Mt Cook & Lake Tekapo

Mt Cook & Lake Tekapo Tour. This small group, fully-guided day trip combines all of the key highlights in the area with the famous Lake Tekapo, Mt Cook National Park and Tasman Glacier as key highlights. Led by our famously passionate tour guides, notorious for bringing your journey to life by sharing their stories and rich background knowledge and run in modern, comfortable minibuses packed with extras ensuring your comfort and safety.

Highlights:

• Lake Tekapo
• Church of the Good Shepard 
• Mt Cook & Aoraki National Park 
• Tasman Glacier, Lake Pukaki

Itinerary:

1. Christchurch - Your tour starts in the stunning city of Christchurch. As we drive out of the city your guide will not only set the scene for your adventurous day but also point out and guide you past some of the area’s top highlights.
   
   
2. Canterbury Plains  – Departing Christchurch we then make our way through the impressive Canterbury plains with plenty of amazing New Zealand farmland and countryside to see along the way! 
   
   
3. Fairlie Bakehouse (10 mins) - A Classic New Zealand farming town hidden away in Mackenzie.  Fairlie goes through some stunning colour changes especially come Autum, this is truly one of the best locations to sit and relax with one of their world-famous meat Pies from the Bakehouse. And this stop is also where we will pick up your lunch to keep you full of energy for the rest of the day.
   
   
4. Lake Tekapo (5mins) – We head towards the famous blue lakes of Lake Tekapo but to get there first we must go through some impressive alpine passes with amazing views. As we come over the hill to Tekapo you will be stunned by amazing view of the lake. 
   
   
5. Church of the Good Shepherd (10 mins) – Once in the township of Tekapo you will have time to explore the very popular Church of the Good Shepherd, see the Mackenzie Sheep dog and get those Instagram worth shots of Lake Tekapo before we continue to Mt Cook. 
   
   
6. Lake Pukaki (10 mins) – Turning west we begin to enter the Aoraki National Park and Lake Pukaki begins to emerge in front of us. Lake Pukaki is one of the bluest lakes you will ever see and is stunningly framed by the backdrop of Aoraki/Mt Cook and the Southern Alps. We stop for some amazing photos and to just marvel at the sight that we are beholding. It’s not hard to see why many Lord of the Rings scene were filmed nearby and we will point them out for you. 
   
   
7. Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park (2 hours) – Arriving at Mt Cook Village, weather depending, we should get some amazing shots of the mountain itself.  At 3724m, Aoraki/Mt Cook is New Zealand’s highest peak, however, the mountain can be viewed without any acclimatisation whatsoever from the village which is just 750m above sea level.
   
   While in the national park you have 2 hours free time to enjoy free walks/hikes or one of the extra optional activities. Some of our recommendations include: Kea Point or Tasman Glacier Walk, Scenic flights  (see the region from the air and land on the Tasman Glacier) or Mt Cook Visitor Centre & Hermitage Hotel. Whatever you decide to do we will pick you up and drop you off where you need to go and make sure you are well looked after. 
   
   
8. Christchurch – Unfortunately after an amazing day of sightseeing it is time to return to Christchurch. Please note additional stops are taken into considerations for toilet breaks.

Inclusions:

• Small Group
• Fully Guided Tour 
• Picnic Lunch

Optional Extras:

• One-way tour from Christchurch to Queenstown via Mt Cook
• Scenic flights with Glacier landings 
• Ski Dive Mt Cook
• Sir Edmond Hillary Alpine Centre 

**Please note: the Hooker Valley Track is currently CLOSED while the Department of Conservation works on replacing one of the swing bridges. This is expected to be complete in Autumn 2026 so the track will be inaccessible to the public until then**

Still have questions? Please visit our FAQs page!