Doubtful Sound and West Coast Odyssey

Your included flight departs Auckland mid-morning. On arrival in Queenstown we drive to Arrowtown to lunch at Provisions Cafe and visit the Chinese miners’ settlement at the end of the town where harsh conditions were endured in their search for gold.

Later here's time to check out Queenstown's boutique shops and wander the lakefront before boarding the steamship TSS "Earnslaw" and, with the pianist playing old favourites, cruise across Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak Station for dinner at the Colonel’s Homestead.

This morning we ride the Gondola up Bob's Peak to the Skyline to enjoy views over Lake Wakatipu to The Remarkables Range.

We drive beside the lake to Glenorchy and on to historic Kinloch Lodge, once a sawyer's cottage, for lunch above the far end of Lake Wakatipu. We return to Queenstown in the late afternoon and dine in the Novotel Hotel this evening.

We drive alongside Lake Wakatipu to Manapouri where we board a launch to cruise to the head of the lake. We travel by coach through beech forests and over Wilmot Pass to Doubtful Sound where our small ship,  “Fiordland Navigator” awaits.

We cruise the sheltered arms of this beautiful fiord out to the Tasman Sea with the ship's nature guide keeping a lookout for marine and bird life. Seals bask on the islands at the entrance to the Sound. Later the ship anchors in a peaceful cove and we get even closer to the shoreline on an inflatable craft with your nature guide.

Wake up to the perfect stillness and mirror reflections of this remote wilderness. As breakfast is served the ship cruises the inner arms of the sound and returns to Deep Cove where we disembark at 10am. We retrace our steps over Wilmot Pass and across the lake to Manapouri.

At Manapouri we rejoin our coach and head tor the tussock-covered land of the dramatic Crown Range. Descending into the valley we stop at quaint and historic Cardrona Hotel where we dine and stay the evening.

We breakfast at the Cardrona Hotel with a history that goes back to goldmining days. We drive into Wanaka to visit the town and later lunch with locals in this beautiful region.

This afternoon we sight see in and around Wanaka including Stuart Landsborough's quirky Puzzling World where we experience a range of illusion rooms and puzzles. Tonight we dine back at our hotel, the Edgewater, right beside Lake Wanaka.

We drive beside Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka and through the superb mountain and river scenery of the Haast Pass. We walk to the Blue Pools where trout lurk and take short walks to waterfalls in the Haast Pass. On the coast at Ship Creek we wander along the wild beach and on a boardwalk through swampland rainforest.

We continue through lush rainforest to Lake Matheson and Fox Glacier and over the hill to Franz Josef to check into our accommodation at Punga Grove and Westwood Lodge.

The Coast scenery is stunning - we pass mirror lakes, boulder-laden rivers and catch glimpses of the Southern Alps as we drive north to visit Hokitika’s artisan craft galleries. Turning eastwards we drive up the Otira Gorge on a spectacular cantilevered highway to the alpine village of Arthur's Pass.

We continue through a magnificent alpine landscape to Porters Pass and across the Canterbury Plains. Your flight departs from Christchurch in the late afternoon.