Destinations & ItinerariesBy Clever Tourists · Published
We spent 23 days on New Zealand's South Island, from 23 February to 18 March 2023, on a self-drive loop that started and ended in Christchurch: west to Rakaia Gorge and Lake Pukaki under Aoraki / Mount Cook, south to Glenorchy and Te Anau (3 days), up the Milford Road to Milford Sound, back through Queenstown to Wanaka, over the Haast Pass to Fox Glacier, across Arthur's Pass, and a final 3 days on Banks Peninsula at Little River. That is roughly 2,000 km of driving by our count of the legs. Below is every stop with its days, the drive times between them, the Milford Road overnights, what late summer is like, and what we would change.
• Christchurch, 1 day (23 February). Arrival and car pickup. Our New Zealand guide covers the rebuilt center, the Botanic Gardens and the Transitional Cathedral.
• Rakaia Gorge, 1 day. The braided Rakaia River where it squeezes through a gorge on Inland Scenic Route 72, about an hour west of Christchurch. DOC's Rakaia Gorge Walkway takes 3 to 4 hours return.
• Lake Pukaki, 1 day. The turquoise lake, Peter's Lookout and the road up to Aoraki / Mount Cook. Our Lake Pukaki guide and Pukaki and Mount Cook road trip guide cover the viewpoints and the Hooker Valley Track.
• Glenorchy, 2 days. The red boatshed and wharf at the head of Lake Wakatipu, and the gravel roads toward Paradise and the Routeburn trailhead. In our New Zealand guide.
• Te Anau, 3 days (28 February to 3 March). The base for Fiordland, on the shore of New Zealand's second-largest lake.
• Cascade Creek, 1 night; Milford Sound, 1 day; Henry Creek, 1 night. Two nights at DOC campsites on the Milford Road either side of a day at the fiord. More on these below.
• Queenstown, 1 day. One night only, on the way from Fiordland to Wanaka.
• Wanaka, 2 days. The lakefront, the lone willow in the water, and the Roys Peak track. In our New Zealand guide.
• Haast, 1 day. The small settlement where the Haast Pass highway meets the West Coast.
• Fox Glacier, 2 days. Lake Matheson for the mirror view of the Southern Alps, plus a day trip to Franz Josef.
• Jacksons, 1 night, and Arthur's Pass, 1 day. A night on State Highway 73 on the West Coast side, then the alpine village itself. See our Arthur's Pass guide.
• Little River, 3 days, then Christchurch, 1 day (17 to 18 March). Banks Peninsula, about half an hour from Akaroa, and a last night in the city before our flight to Japan.
These are approximate times without stops, from tourism boards, DOC and route planners. New Zealand roads are narrow, winding and full of one-lane bridges, so most legs take longer than the map suggests. Our driving in New Zealand guide covers the rules.
• Christchurch to Rakaia Gorge: about 75 km, around 1 hour.
• Rakaia Gorge to Lake Pukaki: roughly 3 hours via Geraldine, Fairlie and Lake Tekapo. Our Christchurch to Queenstown stops guide covers Tekapo and the Lindis Pass.
• Lake Pukaki to Glenorchy: about 3.5 to 4 hours, over the Lindis Pass to Cromwell and Queenstown, then 45 km (about 45 minutes) along Lake Wakatipu.
• Glenorchy to Te Anau: about 3 hours: back to Queenstown, then about 170 km (2 hours) to Te Anau.
• Te Anau to Milford Sound: about 120 km. DOC says allow at least 2 hours 15 minutes of driving without stops. Cascade Creek is 71 km from Te Anau and Henry Creek about 23 km.
• Henry Creek to Queenstown: about 2.5 hours.
• Queenstown to Wanaka: about 68 km over the Crown Range, a little over an hour.
• Wanaka to Haast: about 140 km over the Haast Pass, 2 to 2.5 hours without stops.
• Haast to Fox Glacier: about 120 km, around 1.5 hours. Franz Josef is about half an hour further north.
• Fox Glacier to Jacksons: around 3 hours, north past Hokitika (about 2 hours from Fox) and inland on SH73. Jacksons is 33 km west of Arthur's Pass.
• Arthur's Pass to Little River: about 150 km (2 hours or more) to Christchurch, then under an hour onto Banks Peninsula. Our Highway 73 guide covers Castle Hill and the Otira Viaduct.
The Haast Pass (SH6) closes from time to time for slips and flooding; NZTA reopened it after a flood closure as recently as June 2026. Check the NZTA Journeys map the morning you cross it, and the Milford Road the same way.
Our two Milford Road nights were at Cascade Creek and Henry Creek, both Department of Conservation campsites. Cascade Creek is a standard DOC campsite at the lower end of Lake Gunn, 71 km north of Te Anau, with a cooking shelter, non-flush toilets and stream water. Henry Creek is the closest DOC campsite to Te Anau on the road, about 23 km out, on the shore of Lake Te Anau.
Splitting the road this way means you are already 70 km up the valley at dawn, ahead of the day-trip coaches from Queenstown and Te Anau. DOC now requires bookings all year for both sites, online being cheapest (a service fee applies to phone and in-person bookings). Recent DOC listings showed about NZ$15 to NZ$18 per adult per night; check the current fee when you book.
Practicalities: there is no fuel between Te Anau and Milford Sound, a 240 km round trip, so fill up in Te Anau. Mobile reception is patchy to absent. The Homer Tunnel is single-lane with traffic lights, and DOC warns of waits of up to 20 minutes at summer peaks. If you are sleeping in a vehicle elsewhere, read our freedom camping rules guide first; fines start at NZ$400.
We drove this loop at the end of the New Zealand summer. It is a good window: the school holidays are over, the long days are still long, and our Arthur's Pass guide names February to March as the most reliable weather on the pass. Our Lake Pukaki guide gives November to March for the best chance of a clear view of Aoraki / Mount Cook.
Fiordland and the West Coast are wet in every season; Milford Sound gets more than six metres of rain a year, and the waterfalls are at their best during or just after rain, so do not cancel a cruise for a grey forecast. Carry insect repellent for sandflies at Milford, Haast and Fox Glacier.
At Fox Glacier, the old road into the glacier valley was washed out and access has been closed for years. DOC's South Side Walkway and the Lake Matheson circuit (4.4 km, about 1 hour 30 minutes, best at dawn for the reflection) are the reliable walks. At Franz Josef, the valley walk is a 1.7 km return track to a viewpoint, and DOC can close it after floods or rockfall. Check the daily glacier access update before driving out.
Keep: the Christchurch loop. Starting and ending at the same airport usually avoids a one-way drop-off fee on the rental. Keep three nights in Te Anau, since Milford Sound needs a weather buffer, and keep the two nights at Fox Glacier for the same reason.
Change: Lake Pukaki got one night, which is too little if you want the Hooker Valley Track (about 3 hours return) and a clear-sky morning. We would take a night from Little River and give Pukaki two. Rakaia Gorge is a pleasant first stop but not essential; Lake Tekapo is the more common first night.
Watch out for: the back-and-forth around Queenstown. This loop passes through it three times (to Glenorchy, to Te Anau, and back from Fiordland). If Queenstown matters to you, give it more than one night; if not, it works as a pass-through.
Fees coming: New Zealand plans an international visitor access fee at Milford Sound and Aoraki / Mount Cook, not before summer 2027/28. See New Zealand park fees for international visitors.
• 10 days: Christchurch, Pukaki, Glenorchy, Te Anau and Milford, Wanaka, Fox Glacier and Arthur's Pass in our 10-day South Island itinerary.
• Entry: most visitors need an NZeTA plus the NZ$100 IVL levy before flying; see do I need a visa for New Zealand.
• Licence: an English-language licence is enough to drive; see do you need an International Driving Permit.
• Car or ship: why we self-drove rather than cruised is in cruise vs campervan in New Zealand.
Yes, for a full loop. We spent 23 days driving from Christchurch to Lake Pukaki, Glenorchy, Te Anau and Milford Sound, Wanaka, Fox Glacier and Arthur's Pass and back, with two to three nights at the main stops.
The DOC campsites along the road include Cascade Creek, 71 km from Te Anau at Lake Gunn, and Henry Creek, about 23 km from Te Anau. Both need a booking all year. There is no fuel after Te Anau.
About 120 km. DOC says allow at least 2 hours 15 minutes of driving without stops, plus up to 20 minutes at the Homer Tunnel lights in summer.
About 260 km over the Haast Pass: roughly 2 to 2.5 hours to Haast and another 1.5 hours to Fox Glacier, without stops. Check NZTA for SH6 closures first.
Yes. It is late summer, after the school holidays, with long days and the most settled weather of the year on passes like Arthur's Pass. Fiordland and the West Coast stay wet in any month.
Get our new New Zealand guides and practical tips by email: where to stay, what to eat, what things cost and the rules that catch travelers out.
Free. No spam, only new guides and tips.
Entry rules change, and they depend on your nationality — always confirm the current requirements on the official government site before you book or apply. Only use official government (.gov) portals; ignore look-alike agency sites.
Search verified local fleets with low security deposits and exact model delivery on Localrent.
Get the best deals on New Zealand hotels before they're gone — see Booking.com.
