Recently Viewed
Arthur's Pass Tour: Southern Alps Adventure
4.4
64 Ratings
Christchurch
Experience the breathtaking beauty of Arthurs Pass in New Zealand on a full-day tour. Travel on the Great Alpine Highway, visit stunning waterfalls, and explore famous filming locations.
Experience the breathtaking beauty of Arthurs Pass in New Zealand on a full-day tour. Travel on the Great Alpine Highway, visit stunning waterfalls, and explore famous filming locations.
Duration:
10 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Waimakariri River - As the journey progresses through the Selwyn District, Springfield will welcome you, where a turn towards the team at Alpine Jet Thrills awaits. Enjoy walks, views of the Waimakariri River, and the delightful experience of sheep cuddles. Seeking more excitement? Opt for a 30-minute exhilarating jet boat ride on one of the…
- Waimakariri River - As the journey progresses through the Selwyn District, Springfield will welcome you, where a turn towards the team at Alpine Jet Thrills awaits. Enjoy walks, views of the Waimakariri River, and the delightful experience of sheep cuddles. Seeking more excitement? Opt for a 30-minute exhilarating jet boat ride on one of the region’s renowned rivers (additional booking required).
- Lake Lyndon - Make a quick stop for photos at Lake Lyndon (Te Hāpua Waikawa), situated at the base of Porters Pass. Known for its chilly alpine waters, it offers stunning reflections of the surrounding peaks.
- Castle Hill - Discover Castle Hill (Kura Tāwhiti), a quintessential Canterbury landmark. These ancient limestone formations inspired Middle Earth™ and nearby Flock Hill served as a filming site for The Chronicles of Narnia. Explore the magnificent boulders at your leisure—this is a self-guided adventure.
- Lake Pearson - Visit Ōpōrea (Lake Pearson), the largest of three mountain lakes on the pass. This scenic glacial lake provides breathtaking mirror reflections and holds historical significance as a mahinga kai site for the Ngāi Tahu iwi.
- Otira Viaduct Lookout - Marvel at the 440-meter Otira Viaduct spanning the Otira Gorge—a remarkable engineering achievement. Look out for the playful Keas, New Zealand’s only alpine parrot and one of the world’s most intelligent birds.
-
Arthur’s Pass National Park - Immerse yourself in the grandeur of the Southern Alps at an elevation of 740 meters.
Choose your adventure: - Devils Punchbowl Walking Track: A 1-hour return walk through native beech forest to a 131-meter waterfall
-
Village Exploration: Enjoy coffee, shops, and the DOC visitor center
Your guide will recommend the best activity based on weather and timing. - Devils Punchbowl Walking Track - This walking track takes approximately 1 hour, with a gentle incline (including steps) leading to a spectacular 131-meter tall waterfall. The fitness level required is low to moderate as you traverse through the bush and native beech forest.
Please note that your guide will inform you of the available time and assist in selecting the best activity based on weather and schedule.
- TranzAlpine: Scenic Train Christchurch - Greymouth - The highlight of your tour! Board the world-renowned TranzAlpine for your return trip. Head to the open-air viewing carriage for breathtaking views of braided rivers, high-country sheep stations, and dramatic horseshoe bends. Witness the landscape transition from rugged alpine terrain back through beech forests to the Canterbury Plains. Sit back, relax, and reflect on an extraordinary day.
Note: The train is scheduled to arrive in Christchurch at 7:00 PM, but delays may occur. If you have onward travel plans, it is advisable to allow extra time to ensure you have sufficient time for any connections. TranzAlpine bookings are managed by Great Journeys New Zealand, who cannot be held accountable for missed connections due to train delays.
- Christchurch - Your guide will be waiting at Christchurch Railway Station to transport you back to your original pickup location in our Mercedes Sprinter.
What's Included
- Expert Kiwi guide with live commentary (English)
- Free WiFi, USB charging and bottled water ports onboard
- TranzAlpine train ticket (Arthur’s Pass to Christchurch)
- Lunch and kiwi snacks
- Hotel pickup and drop-off from 16 central Christchurch locations
- Premium Mercedes Sprinter transport with air conditioning
- Small-group tour for personalized…
- Expert Kiwi guide with live commentary (English)
- Free WiFi, USB charging and bottled water ports onboard
- TranzAlpine train ticket (Arthur’s Pass to Christchurch)
- Lunch and kiwi snacks
- Hotel pickup and drop-off from 16 central Christchurch locations
- Premium Mercedes Sprinter transport with air conditioning
- Small-group tour for personalized attention
- 100% carbon-neutral tour—all emissions offset
What's Not Included
- Jet boat experience at Alpine Jet Thrills (optional on the day)
- Jet boat experience at Alpine Jet Thrills (optional on the day)
Additional Information
Experience the stunning beauty of the Southern Alps on an Arthur’s Pass day tour departing from Christchurch. Enjoy a luxurious journey through Canterbury’s alpine region, followed by a return trip on the renowned TranzAlpine train—celebrated as one of the most magnificent rail experiences globally.
Accompanied by a knowledgeable Kiwi guide, delve into…
Experience the stunning beauty of the Southern Alps on an Arthur’s Pass day tour departing from Christchurch. Enjoy a luxurious journey through Canterbury’s alpine region, followed by a return trip on the renowned TranzAlpine train—celebrated as one of the most magnificent rail experiences globally.
Accompanied by a knowledgeable Kiwi guide, delve into Māori history and stories as you traverse Canterbury’s braided rivers. Pause at Waimakariri Gorge for scenic riverside walks and an optional thrilling jet boat ride.
Discover the enchanting limestone formations of Castle Hill, which inspired Middle Earth, and visit picturesque alpine lakes such as Lake Pearson and Lake Lyndon. Don’t miss the Otira Viaduct Lookout and keep an eye out for the Kea, New Zealand’s unique alpine parrot.
In Arthur’s Pass Village, choose to hike the Devils Punchbowl Track to a breathtaking 154-meter waterfall or explore the charming village shops. The highlight of your adventure is the return journey on the TranzAlpine train, featuring open-air viewing carriages.
Travel in a carbon-neutral, premium Mercedes Sprinter, and enjoy a delicious included lunch and expert guidance with your small group. Proudly 100% Kiwi-owned.
Location
Bus Interchange (Intercity stop)
We only pick up from locations we have been notified of. Please make sure you let us know your pick up location will be the bus interchange. Please be waiting at the Intercity Bus Stop on Lichfield Street. It is recommended that you arrive 5 minutes prior to your pick up time.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.4
(64 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Helen_y
Sep 17, 2025
It was a long drive but... - It was a long drive but it was very scenic and we made stops along the way to Arthur’s Pass. Our tour guide was very informative so I learned a lot during the drive. The snacks and lunch was good and fresh.
Review provided by Viator
Happiness16941288363
Aug 30, 2025
Christchurch to Arthur Pass and return by Tranzalpine train - It was an amazing trip with a small group, offering plenty of photo opportunities, and the documentary was top-notch.
The only recommendation I would like to make is regarding the pickup time. If clients are being picked up around 7:45 a.m., there should be a stop for coffee and breakfast before heading to Springfield. The current café there isn’t suitable for breakfast. We ended up missing breakfast that day, as we had hoped there would be a proper stop.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lisapm3507vw
Aug 28, 2025
Beautiful excursion to Arthur's Pass - Great experience! Jess is an excellent guide and driver! Unfortunately we experienced some rain and wind (limiting our hikes), but it was winter so you never know. Nonetheless, Jess made the trip very interesting and fun. The experience is wonderful to see the diversity of mountains and farmlands of New Zealand heading west to Arthur's Pass. The train ride back (as some have noted issues with light) was at 4:30 pm and just incredible. There was still plenty of sun to see the beautiful scenery. For sure, select the train option. Also, we hit the alpine jet ski experience at a perfect sunny time, so that was well worth it. Be prepared to get a bit wet (not awful) but bring a rain poncho and it is a bit fast, but great fun and quite beautiful. Also, be prepared that this experience costs an additional $125, which should probably be noted more clearly in the description. However, everything else was great, nice to have snacks and lunch along the way. It was a relatively small group (10 people) so we were able to ask questions and be a bit flexible on how much time we spent at each location.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Margarita_e
Aug 21, 2025
Stunning Views - Amazing tour of the beautiful mountains. Feeding the sheep was the highlight of the tour. We were lucky enough to have it snow on us, which is very rare where we were. Jess was great in taking us to beautiful picture spots. The train views were breathtaking.
Review provided by Viator
Anne_k
Aug 10, 2025
Fantastic tour! - This was a fantastic tour, I thoroughly enjoyed it! Phil, our guide, was very knowledgeable, had a great sense of humour and was great at answering random questions when asked. The stops were all very scenic, we were lucky enough to have lots of snow on the mountains and it snowed while we were there too. Absolutely beautiful scenery, the right balance of time on transport and getting out and walking. We had a good amount of time to hike at Arthur's pass which was very much appreciated. The TranzAlpine train back was also worth doing though may be better later in the year as it became dark on the journey down, but not til we were out of the Alps so we still got to see the stunning scenery.
I highly recommend this tour
Review provided by Viator
Ash
Jul 18, 2025
Fantastic day trip and bus tour - Train was good but gets dark quickly. Best tour option for Summer. - We had Jacob as our guide and he was great, super authentic and very knowledgeable.
The bus ride locations were fantastic stopping at all the best photo locations and some good bakeries.
The jet boat location was awesome for me as I paid the extra $125 on top of the tour to go on the jet boat up the river. But this was awesome and the couple who own the business were so nice and you learn a lot here as well. If you don’t go on the jet boat you just chill for about an hour while you wait for the boat to get back. You can feed the sheep for $1 of food and look through a museum while you wait.
Ending in Arthur’s Pass was good, a very cute little town with two cafe and a walk to a waterfall or can wait around until the train leaves.
Getting the train home would have been way better out of daylight savings. But we still got about an hour of light on the train and got some great views on the view platforms. It was still another 1.5-2 hours of dark on the train. So if you went a different time of year (we went July) would be way better.
Overall great experience though.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Michelle_g
Jul 17, 2025
The whole experience was... - The whole experience was great. John the driver was very friendly and knowledgeable. Would recommend to anyone thinking about going.
Review provided by Viator
Suminda_w
Jul 17, 2025
Worth visiting - This is an extraordinary fascinating adventure. Mr John is well responsible, wonderful gentlemen. He is very kind,knowledgeable and does know well what he does .He is ready to help beyond the limits. Climbing up to the water fall is unforgettable experience.
Review provided by Viator
Mv03790
Jul 8, 2025
Beautiful scenery and a relaxing day - We went on this tour in winter and really enjoyed it. The views were beautiful, and the day was well-organised. The train ride was smooth and scenic. Just a heads-up for winter travellers: it gets dark earlier, so we missed some of the views on the way back. One of the highlights was stopping at the giant rock formations at Castle Hill. It was such a unique and peaceful place to walk around. Our guide was great and shared interesting facts along the way, which made the trip even more enjoyable. The snowy hills, rivers, and stunning mountain views made the entire experience feel truly special. It was a relaxing change of pace and a great way to see more of New Zealand.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Marieci447lp
Jul 9, 2025
Be prepared for a Scenic Train ride in darkness! - Jess, our tour guide was awesome, bubbly and friendly with great local knowledge. I was extremely disappointed with the train journey back to Christchurch in the dark, I had been looking forward to a scenic train journey as per advertised photo and hadn't read the fine print. Don't understand why the operator put it in the fine print which resulted in dissapointed customers. I wasn't the only one that felt deceived. Regret not selecting the other tour company that starts you off in the train and returns by bus. Unfortunately I only found this out the following day.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
More activities from this operator
