Zapping around New Zealand - at 50kmh

Candelaria and Herman Zapp, with their children Wallaby (1), Tehue (5), Paloma (2) and Pampa (7) in Oamaru with their vintage car yesterday. Photo by Sally Rae.

Herman and Candelaria Zapp and their children, Pampa, Tehue, Paloma and Wallaby, are not your conventional family.

They travel the world in a 1928-vintage Graham-Paige car, living their dream and funding their travels by selling a book about their adventures.

It all started when the couple were living in Argentina and decided to drive to Alaska. The intention was to return home after the trip and have a "normal life".

They bought their old car three months before they left - Mr Zapp (41) believed it was much better to have a "simple" car.

It had never broken down "in the middle of nowhere", which was fortunate, as the only mechanical knowledge he had about the car was how to lift the bonnet.

But that trip whetted their taste for adventure and, once it was over, their dream was not. They returned to Argentina and decided to travel the length of the South American country.

After that, they shipped the car to Florida, in the United States, and started a new journey, heading north to Montreal, in Canada, then west to Vancouver Island and finally south to Los Angeles.

The family, which has expanded during their travels, then explored Australia before arriving in New Zealand.

They were chugging from Oamaru to Christchurch yesterday, hoping to persuade a shipping company to help them transport the car to Asia.

They hope to spend at least two years exploring Asia.

And, after that? "Why should you finish something that is so wonderful?" Mr Zapp said.

The family never tired of travelling - "How can you get sick of something that is so fascinating".

The family's adventures also provided plenty of opportunity to meet people from other lands, because as soon as they were out of the car, they were with people, he said.