White Heron Spring Tour 6th to 14th Nov

CHRISTCHURCH - ARTHURS PASS - HOKITIKA

LUNCH | DINNER

Wayne will pick you up approx. 1030 to 11 am from Christchurch. We leave
the city and travel across the plains to Lake Pearson, which is a great place
for our first stop for a picnic lunch and a chance to stretch our legs. We will
try to spot some Keas at Arthurs Pass , and have a stop at Kumara too before continuing to our first night's stay in the vibrant tourist town of Hokitika. There should be time for a stroll around the town or along the beach walk.

Dinner at the Woodstock Hotel

HOKITIKA - LAKE KANIERE - WHITE HERON COLONY - FRANZ JOSEF

BREAKFAST | LUNCH | DINNER

 This morning is a chance to take a walk or just relax relax at the serene Lake Kaniere before we travel down the coastal highway to Historic Gold mining town of Ross then on to  Whataroa for a special tour into the White Heron colony ,the only breeding area in NZ .This is a special tour as this is the time they gather to nest and show displays of stunning plumage.This is the only place they nest in Nz and numbers are increasing each year.Dion and his family run the tour for us. Its then a 25-minute drive to Franz Josef. We stay at the
unique Rainforest Retreat for 2 nights.

Dinner at the Retreat.

FRANZ JOSEF - OKARITO LAGOON ECO TOUR - CALLERY GORGE WALK

BREAKFAST | LUNCH

We start the day with a short drive out to Okarito lagoon where our local guides Paula and Swade will take us on a 2-hour Ecotour via the Explorer Douglas - this flat bottomed open air boat was custom built for the lagoon - we cruise along at slow speeds and often drift alongside feeding white herons, godwits, oystercatchers and dotterels. They will describe the vast history of the lagoon from the early mining days to forestry and flax harvesting.

The afternoon is a time of exploring the town or taking one of the many walks like the Franz Josef glacier view walk

Dinner is a free choice tonight.

Pair text with an image to focus on your chosen product, collection, or blog post. Add details on availability, style, or even provide a review.

FRANZ - MONROE BEACH - HAAST

BREAKFAST | DINNER

The drive south today is through lush rainforest; it opens out briefly
into farming plains near Fox township, then continues through a range of forest
parks, past some stunning lakes, with a walk into the Lake Matheson a highlight.
There is time to take the Minnehaha short walk, a real little gem, before
heading south with fantastic little photo stops like Bruce Bay, Ships Creek, and
Knights Point. We stay in Haast for 2 nights.

Dinner at the Hard Antler

HAAST - JACKSONS BAY -LAKE ELLERY

BREAKFAST | LUNCH | DINNER

After a leisurely breakfast at the local café, we explore south to
Jacksons Bay on the corner of the Haast World Heritage Area. A fish n-chip
lunch at the Craypot caravan is essential at this remote corner. We stop to
view the whitebait stands on rivers like the Waiatoto and Arawhata, with plenty
of time to view the numerous whitebait stands along the river edges. There is
also a lovely new walking trail created amongst giant podocarps by the Haast
township for those with more energy or a visit to the Haast Visitor Centre.If
Its raining then the rivers and waterfalls are impressive, so bring a jacket
just in case.

HAAST - TWIZEL

BREAKFAST | DINNER

Our journey continues up the highway to the Haast Pass, where you will see the mighty Landsborough River as it joins the Haast River. At Haast
Pass we can walk into the Thunder Creek Falls track with a lunch at the
Makarora café. From there, we travel through the Lindis pass to explore the vast Ahuriri Valley,with a detour to the amazing Clay Cliffs. The Clay Cliffs are a stark sight - tall pinnacles separated by narrow ravines. These otherworldly formations are made up of layers of gravel and silt, originally formed by the flow from ancient glaciers over a million
years ago.

We stay at Colonial Motels Twizel

TWIZEL - TEKAPO -CRESTED GREBES - GERALDINE

BREAKFAST | DINNER

We will travel north stopping at the High Country Salmon Farms to see the large framing operation that exists then on to Lake Alexandrina; this is a chance to possibly spy the Crested Grebes up close and personal as they build their nests on the edges of the lake. The lupins of the area should be coming
into full colour, a wonderful contrast to the arid brown of the Mackenzie
country. There are many choices to grab a lunch at Tekapo or wait for a famous
Fairlie pie, award winning piemakers. We arrive at Geraldine late afternoon.

We stay for our final 2 nights in Geraldine.

Dinner at the Village Inn

GERALDINE - FOOTHILLS TRAILS -MUSEUMS AND GARDENS-PODCARP FOREST

BREAKFAST | DINNER

This is for me a chance to show you around my hometown and the area. Geraldine has a variety of museums, art galleries, gift shops, a Gin distillery, etc. It also has the nearby podocarp forest with bellbirds, fantails, and 33 varieties of ferns. I will take you for a local tour of the area, you can choose the gardens that you like the sound of to visit of before giving you free time to explore the town.

Dinner at the Hops Brewery and restaurant

GERALDINE - ARTS AND PLANTS FESTIVAL - CHRISTCHURCH

BREAKFAST | LUNCH

Geraldines annual arts and plants festival awaits you on the final morning. The main street is blocked from traffic and up to 100 stall holders set up for the festival. This is a chance to wander in the morning before the crowds arrive and enjoy a real small country town festival. It’s also another time to visit a garden ,museum or take a drive with Wayne onto a nearby station farm tracks -the choice is yours.
Then we travel on the inland scenic route, with a final lunch at the Staveley café before being dropped in Christchurch at either the airport or accommodation from 3 00 pm.