After meeting your guides and fellow travellers in Queenstown, we’ll head to Fiordland National Park. The Kepler Track is renowned for its vivid green moss, native beech forest, and stunning mountain ranges. We’ll explore one of our favourite sections, meandering beneath the beech canopy and tracing the shoreline of stunning Lake Te Anau.
Take in sweeping views across the lake, framed against a backdrop of Fiordland peaks. What a way to welcome you to New Zealand! Afterwards, we’ll head to our accommodation in Te Anau for a delicious home-cooked meal and the chance to rest up before tomorrow’s adventures. Includes lunch and dinner.
Stay at Parkland Motel and Apartments, Te Anau, spacious, fully self-contained units with private ensuites, kitchen facilities, and unlimited free WiFi. Just a short walk from the town centre, it's a convenient and comfortable base between lake and mountains. On-site parking and laundry facilities add to the ease. After a day on the trail, you’ll appreciate the quiet location and room to spread out.
Today we’ll head deeper in Fiordland’s wilderness, for a day walk on the world famous Routeburn Track up to Key Summit. A well-formed track leads us through lush beech forest and past tall tree ferns, with velvety mosses blanketing the rich earth underfoot. Native birdsong provides a beautiful soundtrack to our walk and as we climb higher, views of the Darran Mountains and Hollyford Valley stretch out beneath us providing a fitting reward for our efforts.
We’ll make our way to to Milford Sound for our scenic boat trip. Enjoy the crisp, fresh air as you explore our most iconic fiord. Have your cameras ready as you snap reels of photos of cascading waterfalls, towering peaks and native wildlife in action. Includes breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Stay another night at Parkland Motel and Apartments in Te Anau
Today we leave the rainforests of Fiordland behind and head for the high-country lakes of Central Otago. We’ll then head over the Crown Range to the pretty mountain resort town of Wānaka and gateway to Mt Aspiring National Park, where we’ll spend the next two nights.
A short but incredibly scenic drive over New Zealand’s highest sealed road at 1022m takes us into Wānaka, a favourite holiday spot for us Kiwis. Nestled at the foot of snow-capped mountains, this lakefront town is Queenstown’s more relaxed cousin, although its equal in stunning scenery. It’s a great place to explore on your own for a bit – be sure to try out some of the local delicacies including meat pies, fantastic coffee, uniquely flavoured gelatos and craft beers.
This afternoon we'll take a hike to the Lake Wānaka Lookout to appreciate the sweeping views out over the Southern Alps and Lake Wānaka. It’s a steady climb and one that will no doubt get your heart pumping, but with each passing step, the scenery just gets better and better, making it all worth it at the top. Includes breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Edgewater Wānaka invites you to unwind; featuring cozy window seats to bask in the sunlight, gentle natural fibres for added comfort and captivating vistas pulling the outside in. Here – the rooms invite slow.
Today's adventure begins on one of Southern Alps Air’s Cessna bush planes, taking in expansive views of the 355,000ha Mount Aspiring National Park. Look out across winding rivers, virgin beech forest, glaciated valleys, alpine lakes, glaciers and the towering Southern Alps, before landing on the remote Siberia Valley air strip. Once on the ground, we'll head up the valley to a backcountry hut with outrageous views of the surrounding peaks.
After a tasty picnic lunch, we'll begin our walk along a well-marked track through the thick forest linking the Siberia Valley to the Wilkin Valley wilderness below. Be on the lookout for native birds along the way and the many photo opportunities as you immerse yourself in nature. The track was originally used by Mount Albert Station to take stock into the valley for grazing.
Jet boats were invented in 1954 in New Zealand by Sir William Hamilton for the shallow waters of our braided rivers. Jet boating originally started on the Wilkin River in 1968 transporting venison out of the mountains before hiking and commercial work became more commonplace. On reaching the Wilkin River at Kerin Forks, a jet boat will be waiting to take us for a thrilling 30-minute ride down the Wilkin and Makarora Rivers back to the Makarora Village. Get a whole different perspective on this dramatic valley as you watch the landscape rush by and feel the wind in your hair. Includes breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Stay another night at Edgewater, Wānaka
We’ll start the day off with a peaceful guided kayak trip on Lake Wānaka. Nestled at the foot of the towering Southern Alps, Lake Wānaka is the perfect spot for a peaceful kayak trip. We'll join our specialist guides this morning on a paddle out to Ruby Island.
Ruby Island is a small island about 1km off the shores of Lake Wānaka. It has quite the interesting history and was the rather unlikely site of a tearoom and Saturday-night 'cabaret' back in the 1920's and 30's. Now it is a popular kayak and picnic destination for the locals. This morning we'll take a guided kayak trip to explore Lake Wānaka and Ruby Island.
This afternoon we’ll make our way to the Mackenzie Country and Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park. On the way, we'll explore the Clay Cliffs of Omarama. This geological phenomenon was formed millions of years ago from layers of silt and gravel deposited by ancient lakes and rivers. These layers were then uplifted and tilted by an active fault and subsequently eroded, giving them their dramatic appearance. Includes breakfast, lunch and dinner.
You'll stay in one of only two beautiful lodges in the Mount Cook National Park, at either lodge, you’ll be treated to incredible views from your doorstep. Settle into your comfortable, warm and modern room to rest your legs after a day in the hills. If you want to explore further you’re close to numerous marked walkways and the local visitor centre too.
Home to not only its namesake, known to Māori as “the Cloud Piercer” looming at 3,724 metres (over 12,000 feet), Aoraki Mount Cook National Park boasts a further 19 peaks topping more than 3,000 metres. These are the mountains where Edmund Hillary honed his skills before becoming the first to successfully summit Mount Everest with Tenzing Norgay in 1953. This incredible outdoor playground is a hiker’s paradise, and you have several experiences to choose from today.
Today is a day of choices! You can hike up to Red Tarns, walk the Hooker Valley, or simply explore the village at your leisure. Whatever you decide, it’s an incredible place to spend the day. Get up close to the icebergs on a glacier boat tour, or even splurge on a heli-hike if you’d like.*
After a full day of activities, we’ll meet up and return to our accommodation for a tasty meal and a chance to trade stories from the day as well as gaze up at the impressive night sky in this internationally recognised Dark Sky Reserve. Includes breakfast, lunch and dinner.
* Please advise us at the time of booking if interested in the option add-ons, Glacier Heli-Hiking (NZD$925), Glacier Lake Boat Tour (NZD$209)
You'll stay in one of only two beautiful lodges in the Mount Cook National Park, at either lodge, you’ll be treated to incredible views from your doorstep. Settle into your comfortable, warm and modern room to rest your legs after a day in the hills. If you want to explore further you’re close to numerous marked walkways and the local visitor centre too.
Queenstown and the surrounding area is an outdoor enthusiast’s dream, with many purpose-built tracks and trails ideal for hiking. We’ll travel to the historic Arrowtown, a quaint old gold-mining settlement just a short drive from Queenstown. Today we will be walking the Arrow River Trail, one of our favourite hidden gems here in Queenstown. While you are walking the Arrow River Trail, you'll have the opportunity to plant a native seedling and leave a small legacy of your own here in New Zealand.
This afternoon, we'll finish our adventure in Queenstown. It’s time to say goodbye to your guides, travel companions, and new-found friends as we drop you at the airport or your accommodation. If you’re joining us to explore the North Island, we’ll ensure a smooth transition for you. If not, we hope to see you again soon in the Land of the Long White Cloud. Includes breakfast and lunch.
