If you are taking advantage of the cheap flights from Australia to New Zealand for your summer holidays, you should also consider taking advantage of cheap car hire too, and plan your road trip around the 'Land of the Long White Cloud' today!

When booking our holidays many of us often choose to stay in one location for the duration of our trip, often due to the cost of travelling around, however when you take a look around you can save yourself money on those generally costly items; meaning you can plan to travel further and see more!

When you are looking for cheap car hire in New Zealand, it doesn't mean that you have to give up getting a quality vehicle. There are some great quality companies that offer more than just cheaper rates on their vehicles, such as car seat hire for the children, GPS navigation systems, bike racks and more.

The location that you choose to pick up your vehicle from will depend on where your flight arrives into. The main centres where international flights arrive into are Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, however there are flights into other towns such as Queenstown and Rotorua available. Once you have your pick up location you can choose where you travel to first on your road trip. Below we give you some ideas:

Auckland Pick Up Location:

Travelling from Auckland you can almost head in any direction and experience something different in terms of scenery, lifestyle, entertainment and weather. As an idea of a 7 day itinerary:

• Head into Auckland City and experience the Sky Tower, shopping, dining and more before beginning your travels.

• Head on up to the Coromandel Peninsula, stopping at the famous historical gold mining town of Thames to get your history 'fix'.

• Carrying on you will explore the Coromandel's amazing golden sand beaches and natural attractions. Take a picnic at Cathedral Cove and bask in the sunshine.

• From Coromandel head down to Rotorua for a geothermal experience like no other.

• From Rotorua travel to Taupo in the south and see New Zealand's largest lake or explore the Tongariro National Park before travelling back to Auckland.

Christchurch Pick Up Location:

Christchurch is in the South Island of New Zealand and again allows you to start your journey by travelling in almost any direction. As an idea of a 7 day itinerary:

• Explore Christchurch the 'Garden City' and it's heritage before heading down south.

• Travel to Dunedin - you can choose to stop at any one (or more) of the small townships on the way including Ashburton, Temuka & Timaru for a bite to eat and a 'cuppa'.

• Once in Dunedin, visit Larnach Castle or take a bird watching tour where you can see the Yellow Eyed Penguin or Royal Albatross.

• From Dunedin travel to Te Anau - the gateway to the Fiordland National Park.

• From Te Anau take a trip to Milford Sound hop on board a cruise to see Mitre Peak and Bowen falls.

• With a short trip back to Te Anau you can then head north to Queenstown.

• Queenstown is a popular resort town year round, with many adrenalin pumping activities including jet boating, bungy jumping and more. You can also enjoy dining on the lakeside or pamper yourself at one of the spa resorts.

• From Queenstown begin your journey back up to Christchurch before heading home.

As you can see you have plenty of road trip opportunities - it's just a matter of finding cheap car hire in New Zealand to start your journey with.