13 Day North & South Island by train

Welcome to Auckland and New Zealand. On arrival you will be picked up at the airport and transferred to your first night’s accommodation.

Your detailed tour information pack will be given to you once you arrive at your accommodation.

You’ll most likely be pretty tired from a long flight, so take the rest of the day to relax and explore the inner city. The city centre of Auckland is not too big, so you can easily walk around. Visit the Skytower to take in great views of the city, and stroll around the waterfront with its many nice bars and restaurants where you can enjoy a great meal.

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This morning you will depart in The Northern Explorer is the perfect way to travel the length of New Zealand’s North Island, from our super city of Auckland to New Zealand’s cultural capital city, Wellington. 

You will have a full day scenic rail journey through the heart of the North Island to Wellington. Enroute pass through picturesque farming country and forests. A highlight will be the climb up the famous Raurimu Spiral, which was a masterpiece of 19th century railway engineering. See rural towns and villages, the volcanoes of Tongariro National Park and the sea views as you travel down the Kapiti Coast into Wellington

You will see the country in all its glorious variety.

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Today you  will take the train from Wellington to Masteron,this town has excellent cafes, world-class art and one of the best public parks in the country, with loads of activities in easy walking distance. Make a day of it and bring your bikes! 

Some of the activities that you can do are :

• Queen Elizabeth Park has to be your first stop. You'll love the huge playground, flying fox, miniature train and pedal boats, mini-golf, and BMX and skate park. 
• Check out Aratoi - Wairarapa Museum of Art & History, the largest museum in the Wairarapa and ConArt Gallery & Studios who create and sell artwork from colourful containers, both in the Masterton Arts Quarter.  
• Nearby at Trust House Recreation Centre are indoor heated pools, a hydro-slide, river ride, and spa and outdoors three pools, a speed slide and diving pool.
• Activities at nearby Masterbowl range from bowling, bumper cars, arcade games, basketball and more.
• Follow the growth of New Zealand’s shearing and wool industry and the rise to international sports fame for Golden Shears at The Wool Shed.
• Walk or cycle around Henley Lake with 43 hectares of wetlands and native planting and over 72 different species of birds. 

Or alternative you can do a Full wine day tour :

Visit the best vineyards on and around ‘the golden mile’ on the Martinborough terraces with a selection of boutique and family run to bigger scale cellar doors. ds.

Enjoy two to three vineyards in the morning before you stop to relax and enjoy a vineyard platter at one of our vineyard cafes. In the afternoon you will visit another two to three vineyards to sample their wine line-ups. Your day is hosted by our knowledgeable, local guides who are proud to show off their town and the vineyards, and always provide light but informative commentary as you travel.

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Today in the morning you will take the Interislander Ferry that will take you from the North Island to the South Island, is a 3 hours journey..when you will arrive to the South Island (Picton) you will take The Coastal Pacific train operates between the delightful port of Picton - the gateway to the beautiful Marlborough Sounds - to Kaikoura - the home of whale watching and onto Christchurch - the South Island's largest city.

Your journey takes you through the wine growing region of Blenheim to the rugged Kaikoura mountain ranges on one side of your train, the Pacific Ocean coastline on the other with views of marine wildlife such as seals and penguins to some of New Zealand's finest horticultural and farmland areas of the Canterbury Plains, all from the comfort of your carriage.

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Christchurch lost many of its heritage buildings and churches. However, it is being rebuilt and the city is as vibrant as ever, with its open-air markets and the innovative Cardboard Cathedral. Start the day with a half-day city tour with our first stop being the Ferrymead Heritage Park, an early 1900s (Edwardian) township complete with its own school, church, jail, railway station and more. Next, visit the Air Force Museum of New Zealand, the national museum for the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) and New Zealand military aviation. Set on the site of a former air base at Wigram, this is home to a collection of aircraft telling the story of military aviation in New Zealand. More than just planes, it also tells the story of the people who crewed and serviced them. From pre-World War I, through the formation of the RNZAF in the 1930s, and then World War II to the present day, the mostly original aircraft are supported by displays and other artefacts that bring the airman's experience to life.

At night we have prepare for you a romantic dinner in a Tram.

Suggested activities:

• Christchurch tramway 4 course dinner tour
• Visit the city's famous botanical gardens
• The Canterbury museum, where you can experience New Zealand's rich cultural and natural history. 

Activity : Dinner in the Tram

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Today you will have a full day of railway highlights and changing landscapes. An early start this morning as we board the TranzAlpine train to Arthurs Pass, a scenic rail journey across the fertile Canterbury Plains and into the heart of the mighty Southern Alps. Travel across towering viaducts, through spectacular gorges and river valleys and into the lush forest of Arthurs Pass National Park. Our coach will meet us in Arthurs Pass then we descend to the West Coast and make our way to the popular heritage park, Shantytown. Here, there will be time to enjoy lunch and explore the living museum. Take a ride on the vintage train and experience gold panning in the alluvial streams that flow through the area. Travel by coach along the scenic West Coast to arrive in Franz Josef in the early evening ( from Greymouth to Franz Josef you will travel in the bus)

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Today in the morning you will do a unique heli-hike adventure on Franz Josef Glacier, and after this exhilarating activity, you may wish to soak in the Glacier Hot Pools, nestled in lush rainforest in a haven of natural tranquility.

Activity : Heli Hike

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Today your journey is full of ever-changing spectacular coastal, rainforest, and alpine scenery. The road along the West Coast features native rainforest, wetlands, bush-fringed lakes, sand dunes and surf-pounded shingle beaches. At Haast head inland over the Haast Pass, the lowest of the South Island mountain passes crossing the Southern Alps. Once over the Pass the scenery changes dramatically as the road descends past the waters of Lakes Wanaka and Hawea and into Central Otago. Continue past stone fruit orchards and through the rock hewn Kawarau Gorge to Queenstown

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Today is a free day for you. Queenstown has a plenty of optional sightseeing activities available from jet-boating on the thrilling Shotover Jet; a jet-boat excursion along the scenic and remote Dart River; winery tours to the premier Central Otago wineries; 4WD tours into unforgettable Skippers Canyon; scenic flights or if you dare – bungy jumping or tandem sky-diving! etc 

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Today a friendly professional driver will pick you up from your accommodation and return you there following your cruise. On the way to Milford Sound you will pass along the shores of Lake Wakatipu and into southern farmland to Lake Te Anau, the largest lake in the South Island. You will travel along the lake and into Fiordland National Park. Enter the picturesque Eglinton Valley, a place of ancient alpine forest and gushing waterfalls and one of only a few road-accessible glacier valleys in New Zealand, and take advantage of the photo opportunities on offer along the Milford Road, like the stunning Mirror Lakes, where on a calm day the surrounding mountain ranges are perfectly reflected in the still waters, and Knobs Flat, where glaciers have carved their mark on the terrain. When you arrive to Milford Sound you will take the cruise where you will pass an overnight cruise in this ‘eighth wonder of the world’ on board the stunning Fiordland Jewel with Fiordland Discovery.

Activity : Overnight Milford Sound

Today after your breakfast you will return back to Queenstown around lunch time,and after that you will have an afternon wine tour of 3.5 hours where you will visit 3 vineyards and wineries and have a  wine tastings and delicious local cheeses.

Activity : Half Day Wine tour

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Travel to the foothills of New Zealand’s highest mountain, Aoraki / Mount Cook, on a full-day sightseeing tour from Queenstown to Christchurch.

Setting off from Queenstown, travel by luxury air-conditioned coach through ruggedly beautiful landscape and over the Lindis Pass into the Mackenzie Country. You will enter the amazing Aoraki / Mt Cook National Park, home to New Zealand’s highest mountain, where there is time to stop for lunch and a chance to enjoy the amazing alpine scenery. According to Māori legend, the boy Aoraki and his brothers once hit a reef in their canoe. When they climbed to the higher side of the tilting vessel, the cold south wind froze them, turning them into stone. Aoraki and family now form the Southern Alps, which you will see in all their glory on this tour.

During your stop at Mount Cook Village, choose to enjoy a delicious lunch (optional extra) at the famous Hermitage Hotel. Also on offer is the chance to take a scenic flight over this spectacular region (additional cost, weather permitting – this flight can be arranged with your driver guide on the day).

In the afternoon, travel past Lake Pukaki to Lake Tekapo, where you can view the solitary Church of the Good Shepherd against the backdrop of this vivid blue glacier-fed lake. You will continue through the diverse farmland of the Canterbury Plains to Christchurch, the Garden City, where your tour concludes.

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Your tour concludes today after your transfer to Christchurch Airport for your homeward flight.