Doubtful Sound fjord in the South Island of New Zealand — *An overnight cruise to Doubtful Sound is one of my all time favourite experiences in the South Island*

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The South Island — where to begin.

Maybe I’ll start with the mountains, the giant, raw mountains that form a rough seam down the middle of the island.

Coming from the North Island, where the highest points are the pointy tips of old volcanoes, the size and sweep of the Southern Alps leaves me awestruck every time.

And after the mountains?

There are the coastlines of course, running up and down the long, thin island. The West Coast is my favourite, beaches of pebbles and driftwood, which people scrape together into bonfires in the evenings, watching the sunset and embers glow.

The golden beaches around aptly named Golden Bay and Abel Tasman are pretty wonderful too.

And I can’t talk about the South Island without bringing up the lakes. Queenstown is right on the edge of Lake Wakatipu, and just over the Crown Range is Lake Wanaka and its neighbour Hawea. Drive to Aoraki/Mount Cook and you’ll be blown away by bright blue Lake Pukaki.

I hope you like nature, because getting splattered in mud, dusted in sea salt, bitten by sandflies and rinsed clean by lake water is all part of experiencing the South Island.

There are many, many beautiful places in the South Island, almost too many to choose from (and I apologise in advance for the length of this list).

The good news is that the South Island doesn’t have that many roads. There’s one main route down the east coast from Picton to Christchurch, more or less one road to Queenstown. Same thing for the west coast, and if you want to go up to Nelson.

But, you should know that the South Island is large, larger than it looks on a map. If you only have a few days, or a week, you’ll probably want to stick to Christchurch and Queenstown.

With 10 days or more, you could do a loop — throw in the west coast, or the golden beaches of Abel Tasman.

*Mountains in Fiordland, forever covered in cloud*

So while you can expect to be moving a lot, you’ll always be heading in a logical direction, to some other wonderful place.

Don’t plan to spend more than a couple of nights anywhere (and if you do want that, it will most likely be Queenstown). The South Island is made for road tripping.

Hi, I’m Petrina, a New Zealander with a great love for road tripping my country.

I haven’t done everything in the South Island, not even close — you will never get me to do a bungy jump or canyon swing — but I have seen a lot of Te Waipounamu. I’ve driven up and down the entire South Island and still can’t get enough of the hikes, lakes, forests, and camping.

This is a collection of my favourite destinations in the South Island, including must-sees and unique places to visit.

It’s not an exhaustive list of South Island attractions, but a curated look at what someone who loves food, culture, and the outdoors might enjoy.

You’re probably going to need a vehicle

If you plan on renting a car, I compare prices on Discover Cars and usually go with the cheapest option (the service is pretty much the same across companies, unless you want to drop off in a smaller destination, like Greymouth).
For campervans and motorhomes, Motorhome Republic is the best site for comparing vehicles and prices.

Get to know Queenstown — an adventure hub and likely base for day trips

Queenstown is New Zealand’s adventure town.

Here you can find the first commercial bungy jump, opportunities to jet boat up remote rivers, and some of the best hiking in the country.

Located on the shore of Lake Wakatipu, surrounded by the Remarkables mountain ranges, Queenstown is stunning — if you can, sit by a window if you fly in, so you can take in the views.

One of my favourite things to do in Queenstown is hike up Ben Lomond, a trail that starts from town (or the top of the gondola — do this), and takes you to incredible views with just a couple of hours hiking.

*See the trail winding its way straight up to the peak*

A word of warning — Queenstown is very busy. It’s a commercial hub, so it feels more like a classic tourist town than anywhere else in the South Island. Personally, I prefer quieter places.

I think I’m in the minority though, as most people love Queenstown and the lively nightlife you can find there.

The Central Otago wine region covers the valleys and plains near Queenstown and Wanaka. From Queenstown, you can explore the wineries in the Gibbston region, which lies in the valley between Queenstown and Cromwell. I particularly like Amisfield, Peregrine, and the range of vineyards on display at Kinross.

Glenorchy is a small village around 45 minutes from Queenstown, set on the edge of Lake Wakatipu. There’s not much to do in the town itself — it’s the setting that’s worthwhile. Many of the things to do around Glenorchy involve hiking (Glenorchy near one end of the Routeburn Track) or exploring Lord of the Rings locations.

Take a boat cruise on Milford Sound, the South Island’s spectacular fjord

*Boats in Milford Sound cruise through the high walls of the fjord*

Milford Sound might be the most famous place in the South Island.

The deep, dark sound, presided over by the iconic Mitre Peak, is an epic slice of Fiordland.

Head to Milford Sound to cruise on the inky waters, taking in the sheer cliffs and waterfalls that plunge into the sea.

Getting to Milford Sound is also part of the experience. Tour buses stop along the way, giving you a chance to see short walks and lookouts.

If you’re self driving, there are some excellent walks on the road to Milford Sound, including the Key Summit hike and Lake Marian.

THE DETAILS

I went on a Milford Sound Cruise with RealNZ.

Stay in Te Anau, to hike some or all of a Great Walk

New Zealand has almost every kind of outdoor activity, but among the most unique are the 10 Great Walks.

These hikes (or tramps, to use local parlance) are 3-5 day tracks that pass through some of the country’s most incredible landscapes. Seven of the 10 Great Walks are found in the South Island, and three are accessible from Te Anau.

The Kepler Track follows the spine of a Fiordland mountain range, while the Routeburn Track crosses through both Fiordland and Mount Aspiring National Park.

The Milford Track is the most famous hike in New Zealand, crossing high passes and dense forest with the end of the trail arriving in the celebrated Milford Sound.

It does take a lot of organisation to tackle a Great Walk, as you need to book the huts in advance and they are notoriously popular.

However, you can experience the Great Walks by walking sections as day walks, with transport from Te Anau.

The Milford Sound track:

Take a water taxi from Te Anau Downs, hike to Clinton hut and back (3.5 hours return) and catch the water taxi back again.

The Kepler track:

Take a water taxi across the Brod Bay, hike up to Luxmore hut for the epic views, then walk down and catch the taxi back.
You can also walk from the Control Gates up to Luxmore, you will just be adding an extra 1.5 hours to your trip each way.

The Routeburn track:

Drive or catch a shuttle to the Divide, and from there you can walk up to Key Summit, Earland Falls, or even Lake Mackenzie if you’re game for a longer walk.

For more information on track transport for these day walks, check out Fiordland Outdoors.

Visit Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park to see our highest mountain

Home to New Zealand's highest peak, Aoraki Mount Cook National Park is an essential stop on a South Island trip.

From Mount Cook Village, you can access one of New Zealand’s best short walks — the Hooker Valley Track. This walk leads to a viewpoint of a Aoraki/Mount Cook and the Hooker glacier feeding into a lake.

Other walks in Aoraki/Mount Cook National park include a walk to a lookout from where you can view the Tasman Glacier, and an overnight hike to Mueller Hut.

If you’d prefer other modes of transport, you can also take a boat ride across the glacial lake to view the Tasman Glacier up close, or catch a helicopter up onto the ice to walk on the glacier.

Possibly the best place to stay in Mount Cook is the Hermitage Hotel, if it’s in your budget.

I have stayed in the Haka House Hostel and the White Horse Hill campground and loved both (from the campground, you can hear the glaciers cracking).

Visit Wanaka to hike

Wanaka is a lovely little mountain town by a lake, but the real reason to visit is to go hiking.

The Roy’s Peak walk is the premier thing to do near Wanaka. It’s an epic day walk for views of the lake and surrounding peaks.

Isthmus Peak is another epic hike near Lake Hawea. Climbing to this sweeping lookout point makes a great alternative to the popular Roy’s Peak hike, which can get very crowded.

If you don’t mind going a little further, Wanaka is also an ideal base for exploring Mount Aspiring National Park, which is home to some of the best hiking trails and most scenic backcountry huts in the whole South Island.

french ridge hut in mount aspiring national park

a very scenic longdrop toilet at french ridge hut

One of my favourite features of Mount Aspiring is the colour of the water in the park. Many of the rivers run bright blue, thanks to glaciers higher up in the mountains.

The water, combined with the incredible beech forests and high peaks of the park, make for epic hiking.

Some of my favourite walks in this national park include:

Hike to see Rob Roy Glacier

Walk to see the magnificent Blue Pools.

A few notes on the South Island’s alpine huts

The South Island is one of the best hiking destinations in the world.

There are countless hiking trails up and down the island, leading to glacier viewpoints, natural hot springs, deep river valleys and even the clearest freshwater lake in the world.

Like many other New Zealanders, I’m passionate about New Zealand’s backcountry huts. Scattered throughout the Southern Alps are some epic huts which capture the wild, adventurous essence of our country.

Hiking to a mountain hut and spending the night is an unbeatable South Island experience.

Some of my favourite huts include:

Mount Angelus hut in Nelson Lakes National Park
Mueller Hut in Aoraki Mount Cook National Park
Liverpool Hut in Mount Aspiring National Park
Mount Brown Hut on the West Coast

There are literally hundreds of huts in the South Island though.

To find one, you can look online at the DOC website, or drop into a DOC visitor centre to ask for recommendations. The visitor centres are always well worth visiting anyway, to check maps and weather conditions in the area.

Visit the twin glaciers, Fox and Franz Josef

A woman stands in front of a view of Franz Josef glacier in the South Island — *The view of Franz Josef glacier, from Alex Knob*

Franz Josef glacier and Fox glacier are twin rivers of ice on the West Coast of the South Island. The glaciers are unique as they flow into rainforest, once nearly to sea level.

Usually, to see a glacier, you have to make it into alpine terrain. In Franz Josef, the glacier is visible is just a short walk from a tourist village right on the main highway through the region.

Despite the massive loss of ice in the past decade, both glaciers are incredibly impressive. The area is still one of my favourite places to visit in the South Island.

You can follow short walks to viewpoints to see the glaciers, or take a heli hike to walk on the ice.

If it’s within your budget and the weather gods are on your side, I can definitely recommend this trip. The heli ride up the valley is short and sweet, and the hike is also pretty short (more of a slow amble across the ice), but standing on the glacier is pretty unbeatable.

You should keep your expectations in check; when they call it a ‘hike’ you don’t go that far or that fast. The group moves at the pace of the slowest person, which can be pretty slow when you have a bunch of somewhat unsporty people dressed up in crampons and other ice gear.

I did love it — walking across a glacier is incredible — but my honest opinion is that you can still appreciate the glacier without having to pay to do the heli hike.

Roberts Point, Alex Knob, and the Mount Fox Route all have epic views of the glaciers.

rainforest hotel in Franz Josef, New Zealand — FEATURED STAY

Legacy Te Waonui Hotel Franz Josef
A beautiful hotel surrounded by rainforest.

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Visit Okarito, home to New Zealand’s largest surviving wetland

Tiny Ōkārito is a sleeping beauty. The main activity here is kayaking the surreal Ōkārito Lagoon in search of ethereal white herons.

The Ōkārito Coastal Walk is also a great way to take in the surreal landscapes of wetlands, coastal forest, and mountains. The track runs high along a bluff before arriving at a tannin-dark lagoon. If it’s low tide, you can loop back along the beach and keep an eye out for Hector's dolphins playing in the waves.

Right by the beach is a small, community run campground, the perfect place to spend a night or two.

Visit Farewell Spit and watch a sunset at Wharariki Beach

*The Archway Islands, off the coast of Wharariki Beach*

Wharariki Beach, located on the northwest coast of the South Island, in the stunning Golden Bay region, is a vast stretch of windswept beach.

Wharariki beach is famous for its view of the Archway Islands just off the shore — you might recognise this view from a Windows 10 background.

Seals clamber over rocks strewn along one end of the beach, and seabirds wheel overhead.

It feels truly remote, and is spectacular at sunset. If you’re travelling in a campervan, there is a rustic holiday park at the start of the trail to the beach, so you can be there for the full glory of the setting sun.

You can reach the beach via a short walk across sheep paddocks, before crossing the dunes piled at the back of the beach.

Golden Bay is well worth visiting for more than just Wharariki Beach — in my view, it’s one of the most beautiful places in the South Island.

Cruise out to Puponga to discover a wild corner of Golden Bay.

Farewell Spit is a beautiful long arc of sand which acts as a beacon to migratory birds. There are short walks you can do around the base of Farewell Spit and the adjacent Puponga Farm Park. Hike to a lighthouse, meander along the tops of granite-coloured cliffs, or stop by Cape Farewell, the northernmost point of the South Island.

Some of the other stunning things to do in Golden Bay include:

Visiting the hippie town of Takaka
Hiking in Kahurangi National Park (the Heaphy Track ends in Golden Bay)
Swimming in crystal clear pools at Payne’s Ford
Visiting the Te Waikoropupū Springs

Walk part of the Queen Charlotte track in the Marlborough Sounds

The Marlborough Sounds are a series of drowned valleys at the top of the South Island.

The watery maze of sounds is divided by green ridges of land which shelter calm bays and hide beautiful walking tracks.

One of the best ways to explore the Marlborough Sounds is to walk the Queen Charlotte Track. If you want to dip a toe into multi-day hiking in New Zealand, without needing any hiking gear and with the opportunity to sleep in a real bed each night, this might pique your interest.

The Queen Charlotte hike is a multi walk through the Marlborough Sounds. It’s a beautiful trek and accessible to hikers of different fitness levels, as you can send your overnight bag to your next stop via water taxi.

You can also spend the night in lodges along the trail, instead of the typical backcountry huts you encounter on overnight hikes in the South Island.

That means that after a day of walking through lush native forest and skirting around turquoise bays, you can have a hot shower, a real bed, and enjoy a meal at a waterfront restaurant.

a yacht parked in front of hopewell lodge in marlborough — FEATURED STAY

Hopewell Lodge
For a peaceful retreat before or after the Queen Charlotte Track, I highly recommend Hopewell Lodge. The setting is incredible. I loved swimming and kayaking from the lodge and enjoying the feeling of being away from it all.

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Kayak, hike and swim your way through Abel Tasman National Park

The best beaches in the South Island are found in Abel Tasman National Park.

With golden bays strung out along a coastline rich with native forest, Abel Tasman National Park is an epic place for camping, hiking, and kayaking.

The Abel Tasman Coast Track, one of New Zealand’s Great Walks, runs along the coast. There are great day walk options as well as the full multi-day trek.

I’ve been through Abel Tasman six times, most recently on a two day kayaking, one day hiking trip. It was a great mix of water and land.

I also love walking different sections of the coast track.

Most people explore Abel Tasman National Park from the end closest to Nelson and Kaiteriteri.

But, my favourite parts of the park are at the Golden Bay end. If you enter from this direction, you’ll find more secluded beaches and quieter trails than the Marahau end.

Visit Christchurch, the Garden City

Christchurch is the biggest city in the South Island, so you’ll probably pass through at some point.

I’m not much of a city person, but I like Christchurch — there’s a grittiness about the city that gives it character. I enjoyed the city’s cafes (there is a big brunch scene here) and exploring the Botanic Gardens.

If you want to see the highlights in a short space of time, take the Christchurch tram for a tiki tour.

Better yet, get the Christchurch Pass (tram, punt ride, and gondola) to tick off the top attractions in Christchurch, while covering a lot of the city.

See dolphins, whales, and seals in Kaikoura

a pod of dolphins leaps through the water near kaikoura — *I spotted these dolphins from the road just to the south of Kaikoura town — you can often see dolphins frolicking from the roadside.*

If you want to spot wildlife, Kaikoura is one of the best places to go in the South Island.

This little seaside town teems with marine wildlife and sea birds.

Check out the Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway, a one-way walk from where you can look down on seals lounging around rocks in impressive numbers.

I visited Kaikoura in the middle of winter, and stopped by to do this walk one evening. The car park was nearly empty — of cars that is. With the people gone, resident seals were hopping around the tarmac.

I also love this walk for the views back toward the Kaikōura Ranges.

Kaikoura is also famous for whale watching. Sperm whales live off the coast all year round, and from June to July you can also see humpback whales as they migrate north away from Antarctica’s freezing waters.

Rising behind Kaikoura are mighty mountains, which wear a mantle of snow in winter.

If you like hiking, check out the trail up to Mount Fyffe. It’s a great day walk with views up and down the coast of the South Island. In August, the track was knee deep in snow which only made it more fun.

Kaikoura is famous for crayfish. You can try freshly caught crayfish from roadside food stops like the famous Nin’s Bin.

FEATURED STAY

Sudima Kaikoura
This hotel is right on the waterfront, opposite Dolphin Encounter and walking distance to both town and the seal colony. I loved the minimalist, scandi decor, and having breakfast while watching the sunrise from the dining area.

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Oamaru

My favourite town in the South Island is Oamaru — it took me completely by surprise.

The town has a Victorian precinct with buildings shaped from white limestone, which gives it a unique aesthetic. But what truly makes Oamaru unique is the Steampunk culture in the town.

If you’re not familiar with it, Steampunk is a science fiction concept where the future is steam powered. So, futuristic but also Victorian era inspired — Burning Man type goggles and steam trains that fly.

Steampunk HQ is great fun to visit, but even if you don’t go inside the exhibition you can enjoy the old-timey-but-futuristic shops around town.

Oamaru is also famous for blue and yellow-eyed penguin colonies, so it’s well worth a stop on a South Island trip.

The Catlins are the wild, wooded coastal corner of the lower south eastern South Island.

The area is famous for the picturesque Nugget Point Lighthouse, short walks to waterfalls, and remote bays.

Along this stretch of coastline you’ll find some epic campsites — if you’re travelling in a campervan, you’ll love the untamed feel of this part of the island.

A highlight is the Purakaunui Bay Campsite, a coastal campsite located at the foot of tall cliffs.

Some tips for camping in the South Island:

The South Island has epic campgrounds. Here’s how to make the most of them:

Make sure you pack insect repellent, to ward off sand flies.
Use the app Campermate to find campsites.
DOC campsites are the best option for budget and beautiful campgrounds.
There’s great freedom camping in the South Island, but in more popular areas (like around Queenstown) rules are strictly enforced, so make sure you know where you can legally camp to avoid fines.
Some of my other favourite camping spots in the South Island are Pelorus Bridge Campground in Marlborough, Gillespies Beach on the West Coast, and Gentle Annies, also on the West Coast.

Bathe in mountain hot springs

Maruia Hot Springs are my favourite natural hot pools to visit in the South Island.

These hot springs are fed with naturally thermal water spilling out of the mountains high in Lewis Pass.

The setting has an element of the fairytale about Maruia Hot Springs. Something about driving the narrow Lewis Pass road, following twists and turns through the dark beech forest until the isolated thermal pools suddenly appear out of the mist.

Cut off from mobile reception and miles from the nearest town, the spa has a zen-like atmosphere.

Bathing in the emerald pools exposed to the chill winter air, gazing down the river valley into passing sweeps of rain, is incredibly meditative.

See the Pancake Rocks at Punakaiki

Punakaiki is a small village on the west coast of the South Island, right on the edge of Paparoa National Park.

The drive from Greymouth up to Fox River is one of the most scenic drives in the whole country. The Pancake Rocks are one stop, but it’s worth heading up this way to enjoy the incredible coastal scenery.

The Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowholes walk is a 20 minute loop around a well-maintained track. It can take a lot longer though, if you linger to admire the curious limestone formations.

The rocks have been weathered in such a way they resemble stacked pancakes. Set against the backdrop of the forested West Coast, these rock formations are an impressive sight.

The blowholes are fun too — at high tide, water surges through the rock caverns and bursts upwards into the air.

Another highlight of Punakaiki is the Porari River Trail.

The track follows the boulder-studded river through thick nikau forest. It’s a gorgeous walk, and you can stop and swim at a number of points.

The track eventually reaches the Inland Pack Track, and you can either turn around and head back or make a loop by following the Inland Pack Track around to where it exits by the Punakaiki River.

The Porari River Trail is the final section of the Paparoa Track, so you get to experience one of the main highlights of this Great Walk.

Stop in Arthur’s Pass

Arthur’s Pass is a lush, green, often wet stop with keas calling from the low mists. I loved the small former tunneler’s cottages that line the road through the pass.

The drive down to the West Coast is increddible and throws into sharp relief the differences in climate between both coasts of the South Island. Leaving the golden, arid plains behind you’ll find yourself in the thick forests of the West Coast.

A quick reminder: If you’re attempting the Avalanche Peak hike or any other high altitude South Island hike, to always check the weather and only go if the conditions are right — fast changing mountain weather is one of the most dangerous parts of travelling the South Island.

New Zealand essentials

SIM CARDS: I recommend getting a Skinny SIM card when you arrive or an Airalo eSIM

FIND WALKS AND HIKES: The DOC website is the best resource for all trails, scenic campsites, and mountain huts

BEST APPS: Campermate for finding campsites, Gaspy for saving money on petrol

Thanks for reading this far! I hope you found some inspiration for places to visit in the South Island, both highlights and some more off the beaten track adventures.

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