Walking Holiday In New Zealand

Join tour Auckland. Sightseeing tour of Auckland's highlights including the Hauraki Gulf where on the weekends, there are thousands of boats. We will also explore the Victorian district of Parnell with its beautifully restored colonial houses and the 'War Memorial Museum' with its impressive collection of Maori art and cultural objects (optional). We also visit Mount Eden, with its 200m high extinct volcano with a magnificent view over the largest city in New Zealand.

 

 

Overnight Standard Hotel

This morning we take in the delights of Tamaki Drive and Mission Bay, before we head for a guided tour of the Auckland War Memorial Museum. One of the city’s most iconic landmarks, it is also one of New Zealand’s most important museums, housing a large collection of Maori and Pacific Island artefacts, as well as an extensive exhibition that covers New Zealand’s involvement in both domestic and overseas conflicts. The Cenotaph and the consecrated grounds that surround the museum serve as a memorial to those that have lost their lives during these conflicts, particularly during the First and Second World Wars. After our visit, we travel to Rotorua. In the evening we participate in a 'hangi', a traditional Maori meal cooked in a hole in the ground. After the meal, the Maoris sing and dance.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast, Dinner

This morning we visit Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland. Here, you can walk at your own pace and absorb the unique features including the world famous champagne pool, geysers, bubbling mud, steaming ground, expansive vistas, huge volcanic craters and sinter terrace formations. The Lady Knox Geyser erupts every day at 10.15am. Leaving Rotorua, we travel through an important forestry area reaching the picturesque, fast-flowing Huka Falls to arrive at Lake Taupo. Taupo is the largest lake in New Zealand and is of volcanic origin, caused by and enormous eruption almost 2000 years ago. Next, we drive up to Lake Rotopounamu for a 5km, 2-hour walk around the Lake. This beautiful area is a favourite of walkers, swimmers, tree lovers and birdwatchers.

Total Walking: approx. 3 hours

 

Overnight Standard Chalet Included meals: Breakfast

 

The 19.4 km Tongariro Alpine Crossing track passes over diverse and dramatic volcanic terrain and has been named by some ‘the greatest day walk in the world’. In the presence of active volcanoes we can experience some of Tongariro National Park's special gifts: a cold mountain spring, steam vents, an active crater, lava flows, magnificent views and emerald-coloured lakes, all combine to make this an enjoyable and memorable trip. We start hiking the Mangatepopo Valley, then continue at a gentle gradient as the main track climbs alongside a stream and around the edges of old lava flows.  The climb from the valley to Mangatepopo Saddle between Mt. Ngauruhoe and Mt. Tongariro is steep, but on a clear day, we may be rewarded with views of Mount Taranaki to the west. The track continues along a poled route across South Crater to a ridge leading up Red Crater from where we can get views of Mount Tongariro, which was used as Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings films. From the highest point on the Tongariro Crossing, the summit of Red Crater (1886 metres), the track leads down to three water filled explosion craters called the Emerald Lakes. Minerals that have leached from the surrounding thermal area are the cause of their dazzling greenish colour. Below Ketetahi Hut the track continues down through tussock slopes to the forest bushline. At two points the track passes over the tongue of a lava flow from Te Maari Crater and for a distance, travels alongside a stream polluted with minerals from Ketetahi Springs. NB For those who want to do an easier walk this day, there are plenty of shorter options available.

Total Walking: approximately 8 hours

 

 

Overnight Standard Farmstay Included meals: Breakfast

 

The tour continues southward through the fertile farmlands of Levin to Wellington (approximately 6 hours drive). New Zealand's capital lies partially on reclaimed land at the harbour and the steep hillsides adjacent to the Cook Strait. Wellington has been the capital city since 1865 and as such is also the country’s political centre. We undertake a city sightseeing tour and drive to Mount Victoria from where we can enjoy a beautiful view over the city.

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

This morning, we visit Te Papa Tongarewa, the modern National Museum, which gives a good insight into New Zealand history, Maori Culture and Pacific culture. Over 20 galleries house imaginative exhibitions and interactive experiences that explore New Zealand's unique natural environment, dynamic art heritage, fascinating history and the vitality of Maori culture.

 

In the afternoon, we say farewell to the North Island and board the Interisland Ferry to cross Cook Strait and cruise through the scenic Marlborough Sounds, an area of 'drowned' valleys, which resulted from the geological sinking of a mountain range. Today the Sounds are a maze of deep channels, sheltered waterways and secluded bays, encompassed by verdant bush-clad hills. After an approximately three-hour journey often described as ‘one of the most beautiful ferry rides in the world’ we reach the idyllic harbour town of Picton.

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

This morning we board a water taxi and cruise to Motuara Island Bird Sanctuary (1 hour) before later being dropped off at Ship Cove to walk part of the Queen Charlotte track. This 67km coastal walking track stretches from historic Ship Cove to Anakiwa in the spectacular Marlborough Sounds, and enjoys a temperate climate and allows good year-round walking conditions. Today we are walking 15km from Ship Cove to Endeavour Inlet.  Passing through undisturbed stands of beech and Rimu trees, around coves and inlets and along skyline ridges, the track provides stunning views down into Queen Charlotte and Kenepuru Sounds. The verdant, subtropical native bush is home to many of New Zealand’s native birds. In the late afternoon, we reach Endeavour Inlet, and board the water taxi again to cruise back to Picton.

Total Walking: approximately 6 hours

 

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

After breakfast, we take the Queen Charlotte Drive between Picton and Havelock, one of New Zealand's most delightful scenic drives (approximately 1 hour 45 minutes). Winding past the Sounds' numerous bays, this bush-fringed road takes us to the head of Pelorus Sound and the seaside village of Havelock. Once a thriving gold-mining town, Havelock is New Zealand's primary producer of Greenshell mussels. Our journey then takes us to Nelson, the town with the most sunshine hours in the country. Many years ago New Zealand's first roadside café opened here and today it is home to numerous alternative craftsmen and artists. Today, we take a trip to the Abel Tasman National Park for a walk and boat trip.  We will pass several offshore islands that provide a protected habitat for native wildlife.  We will be dropped off at Bark Bay, where we will walk down to Anchorage Bay (3.5 to 4 hours) for our return boat transfer.

Total Walking: approximately 3.5 - 4 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

 

Our journey takes us inland through an unbelievably scenic region with excellent roads and minimal traffic.  Rugged, green and wild, the West Coast was in the nineteenth century one of the busiest and richest areas, when gold drew men from all over the world. On the way to Westport we’ll travel through Murchison, where we can learn about the massive earthquake of 1929. Try some ‘fossicking’  (searching for and collecting materials from the land surface or by digging by hand) at Lyell Creek, one of sixteen areas set aside in the South Island where anyone can freely enjoy fossicking for gold without a mining permit, before we navigate the awesome Buller Gorge. At Hawks Crag we’ll drive under a spectacular overhang, where the road has been cut out of solid rock. Just past Westport is Cape Foulwind, where we will take the Tauranga Bay Seal Colony Walk (20 minutes) to have a close encounter with a colony of New Zealand Fur Seals in their natural habitat. From Westport, we journey to Punakaiki, where we'll take a walk along the Pororari River Track; this track follows a magnificent limestone gorge with two main features - a river with huge rocks in deep pools, and beautiful forest featuring subtle changes from sub-tropical to temperate. The return walk is approximately 2 hours.

Total Walking: approximately 2.5 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

Leaving Punakaiki behind us, we pass the forgotten gold miners' towns of Hari Hari and Ross on our way down the West Coast to Westland National Park.  The next stop, Hokitika, is known as New Zealand's Greenstone capital. Most of this precious stone is found in this region and then turned into beautiful pieces of jewellery. In the afternoon we reach the spectacular Southern Alps and the Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers. There is nowhere else on earth where the glaciers descend down to an altitude of 280 meters above sea level and nearly touch the rain forest.  We stop in the small township of Fox Glacier to take a short one-hour walk up to the Terminal Face. Weather and time permitting you may wish to take a helicopter ride over the glaciers. Total Walking: approximately 1 hour

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

In the morning (weather permitting), we will go for a walk around Lake Matheson (approximately 1 hour 30 minutes), which will provide us at the end with an excellent opportunity to take that perfect photo of Mount Cook with its mirrored reflection on the lake's calm water. We then continue our tour through Westland National Park, a World Heritage Park. The rainforest is very impressive and has subtropical character. Here we undertake a short bush walk (approximately 40 minutes) to reach the seldom-visited Monro beach, which once joined part of Gondwanaland. The Tour Leader will explain the different species of native trees, such as Rimu, Kahikatea and Beech. We continue driving via Haast Pass towards Wanaka, reaching Aspiring National Park, which offers us breathtaking views of the surrounding snowy peaks and the glacier lakes Hawea and Wanaka.

Total Walking: approximately 2 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

Wanaka is a hiker’s paradise because of its beautiful environment. Mount Aspiring, often called the ‘Matterhorn of New Zealand’ dominates this area with its fascinating glaciers. Today we start with an easy stroll from the hotel down to the lake. We continue along the shore past all the cafes and shops to Bremner Bay and then on towards Penrith Beach. The 'Beacon Point Walk' is linked to the 'Lake Outlet Walkway', then followed by the short climb to the top of Mount Iron, an impressive, glacier carved, rocky knoll that rises nearly 250 metres above the surrounding countryside, with stunning 360 degree views from the summit

Total Walking: approximately 3.5 - 4 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

After breakfast, we traverse the Crown Range road and take the opportunity to visit the partially restored and well-interpreted Arrowtown Chinese Settlement. This is a quiet reminder and tribute to the contribution made by the Chinese goldminers and business people to the region's goldmining, cultural and business history.  We then continue on to Queenstown, the Adventure Capital of New Zealand. In the afternoon, we walk from One Mile to the Lakefront then take the cable car up to Skyline and start walking down the Skyline access track to the lakefront.

Total Walking: approximately 2 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

After breakfast, we make our way to Te Anau, known locally as ‘the walking capital of the world’. Some of the most wild and dramatic scenery in New Zealand can be found in Fiordland, in the southwest corner of the South Island. Fiordland is one of the largest National Parks in the world and a World Heritage area. Here the power of nature stuns the enthralled visitor - from its waterfalls tumbling hundreds of meters into virgin, forested valleys and lonely fiords, to endless stretches of shimmering lakes and granite peaks. Today we walk part the Kepler Track, one of the great walks of New Zealand. In the later afternoon we get a transfer by boat back to Te Anau.

Total Walking: approximately 3 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

This morning we drive to the most accessible and best known of the fiords, Milford Sound. The Milford Road (between Te Anau and Milford Sound) is one of the finest alpine drives in the world. The scenery is exceptional, ranging from broad grassy flats, dense rainforest, and towering mountains through to glacial lakes and alpine herb fields. No other road in Fiordland offers such a diverse glimpse into New Zealand’s alpine zone. We take a 1.5-hour boat trip on the Milford Sound, which is dominated by the mighty cone of the ‘Mitre Peak’, rising steeply up from the water. After lunch, we take a walk to Key Summit (approximately 3 hours), an easy half-day walk on the Routeburn Track. This walk is on an easy track and offers spectacular views of Fiordland National Park. Late this afternoon, we arrive back in Te Anau.

Total Walking: approximately 3 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch

After passing through the rocky Kawerau Gorge and Cromwell village, the road winds upward to Lindis Pass.  The plains of the Mackenzie highland lie before us.  On the left are the mountains of the Southern Alps that we will continuously see whilst we drive to Mount Cook National Park.  We stop for a walk at the Pukakai Flats (10km, 2.5 hours), an open block of hard tussock grasslands, which is located a short distance from Twizel. An old farm track winds along beside the fence line and leads to Pukaki River. Native plant species found here include mat daisies, native broom, blue tussock and native daphne. Reaching Mount Cook, we enjoy the unique environment of different alpine plants and flowers and the panoramic vista of New Zealand’s highest peak, Aoraki  Mt Cook (3764m). Blessed with a marvellous view of the surrounding peaks we overnight in a charming hotel in the National Park.

Total Walking: approximately 2.5 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

Today we explore Mount Cook National Park. About 200 peaks here are over 2500 metres. The park scenery is spectacular, featuring the Tasman glacier, over 300 species of plants including the delicate Mount Cook lily, and many fine walks and hikes.

Total Walking: from 2-8 hours

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

The journey to Christchurch leads through the vast and fertile Canterbury Plains.  The combination of fertile pastures and grain fields with townships full of tradition lends this area a very special character. Two thirds of the South Island population live in the Canterbury Plains.

 

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast

 The tour ends in Christchurch this morning after breakfast.

Included meals: Breakfast