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New Zealand
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Canterbury
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Christchurch
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3-Day South Island Circle Tour from Christchurch
3 days
Multi-Day
About this activity
Day 1: Christchurch — Mt Cook — Queenstown
Board a coach in Christchurch and travel through the rich pastoral farm land of the Canterbury Plains. Watch as the scenery changes as you make your way through the foothills of the Southern Alps, across Burkes Pass and to Lake Tekapo, where Church of the Good Shepherd stands proudly on the shore.
Continue along the western side of Lake Pukaki and arrive at Mt Cook, New Zealand's highest mountain, where you'll have free time to soak in your stellar surroundings. Cross Lindis Pass and skirt the Kawerau Gorge before arriving in Queenstown for the night.
Overnight: Heartland Hotel Queenstown or similar
Day 2: Queenstown — Franz Josef Glacier
From your Queenstown hotel, drive along the shores of Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea to Haast Pass, one of New Zealand's most stunning highway routes and the gateway to World Heritage Westland National Park. After passing through the flat grasslands of Central Otago, ascend up to the majestic peaks of the Southern Alps and the rivers and rainforests of Westland.
Travel up the West Coast past spectacular mountain ranges, forests and lakes to Franz Josef Glacier, a jaw-dropping 7-mile (11-km) glacier dating back more than 7,000 years. Stay overnight at a unique hotel tucked away in the mountains.
Overnight: Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier
Day 3: Franz Josef Glacier — Greymouth — ChristchurchWake up to beautiful mountain scenery before embarking on the last day of your tour. Travel back in time to the West Coast Gold Rush in Greymouth, the center for thousands of diggers during the historic gold strikes of the 1860s.
Board the renowned TranzAlpine train for your homeward journey across the Southern Alps, along the banks of the Waimakiriri River Gorge to the Canterbury Plains, arriving finally in Christchurch in the evening. From here you'll be taken to your hotel or the airport for your onward journey.
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Board a coach in Christchurch and travel through the rich pastoral farm land of the Canterbury Plains. Watch as the scenery changes as you make your way through the foothills of the Southern Alps, across Burkes Pass and to Lake Tekapo, where Church of the Good Shepherd stands proudly on the shore.
Continue along the western side of Lake Pukaki and arrive at Mt Cook, New Zealand's highest mountain, where you'll have free time to soak in your stellar surroundings. Cross Lindis Pass and skirt the Kawerau Gorge before arriving in Queenstown for the night.
Overnight: Heartland Hotel Queenstown or similar
Day 2: Queenstown — Franz Josef Glacier
From your Queenstown hotel, drive along the shores of Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea to Haast Pass, one of New Zealand's most stunning highway routes and the gateway to World Heritage Westland National Park. After passing through the flat grasslands of Central Otago, ascend up to the majestic peaks of the Southern Alps and the rivers and rainforests of Westland.
Travel up the West Coast past spectacular mountain ranges, forests and lakes to Franz Josef Glacier, a jaw-dropping 7-mile (11-km) glacier dating back more than 7,000 years. Stay overnight at a unique hotel tucked away in the mountains.
Overnight: Scenic Hotel Franz Josef Glacier
Day 3: Franz Josef Glacier — Greymouth — ChristchurchWake up to beautiful mountain scenery before embarking on the last day of your tour. Travel back in time to the West Coast Gold Rush in Greymouth, the center for thousands of diggers during the historic gold strikes of the 1860s.
Board the renowned TranzAlpine train for your homeward journey across the Southern Alps, along the banks of the Waimakiriri River Gorge to the Canterbury Plains, arriving finally in Christchurch in the evening. From here you'll be taken to your hotel or the airport for your onward journey.
Included
- Driver/guide
- 2 nights of accommodation in 3-star hotels
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Live commentary on board
Not included
- Food and drinks, unless specified
- Gratuities
Additional
- Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
- Child rate applies only when sharing with 2 paying adults
- Please note that this tour is an independent tour and you may be traveling with a different driver/guide and group each day
- This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
Features
Tourism
85%
Cultural
55%
Aquatic
30%
Original
25%
Reviews
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Its a great cliff notes tour of the Northern and Central part of the South Island. Especially if limited on time and not sure what to see. The Franz Josef Glacier was amazing, though one may consider trying to book an early evening helicopter ride onto the glacier as you cant otherwise actually get on the glacier. Would have loved more time in Queenstown - in hindsight would skip Christchurch and start in Queenstown as its a gorgeous city and not much to see in Christchurch. In Queenstown, we were booked at the Highview Apartments, which I would not recommend. The studio apartment was a bit of a walk from town and barely large enough for the bed. The office was closed when we arrived and departed had an envelope taped to office door with our room key and our view was of a parking structure. The alpine train was fun and osme of the scenery beautiful, but looked quite similar to the scenery on the hours of bus ride. The train was over an hour late, so we barely made our flight out of Christchurch - definitely stressful and worth noting if needing to catch a flight that evening.
The trip was truly enjoyable and very well organized. At no point did I feel confused as to what to expect. Everything was as advertised and the bus drivers really friendly and helpful. I even learned about the sheep called SHREK. The scenery is really incredible and the hotels we stayed in very nice. Next time I will book for longer. Well done for giving me a stress free holiday,
This tour was a perfect survey introduction to New Zealand's stunningly beautiful South Island. Canterbury Leisure Tours did a wonderful job with all the arrangements everything worked exactly as promised. I appreciate as well that they delivered final vouchers and itinerary to my hotel the day of my arrival. This tour allows you to see a lot of lovely scenery, and the coach drivers who also act as guide were all knowledgeable and friendly. The coaches have complimentary WiFi great for quickly sharing trip photos on social media, and the tour is organized with plenty of comfort stops. I would change only one thing. While there was plenty of time after arrival in Franz Josef to go see the glacier, the early evening arrival in Queenstown left very little time for exploring. I will take that as a good reason to visit New Zealand again, but those looking for more time at the overnight stops especially this one should be aware of the timing. Overall, though, kudos to Canterbury Leisure Tours for a most enjoyable tour.
First day bus had a very annoying electrical fault with the intercom.Second day second bus a/c was broken.If all day on a bus is ok then you might like this tour.
This tour was great and we did get to see a lot of great countryside - however I feel this tour wasn't timed very well. We got into Queenstown after dark, then left at 7:15am so had no time at all to explore the city properly which was extremely disappointing. Would have rather fewer pit stops or missing some other things on the way to get a few hours of light in Queenstown. The lunch stop on this day was at Mt Cook for 1hr 40mins. Too long. Can't do anything in the museum for lack of time, so would be better to have lunch and get back on the road for gain of sunlight hours in Queenstown. Again, there was the same problem in Franz Josef Glacier although we did have an hour of sunlight - would have been nice to have a bit more exploring time. On the third day - the timings were too rushed. We stopped for lunch at 2pm at a Salmon farm, though only had a 30 minute stop! They couldn't make us anything in that time frame so we had to have a pre- made sandwhich. All in all it was a very lovely and enjoyable tour. The tour guides were great and extremely informative. The only issue was had we known we would have had so little time in the Queenstown, we would have stayed an extra night as there are no timings etc. given when you book, you have no idea when you get where.
Best trip ever, the guide was a wonder, absolutely above all expectations.
If you don't have a car this is the way to go. Enjoyed my 3 day South Island Circle Tour from Christchurch. The bus drivers provided commentary on all sights we visited without being overbearing. I felt completely safe at all times. Saw enough to make me want to go back to the South Island and see more for a longer period, which means I can stop and see what really interests me.