Enjoy a scenic cruise on board the vintage steamship TSS Earnslaw for dining experience that's unlike any other in Queenstown. Guests disembark from their TSS Earnslaw cruise at Walter Peak where they are escorted through the lakeside gardens to the recently refurbished Colonel's Homestead and seated for dinner. Relax in the unique ambience in front of a roaring open fire and soak in the views from this stunning lakeside setting while the chefs prepare a gourmet BBQ on the outdoor grill. Enjoy a selection of succulent New Zealand meat and seafood accompanied by delectable seasonal salads, tasty dessert treats and local cheeses. All meat and seafood is cooked on the outdoor BBQ and rotisserie in front of guests and served immediately. A locally influenced wine list and other beverages are available to purchase at the bar. After the meal, guests join an entertaining farm experience which gives an insight of life in the New Zealand high country including a sheep shearing demonstration. The night-time cruise home is magical. Join in the camaraderie of a sing-along with the ship's pianist on the return journey.
Queenstown Airport to Queenstown - City Centre
Your Accommodation
QT Queenstown
QT Queenstown is a stylish and modern hotel in the heart of Queenstown, offering spacious rooms and fabulous dining options. Experience stunning views of the crystal-clear Lake Wakatipu and the breathtaking peaks of the Southern Alps This luxurious lakeside resort offers stylish accommodation infused with the signature QT charm. For those with adventurous palates, the vibrant Bazaar Marketplace beckons with its enticing aromas. Watch as chefs craft dishes right before your eyes in an interactive, lively atmosphere, drawing inspiration from fresh, local ingredients. Visit Reds Bar, where locals and guests come together to share stories of their day over expertly crafted cocktails or boutique brews. Each room is equipped with a TV featuring cable channels, and some rooms offer views of the mountains or the lake. Every room includes a private bathroom, complete with complimentary toiletries and a hairdryer for your comfort.
Duration
2 Night Stay
Meal Plan
Full Breakfast
Journey deep into the heart of world-renowned Mount Aspiring National Park, where myth, heritage and fantasy come to life. The ultimate wilderness Jet boat adventure takes you on an unforgettable journey along the braided, glacier-fed Dart River. Experience the unique combination of breath-taking scenery and an exhilarating ride as you venture deep into Mount Aspiring National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Area. With unrivalled National Park access, you'll cover up to 90 km of river on a trip making Dart River Adventures the longest jet boat ride in the region. With plenty of time to connect with the area and take in the scenery, your guides give you their authentic touch, sharing stories of the area's rich history, the Greenstone trail and renowned Maori legends.
This scenic tour departs central Queenstown and first stop is an observation point where you can take in one of the best panoramic views in Queenstown. After capturing some incredible photos, enjoy a brief stop overlooking the Shotover River before free time in the charming township Arrowtown. Travel to Gibbston and visit the world's first commercial bungy jump offering entertaining spectating opportunities. The region is also home to some Middle-earth magic (Lord of the Rings film locations) and becoming increasingly famous for its world class cold climate wine. Enjoy wine tasting (non-alcoholic substitutes available) and a shared cheese platter at a local winery with jaw-dropping views. We're not finished there - on the way back to Queenstown transfer from land to lake with a picturesque thirty minute scenic boat cruise on Lake Whakatipu ending your tour at the wharf in the heart of town.
On boarding a luxury coach in Queenstown, travel along the shores of Lake Wakatipu and through the rolling countryside to Te Anau. After a short break, the coach continues along the spectacular alpine route of the Milford Road through impressive, awe-inspiring scenery. There is time for photo stops and short walks along the way. Considered one of the most beautiful drives in the world, experience this journey in comfort in a state of the art coach. Your friendly coach drivers provide detailed commentaries throughout the trip. On reaching Milford Sound join an extended and leisurely cruise of Milford Sound to the Tasman Sea. Nature cruises have a relaxed and flexible itinerary designed to allow guests to see and experience what makes Milford Sound world renowned. Spend up to two and a half hours nudging into waterfalls, spotting wildlife and listening to the informative commentary from a specialist Nature Guide who mingles with guests. Keep a look out for wildlife including seals, dolphins and penguins. Following the cruise transfer to Te Anau by luxury coach.
Milford Sound Coach, Cruise and Coach from Queenstown to Te Anau
Your Accommodation
Distinction Hotel and Villas Te Anau
Distinction Te Anau Hotel & Villas offers elegant accommodation and FREE unlimited WiFi for the perfect Fiordland getaway. Surrounded by extensive, colorful gardens and overlooking spectacular Lake Te Anau and the Fiordland ranges, this 4-star hotel, and villa accommodation set the tone for your stay in one of the world’s most breathtaking regions. Located on the Te Anau lakefront, a short stroll from the Te Anau town center, Distinction Te Anau is perfectly situated for you to make the most of this beautiful area. If you need an escape from everyday life and a chance to indulge yourself with a relaxing holiday, this is the place for you.
Duration
1 Night Stay
Meal Plan
Full Breakfast
Make your way to the designated meeting point in Te Anau then take in the awe-inspiring scenery as you enjoy a spectacular helicopter transfer to join Heritage Explorer in Preservation Inlet (times and meeting point will be confirmed with your voyage documents). Your Captain and Expedition Leader will be waiting to welcome you aboard Heritage Explorer and show you to your cabin. Settle into life aboard before we set sail along Long Sound and enjoy your first impressions of the fiords and the unrestrained landscape of Southern Fiordland.
Te Anau - Preservation Inlet
Meal
Dinner
Your Accommodation
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Explorer is a 30-metre, 4-deck New Zealand flagged vessel built in 2004 by the renowned wooden boat building family Carey's Boatyard in Picton. It features a contemporary wood-finished interior, 10 well-appointed cabins across three decks, dining room boasting spectacular 180-degree panoramas and theatre capabilities; lounge and bar featuring a flight of inclusive regional New Zealand wines and beers; and a well-stocked local library.
Today is dedicated to exploring Preservation Inlet, rich in history we will delve into the gold mining and forestry attempts that once made this now quiet waterway a bustling hub of activity. The area’s natural bounty saw more than 2,500 gold miners and saw millers flock to the region in the late 1890s. This early settler history at mining towns Cromarty and Te Oneroa, now reclaimed by nature, can still be observed, none more spectacularly than at the failed Tarawera Mine and Smelter, where the ruins of the smelter’s three-storey chimney were restored in 2015. Among the activity, Preservation Inlet can also lay claim to having New Zealand’s first whaling station at Cuttle Cove and the location of one of the country’s most remote lighthouses at Puysegur Point, which began operation in 1879, perched some 40-feet above the south island’s most south-western point. Here a great coastal walk, formerly a telegraph track built to connect the lighthouse, leads to the old landing shed at Otago Retreat.
Preservation Inlet
Meal
Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch
Your Accommodation
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Explorer is a 30-metre, 4-deck New Zealand flagged vessel built in 2004 by the renowned wooden boat building family Carey's Boatyard in Picton. It features a contemporary wood-finished interior, 10 well-appointed cabins across three decks, dining room boasting spectacular 180-degree panoramas and theatre capabilities; lounge and bar featuring a flight of inclusive regional New Zealand wines and beers; and a well-stocked local library.
The entrance to Chalky Inlet is guarded by the impressive limestone cliffs of Chalky Island, the inspiration behind Captain Cook’s naming of the fiord. One of several important predator-free islands in the inlet including Great Island and Passage Islands, Chalky Island is home to some of New Zealand’s most critically endangered bird species including the Little Spotted Kiwi and Kakapo, and endemic Te Kakahu Skink, discovered in 2002. The protected harbours at North and South Port offer much to explore as the centres of human history in the inlet with North Port the final resting place of the rusting hulk of purposely grounded GSS Stella. While South Port reveals an industrial past with the remnants of once prolific sawmilling activity. Sailing to the head of the fiord the surrounding mountains envelop us with their majesty.
Chalky Inlet
Meal
Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch
Your Accommodation
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Explorer is a 30-metre, 4-deck New Zealand flagged vessel built in 2004 by the renowned wooden boat building family Carey's Boatyard in Picton. It features a contemporary wood-finished interior, 10 well-appointed cabins across three decks, dining room boasting spectacular 180-degree panoramas and theatre capabilities; lounge and bar featuring a flight of inclusive regional New Zealand wines and beers; and a well-stocked local library.
Over the following two days, we plan to leisurely expedition cruise through Dusky Sound visiting some of the most significant historical and conservation sites in New Zealand as well as marveling at the majestic scenery as we sail deep into the heart of Fiordland. A navigation through Acheron Passage, which separates Resolution Island from the mainland, is sure to be one of the highlights of our time in Fiordland. Predator-free Anchor Island homes half of the world’s population of Kakapo and Little Spotted Kiwi and is also the location of historic Luncheon Cove and a number of New Zealand firsts including New Zealand’s first sealing gang, the building of New Zealand’s first European homestead and first European designed ship, the 16-metre Providence built here and launched in 1795.
Dusky Sound
Meal
Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch
Your Accommodation
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Explorer is a 30-metre, 4-deck New Zealand flagged vessel built in 2004 by the renowned wooden boat building family Carey's Boatyard in Picton. It features a contemporary wood-finished interior, 10 well-appointed cabins across three decks, dining room boasting spectacular 180-degree panoramas and theatre capabilities; lounge and bar featuring a flight of inclusive regional New Zealand wines and beers; and a well-stocked local library.
Today continue your exploration of Dusky Sound. On nearby Pigeon Island learn the history of Richard Henry and his pioneering live transfer of birds to island refuges - an international first in wildlife conservation. While his attempts were unsuccessful due to stoats swimming over to the island, it is heartening to learn the island is now pest-free and a sanctuary for native birdlife, with Henry’s vision fulfilled.
Dusky Sound
Meal
Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch
Your Accommodation
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Explorer is a 30-metre, 4-deck New Zealand flagged vessel built in 2004 by the renowned wooden boat building family Carey's Boatyard in Picton. It features a contemporary wood-finished interior, 10 well-appointed cabins across three decks, dining room boasting spectacular 180-degree panoramas and theatre capabilities; lounge and bar featuring a flight of inclusive regional New Zealand wines and beers; and a well-stocked local library.
After a quiet night aboard surrounded by the nature and wilderness of Breaksea Sound join your naturalists on deck to spot seabirds, including the majestic Wandering and Buller’s Albatross, as we pass Breaksea Island, which guards the entrance to Breaksea Sound. It was on Breaksea Island that the first successful island rat eradication program was completed, today it is a protected nature reserve of great significance to the many endangered species which call the island home. From here we sail onwards towards some of the most spectacular scenery in all of Fiordland - Doubtful Sound, or the sound of silence as it’s also known. Spanning some staggering 40-kilometres and holding the title as New Zealand’s deepest fiord, Doubtful Sound with its cloud-scraping wilderness cloaked mountains, sheer cliffs, waterfalls, inlets, quiet coves and wildlife presents nature on a scale so grand it’s off the chart. Tonight we enjoy a farewell dinner.
Breaksea & Doubtful Sounds
Meal
Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch
Your Accommodation
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Explorer is a 30-metre, 4-deck New Zealand flagged vessel built in 2004 by the renowned wooden boat building family Carey's Boatyard in Picton. It features a contemporary wood-finished interior, 10 well-appointed cabins across three decks, dining room boasting spectacular 180-degree panoramas and theatre capabilities; lounge and bar featuring a flight of inclusive regional New Zealand wines and beers; and a well-stocked local library.
Embark on a guided journey into the enchanting Te Anau Glowworm Caves, where rushing underground streams and luminous glowworms create a magical experience unlike any other. Your adventure begins with a scenic cruise across the tranquil waters of Lake Te Anau aboard one of our purpose-built catamarans, taking you to the remote western shores. At Cavern House, explore fascinating displays that uncover the caves’ geology and history before your guide leads you into the underground labyrinth. Along the way, our knowledgeable guides will highlight the caves’ unique features and share captivating stories about their formation and discovery. Step into a world of natural wonder. These geologically young caves, just 12,000 years old, are still being shaped by the powerful river carving through them. Marvel at twisting limestone passages, sculpted rock formations, swirling whirlpools, and a thundering underground waterfall. The journey culminates in a hidden grotto, where you’ll drift silently by boat beneath a sparkling canopy of glowworms unique to New Zealand. In the stillness and darkness of this subterranean realm, their bioluminescent display is nothing short of extraordinary.
Your Accommodation
Distinction Hotel and Villas Te Anau
Distinction Te Anau Hotel & Villas offers elegant accommodation and FREE unlimited WiFi for the perfect Fiordland getaway. Surrounded by extensive, colorful gardens and overlooking spectacular Lake Te Anau and the Fiordland ranges, this 4-star hotel, and villa accommodation set the tone for your stay in one of the world’s most breathtaking regions. Located on the Te Anau lakefront, a short stroll from the Te Anau town center, Distinction Te Anau is perfectly situated for you to make the most of this beautiful area. If you need an escape from everyday life and a chance to indulge yourself with a relaxing holiday, this is the place for you.
Duration
1 Night Stay
Meal Plan
Full Breakfast
Kiwi Country Cafe, 2 Miro St. to Queenstown Coach Stop
Your Accommodation
QT Queenstown
QT Queenstown is a stylish and modern hotel in the heart of Queenstown, offering spacious rooms and fabulous dining options. Experience stunning views of the crystal-clear Lake Wakatipu and the breathtaking peaks of the Southern Alps This luxurious lakeside resort offers stylish accommodation infused with the signature QT charm. For those with adventurous palates, the vibrant Bazaar Marketplace beckons with its enticing aromas. Watch as chefs craft dishes right before your eyes in an interactive, lively atmosphere, drawing inspiration from fresh, local ingredients. Visit Reds Bar, where locals and guests come together to share stories of their day over expertly crafted cocktails or boutique brews. Each room is equipped with a TV featuring cable channels, and some rooms offer views of the mountains or the lake. Every room includes a private bathroom, complete with complimentary toiletries and a hairdryer for your comfort.
Duration
1 Night Stay
Meal Plan
Full Breakfast
Queenstown - City Centre to Queenstown Airport
Prices are "from" per person based on twin/double share accommodation and for travel in low season. Seasonal surcharges and blackout dates may apply. Limited seat/spaces and all pricing is subject to change and availability. Rates for single or triple travellers are available on request - please inquire.
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