Waikato → Southland & Fiordland
Set out from Ngaruawahia towards Te Anau and the landscape starts telling its own story well before you arrive.
Te Anau sits in Southland & Fiordland — Fiordland's sheer walls of rock and water, plus the wide green south. Travel privately with a local driver-guide and the day becomes yours: stop for the view, take the short walk, and let someone else handle the wheel.
Southland & Fiordland
A taste of what a day around Te Anau can hold.
Around Southland & Fiordland you'll find the fiords, waterfalls and sheer cliffs of Milford and Doubtful Sound. Ask your guide about wildlife spotting — it's the kind of thing that turns a transfer into a day you remember.
Around Southland & Fiordland you'll find Great Walk trailheads and beech forest. Ask your guide about kayaking — it's the kind of thing that turns a transfer into a day you remember.
Around Southland & Fiordland you'll find big skies over southern farmland. Ask your guide about Great Walk day hikes — it's the kind of thing that turns a transfer into a day you remember.
Around Southland & Fiordland you'll find a rugged southern coast facing Antarctica. Ask your guide about fiord cruising — it's the kind of thing that turns a transfer into a day you remember.
Ways to travel between Ngaruawahia and Te Anau.
A big day out with your own guide — viewpoints, short walks and the landmarks that pull people to the South Island in the first place.
Move between towns the slow way, stopping at lake edges, passes and lookouts that most travellers drive straight past.
Guided time on foot, from gentle lakeside strolls to a genuine day walk, matched to your fitness and the conditions.
String several highlights together in one private vehicle, with the flexibility to linger where it's worth lingering.
Premium vehicle, a hand-picked guide and a day shaped around cellar doors, private walks and quiet corners.
Starting in Ngaruawahia puts you on the doorstep of Waikato, so you can layer a local highlight into the start or end of the day.
Your driver-guide is a local. They know which lookout is clear in the morning, which café is worth the stop and which short walk is worth the shoes.
The road between Ngaruawahia and Te Anau threads through the kind of country people fly across the world to see — Fiordland's sheer walls of rock and water, plus the wide green south.
Make the most of both ends of your journey.
Before you set out, Ngaruawahia is a good place to slow down — Waikato is known for limestone caves lit by glowworms and small-town cafés and country gardens.
Once you arrive, Te Anau opens up fiord cruising, Great Walk day hikes and kayaking in and around the wider Southland & Fiordland area.
Tell us what you'd like to do and we'll come back with a private itinerary and a clear quote.
