New Zealand’s Great Walks are nine walking tracks designed and maintained by the Department of Conservation to take visitors through some of the most stunning landscapes in the country. Hikers huts have been placed at strategic places along the walks and these huts can be booked in advance. The huts have toilets, an eating area, and sleeping platforms. Potable water may be available but you will want to be prepared to boil your drinking water. It is expected that the huts will be left neat & tidy for the next trekkers to use. Depending on the walk, you will need a specific type of permit so do your research and prepare.

All of the Great Walks are spectacular and there are vistas that will take your breath away however, when time is limited, there are a few walks that rise above the rest due to the vistas they spread before you and the environment that they take you through. The three Great Walks that stand out are Whanganui Journey, Milford Track, and Heaphy Track.

Whanganui Journey

Although not a walk, the Whanganui Journey is the only river journey included in the Great Walks. By kayak or canoe, this 145km river voyage takes about 5 days to complete and takes you though rugged terrain, between sheer cliff walls, over more than a hundred sets of rapids, past sandy beaches, through breathtaking scenery, and allows you to see relics of early Maori settlements. The river has played an important role as a food source to the Maori.

To take the Whanganui Journey, you will need to get Great Walks pass however the type of pass you will need depends on whether you are doing the journey in peak or off peak seasons. There are huts and campsites along the way. If you’d rather go with a group, there are guided river tours that you can go on and they will look after making all the appropriate arrangements for you.

Milford Track

Fiordland National Park offers the perfect backdrop for a walk along the spectacular 53.5km Milford Track. Starting in the heart of this stunning park, this 4-day walk leads you to beauty of Milford Sound. This is a well-marked walk bust, as always, take a map and compass in case you get off course. On this walk you will encounter nine suspension bridges, many avalanche paths that may delay the walk depending on the season, incredible vistas and stunning waterfalls; not to mention the waterways you’ll follow.

If you are planning to walk the track, you will need to book the huts well in advance. There are three huts along the walk and camping out is not allowed on the Milford Track.

There is only one company that has a DOC concession to take guided overnight walks on the Milford Track. They provide all-inclusive guided walks and they have their own accommodations that cannot be utilized if you are an independent walker. They can seem expensive but all you do is show up with appropriate clothing, insect repellent, water bottle, and a camera. Sure make planning the trip a breeze.

Heaphy Track

The longest of the Great Walks at 78.4kms, the Heaphy Track takes you through the very different and diverse landscapes of Kahurangi National Park. You will experience beautiful beech forests with gorgeous small orchids growing on the floor of the forest, red tussock interspersed with stunted silver beech at higher altitudes, sparkling pink granite bedrock, incredible canopies of podocasts, and finally the contrast of the lush sub-tropical forest at the edge of the frigid sea. This walk takes 4-6 days and is not that difficult of a walk but you do need to be of average fitness to cover the distance.

Booking the huts and campsites in advance is a necessity and, unlike some of the other Great Walks, you are allowed to stay at the huts for a maximum of two nights stay.

Any of these walks will provide you with memories to last a lifetime, not to mention some of the best photographic opportunities you will ever have.

Visit us at GuidesToNewZealand.com for even more delightful and tempting details about New Zealand’s nine Great Walks, including details on the fabulous Te Urewera National Park. Be sure to bookmark us for all the details on our upcoming Kiwi Tips Newsletter!

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