Mavora Lakes Campsite

Mavora Lakes is my top vehicle-accessible wilderness campground in New Zealand, which is saying a lot because I have heaps of favorite spots (if you couldn’t already tell from this guide)! Sandflies and a long gravel road notwithstanding, this is one of the ultimate destination campgrounds in the South Island. There are two pristine lakes here—North Mavora Lake & South Mavora Lake, and you can camp on the shores of both. North Mavora Lake is larger and allows motorized watercraft, and it’s closest to the 4WD tracks. This means it’s the busier of the two camping areas (but you’ll also have more choice of sites).