Boutique New Zealand in 12 days: five lodges, one island
New Zealand rewards spending money on this level more than most countries, because what the money buys is not a better room. It buys a valley with nobody in it: a guide who takes you up a river the day boats do not reach, a helicopter to a ridge for lunch, a lodge with eight rooms at the end of a ro
- Duration
- 12 days
- Pace
- Relaxed
- Hotel changes
- 5
- Best months
- Nov, Dec, Feb, Mar, Apr
- From
- $5,760 per person
Twelve days, South Island only, five bases and no coaches anywhere in the itinerary.
Who it suits: travellers who would rather have one guide and one valley than a full schedule, and who want the drives kept short.
Day by day
Day 1: Arrive Christchurch. Transfer, and a night either in the city or out on Banks Peninsula, depending on when you land.
Day 2: To the Mackenzie. A private transfer or a self-drive inland, about 4 hours, past Lake Tekapo and Lake Pukaki. Two nights at a small lodge with the mountain in the window. Evening under the Aoraki Mackenzie dark sky reserve with a telescope and someone who knows how to use it.
Day 3: Aoraki. The Hooker Valley Track early, about 6 miles (10 km) return, before the day visitors arrive. A helicopter onto the Tasman Glacier in the afternoon, weather permitting, with the alternative written down and costed in advance rather than improvised.
Day 4: To Wanaka. South over the Lindis Pass, about 2 hours 30 minutes. Two nights at a lodge above the lake.
Day 5: Wanaka. The Rob Roy Glacier track in the morning, about 6 miles (10 km) return, then a private afternoon in the Central Otago vineyards at Bendigo and Bannockburn with a driver, which is a different and quieter region from the one the Queenstown day tours visit.
Day 6: To Glenorchy. Over the Crown Range, the highest sealed road in the country, and along Lake Wakatipu, about 2 hours. Three nights at the head of the lake, which is the base we would protect on any South Island trip.
Day 7: The Dart valley. A private guided day up the Dart river: jet boat to the top, then a walk into the beech forest with someone who can explain what you are looking at. Back for a late lunch and nothing else.
Day 8: Glenorchy, open. A helicopter to a ridge with lunch on it, horses through the flats, a fishing guide on the Greenstone, or a book. We put three options in your document and book none of them until you decide on the day, which is a thing small lodges can do and hotels cannot.
Day 9: Doubtful Sound. Drive to Manapouri, about 2 hours 30 minutes, across the lake and over Wilmot Pass to the fiord. An overnight cruise, with kayaks in the afternoon and a night at anchor. Doubtful takes longer to reach than Milford and is quieter for exactly that reason.
Day 10: To Queenstown. Back in the morning and north, about 2 hours 30 minutes. A small hotel in town or above it. Afternoon free.
Day 11: Queenstown, on your terms. A private morning on the lake, a guided walk on the first section of the Routeburn, or a slow day in Arrowtown. Dinner booked well in advance.
Day 12: Departure. Queenstown airport is ten minutes away.
What is included
Lodge accommodation in the room category we recommend, a car or private transfers throughout as you prefer, the dark sky evening with a guide, the Aoraki scenic flight with the weather alternative costed, the private Dart valley day, one open Glenorchy day chosen when you are there, the Central Otago wine afternoon with a driver, the overnight Doubtful Sound cruise with all meals, restaurant reservations that need months of notice, a day-by-day document with the reasoning behind every lodge, and a WhatsApp group with your specialist and our partners on the ground.
What we would change, and when
- Want the North Island too? Add four days at the front: a lodge on Waiheke, then Rotorua with a private Māori cultural day, then fly south. It stops being a twelve day trip and it does become a better first visit.
- Travelling December to February? These lodges have very few rooms and they fill nine to twelve months out. This is the route where booking late genuinely removes the good options rather than just costing more.
- Want to spend less without losing what matters? Keep Glenorchy and the Doubtful Sound cruise, drop the helicopter and one Wanaka night, and stay in very good small hotels rather than lodges. That is roughly a quarter off and removes nothing anyone remembers.
- Adding the West Coast? Three more days over the Haast Pass to Franz Josef, with a heli-hike onto the ice, which is now the only way onto these glaciers because both have retreated well back from the valley walks. Also the worst sandflies in the country, and we say so before you book.
Related
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