10-Day South Island Itinerary: Guided Tour Loop

Ten days is the sweet spot for the South Island. Long enough to see the icons, and long enough to reach the places most visitors drive straight past. This loop starts and ends in Christchurch, links seven of our small-group tours, and leaves you three days to do things your way.

Day 1: Christchurch to Mt Cook

We cross the Canterbury Plains, collect a picnic lunch (included) in Geraldine, and climb into the Mackenzie Country, stopping at Lake Tekapo and its little stone Church of the Good Shepherd. Then it's along Lake Pukaki, glacier-fed and unreasonably blue, to Aoraki Mt Cook village. Stay the night under some of the clearest night skies in the world.

Day 2: Mt Cook to Queenstown

An early start is worth it here: the morning light on Aoraki is something special, and the Hooker Valley Track starts nearby if you have time for a walk before departure. Then we head south past Lake Pukaki to High Country Salmon (feed the fish, taste the fresh stuff), over the Lindis Pass, past Jacksons Orchard for real fruit ice cream in summer, and through the Kawarau Gorge into Queenstown.

Day 3: Queenstown to Te Anau via Milford Sound

You get Milford Sound without the long drive back. We travel through Fiordland via the Eglinton Valley, Mirror Lakes, kea country in the Darran Mountains and the Homer Tunnel, hop aboard a boutique cruise beneath Mitre Peak, enjoy a picnic lunch, then drop you in lakeside Te Anau for the night.

Day 4: Te Anau to Dunedin via the Catlins

There's a good chance The Catlins isn't high on your list. That's exactly why it's on ours. This is the deep south at its wildest: the 180-million-year-old petrified forest at Curio Bay (or Cathedral Caves, depending on conditions), the quirky Lost Gypsy Caravan at Papatowai, tiered Purakaunui Falls, and the clifftop Nugget Point Lighthouse. If luck is on your side, you'll spot yellow-eyed penguins, Hector's dolphins or seals. Lunch in Papatowai is at your own expense.

Day 5: A Day in Dunedin (or a Free Day in Te Anau)

In Dunedin: head out onto the Otago Peninsula for royal albatross, fur seals and penguins, tour Larnach Castle, or walk down to Tunnel Beach. Back in town, the Scottish-flavoured streets, cafés and street art make for an easy afternoon.

Prefer to linger in Fiordland? Flip days 4 and 5. Spend a free day in Te Anau (glowworm caves, a section of the Kepler Track, or a lazy lakeside afternoon) and travel to Dunedin the following day.

Day 6: Dunedin to Queenstown

We make the trip back inland a scenic one. Board the Taieri Gorge Train at Dunedin's grand Edwardian railway station and ride through narrow gorges and over towering viaducts to Pukerangi, where your guide meets you. From there it's the gold rush ghost town of St Bathans and its Blue Lake, the 1880s Ophir Bridge, Cromwell and the Kawarau Gorge into Queenstown.

Day 7: Free Day in Queenstown

You've earned this one. Gondola, jetboat, bungy, Arrowtown, a long lunch in the Gibbston wine valley, or absolutely nothing at all. All valid choices.

Day 8: Queenstown to Franz Josef

North over the Crown Range via the historic Cardrona Hotel and the Wānaka Tree, along Lake Hāwea and over the Haast Pass, with walks to the Blue Pools and Thunder Creek Falls. Lunch (included) is at the Hard Antler in Haast, then it's Ship Creek, Bruce Bay and mirror-like Lake Matheson before we roll into Franz Josef.

Day 9: A Day in Franz Josef

Book a heli-hike onto the glacier or a scenic flight with a snow landing, walk the Glacier Valley track, or visit the West Coast Wildlife Centre to meet rowi, the rarest kiwi of all. Finish in the glacier hot pools. Tip: book flights for the morning, when the weather is often clearer.

Day 10: Franz Josef to Christchurch

We head up the Coast to the turquoise Hokitika Gorge and the seaside town of Hokitika, stop for lunch (included) in Greymouth, then cross the Southern Alps via the Otira Viaduct lookout, Arthur's Pass and the limestone boulders of Castle Hill, arriving in Christchurch in the evening. Want to finish in style? Choose the version including the TranzAlpine Train.

Why Let Us Drive?

Seven travel days is a lot of time behind the wheel, especially on roads like the Milford Road, the Haast Pass and the winding coast of the Catlins. Link our tours instead and the driving is someone else's job.

Arrive fresh, not frazzled. Day ten feels like a holiday, not the end of a driving marathon. And everyone sees the views, every day.
No car hire bill. Ten days of rental, fuel and insurance adds up fast. So does parking in Queenstown.
Local knowledge on tap. Your guides know when Curio Bay's petrified forest shows at low tide, where to look for yellow-eyed penguins, and where to meet the Taieri Gorge Train. We plan the timings; you enjoy the day.
Small groups, new friends. By day ten you'll have swapped stories with guides and travellers from around the world.
More flexible than a coach tour. You choose your days off and where to spend them, like the Dunedin-or-Te-Anau choice on day five.

You may already know our Milford Sound tour, one of Tripadvisor's top experiences in the South Pacific. Same famously passionate guides, same small groups, ten days instead of one. As the only small-group tour company covering this much of New Zealand, we look after you from Christchurch to the Catlins and back.

Good to Know

Accommodation isn't included, so you'll book nine nights: Mt Cook, Queenstown (one night, then two more later), Te Anau, Dunedin (two nights) and Franz Josef (two nights).
Short on days? Our 6-day South Island loop covers the big four icons.
Want it all arranged? Our Southern Highlights tours and Custom & Private Tours team can do the planning for you.