Great New Rail Journeys in New Zealand

Discover – or renew – your love of train travel, and take advantage of one of the most sustainable forms of travel to explore in depth a destination renowned for its eco-sensibilities and spectacular scenery.

 

Great Journeys of New Zealand, part of the country’s KiwiRail, has designed new rail tours allowing visitors to step off the beaten ‘track’ and explore both of the country’s two islands through activities, excursions, culinary immersion and scenic vistas you can only see by train.  

 

You can choose a multi-day package that combines the rail journeys and fully guided tours with themes like wine or wildlife. The multi-day tours include pre-planned accommodation and allow you to seamlessly immerse yourself in the best of the country’s different regions.

 

Each package provides a unique experience, including views of the volcanic peaks of Middle Earth to sighting the mystical Blue Lake in New Zealand's Southern Alps, immersive wine tastings in Marlborough wine region, and whale, dolphin, and albatross encounters.

 

Staying in small towns and dazzling cities, participating in world-famous activities and charming local attractions, Great Journeys of New Zealand showcases the best of New Zealand, beyond the beaten track, including highlights only possible by train.

 

In addition to a lower carbon footprint than air travel, especially on short-haul trips, train journeys offer other benefits, including faster boarding, more space and legroom and views of New Zealand’s mountains, glaciers, fjords vineyards, beaches, and rainforests throughout your journeys.

 

Scenic train routes that are the core of the multi-day tours include:

 

The Northern Explorer is a 12-hour train trip between New Zealand’s biggest city, Auckland, and its capital, Wellington, in the North Island. 

 

 

Through the quaint farmsteads and river valleys of King Country and Rangitikei, across the vast plains of Waikato and Manawatu, beneath the imposing peaks of Ruapehu and Tongariro; the Northern Explorer journeys through the heart of the North Island providing incredible views of New Zealand's scenic diversity in a single day-long adventure.

 

This picturesque six-hour journey travels the Pacific – or east - coast of the South Island between Picton in the north and Christchurch in the south, offering incredible views of the Kaikōura Ranges on one side and the swells of the Pacific Ocean on the other (pictured, top). 

 

 

Guests travel through New Zealand’s biggest and most famous wine region of Marlborough, pass the salt fields of Lake Grassmere (where the waters turn pink in the summer heat), and on to the coastal settlement of Kaikōura – famous for its seafood and whale watching. 

 

You can look out for the sperm whales that visit Kaikōura year-round, or spot orca over the summer, and humpback whales in the winter months of June and July. Keep a watch for seals and penguins along the rocky coastline too. This journey also navigates the patchwork of the Canterbury Plains, crisscrossed by vast braided rivers.

 

The TranzAlpine is regarded as one of the world’s greatest train trips, as it travels coast to coast nearly 150 miles across New Zealand’s South Island’s stunning Southern Alps. 

 

 

The five-hour journey – with the option of an open-air viewing carriage! - runs between the city of Christchurch in the east, to the river town of Greymouth on the rugged West Coast. Highlights include an ascent into the Southern Alps, traveling through stunning Arthur’s Pass National Park and the Otira tunnel, as well as traversing breath-taking bridges and viaducts, seeing the snow-capped mountains, lakes, braided rivers, and diverse forest landscapes.