New Zealand Wilderness and Camping Adventure

Experience New Zealand's amazing West Coast and Southern Alps of New Zealand on this wilderness and camping adventure tour.

Please note this is a suggested self-drive itinerary. It can be customised to suit almost any style and budget.

Tour Itinerary

Days 1-3 - Three Day Camping & Kayaking Abel Tasman National Park - (Beach Camping-Fully Catered)

This fully guided overnight option allows you to experience the unique coastal paradise of the Abel Tasman by land and sea on this hassle-free adventure. Explore one of New Zealand's adventure tourism icons by sea kayak. The Abel Tasman coastline is characterised by near-shore islands, sheltered waters, estuaries and golden sandy beaches. This marine reserve is home to a New Zealand Fur seal colony, and marine and terrestrial birds are abundant along the coastal margin. The park is sheltered from ocean swells, and enjoys a mild climate in New Zealand's sunniest region, making it an excellent place to visit throughout the year. Abel Tasman National Park is New Zealand's smallest national park. It protects 23,000 hectares of the most natural stretch of easily accessible coastline in New Zealand. Our walking track follows the picturesque coastline with its pristine golden sand beaches and calm turquoise waters, climbing up to awesome views, then down again for a refreshing swim or picnic before we take to the water and experience the park coastline from a seal's-eye view in our sea kayaks.

Day 4 - Punakaiki (Poo-na-kai-key) Pancake Rocks and Blowholes

The heaving swells of the Tasman Sea have carved the coastline of the West Coast for millions of years. Nowhere is the effect on the landscape more spectacular and profound than at Punakaiki. These rocks really are remarkable pieces of natural sculpture, a series of stratified limestone stacks which, over many thousands of years, have been eroded to give the effect of giant piles of neatly stacked pancakes. Another prominent feature are the blowholes that, at high tide or in heavy weather, regularly throw up columns of dazzling spray high out of the blowholes - Best seen after wonderful westerly storms when the sun is reasserting itself in the face of fantastic cloud formations on the horizon.

Day 5 - Punakaiki Valley and Pancake Rocks Beach & Bush Horse Trek

Discover this region by horseback as you ford the Punakaiki River and take the scenic route to view the stunning scenery of the Paparoa National Park. Ride through native bush to view huge limestone bluffs capped with lush temperate rainforest. Native Kereru wood pigeon can sometimes be seen swooping low through forest corridors. Paradise duck, the nosy weka and gorgeous-plumaged pukeko are common onlookers. Birdlife is a stunning feature of the New Zealand native rainforest and riders can quietly observe their lives from horseback. We make a stop on the river flat at a bush hut for a stretch and photographs, before wending our way back to the coast. Take a stroll down Punakaiki beach where you can experience the powerful sea rolling onto the famous Pancake Rocks. Sit on horseback with the horses snorting at the salt spray from the waves. A real experience! This trek is suited to all levels of riders. For the health and well-being of our horses we have a weight limit of 100kg.

Days 6-7 - Thermal Bush Camp - Full 2 Day Hike into Hotpools

The trip is in an Alpine River Valley that starts in the heart of NZ's spectacular Southern Alps. It winds its way through some of this countries most scenic Alpine areas with its vistas of mountain peaks and glaciers. In doing so it crosses the Alpine Fault Line revealing a country of fire and ice! You will enjoy about an hours easy escorted walk up the Thermal River Valley through tussock river flats and ancient fern covered forest. We reach a riverside terrace below a small gorge carved through the rock by centuries of water. This hidden site will be your home for the night. Imagine relaxing with a glass of wine in one hand and some of NZ's excellent BBQ food in the other as you soak up the heat from the camps hotpools while gazing at the hauntingly beautiful scenery. This is the place where friends are made for a lifetime!

Day 8 - Lake Matheson - A Reflection of Perfection

One of New Zealand's great scenic icons lies just 6km from Fox Glacier. On a still, clear day it reflects the unforgettable image of New Zealand's highest peaks, Aoraki (Mount Cook) and Mount Tasman. The surface is a perfect natural mirror. An easy 40 minute walk takes you to the first viewing platform, and a complete circuit of the lake can be completed in one and a half hours. Lake Matheson is a kettle lake formed by a decaying glacier as it retreated back to the existing valley. The best time to go is either early in the morning or in the evening.

Day 9 - Full Day Adventure Hike - Franz Josef glacier

The Franz Josef Glacier is the most spectacular glacier in New Zealand, the dramatic terrain is a direct result of its rugged gradient. This world renowned all day hike takes you into superb scenery, deep in the heart of the glacier. The excellent step-cutting skills of your guide allows you to travel through the most spectacular and challenging glacier terrain imaginable, satisfying even the most ardent of adventurers. Gaining confidence as you go and with a total of 5-6 hours on the ice you could find yourself in all manner of situations, from squeezing through tight blue crevasses or sliding through ice caves to ‘franz shuffling’ down near vertical walls of ice. We’ll take you further, into the most spectacular ice falls and guarantee the most extensive and rewarding glacier adventure available.

Day 10 - Te Anau

Te Anau is a township of tranquil beauty nestled on the shores of Lake Te Anau. It is located close to the main southern walking tracks such as the Hollyford, Routeburn and Greenstone Tracks, Kepler, being a circular track, starts and finishes in Te Anau and is one of the newest tracks in Fiordland. At the head of Lake Te Anau is Glade House - the starting point of the Milford Track which traverses 34 miles (55 kilometres) of the Fiordland National Park. Other activities based at Te Anau include flight seeing, fishing, kayaking, sailing and horse riding as well as a variety of trips on the lake itself. You can also visit the underground waterfall and glow-worm grotto of the Te Anau Caves. This mountainous region of unspoilt forests and lakes was the home of two of the more remote regions of the Lord of the Rings movies.

Day 11-12 - Doubtful Sound Wilderness Kayaking - The Sound of Silence

Practically untouched by man. The physical grandeur of towering peaks descending into moody waters, outstanding waterfalls from high-up ice-age valleys and fiords clad with ancient vegetation, create a powerful atmosphere of solitude and serenity. Three times longer than Milford Sound and with a surface area 10 times larger, this is an unspoiled wilderness of many moods. Browne Falls cascades 619m to the fiord near Hall Arm and Helena Falls is an attractive feature of Deep Cove. Seals and dolphins are frequently seen, as well as the occasional penguin.

Day 1: A 6.00am start and as the sun rises an early morning journey from Te Anau to Manapouri. We travel by motorboat 30km across Lake Manapouri, a stunning lake. At West Arm we leave the boat and drive 24km from east to west over Wilmot Pass to Deep Cove. Preparation and instruction time and then kayaking for about 5 hours each day. We aim to paddle down Deep Cove saying hi to any NZ fur seals on the way, and to Rolla Island, nesting place for Fiordland crested penguins. Into Hall Arm with lunch on a small beach, then to Mt Danae at the head of the Arm in the afternoon. We camp in a small clearing in the ancient podocarp forest, some evenings exploring the valley, listening for kiwi, morepork, weka. Time to experience the remoteness, the being alone in this raw wilderness.

Day 2: the stillness and silence of Hall Arm in the morning broken only by birdcall, lures us back to the kayaks -often the splashes and exhalations of Doubtful Sound’s resident bottlenose dolphins gives added impetus. Paddling out of Hall Arm we head down Malaspina Reach for lunch, if possible circling Elizabeth Island exploring Olphert Cove. Back to Deep Cove with a tail wind - test your kayaking skills or put the sails up for a cruisy trip home. Return to Te Anau by 7.00pm to civilisation (?).

Days 13-14 - Lake Mcivor 2 Day Camping Guided Hike Including Flight and Boat Crossing

After a stunning flight across Lake Te Anau we land on Lake McIvor itself. Once the plane has left us alone in this remote, pristine environment, we commence our walk along the Lake McIvor edge, through native forest containing clusters of 1000+ year old beech trees and moss gardens. There are no marked tracks, it's all deer trails following an underground river that has its source up at Lake McIvor. The terrain is flat and easy walking to begin then a gradual uphill walk through mainly Alpine tussock to our camping spot in a remote valley by an Alpine lake. After dinner we walk to an adjacent clearing approx 20 mins away in the hope of spotting a few deer and other wildlife including numerous native birds and the possibility of seeing the camp's resident Kiwi. Next day we commence our descent through green, luscious, native bush, down towards Lake Te Anau where our return boat awaits. Grade: Easy to Moderate

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What's Included

Departure Dates