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New Zealand walking - A 'Grand Tour'
A wonderful walking holiday of New Zealand through both the North & South Islands
OverviewNew Zealand is one of those holiday destinations of a lifetime; its mountains, rivers and fjords are among some of the world’s most dramatic natural features.
We begin by flying into Auckland, staying long enough to visit the principal sights and perhaps visiting one of the preserved colonial homes or strolling across the isthmus between the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea for an overall view of the city.
Moving on to Rotorua we visit the thermal springs, geyser region and site of the best known Maori settlements, where we have the opportunity for some sightseeing and walking in the surrounding area of stunning lakes and waterfalls.
Continuing southwards we travel to the wild country of Tongariro National Park situated in a spectacular region of still active volcanic peaks. Our time here will be spent making the most of the breathtaking scenery, walking on tracks that pass beautiful waterfalls, and enjoying the spectacle of the rapids and hot springs for which New Zealand is renowned.
Then it is onwards, via Wellington and across the Marlborough Sound to Picton, for our first taste of the South Island with its rugged coastline and glaciers. We’ll see the famous Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers and walk around the unique landscape carved by these giants.
Queenstown next, is perhaps one of New Zealand’s most attractive towns, due to its scenic setting on the shores of Lake Wakatipu and in the shadow of the ‘Remarkables’. There is much to see and do here during our short stay. Visits can be made to the historic gold mining town of Arrowtown or we can take a boat trip across the lake on the old steamship TSS Earnslaw.
Exploring the southwest of the island, we travel to Te Anau and the ‘lost world’ of Milford Sound where we see dramatic vertical cliffs, hanging valleys and waterfalls which cascade 150m to the dark waters below. Travelling northwards again to Mount Cook, we find the highest mountain in New Zealand (3754m), known to the Maori as ‘the Cloud Piercer’, Aorangi. This is a most beautiful region, where the view of Mount Cook, set against Lake Pukaki or the Hooker Glacier, is quite breathtaking. Then it’s across the Canterbury Plains to Christchurch on the east coast. Our last day will be left free, providing the opportunity to see the principal sights. The exact nature of this last stop will of course depend on the City’s regeneration following the recent earthquake; we’ll do as much as we reasonably can!
Holiday Information SheetAll Holiday Information sheets are in PDF format. You will need Acrobat Reader or a similar program to view these. To download Acrobat Reader visit get.adobe.com/reader.
This holiday in New Zealand far exceeded our expectations and we cannot praise it highly enough.
I cannot praise highly enough our tour guides - Al and Jane - who were just superb. They were always enthusiastic and de...
After university and some independent travel in Africa, Aisling joined Ramblers Worldwide in October 2010. As one of the Product Management team she specialises in South Africa’s Cape Provinces, France and Portugal.
