Wild Trails of New Zealand
5 Good Reasons To Do This Trip!
This is your chance to trek some of New Zealand’s best-loved routes without being Bear Grylls.
Your Guess where I am selfies will have everyone thinking Switzerland or the Dolomites. High peaks, lakes, waterfalls – easy guess. Watch their reactions as they find out you’re exploring your own backyard.
We think your whole Camino tribe will say yes to the sauna by Lake Hāwea. But the cold sponge that follows is only for the brave. Which is, again, your whole crew, so swimwear at the ready!
A round of high-fives waits for you at the Gillespie Pass at 1,490 metres. The views from the top will have you wondering why you ever doubted yourself.
There’s something about moving through remote places together that’ll turn you into a team. Don’t be surprised if your breaks are full of chats, song and a dance here and there!
Uncover more info by clicking the tabs below!
Trip Details
| Dates | Price AUD (per person twin share) |
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$1,695 AUD
Private Supplement: +$470
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$1,695 AUD
Private Supplement: +$470
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Details
- 30 Day cooling-off period applies
- Lifetime Deposit. If you need to cancel, your deposit is transferable to other trips.
- Twin Share: we’ll match you with a roomie if you’re travelling solo.
- Private supplement available for hotel nights – 4 in total: max 3 spots
Please refer to our payment terms in the FAQs.
Trip length
8 days, 7 nights
Meeting point
Rendezvous Heritage, Queenstown, New Zealand
Departure point
Rendezvous Heritage, Queenstown, New Zealand
Group size
Maximum 11
Participation requirements
- You’re open-minded and open-hearted.
- You try to embrace the little things.
- You love adventure and the surprises that come with it.
- You are gracious to others and a team player.
Fitness
Level 5 – Strenuous Plus
To truly enjoy our Level 5 trips, and squeeze out every last drop of adventure, you’ll need an advanced level of fitness. A ‘strenuous plus’-labelled trip can include challenging treks over steep mountainous terrain and other rigorous activities. Many of the locations of Level 5 trips are remote and only reached through a hard-won journey.
You may need to prepare for a few months or weeks in advance by training with long days of walking in varying terrain and testing your physical limits. Your body and mind should be prepared for consecutive days with hours of activities that can be difficult. Another element to consider with a Level 5 trip is altitude, which can be significant.
Included
- Meals: 7 breakfasts, 6 lunches and 6 dinners
- Private vehicle transportation, speed boat
- 4 nights hotel accommodation
- 3 night mountain hut
- Sauna experience by Lake Hāwea
- A top-rated and English-speaking Tour Leader
- All listed activities and more!
Not included
- International flights
- Travel insurance (compulsory)
- Personal trekking equipment
- Late check-out at hotels
- Meals and drinks not mentioned in the itinerary
- Drinks with included lunches and dinners
- Tip kitty
- Personal expenditure
- Visa Fee
Accommodation Preview
Rendezvous Heritage Queenstown, Queenstown
Wonderland Makarora Lodge, Makarora
The Headwaters Eco Lodge, Glenorchy
DOC mountain huts
Hiking Details
Note: Distances, walking times, and elevation figures are approximate and may vary depending on route conditions, weather, and group pace.
Trip Map
Get to Know Your New Zealand Itinerary
What You'll See & Do
Day 1 – Queenstown
There’s a real risk you’ll be blown away by your arrival in Queenstown. You’ll be happy to see a friendly face waiting for you at the airport, but it’s more the extraordinary city setting we’re thinking of.
Gateway to the Southern Alps, these mountains create an ever-changing backdrop, while the calm waters of Lake Wakatipu give the town a sense of serenity.
You’ll have time to take all this in as you settle into your room. Towards evening, you’ll meet with your guide and fellow Camino Women. Get to know each other a little better over the welcome dinner.
Accommodation: Rendezvous Heritage Queenstown, Queenstown or similar
Included: Dinner
Day 2 – Queenstown to Makarora
And so the adventure begins! Lace up your hiking boots and kick off your trek with a relatively easy 3-hour hike.
First, buckle up for a glued-to-the-windows drive across the Crown Range until you reach the Lower Matukituki Valley. From here, you’ll wend your way to Diamond Lake and up Rocky Mountain to catch your first glimpses of Tititea/Mount Aspiring.
You’ll arrive tired but happy in the township of Makarora, where you’ll dine in a pub at the heart of the local community.
Accommodation: Wonderland Makarora Lodge, Makarora or similar
Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 3 – Makarora to Young Hut
A full day’s trekking means an early start as you push deeper into Tititea/Mount Aspiring National Park, home to New Zealand’s highest peak outside the Aoraki/Mount Cook region.
You’ll begin by crossing the Makarora River – cross your fingers for high water levels here, as we have some epic transportation planned. You’ll then follow the route of the Young River, which feeds into the Makarora around three kilometres above your day’s starting point. It will lead you through a valley of dense indigenous forest as the gradient gets a little tougher. You’ll then make your way to the dorm-style set-up of Young Hut for the night.
Accommodation: Young Hut, Tititea/Mount Aspiring National Park
Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 4 – Young Hut to Siberia Hut
Today is another full day of sometimes-challenging hiking.
As you continue upwards, you’ll follow the mountain path beneath the rocky east face of Mount Awful to reach an amazing backdrop of the Southern Alps. The track continues to climb steeply for now. It then reaches a rocky bluff leading to Gillespie Pass.
A round of high fives with your fellow hikers is in order, as the trickiest part of the day is over, and you begin to descend towards Siberia Hut, similar in style to last night’s Young Hut accommodation. Only four days in, and the alpine heights already feel like home!
Accommodation: Siberia Hut or camping, Tititea/Mount Aspiring National Park
Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 5 – Lake Crucible Circuit Hike
To hike or to sleep in – that is the question for you today. If you need a lie-in with a good book kind of day, you can spend the day in the Siberia Hut.
But if there’s room for an adventure, your local guide will take you for an amazing hike. Join your Camino crew for a trek along the Siberia River Valley, with stops to cross a river and take a breather on the Crucible Basin, a grass flat that’s home to beautiful alpine herb fields. Your highlight of this trek is Lake Crucible. That’s the one we had in mind when we were talking about the Swiss-like sights you’ll see on your adventure.
Accommodation: Siberia Hut or camping, Tititea/Mount Aspiring
Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
This day also offers some flexibility. It can be used as a rest day, or as a contingency day to cross the pass if weather causes delays. For example, if poor weather forces us to postpone the departure for Gillespie Pass, then Day 5 would no longer include the Lake Crucible visit, as the itinerary would shift by one day.
Day 6 – Siberia Hut to Glenorchy
Have your knees on high alert as day six sees you drop down from the Siberia Valley to the confluence of the Siberia and Wilkin rivers, passing several waterfalls and enjoying further panoramic mountain views.
Here you can put your feet up on board a roller-coaster jet boat ride (!) as it takes you downriver back to Makarora. This is your meeting point for the road transfer to Glenorchy, along the shoreline of Lake Wakatipu.
But before you get there, you’ll have the chance to enjoy a revitalising sauna in dramatic fashion on the shores of Lake Hawea. Cold plunge, anyone?
Accommodation: The Headwaters Eco Lodge, Glenorchy or similar
Included: Breakfast, Lunch
Day 7 – Glenorchy
Wind down with an easy-going morning surrounded by further snowy peaks. After a hearty breakfast, you’ll follow the path of the River Routeburn across swing bridges and through pristine habitats to Routeburn Flats Hut.
Dinner tonight is a special one, and not just because it’s the teary-goodbye one. You and your new group of hikers-turned friends will celebrate the trek over some locally grown food and a glass of wine. Cheers to the next adventure you share!
Accommodation: The Headwaters Eco Lodge, Glenorchy or similar
Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 8 – Farewell
Today’s breakfast is an opportunity to say goodbye to newly made friends before departing Glenorchy for Queenstown. Or, better said, not a goodbye, but a see you later.
Included: Breakfast
FAQs
Prior to the payment of your full balance, the final price may change if there is significant variation in the AUD:NZD exchange rate. Our trip pricing is determined by what the exchange rates are at the time of publishing the trip.
The pricing on this trip is based on an exchange rate of 1 AUD : 1.14 NZD
A 25% deposit is required to hold your spot. Payment can be made by credit card (fees apply) or bank deposit.
There is a cooling-off period of 30 days. (Applicable to all bookings made 110 days in advance. Bookings made before 1 August 2026 retain the 14-day term unless stated otherwise.)
We have implemented a ‘lifetime deposit’ guarantee. Deposits are not refundable, but they are transferable at any time, right up until the first day of the trip.
The final balance of the trip is required 120 days in advance of the departure date. Our suppliers require upfront payment well in advance to guarantee availability.
Please refer to the full terms and conditions for further information.
Australians don’t need a visa to visit New Zealand.
To truly enjoy our Level 5 trips, and squeeze out every last drop of adventure, you’ll need an advanced level of fitness. A ‘strenuous plus’-labelled trip can include challenging treks over steep mountainous terrain and other rigorous activities. Many of the locations of Level 5 trips are remote and only reached through a hard-won journey.
You may need to prepare for a few months or weeks in advance by training with long days of walking in varying terrain and testing your physical limits. Your body and mind should be prepared for consecutive days with hours of activities that can be difficult. Another element to consider with a Level 5 trip is altitude, which can be significant. The terrain is alpine in nature, featuring rocky surfaces and multiple steep sections.
Most of our trips have a tip kitty because many cultures have diverse rules when it comes to tips. We’ve found it to be the easiest way to combat over-tipping, under-tipping or having the tip fall into the wrong hands. Our goal is for guests to relax and know that the complexities of tipping are taken care of, on their behalf.
We’ll be updating this section with the tipping amount and how it’s distributed, soon.
Summer (December–February) is the best time to hike in areas, with daytime temperatures in the valleys typically ranging between 15–25°C. Higher elevations are noticeably cooler, and weather conditions can change rapidly. Rain and strong winds are common even in summer, and occasional snow may linger on high passes. You should be prepared for variable alpine weather and high UV levels on clear days.
During the trek, we mostly stay in small local hotels and mountain huts. The hotels are comfortable 3-star stays with cozy, welcoming vibes — perfect for a good night’s sleep after a long day on the trail.
The mountain huts are simple, rustic, dormitory-style accommodations run by the Department of Conservation. Room allocation happens on arrival, so you might be sharing with fellow hikers who aren’t part of your group — new trail friends included 😉
On rare occasions, if a hut is fully booked, accommodation may be in nearby tent sites. It’s all part of the adventure and very much in the spirit of mountain trekking.
Most of our guests arrive at least a day early to settle in from jet-lag. If you’d like, we can book extra nights of accommodation for you at the Start Hotel for pre-trip, and at the End Hotel for post-trip, based on your flight arrival/departure dates & times.
We will share detailed luggage information for this trip soon.
The most convenient departure airport is Queenstown. Both transfers – on arrival and on departure are included in your price.
The local currency in New Zealand is the New Zealand dollar.
In the unlikely event of a health or security related incident during a trip, we’ve engaged a local partner to assist. From our experience, there is not one framework that fits all, and every incident is unique and requires a different approach. With all trips, your guides are your day-to-day support. While behind the scenes, there is an active line of communication – between your guide, the on-ground support team, and Australian Ops.
