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8 Day Southern Traverse Tour
An eight day South Island tour with Great Sights, Newmans and InterCity covering the east and west coasts. Features include: world renowned TranzAlpine scenic railway, West Coast rainforests, guided walk onto a glacier, Queenstown - NZ's premier alpine resort, Fiordland World Heritage Park, Milford Sound cruise, royal albatross & penguin tour and the Dunedin heritage tour.
Trip Type: Independent Tour
Standard Trip Duration: Eight Days (Extra days and activities can be requested when booking) Departing From: Christchurch Tour departs daily, with the exception of Christmas Day. Departs Christchurch railway station 8.15am
Included:
Prices are per person and include: Pick up from your Christchurch hotel/motel, coach travel, accommodation, transfers to and from your accommodation throughout your tour, TranzAlpine train, half day glacier walk, milford sound scenic cruise, skyline gondola, Dunedin city sightseeing tour, Otago Harbour cruise & penguin tour. |
| Single | Double | Triple | |||
| Tourist (Motel) | NZ$2,660.00 | NZ$1,880.00 | NZ$1,720.00 | - | |
| Quality (Hotel) | NZ$3,465.00 | NZ$2,320.00 | NZ$2,050.00 | - |
Prices valid for travel through till 30 September 2010.
Hotel accommodation examples | Terms and Conditions
Please request the extra days when you book.
- TranzAlpine scenic railway
- Guided walk onto glacier
- Queenstown - NZ's top resort
- Skyline Gondola
- Fiordland World Heritage Park
- Cruise of Milford Sound
- Dunedin heritage tour
- Royal albatross & penguin tours
Day 1 Christchurch - Glaciers
Board the world-renowned TranzAlpine train bound for Greymouth via the Arthur's
Pass National Park. Cross the Canterbury Plains, travel over viaducts and through tunnels and into the lush rainforests of the West Coast. On arrival in Greymouth board your InterCity coach for your journey south to the glaciers.
Westhaven Motel Fox Glacier, Rainforest Motel Fox Glacier or similar
Day 2 Full Day at Glaciers
Today we have included a half-day guided walk which accesses the rugged terminal ice face of the glacier. Round trip takes about four hours with about 1 hour spent exploring the lower glacier. Enjoy a fascinating commentary on the history and geology of the area. The rest of the day is free for optional activities including short walks into the native rainforest or for scenic flights up to the glaciers.
Westhaven Motel Fox Glacier, Rainforest Motel Fox Glacier or similar
Day 3 Glaciers - Queenstown
We travel with Newmans coachlines deeper into South Westland taking in the spectacle of Haast Pass, carved by the Haast River and framed by the Southern Alps. Take in the views of many beautiful lakes including Wanaka, Hawea, Dunstan and Wakatipu. Arrive into Queenstown at 4.15pm.
Day 4 Free Day in Queenstown
A free day for you to enjoy this fabulous resort. We have included the Skyline Gondola in your tour. There are dozens of activities including white water rafting, jetboating, bungy jumping, lake cruises, high country sheep station tours and excellent walking trails. Something for everyone.
Day 5 Queenstown - Milford - Te Anau
Travel with Great Sights to the Fiordland National Park – a world
heritage park. A vast remote wilderness of snow-capped mountains, glacial lakes
and valleys, fiords, waterfalls and dense rainforests.
From Te Anau, travel to the forested Eglinton Valley, Mirror Lakes, Homer Tunnel
and
Chasm before arriving at Milford Sound. Enjoy a one and a half hour cruise of
Milford
Sound viewing the spectacular waterfalls and famous Mitre Peak.
This evening you may like to take an optional tour across the
lake to view the Glow Worm Caves (extra cost).
Day 6 Te Anau - Dunedin
High country tussock soon gives way to the lush pastures of Southland and Otago as you travel with InterCity Coachlines through Gore and Balclutha arriving in Dunedin by 12.30pm.
This afternoon depart on a Dunedin heritage tour by double-decker bus. See the well-known landmarks established by the early Scottish settlers. Return to hotel by 5.00pm.
Day 7 Otago Peninsula
Enjoy a cruise with Monarch Wildlife Cruises around the Taiaroa Heads to view the northern royal albatross soaring high above the headlands. Other species to be seen include the blue penguin, sooty shearwater, variable oyster catcher,
three species of shag and other sea birds. Disembark at Wellers Rock and transfer by coach to Penguin Place for a guided land tour of the yellow-eyed penguins.
Return to the city by coach.
Travel with InterCity Coachlines north through the cities of Oamaru and Timaru arriving in Christchurch by 1.45pm.
A moderate level of fitness and agility is required. In Franz the first part of the walk is along loose gravel on the river valley floor, and over rocks. In Fox clients must walk up approximately 500 steps through a rainforest track for about 40 minutes. Once you are on the glacier you are walking on rolling waves of ice, it is not flat walking . You should be able to walk at a steady pace for about 4 hours. Access to the ice varies as the glacier changes and alternative routes may sometimes be used.
The TranzAlpine is the registered trademark of KiwiRail Limited
On overnight tours, all accommodation is centrally located to town centres and within walking distance of the main shopping areas. We offer two types of accommodation:
- Tourist Class - four star motels with kitchen facilities on request.
- Quality Class - four star hotels with restaurants on site.[Click for examples]
New Zealand Motels are of a very high standard. They are spacious and most importantly clean with most of the modern home comforts included.
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If your requested Tour is not available on that date staff will contact you to discuss alternatives.
Book This Tour link to request a booking. You will then be taken to the "Tour Options" form.
General Information and Conditions of Travel