South Island

New Zealand's most spectacular island: Aoraki/Mount Cook, Lake Tekapo, Queenstown, Milford Sound, the West Coast glaciers and the Abel Tasman coast.

The South Island (Māori: Te Waipounamu) is larger than the North Island but has only about a quarter of its population. The Southern Alps run the length of the island, bringing together glaciers, fjords, lakes and snowy peaks, and it is the essence of New Zealand's natural scenery. It is governed by several regional councils. Main highlights: Christchurch and Banks Peninsula; the Church of the Good Shepherd and the world-class dark sky reserve at Lake Tekapo; Aoraki/Mount Cook, New Zealand's highest peak, and the Hooker Valley Track; the adventure capital Queenstown and nearby Wānaka and Arrowtown; Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound in Fiordland National Park, plus Great Walks such as the Milford Track; the West Coast's Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers and the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks; the Abel Tasman National Park Coast Track and the Marlborough wine region in the north; sperm whale watching at Kaikōura on the east coast; and Dunedin and the Otago Peninsula's yellow-eyed penguins in the south. The classic self-drive loop is Christchurch–Tekapo–Mount Cook–Wānaka–Queenstown–Te Anau/Milford–West Coast–Nelson–Kaikōura–Christchurch, taking about 12–16 days. There are many mountain roads and one-lane bridges, snow chains are needed in winter, and the Milford Road is often temporarily closed due to avalanche risk.

Destinations

Itineraries