Mini camper
Hybrid Sleeper
Mini camper
- Seats
- 2
- Sleeps
- 2
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- No
- Transmission
- Automatic
Rental company field guide
Tui Campers review
A family-run New Zealand company spanning compact camper hire and outdoor camping.
Profile reviewed and updated on
Background
Company overview
Tui Campers began with a family van in 1983. Stephen and Susan built the business around self-drive holidays in New Zealand, and their children now take part in running it. The operating company, Tui Campers Limited, was incorporated in 1986 and has used its present name since 2002.
Christchurch is its operational base, with a second permanent depot in Auckland. Tui rents its vehicles by category, so the booking secures a type of camper rather than a particular make, model or year. Its range has developed to include small converted people carriers, high-top vans, motorhomes and pick-ups with rooftop tents.
Our verdict
Editorial review
Tui's range combines older vehicles with newer conversions and specialised camping setups. That gives the business a practical appeal: a well-chosen layout can provide the sleeping, cooking and washing space a trip needs without stepping up to a large motorhome. The trade-off is a less uniform standard of age and finish across the range. We would choose Tui for a particular layout and level of equipment, with expectations set for that category rather than for a consistently new fleet.
Good points
- A recent conversion in the compact range.The Hybrid Sleeper pairs a 2018–2019 petrol-hybrid vehicle with a 2025 camping conversion. The newer living space gives this small camper an appeal beyond simply being easy to drive.
- Helpful handovers feature in recent feedback.Several recent camper travellers describe clear explanations, friendly staff and practical help at collection or return. Those accounts give useful reassurance about the personal side of the hire, particularly for travellers learning an unfamiliar layout.
Things to consider
- Living equipment gets mixed feedback.Customer accounts include recurring complaints about water systems, leaks, fridges and batteries, alongside positive reports of clean, well-equipped campers. A careful demonstration of the water, fridge and charging systems is a worthwhile part of the handover here.
- Remote handovers can be a substantial expense.Collection or return away from the two main depots is a paid delivery arrangement. It can make a different start or finish possible, but adds a sizeable cost to the hire and is less flexible around the peak summer period.
Vehicle categories
Tui Campers fleet
Panel van camper
Trail Finder 2/3
Panel van camper
- Seats
- 3
- Sleeps
- 3
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- No
- Transmission
- Automatic
Mini camper
Deluxe Sleepervan
Mini camper
- Seats
- 2
- Sleeps
- 2
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- No
- Transmission
- Automatic
Panel van camper
Trail Finder 4+1
Panel van camper
- Seats
- 4
- Sleeps
- 4
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- No
- Transmission
- Automatic
Panel van camper
Trail Seeker
Panel van camper
- Seats
- 2
- Sleeps
- 2
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- Yes
- Transmission
- Manual
Panel van camper
Trail Adventurer 2+1
Panel van camper
- Seats
- 3
- Sleeps
- 3
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- Yes
- Transmission
- Automatic
Panel van camper
Bunkie Sleepa 4
Panel van camper
- Seats
- 4
- Sleeps
- 4
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- No
- Transmission
- Automatic
Overcab motorhome
Trail Explorer
Overcab motorhome
- Seats
- 6
- Sleeps
- 6
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- Yes
- Transmission
- Manual
4WD with rooftop tent
XL Bush Ranger
4WD with rooftop tent
- Seats
- 5
- Sleeps
- 2
- Toilet
- Portable
- Shower
- Outdoor
- Transmission
- Automatic
4WD with rooftop tent
Wildtrak 4WD Bush Ranger
4WD with rooftop tent
- Seats
- 5
- Sleeps
- 2
- Toilet
- Yes
- Shower
- Yes
- Transmission
- Automatic
Small sleepers and high-top vans
Hybrid Sleeper and Deluxe Sleepervan keep the bed inside a compact people-carrier conversion and put cooking at the rear, under the tailgate or awning. Both have a fixed toilet, cold water and a small fridge, with about 1.30 m of interior height. Neither has an external 240 V hookup, so a powered campsite does not turn either into a camper with mains sockets. The Hybrid has solar charging; the Deluxe recharges its leisure battery while driving.
The Trail Finder vans add standing room. The 2/3 has a double bed and an upper child berth, while the larger 4+1 has two double beds. Both provide a microwave and an electric heater for use on a mains hookup. They retain a relatively simple washroom setup: a fixed toilet and cold water, without a shower.
Larger vans and the six-berth motorhome
Trail Seeker and Trail Adventurer bring an indoor shower into a van-sized body. Seeker can be arranged with a double bed or two singles; one single is 1.80 m long. Adventurer has a compact washroom, gas-heated water, solar charging and diesel heating in the living area. Its separate child bed makes the sleeping arrangement quite different from Seeker's two-person layout.
Bunkie Sleepa 4 is built around bunks for a family of two adults and two children. It has two child-restraint positions and three seats in the cab, with a fourth behind. Its kitchen uses a three-burner hob and a top-opening fridge, but there is no shower.
Trail Explorer is the largest format: a 6.80 m overcab motorhome with three double beds and two seating areas, allowing one bed to remain made up. A four-burner hob, grill, 130-litre fridge and full indoor washroom make it the most substantial living space in the range. Both Explorer and Seeker have living-area air conditioning that requires a mains hookup.
Camping around a rooftop tent
The two Bush Rangers place the bed in a rooftop tent, reached by ladder, with cooking outside. XL has a James Baroud tent and a 270-degree awning; Wildtrak uses an awning with an outdoor room. Neither Bush Ranger is certified as self-contained. These are camping setups for sites that accept them, with far more of daily life taking place outside than in Tui's enclosed campers.
Locations
Locations
Tui Campers pickup locations
Open each country to see its pickup locations.
New Zealand
-
Auckland — permanent depot 142 Robertson Road, Māngere East, Auckland 2024
-
Christchurch — permanent depot 520 Wairakei Road, Burnside, Christchurch 8053
-
Wellington — arranged pickup point airport
-
Picton — arranged pickup point ferry terminal
-
Nelson — arranged pickup point airport
-
Greymouth — arranged pickup point railway station
-
Queenstown — arranged pickup point airport
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Dunedin — arranged pickup point airport
Before booking
Practical facts
The policies, inclusions and services that are specific to a Tui Campers rental.
| Topic | What to know |
|---|---|
| Minimum hire and day count | The general minimum is five days, with longer minimums for some categories, dates and one-way trips. Tui charges by calendar day and counts both collection and return: Saturday to Saturday is eight rental days. |
| Drivers and licences | The standard minimum age is 21 with a full, valid driving licence. Additional drivers are included; all must attend collection with their original licences and sign the agreement. A non-English licence requires the original plus an approved translation or an International Driving Permit, as applicable. |
| Child seats | Tui offers child seats and boosters as extras. The seat must suit both the child and the vehicle's approved position. Trail Seeker does not accept a child seat because its passenger airbag cannot be disabled; Deluxe Sleepervan does not accept child seats through our booking system. |
| Included equipment | The base hire includes bedding, towels, kitchen equipment, cleaning supplies and the initial water fill. An outdoor table and chairs are extras unless included in the selected package. |
| Mileage and road-user charges | Mileage is unlimited. Diesel road-user charges are separate: examples are NZ$7.60 per 100 km for Trail Finder 4+1 and NZ$8 per 100 km for Trail Explorer. Fuel is also paid by the hirer. |
| Gas and consumable charges | Initial LPG and toilet chemicals are separate charges unless covered by Flying Free. The toilet chemical kit is NZ$10 per hire. Trail Adventurer and Bunkie use AdBlue; the charge is separate from diesel fuel. |
| Excess reduction | Tui Nest is the included cover; On The Wing reduces the excess and Flying Free reduces it to zero for covered claims. For a driver aged 30, the examples for Hybrid Sleeper are a NZ$4,500 base excess, NZ$30 a day to reduce it to NZ$2,500, or NZ$55 a day for Flying Free. For Trail Explorer, the corresponding figures are NZ$6,500, NZ$40 a day to reduce it to NZ$3,000, and NZ$70 a day. Reduction charges are capped at 50 days. |
| Flying Free inclusions and limits | The package includes an outdoor table, chairs, child seats and snow chains when requested, as well as LPG and toilet chemicals. Its zero excess does not cover every loss: prohibited-road use, water damage, incorrect fuel and getting stuck remain excluded. Flying Free ends after the first incident unless further cover is agreed. |
| Security bond and cards | Credit-card hires normally use an imprint rather than a deducted bond. Debit-card hires can involve a bond charged to the card. For a remote return without Flying Free, Tui processes the full excess within seven days of collection. Visa and Mastercard credit or debit cards are accepted, but Amex, Diners and cash at the depot are not. |
| Direct booking payments | For a direct Tui booking, the reservation deposit is NZ$300, the balance is due 28 days before collection and the card surcharge is 2.5%. The reservation deposit is separate from the vehicle's security bond. |
| One-way hire and ferry | Inter-island one-way hire normally requires 14 days. For pickups from April to September, North Island to South Island costs NZ$150 and the reverse direction has no one-way charge; from October to March, the charges are NZ$250 and NZ$150 respectively. These charges are separate from the ferry fare and any remote service charge. Shorter hires require Tui's agreement. |
| Arranged remote handovers | Each applicable remote collection or return costs NZ$1,800 and requires prior agreement. The minimum is seven days unless a longer trip minimum applies. Remote service is unavailable from 15 December to 31 January; collection is from 10:30 and return by 13:30. |
| Airport transfers | Complimentary shuttles serve Auckland and Christchurch airports and nearby airport hotels or motels. The shuttle window is 09:00–15:00, with seasonal operating days. An authorised contactless collection while the office is closed does not include a shuttle. Remote pickup points have no complimentary transfer. |
| Road restrictions | Tui permits public sealed and unsealed roads, subject to exclusions. Prohibited routes include Skippers Canyon Road, the Crown Range/Cardrona Valley section from Arrow Junction to Cardrona, Ball Hutt Road, Ninety Mile Beach and Cape Colville–Port Jackson Road. The Te Anau–Milford Sound road is prohibited for four- and six-berth motorhomes; the treatment of a four-berth van must be agreed for that category. Ski-field access roads are prohibited from 1 June to 31 October. These restrictions also apply to 4WD hires. |
| Breakdown assistance | AA assistance operates 24 hours for vehicle-related mechanical breakdowns. Living equipment such as the fridge or water system is handled separately from mechanical roadside cover. Repairs over NZ$100 require Tui's authorisation; repairs up to NZ$100 require a receipt. |
| Return preparation | Return with a full fuel tank and leave the vehicle reasonably clean. Empty the toilet cassette and grey-water tank before reaching the depot: neither Auckland nor Christchurch has a disposal point. Charges of NZ$200 each apply to an unemptied cassette or grey-water tank; excessive cleaning is a separate NZ$200 charge. |
| Pets and smoking | Tui's general rental rules prohibit pets and smoking in the vehicles. |
| Direct booking cancellation | Direct Tui bookings have a 24-hour cancellation grace period after confirmation. Later cancellation carries at least the reservation deposit; the charge rises to 20% at 20–28 days before collection, 40% at 10–19 days, 75% at 1–9 days and 100% for a no-show. There is no ordinary refund for unused days after the hire begins. Bookings through our booking system follow the cancellation terms attached to that booking. |
| Luggage storage | Tui offers free suitcase storage when the vehicle will be returned to the same base. This is separate from leaving a car at the depot. |
More about the company
Explore Tui Campers
Supporting local conservation
Tui Campers supports the Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust's Tui Programme, and the trust recognises the company as a donor. Travellers booking directly can choose to add a NZ$10 donation to the programme, checked in September 2026.
Quick answers
Tui Campers FAQ
Can I carry a bicycle in a Tui camper?
Tui does not offer bike racks. A bicycle may travel inside only where it can be carried safely and protected without damaging the vehicle.
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