Why I Love This Trip: Hiking New Zealand’s South Island

By: Jeremy Martin

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July 9, 2019 | Adventure Experts

Hiking New Zealand’s South Island is a specially crafted 13-day itinerary from the artsy outdoorsy city of Nelson, at the top, to the adrenaline capital of the world, Queenstown, at the bottom. Along the way, you’ll get to know five national parks, from the golden sands and coastal forest of Abel Tasman, to Te Wahipounamu (the South West New Zealand World Heritage Area), one of the world’s great wildernesses; an impossibly beautiful meeting of water, mountains, rainforest and ice. Being born and bred in the South Island, this itinerary takes me through some of my old stomping grounds, where I’ve worked and played, and where I dream about when I’m away travelling.

The variety is amazing; thermal pools in the alpine resort town of Hanmer Springs, jet-boating into the heart of Te Wahipounamu on the remarkable and remote Waiatoto River, and hiking the Queen Charlotte Track in the footsteps of Captain Cook.

We’ll also hike parts of New Zealand’s world famous network of “Great Walks”, whale watch in Kaikoura, get to know our wonderfully rich indigenous Maori culture, and even find time to sample some of Marlborough’s famous wine at a local vineyard. And that’s just a fraction of it!

I’m leading the January 20th and March 2nd departures of Hiking New Zealand’s South Island in 2020. It’s going to be incredible and I’d love to see you here!

About Jeremy Martin

Jeremy is MT Sobek’s top New Zealand guide and his love for New Zealand’s wild places comes from a lifetime spent roaming its national parks. For the last 15 years, he has worked as an adventure guide in New Zealand and around the world. When he’s not guiding for MT Sobek, he’s studying for a degree in Environmental Studies, examining maps, planning adventures, and working with school groups near his home in the beautiful Marlborough Sounds in the South Island.