Current Itinerary for
New Zealand February 2027
Kia ora koutou katoa
Welcome to our itinerary page for a trip to New Zealand in February 2027 – delayed due to covid from December 2020 and for various other reasons. We have a number of friends who have expressed interest in joining us and the intent is for everybody to meet in Christchurch on or around February 13th, 2027, unless they want to join for the train trip across Australia.
We have broken the trip down into each location we will visit. Click on the photo to access the locations main tourism website. We have also included links to our likely accommodation choices and describe some of the options for activities or sightseeing.
We have provided some details on flight options for getting to New Zealand at the bottom of the page along with a high level budget..
Feb 2nd (Tuesday)
Perth, Australia
Feb 6th (Saturday)
We’ve never visited Western Australia before and this is one end of the Indian Pacific railway journey that’s on our bucket list. Before departing on that epic trip, we will spend three days exploring the great city of Perth and its surrounding area. On day one we will explore Perth itself which is well known for its waterfront, cafes and restaurants, Aboriginal history and art. On day two, a cruise down the Swan River will take in Freemantle, known for its maritime history, convicts and mutineers. Also known for its craft breweries and market and sunsets over the harbour.
Day three will be a visit to Rottnest Island which is 18km off the coast. Home to 63 beaches and 20 bays, no cars are allowed so renting a bicycle is an option. Snorkelling or sea kayaking are a great way to see the coral reefs. The island is also home to the Quokka, a small marsupial.
Feb 7th (Sunday)
Indian Pacific, Australia
Feb 10th (Wednesday)
This is an epic four day, three night train trip across the Outback departing at 10am from the East Perth Terminal. It’s an an all inclusive experience with meals, wines and beverages and, to quote the website.
This incredible 4352 kilometre crossing is one of the world’s great rail journeys. An adventure of contrasts, it encompasses the towering majesty of the Blue Mountains to the barren expanse of the Nullarbor, and every goldmine, ghost town and grapevine in between. From inside and outside your cabin, you’ll be captivated by the vast beauty of this magnificent country
We’re including a YouTube video for you to watch to get a sense of whether you want to join us on this part of the trip.
Feb 10th (Wednesday)
Sydney, Australia
Feb 13th (Saturday)
The train from Perth arrives at 3:15pm so unless we add an extra day, this will be a very short visit. We are planning on staying right by the bridge and Opera House.
There should be time for a quick ferry ride from Circular Quay. The ferry gives you great views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge.
Note, we can look to see where we can find an extra day for Sydney. A few options would be to:
- Just overnight in Christchurch
- Shorten Queenstown by a day
- Overnight in Nelson
- Bypass Napier and go straight to Taupo/Rotorua
- Add the extra time at the end in Auckland for those thinking of extending the trip
Feb 13th (Saturday)
Christchurch, NZ
Feb 16th (Tuesday)
We are arriving around Noon into Christchurch ready for a Samuels airport welcome. We’ll pick up the rental vehicle and do a quick bit of sightseeing before a family and friends dinner.
Attractions include Botanical Gardens, Gondola and zip lining (Kay & Garth are definitely doing this) and going punting on the Avon or even the Antarctic centre if the Canadians are missing the cold.
Feb 16th (Tuesday)
Mount Cook, NZ
Feb 18th (Thursday)
It’s around a 4 hour drive to the National Park, so this should still leave time for a nice walk on Saturday with a full day on Sunday in case the weather is not ideal.
The two main walks are the Hooker Valley and the Tasman Valley. Either can be done as free-walking or as organised tours. You will cross raging rivers on swing bridges, potentially see some avalanches in the distance and the terminal lake of a glacier.
Feb 18th (Thursday)
Queenstown, NZ
Feb 21st (Sunday)
It’s time to head to Queenstown which is advertised as the adventure capital of the world. It’s about a 3 hour drive from Mount Cook.
Queenstown sits on the shores of Lake Wakatipu and styles itself the Adventure Capital of the World so if you want to Bungy Jump, Zip Line or throw yourself off of something else – this is the place.
Some recommended activities include a speedboat trip down the Dart River, an all day bus and cruise tour to Milford Sound, visit an old gold-mining town called Arrowtown and pan for gold along with numerous wineries which would include the tasting menu at Wild Earth.
We can also visit some of the shooting locations for the Lord of the Rings that can be found in the area plus some nice golf courses.
We will be in Queenstown for Waitangi Day which marks the anniversary of the signing of the treaty in 1840 with the Maori people and is considered the founding document of New Zealand.
Feb 21st (Sunday)
Wanaka, NZ
Feb 23rd (Tuesday)
The drive to Wanaka, crossing the Cadrona Pass, is just 1 hour and will pass the “famous” longest bra fence.
Wanaka is situated on the south end of Lake Wanaka and close to Mount Aspiring National Park. There are a number of walks/hikes in the area including Roy’s Peak which would take half a day.
It is a tourist town so there are plenty of other things to do including Lavender farms. It is also possible to fly to Milford Sound over the Alps which is an incredible trip if we prefer that to the bus version in Queenstown.
No major hotels so we may look at a vacation rental.
Feb 23rd (Tuesday)
Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers, NZ
Feb 25th (Thursday)
Time to head over to the lush West Coast via the Haast Pass. The route has numerous short walks and waterfalls to see on the way which will extend out the 3 hour drive. The drive into the Franz Josef glacier viewpoint shows how far the glacier has receded with markers indicating its position over the last 100 years or so.
We will also visit Lake Mattheson which has a circular walk via a viewpoint that provides a mirror reflection of Mount Cook in the water. The area is also known for its Jade and you can carve your own jewelry in Hokitika. We can also stop at the White Heron Sanctuary for a guided boat tour to New Zealand’s only nesting site.
No major hotels so we may look at a vacation rental although the motels are quite nice.
Feb 25th (Thursday)
Punakaiki, NZ
Feb 27th (Saturday)
We continue up the West Coast to Punakaiki – home of the pancake rock formations shown at the top of the page. This is one of our favourite places in New Zealand and we always stay at the same hotel overlooking the beach.
The rocks contain blowholes which explode when the weather conditions are right so we need to time a visit for high tide and keep our fingers crossed.
The area also has a number of bush walks where you’ll really get a feel for the rain forest environment and the famous New Zealand ferns.
Feb 27th (Saturday)
Nelson, NZ
Mar 1st (Monday)
We head for our final destination on the South Island which is Nelson, a holiday destination. The 3 hour drive from Punakaiki is through rain forest and gorges with sights like the Pelorus Bridge, a location for The Hobbit.
North of Nelson are the golden sand beaches of Kaiteriteri and there is a boat cruise to Split Apple Rock. Nelson also has a thriving art culture and craft market for any shopping desires.
There are also picturesque journeys along Queen Charlotte Sound and the Takaka Drive.
Numerous motels as well
Mar 1st (Monday)
Wellington, NZ
Mar 3rd (Wednesday)
We potentially split up here as Kay may fly to Wellington from Nelson and meet up with some friends but Stuart will take the car on the very scenic, 2 hour drive to Picton and take the interislander ferry, a 3 hour trip to Wellington that travels through Queen Charlotte Sound and across the Cook Strait. An early departure would put us on the 11am ferry but a more leisurely morning would be the 2:15pm departure.
The main sights would be the cable car, the Beehive, the common name for the Parliament building. Mount Victoria lookout and a tour of the Weta workshop, Peter Jackson’s company.
Mar 3rd (Wednesday)
Lake Taupo/Rotorua, NZ
Mar 6th (Saturday)
Rotorua is the centre for the geothermal springs and also has a significant Maori cultural presence. However, the sulphur smell from the hot pools is pervasive so we will likely stay an hour away in Taupo with its views of Mount Ruapehu, New Zealand’s largest active volcano. The lake itself is formed from the crater of another volcano that erupted 5,000 years ago. Huka Falls is situated close by.
It is worth waiting to arrive at Rotorua for the geothermal experience. The Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland is the best we’ve seen and Whakarewarewa Maori village is also a great activity.
An option is to drive via Napier. This would add a couple of hours to the 4.5 hour drive. However, Napier is on of the two cities in the world that is almost completely Art Deco in style. Napier is also come to our favourite winery, Elephant Hill which has an excellent restaurant and wine tastings.
Napier is in the Hawkes Bay wine region so the tasting options are extensive. High on the list is a vintage car tour that we did with Bertie in a 1930’s car. You can see Bertie in the doorway on the left. Hopefully, he hasn’t retired as he’s quite the character.
Mar 6th (Saturday)
Auckland, NZ
Departure
Auckland is the biggest city in New Zealand and known as the City of Sails. A 3 hour drive from Rotorua, stops along the way could include Hobbiton at Matamata or a bit further afield, the Glow Worm caves at Waitomo.
Once in Auckland, there is plenty to do and see. A visit to Goat Island for snorkelling or just watching the fish through a glass bottomed boat or a visit to the top of Mount Eden. Numerous waterside bars and restaurants will allow to us relax after a busy few weeks going through New Zealand.
Auckland is the best departure point as most international flights originate from here meaning no internal flights required. Bear in mind you will cross the international date line if you fly across the Pacific so we can leave on Sunday and arrive same day in Toronto. As we are returning via Dubai, we will likely leave earlier.
There are numerous hotel options in Auckland
Flight Options
The quickest route to New Zealand is to fly trans-pacific. Air New Zealand have services to Auckland via Vancouver, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston and a recently added flight from Chicago and they may add a flight from New York although with COVID-19, that will likely be postponed. Our preference would be the Vancouver option as it avoids US immigration which is a major annoyance, particularly on the return leg. If we were to choose a US departure, we would likely choose Chicago (runs only 3 days a week though) unless you were planning an overnight on the West Coast prior to continuing the flight.
Flight costs are currently running on the higher end of the scale due to the Pandemic. Currently, the Vancouver option is $3,063 with 21 hours there and 19 hours back (bring plenty of reading material). When booking the flight, remember to include the internal flights as well. You can usually pick the extra leg (Christchurch or Queenstown) for a few dollars and your luggage allowance is based on the international leg. If you have points we would seriously recommend business class or premium economy and you may want to look at the Sky Couch product offering which converts 3 economy seats into a bed for 2 people. It might be good value if airlines are not booking the middle seat anyway for social distancing reasons.
Air Canada have a flight from Toronto to Sydney with a stop in Vancouver. This is technically one flight so you reboard the plane after a refueling stop. Air New Zealand have a flight direct from Sydney to Queenstown so this route offers an opportunity to visit Sydney for a few days.
We are taking the long way round. We are seriously considering Emirates First Class from Toronto – Dubai – Perth and Sydney – Christchurch and then returning from Auckland to Toronto via Dubai. They have enclosed suites on all flights – including the 3 hour flight from Sydney to Christchurch.
We did also see an option with Fiji Airways that was Business Class and we would spend a couple of days in Fiji before flying on to Auckland. There are numerous other routes with stopovers and if you’re considering points, do look for the more unusual options as we have flown via Seoul on Asiana, an Air Canada partner.
Trip Extensions
Some friends have pointed out that this might be their one big chance of visiting New Zealand and Australia and so they have expressed some interest in extending their visit. We thought we would provide some ideas or recommendations of what we’ve done before or have planned for future trips.
Given the direct flights to Sydney, we would recommend building an extended itinerary around a Toronto – Sydney – Toronto main route. You can spend a couple of days exploring the area by ferry and we would also suggest a visit to the Blue Mountains where the Zig Zag railway should be open after the bush fires.
Melbourne would be another city worth a visit which is best done as a flight as the distances involved can be deceiving – it’s at least a 9 hour road trip. Melbourne is culturally, very different from Sydney.
One of our bucket list items is to take a train across Australia. For our friends, we would suggest looking at The Ghan which is a three day train journey across the Outback from Adelaide to Darwin with stops at Marla, Alice Springs and Katherine. We’ve included the Indian Pacific which runs from Perth to Sydney (or the reverse) on our itinerary above.
Our suggestions for the end of our trip is to spend more time exploring Auckland but to also visit the Coromandel Peninsula or the areas north of Auckland. Once that’s completed, a flight from Auckland will get you to Brisbane where you can visit the Gold Coast or Sunshine Coast areas or head further North to Cairns for a visit to the Great Barrier reef.