Okains Bay

Okains Bay is what people picture when they imagine a New Zealand summer holiday from forty years ago. A long grassy campground under old trees, a river running through it to a safe swimming beach, and enough space that nobody is pitched on top of anybody. It is run by the local community rather than a chain, and it shows.

Getting there is part of it. The road over the crater rim from Christchurch climbs, twists and drops into the bay in a series of hairpins — take it slowly in a camper and stop at the top for the view over the harbour. The drive is around an hour and a half from the city.

The Okains Bay Māori and Colonial Museum in the village is genuinely worth an hour, with one of the better regional collections of taonga in the South Island. Beyond that there is not much to do, which is precisely the appeal.