Become totally absorbed in the remoteness and beauty of Fiordland on a six-night adventure on board the luxurious ‘Heritage Explorer.’
Enjoy exploring coves, islands, beaches and bush with names hitherto unknown with opportunities to walk, kayak and throw out a casual fishing line or use the latest in fishing technology.
Spend the first night in Te Anau, before we travel to Lake Manapouri for a cruise, where a coach will meet you travel over Wilmot Pass to Deep Cove.
For the next seven days you will be surrounded by the rugged beauty and wildlife of this untouched corner of New Zealand. The surrounding Fiords are havens for marine and bird life and the opportunity to step ashore and explore the remains of early settlements are numerous.
The journey concludes in the Preservation inlet with a spectacular helicopter flight to Te Anau. Overnight before returning to Queenstown and a flight home.
Option to extend your stay in Queenstown are available.
Depart Auckland on a morning flight direct to Queenstown. Transfer by coach to the lakeside town of Te Anau for an overnight stay. Enjoy a Welcome Dinner at the hotel.
After breakfast Coach to Lake Manapouri then cruise across the lake where a coach will meet you travel over Wilmot Pass to Deep Cove. Embark on the ‘Heritage Explorer’ at Deep Cove.
Head north through Breaksea and travel along the coast to Doubtful Sound. The deepest of all the Sounds that has a special cloistered serenity. Keep your eyes peeled for New Zealand fur seals and Fiordland Crested Penguins.
Highlights will include
• Luncheon Cove where we walk around predator-free Anchor Island a bird sanctuary near the mouth of the fiord.
Anchor Point, where Captain Cook anchored HMS Resolution in 1773.
• Pigeon Island where we walk up the DOC pathway to visit the site of the home of New Zealand’s first conservationist, Richard Henry. Here there is also an incredible viewpoint towards the entrance of Dusky Sound.
• We then cruise through the narrow channels of the Little Harbour to The Basin where you can go kayaking or explore Resolution Island on foot.
• During the cruise the ROV (underwater remote controlled camera) will be launched to view the unique black coral.
• At Krisbee Bay view abandoned saw-milling boilers.
• At Te Oneroa Beach hike inland to the remnants of mining, an aerial cableway and
the sight of the first whaling station in the South Island.
•Puysegur Point where we land at the old oil store (now a DOC hut) and walk to the most isolated lighthouse in New Zealand.
• Cascade basin a magnificent waterfall that plunges into Long Sound.
We cruise around the inlets, and may do activities such as:
View the rusting hulk of the wreck “Stella”, a steamship that purposely ran aground in the 1800s after damaging itself on a reef.
• Walk on the beach at South Port Cove and visit McCallum’s sawmill boiler.
• Walk up to Lake Cadman, via the falls in Lake Cove at the head of Edwardson Sound
After breakfast disembark the ‘Heritage Explorer’. Take a spectacular helicopter flight to Te Anau. Afternoon at leisure before your Farewell Dinner tonight.
After breakfast coach to Queenstown airport for your early afternoon flight to Auckland or extend your stay in Queenstown
•Return flights from Auckland to Queenstown (Other centres on request)
•Return coach transfers Queenstown to Te Anau
•Two nights’ accommodation in Te Anau including breakfast and dinner
•Transfers as specified
•Return ferry shuttle across Lake Manapouri
•Six nights’ accommodation on board the ‘Heritage Explorer’
•All meals and tea and coffee while on board Heritage Explorer
•House drinks onboard
•Landings and guided walks
•Visits to historic sites and abandoned settlements
•Tender craft and kayaks for exploring the coastline
•Helicopter flight from Preservation Inlet to Te Anau.
•Expedition Leader onboard
• Pukekohe Travel escort subject to 15 passengers travelling
Cost Per Person * Auckland - Auckland | Twin Share | Single |
---|---|---|
Royal Suite | $8,533 | NA |
Salvin’s Stateroom | $7,721 | $12,931 |
Buller’s Stateroom (Bunk) | $7,221 | $11,931 |
Wandering Stateroom (Single) | N/A | $8,999 |
*This is a cash or cheque price. Credit cards will incur a 2% fee
*Itinerary and costs subject to change, airline and fuel charges and currency fluctuations prior to final payment
• Travel Insurance –Please ask us for a quote
• Items of a personal nature
• A non-refundable deposit of $1,000 per person will secure a place on this tour
• Full payment is due no later than 10 September 2021
• Bookings made after 10 September 2021 will require full payment
• Deposit – non refundable
• After 10 September 2021 – no refund
• All cancellation charges are on a per-person basis
We strongly advise all participants take out suitable travel Insurance to cover cancellation costs. Please ask for a quote.
• Please note there is NO cell phone coverage during the cruise
• It is required that you bring hiking boots or gumboots which are ideal for stomping around the beaches and bush
• Slippers / house shoes are ideal on-board
To ensure the tour is enjoyable for you, a reasonable standard of fitness and mobility is required, as climbing on and off the various boats and the helicopter can be demanding. Also walking on shore is in gumboots or hiking boots and on muddy tracks.
The ‘Heritage Explorer’
The state-of-the-art technology provides a comfortable expedition ship with high performance dual Scania 653 horsepower engines capable of 10 knots, bow thrusters, fin stabilisers, full air-conditioning, sound attenuated twin generators and a hydraulic aft ramp, while a comprehensive navigation package ensures the ultimate Kiwi adventure awaits all guests.
Vessel Type: Expedition Yacht
Expedition Staff & Crew: 5
Guests: 18
Cabins: 10
Length: 30m
Breadth: 7.8m
Draft: 1.93m
Gross Tonnage: 76.1gt
Engine: 653 horsepower
Cruising Speed: 10 knots
Tenders: 2
Note:
Pukekohe Travel reserves the right to correct errors and omissions on our website without recourse.
* Itinerary subject to change