A 10-Day South Island Expedition with Ashley & Kristina

Arrive in Christchurch, check into your accommodation and take a moment to settle in. At 3:30 PM, we’ll meet as a group for a welcome briefing – a chance to get to know each other, go over the plan, and get excited about what’s ahead.

From there, we’ll take you on a walk through Christchurch’s unique post-quake architecture before sitting down together for our first group dinner.

🏨 Accommodation

• Grand Riccarton Hotel Christchurch (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Welcome Briefing and Group Introductions
• Walking Tour of Christchurch’s Post-Quake Architecture
• Group Welcome Dinner

This morning we transfer to the station and board the TranzAlpine in Scenic Plus class – think wide-open viewing carriages, great food, and some of the most dramatic scenery you’ll pass through on a train anywhere in the world! We’ll roll through through mountainous Arthurs Pass and out the other side onto the wild West Coast.

We’ll be met in Greymouth by our wonderful driver for the rest of the trip and transfer down the coast to Hokitika, a characterful little town with wild beaches and if time permits we will take you to the amazing Hokitika Gorge walk.

🏨 Accommodation

• Beachfront Hotel Hokitika (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• TranzAlpine Train Journey in Scenic Plus Class
• Scenic Transit Through Arthurs Pass
• Exploration of Hokitika Township
• Hokitika Gorge Walk (Day 2 or Day 3)

Today we explore one of the West Coast’s most photogenic corners. If we didn’t get to Hokitika Gorge the day before, we will start there – that incredible turquoise colour in the water is not a filter, we promise! Then we head south into glacier country.

The Southern Alps act as a massive weather barrier here, creating the rare conditions that allow Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers to flow all the way down to just 300m above sea level, right into the edge of the temperate rainforest. We’ll stop at the glacier viewpoints and take it all in together.

🏨 Accommodation

• Rainforest Retreat (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• Hokitika Gorge Walk (Day 2 or Day 3)
• Callery Gorge Walk, Franz Josef
• Fox Glacier Viewpoint

This is one of our favourite drives in the country! Today, we’ll travel through the World Heritage-listed Westland National Park and up and over the Haast Pass – the Southern Alps’ Great Divide – dropping down into Mount Aspiring National Park and following the shores of glacial Lakes Hawea and Wanaka.

Optional stops along the way include Roaring Billy, Thunder Creek Falls, Fantail Falls, and the crystal-clear Blue Pools. You will conclude the day in the beautiful lakeside town of Wanaka.

🏨 Accommodation

• Wanaka Hotel (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• Scenic Drive Through Westland National Park and Haast Pass
• Roaring Billy Walk (Optional)
• Thunder Creek Falls Stop (Optional)
• Blue Pools Walk (Optional)
• Fantail Falls Stop (Optional)
• Arrival into Wanaka

A full day in Wanaka, and it’s a good one. We’ll start the morning with a hike in Wanaka, then in the afternoon, we’ve arranged a private tasting at Rippon Vineyard. Wines in hand, views across the lake, mountains behind us.

No further explanation needed! With an optional dinner at our favourite restaurant and venue in the South Island.

🏨 Accommodation

• Wanaka Hotel (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• Mount Iron Hike, Wanaka
• Private Wine Tasting at Rippon Vineyard
• Optional Dinner at a Local Restaurant (Own Expense)

We’ll make a stop at the Ahuriri River on the way out of Wanaka, then head into Mount Cook National Park for one of the best hikes on the whole trip. The Hooker Valley Track takes you across three swing bridges through glacial moraine to Hooker Lake, where icebergs float in the shadow of Aoraki. It’s one of those hikes that genuinely stops you in your tracks.

We’ll finish the day arriving at Lake Tekapo just in time to take in those first lupin views.

🏨 Accommodation

• Lakes Edge Holiday Park (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• Ahuriri River Stop
• Hooker Valley Track, Mount Cook National Park
• Arrival at Lake Tekapo

This is one of the days we’ll be looking forward to most. We’ll start the morning with a swim in the turquoise lake and then set up for a dedicated photoshoot amongst the lupins with a stunning mountain backdrop.

Whether you’re here for the content or just to live in the moment, this will be such a fun day. We’ll then head out for a scenic hike across the Mackenzie Basin, and wind down the evening at the Tekapo Hot Springs.

🏨 Accommodation

• Lakes Edge Holiday Park (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• Swim in Lake Tekapo
• Lupin Photoshoot with Mountain Backdrop
• Scenic Hike Across the Mackenzie Basin
• Tekapo Hot Springs

Queenstown, we’re coming for you. But first a stop at the Omarama Clay Cliffs, an otherworldly landscape of ancient silt pinnacles that never fails to surprise people.

Afterward, we’ll visit the historic gold-mining village of Arrowtown to wander its charming heritage streets before completing the drive to Queenstown, the adventure capital, framed by steep mountain ranges and the sparkling Lake Wakatipu.

🏨 Accommodation

• Millennium Hotel Queenstown (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• Omarama Clay Cliffs
• Arrowtown Heritage Walk
• Arrival into Queenstown

We’ll take you out to Bob’s Cove and then along one of the most beautiful drives in the southern hemisphere to Glenorchy – Lord of the Rings country, end-of-the-road magic, and views that genuinely feel made up. Tonight is our big group farewell dinner. We’ll board a boat across Lake Wakatipu and sit down to a gourmet BBQ at Walter Peak High Country Station. It’s the perfect way to close out a trip like this.

🏨 Accommodation

• Millennium Hotel Queenstown (or similar)

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast, Dinner

✅ Activities

• Bob’s Cove Walk, Queenstown
• Scenic Drive to Glenorchy
• Boat Crossing of Lake Wakatipu
• Farewell Gourmet BBQ Dinner at Walter Peak High Country Station

One last breakfast together before we say our goodbyes – and what a trip it’s been.

From the West Coast’s wild edges to the shadow of Aoraki, from turquoise lakes to alpine passes, you’re leaving with a full heart and a camera roll to match. The friendships made on a trip like this have a way of lasting well beyond the journey.

We’ll make sure you get to the airport in time for your flight – and we have a feeling Aotearoa will be calling you back sooner than you think.

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast