Nelson & Abel Tasman

New Zealand's sunny, artsy city, gateway to the golden beaches and coastal track of Abel Tasman National Park, where kayaking and water taxis are the classic way to explore.

Nelson (Māori: Whakatū) sits on Tasman Bay at the northern tip of New Zealand's South Island. Founded in 1841, it's one of the country's oldest cities, and with around 2,400 hours of sunshine a year it regularly ranks among New Zealand's sunniest. The city itself is small, known for its artists, crafts, Saturday market and craft beer, and the surrounding Tasman District holds three national parks. The area divides into three parts: ① Nelson city and surrounds: Christ Church Cathedral, the Centre of New Zealand, the World of WearableArt museum, Tahunanui Beach, Māpua Wharf and the Great Taste Trail cycleway; ② Abel Tasman National Park: starting from Marahau or Kaiteriteri, combine water taxis with walking or kayaking to see Split Apple Rock, Anchorage Bay, Torrent Bay and the seals of Tonga Island – the full Coast Track takes 3–5 days; ③ Golden Bay: cross Tākaka Hill to see Te Waikoropupū Springs, Wharariki Beach and Farewell Spit; it's a long way, so consider staying a night in Tākaka or Collingwood. Nelson Lakes National Park is also about 1.5 hours' drive south. The best season is Oct–Apr; Dec–Jan is the New Zealand summer holiday, when beaches and campsites are busiest, so book DOC huts and campsites in advance on the official website. Getting there: Nelson Airport has flights from Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch; or take the ferry from Wellington to Picton and drive about 2 hours. Public transport is limited, so self-drive is recommended, or rely on water taxis and tourist shuttle buses. Allow 4–6 days.

Top sights

• Abel Tasman Coast Track – One of New Zealand's Great Walks, a 60-kilometer track linking golden-sand bays and emerald water. You can hike it in sections or combine i…
• Split Apple Rock – A round granite boulder split cleanly in two down the middle, sitting in the sea. It is the most iconic image of Abel Tasman.
• Te Waikoropupū Springs – The largest freshwater spring in the Southern Hemisphere, with underwater visibility of about 63 meters. It is one of the clearest freshwat…
• Wharariki Beach – A wild beach at the northwestern tip of the South Island. Offshore arches and dunes make it one of New Zealand's most photogenic seascapes.
• Marahau – A small village at the southern start of the Abel Tasman Coast Track, where kayak rentals, water taxis and guided tours all depart.
• Torrent Bay – A lagoon bay along the middle of the coast track, where you can walk straight across the sand at low tide, with a row of private holiday ho…
• Anchorage Bay – One of Abel Tasman's most popular golden-sand bays, a must-stop for water taxis and a convenient pickup and drop-off point for day trips.
• Bark Bay – A lagoon bay on the northern section of the track, close to a suspension bridge over Falls River, and a common base for day trips and multi…
• Tonga Island Marine Reserve – A marine reserve on the northern section of Abel Tasman, where New Zealand fur seals live on Tonga Island, ideal for kayaking to see seals.
• Awaroa Beach – A “people's beach” bought in 2016 by nearly 40,000 New Zealanders through crowdfunding and returned to the national park, with golden sand…
• Cleopatra's Pool – A natural rock pool in a forest stream beside Torrent Bay, where moss-covered rock forms a natural water slide.
• Kaiteriteri Beach – One of New Zealand's most famous golden-sand beaches, and the main departure point for Abel Tasman boat cruises and water taxis.
• Christ Church Cathedral, Nelson – An Anglican cathedral standing on Church Hill above the city centre, built of local Takaka marble and a Nelson landmark.
• World of WearableArt & Classic Cars Museum – Showcases award-winning pieces from past World of WearableArt (WOW) competitions, plus more than a hundred classic cars in the same museum.
• Centre of New Zealand – A survey monument on the summit of Botanical Hill, east of the city, marking the origin point of New Zealand's surveys. A 20-minute walk le…
• Nelson Market – A weekly Saturday market in Montgomery Square, selling local crafts, organic produce and street food.
• Tahunanui Beach – A long sandy beach on the edge of Nelson, with shallow, gentle waves, ideal for families. Nearby are a playground and a mini zoo.
• Nelson Provincial Museum – One of New Zealand's earliest regional museums, telling the story of Māori and colonial history in the Nelson-Tasman region.
• The Suter Art Gallery – A regional art gallery opened in 1899 beside the Queens Gardens, with a collection of colonial-era New Zealand landscapes and contemporary…
• Founders Heritage Park – A recreated 19th-century Nelson streetscape made from relocated historic buildings, with old shopfronts, a church, aircraft and an organic…
• Queens Gardens – A Victorian-style garden created in 1892 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Victoria's accession, and home to a Chinese Garden.
• Māpua Wharf – A former wharf at the river mouth, converted into a food and leisure precinct with seafood restaurants, a smokehouse, craft beer and galler…
• Rabbit Island / Moturoa – A low, sandy island of pine forest in Tasman Bay, with an 8 km beach for picnics, swimming and cycling. It's connected to the mainland by a…
• Tasman's Great Taste Trail – A roughly 200 km loop linking Nelson, Māpua and Motueka, with wineries, breweries and orchards along the way.
• Boulder Bank & Lighthouse – A natural 13 km bank of pebbles that shelters Nelson Harbour, with a cast-iron lighthouse built in 1862 at its far end.
• Tākaka Hill (Harwoods Hole & Ngārua Caves) – A karst highland known as “Marble Mountain”, with the 176-metre-deep Harwood Hole and the Ngarua Caves, which contain moa bones.
• Riuwaka Resurgence – A sparkling green spring where the Riwaka River emerges from beneath the Takaka marble hills, a Māori sacred site reached by a short forest…
• Wainui Falls – One of the most spectacular waterfalls in Golden Bay, reached in about 40 minutes through nikau palm forest and across a swaying suspension…
• Farewell Spit – New Zealand's longest sand spit, stretching about 30 km, with a Ramsar wetland and a bird sanctuary. Only guided tours can take you to the…
• Nelson Lakes National Park (Lake Rotoiti) – A glacial lake at the northern end of the Southern Alps, where the wooden jetty in St Arnaud and reflections of snowy peaks make classic vi…

Where to eat

• Hopgoods & Co Bistro – A Nelson favourite since 2005, run by a chef who trained at London's Le Gavroche, serving seasonal bistro dishes made w…
• Arden Bar and Kitchen – A contemporary restaurant and wine and cocktail bar behind a historic shopfront, which Nelson's food scene regards as t…
• Hawker House Southeast Asian Street Food – A sharing-plate restaurant inspired by Southeast Asian hawker markets, awarded one hat by the Cuisine Good Food Guide…
• The Boat Shed Café – A seaside restaurant built on piles over the harbour, known for its oysters, mussels and seasonal fish. The “Trust the…
• Urban Oyster Bar and Eatery – A stylish oyster bar on Hardy Street, serving a range of oysters and Asian-influenced shared small plates, with local c…
• NYSA Turkish Restaurant – A family-run Turkish restaurant with generous portions and reasonable prices, whose grill platters and İskender kebab r…

Itineraries

• Top of the South: Fjords, Wineries & Coast – Travel from Picton through the Marlborough wineries to Abel Tasman and Golden Bay, featuring high sunshine hours and sh…