Our final morning on the South Island arrived bright, calm and warm the kind that makes you want to freeze time.
We started the day at the council run He Puna Taimoana Thermal Pools in South Brighton. Set just behind the dunes, these steaming saltwater pools overlook the Pacific, and under the late spring sun it felt like pure magic. Georgia and Dotty bounced between the family pool and the hotter corner pools, giggling.
There was no schedule, no rush just warm water, sea air and the sound of gulls above. After weeks of motion, this was the pause we didn’t know we needed Ali struck hooks finding this.
When we finally climbed out, wrinkled and relaxed, we wandered down to New Brighton Pier. The sky a perfect blue, and locals strolled past like it was any other Tuesday. For us, it was goodbye.
🚗 The Last Pack Up
From Brighton we drove to the Oak Motel, our final stop in Christchurch. The car was full of crumbs, maps and the last of Dotty’s beach treasures. We parked up, unloaded everything one final shuffle of bags, coats and toys and felt that familiar mix of satisfaction and sadness that comes with the end of a journey.
Once the van was empty, I dropped the car back to the rental depot and grabbed an uber the short way back.
Inside, Ali was already halfway through the packing puzzle folding clothes, sorting souvenirs, and setting aside the “plane snacks.”
It hit me then, the South Island chapter was officially done.
🌄 Looking Back
From Milford Sound’s waterfalls to Dunedin’s penguins, from Reefton’s gold-rush stories to Wanaka’s puzzle maze, it’s hard to believe how much we crammed into these few weeks.
We’d crossed mountain passes, seen snow in October, helped strangers fix tyres, and watched sea lions shuffle across beaches at sunset. We’d played in playgrounds, walked volcano trails, found glow worms, and learned that in New Zealand, every bend in the road hides another postcard waiting to be lived.
The South isn’t just beautiful it’s relentless in its generosity. Every day gives you something new, something breathtaking, and you find yourself afraid to slow down in case you miss the next miracle.
Tomorrow we fly north but the South Island has left its mark, the laughter, the surprises, the wild beauty, and that endless sense of what’s next?
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