Map view
Key Summit and View of Lake Marian via Routeburn Track, Fiordland National Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb
Cost: $
- Fiordland National Park occupies the southwest corner of the South Island of New Zealand
- It is by far the largest of the 13 national parks in New Zealand
- Fiordland was set aside as a national reserve in 1904
- The area had already become a destination for trampers, following the opening up of the Milford Track from Lake Te Anau to Milford Sound in 1889
Taranaki Falls Walk, Tongariro National Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Jan-May, Nov-Dec
Cost: $
- Oldest national park in New Zealand, located in the central North Island
- Tongariro National Park was the sixth national park established in the world
- The active volcanic mountains Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Tongariro are located in the centre of the park
- There are a number of Māori religious sites within the park, and many of the park's summits, are sacred
Koekohe Beach
Best time to visit: Jan, Dec
Cost: $
- The Moeraki Boulders are unusually large spherical boulders lying along a stretch of Koekohe Beach on the wave-cut Otago coast of New Zealand
- They occur scattered either as isolated or clusters of boulders within a stretch of beach where they have been protected in a scientific reserve
- The boulders have been exhumed from the mudstone and bedrock enclosing them and concentrated on the beach by coastal erosion
Shotover Jet Queenstown
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec
Cost: $$
- Adventurous boat ride through the Shotover River Canyons, at 53 mph, with spins and spraying water
Diamond Lake and Rocky Mountain Track, Wanaka
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Jan, Dec
Cost: $
- Trail that takes you to Diamond Lake and the Rocky Mountain summit
- There is a 360-degree view from the top overlooking Lake Wanaka
- It is steep, but technically easy, including a couple of hundred steps, and can get muddy and slippery
Auckland Domain
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Large park in Auckland, the oldest park in the city, and one of the largest
- The park land is the remains of the explosion crater and most of the surrounding tuff ring of the Pukekawa volcano
- The Domain Wintergardens, with two large glass houses, lie on the north side of the central scoria cone
Waitomo Glowworm Caves
Best time to visit: Jan-April, Nov-Dec
Cost: $
- Cave at Waitomo on the North Island, known for its population of a glowworm species found exclusively in New Zealand
- The attraction has a modern visitor centre at the entrance, and there are organized tours that include a boat ride under the glowworms
Hobbiton Movie Set
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- The Hobbiton Movie Set is a significant location used for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy and The Hobbit film trilogy
- It is situated on a family-run farm in Waikato, and is now a Tolkien tourism destination, offering a guided tour of the set
- When Peter Jackson began to look for suitable locations for The Lord of the Rings film series, he first saw the Alexander Farm during an aerial search, and concluded that the area was like a slice of ancient England
Queenstown Hill Walkway, Queenstown Hill Reservation Preserve
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec
Cost: $
- Popular short hike in Queenstown with views of the town and Lake Wakatipu
Hagley Park North, South Island
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec
Cost: $
- Largest urban open space in Christchurch, created in 1855
- Hagley Park is characterised by its trees and broad open spaces
Mercer Bay Loop Track, Waitākere Ranges Regional Park
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- The Waitākere Ranges is a mountain range located in West Auckland
- The area, traditionally known to Māori as Te Wao Nui o Tiriwa (The Great Forest of Tiriwa), is of local, regional, and national significance
Milford Sound Lookout Track
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: Jan-March, Dec
Cost: $
- Fiord in the south west of New Zealand's South Island within Fiordland National Park
- As a fiord, Milford Sound was formed by a process of glaciation over millions of years
- Milford Sound is home to a variety of marine mammals, including seals and the southernmost wild population of bottlenose dolphins
Hooker Lake via Hooker Valley Track, Aoraki / Mount Cook
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec
Cost: $
- Short walking track within the Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park, at 3.1 miles length and gaining only about 100 m (330 ft) in height
- The track has views of Aoraki / Mount Cook and access to the proglacial Hooker Lake, typically with icebergs floating in it
- The lookout point at the end of the Hooker Valley Track is the closest any walking track comes to Aoraki / Mount Cook, and reveals completely unobstructed views of the highest mountain in New Zealand, with Hooker Glacier in the valley below
Tinline Campsite and Tinline Bay, Abel Tasman National Park
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec
Cost: $
- Cove and beach located within The Abel Tasman National Park in the South Island of New Zealand
- A sandy beach, it is a popular stopping off point for hikers, and for kayakers from the Tasman Sea
Te Papa
Best time to visit: March-May
Cost: $
- New Zealand's national museum, located in Wellington, Te Papa is Māori for 'the treasure box'
- Opened in 1998, Te Papa operates under a bicultural philosophy, and emphasises the living stories behind its cultural treasures
Franz Josef Glacier Trail
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec
Cost: $
- Temperate maritime glacier in Westland Tai Poutini National Park, on New Zealand's South Island
- The area surrounding the two glaciers is part of Te Wahipounamu, a World Heritage Site park
- The Waiho River emerges from the glacier terminal of Franz Josef
Cathedral Cove Walk, Whanganui A Hei (Cathedral Cove) Marine Reserve
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec
Cost: $
- With attractions such as a natural rock archway and neighbouring beaches at Cathedral Cove, the area is popular
- Visitors to this marine reserve will see sandy flats, reefs, boulder and many different sea creatures and plants that live there
Soda Springs Falls Walk, Mount Tongariro
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: March-April, Nov
Cost: $
- Mount Tongariro is a compound volcano in the Taupō Volcanic Zone of the North Island of New Zealand
- It is the northernmost of the three active volcanoes that dominate the landscape of the central North Island