotemoto.com/routes/ Stay alert - foreign tourists are notorious for driving on the wrong side of the road & the locals love cutting corners! |
+1 on remote moto - there is a small charge to join the site but it's well worth it.
Not sure what your timing is, but Mar/April would be my choice for touring NZ - most of the tourists will be gone so everything eases up, but the weather is still good. For a map the best road map I've found is the 'Kiwimaps' 'Pathfinder' 'South Island Complete Drivers Atlas With Indexed Country Roads' Product No 252 - have a look on kiwimaps.com. There is also a North Island edition but DON'T buy the combined North/South edition as there isn't enough detail. You can buy them in most service stations for around $25. Any 'road' shown in white is usually unsealed. Just a thought in timing, some of the nice back country roads (Rainbow Road, Nevis Rd, Molesworth Rd) are summer only, Easter is a favorite time for closure for the winter so it would be a pity to miss the cut off. And for a challenge have a look at either the Dusty Butt ride or the TT2000 - or both :-) |
You probably already know to get your bike stupidly clean before shipping to NZ or Oz. We flew our bikes AKL-SYD a few years back & had a lot of hassles when Qantas lost the carnets so keep a tight hold on those. Going into Sydney is definitely best, cheapest & (I think it's still the same) just ride away, no paperwork required after customs & AQIS. Not many people ship vehicles to NZ or Oz for a holiday so expect general cluelessness about the exact requirements at every stage of the process.
Hema maps are really good for Oz. We really enjoyed linking up backroads & nat. parks down the great dividing range from Sydney-Melbourne, & also the Flinders ranges was awesome. Cheers Clint |
Hi - talk to Roddy or Kathy at MotoFreight in Crawley. I shipped my Enfield to Auckland, NZ through them in January this year. Formalities in NZ could easily take a week, but you can save time by having the bike arrive and be processed before you get there - MF can advise and have a look at the NZ government website to get familiar with what’s required.
Australia demands a Carnet so get one for NZ as well to make life easier (you can do a temporary import for NZ but not for Australia). Four months isn’t long when you travel slow and you’ll lose at least a week if not two, moving between NZ and Australia - there’s a RO-RO service between Auckland and Melbourne, that might be your best bet. I was in NZ for six months, if I were in your position I’d be looking to spend at least one month on each of the North Island and South Island, NZ - you could try to get the bike shipped in to the South Island and then leave via Auckland. I’ve been in Australia for two months now, this place is VAST. You’ll need to decide what you want to see/do and plan for it. Enjoy the trip - You’ve got a great bike for either country! |
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Hiya, Many thanks for the advice ... I’ve joined the Facebook group and they all seem a really helpful bunch. Fortunately I’m used to driving on the ‘correct’ side of the toad here in the UK, but point well made ! |
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Thanks Clive - really useful |
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Hey mate, hope your planning is going well. I'm just gonna chuck my 2 cents in. You've probably already thought about this though. I'm British, lived in Aus for 9 years. My recommendation is buy a bike in Australia! You could honestly be on the road the same day you arrived. And bikes in Australia are MUCH cheaper than the uk. I had a shock at the bike prices in the uk last time I went back.
My recommendation, fly into Perth WA, get yourself whatever bike your after (DR 650 or similar would be the perfect companion) and hit the road. Go south down to Esperance, then up to Kalgoorlie, cutting back to the coast to go north. Go over the top, up to Cape York, then down to Tassie if you have the time (lovely riding!). Sell the bike in Sydney (big market, price low and you can expect to sell the same day). Then fly over to Auckland and buy again. You'd really want to buy in Auckland on the south island as it has the most on offer bike-wise. Overall you'll probably save yourself $5k+ and a LOT of hassle! Yes, even temporary import into strayia is a pain in the neck, they had my toolbox in customs for 2 months.... Anyway, if you want to get in touch, need any help with anything, let me know +61422814389. |
Edit : Auckland on the NORTH Island....
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Head-on collisions involving tourists always hit the headlines and on every public holiday there are numerous traffic accidents involving locals too. Bad driving seems to be norm in NZ :censored: I've lived in NZ almost 4 years and would say most of the North Island is like driving in the suburbs of the UK, whereas the SI is like driving in Scotland. Enjoy! :mchappy: |
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No need to apologise ... didn’t even enter my head that it might be a dig ! I hear what you say about the driving ... Thanks once again [emoji1303] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
When you get to NZ feel touch if you'd like a discounted fare on the InterIslander ferry. You don't even need to hire a bike from us, PM me for details if you're interested.
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for the record, NZ customs are phasing out the temporary import scheme, and doing carnet only..
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That’s great, many thanks. I’ll be in touch once my plans start firming up [emoji1303] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
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Hi Fern, That’s really useful, thank you. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
Hello
When reading the below post I was concerned enough to e--mail customs New Zealand and had this reply. So not sure what your source was? Fern http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...er_offline.gif Gold Member Veteran HUBBer Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Cambridge, UK Posts: 665 for the record, NZ customs are phasing out the temporary import scheme, and doing carnet only.. Hello, Thank you for your enquiry. We have not heard of a proposal to remove motor vehicles from the temporary import entry process. In fact, we have heard from potential visitors that the advice they are getting is not to seek a Carnet de Passage, but to rely on the temporary import entry process in New Zealand. If we were to remove motor vehicles from the TIE process, it would be a major change for Customs, and it could potentially create more work for us. As we have not heard of any such proposal you can be confident that it is not happening. Regards, aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa Senior Customs Officer Border Operations, Timaru DDI 22222222222222 Mob 22222222222222 |
ooh, that is good news, I shall try and track down the couple of separate reports I have read that claim the opposite, and track down where they got their info from, I've read several times on hubb either forum or facebook group..
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Hello
It is a relief that they are not phasing out New Zealand Customs temporary import scheme. For those that might not know , unless you already are doing a Grand world trip with a carne de passage the temporary import scheme is far easier if you are just planning a trip to New Zealand with your own bike. It involves paying a temporary bond of 15% of the valuation of your motorcycle to NZ customs that will be returned when your MC leaves the country. ( customs will get their own valuation if they think you are trying to under value it ). The 15 % is a reflection of NZ GST Tax ( goods and services tax ) NZ VAT that you would have to pay if you were actually importing permanently unless you have owned it three years or more. The UK-NZ MC shipper "New Zealand Motorcycle Adventures" actually take care of paying this bond themselves so you do not need to. There are some nearly 50 UK motorcycles that have been booked to be shipped out from the UK for just the NZ summer of 2018-2019 that will be using just that same temporary import scheme. So NZ can expect to see a lot of big yellow number plates getting around this summer. |
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Hiya, Sorry for the delay ... missed your post initially [emoji849] That’s really helpful, many thanks. Once my plans firm up I’ll be in touch ! [emoji106][emoji2532] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
Hello
Thought I would also mention the main reason for so many UK number plates getting around this coming season is 2019 WATOC ( World Association of Triumph Owners Club ) Triumph MC Rally been held in NZ South island at Hanmer Springs from 22-24 February. The Rally is been combined with NZs TOMCC Rally ( Triumph Owners MCC ). www.tomcc.co.nz/wotoc https://img.evbuc.com/https%3A%2F%2F...%2C1754%2C877& Those that plan their trip well can also attend the Burt Munro Challenge Rally held in Invercargill between the 6-10 February 2019. The Burt Munro Rally may be NZ largest MC series of Events with many North island MC riders making it their choice of time to ride in the South island. The roads will be full of motorcycles by NZ standards during this time will plenty of opportunity to meet and speak to local MC riders www.burtmunrochallenge.co.nz/Rally petty sure they will have a time of their lives |
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