7 day Decidedly Southern

Your driver/guide meets you in Christchurch mid morning. After a special lunch at Akaunui Farm we drive over to the foothills of the Southern Alps and the small village of Mt Somers. We dine in Stronechrubie's acclaimed restaurant tonight.

After Burkes Pass the landscape changes to the turquoise lakes and dramatic sweeping vistas of tussock grasses and mountains of the Mackenzie Basin. At Lake Tekapo the picturesque church and sheepdog statue are favourite photo stops. At the head of Lake Pukaki is Mt Cook at 3754 metres, New Zealand's highest mountain, known in Maori as Aoraki "the cloud piercer". The Lindis Pass leads to the rugged Kawarau Gorge and into Queenstown where we ride the Skyline Gondola. Your boutique hotel is just a few minutes walk above the town with views to the lake and Remarkables Range. There’s a wide range of restaurants and cafes in this famous tourist resort –and your driver/guide will let you know his favourites.

This morning you are picked up from your hotel to fly to Milford Sound deep in the heart of Fiordland National Park. At Milford take a cruise down the sound, dominated by iconic Mitre Peak, out to the Tasman Sea. It’s a stunning fiord landscape of waterfalls, rainforest, mountains and wildlife. Return to Queenstown by plane.

The morning is free to further explore Queenstown. Perhaps cruise on the Tss Earnslaw or take an early morning jet boat ride on the spectacular Dart River in The Lord of the Rings country or a helicopter scenic flight before driving to Arrowtown, a picturesque goldmining village. Heading into tussock country, the road climbs up the Crown Range then down into the Cardrona Valley. We stop at quaint Cardrona Hotel, its history stretches back to the goldmining era then continue on to Wanaka amid a panorama of mountain peaks.

Drive beside Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka before heading into superb mountain and river scenery of the Haast Pass in Mt Aspiring National Park. There are several great short walks on well-maintained tracks through native beech forests to waterfalls and blue pools where trout lurk. Leaving the mountains, the road winds along the edge of the river to Haast where the Department of Conservation Centre documents the region’s colourful history, flora and fauna. Continue north through the lush, primeval rainforest of Westland World Heritage Park, stopping at Ship Creek for a stroll on the beach to the dune lake and through swampland rainforest. At Franz Josef Glacier short walks take you to vantage points to view the advancing glacier.

Early this morning you may choose to take an optional flight over the glaciers and Mt Cook and enjoy the thrill of landing on a glacier. We visit Okarito’s lovely lagoon where there is an opportunity to kayak.It is also possible to take a jet boat ride to the home of the rare kotuku, white heron. Travel on up the coast passing mirror lakes, boulder-laden rivers and catching glimpses of the Southern Alps. At Hokitika there are a host of craft galleries – Pounamu (greenstone) carving, glass blowing, wood and copper artisans. A beautiful coastal road following part of the ancient Greenstone Trails used by Maori for centuries in search of Pounamu leads to your hotel on the coast at Punakaiki. A little further up the road is the leading local attraction – the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks, sculpted sea stacks and towering cliffs. If the tide is right, blowholes spread clouds of spray. Dine this evening in your hotel’s Waterline restaurant.

Sit back and enjoy the magnificent alpine scenery of rugged Otira Gorge and Arthur’s Pass National Park. Crossing the Canterbury Plains to reach Christchurch in the late afternoon. You are delivered to your accommodation in this English style city of stone buildings, large parks and stunning gardens.