thencke10

My husband and teenage daughter are traveling to New Zealand, South Island, in late March for 9-10 days. The primary purpose of the trip is to visit my college aged daughter at the University of Otago. Our plan was to meet up with my daughter and do some traveling together, then work our way back towards Christchurch, enjoying some sights on the way after she goes back to school. Do you have any itinerary suggestions?

Diamantina

Thencke, I just saw your post now as I have been traveling for the last 5 weeks and only returned home yesterday. I live in Dunedin, so if you still have any questions, please let me know. March is a lovely time to be here. It's my favorite time for traveling around NZ because of the weather..Nine to ten days is so short. Is there any possibility of adding more days to your trip so you can see more of NZ?

Dunedin is known for its rare wildlife and heritage architecture. It also has some fantastic beaches. Don't miss the Otago Peninsula while you are here. It's only a few hours drive to Queenstown or Wanaka or Milford Sound or Aoraki Mt. Cook. Fly into Dunedin or Queenstown if you only have 9 to 10 days.

tominrm

Hello, Diamantina,
It's good to read a reply from a local. You already answered one of my questions: March is a good time to visit New Zealand. I live in Chicago and plan to go to NL in March 2024.
Since it is my first trip to NZ, I really don't have much ideas about where to visit and how long in each place. I am a retired single man so a day trip is good (I have done many Camino de Santiago pilgrimage in Spain) but I don't think I want to do many days of hiking at a time, unless there is one that I must do at all costs. I want to visit Milford Sound (cruise?). So I got some ideas from a commercial tour operator and came up with this.
Day 1. Arrive in Christchurch by bus from Picton ferry port in the PM.
Day 2 and 3 Christchurch
Day4 Take train to Franz Josef
Day 5 Franz Josef
Day 6 Take bus to Queenstown
Day 7 Queenstown
Day 8 Take bus to Te Anau as the base for Milford visit.
Day 9 Te Anau (Milford?)
Day 10 Te Anau (Milford?)
Day 11 Take bus to Queenstown
Day 12 Fly out of NZ via Christchurch

Like I said, it is my first time in NZ so it may not be perfect. Do you see any obvious fault with this plan? Are there other places you strongly recommend? I don't care for beaches or wines but care about history, culture, nature.

So Likes: short hiking, scenery, history, culture
Don't care about wines, beaches, multi-day hiking,

Any suggestions will be appreciated.
Tom

Diamantina

tominrm, you're itinerary looks fine to me, given your interests. I am a bit curious as to why you are ferrying over to Picton and then taking the bus to Christchurch. Will you be starting your trip with some days on the North Island?

Just some initial thoughts.

I'm sure you're aware the train doesn't go all the way to Franz Josef. It will drop you in Greymouth and the have to rent a car or take a bus to Franz Josef. Looking at the Intercity bus website, I can see it would be a long bus ride, which will probably feel even longer after your train ride. Great Sights also travels these routes and makes a few stops along the way. Kiwi Experience is a "hop on hop off" bus that mainly appeals to your travelers. I'm personally not familiar with their services, but I thought I should mention it. Bus rides should be booked well in advance for this popular time of year. A rental car would give you more options (you could, instead of going directly to Franz Josef, take your time driving to FJ and make some scenic West Coast stops along the way), but I can understand why you might not want to rent a car if you are alone, especially if you are used to being in places with great public transportation Unfortunately, public transportation options on NZ's South Island are limited; they were better before the pandemic. As tourism has bounced back, more companies have begun to offer alternative transport between the cities, so please check over the next months. Luckily, you have plenty of time to plan.

The bus ride from Franz Josef to Queenstown will also be a long one.

Many companies offer tours with cruise included from Te Anau to Milford Sound. Most will include very short walks to Mirror Lakes and the Chasm, photo stops in Eglinton Valley. Some companies offer longer hikes, such as the walk to Key Summit.

I would highly recommend that you post separately about your trip, so that you can get far more responses/feedback to your itinerary. There are people with far more experience than me regarding travel to these destinations. I know these destinations, of course, and I'm happy to offer any travel advice that I can. but Melnq8, for example, knows your destinations better than I do. If like, thencke10, you'd be traveling to Dunedin to research University of Otago for his or her teenage daughter, I could be of enormous help! But you have a different itinerary and purpose for your visit and it's important that you get a wide range of advice and opinion.

tominrm

Thank you, Diamantina,
Actually my trip to NZ begins in Australia in early February. I always wanted to visit these two countries but never had the chance, and this time I am determined to do it. I am going to fly into Auckland, spend three nights then fly to wellington. From Wellington I take ferry to Picton. (I love ferries.) From Picton the reason I take bus or train is to see more as if I drive. According to ROME2RIO.COM this trip (train and bus) takes about 9-1/2 hours. I've been told the South Island is so beautiful so I want to watch the scenery through the bus window.
Thank you again for your input. I might post another separate post as you suggested.

Diamantina

I see. Thanks for explaining. You love Australia; it's a fascinating, fun and beautiful country (and with great food!).

I enjoy ferries, too. The Wellington-Picton ferry trip can be gorgeous on a clear, sunny and not-too-windy day, particularly as the ferry makes its way through Marlborough Sounds. Cook Strait is generally windy, but the winds tend to die down by March (no guarantees, though). Will you taking a ferry while in Auckland? Hauraki Gulf is also pretty and wildlife can often be seen.

I now also understand why you'd prefer to take the bus or train, so you needn't constantly keep your eyes on the road, and South Island roads can be narrow and winding. Though having a car would allow you to make some stops or detours along the highly scenic West Coast. I find Punakaiki especially scenic and geologically interesting. It's a 45-minute drive north of Greymouth. The Intercity bus also travels from Greymouth to Punakaiki and from Punakaiki to Franz Josef, but only once or twice a day. Many people also like to stop at Hokitika Gorge, but the bus doesn't go there. It's nice, but I don't think it can compare to Punakaiki or Franz Josef.

The Coastal Pacific train also travels between Picton and Christchurch.

tominrm

Thank you, Diamantina.
Interesting to find out about ferry from Auckland. If I have to pick one of four destinations, which island would you recommend? I will try one. I was told about good things about buses in NZ so I picked bus instead of trains, but trains should be good too. Coastal Pacific train sounds good. If their schedule is good I might take it.
In order to visit Punakaiki, I think I will have to stay a night in Greymouth. I will see if I can adjust my schedule. I have not made any reservation yet, so my schedule is very flexible now. Trying to gather information so that I can figure out where to go for how many days to spend in each place.

Thanks again. You've been very helpful.

Diamantina

Two of the closest, and most popular, islands to Auckland would be Waiheke and Rangitoto. Waiheke is known for its wineries and beaches. While you're not interested in wine or beaches, it also has walking tracks, some of which are accessible from the ferry landing. Some of the Waiheke ferries make a stop in Devonport village along the way. I've never gotten off the ferry at Devonport, but it looks charming, full of heritage architecture. I've read it also has an interesting maritime history; the Royal New Zealand navy has had a base there since 1841.

Rangitoto might be better. It is home to Auckland's youngest volcano and is uninhabited. You can walk from the ferry landing to the top of the island for 360 degree views. Fuller's ferries used to offer a motorized 4WD "train" that brought visitors close to the top, so that they only needed to walk the remaining steps to the summit (this is what I did and I'm glad I did because it was a hot day)--but I don't see this option listed anymore. Rangitoto also has lava caves to explore. Because Rangitoto is unihabited and pest-free, you might see rare native birds on the island. such as saddlebacks, kākās, and kākārikis. It is connected by a causeway to the island of Motutapu, which is also pest-free.

Rangitoto is an Auckland icon. You can see if from much of Auckland's west coast. When i landed in Auckland recently, I could see it from the air. Its profile is quite striking.
Useful links:
https://www.fullers.co.nz/destinatio...gitoto-island/
https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-re.../?tab-id=50578
https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-re...-conservation/

If you're interested in birdwatching, then Tiritiri Matangi Island would be of great interest, as it's a wildlife sanctuary but it's much farther and the ferry ride, is understandably, costlier. Because it's farther, the Tiritiri Matangi ferries can sometimes be cancelled due to rough sailing conditions. Again, March has more settled weather, so there would be less chance of cancelled ferries. But the ferries only sail Wednesday through Sunday and on public holidays.The walking tracks on Tiritiri Matangi are beautiful and full of birdsong.
https://www.tiritirimatangi.org.nz/
https://www.exploregroup.co.nz/auckl...atangi-island/

I think the morning train from Christchurch to Greymouth is designed to connect with the Intercty buses heading both to the north and south. If you had to overnight in Greymouth to see Punakaiki, it would not be worth your time.
https://www.tiritirimatangi.org.nz/
https://www.exploregroup.co.nz/auckl...atangi-island/

tominrm

Diamantina, Thank you. Now I think I have enough information to plan my 3-week NZ itinerary.

tominrm

Diamantina, I need your help again. I thought I had enough information to build my itinerary in NZ, but I think the highlight of the trip to the South Island would be visiting Milford Sound. I've heard of treking, cruising, flying over, etc. involving the place. What confuses me is the location of "Milford Sound". According to Google Map, it is located far away from either Queenstown or Te Anau and there doesn't seem to be waterway connecting to the sound. Yet, these two towns are associated with visiting Milford. Here's what I have so far.3-10 Lv Christchurch Ar Franz Josef (bus)

3-11 Franz Josef

3-12 Lv Franz Josef Ar. Queenstown (Bus)

3-13 Queenstown

3-14 Lv Queenstown Ar. Te Anau (Bus)

3-15

3-16

3-17

3-18

3-19 Lv Te Anau Ar. Queenstown (Bus)

3-20 Lv Queenstown Ar Chicago (Fly out of Queenstown. To Chicago via Christchurch)

I have full 6 days from the day I arrive in Queenstown to visit Queenstown, Te Anau, and Milford Sound. I am not interested in doing Ziplining, Bungee Jump type of thrilling activities but interested in cruising, 1/2 day kayaking, 1or 2 day hiking, visiting historical places including museums. I'd like to return to Queenstown at least by March 19 in order to take the flight out of there the following day. So basically asking about what to do and for how long during my visit to the two towns. I see Milford cruising trips out of both towns. Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Melnq8

Diamantina is probably sleeping, so I'll address your question.

According to Google Map, it is located far away from either Queenstown or Te Anau and there doesn't seem to be waterway connecting to the sound. Yet, these two towns are associated with visiting Milford. Here's what I have so far.3-10 Lv Christchurch Ar Franz Josef (bus)

From Queenstown, it's a about a four hour drive to Milford (287 km)

From Te Anau, it's about a two hour drive to Milford (118 km)

Milford Road is one way in, one way out.

Milford cruises leave from Milford Sound.

https://www.milford-sound.co.nz/milford-sound-cruises/

There aren't many hikes at Milford Sound, but there are many hiking opportunites along Milford Road.

https://www.fiordland.org.nz/see-and...rd-road-walks/

To access the Milford Track, you take a boat from Te Anau Downs (which is located about 25 minutes from Te Anau on the Milford Road) to the start of the track at Glade Wharf. You can start the multi-day hike from here, or just walk a section as a day hike (we've done this), but I think the day hike might only be available in the off season, you'll need to verify.

You can also walk a portion of the Milford Sound Track as a day hike from Milford Lodge, by taking a water taxi from Milford Sound to Sandfly Point (the end of the Milford Track) for a half day hike:

https://www.milfordlodge.com/activit...track-walking/a

Ake
ub
a water taxi transfer from Milford Sound to Sandfly Point and step onto the Milford Track for an unforgettable short day walk. Easily accessible from Milford Sound Ldge, the Milford Track Day Walk combines a return boat journey with a gentle, yet inspiring half-da

Melnq8

I have full 6 days from the day I arrive in Queenstown to visit Queenstown, Te Anau, and Milford Sound.....So basically asking about what to do and for how long during my visit to the two towns. I see Milford cruising trips out of both towns. Any suggestions will be appreciated.

It depends on what you want to do.

Six full days - so seven nights, right?

You could 1) spend your seven nights in Queenstown and make a day trip to Milford Sound to take a sound cruise - this is a very long day, but a very popular way to do it for those short on time. From Queenstown, you can easily visit Glenorchy (maybe walk a portion of the Routeburn Track, take a jet boat trip), Wanaka (take a hike to Mt Iron, visit wineries), Cromwell (lots of great wineries here too and a fruit growing area), and Te Anau (lots of great hikes and lake activities like a visit to the glow worm dell), Manapouri (start of Doubtful Sound cruises, some hikes in the area). There's also plenty to do right in Queenstown (Shotover Jet boats, botanic gardens, wineries, lake cruises, shopping, Bob's Peak Gondola, local hikes, etc).

Or you could 2) spend 4 nights in Queenstown to visit Glenorchy, Wanaka, Cromwell, and QT, and then spend the remainder of your nights in Te Anau, and visit Milford Sound from there.This makes for a much shorter drive to Milford.

I've never traveled by bus in NZ, so I'm not sure how that works, but I suspect you'll be limited by schedules and will probably have to take some sort of tour to say, Glenorchy, etc. The Dart River Safari trip to Glenorchy includes bus transport from Queenstown, so I suspect there are many other tours in the area as well.

Diamantina

I probably was asleep (or trying to sleep), Melnq8.

tominrm, Milford Sound is only 16km (9.94 miles) from the dock to the open sea, so the cruise only takes (a minimum of) 1 hour 45 minutes but can take longer. Some longer cruises, for instance, include a trip to the underwater observatory. In addition to day cruises, overnight cruises are available. The overnight cruises don't involve more sailing around but allow you to spend the night on the fiord, where it's very quiet after dark. As you can imagine, there are not a lot of other boats around after dark. If the night is clear and the moon is not too full, star-gazing can be wonderful from here because there is no light pollution. I have done the overnight trip twice. The cruise starts in the late afternoon and you sail for a bit, but are then offered a chance to kayak or board a small boat for an hour or so to explore the fiord on a more intimate level. Of, if you like, you can go for a swim (I wouldn't and I like to swim, but several people on my cruise jumped right in). When you return to the boat, you'd be served a buffet dinner. There was plenty of time after dinner to relax on one's own, chat with other passengers or stargaze from the top deck. In the morning, we were served breakfast, before we sailed out to the mouth of the fiord/the Tasman Sea (only if weather permits). You are likely to see wildlife, such as NZ fur seals, seabirds, maybe bottlenose dolphins (as there are resident pods), and, if you're lucky, fiordland crested penguins. Our cruise returned to the dock before 9 a.m. As my husband and I drove there, this gave us plenty of time to walk to Key Summit (which starts from "The Divide" on Milford Road) on our way back to Te Anau. The first time we did the overnight cruise we caught the bus from Queenstown and had planned to fly back to Queentown the following morning but the weather refused to comply, so we had to bus back again. I believe all coach plus cruise tours to Milford Sound make scenic stops along the way, such as at Mirror Lakes. I think most people find Milford Road as stunning as Milford Sound itself.

Yes, instead of a cruise, you can do a kayak trip on Milford Sound. And, as you mentioned, you also have the option of a scenic flight over Milford Sound from Te Anau or Queenstown instead of a coach-cruise tour.

From Te Anau, you'd also have the option of cruising Doubtful Sound, which is nearly ten times larger than Milford Sound. Doubtful Sound is, like Milford Sound, actually a fiord, a long narrow inlet with steep sides created by glacial erosion.You can visit Doubtful Sound either as a very long day trip or as an overnight trip. There are at least two or three companies that offer this trip. Have a look at this one, just to give you an idea of the itineraries of the all-day and overnight trips.
https://www.realnz.com/en/experience...rness-cruises/
https://www.realnz.com/en/experience...SAAEgIzYfD_BwE
There are many people who visit both Milford and Doubtful Sound while visiting NZ.

I've also done the overnight cruise on Doubtful Sound. From Te Anau, I traveled by coach to nearby Manapouri, where the trip to Doubtful Sound begins with a 45-minute boat cruise across gorgeous Lake Manapouri, then a 45-minute bus ride on a curvy narrow road over Wilmot Pass before finally catching the cruise at Doubtful Sounds' Deep Cove, which is also home to a hostel and a research facility for the University of Otago.
From the dock at Doubtful Sound's Deep Cove to the open ocean, it's a distance of around 40.4 km (25 miles).. On the first afternoon/early evening of the two-day trip, we sailed to the open ocean to view a large seal colony spread over several rocky islets at the fiord's mouth. The second day of the cruise began just after sunrise in late September). Unlike Milford Sound, Doubtful Sound branches off into three "arms." We turned off the motor, put up the sails and sailed quietly into one of these arms ("West Arm") and stopped to listen to the sounds of "silence" for about 10 minutes--no talking or snapping of photos, just the sound of birds. We also cruised around Seymour Island.. We encountered a pod of bottlenose dolphins, but no penguins ( I was there during penguin breeding season).The overnight cruise, like that on Milford Sound, includes a buffet dinner, breakfast and kayaking or a boat trip of about an hour.

You can also visit Glowworm Caves from Te Anau. Though I would not make this a priority.. I have visited these Glowworm Caves, as I found myself with a free afternoon after my Doubtful Sound cruise. I enjoyed it and found the cave system interesting. Also, as I took Real Journey's Doubtful Sound cruise, and as Real Journeys also operates the Te Anau Glowworm tours, I got a discount! "Real Journeys" has since become "RealNZ"

While in Te Anau you can also visit the DOC Te Anau Bird Sanctuary, where you can see some rare NZ birds in captivity. Admission is free, though donations are appreciated.

There is a company called Tracknet that offers transportation to different tracks in Fiordland. This might come in useful if you'd like to do a day walk on Key Summit, for example. Or a day walk on the Kepler Track, for example.

One of the tours I really enjoyed out of Queenstown was the Skipper's Canyon tour, which takes you along Skipper's Canyon Road, an old gold mining road, and also included a jet boat ride, which, with its surprising twists and turrns, made me giggle out loud several times (and I was already well into my 60s). Links:
https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-re.../?tab-id=50578
https://www.skipperscanyonjet.co.nz/skippers-canyon/
This link makes Skippers Canyon Road look scarier than it is, but it's informative:
https://www.dangerousroads.org/austr...w-zealand.html
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/skippe...CRQK4BQ3QEYVI/

I also enjoy the Queenstown Gondola. The views from the top are great.

I would absolutely try to visit Glenorchy, as Melnq8 suggested. Here's a link to the bus service from Queenstown:
https://www.glenorchycommunity.nz/co...y-bus-service/
But maybe a tour would be more enjoyable. Some include kayaking, jet boating or horseback riding. There's also a company that offers transportation to day walks in the Glenorchy area.
The road to Glenorchy is stunning, as it skirts Lake Wakatipu.

tominrm

Melnq8, thank you for your help, and I am sorry for my ignorance. I meant Milford Sound when I wrote Milford, but there seems to be more Milfords in New Zealand. According the Google map, there is one on the East Side of South Island, and another near Auckland in addition to Milford Sound. I am interested in visiting Milford Sound. Just let you know that I saw your message and am trying to digest all the info contained. Will ask more questions later. The basic question is: Should I visit both Queenstown and Te Anau in order to visit Milford Sound?

tominrm

Diamantina, I now have more things to consider doing than I have the time. I will visit the sites you listed here and digest slowly. Overnight cruise seems to be nice but is over my budget (NZ$1700 for a single). Get back to you if I have more questions. Thank you, again.

Diamantina

tominrm, I meant to include this link to a map of part of Fiordland, which will show where these areas lie in relation to one another. I think that nameless dot to the northwest of Queenstown is supposed to represent Glenorchy, though what it doesn't show is the Dart River that extends beyond Glenorchy.
https://www.milford-sound.co.nz/trav...rd-sound-maps/

I now understand about your budget, just letting you know the options..By staying in Te Anau, you will be closer to Milford Road and Sound and you can take one of the earlier coach-cruise-coach tours that arrives before the busier midday. Late afternoon would also be less crowded, but by going on the earliest-as-possible coach-cruise-coach tour, you'd be able to return to Te Anau early enough to enjoy your afternoon there. Given your limited time, I'd say two nights in Te Anau would be more than enough. In fact, if you aren't interested in spending more time in Te Anau, you can probably return to Queenstown after your visit to Milford Road and Sound. Perhaps you can even book a coach-cruise-coach tour with a pick up from Te Anau and a return to Queenstown (but you'd have to look into this). You'll find a wide range of accommodation in central Te Anau.. A motel with a kitchen would allow you to make your own meals. Again, make sure you stay walking distance from where you'll be catching the bus. The center of Te Anau is flat, so as long as you have luggage with wheels, you'll be fine. I've taken the Intercity bus to Te Anau myself (though I was traveling to and from Dunedin).

Queenstown has a regular local bus service. I have been floowing magrose's thread and she bought a bus card after arriving in Queenstown, which gives a discount on the local buses, which is handy. I have an "Orbus" bus card myself for travel around Dunedin. Once you have the card, bus trips will only be $2. From central Queenstown you can take the bus to Arrowtown (I think this would be Route #2), which was originally an old gold mining town. The old buildings are still in use and have become a tourist attraction. You can easily walk down to the river and view the old Chinese settlement. The first Chinese immigrants began arrivivng during the 1860s Gold Rush, so the buidlings are historic.Arrowtown is a popular spot for viewing the autumn leaves, though you might be a bit early for peak autumn leaf viewing, you will no doubt see some.
Also see: https://www.queenstownnz.co.nz/stori...wtown-on-foot/

Richie's has a shuttle that goes from Queenstown to Wanaka.
https://www.ritchies.co.nz/queenstow...rkables%20Park.

Diamantina

The Queenstown Botanic garden is lovely and it has a lakeside trail, the Queenstown Gardens Trail.

I mentioned the Queenstown Gondola earlier. You don't have to take the Gondola to see the views from the top, you can also walk up for free on the Tiki Trail. I have not done this.

tominrm

Thank you, Diamantina. I now have a lots of web sites to look up and plan my trip. I first I worried about having too many days, but now I worry about not having enough days.

Diamantina

tominrm, I rarely have enough days for my vacations. I sincerely hope the weather in March 2024 allows you to make the most of the time you'll have here.

tominrm

Haha, I never had enough time or vacation money before I retired too, but after my retirement I have plenty time, but vacation money.
I looked up the average weather of Queenstown in March and found high avg of 60F(17C) to low avg of 45(7C) which is cooler than I anticipated. Avg precipitation is between 30-40% so I expect rain 1/3 of my days there.
Thank you.