German Backpacker on a Motorcycle

[Malzbier]

Hi guys,

I arrive in Auckland in 21 Days for visiting a Friend of mine and having a Backpacking Adventure for approx. 8 months.

At first i thought of buying one of those typical Campervans... but lets be serious thats IMO the easy way... ;) nah i want the real thing: in a tent - on a bike.

I really enjoy my new Africa Twin here in Germany and i guess it would be the perfect Bike on the NZ Roads (I :love: the DCT-Gearbox) But shipping costs are insane.

I can get something like a DR, KLR, CRF or even a Farm Bike with some Racks for the shipping costs of my AT.



Anyways my plan is: Stay at my friends house for the first days, get a IRD Number, Bank Account and of course a Bike. And then head out and explore and even work from time to time... I'm a plumber here in Germany with 8 years work expierience.



Any thoughts on a company named redbaron? They have some interesting bikes and they even offer a buy back option.


I'm already super excited and I think this will be a once i a lifetime Journey.


PS: Here's a picture of my AT from a 2 Day Trip here in Germany :woohoo:

[awayatc]

Red baron is a big bike shop in Auckland.
Some people will have good things to say about them....some will say less nice things.
It will be an easy and safe way to buy a bike and have them buy it back....
Trade me is a good place to look at bikes.
How much are you willing to spend if I may ask?

[Voltaire]

What he said.

I take you have got a Work Visa sorted? https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/options/work

My experience with working in other countries is lots of documents required, given the run around and takes longer than expected.

Introduction letter from you bank may be helpful and they may have an agreement with Aussie Banks, which most of the ones here are.

Scan all your Trade Docs,along with Birth Certs and all that, they only ever ask for them when you don't have copies.

I'm in Auckland, if you want someone to come along to Red Baron on a Sat happy to come along.

Check out Trade Me https://www.trademe.co.nz/browse?user_region=100&user_district=0 if you want to buy a bike, downside is quick sale when leaving.

Question for Panel: How do you register a vehicle when you don't have an NZ licence?

[HEsch]

What he said.

Question for Panel: How do you register a vehicle when you don't have an NZ licence?

Appears an overseas licence or passport is a valid form of ID: https://www.nzta.govt.nz/vehicles/how-the-motor-vehicle-register-affects-you/id-requirements/

[Malzbier]

First off thanks for the response ;)

Yes the biggest plus would be the buy back option but that depends on the offer... Buying from a Dealer also feels a bit more comfortable to me.
I was thinking about spending about 5K maybe 6K depends on the offer. If i can get a good buyback deal even more. Some panniers or at least a Topcase are a must.

@Voltaire
I have got the Work+Travel Visa all along with translated certificates and a lot of other documents, travel insurance yadayada. But I don't know if I can work as a plumber. There are some regulations and I would have to register or something... wouldn't make sense for a couple of months.

And yeah I'm in Auckland at my friends house (who has to work all day lol) so plenty of time to visit some bike dealers ;) maybe we could catch up

About the registration:

I've received a "International Drivers License" which is valid in Nz . Also in Germany I'm allowed to drive any motorcycle (any cc and HP) so that shouldn't be a problem.
Edit: i've done a quick reserch, maybe i should mention that I'm 25 years old so that would give me your "full license"

I'm planning to keep you guys in this forum up to date about my trip! Instead of a blog which no one reads lol. I'm hoping for some good advice for the must see/must ride places on the other side of the world :)



Gesendet von iPhone mit Tapatalk

[HEsch]

About the registration:

I've received a "International Drivers License" which is valid in Nz . Also in Germany I'm allowed to drive any motorcycle (any cc and HP) so that shouldn't be a problem.
Edit: i've done a quick reserch, maybe i should mention that I'm 25 years old so that would give me your "full license"


Our licences aren't based on age (though there are restrictions on when you can first get them) - your international licence may suffice, but it would pay to check you don't need to sit any sort of conversion course/test.

[gonzo_akl]

Hi guys,


I really enjoy my new Africa Twin here in Germany and i guess it would be the perfect Bike on the NZ Roads (I :love: the DCT-Gearbox) But shipping costs are insane.

I can get something like a DR, KLR, CRF or even a Farm Bike with some Racks for the shipping costs of my AT.

PS: Here's a picture of my AT from a 2 Day Trip here in Germany :woohoo:

Hi,

Did you check these guys out for shipping the bike, I have just returned from a trip to Europe and shipped my bike up there with them. I am happy to recommend them - they did exactly what they said they would. Downside is that you'd have to get the bike to London. they are easy to deal with, not sure if the dates fit with you.

I think it is 1600GBP (1700 euro) or about $NZ3000.00 - that wont go far when buying a bike here. An Africa twin would be an excellent choice for NZ.

http://www.newzealandmotorcycleadventures.co.uk/

cheers

[PeterNZ]

Hi Malzbier (love the username, Malzbier is something I miss here)

welcome to the forum. I am a German living here since 2000. You will totally love your stay in this beautiful country.

Here are some comments to points raised in this discussion:
An International Drivers license is totally sufficient for buying a vehicle as a tourist or long term visitor. Thousands of backpackers do this every year buying mainly vans. A motorbike isn't any different. One thing you want to think about is insurance which might be more important with a bike than with a car.

Work wise it won't be that easy. To be allowed to do qualified plumbing work you need to be registered as a plumber in NZ. This means you need to do exams. I assume you have a Working Holiday Visa. This is usually used for holiday jobs which are a bit less qualified. I know a German plumber here and if you want i can see if he is happy to pass on his details to you. But he is currently on holidays for a couple of weeks. Finding a job won't be a problem if you are happy to do more unqualified work. The building business is still booming here.

If you want to travel in NZ and are looking for bike trips I can recommend the book "Twisting Throttle New Zealand" by Mike Hyde (http://www.twistingthrottle.com/twisting-throttle-new-zealand.html). It has the 50 best bike trips in NZ. It is only available in English though.

One thing about bringing your bike. I have friends who took their bikes to NZ when moving here. Usually bikes have an asymmetric light pattern meaning the lights shine more to the road side than to the middle of the road. Obviously since we ride on the left as opposed to Germany our roadside is on the other side. This means a bike set up for right side riding will blind oncoming cars when driven on the left side of the road. If you want to register a bike here it needs to be converted to be road legal. I heard of people who visit with their vehicles where it was sufficient to tape off the light so it won't blind oncoming traffic. You might want to investigate this.

If you are planning to come up North I live in Kaitaia. If you want to get in touch drop me a message on here.

Cheers and happy planning

Peter

[Malzbier]

So after a lot of internet research I figured out:

my drivers license along with the international drivers licence should work out fine.

I will stick to my plan in buying a bike because it's a little to late for shipping and I really don't want to bother with all the Paperwork... and couple of other reasons as PeterNZ mentioned. In addition i think that these Big Adventure Bikes like my AT, or a Bmw GS or KTM Adventure are some amazing Bikes for riding through the Alps and some light Gravel. They have so much Power but also are very heavy. But i really want to try out a lighter bike 600cc max. I'm a big fan of "Ed March" and his "C90 Adventures" you should check him out
he is amazing :D

Back to the working part: It really looks like I cant't work as a official plumber in NZ. (thx again PeterNZ for the explanation with the exams, I would love to hear about more details) But to be honest i hope I find something to work which is a bit more sophisticated then fruit picking. ;)

[Malzbier]

Finally after 2 exhausting Flights Frankfurt - Dubai 6h and Dubai - Auckland 16h i set foot on the NZ Soil for my first time.

Unfortunately the long journey made me sick and I spent the first day exploring the bathroom at my friends house :wacko: the 16h Flight was insane. I will check my travel agency because I already have tickets to fly back to germany and it's even longer with 17 hours :brick: Maybe I will stay a night or two in Dubai but anyways...

So I'm living in Auckland now to spend some time with my friend here, and in a couple of days I will start looking out for a bike.

See you guys on the road ;)


Pic of me in my B&B Room:

[Hads]

Finally after 2 exhausting Flights Frankfurt - Dubai 6h and Dubai - Auckland 16h i set foot on the NZ Soil for my first time.

Unfortunately the long journey made me sick and I spent the first day exploring the bathroom at my friends house :wacko: the 16h Flight was insane. I will check my travel agency because I already have tickets to fly back to germany and it's even longer with 17 hours :brick: Maybe I will stay a night or two in Dubai but anyways...

So I'm living in Auckland now to spend some time with my friend here, and in a couple of days I will start looking out for a bike.

See you guys on the road ;)


Pic of me in my B&B Room:

If you make it to the Banks Peninsula in the South Island, I can take you around some of the back roads, assuming you have a dual sport or adventure bike. I highly recommend you do try to get down this way to experience the Akaroa GP at the very least.

[Malzbier]

After a long day walking in the Streets from Auckland and visiting every dealer I finally found my companion for the next months:

A Kawasaki KLR 650 with ~30k Km's, Heated grips and USB connector.

Thanks to Grant and Olivia from Cyclespot!

I figured out that there are not many suitable bikes on the market... so i made a quick decision today. (This Bike is going to be on sale in May 18 :msn-wink: )

Tomorrow I'm going to find a suitable Topcase and then head out exploring the sights around Auckland because I stay here until friday.

Picture of course(so proud) :wings:

332792

[Grashopper]

Awesome. Congrats to the new bike. :niceone:

What are you planning after you checked out all the sights in Auckland (there are sights in Auckland?:shit:)


Anyway, more importantly, who parked those cars behind you so elegantly?:sweatdrop

[Madness]

(there are sights in Auckland?:shit:)

Piha.
Kawakawa Bay.

That's about it.

[Ghost Lemur]

Looks like a great choice. There'll be plenty of people here to show you their favourite roads (or as you have a suitable bike, goat tracks) as you tour around.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

[Malzbier]

Piha.
Kawakawa Bay.

That's about it.

I intend to go to Piha today.

At the End of the week I will go to Coromandel for a couple of days thats the plan so far...

[Whynot]

I intend to go to Piha today.

At the End of the week I will go to Coromandel for a couple of days thats the plan so far...

If you go to the Coromandel and are keen on some gravel, you should try to make it up the top to Port Jackson.
Just make sure you get fuel and food at Colville, as there is nothing at all after that.

[Malzbier]

Hi Guys I'm back and finally made it to Coromandel! Well actually I'm in Whitianga now for 3 Days and heading for Fletcher bay tomorrow! Finally some gravel :banana:

The 309 road sounds interesting to me too ;)

I've been in Tauranga for a week now and stayed on a nice farm with some Taiwanese people... walked up the Mt Manganui of course and walked a crazy track in Aongatete. The water crossings there were insane after all the rain at the weekend. But i highly recommend it.

As mentioned I'll stay in Whititanga for 3 days and after that my next destination will be Rotorua.

I have a lot of fun here, you don't have much traffic on the roads and if so they usually let you pass :eek5: no truck driver in Germany would do that, they just keep driving uphill with 40km/h with heaps of cars behind them.
What I noticed today that the tarmac is very rough. My Tires are so worn out already :crazy: I might need another rear Tire in Rotorua if anyone knows a good shop or mechanic...


So my Destinations so far:

Auckland - Tauranga - Whitianga - Rotorua - (maybe Taupo after that)

some Pics:

First one is the Farm in Tauranga (the Asians loved the Bike lol)
The second is at Mclaren Falls